Reincarnated as an Energy with a System

Chapter 1740 1740: Flood

Heavy rainfall slowed down their party longer than they could have imagined. They were making their way from a small town with no name, heading toward a large city called Yokam when the rain began.

And for the past three days, it fell relentlessly.

Ning tried teaching the soldiers when he could, but with such heavy rainfall, they simply couldnʼt train. Forget training—preparing food was even difficult.

There was no fire to be made, so they had to sustain themselves on dried fruits and meats. Thankfully, they were more than prepared for months of travel on the road, so they had enough.

On the fourth day of their journey, the skies finally cleared, giving way to a bright, hot sun. The day felt exceptionally sunny, making it hard for many to keep their eyes open outside.

The road was muddy and wet, so they traveled slowly.

There was just a single day left before they reached Yokam, but something stopped them along the way.

The carriage came to a halt, and Ning frowned upon hearing the shouting outside.

”What is that sound?” Shara asked. It sounded like a large beast roaring in the distance. Even the carriage rumbled slightly with the noise.

”I donʼt know,” Ning said, finally poking his head outside the carriage to see what it was. When he did, his eyes widened in stunned silence.

Just 100 meters away, where there should have been a bridge with a river flowing below it, was a roaring flood that had overtaken everything. Strong currents rushed through the river channels, splashing dirt-filled water onto the land from time to time.

They were not the only ones stopped by the flooded river. Other smaller carriages and carts had been halted as well.

Ning got out of the carriage, with Shara and Mari quickly following behind him. The soldiers were already outside, so Ning strode up to Matthew, who wore a troubled expression.

”This is bad,” he said, looking at the flood.

”The rainfall,” Ning said. That was the cause of the flood. Ning looked toward the north, where the river came down from. The clouds were parting in that direction, too. There shouldnʼt have been more rain there.

”Did you guys just arrive?” an older man asked as he approached, wearing commonerʼs clothes. He looked somewhat worn out, as though he worked all the time.

”Yes,” Matthew replied. ”How long have you been here?”

”We arrived last night,” the man answered, pointing to a small wagon with a woman inside, pulled by a bull instead of a horse.

”So this flood has been going on all night? Doesnʼt look like itʼll stop anytime soon,” Matthew said.

”No, it wonʼt stop,” the man said. ”Worse, the bridge is gone.”

Both Matthew and Ning turned to look at the man at once. ”WHAT?!”

The soldiers heard the man too and were troubled by the thought of no bridge.

”Are you sure itʼs not just buried underneath the water?” Ning asked. Seeing the flow, he feared the question was foolish, but he held onto hope.

”We saw it get destroyed last night,” the man said. ”Not just me. Those other people were here when it happened too.”

Ning frowned.

”Wait, so how are we supposed to cross this river?” Romus asked.

”Tell me,” the man said. ”You people look strong. Are you soldiers?”

”Mercenaries,” Romus answered.

”Oh, would you mind getting hired?” the man asked.

Ning frowned a little at the manʼs question. There was a flooded river before them and no hope of crossing. Even if the flood subsided, they would still be stuck here without the bridge.

”Is the river shallow by any chance when itʼs not flooding?” Ning asked, ignoring the old manʼs question.

”Shallow? Not for another month, I fear. It should stop raining in a few weeks, but while it rains, the river is too deep to cross with horses or carriages,” the old man said.

”For a month?” Ning asked. ”Thatʼs such a long time. What are we supposed to do for a month?”

”Whatʼs going on? Can we not cross the river soon?” Mari asked, walking up to them. The commotion within their group was growing.

”Sir, what does one do in this situation?” Matthew asked after calming his soldiers.

”Well, normally, people just turn around and go back to where they came from and wait until the river calms down,” the old man said.

”What if we canʼt do that? We canʼt wait an entire month,” Matthew said. They had been on the road for nearly three months now. If they waited a month, they would miss the small window to enter the Foolʼs Pass.

”Oh,” the old man said, surprisingly seeming excited by their predicament. ”Then would you like to get hired by me? Or rather, a few of us.”

”What for?” Matthew asked.

”Weʼre planning to go through the old fort about a day south,” the old man said. ”Thereʼs a large bridge there that shouldnʼt have been taken out. Itʼs elevated, so it should be safe.”

”Oh!” Ning said excitedly. ”So we donʼt have to go back. Why didnʼt you suggest that before?”

”Well, thatʼs because there are a lot of bandits roaming around those parts. Thereʼs an old torn-down fort there, and itʼs known to house many bandits, so weʼre scared. If we could hire you mercenaries, then maybe…”

”Are you sure thereʼs a way through there?” Matthew asked.

”Absolutely,” the old man said. ”Iʼve seen this river flood many times. The bridge never did get destroyed before, but often went underwater. We always took the southern bridge when we could. But with the war worsening, every runaway soldier or bandit has taken refuge in the old fort. Would you guys help us get through by any chance?”

Matthew looked toward Ning. ”What do you say?” he asked.

Ning looked toward the sun to check the time and noticed that they could immediately continue journey. So, he nodded and said, ”Alright, gather everyone who wants to leave. Weʼll take them with us.”