One Last System

"There is no way to know for sure," I said with a shake of my head. "But it's better to be ready for it than it would be to get caught with our pants down."

While it was true I could somewhat predict that anything I would properly notice would end up important sooner or later, deciding when a seemingly random or unimportant observation would prove to be vital…

It was a whole different topic. And even if I spent several hours trying to figure out the answer, it would remain as elusive as it was when I first attempted to analyze it.

That's why, rather than spending the last few hours before sunset trying to pointlessly see through the greater plan of things, I opted to focus on the problems at hand.

"We need to set up a camp," I announced once a few more cultivators passed by the bridge.

"A camp?" Mia repeated after me. "Why?"

"There is no way we will move everyone before nightfall," I pointed out what was quickly becoming obvious. "And I'm not going to risk moving them overnight."

Only about half an hour passed since people started passing the bridge. And in this time, no more than fifteen of them have passed through.

I raised my head, looking up at the sky. I then made a small prayer, thanking the heavens that the river wasn't hidden somewhere in a dense forest but in an open plain instead.

Because that allowed me to figure out the time of the day with a single glance, saving me the bothersome effort of climbing up to the highest vantage point possible just to see the position of the sun on the sky-dome.

"A camp, you say?" Levi suddenly appeared at my side. Yet, despite clearly approaching me, he spared me no attention, opting to turn his eyes toward the bridge instead. "I guess I should go to the other side of the river, then."

"Good idea," I said while nodding my head. "If we are talking about camp, we need one on both sides of the river," I pointed out before turning my eyes to my former master. "But are you aware of what this means for you?"

Levi took a deep breath only to release it as a heavy sigh a moment later.

"Yeah, I am," he said, nodding his head. "I will be the one and only line of defense in case monsters attack people out there."

There were no monsters on this side of the river due to three different elements of the situation coming together.

First, all the monsters in direct proximity either already crossed it along with the horde that we cleared out several hours before or did so long before I moved out of the forest with Mia.

Secondly, with how the mana monsters were attracted to the borderlands and given how we were on the west side of the massive, natural barrier, any possible threat has long vacated the area.

And lastly, with our current occupation of the forest, if even a single monster were to appear anywhere near, they would end up stuck on the eastern bank of the river.

Or to sum all those things up in a single sentence, with the current circumstances, the east bank of the river turned into somewhat of a frontier.

"I'm stronger than you two, even if not by a lot anymore," Levi pointed out with a small smile. "It's given I should be the one heading towards the danger," he announced something that went opposite to the mindset he represented until this point.

'Am I affecting him?' I asked myself, unable to hold back a small twitch of my lips.

"Shut it before you start it," Levi barked, noticing even such a small detail of my changing expression.

"I didn't say anything," I protested, raising my hands up.

"And it should stay that way," Levi commented harshly.

"I'm stronger. So if the monsters attack, I will be able to buy more time than you could," Levi stated in a harsh voice as if hoping to wipe any doubt from my mind with this single sentence.

"Thanks," I said, lowering my head to express my gratitude with more than just words. "This will really help a lot. Leaving all those people without proper protection…" I shook my head. "It doesn't sound like the brightest of the ideas."

"And we don't want unnecessary deaths to uproot the trust they are starting to put in us," Levi added his own five cents. Yet, before I could add anything, he turned his head and gave me another harsh look. "Since we decided to invest our time and energy into protecting and guiding them, it would be a pain if we were to lose it due to laziness."

'Why is he trying to defeat the idea of becoming kinder while around me?' I asked myself. Yet, given Levi's attitude, I opted not to share this doubt with him, holding it behind the barrier of my mind instead.

"And lastly, if we are going to camp through the night, you guys deserve some peace," Levi added before decisively walking towards the bridge.

"Wait!" I shouted, right as my former master was about to step on the bridge.

Even though Levi has his back turned to me, I could sense him rolling his eyes when he stopped.

"What now?" he then called out, already standing too far for a normal voice to reach my ears.

"It would be better if you don't take the bridge," I pointed out with a moderate shout. "Could you fly over the river instead?"

Both Levi and Mia froze as they looked at me. Their expressions tensed up while the cultivators who were about to let Levi go first through the bridge ended up confused by the sudden change in the atmosphere.

This time, though, it was Levi who ended up figuring out my intentions first.

"You are worried about my aura, right?"

Rather than wasting my breath, I simply nodded my head.

"Isn't it better to be safe now than sorry later?"