Arc 2: Road To Sicarius!
Avic strapped his bag of supplies across his shoulders and sheathed his dagger by his side. He kicked the front of his brown leather boot against the ground and brushed the dust from his long black fitted trousers. He then adjusted the laces under his neck from his neat black tunic and took a deep breath to steady his excitement.
It was the day after Amon had announced that they would be leaving Initium on a journey to the City Of Discite to enroll in the School Of Sicarius. This made Avic burn with anticipation. His journey as a Sicarius was about to begin and he could feel it.
"Looking sharp, Avic..!" He complimented himself, looking in the smudged mirror in his room.
Feeling satisfied with himself, Avic left his house and stepped out into the busy streets of Initium. As usual, the sound of horses, carts, and chatter drowned his ears as people went about their daily lives. Calmly, Avic then stretched his arms, embracing the start of a new chapter in his life. This was when he noticed how hot the heat of the sun was.
"Damn... Was it always so busy this early in the morning? And the sun is pretty hot given that it's only dawn..."
Glancing at the glaring sun, Avic's eyes broadened with urgency and his heart began to race. The sun was close to the center of the sky, indicating it was close to noon. He realized he had done it again. He was going to be late.
"Are you kidding me?! How is it this late already?!! I swear it was dawn like five minutes ago! Man, what a pain! I decided to close my eyes for five more minutes of extra sleep and it's already noon!"
With urgency strangling his soul, Avic dashed through the streets of Initium toward Amon's tavern as fast as he could. He could already hear Eliisabet and Custos complaining. He was sure to receive an earful for his tardiness.
After a minute of dashing wildly through Initium, Avic arrived at the tavern where the others were waiting for him. Custos and Eliisabet were standing impatiently in front of the tavern with their bags on their backs and weapons by their side, ready to go. Amon was also present with a displeased look on his face. None of them were very happy to see him.
"Avic, you're late again?!" Shouted Amon.
"I'm sorry!! I didn't realize how late it was! I woke up at dawn as instructed but then I decided to take a five-minute nap then all of a sudden it was noon! I swear!"
"Five minutes..!? You mean five hours!!"
Eliisabet sighed and buried her face in her hands in disbelief, "I just don't understand... We even tricked you and gave you the incorrect time so you would arrive here two hours earlier than the scheduled time and even then, you're somehow still late!"
"Okay, I'm sorry but it's not my fault I time traveled!"
"Avic, you didn't time travel! You overslept!"
"I did..?"
"You know what... Let's not... Sometimes, I wonder why I worry about you so much when you're such an idiot..."
"Well, makes no sense to dwell on it now. Since he's here, we should probably hurry and get a move on," interjected Custos.
Though still a little annoyed at Avic, both Eliisabet and Amon agreed.
"Well then, before you all go, I still have something to say to all of you," stated Amon.
"What's that, Old Geezer?" Asked Avic.
"You should all move swiftly if you hope to get to the City Of Discite in time."
A sense of confusion immediately drifted through the air. No one understood what Amon meant.
"What do you mean, Mister Amon? Why do we need to rush..?" Asked Eliisabet.
"Do none of you remember the reason you're going to the City Of Discite?!"
"Well, now that you mention it, you did say something about enrolling in the School Of Sicarius there to become Registered Sicarius," answered Custos.
"Hey, what's a Registered Sicarius anyway? Are they different from ordinary Sicarius?" Asked Avic.
"Sigh... Not exactly, Avic. As I'm sure you know, Sicarius aren't known for being the best behaved. Most of them do what they want without caring about whatever happens around them. This used to cause major problems for large kingdoms and empires due to how uncontrollable Sicarius were. So to quell this problem, different kingdoms and empires came up with a system to keep Sicarius under their control. This system is known as the Registrar System. This system works by offering Sicarius massive incentives to do jobs on the battlefield while staying out of trouble inside cities and towns. Those who accept these incentives under the Registrar System are referred to as Registered Sicarius."
"Oh, that's cool! I think I could do with some money and some nice treasure!"
"Well, that's exactly why you need to enroll in the School Of Sicarius and pass their examinations," interjected Amon. "That's also the reason I've been trying to tell you that you all need to make haste to the City Of Discite. Discite is approximately 150 miles west of Initium and the deadline for applying to this year's School Of Sicarius is just in two days."
Shock ran through their spines like a colony of ants. They didn't want to believe their ears but there was no use denying the truth.
"Ehhh?! What did you just say?! Two days?! Can we even travel 150 miles in two days?!!" Panicked Eliisabet.
"What are we going to do?! There's no way we can make it!" Agreed Avic.
"Wait! We might have a chance if we can get a ride to Discite! It might just get us there on time!" Thought Custos.
Amon shook his head in denial, "That is no longer possible."
"Why not?"
"Because the merchants traveling between Initium and Discite have already left. They're the only ones who travel between the two areas unless you have some sort of private transportation. That's why I had insisted on all of you getting here on time. But due to a certain lazy buffoon, that is no longer possible. Even if you wait for the next set of merchants to arrive, they won't leave until tomorrow morning at best. No one wants to travel through the Wilderness at night. By then, it would be far too late. You'll have to walk and hope for the best."
Eliisabet and Custos looked at Avic with annoyance. However, they knew they didn't have time to argue. Due to this, they quickly grabbed onto him and ran as fast as they could while shouting goodbye to Amon.
"We'll be back, Mister Amon!! Take care of yourself!!"