LIGHTNOVELSTORY Chapter 9: Tutorial.6
I was surprised when I looked at Lucas, with a clear confusion on his face. "Why did I do what?"
In a low voice, he made sure no one else could hear them before explaining. "Why did you decide to provoke the wild boars without thinking, without consulting anyone in the group? Look what happened, Abigail lost her damn leg, Alexander. We're in a forest forgotten by God, full of monsters that want to devour us, and in just a few hours, one of us is crippled."
"What do you suggest we do now? Trap ourselves and wait for nothing to find us for more than two whole months? Or what, leave Abigail behind to die? What exactly was your plan when you decided to shoot at a bush, with no idea what was inside it? There are other people in this forest too, and what if it had been one of them? What the hell is wrong with you?"
Lucas was visibly redder in the face as he continued to attack me, growing louder and, of course, attracting the attention of the others. Everyone was looking at us now, and as I glanced around, I saw open hostility in some people's eyes, while others stared at the ground. Xavier and Wyatt were the only truly neutral ones, both seeming just sad. Then there was Henrry, who showed no visible emotion on his face, but he didn't seem inclined to express his opinions.
I had never seen Lucas so angry before. Right, what was I thinking? I just saw the reflection of something. In retrospect, it was the eye of the little wild boar. Something in my head told me to shoot. It was just... instinct.
I really wasn't thinking. From the start, I wasn't. Except for my internal deliberation, when it came to any kind of combat or tense situation, I just went into autopilot. Letting my instincts take control and my intuition be my guiding light when making decisions in a split second.
"I... I'm sorry, I was just... I don't know..." I couldn't express myself properly, my incompetence in social situations once again evident. On one hand, I felt bad about the outcome of the situation, but I really didn't think it was my fault.
Not shooting would have been stupid too. It could have been a predator waiting to ambush us or even some kind of trap. Besides, it was an enemy we clearly could handle. The only reason Abigail ended up like she did was because she made a mistake and tripped.
"You don't know? Well, you should know! Think, for God's sake! We're humans, not beasts that attack anything we see. Think about the consequences. We're a group. A team. What would have happened if we weren't here? What if you were alone?" Lucas was getting more and more offended by my passive behavior and my lack of response to his criticism. Not because I didn't take it seriously, but because I simply had no idea how to respond.
I took the question very seriously. What would have happened if I were alone? I replayed the fight in my head, starting from the beginning.
I was climbing the tree when the wild boar came out of the bushes and charged toward me, already out of the beast's reach. Although this made me temporarily lose control, I was never really in danger of falling. My enhanced stats made me stronger and faster, and I had no trouble staying upright with just one arm. With my stats, I would have climbed the tree with ease.
The arrows I shot at the beast caused more than enough damage to make it bleed to death as well. By the end, over 50 arrows had penetrated it, and even if I had run out, I could have started summoning more. In the end, the wild boar would have been forced to leave or stay beneath the tree and wait for me to keep shooting. And, based on the creature's behavior, it likely would have stayed until it succumbed.
The tree was more than strong enough to withstand the blows, suffering almost no damage. With a circumference easily large enough for 7-8 grown men to hold hands around it, I didn't see any scenario where it would fall. So, to sum it all up... if I were alone, I would have gained solo experience and PC, and no one would have been seriously hurt, although the fight would have taken longer.
Moreover, I had a natural reluctance to ignore my own instincts and intuition. I assumed most people would do the same. Before the system, in my professional life, I was very calculating, always taking an analytical and data-driven approach. But even so, I relied heavily on my instincts. The same went for university tests. I trusted my intuition in an almost unhealthy way.
When it came to archery, and basically everything in life, I came to prefer facing things as they were, trusting my own judgment.
And I felt that my instincts and intuition only grew stronger after the system arrived. Even taking a more objective look at my performance so far in this tutorial, I realized that I had made few, if any, mistakes... if I were alone, of course.
I made the right split-second decisions. With each arrow I shot, I never doubted whether I should shoot or not. And if I had hesitated for even a second to climb the tree? I would have probably been crushed into mush between the tree and the giant boar.
With the way every beast we had encountered so far had acted, I knew that the little wild boar would probably attack anyway, making the fight with the large boar inevitable. The outcome of my actions might not have been ideal, but still, I firmly defended them. Killing the little wild boar was the right decision, and my performance during the fight was as good as anyone could have expected.
"I did what I thought was best, and I stand by the decision to kill the little wild boar. Even if it were another human, trusting someone who isn't from our team is a terrible idea. The tutorial actively encourages us to kill each other, don't forget that," I began, finding a confidence I didn't even know I had.
"Lucas, this new reality of ours is one where magic exists. Abigail is hurt, but she's not in danger. She lost a leg, but who can say that can't be healed? With her enhanced physique, she should be fine soon, and maybe we could even try making her a wooden leg or something like that.
Or we can just have her guard our camp since she can cast magic. This is no longer our old world. People die. I'd consider us lucky that we haven't lost anyone yet. Seriously, look at the tutorial panel, guys."
The last part of my speech, said aloud, was directed at everyone. I had already opened my own panel:
[Mission: Introduction]
Duration: 3 months.
Category: Survival.
Objective: Survive throughout the challenge period.
Total remaining survivors: 1112/1200
PC collected: 319
Not even an hour had passed since the beginning, and yet nearly a hundred people had died. And I seriously doubted that the beasts were the only ones behind so many deaths.
The others were silent, not knowing what to say. It was no secret to anyone that I had been the main contributor to the group so far, having the best combat performance and scouting ahead to identify potential dangers. I had even led them away from an area where I felt strong beasts were fighting each other.
Despite us being there for such a short time and only having participated in two fights, I had already shown more than just my proficiency. Even Lucas, the de facto leader of the group, had to admit that I had been doing most of the heavy lifting so far.
"Alexander... I just want you to remember that we're a team. Consult us, tell us what you're thinking before just acting. Don't make the decision for all of us..." Lucas sighed, not wanting to dwell on the matter anymore. I was relieved to see that he had no intention of continuing. "Let's move on."
The next half hour was peaceful, with me still in the lead, Xavier a little behind me, and the rest of the group silently following my lead. Finally, as the environment began to darken, I heard the subtle sound of running water in the distance.
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