'I wonder what the story is there...' Leo thought to himself.
He was tempted to ask Robin who was currently hiding behind a poorly constructed towel wall, changing into some new clothes that Leo had given her, but he ultimately decided that since it was something between Amber and him, then it might as well stay that way.
If Robin wanted to open up to Leo and tell him about their life then he would welcome it, but he wouldn't try and pry out information if it was something they didn't want to remember.
Having finished washing himself, Leo stood up and began to walk towards the edge of the lake when he caught Robin spying on him from behind her little curtain.
Leo could have sworn he saw sparkles in her eyes as she looked at him in his birthday suit, but they had already wasted enough time fooling around once and then some more that morning, so he pulled some clothes from his inventory and quickly got dressed.
Robin looked a bit disappointed, but she shook her head to throw away her disappointment and finished getting ready herself.
Since training without Amber would simply be a waste of time for Leo, they both took a seat at the table.
Making small talk while killing time.
Robin was overly curious about what Leo was doing before the apocalypse so he took the time to tell her about some of his childhood, his studies, what his goals would have been had the reckoning never occurred and so on.
Leo had never been one to share much about himself but that was mostly because no one ever seemed to care all that much; so having Robin there genuinely curious about his life was a new feeling for him.
So rather than brush her off with short answers or inconsequential information, he went into great detail.
Robin seemed enthralled by the fact that the man Leo described was the polar opposite of the person sitting in front of her in both looks and actions, but she never once mocked or made fun of him for his past and he appreciate that.
As the two were lost in conversation, Amber finally finished her shower.
Leo had noticed that it had taken her an oddly long time compared to Robin, but since he was enjoying himself while talking to Robin, he didn't give it much thought.
Amber tried to draw Leo's attention with some towel shenanigans while she was exiting the shower, but he wholly and completely ignored her.
Exasperated that her little show went unseen, Amber walked over towards the makeshift changing area and started getting dressed.
Once Amber was finished getting dressed, she prepared to take a seat at the table to join Robin and Leo, but Leo stood up and stopped her before she could take a seat.
After making Robin get to her feet as well, Leo started to put everything back into his inventory and the girls had a bad premonition.
Sure enough, their fears were realized.
"Alright ladies, back to hunting. Get ready." he said.
"Noooo! We just got fresh and clean! Why do you want to ruin this relaxing time?!" Amber cried.
"Do we have too?" Robin pleaded.
Leo looked at the two girls with absolutely no sympathy in his eyes, "Yes, you have too. I need you two to get to level 10 as soon as possible. I've already allowed you too much free time.
The longer we wait, the less likely you are to get a class that will make things easier for you moving forward.
So, put your big girl pants on and get ready.
Understood?"
Begrudgingly the girls nodded their heads in understanding before they moved closer to the pit and prepared to do what needed to be done.
Leo nodded in approval before disappearing out into the wilderness before reappearing a minute later with a handful of exp for the girls.
The process continued for hours until Robin reached level 10.
Leo immediately dismissed her from the pit and told her to go find a comfortable place to relax while she chose her class on the off chance that she had to endure something similar to Leo.
As she walked away, she seemed to be remembering the suffering that Leo endured because she had a terrified expression on her face.
Amber yelled good lucks and words of encouragement but it seemed to do little to ease Robin's fears.
Amber wanted to help her sister but Leo stopped her and said, "This is something she has to do on her own.
Whatever decision she makes when it comes to her class will be something she has to live with from now until the end and if you influence that decision and she later regrets the choice, then she may resent you for it.
I know it seems unlikely, but I've seen it happen before."
"You've seen that before? How? You just got your class and you've been out here with us the entire time? When would you have had the chance to see someone else gain a class and regret it?" Amber asked.
"Someday I'll tell you but now isn't the time. How close are you to 10 yourself Amber?"
Amber took a moment to check her status before answering, "19% left until level 10."
Leo nodded, at least she wasn't far off, "Alright, lets continue. Robin will be fine on her own."
Amber looked over at the now seated Robin before turning back towards Leo and nodding her head up and down, "Let's do it."
It took another hour for Amber to finally reach level 10 and once that was done, she too found a comfortable place to sit before she began scrolling through the available classes.
Although he wanted to tell the girls what classes to choose so that they could best benefit him, he knew he had to leave it to them to make a decision.
Maybe, just like he was predetermined to get the Chronoknight class, they too would be predetermined to receive a certain class.
Leo decided to leave it to fate and chance.
Was it the wisest decision? Maybe it was and maybe it wasn't.
Only time would tell.
With nothing left to do but wait, Leo decided to go do some hunting of his own.
Nothing within the surrounding area was still alive, so Leo had to travel for quite a distance before he found any worthwhile prey.
Since he was basically speed running the apocalypse at this point, none of the animals were strong enough to threaten him yet so he swept across the desert like a savage storm, destroying and killing everything in his path.
Since he had no particular destination in mind, Leo decided to head in the direction of the town to relieve some of the possible threats on the towns residents.
As he slaughtered his way through the desert, Leo heard the screams and yells of multiple people off in the distance so without hesitation he decided to investigate.
The closer he got, the clearer the voices became.
"I told you this is our hunting grounds you asswipe! Go somewhere else!"
"Who are you to tell me where we can and can't kill these fucking animals?!"
"We're the towns police force! We're trying to get stronger to protect the people but we can't do that with you smooth brains always getting in our way!"
"Police force!? Have you seen what's happening in town?! How about you go protect the people rather than hide out here in the middle of nowhere?!"
As Leo cleared the small hill between him and the voices, he was finally able to take in the entirety of the situation.
On one side were a group of six men, all over weight and obviously struggling with the heat of the midday sun, dressed in police uniforms.
They had their pistols drawn and were standing off against a group of 20 college age students who were dressed in an assortment of different attire carrying all different kinds of weapons.
Since it was none of his business, Leo remained on the side, awaiting a good show.
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Bad news boys! I got laid off! So I will be spending the next few days/weeks looking for a job quite rigorously so I may not have a ton of time to write.
I'll do my best to get at least one chapter out but I won't promise anything. Apologies for the unfortunate turn of events...