As Erin, Bill, and Iris approached the burning hut, they could see that the flames were spreading rapidly, and the heat was becoming unbearable. They could also hear someone’s panicked voice coming from inside the hut, calling out for help.

Without a second thought, the group sprang into action. Mako had already started manipulating the flames and trying to get them under control, but it wasn’t enough as the fire was too big and fierce. Bill quickly scanned the area for any available sand and found a pile right next to the source of the stream which was a lake.

“Leon, I need you to grind as much earth into sand as you can!” he yelled as he sprinted towards burning but with the sand in his control.

Erin and Iris quickly formed and manipulated the water out of their canteens and tried to pour it on the hut. Meanwhile, Mako continued to try and contain the fire as much as possible.

After a few minutes of frantic efforts, the group managed to put out the fire. Erin quickly tried to rush inside, but Leon was able to stop her using his super speed. 𝗻𝐨𝐯𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

“Hold on, It’s still not safe, the whole thing can collapse on you!” Leon said as he tried to hold Erin back without using too much strength that would hurt her. Tears were falling down her face like a waterfall and she tried to break free from Leon with all her might.

As she was still struggling against Leon, suddenly sounds of coughing and rubble moving could be heard and before the group could react a boy emerged from the hut, coughing and covered in soot.

Everyone was shocked to see a boy still able to walk out of the burnt hut after how intense the fire was. The boy was covered in black soot and ash, which made his bright red hair stand out even more. His clothes were singed and torn in places, and he looked disheveled and shaken.

He had bright blue eyes that were bloodshot, and his face was streaked with tears from the smoke and heat. As he stumbled towards the group, they could see that he was still coughing and gasping for air, but he managed a weak smile as he collapsed onto the ground, overwhelmed with emotion.

Mako, Bill, and Leon had no idea who he was but he was definitely part of Iris’ original group because both girls had insane looks of horror on their faces which would only be the case if they knew that person.

Iris lost all energy in her legs as she fell to her knees, unable to keep her tears from falling out anymore. Leon had loosened his grip on Erin’s arms and she was finally able to break free from his grasp. She ran as fast as she could over to the collapsed boy and hugged him tightly, relieved that he was safe.

“It’s okay, Andrew. I’m here for you,” she said while still crying but now showing signs of relief as she could confirm the sound of his breathing.

Bill gave Iris a hand and helped her back to his feet. They all quickly approached Andrew and Erin. Mako took out his own water bottle and poured some water into Andrew’s mouth while Iris got down on her knees and began healing Andrew right away.

Andrew coughed repeatedly and slowly opened his eyes after a few minutes. As his vision cleared, he found himself looking directly into Erin’s teary face, which was hovering over him.

“You look beautiful as always,” Andrew said with a weak smile, breaking the intense atmosphere with a compliment.

Erin wasn’t expecting him to say that as soon as he woke up, but sure did the trick as she instantly cheered up and began to laugh lightly.

Seeing Erin laughing and the boy out of danger, the rest of the group couldn’t help but smile at Andrew’s compliment as well. Mako handed Andrew another sip of water, and Iris continued her healing process, using her abilities to mend the minor burns and injuries that Andrew had sustained in the fire.

As they waited for Andrew’s condition to improve, Bill suggested that they move further away from the burnt hut, just in case it did collapse as Leon had warned earlier. The group helped Andrew to his feet, supporting him as he stumbled, still weak from his injuries.

Bill suggested we move closer to the lake so that they would be safe if the hut choose to collapse and they could have Andrew clean up a bit too.

Erin walked by Andrew’s side, holding his hand tightly, and the rest of the group followed close behind. As they moved away from the burning hut, they noticed that the sun had started to set, casting a beautiful orange glow over the landscape.

Once they reached the lake, Mako helped Andrew to sit by the water’s edge while Iris continued to tend to his injuries. Andrew was still not in the right mindset as he phasing in and out of consciousness.

Erin sat next to Andrew, still holding his hand, and Bill and Mako started gathering some resources to make a fire. As the sun dipped below the horizon, the group huddled around the fire, enjoying the warmth and comfort it provided.

As the night wore on, They passed around some of the supplies they had brought with them, sharing food and drink. Andrew gradually regained his strength and finally joined them for dinner, fully conscious and alert.

After they all enjoyed a silent but tasty meal, Iris was the one who stopped beating around the bush and finally began asking Andrew some questions. What had happened before they arrived? Where were Sven and Finn? Who was even able to light their hut with such a strong and fierce fire?

Iris and Erin had trained alongside Sven, Finn, and Andrew at the training center provided by their sponsor. During their training, Sven who also had the Earth ability had practiced creating many different types of huts, figuring out which one would be the most ideal to ensure their survival on the island.

The design he finalized was quite good as it had a strong foundation so that it would be sturdy and wouldn’t be easy to demolish, and so Iris was quite concerned regarding who could have done such a thing that it would leave the hut in the condition that it was in.

In addition to that, the flames themselves must have come from a high-level user as well which was why Mako couldn’t put out the fire alone, nor could Andrew escape the fire. Judging from the minor injuries and burns on Andrew, she was able to deduce that he must have used his fire ability which was barely enough to protect himself from the flames.

Mako was thinking about the exact same thing, but he didn’t know how strong Andrew actually was so he secretly used Analyze on him to see what his abilities and stats looked like.

Analyze

Skill Failed (opponent level too high)

Mako had not seen this prompt in quite some time. During the time when Mako recently got the system, he was so naive and impatient that he put himself in dangerous situations where the enemies were too high of a level to analyze.

Since then, Mako had worked really hard every day so that he could face any threat head-on and had not seen this prompt pop up again, until now. If this Andrew person was really stronger than him even after, he had gotten so strong, then he couldn’t imagine how strong the person would be who did this to Andrew.

Nevertheless, Mako didn’t want to jump to any conclusion and wanted to first hear Andrew out so that he could understand what really went down here before they arrived.

Andrew sighed as Iris asked him those questions. He turned to look her dead in the eyes, and said, “I’m sorry, I should have done more, but I wasn’t able to stop them.”

Everyone was listening carefully as Andrew explained what had happened prior to their arrival.

***********

“The hut… we had made was strong enough to survive the thunderstorm and since we were on a slope, the water puddles didn’t pose an issue to them which were later completely removed from the pipes.” Andrew started to explain.

“I proposed to um… Sven and Finn that we should continue exploring and try to find you two, but they said it would be best if we first assessed the damages and figure out our food situation before resuming the search since our resources were quite low and we barely survived the thunderstorm.” Andrew continued.

“However, before we could even finish repairing the hut completely, a group of cadets approached us practically out of nowhere and started asking questions. Sven tried to talk to them and make them leave peacefully… since we didn’t have time for them and had to look for you, but they suddenly became aggressive and tried to take over our area.”

“We tried to fight back, but then…”