"We're not sure what happened, but it seems like the stellar bear is awake. Which means that the contestants who came across it, and so made us aware of its presence, are likely going to be targets of it. We can't say much more than to tell contestants that it's not advisable to confront the bear, as even if it isn't after anyone in particular, it can still create a massive wave of destruction without trying. While we can't change what the current challenge is, we do encourage contestants to try and complete it as fast as they can. The next challenge is under review so it can be completed more easily once the current set challenge is done.
"Aside from that, we hope our contestants will still try their best to ignore the stellar bear. It may be a large shadow in the distance, but we assure you that the creature you're trying to capture will not be getting close to the stellar bear. A fire dragon might not care if it was still around, but this creature certainly will care and not be interested in getting close to it. We hope our contestants will follow that lead. Also, keep in mind that while the stellar bear is rather large and doesn't sleep when it isn't hibernating, it still moves rather slow when walking. It's just very fast when actually trying to fight anything that bothers it, anything that gets in its way, or anything that it's actively hunting.
"Other than that, we hope that all of our contestants will keep out of reach of the stellar bear, and especially won't try to engage with it after the sun has gone down. As no one has been able to locate any weak points on the bear. So, we can't even guarantee that any confrontation would result in any manner of success, or even survival, of any who particiate."
Jonas waited a minute after the announcement was over before he felt he could breathe normally again. He felt like he had been waiting for the announcer to tell them something they could use against the stellar bear, even if only to keep out of its reach, but wasn't that surprised when the information was pretty much next to useless.
Looking at the others, he could tell that they had similar hopes to his. Not that he expected them to have acted any different. Although, Elin didn't seem to be as fazed by the info dump as the others did, but he figured that was more of a result of Elin's early life having been rather sheltered. He wasn't even sure she really understood what a 'bear' was, rather than how dangerous it was.
"So, should we head towards the stellar bear?" Elwin asked. "I mean, they seem to think it can't be beaten, but why shouldn't we try?"
Jonas couldn't help but smirk. Of course Elwin would be in favor of attacking. He couldn't be sure if it was sheer determination to face a challenge as significant as that, if he was seeking a way to die so he would be able to rejoin his brother, or if it was merely a combination of the two.
"If we did, how would you suggest we fight it?" Bart asked. "From what we can see, it's massive. I'm not sure your sword would be any more damaging than a splinter would be to you."
Elwin shrugged. "Who knows? All I can be sure of is that it sounds like no one has been able to defeat a stellar bear before, so I think why not be the first?"
Jonas shook his head, his smirk getting stronger. Of course that would be the rationale Elwin would use. Regardless of what his true motives were, he'd sell it as if he was assured of his victory.
"Shouldn't we do what the announcer suggested and avoid the bear?" Elin asked. "I mean, it caused the ground to shake so much that we couldn't move for a few mintues."
"Likely that happened because it was in a location that it had to break out of before it could really move around," Kim replied. "I'm sure we'll be able to manage somehow."
Jonas raised an eyebrow at that. He hadn't expected Kim to be in favor of fighting the oversized bear. He wouldn't be surprised if it had the intelligence and temperament of a bear, but he couldn't see how that would really matter with how the others seemed to be reacting. As the only one who was actively arguing against facing the bear was Elin and he doubted the others would really give her words much weight.
"What if we continue on and try to complete the set challenge first and see if they'll make the next one easier before we start considering facing the bear?" Owen asked. "That way when we defeat the bear, we'll be able to have a much easier time finishing this competition up."
"Not a bad idea, but are you sure we'll be able to get that done quickly enough?" Kim asked. "I have my doubts with none of us knowing what the creature is that we're supposed to capture."
"I'm with Kim on this," Patricia chimed in. "While it would be nice to get the next set challenge to be easier, it'll be nice to not have that bear hanging over us in the distance. I mean, even now it's a bit troubling to see the silhouette against the dust cloud that doesn't seem to be going away anytime soon."
"Lets say we do confront the bear," Jonas said, feeling like he should join Owen in being the voice of reason here. "What do you think we can do to anything that large? Even a regular sized bear has rather thick skin and can be difficult to hunt. What do you plan on trying against this bear?"
"We won't know until we try," Elwin said, essentially shrugging off Jonas' points as if he was a bird shedding rainwater off its feathers. "I'm pretty sure none of us has fought a stellar bear before, so it's not like any of us has lost against one so far."
"Are you more interested in not having to deal with that bear later on or are you more interested in defeating something that hasn't been defeated before?" Kim asked dryly.
"So, lets get something cooked to eat so we can go to sleep and head out to that bear the first thing in the morning," Elwin continued.
Jonas wasn't sure if he was ignoring Kim's question or if he had even heard it. Though he doubted Kim would let him off that issue. As Kim glowered at Elwin, Jonas glanced at Elin, briefly wondering if she was relieved at these changes in conversational topics were welcome to her or if she wasn't happy about things either way.
He could tell she wasn't happy about when what she had Kim had been arguing about was the primary topic, given how she had been lagging behind the combined groups. Now with the change in the topic, he wasn't sure if she still had the same stance on things or if she was more relieved that the topic had been changed. Looking at her, he wasn't able to tell, but as quickly as he started to wonder, he shifted his focus back to the issues at hand.
"What're you thinking of making?" Owen asked Elwin, who was already getting a fire going with some nearby dead wood.
"Steak," Elwin replied simply.
"Any seasoning you're going to add to it?" Patricia asked. "Or are you making it just like you've been making it for the past… who knows how long?"
"What's wrong with how I make it?" Elwin protested as he set up stones to rest the pan on over the flames.
"Well, it kind of lacks flavor, for one," Patrick added.
"Okay, so what spices do you have to season it?" Elwin asked, sounding more sarcastic than Jonas had expected.
"Hey, I only have a fire system. Not a nature or plant system. You're the one who seemed to be more knowledgeable about being in the wild and all that, so I figured you'd know what plants would be good for spices and all that," Patrick retorted.
Elwin merely shrugged like he couldn't be bothered to care. "Hey, I just know how to track. I'm not a cook, so I wouldn't know what spices go with what or even what plants produce what spice in this world. As far as I know, a plant from where I'm from that's edible could be poisonous on this world."
"Sounds like an excuse to me," Owen remarked. "After all, you're the one who seems to be the most prepared when it came to us heading out to these mountains."
Elwin shrugged. "All I can say is that I was the one who lead the vanguard of the company Leon and I were with. While I can track in the wild, that's because we need to know what forces might be around that might pose a threat to us. Yes, it helps when going hunting, but it's not the primary reason I learned how to do that."
Owen merely nodded like he understood where Elwin was going with his thoughts. Which Jonas thought was probably likely given Owen's abilities from his system. "Well, if you know what plants are around, then you could also have a better understanding about what could help survive in the wild," he remarked. "If you know what plants are edible, or how to find that out, you'll be able to live off the land without needing to go into a city as frequently."
Elwin didn't respond and Jonas was pretty sure that this time he was in fact pretending to not have heard Owen's statement. Though, he didn't care enough to say anything. There was other things he figured should be dealt with first.
"Well, it's my turn for the first watch, and Elin should be getting the second one, though I'm not sure I remember who goes after that," Jonas said, hoping to get the conversation onto a different topic.
"I know who's next," Elin said, her voice so low that Jonas was sure if anyone coughed lightly or sneezed, he'd have missed her statement.
"Who is it?" Bart asked.
"If she doesn't want to say, she doesn't have to. So long as the person who's after her knows that it's their turn then," Jonas interjected before anyone could say anything else. "At least that's what my thoughts on it is."
"Well, why can't the rest of us know?" Bart asked, sounding rather annoyed.
"We did already discuss it," Patricia remarked. "If Jonas can't remember, it's not for us to remind him. If Elin doesn't remember, then it's better to remind her simply because if we don't then she won't know who to wake up for their turn."
Bart sighed, sounding rather annoyed, which amused Jonas for some reason he couldn't quite explain. "Yeah, I know that, but what can't it just be stated who it is?"
"Are you saying you'd like to take the spot after me?" Elin asked, looking rather surprised, which Jonas was pretty sure was her mocking Bart.
Bart however, didn't realize that and after looked scared for a moment, turned away and didn't say any more about the topic.