Truthfully and Earnestly Surprised
The death of the thief well, it was inevitable in the end, but the fact that they were determined to not lose another one of their own and actually accomplished it surprised the instructor, so much that the surprise was clear on her face.
When Tybalt asked if that were all of them, Hirotsuka turned to him with a simple,
"H-Huh?" before composing herself and shaking her head,
"I-I mean to say, yes. Those were all of them. I am quite surprised, actually. I expected more of you to die, what with this kind of improvised teamwork and whatnot." The woman cleared her throat, before she went on.
"Congratulations, everyone! You've passed! You were able to work as a team, even though you were simply plunged inside this forest and given some orders. You chose to also incapacitate your opponents, though you were trying to reach the ruins instead. You've showed me that you've not only wits, but also the strength to follow through with your convictions." The woman then jumped off the tree and approached Tybalt.
"Sir Tybalt, 'twas an excellent work trying to be a leader. Often, when people are lost, they look up to those that decide to take an stand. I've high hopes on you." She said with a slight smile, before slamming her hand on the mage's back, probably with enough strength to make the mage stumble forward and fall face first.
Of course, all of it with a smile.
She then approached Diana, slamming her hands on both of the girl's shoulders,
"You are courageous and quick to act. Your rash actions, however, may very well be your downfall some day. For now, though, rejoice and make sure to thank those that had your back during this training exercise. Without them, you'd pretty much be a pincushion." She moved on to Pauline, probably the most sensible of the whole squad,
"You are meek and maybe even weak. There is no denying that. But I know potential and brains when I see 'em," The head maid winked as she tried to encourage the shy ninja,
"Yours and my own fighting style isn't all that different. I'd be willing to train you if you wanted." With that said, she moved on to Hiro,
"Your marksmanship is most definitely noteworthy. I take it you were a hunter before? Regardless, your ability is true, as well as your concern for others. I look forward to seeing you grow." The head maid then jabbed him lightly right on his shoulder.
She intended for it to be a slight, friendly punch, but Hiro would definitely feel that in the morning.
"And Hyakuya. What can I say that I haven't said already? You can be kind of a pain sometimes, but your dedication to Alex, err, I mean, milord Alexandro, is definitely true. I trust that your power and wisdom will help the others when they most need it, so take care of them, a'ight?" The head maid smiled at him.
After going by each of them, Hirotsuka backed away and put herself in front of the group.
"Oh, but don't think we are done just yet or that I'm going to be all sunshines and smiles after some pretty words. This was only the first trial. There will be another one in a pair of months or so, and that's not mentioning the regular training I'll put you through. In other words, I'm still going to go medieval on all of your asses. So be prepared. For now, make sure to go back to the castle's grounds. Alex, I-I mean, king Alexandro wishes to make an speech for the recently recruited knights. Afterwards, you'll receive your dorm and bed assignments." She nodded, before turning on her heel and heading for the castle by herself.
Loot: Bullion(S) x 2, Silver Lance x (2), Iron Axe x (2), Hirotsuka's Silver Kunai, Vulnerary.
The sudden death of their teammates was indeed surprising, but Claude was accustomed to death.
He clicked his tongue and hurried to finish off the last two Risen still standing, the one that Maximillian had damaged before and yet another myrmidon that went by mostly ignored.
Claude kicked the one already hurt on the stomach, and then stabbed him right on his face. It was about to vanish into that putrid and disgusting smoke that they turned into after being defeated, but the brutish merc took the whole body of the Risen and threw it against the other melee fighter.
It stumbled and then fell to the ground. Claude did not want to let it get back up, so he jumped and skewered the two Risen bodies with one single lunge of his sword.
The two Risen then vanished into smoke and Claude was left on the ground.
Even if he had been in this line of work for a while now, he still couldn't get used to when a teammate, and a good one at that, died. Victor was nothing more than a fool, rushing into the battle without a proper weapon, and Maximillian was powerful, but like Claude he just didn't have the resistance necessary to face off against a Sorcerer.
Illian's lip trembled a bit before she actually started speaking,
"Y-YOU FOOOOOOOOOLS!" Or well, shouting would perhaps be more accurate.
"Y-You are all strong on your own, but none of you know how work as a team! Everyone was scrambled across the mausoleum. It is a pretty small place, s-so organizing and cutting off the Risen wouldn't have been too much trouble if you had stopped to think and organized. T-that way... neither would Lord Maximillian or sir Victor would've died." The girl turned her gaze to the ground.
"The mercenary over there is a first rate idiot, but he at least has his brute force! He could've kept the physical Risen at bay!" "What ya say, bitch?!" Claude stood up and was about to go and impale the woman with his sword, but no... she was right.
He was as guilty as the others for the death of their comrades, perhaps not Maximillian's, but Victor's, yeah. They could've protected him in more ways than one and yet they still allowed him to die.
"The cavalier... I understand that not having your horse with you might hinder your battle style some, but you could've stopped that Axe Fighter and sir Victor would still be alive." She narrowed her eyes on Mikhail.
Then she turned her accusing gaze to Aika,
"I guess you were too busy, miss magus, making pretty magic tricks to be able to cover lord Maximillian. Your thunder magic would've most definitely allowed him to land the decisive blow." And finally, Azi,
"While your value as a vanguard is low, buffing and encouraging other units would still be a fine job fo you, mister singer. Perhaps helping Victor or lord Maximillian with a song before their eventual downfall would've changed the tides greatly." It seemed that there was no one more bitter about the death of the recruits other than Illian.
"I cannot entrust the safety of Lord Straizo to you! You only care for individual strength and.... and....!" "That is quite enough, Illian." A deep voice said from up the stairs.
The owner of said voice was coming down the stairs to the mausoleum, and upon hearing it, Illian instantly kneeled down.
"L-Lord Straizo, I did not expect you to come all the way here....""Do not be so stiff. Get up, Illian. I only came here to check on the recruits... and to make sure you were okay.""M-Milord! I-I mean... I'm sorry, but I am thinking seriously of-!" The girl started as she stood up.
"Don't. I know what you mean to say, but I will not allow you to fail these brave knights. They all fought for their lives and did magnificently. Teamwork is important, but it means nothing if the individuals are not strong. I thought you understood this by now, Illian.""I never cease to learn when it comes to your wisdom, lord Straizo." The girl smiled.
"Don't exaggerate, please." The man puts his hand up.
"In any case, I do believe congratulations are in order. You have passed this test set up by my apprentice Illian. It is regrettable that two of your partners were not able to make it, however that just meant that it was their time, cold as it may sound. When death arrives, and it will, it doesn't matter what you do. Do not blame youselves, as it was meant to happen this way."The stoic man explained with a serious look in his face, but soon it turned into the ghost of an smile for the recruits.
"You've passed the first trial, everyone. From this point onwards, squad Trignita is considered among those squads of knights that will participate in the remaining trials and also a candidate to become the Royal Guard. Now, I do hope you will improve your teamwork for the coming second trial to be held in a couple of months or so. For the time being, head for the royal throne room. My cousin wishes to offer you a few words. For you and the other succesful knights. Some knights were also able to pass their trials but ended up without a squad. Two of them shall join you to make the squad whole again. Now, if you'll excuse us."Motioning with his head towards Illian, Straizo turned on his heel and left the Mausoleum. Illian was quick to follow behind, not before offering a quick bow.
Loot: Bullion(s) x 2, Silver Sword x 2, Silver Axe x 2, Ruin x 1, Iron Bow x 1.
After the trial, the remaining squads gathered in the throne room to hear Alexandro.
The young king was waiting nervously for all of them to assemble, and when the room was filled with more than one tough-looking guy, he stood up, Dainsleif hanign from his hip.
"E-Everyone!" His voice was high pitched and ridiculous, a clear sign that the man was unbelievably nervous.
"I-I mean..." The man took a deep breath and, when he finally managed to calm himself down, continued.
"Everyone, thank you very much for coming here today. It fills my heart with joy to see that not only those from Jotenvarr wish to serve this great country and continent. With all of you behind me, I am certain we can make Jotenvarr an even greater nation."His voice was now steady and trustworthy. The look in his eyes had also changed, becoming more determined and valiant.
"I look forward to seeing how you grow. I am certain that all of you will become knights worthy of protecting this whole continent." "With that said, I also must inform you of what follows. Until the accolade, and to sort out people from this still big number of 16 squads, there will also be two other trials aside from this one. Until these trials are held, knights are required to stay in the barracks of the castle and train daily. The second trial will be just as harsh as this first one, whilist the third one will be a tournament to determine who will become part of the royal guard. The winner of this tournament as well as the runner-up will be selected for this honor, so you'd better train yourselves, everyone. With this, you are now dismissed!" With a sweep of his hand, Alexandro dismissed the squads.
The squads both received their assignment for their rooms which were (what a surprise) actually the same.
Lined next to the walls, there were rather simple bunks made out with wood. The beds on the bunks didn't exactly look comfortable, but well, it was better than sleeping on the floor.
There were 6 at each side of the room, making for a total of 12 beds.
Seemingly, they were expected to sleep there. For the time being, the recruits started arriving one by one...
Free Time
Use This Opportunity To Deepen Your Relationships With Your Squadmates
