Return of the Woodcutter

Aito pondered on the idea of training with Gwen. He saw two issues. First, obviously the economical problem. Second, the time period. He absolutely had to clear the Tower before two months' time if he wanted to survive the oath pact and have a shot at saving Jack.

For now, Belmand had agreed to prevent the summoning of evol monkeys on the island for two months, as well as researching a means to free Jack from the island. Since it was an unusual case, it couldn't be helped. If Aito managed to clear the Tower, to his great displeasure, he would have to meet the god again.

The mischievous bastard would probably have another quest for him in exchange for some kind of fix, but Aito couldn't afford to refuse. He did not want to abandon someone he had sworn to protect again.

Killing his father and failing his family had been too great of a mental trauma. Of course, he had already searched for ways to somewhat find peace of mind in his first life, before isolating himself in Lac Saint-Jean, but had failed miserably. If it weren't for his revival, he wouldn't have tried again.

Maybe it was foolish, but in his mind, Jack's situation reminded him of what happened with his family and, during the months had been a fishing slave. At this point, he thought of saving the monkey as a part of his redemption. A personal quest he would clear at any cost.

"Fine, I'll pay, but on one condition," Aito said, his gaze burning with an unwavering will.

"Aye, name it," Gwen said.

"If you can assure me that I will have time to clear the top floors."

The giantess's mouth curved, appearing to hold back something that, after a mere second, forced its way out.

"Puahaha!"

Her laugh resounded loudly, clearly ridiculing him, but he remained unfazed, determined. Amidst her roaring laugh, Gwen's purple eyes met his, then seemed to understand he was serious. She stopped to peer into his black eyes as if looking for a hint of a joke but found none.

She bent to look at him from up close. "Do you know what's up there?"

"Yes, death."

But he was no stranger to this.

Gwen scoffed. She seemed to look down on him, on an ignorant man who knew nothing of death. "And you're not afraid of death, little man?"

"Of course I am." He retorted, holding her gaze. "Who wouldn't be afraid of dying?"

"Aye, who wouldn't?" She said, her voice taking an intrigued tone. "Then, why risk your life?"

Even if he told her, she wouldn't understand.

Most people would downright mock him for trying to save an animal. However, who were they to judge him? To judge the connection he had with a monkey. The shared friendship tempered with the flames of survival. The trust he placed in an animal he considered a loyal friend.

Yes, he knew, on the island, that it might have been the loneliness and his psychological issues playing with his mind, distorting his perception, common sense. Distorting the truth. But he didn't care.

His truth would be the one he acknowledged, not what others thought it should be.

"Through my rebirth, the black trial, and my first life, I've come to realize something."

Gwen's face turned more neutral, waiting for an answer.

"There are things I fear more than death." He said, clenching his fists.

The moderator grunted, bent back, started to tap on her hammer's metallic handle, and peered into the distance.

Next to her, Aito traced her gaze but only saw grass, the track field, and a woman with black hair sprinting, probably as fast as Jack could. But she was too distant to distinguish her figure clearly. Although, he was pretty sure the woman wasn't what the moderator was looking at; she caught his attention nonetheless because of a sense of familiarity.

"I'm sorry for mocking you before," Gwen said, looking back at him with slightly more respect. "I thought you were just a foolish human too drunk on his own newly acquired power to see the danger. However, you appear to be well aware of what you're getting yourself into. Too aware, in fact."

Aito frowned.

"Ooh, what a gaze," Gwen said. "But nay, I'm not the kind of person to put my nose in the clothes of others. Stink too much. As long as this stench stays off my clothes, I won't ask to see the source. Instead, I'd like to ask you something else."

He relaxed a bit and said, "What is it?"

"How far are you ready to go to clear the top floors?" She said.

"As far as it takes," he said.

Gwen nodded, stretched her hand, opened what seemed to be her inventory, took out a sheet of paper and a pen. She then scribbled a few notes and handed the sheet over to Aito.

"What's this?" He asked, going through the paper's content.

"Your shopping list. If you want to train, you will need these items." She said. "I also need you to tell me about your basic stats and skills. Let's be clear, you don't have to tell me everything. But keep in mind that the less information I have, the less effective will be the training."

Status windows couldn't be shown to others through the System, nor would anyone be able to access it forcefully—apart from the gods. So voicing out one's status window was one of the two ways to show it to somebody else.

"Why should I do that?" Aito said, his suspicion rising. She was basically asking him to reveal vital pieces of information about himself. Although the giantess said he wouldn't have to tell her everything, he was still reluctant.

"Were your words mere farts, little man?" she said, looking annoyed. "I get the trust issue, but if you want to become stronger, I'd advise you to stop being a pussy and start taking risks. Yes, I could do whatever you're thinking I would, or NOT. I thought you'd already understood that. No matter who you will interact with, you'll always be at risk to be betrayed, scammed, etc. Now, make your choice. A good training or a great one?"

Aito frowned, looked down, and played with his black hair as he'd usually do when thinking.

Somehow, her words sounded awfully similar to what Roan had told him before, just phrased in another way. Failures. Risks. He already knew he had to take risks to get what he wanted and had no problems with that. His true issue was taking risks in trusting people.

Aito wanted and needed this training. He knew what was waiting up there would be challenging, to say the least. But now he was conflicted, forced to choose between his own distrust in people and a training he thought he dearly needed.

He could attempt to clear the top floors as he was, but that would be taking an even greater risk. Going unprepared was the worst of the worst. It could be said that training would be over-preparing. But Aito preferred being "over-prepared" than "over dead."

He then thought back to Jack, the oath pact with his own soul on the line, and forced out a sigh. If this training could really raise his chances of success, then he would accept it, although it would go against his principles.

However, he wasn't about to tell her his every skill set.

"Fine," he said, reluctantly, as if the word tore his throat opened. "How long will it last?"

Gwen smiled, appearing satisfied. "Thirty days, maybe more depending on your basic stats, skills, and your own capabilities to learn."