The next morning, a cold wind assaulted Wilhelm's face and abruptly awoke him from his deep slumber. His dry mouth and rumbling stomach then attacked him soon after, as if refusing him any more sleep.

Wilhelm tossed and turned for a few minutes before begrudgingly waking up; his dirty blonde hair was messily scattered on his shoulders and his scraggly, unshaven beard was about one inch long.

He stood up from the ground and brushed off his dirty clothes before scratching his head in puzzlement, "how did it get so cold?" he whispered under his breath and couldn't help but rub his palms together.

The forest was covered in a cold and ominous mist, vastly different from its appearance yesterday. The normally loud and rambunctious birds were deathly quiet and the whole atmosphere felt somewhat surreal to Wilhelm.

However, his stomach and bodily needs didn't seem to care about the strange situation, as his stomach growled loudly and broke Wilhelm from his contemplation. In response, he smiled wryly and picked up one of his wooden 'spears' from the ground.

Under normal circumstances, Wilhelm wouldn't leave so early in the morning, alas he didn't have much of an option. Thus, Wilhelm tightened his shoes and headed south. He figured since there was a large abundance of mammals in this location, there had to be a big body of water nearby.

As such, Wilhelm traveled through the now misty forest in search of water. The small branches creaked with every step and small shadows seemed to be running through the fog every now and then.

The sight caused chills to run down his spine, however, he didn't cower in fear. Instead, he raised his spear and continued onwards. He was unaware of what type of phenomenon was occurring at the moment, but the nearby beasts had certainly evacuated.

Thankfully the abnormal shadows weren't aggressive, in fact, they simply ran passed Wilhelm, as if leading him somewhere. Upon some deliberation, Wilhelm decided to follow them.

'I'm starting to agree with the populace back on earth, I may just be one hell of a crazy bastard' Wilhelm thought inwardly as he followed the shadows. A wry smile plastered on his laps.

Within the time it takes to brew a cup of coffee, Wilhelm felt the ground he was stepping on sink slightly. He could feel a cold liquid enter his cheap shoes and touch his bare feet. Shocked, Wilhelm took a few steps back.

The shadows that once surrounded him vanished and the thick fog started evaporating. Soon, Wilhelm could finally see his surroundings. He was standing at the edge of a sparkling, blue lake. An assortment of unusual beasts were on the sides of the lake drinking water.

Wilhelm drew in a breath of cold air and looked over his shoulder, only to be more shellshocked. Dozens of small monkeys surrounded him, they had golden fur and red eyes, but the large smile on their faces dissipated any form of aggression.

They made strange sounds similar to a laugh as they looked at Wilhelm. Unfortunately, Wilhelm wasn't capable of enjoying this comical sight as he kneeled down and quickly drank from the lake.

He put his hands in the unusually blue lake and cupped some water; he then proceeded to bring his hands to his mouth and take a large gulp. Immediately, a burning sensation entered into his mouth and traveled down his throat.

He felt as though a hundred ants were biting down, and his eyes opened wide in shock. He clutched his stomach and soon fell on his back, slightly convulsing. Whatever he drank, was certainly not water, but more like acid.

Wilhelms convulsed on the ground for a total of five minutes before he gradually got ahold of himself. He then stood up from the ground, albeit shakily, and surveyed his surroundings once again. The animals by the side of the lake were still leisurely drinking the 'fire water' as if it was delicious.

"There's simply no logical way these small monkeys can handle this.. perhaps, it was only this spot that contains acid" Wilhelm comforted himself and moved to a spot where a small monkey was drinking from.

He once again obtained a handful of water. He smelled it first and it didn't appear to smell like acid, thus, he once again tested the water. Unfortunately, the same thing happened once again. The burning sensation entered into his mouth and he couldn't help but feel like he was being bitten by millions of ants.

After convulsing on the ground for another few minutes, Wilhelm stood up once again. But this time, he warily tip-toed out of the lake and looked at the monkeys as if they were monsters. Such pain was unbearable, even to him, who was a trained soldier!

Alas, before Wilhelm could leave the 'flame lake' a loud bang sounded out, and the ground seemed to quake. It happened again, and again as if some sort of large creature was walking. The strange beasts at the side of the lake quickly scurried away from the sound, and only the monkeys stayed.

Curious, Wilhelm walked towards a nearby tree and poked his head out. If there was one thing he had learned in his long and grand life; it was that you must be patient if you want to harvest great rewards. As such, he was looking forward to whatever was generating the miniature earthquakes.

Fortunately, Wilhelm was not disappointed and the monster soon presented itself. It was at the very least, ten meters tall, and 3 meters thick. It had brown fur, stood on two feet, had four arms, two horns on top of its head, and had one eyeball. Overall, it was a monster that Wilhelm had never seen, heard, or even dreamt about.

The other monsters that he had encountered thus far had some sort of resemblance to the animals back on earth, however, this particular beast was like nothing he had ever seen before. The sheer amount of aura and killing intent that naturally permeated from the monster made even Wilhelm almost quake in his boots.

He gulped down a mouthful of saliva and silently regretted his decision to stay. He turned around and decided to quietly walk away, however, the loud hoots and grunts from behind him caused him to looked over his shoulders and reluctantly stay.

The army of golden monkeys, seemingly not affected by the colossal monster's appearance, approached it. They moved in unison and an almost indiscernible flame appeared on the tips of their tails.

The monkeys growled at the one-eyed behemoth as if they were defending their territory, and in response, the things eye radiated a deep, vibrant purple hue. As if some sort of energy was being pulled to a distinct point, a ball of light that was just a few inches away from the monsters eye started getting bigger and bigger. Presumably some sort of mana attack Wilhelm thought.

In retaliation, small balls of flame appeared on top of the monkeys' tails, and both forces suddenly shot their attacks towards the other. They streaked across the air, and as if time stopped, the facial expression on Wilhelm's face froze.

Boom! A loud bang erupted and temporarily blinded Wilhelm, causing him to cover his eyes and hide behind the tree. The forced caused the trees to blow within the wind and the nearby 'flame water' to shoot up into the sky.

After a few moments of waiting, the blinding light finally dissipated and Wilhelm gazed upon the aftermath. The hulking one-eyed beast possessed a few more burn marks that weren't their previously, but no further injuries were present. As for the monkeys.. most of them were blasted into bits, and a few lucky ones were writhing on the ground, seemingly going to die within the next hour.

The monster, as if the current result was expected, leisurely put its head in the water and drank a few mouthfuls before turning around and leaving. Not sparing another glance at the dead and dying monkeys.

Wilhelm wasn't even capable of understanding the turn of events that he had just witnessed, so the only thing he could do was curse that damned fairy once again. How could humanity even hope to survive in such a place?

As these thoughts depressed Wilhelm, his face suddenly lightened up. He rushed towards the few dying monkeys with a spear in hand. Since the cyclops-like monster didn't want to reap the benefits, Wilhelm would gladly take the scraps.

Wilhelm was a man whose emotions could change on a whim, as such, the complicated and self-deprecating reflections were long gone, only leaving greed for EXP. He quickly approached the last few monkeys and pointed his spear at the hopeless creatures.

"It's nothing personal.. I just don't want your death to go to waste, okay?" Wilhelm whispered as he thrust the spear at the monkey's throat, delivering a quick and painless death. He continued this action three times until finally, the four monkeys died.

[Golden Flame Ape has been slain]

[Golden Flame Ape has been slain]

[Golden Flame Ape has been slain]

[2000 experience has been acquired]

[you have leveled up and gained one free allocatable stat point]

[you have leveled up and gained one free allocatable stat point]

[Level 5 has been reached, class selection shall now commence]

A dozen robotic messaged echoed out inside of Wilhelm's head, slightly dazing him. Before checking his status, he decided to quickly run away from the lake back to his temporary camp.

He heaved one of the fallen monkeys over his shoulder and ran as quickly as possible. He wanted to secure dinner and make sure he didn't sleep hungry for another night. As such, Wilhelm's waddling figure could be seen running across the shallow lake and once again entering into the forest.

*****

After about thirty minutes of following his tracks, he finally arrived back at his camp. His bonfire was unlit and only a few embers were present, thus, he quickly rekindled the flame and a warm temperature finally resurfaced.

Once his preparations were complete, Wilhelm calmed himself, sat down, and took a look at his status.

---------------

[Character Information]

Name: Wilhelm Siegfried

Race: Human

Gender: Male

Level: 5, [800/1600 EXP]

Class: None

Strength: 11

Agility: 10

Intelligence: 15

Stamina: 8

Magic Power: 0

HP: 100/100

MP: 0/0

Skills: Krav Maga (level 10), indomitable will (level 1), superior intellect (level 2), Gun proficiency (level 10),

Items: None

Allocatable stat points: 2

Evolution points: 0

Coins: 0

[using hosts data and current achievements, the system shall provide you with classes you have unlocked, or are capable of becoming]

[please choose one of the options below, this will greatly affect your future strength, advancements, and life]

[Warrior]

[Marksman]

[Survivalist]

[pugilist]

[secret class: Undertaker, one who walks a thin line between life and death, the one who reaps the most lives. Extremely bitter]

[secret class; Pirate, one who plunders others and sates their own greed. Extremely selfish]