The voice was rough and monotone.
As they walked into the tent, they were greeted with an astounding sight. At least, in the eyes of Daniel.
The interior was much larger than the exterior size suggested. Stretching for about fifty meters, the space was occupied by Soldiers, Blacksmiths & Doctors, each attending to their task.
'How is this fucking possible?' Daniel was shocked!
As Carl walked beside him, he did a double-take, witnessing firsthand a genuine jaw drop.
"Oh? Who's the flytrap now?" Carl chuckled as he threw his words back at him.
Saya also felt a bit of schadenfreude, giggling at the sight.
Daniel closed his mouth quickly, internally lamenting at his blunder.
'Yeah, I walked ass first into that one, didn't I?'
As they walked for a few minutes, they finally arrived at the center of the area where five decorated soldiers were discussing around a table that had a map.
Four of the decorated soldiers had Orange colored stripes on their arms and legs. In comparison, the one in the middle had dark Blue colored lines. After getting a good look at their uniform armor, they redirected their eyes to the table.
As they approached the table, they saw more details, such as a map encompassing the entire surface and some stones laying across it, glowing from time to time.
The map showed an area of approximately fifty kilometers. Using the current village, they were located as the epicenter.
There were green dots, red dots, and black dots.
They couldn't discern what was being discussed because of their hushed tones, but they could at least see that there were several black dots compared to green dots and even more red dots than green dots.
As they neared the table, the five decorated soldiers turned around.
An invisible pressure descended on them, making them feel suffocated without impeding their breathing.
"Greetings, Knight Cadet Carl, Knight Cadet Saya & their companion, Daniel. I am Knight-Captain Amendola." He smiled warmly in greeting.
They got a good look at the captain. A man with blonde hair, blue eyes, and light stubble. His eyes were friendly, but his jawline was sharp. It made for a heroic but approachable look, unlike the previous asshole with a stone face and ugly features.
After noticing the trio's slightly pale skin and sweat, he glared lightly at one of the other decorated soldiers.
"Knock it off, Officer Nickson, or I'll shove my foot up your ass."
The others chuckled at their captain's antics.
The officer in question turned his head to the side, the pressure disappearing after that.
"I apologize for that; in all these years of working with that blockhead, I still forget he likes to bully rookies." Amendola smiled as he remembered his first time meeting Nickson.
"Anyway, I recall you three are here to report your findings regarding an outwarding village?" Amendola spoke to them as he waved off the other four personnel. After sitting in his chair, the three were the only ones standing across the round table.
"Yes," Carl answered.
"Have you seen our squad leader, Rich? He needs to be with us to validate our report." Carl looked around as he asked.
"Oh yes, Knight Guard Rich, let me see.." He spaced out for a moment before suddenly,
*Pop*
Rich appeared next to them.
"Uhh... Hey Captain Amendola, Why are you summoning me?" Rich was confused as his surroundings had suddenly changed.
Rich turned his head to the right and then performed a double-take.
"Oh, shoot. I forgot about you guys!" He blushed in shame; the previous valiant squad leader's image shattered into millions of pieces at that moment.
Saya and Carl pouted while Daniel merely chuckled.
"Report your finding on the outwarding village." Amendola got severe after he also broke character & smiled.
"My squad did not reach the outwarding village, but our friend here came from there. He is an eyewitness and has first-hand information." Rich spoke formally.
Amendola turned to look at Daniel and spoke with a concerned tone.
"Please tell me what happened to the outwarding village and how you chanced upon it."
Daniel stepped forward and took a deep breath.
"I was lost in the desert, awakening with no memory of how I had gotten there. Fortunately, I was near an oasis, so I hunted, built a shelter, and harvested water."
"After a couple of days, a giant lizard appeared, killing animals and destroying the Sand Dunes. I haven't thought about why before now, but I probably killed its baby, hence its rage."
"I ran as fast as I could, getting nearly killed more than once by its fire breath and claws."
Daniel continued his story, narrating about the jungle, the ancient ruins, and the village.
The mournful battle that took place and how he raged as he tried to save them.
When he got to the part where he received the blessing, Amendola raised his hand gently.
"If you have truly received such a blessing, it is all the evidence I need," Amendola spoke with a solemn and pained voice.
"That kind of blessing requires the essence of a being as a catalyst. It will also give you a boost, depending on said blessing."
Amendola stood up, slowly walking around the table, only stopping a few paces from Daniel.
"May I inspect your blessings, Daniel?" The way Amendola asked was highly severe and heavy. Not out of oppression but the gravity of the question.
"You may," Daniel answered with the same gravity.
Amendola took a step forward, placing his hand on Daniel's shoulder and closing his eyes.
'Blessing Of Boundless Communication
'Blessing Of Heroes'
'Blessing Of Nature's Perception
'Blessing ??????'
'This kid... He has four blessings‽, the first two I know, but the third one... I've never heard of it. It's even more confusing that I can't get a read on his last blessing...' Amendola was shocked.
At his level of power, this shouldn't be possible unless... Unless...
"I need to contact someone quickly. You three will be assigned to the northern wall. Help fortify that section. I'll need Daniel for a few more minutes." After addressing the small squad, Amendola walked away.
Daniel was concerned. 'Is this good or bad?'
He wanted to run just in case.
Saya noticed his nervousness and reassured him.
"Hey, it's okay! Amendola has a forthright reputation. He is probably going to attempt to recruit you." Saya warmly patted his back, although she had to stand on her tippy toes to achieve it.
"Thank you, Saya." Daniel smiled as he calmed a fair bit.
..
Amendola was pacing back and forth a reasonable distance from the round table and anybody else.
Amendola held onto a polished jade that glowed with a soft green light.
"Oi, Why are you calling me while on duty, eh?" When he received an answer, he was ecstatic!
"Teacher! I think I've found him! Your fated student!' Amendola was excited as he told his teacher about this piece of news.
'Don't play with me, boy! You know how important this is to me.' The other couldn't believe it. If this were a prank, he would go there right now and discipline this unfilial student!
'He has four blessings! I can't read the last one!' When he finished his sentence, he froze in anticipation.
*SLAP*
Amendola's head was sent forward into a Ninety-degree angle!
"Ow!" Amendola looked up and saw his teacher in front of him.
"Why didn't you just say that, punk!"
Amendola's teacher was a man of small stature, only reaching one-hundred-and-fifty-six centimeters.
He had dark brown hair, bushy eyebrows, and a thick beard. His uniform was silver, covering his entire body; a long black cape was attached to his uniform, adding to the heroic appearance.
Unlike his heroic-looking student, the teacher had a sharp and squared face. If you'd like a better description, he looked like a bloodthirsty Viking warrior with a mature temperament.
"Where is he? I want to get a good look at him." Amendola's teacher spoke with a slight smile, effectively scaring any weak-willed soldiers into walking the other way.
"Teacher, he is over there. He also..." Amendola proceeded to explain Daniel's story with perfect detail.
"Good, I'm going to attack him and see how he does." Amendola's teacher commented before running in Daniel's direction.
*sigh*
Amendola stood where he was left, lamenting Daniel's misfortune with slumped shoulders.
'Man... The old man did the same shit to me... Poor guy, at least I'll be there to support him through-' Before he could finish that thought, a loud sound resonated throughout the tent.
*BOOM*
Amendola looked up. His jaw dropped hilariously!
..
Moments before.
As the teacher ran at Daniel, he was quiet, but it didn't stop Daniel from feeling his approach.
Daniel's skin tingled, and his hair stood on end in the direction of Amendola's teacher; the difficult times in the desert and jungle showed its true value with this new ability to sense danger!
Amendola's teacher swung a sword diagonally, from right to left, top to bottom.
Daniel flexed his body, flipping backward with his left hand extended. The sword followed his shoulder but never even grazed him. The sword clanged onto the ground. Daniel caught himself with his left arm, bending his whole body into the shape of a crescent moon. Using all the pent-up energy, he thrust his right foot toward Amendola's teacher.
*BOOM*
Amendola's teacher brought his arm up, blocking the kick with his forearm.
Daniel heard a snap and immediately knew it was his ankle again.
RAGE.
Before Amendola's teacher could react, Daniel threw a punch at his chest.
*BOOM*
The teacher was sent flying.
Daniel spun on his hand and stood up. His veins pulsed with rage and adrenaline as he looked at the teacher lying on the ground.
He didn't attack because the two attacks he sent the stranger's way hurt a fuck ton!
"HAHAHAHAHA" Amendola's teacher laughed hysterically.
His reaction was unexpected!
He laid there comically with his cape covering his face.
Amendola couldn't believe his eyes!
'The seer did say he would exhibit amazing talent & power, but how is it this much‽' Amendola couldn't get a read on Daniel's body; so he must not have any cultivation!
The teacher didn't take it seriously, so he was taken by surprise, but no regular mortal should have been able to ruffle his clothes, even if they were to throw themselves at him, much less a punch!
This was indeed blessings upon blessings!