Chương 6

I got out of the room and walked slowly along the hall towards the longhouse entrance. Whispered conversations and panicked breathing could be heard from behind some doors, while the hum of conversation from outside got louder with each step. I reached the entrance and stopped. A lot more people here now. When I got here earlier, there were fewer than twenty people here. Now I could easily see more than a hundred spread out in different groups, while even more people kept trickling in from all directions.

How is everyone finding this place in a presumably huge forest? Is the System subtly guiding everyone or am I missing something? Another thing that stood out was the variety in people's clothing now. A few were wearing what looked like robes, some had light jackets on, while some had what looked like leather armour. Must be the ones that have picked Classes. I stepped away from the longhouse but didn't join any group yet, content to observe for now.

I've always preferred to be alone, even though I'm quite adept at handling social situations. My eyes passed through the different groups. Some groups were small, having three to five people, while others were considerably larger with more than 20 members. Then there were people like me, hanging back alone or with just one other companion. No matter which way I looked though, the underlying tension was ever-present. Crossed arms, tightened jaws, and panicked eyes told the story unfolding clearly.

More than a hundred frightened strangers packed together with no information. One wrong sentence could turn this place ugly fast. There was something else that was gnawing at the back of my mind, but I just couldn't quite place it. I kept scanning the crowd before it clicked. There are neither children nor older people here! Almost everyone here looked like an adult. A few seemed to be in their forties, while a couple looked young enough to still be teenagers… or maybe they just had youthful faces.

A chill ran down my spine at my next thought. Is that because no children or older people have made it out of the forest yet? But that didn't make complete sense either. Surely at least a few children or elderly people should have made it here by now. Either they are in the longhouses, or they are not included in this tutorial. I hope it's the latter. Perhaps I'll see Mom and Dad after all. Putting these thoughts to the side for now, my eyes focused in on the largest group near the center.

This group had at least fifty people arranged in a loose circle, with Lucas right in the middle. He always loved the spotlight. I moved closer to the group as the jumbled mass of noise became clearer.

"… which is why it can wait." A voice said.

"We need to focus on food and water first." Didn't even think of food and water. I was too focused on the System messages. Tonight is going to be tough – empty stomachs, dry mouths, hard floors underneath, and a completely unknown environment, everything needed for a terrible night's sleep.

"Exactly." Agreed Lucas.

"Natalie, we'll work on understanding the System but we have to focus on the immediate needs first. We have no food, no water, and no information on where we are. We should prioritize these while slowly building our understanding of the System." Murmurs of agreement sounded out from almost everyone, while a woman, presumably Natalie, slowly muttered "I just don't want anyone to make avoidable mistakes." She must be the one who picked the wrong Class earlier.

"Natalie makes a good point too." A new voice joined in, belonging to a tall, athletic, fair-skinned woman.

"Everyone who makes informed decisions can be an asset who contributes here, while people making mistakes can lead to liabilities or dead-weights. We should split ourselves into different groups – one can scout around for water, one can look for food, while one can focus on gathering information about the System." She stated with the calm poise of someone used to being listened to. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. I observed her closer.

Her eyes were determined, with no trace of panic. Her stance was relaxed but she looked ready to defend her point, like someone convinced her way was correct. She looks quite sharp for someone so young. Some competition for Lucas? I chuckled internally.

"Exactly, Sara. That's what I was thinking too" said Lucas.

"My idea was to split people according to their stats and classes. Something like people with high perception and the Ranger or even Rogue Classes can be grouped for Scouting. We can add a few Warriors and Support classes with them to have the best chances of success." He continued animatedly, completely in his element.

"Scouting will also allow us to look for other people, and hopefully we can find some family members of people here." Smart! Giving people some hope will get everyone to work together easier. More than a few people subconsciously stood up straighter at that comment, their gazes sharpened and they looked more ready to go to work than just a few seconds earlier.

"Whereas the people with high Intelligence and Wisdom can start gathering information about everything related to the System from everyone here and combining it in one place. I know we aren't aware yet of exactly what these stats do, but splitting groups this way makes the most sense to me." Lucas finished.

"I agree for the most part, but I think we should have representations of all Classes in each group, just in case someone with specific skills is needed for a situation. We can change groups later if needed." Sara pitched in.

"Good idea. Anyone else have anything to add?" asked Lucas while looking around. His eyes finally found mine as he paused for half a second, gave me a slight grin, then continued looking at everyone else. Immediately I felt someone watching me and saw that Sara was staring straight at me. She noticed that instantly, very observant!

"Great! Then let's pass on this message to everyone else and meet back here in about thirty minutes with our groups." Lucas stated, starting to head towards me. Everyone started breaking up, but I noticed the eyes of the more observant amongst the crowd lingered on me for a few seconds. Being friends with the 'leader' sure gets you noticed.

"Hey, you done with the walkthrough?" asked Lucas as soon as he was within earshot.

"Yup. Good job on handling that crowd, I knew Mr. Popular would be a hit here." I joked. Lucas rubbed the back of his head and gave a slight chuckle, "Yeah but things are really messy. I'm going to need your help to figure things out, you're the one with the brains after all."

"Sure, you can count on me." I said, and I meant it. Having someone like Lucas by my side has always been helpful to me, plus I know I can trust him, which is huge here. He visibly relaxed a bit at my reassurance, and asked, "So, what do you think we should do?" I started voicing a few of my thoughts, as I saw Lucas listen carefully to my every word.

Lucas POV The world had gone to shit, and I had no idea what to do. Luckily, out of so many people that I knew, Alex was the one who was here with me! He had always been someone who was quick at finding out ways to handle situations, and always managed to get us out of trouble when we were younger.

"I think what you're doing right now is great, you don't need to change much. I would just advise you to focus on yourself too, as being in the spotlight all the time will take away time you need to put in on yourself. This System very clearly wants conflict, and the stronger you are the better your chances of staying alive will be" said Alex, in his usual, calm and relaxed voice. Being transported by an all-powerful System still isn't enough to affect him. But there is something different about him.

His usually dull eyes look sharp! This is like that time we were playing that video game that everyone said had the hardest puzzles. I had always admired Alex and how everything came so easily to him. He got good grades with barely any effort. Whenever he actually wanted to do something, he excelled at it frighteningly fast. His one glaring weakness was always his complete lack of enthusiasm. Always just doing the bare minimum to keep up with his parents and society's expectations. But now, he seems… motivated.

"We should also try and see if we can unlock different Classes. Did you get any Class options different from the usual ones?" Alex asked.

"Yes, and that is the one I chose. I got Defender. It was the only green one, and after I selected it, the System showed it was an Uncommon Class." I said, as I saw Alex's eyes get sharper.

"Really? Tell me what happened when you arrived in the forest, leave no detail!" he stated, leaning forward ever so slightly. He really is interested in all this. I had no trouble telling everything to Alex, I can trust him after all. I told him how I got transported to a small clearing, feeling confused and disoriented. I started walking in a random direction when I heard the sound of a scream.

Rushing ahead, I saw a guy crawling backwards away from a small, green, ugly creature with drool coming out of its sharp teeth.

"I was at the side and a bit behind the creature, so I was able to tackle it from its blind spot, I think. It had a dagger in its hand and I wrestled it away from it and stabbed it in the neck as quickly as I could. It died, then I comforted the guy and was able to reach here with him by my side. His name is Ben by the way, and we both got here in the top ten." I finished.

"Interesting." Said Alex, as I could see the gears in his mind shifting. He was absolutely focused in on my words throughout my narration, something that is a bit odd for Alex, who usually stays a bit distracted in conversations, only giving half-hearted responses. For the first time in years, I wondered what Alex would become if he truly started trying.