System vs Rebirth

Chapter 40 First Time Working Together

”Thatʼs all. Grab the equipment from me and immediately head to the forest. I can assure you that another outbreak wonʼt happen under normal circumstances.”

Noel and Anna exchanged looks as they walked to Shale. The latter only smiled at them as he had been told the situation by Evan.

”Good luck, both of you. Donʼt forget to work together and focus on the demons,” said Shale, reminding them not to bother with physical intimacy when they reach the forest.

Noelʼs eyebrows twitched while Anna just ignored him.

”You carry the tent and cooking utensils. I carry the remaining tools as well as our bottles.” Anna handed him a backpack.

Noel just wanted to leave this place as soon as possible, so he accepted the bag without making a fuss.

After that, the two ran to the forest. Their training had strengthened them and improved their stamina, so Noel could go at a faster speed without getting exhausted easily.

Anna, of course, didnʼt go too fast either because they were not competing this time.

”Anyway, we will get ten crystals to complete the mission. After that, we will get half of the loot.”

Noel listened to Annaʼs suggestion and agreed without hesitation. Although he didnʼt want to admit it, Anna was stronger than him. Yet, she wanted to give him half the loot.

He might hate the fact that he lived on the grace of his enemy, but over the past week, he had learned how to swallow his pride and shamelessly take everything. The faster he became stronger, the quicker he could exact his revenge after all.

Anna also noticed Noelʼs calm behavior. At least, he wouldnʼt be an impulsive young man that could endanger their group anymore.

”Well, I donʼt think both of us need a trap to handle a Low Level Demon. If you utilize Spiritual Energy, it will be easy to cut Low Level Demons. So, we only need to worry about the Mid Level Demon. Iʼm planning to hunt some Mid Level Demons in the Inner Region. What do you think?”

”Set up a base in the inner region and make traps.”

”…” Anna scratched the back of her head. She just said that traps werenʼt needed, but Noel seemed to be firm about his opinion. Remembering Noelʼs fighting style, she reluctantly agreed. ”Fine. But make the traps when youʼre on your night watch! We wonʼt have too much time during the day.

”I donʼt think I need to remind you this, but I can wake up if I sense you coming to the tent. So, donʼt try to sneak up on me. Iʼm going to make you regret it when you do that.”

Noel snorted. ”Fine. But Iʼll be the one to choose the camping spot and where to go.”

”I donʼt have a problem.” Anna felt satisfied that they could finally make an agreement. This was an improvement in their relationship.

Little did she know, Noel only buried his anger. And that anger didnʼt disappear.

After making a decision where to go, they then headed straight to the inner region which would take two hours to reach.

On the way, they found their first Low Level Demon.

Without hesitation, Anna and Noel took out their weapons at the same time. As if the beast could sense the danger from Anna, it attacked Anna first with its claws.

However, Anna skillfully cut the claws as well as the paws of this demon.

But this time she had a more reliable teammate than Alfred and Lezlev. As soon as the demon was stopped by her, Noel used his Mega Slash, swinging the sword with both hands.

The sword cut through the monsterʼs neck in a single swing.

”Hu…” Noel took a deep breath, feeling relieved that he could kill a Low Level Demon with a single swing. After all, this was the proof that he had gotten stronger.

”Donʼt be too proud of yourself. Killing one Low Level Demon donʼt mean youʼre strong. A Low Level Demon is the lowest rank among the demons. In a war, their number is the highest. Sometimes, you will be surrounded by a thousand demons.

”I have heard that the Demon Banner Army is going to train you for a year. If you complete your training, you can handle thirty to fifty Low Level Demon by yourself. But the elites in the Demon Banner Army are even stronger.

”According to the rumors, a single wave of the commanderʼs sword can kill a thousand of Low Level Demons.” Anna added, making sure Noel wasnʼt too proud of himself.

However, Noel only snorted. ”I know that already. Do you think Iʼm satisfied with this? Iʼll only be satisfied after killing you.”

”Yeah, yeah. I donʼt care about that. I just want you to know that even the commander is afraid of the demons. The reason is simple. Their number is overwhelming. Can you imagine a single fort taking the full brunt of millions of demons? What if we add Mid Level Demon or even those above them in the mix? Iʼm sure you know this already, but what you see here is just the edge.”

”You donʼt need to tell me twice. I donʼt care if there are strong demons or not. I only need to become stronger than you.”

”You love twisting my words, donʼt you?”

”I donʼt know what youʼre talking about.”

Noel maintained his poker face the whole time while Anna tried to tease him from time to time, trying to crack that stone face of his.

Ultimately, the two of them met a total of eight Low Level Demon on their way to the Inner Region.

They stopped in the middle of the dense forest. It was pretty hard to even measure their exact position at this point.

Anna asked, ”So, how are you gonna navigate in this forest?”

Noel raised his head and looked at the sunʼs position before pointing at the west. ”That direction. We should be able to find a small lake that way.”

”You have a map? Even me couldnʼt get a map from the instructor even though I asked him.”

Noel closed his eyes, remembering the reason he knew this. When he was helping in the town, one of them was actually a senior soldier that had retired.

While helping him, the senior soldier started talking about his experience and knowledge. And when he knew about Noelʼs status as a trainee, the senior soldier gave him some tips and tricks.

Of course, he wouldnʼt tell Anna about it.

,m ”Just follow me. If you donʼt trust me, then you can go somewhere else,” said Noel as he started running, not waiting for Anna.

”I trust you, though.” Anna smirked and followed him.