23 – Another Encounter

After burying the four wind crystals wrapped in cloth, Alan used his ground manipulation to make the digging marks not noticeable. He kept one of the crystals for the propeller and another for sale. Before leaving, he also gave one to Paul. Maybe that man needed it.

He opened the blueprint Elaine gave him, then took a deep breath. The pictures and writing on the big paper were so ugly they looked more like codes that had to be deciphered.

This is a tough obstacle, even though Alan wants to immediately go to the nearest town to resupply.

Brunch can't push the land all day long. He also needs rest from time to time.

The wyvern let out a shriek, then flew away. It is a sign that she wants to relieve herself or hunt.

Alan closed that blueprint. It's been three days since they left that wind village, but they have not progressed much. Some of the monsters they encountered were also low-class, not sufficient to gather experience.

The sound of water gushing out from the wooden stall that Alan and Celia had just finished building. Above that is a barrel holding water with a hole at the bottom.

Being able to bathe in privacy under these circumstances, Celia must really appreciate it.

"La…. La… Laa…. Hmmm..." The female fighter hummed in a melodious voice, making Alan a little surprised. He didn't expect a girl with a slightly crazy personality like Celia to be able to sing.

Even though Alan didn't know the song, he could immediately enjoy it. This is a sign that Celia is talented at it.

"Hey, you!!!" Someone called out to Alan from rubble some distance away. "Can I go there!?"

Alan narrowed his eyes and looked at the text above that short-haired woman.

[Bonnie_Divier]

She is a player.

A quiver on that girl's back was a sign that she was an archer. If she wanted to attack, she should have done it already. There was no need to shout at Alan.

"Sure!" The young man replied, and the girl jumped from one ruin to another to approach Alan's land.

"Call me Bonnie." She stretched out her hand as soon as she reached Alan. A wide, friendly smile graced her face.

"Al," Alan answered while shaking that hand. But this doesn't mean he can relax. The young man felt something was wrong.

"I'm so happy that I can finally meet another player." Bonnie sighed. "Since logging in on the first day of the beta test, I had to survive on my own, and that was really hard."

"So, you are also trapped here? Do you know what really happened? Why can't we log out?"

"Well, I'm as clueless as you are…" Bonnie frowned. "What is it? What are you looking for?"

"Nothing." Alan looked around while taking a few steps back. His left hand went into the pocket of his robe. "Are you really alone?"

"O-of course." Bonnie Gulped. "Hey, I can show you a water source…"

Suddenly a man climbed that land from the edge and quickly approached the bathroom. Alan took an earthen needle from his robe pocket, then fired that thing using his staff.

As soon as the small projectile hit his neck, the man collapsed, falling from Alan's land. And before Bonnie could react, Alan pointed his staff at that girl's neck.

"Shut up and don't move, or you will suffer the same fate as your friend." Alan uses a low tone but is full of emphasis. "Do you understand?"

The woman nodded. Her body started to shake, and her eyes were shedding tears.

It was that man who had been lurking earlier that had made Alan feel uneasy. With his ground detection skill, the young man could feel someone crawling under the land, then appeared from one of the outskirts.

"Open your bag." Alan brought the tip of his staff closer to that girl.

Celia was still singing, apparently not knowing what was going on.

Bonnie opened her bag and spoke in a hoarse voice. "Take all of these if you want. Please spare me. I don't want to die."

"Those ready-to-eat food is more than you should get when you first log in. Moreover, you've been in this world for a few days. You should have eaten them already." Alan gave her a sharp look. "My question is, how many players have you killed to get those foods?"

The shaking in Bonnie's body was getting out of control. "They gave it to me…."

"You're lying." The young man hissed. "On which day do you kill other users to get their food? Please answer honestly. I will not hesitate to push you off this land using my magic."

It took a moment for Bonnie to answer. "On the first day, when I knew I could die in this world, I decided to take food from them…. B-but now I really regret it…."

"How many times have you and your friend killed people?" Alan interrupted.

"That…" That girl closed her eyes. "Four…. Maybe…"

The veins on Alan's face tensed. "When you first knew that you had to survive in this world, your first thought was to kill to steal their food? When you met the others, you also immediately killed them? You don't think maybe you and your friend can work together to find resources?"

Bonnie couldn't speak anymore and chose to avert her eyes.

"You know what?" Alan whispered so close to Bonnie's face, simultaneously removing that girl's bag from her waist. "I don't think any world needs people like you and your friend."

Without thinking much, Alan kicked that girl in the stomach, forcing her to roll to the edge of the land. Just as she was about to stand up, Alan shot his ground projectile into her chest, pushing that woman even more.

"Arggghhh!!!" Then, she fell off the ground like her friend.

Alan caught his breath which was starting to go wild, looking at the spot where Bonnie had been. Then, he turned around only to find Celia had already come out of the bathroom stall. She only covered her wet body with a cloth and widened her eyes at Alan.

"What did you do just now, Al?" The young lady hissed in disbelief.