"How much farther till Runeswick?"
"Not very far. We still have to travel for five more days master~"
"That's pretty far."
"Well yes, but I just said it to make you feel better~"
The man sighed angrily, he would arrive soon enough. And once then, all hell would break loose...
~o~
The soft wind shook the gentle tree leaves very softly, creating a low wooshing sound. The weaker of the leaves were plucked from the branches by the wind and were wisped away into the sky. They swirled and soared in the blue, making their way through the town of Runeswick. All was quiet, for the first year combatants had concluded their testing and were having their long rest. Four days were administered to them so they could regain their strength and relax. Riba yawned and got out from his comfortable refuge. His wounds had healed, however his arm still required a cast. Luckily it had healed just enough that he no longer required the sling. Kara meowed and rubbed her body against his leg. Riba smiled and bent down to give her a gentle massage, scratching behind her ears and stroking her back.
"Ok, I'm off to class." He waved to his feline friend and headed to the door.
"...Riba..." Came a soft feminine voice.
He whipped around, but saw no one but Kara.
'Was that..?' He thought, but shrugged it off and walked out the door.
Kara stared at the door for a long time after he left.
On his way to the Institution, he was surprised to recieve a lot of praise from people he passed.
"Good try! Keep working hard!"
"That was awesome! You deserved to win!!"
Filled with delight, he headed on the rest of his way with his head held high and a bright smile on his face.
'If this is as far as my abilities can get me, that's ok. I'm happy people are finally praising me...' He thought to himself, entering the large wooden door to the Institution.
Everyone was given their updated marks in their class.
'Oh boy...here it comes..' Riba sighed internally.
The parchment was placed on his desk facedown. He hesitated to pick it up, his new marks were right there. He'd pick it up, and it'd show a major drop and he'd fail. Choosing not to lift it up was only delaying the inevitable.
'Come on Riba...pick it up..' He told himself firmly.
He slowly reached out with his left and picked it up, slowly turning it over. He gasped and had to look at it twice to make sure he wasn't imagining it. All his other grades got a small boost of 10 to 15 percent, while his "Technique" and "Technique Combat" grades got an overall boost....
....of 50 PERCENT.
"No way..." He gasped and read carefully. Both those sections were now 55%. He was no longer failing.
Mr. Toruga was thrilled even though his face didn't express it.
"See? I told you you could do it." He grinned, looking around with his arms crossed. He seemed nervous.
"Mr. Toruga? Is something wrong?"
He looked around anxiously and leaned in close.
"Meet me in my office after class." He whispered grimmly
That didn't sound good, Riba thought, and watched Mr. Toruga walk off. School had soon concluded, and Riba went straight to Mr. Toruga's office. He was sitting at his desk with a scroll covering his face.
"What's going on?" Riba asked, closing the door.
Mr. Toruga sighed and rolled up the scroll, laying it down with the pile of several others.
"I usually get scrolls regarding missions, pay, and complaints. So when I got this one, expecting a complaint, I was caught off gaurd."
"Hm?"
"I hate getting complaints, but I really wish this letter was one." He sighed again and whipped his head to get the hair out of his eyes, "An old villain has transpired."
"The Shadowgeist?!" Riba gasped.
"No no. This villain was one of his followers though."
"I know a lot of villains, but I've never heard of ones who worked with the Shadowgeist.." Riba said, taking a seat on the oppostie side of the desk.
"I defeated him ten years ago after he went on a rampage in a distant village." Mr. Toruga explained, "He's extremely dangerous. Not only did he free the Shadowgeist from the Underworld the second time, but he's a very skilled Rogue Warrior armed to the teeth with blades. Name a kind of blade, he'll have it."
"Woah.. how do you know he's back?"
"He's already destroyed three villages."
"By himself?" Riba gaped, "You don't think he'll come to our village will he..?"
Mr. Toruga stared, thinking.
"You should get home."
"But-"
"I'll see you tomorrow. You should rest, another test is coming up." He pushed out of his chair and opened the door for Riba.
Riba gave up protesting and sighed, walking out the door.
"But yes. He will." Mr. Toruga muttered to himself once Riba was gone...