Alan sprinted out of the classroom in a hurry and saw many armed soldiers running around. He was an emperor before death, so he knew when this kind of uneasiness could be observed among the soldiers. He observed it during a 'war'.
He could not understand what kind of war they prepared for, and why in the academy premises where countless children were present.
"What is happening?" He thought when he ran across the corridor to the training grounds to get an idea of the danger they were about to face.
He sprinted towards a soldier who stood in silver armor with a sword tied to his waist. "What is happening? Why are so many armored soldiers here?" He asked after catching a breath.
The soldier looked down at him and answered, "You don't have to worry, boy. We will take care of the danger."
Alan noticed that the armor this soldier wore was thicker than usual. He hung metal plates by his shoulders and also tied them to his waist to protect his torso from both the front and the backside.
"Can you tell me what kind of danger we are facing?" He asked.
"Didn't I say you don't have to worry? Go inside and study," The soldier reacted with a frown and Alan squinted at him.
"I should not have asked this soldier," He thought before he heard someone's voice.
"Let me know, brave man."
It was the headmaster's voice. Alan and the soldier turned their heads and saw him coming towards them with a bunch of armed soldiers. He stopped and added, "This young man deserves to know the situation. Besides, he is going to join in as well."
The soldiers got baffled by the headmaster's words. He wondered if he hated the children of his academy for them to die a miserable death. He had no choice but to follow the headmaster's orders.
He looked at Alan who looked at him with curious eyes and said, "We are going to face a monster."
"A monster?"
"Yes, this monster can suck the people's spiritual energy and grow stronger. Recently, it massacred an entire village and went to hide in the woods. However, it is heading this way to feed on more people's spiritual energy."
"Oh," Alan went into thoughts and he stared at the ground with a quizzical expression. "I have never heard of this monster before. Judging from what he said the cry from earlier belonged to the monster."
While he was thinking, Gunther arrived and saw Alan, the headmaster, and the soldier. The headmaster looked at him before he bowed to him in respect. He could not understand the situation but his intuition told him something was wrong.
"The monster must still be there in the woods," Alan thought. "If it is the case, why didn't the headmaster evacuate the children? What is he thinking?"
"Besides, he is going to join in as well." He remembered the words the headmaster spoke a while ago and understood what the old man was thinking. He scowled at the old man when he thought –
"So this old man is putting the lives of children in danger. He wants us to fight that monster which can kill us in an instant." He moved his face away towards the main entrance, the arch-shaped gate. "That monster must get defeated before it arrives here."
"What are you thinking, boy? Are you scared of the monster?" The soldier asked when the headmaster walked away after slightly smiling at Alan.
"Tell me about the monster. How does it look like? How does it feed on spiritual energy?" Alan asked desperately.
"What? Monster?" Gunther uttered in disbelief after hearing what the soldier and Alan said. "What are you talking about?"
"I will tell you everything, Gunther," Alan said.
The soldier scratched his cheek and spoke with his eyes rolled up as he tried to remember what others told him about the monster, "I think it looks like an ape and has four giant arms. It sucks the spiritual energy through its tails when it stabs either the diaphragm or the chest and sucks every ounce of spiritual energy a person possesses."
The spiritual core is usually near the diaphragm of a human being. That monster knew about it. It was as if someone taught or programmed him.
"How can we kill it?" He asked.
"I don't know. Nobody has damaged it even a little yet," The soldier replied with an awkward smile.
Alan suddenly sprinted towards the western part of the academy as it comprised the armory. They needed weapons to fight the monster. Gunther followed him as he knew something was wrong.
"Where are you going, Alan?" Gunther shouted while following him.
Alan answered without stopping, "To the armory!" They passed by the corridors and gardens and also many masters and students until they finally reached the armory.
An enormous building with brown walls stood in the corner of the western parts of the academy. Above the huge metal gate, they had carved the name 'Blood Sencer Armory'. Alan and Gunther both panted after the run.
"You run so fast," Gunther mentioned while he held his knees and panted. "What do you want from the armory?"
"A weapon, of course," Alan replied and pushed the metal door. It opened with a screeching sound as it was an old door before they entered the armory.
"Whoa," Gunther reacted in awe when he looked around. "This place is so cool."
The students in their first year did not have the access to the armory. Only the senior students who mastered the three grand stages of Nigrosian arts could use a weapon. Two security guards always guarded the place, but they were not there right now.
The inside of the armory was like heaven to a warrior. They placed the legendary weapons on the racks with a description of them carved on the walls below the respective weapons. It even mentioned the noble warriors who used those weapons in his lifetime and achieved greatness. It even comprised war armors that the legendary warriors wore during the wars.
"Wow, I never thought our armory looked like this," Gunther mentioned while he moved his eyes around the chamber. His eyes shined like a bright star.
"Pick up a weapon. We have to go," Alan said and walked ahead to pick up a weapon for himself. He stopped in front of a pair of daggers placed on a red velvet cushion. Alan bent down and read the description of the weapon.
Gunther roamed around and looked at the weapons to choose one.
"Karma and Asura, these two daggers were used by the legendary assassin Rabuka 'The Piercer' Nigros. These two daggers comprise distinct properties of Fire and Poison, respectively. Excellent for assassination, these daggers could be fatal to the wielder himself if not handled with care."
Karma had a golden hilt with a red pearl embedded at its bottom while Asura had a silver hilt with a blue pearl embedded at its bottom.
"Would I be able to kill a monster from this?" He wondered, but picked up the daggers and tucked them into his waistband. He knew daggers could be useless against a monster, so he picked up a sword as well which was kept in a corner with no description.
He lifted it up and observed the shine in the blade. He could almost see his face in it. It had a metal hilt with bandages wrapped around it. He wondered if it belonged to an ordinary soldier.
"Hey, Gunther. Did you pick up a weapon?" He asked and turned around. He saw Gunther stood with a smile on his face and held a war-scythe.
"How do I look?" Gunther asked while he stood erect with the war-scythe placed vertically on the ground. "Do I look like General Trojan Nigros?"
All the names that were mentioned in the armory were the names of Alabusia's greatest enemies. Alan could barely control his anger while reading or hearing these names.
"You look good with the war-scythe," He said and headed towards the exit. "Now, we need to go. We are in big trouble."
"Wait, tell me what happened first?" Gunther asked but Alan headed out without answering.
"How did a monster that has no mention in history arrived suddenly? What is that monster?" Alan thought while he ran across the corridors with the weapons.
"Are we going outside?" Gunther asked when he noticed they were going towards the academy's main entrance where a bunch of soldiers stood guard.
Alan jumped out of the main entrance with Gunther by crossing the soldiers.
"Hey, wait!" One of them shouted. "It is dangerous!"
"Let them go," Another one said.
"What? But why?"
"The headmaster had ordered. These children will help us in fighting the monsters. They are heading towards the forest."
"What?" The first soldier reacted in surprise. "But these are children. What if something happens to them?"
"Why do you care? It is his problem."