Joe followed the student with his spectator as he started to follow the path that he unintentionally laid out, hoping that he would go after one of the officers again, so he would at least be able to leave without too much hassle and give the 3 students below him enough time to be on their way so he could get away scot-free.
The students' hunt for the officers was going better than expected so by 11:10 30 of the officers were already tagged as the officers were only allowed to move spots every 5 minutes, allowing the students to employ their tactics to catch up and find and officers. There was however a student not chasing an officer but going along another set of barely visible footprints with a guild agent following behind him, catching the attention of some of the officers. As to why would a guild agent be following behind one student, also drawing the attention of some of the other guild agents that were passing by.
"Hey, Jeremey, why are you following this one student instead of scouting any of the others" Asked one of his guildmates over their guild communication device.
"As this one has found something of interest, I'm following him to make sure he stays safe and to meet the guy he is following," Jeremey replied back as he carried on following the kid.
"whatever has piqued his interest has got to be special, or special enough at least that he is concerned about a candidate's welfare, he is the cautious type but I mean it's not like there is anything dangerous in hear to be worried about right," another of his guildmates replied, interested in this new development, "Besides the drones would have picked up if anyone else was in here and we would have been told by now"
"Don't be too sure of yourself." Jeremey stated while still following the student, "when the students were released, I saw what seems to be an observer of some sort make a break for the area that this candidate found, that seems that someone was at last night as it was still relatively warm and dry grass around it, and is now following him along this set of footprints that the candidate is tracking. And that no one has been seen entering or exiting the nature conserve since the blockades were put up means that whoever it was, is most likely to still be in here and concerned. That this student is on his trail."
"Then shouldn't we tell the ministry officers about this as well, so that they can also be on the lookout." The guildmate replied.
"No! Not for now at least. The person whoever it was probably slept the night here, probably because they had no other choice given that they stayed under a secluded tree, and used whatever they used to stay warm last night to be out of the -4°c it got to last night and started to wander their way out before discovering that there would be essentially a giant manhunt got scared and sent his observer that he has to check on the place they are most worried about someone finding and leading back to him, while he tries to stay hidden or make it out of here. Probably relying on the fact that the manhunt is for the officers not them to stay hidden. We still do not know who they are or what they are capable of, so if they find out that there is a manhunt for them, we have no idea what they would do. As it seems they are already backed into a corner, we don't want them to do something that they may regret." Jeremey replied with his analysis of the situation. "And suddenly finding yourself somewhere you aren't supposed to be can make you go into hiding, especially if you unintentionally find yourself inside a manhunt."
Being countered before he could get a word out the guild agent caught up with Jeremey in the pursuit of this mystery person behind the student.
Still, halfway across the park, Joe remained stuck to the tree as he followed the student with his spectator simultaneously listening to the agent's conversation that he now knows is Jeremey while thinking,' You hit the nail on the head there bud, maybe a bit too accurately. But on a larger scale than just these woods.'
At last after a minute or so the students beneath him moved on, and after checking his radar for a path with the least people and where the drone coverage was weaker. After picking a route and accounting for the direction that everyone is going in, he unlinked himself from the tree and started making his way out using his Hud overlaid with paths of least effort, following the paths while keeping an eye out with his spectator. Joe was making a good pace avoiding the officers and students alike with his radar saying there were only 20 officers left without a student next to them and the competition among the students becoming more competitive, as the drones let out a warning that there were only 20 places left.
Now the students were racing through the forest faster than ever trying to get a remaining place, all but one who was following a distinct boot print that he hadn't seen before. He came to a section where these boot prints crossed over each other and took a hard right to follow the direction of the new prints, as for one they were newer and two the boot prints would just loop around to this point again so why waste time as he continued on this mystery trail, catching the attention of an officer as he saw a candidate run past with two guild agents following along behind him, as to why wasn't the student going after him and why was there two let alone any agents following him. Using his communication device, the officer contacted Cleveland to ask the Bright star recruitment agents why they had two men following a kid that was going past officers seemingly following something else, as this situation seemed off to him.
After receiving this news, Cleveland immediately contacted the Bright star recruitment agents for an explanation as something worthy enough for one of his officers to report back about is worth at least a follow-up.
"Cleveland to bright star agents, I've received word that two of your members are following an interesting candidate, may I enquire as to why?" Cleveland asked with a slight interest in the matter.
"Well it could be nothing, but the candidate may be in pursuit of someone that wants to remain hidden" Jeremey replied.
"Well, you are going to need to give me more info than that," Cleveland demanded.
"Well, it seems like someone stayed here overnight and seems to have found themselves in the middle of a manhunt," Jeremey responded.
"Well what makes you say that?" Cleveland questioned.
"well the spot secluded under a tree that had a perfectly circular area of dry and warm trunk and ground, the fresh footprints the candidate is following, and what seems to be an observer that immediately headed over two that exact area after finding out that people would be tracking people through the woods"
"Well the drones haven't detected anyone else and would have certainly spotted another drone," said Cleveland with a hint of laughter.
"It's not a drone," Jeremey responded, " It's an invisible orb made of magic that seems to have a camera like indent that is currently focused on the candidate"
"But a skill like that doesn't exist."
"Yeah and that's why I'm interested, and the fact that whoever this is isn't being picked up on the drones means that has a way to fool even the drones, until proven dangerous I advise not to send people after them as they are in a potentially hostile environment to them and are trying to stay hidden, trying to make an escape, if we send people after them, we don't know how they will react."
"Ok then, contact me if you find them, and we will go from there," Cleveland responded before broadcasting on the ministry communication device, "Cleveland to recruitment officers, there may be someone that we can't detect in these woods, please be advised, if seen or found is to be left alone unless outwardly shown as hostile, repeat, if seen or found is to be left alone unless outwardly shown as hostile"
Although go now heard Jeremey's talk with Cleveland, what he didn't know was that now all the officers knew that someone was here as he continued to make his way around trees and over ditches, having to find alternative paths when too many students were cutting into the area that he was trying to move into, the sound of the drones overhead.
Soon an announcement blared from overhead "5 places left"
This gave the students still trying to find an officer a scare as they quickened their pace once again trying to cover as much distance as they could to try and find an officer. One however quickened his pace as the boot prints that he had been following were extremely new less than 30 seconds old now starting to run alongside a ledge that was getting taller and taller, not a vertical wall but close to it as it would be easy enough to jump from top to bottom without touching the slope at all. This was unknown however to the two students running up the gentler side of the mound one in front of the other before one without knowing it finding themselves in mid-air and then suddenly on the ground again falling off the 10m high ledge, his friend managing to stop in time before going over himself and hearing a craking noise before another thud, looking over to see an officer there rushing over with a student in tow and his friend laying face down in a contorted angle with a bone sticking out of one of his legs and blood starting to leak onto the ground as the officer that rushed over got out his first aid kit and calling a medical emergence and that they need a healer here over the com before trying to stop the bleeding and set his leg and arm back in place with the help of the students there.
See this scene before him as he continued to run forward Joe chose instead to slow down rather than go around, especially when he heard the officer's second call for a healer.
"This kid is dead in 3 minutes if we don't get a healer here now," the yelled into the ministry com device.
"We are quite far out, we will be there as soon as we can, you will have to make do in the meantime" replied the closest healer setting off at full speed.
Seeing this Joe quickly walked up behind the officer who was still trying to save the kid's life as he continued to bleed out through his leg and the giant hole left from landing and bouncing off a rock that was sticking out of the ground.
"Is he in a condition to be healed" came out the modulated voice of Joe with an acute sense of urgency.
Still in life-saving mode, the officer automatically replied without a thought to what the voice sounded like or where it came from," Yes he is, and he should be alright if the healer makes it here in time," thinking that he was a student.
"Alright then," Joe replied in the same modulated voice before taking a step back.
'mental command: cast healing word' Joe thought to himself targeting the poor lad on the ground.
The student tracking the mystery person and the two guild agents got there in time to see a marvellous display of the characteristic green healing magic pouring out of nowhere as it went past the officer and started to wrap around the student before starting to sink into his body with pulses passing through his body as the green light moved around his body centring on different parts at a time his body healing at a visible pace with all the bruising and open wounds healing up completely in about seven seconds as the remaining light only partly dimmed from what is was before still glowed and leaving a faint trail whenever he moved slightly, everyone was shocked at this as this magic and healing spell came out of nowhere. The officer turned around to who he thought was a student with mixed emotions as from what he had just heard that the healers wouldn't be here in time only to see that no one was there as the healing spell continued to pour out of that spot. After the spell was completed everyone was in silence for a few seconds as they didn't know what to say, while Joe, on the other hand, was looking through his hud checking on the boy's condition and after he was satisfied he started to silently run off again as he brought his spectator around to just away from where he just was so he could view most the people there.
The same modulated voice spoke through the spectator "He should be alright now, I've healed him but he is still very exhausted from the experience, so let him rest before trying to move him and keep an eye on him would ya, that was quite a big fall." Before moving his spectator away a bit and keeping an eye on the situation.
"I will, you be sure of that." the officer replied softly, knowing from experience what the helplessness of being in this type of situation is like. As 4 more officers and students arrive at the scene to see those that were already there bewildered as a student lay there asleep on the ground.
Jeremey saw the whole spectacle in more detail than most. He was surprised to see the purity of the mana used to cast the spell, only seeing purity that high from entities in the alternate realm that get their mana directly from the gods or high devils but this mana came from neither of those. And that he could not see the person even while he is casting the spell as not only should it be impossible but that he could not detect them at all as even the best invisibility has to leave at least some trace of mana while most invisibility spells and skills seem to be vailed in mana. And after the spell was over the spectator moved around to behind where the spell was cast and in the same voice he heard just before saying that they've healed him and to look after him before moving away and observing from afar.
"Jeremey to Cleveland, we've made contact and you are going to want to hear this."
"Not now, we have a medical emergency can this wait," said Cleveland rushing about to command the retrieval effort.
"I know, I saw the poor guy right before our mystery person healed him with mana that's purity could rival the gods of the alternate realm, not using, rival" Jeremey emphasised, " I couldn't detect him at all even while he was casting the spell, and that observer I mentioned before is his as he talked through it with the same modulated voice that he used before casting his spell. The student is now asleep, the voice said he should be fine and that he's just exhausted and to let him rest, which is a good idea given the circumstances"
"So where is this mystery saviour now then," Cleveland asked wanting to meet this person face to face.
"Presumably he started running again right after he finished healing the boy and used his observer to say that last part so he could gain some lead again, I can go after him personally if you want and I should be able to catch them if you want," Jeremey replied.
"No, leave them be, they saved a dying soul when they could have gone right past, we'll give them a pass on this one, and maybe even meet them formally in the future, provided they stick around" Cleveland responded.