(Giya!)
The cry for the last Forest Goblin came as Victor's sword stabbed ruthlessly into its chest. The blood followed, dripping and leaving a trail on the ground.
It was much brighter since there were only two hours before sunrise. Those who want to rest must go for it before the weather warms up. The road would also get significantly noisier when the sun was up.
"Let us split into a team of two. Those extremely exhausted and injured shall get some rest first. As for those who don't, we'll be taking a turn handling all these corpses." said the guard leader. It seems that his few years of adventuring weren't wasted for nothing.
From what he was told, the Goblin's Heart was one of the elementary ingredients in alchemy to produce Magic Stone. The made Magic Stone had many uses, from powering street lighting to a vehicle powered by a Magic Generator.
Based on the number of corpses around here, they could be worth at least two to three Magic Stones if all the collected hearts were given to a Bronze-Grade Alchemist.
Hespar, Selene, Paul, and Sean remained awake as half of their teammates went to rest first. But the ones working with the corpses are mainly Hespar and Sean. Selene chose to sleep later because she needed to treat the wounded guards. As for Paul, he was expected to make some grubs for everyone.
The guard leader naturally accompanied Hespar along with five other guards. This was expected, being the one suggesting that they take their rest in turns.
This continued until the resting group woke up to resume the workload. A total of one hundred and sixty Forest Goblins were processed before they burned the remainder of the corpses. Both sides take the right of ownership of half of the Goblin's Hearts, but the guard leader added six more to Hespar's portion as a token of thanks.
Hespar unpretentiously rejected the suggestion, but the guard leader quickly added a few words to stop pushing the hearts from one side to another.
"Listen here, boy. I can see that you're not someone hungry for credits, but as an Aura User, payment like this was necessary. Also, by being too kind to others, you're breaking the example practiced by other Aura Users." he said.
"You need to know that without the support from your Aura, we won't be getting a result like this. This is why the extras were necessary, as your Aura did somewhat protect a few of us from dying in that fight." the guard leader added.
What he said was right on point. Without the support from Hespar's Aura, there's no doubt their fighting ability would be halved in the darkness. Thanks to the Aura, the guards could protect the goods inside the carriage and their lives.
Hespar then went to rest after the two convoys decided to continue on their way. Obviously, he was too tired as he fell into deep slumber when he went inside the sleeping bag.
"Did your leader fall asleep?" the instructor hiding in the forest and helping clear hobgoblins and more powerful monsters, came into view. His arrival surprised everyone, as they had no idea their instructor was around.
"Y-Yes, Sir! Our leader is resting right now." Paul said.
"So, who had the mission card now? Bring it here so I can give you the passing mark. You guys may return anytime since you've officially passed your test." the instructor said.
"Really?" Paul quickly took the mission card out for the instructor to sign.
"Of course. Do you think I'll come here just to make fun of you all?" the instructor snatched the card from Paul and left his signature and a print from his token. The token was one form of identification all Aura Users would have.
"Alright. Be careful on your way back." the instructor said and returned the card to Paul. But before he left the outpost, the instructor snatched a few sticks of grilled meat from the stove.
"How dare you make so much delicious food and leave nothing to me. This is my protection fee," the instructor added. Minutes later, he was no longer in their view.
"I-I think we all passed the test." Paul went around telling everyone what had happened. He repeated the same story all over again when Hespar woke up.
With this passing signature on their card, they wouldn't be implicated with anything even if they returned to the Lavos Village. But as part of their responsibility, they stayed in the outpost. They continued to run it until a few convoys decided to stay.
More convoys decided to extend their support as they approached the outpost. Some even came with an offer to rebuild the ramparts and some materials to make this outpost looks better.
Later in the afternoon, the outpost space has to be widened from its limit of four carriages to six. Even the area outside the ramparts was in use as it was crowded with people parking their carriage for a rest, exchange, and everything else.
The group then made their way home as it was getting darker. To Hespar and the others, this was an unforgettable three-day experience.
They were warmly received by their parents when stepping through the gate. It was a nerve-breaking moment for their parents as it was three slow passing days.
Catherine immediately brought this somewhat taller child of hers into her embrace. The sight was also seen by her husband, who was still on duty. The two knew Hector would have to work through the night, so they left after lovingly looking at the family's breadwinner.
On their way home, Hespar was told by his mother that two of the groups were unfortunately killed after provoking monsters they shouldn't. As for the remaining groups, it was said that there were about ten casualties divided among the few groups.
Lucas's group was one of those with a dead member because they were caught in a monster attack. Although the instructor immediately reacted, they were too unprepared, which made it harder for the instructor to protect them entirely.
"No wonder some parents are crying back there..." Hespar silently nodded. He might not be a parent, but seeing how nervous Catherine looked before he returned and how quickly she came to embrace him, he could understand the feeling his parents were having,
The two patiently accompanied one another, taking only light meals while waiting for Hector to come home.
A little later that night, Hector came back. The first thing he did was to pull his son over to his side and give him a big hug. This was also Hespar's first-ever hug from his father so openly, as he expressed how much in turmoil is his heart when Hespar went out there.
It was as if the two could share all the life-changing experiences from hugging one another, from a father to his child. Furthermore, it was filled with a hint of proudness from hearing all the great deeds Hespar had done in these three days.
"Look at the two of you..." Catherine smiled and joined them. The two loosen their grip slightly, giving the supporting pillar of the family a space to fit in. They hugged one another for quite a while until Hespar started to sweat from the body warmth they released.
"Alright. Sit down here and tell us what you've gone through over these three days." Hector had his son seated on a chair and showed Hespar a face full of expectation. Knowing that his parents wouldn't let him sleep unless he finished telling them what transpired, he excitedly shared with them what happened.
It was already long past midnight by the time he ended his storytelling. This was the most peaceful sleep he had ever had.
He attended the academy the following day, dressed in the official uniform provided to each student. The usual habit of foraging was no longer necessary as Hespar was now officially an adult.
He won't be expected to forage to lighten the family's food burden. Still, He would be expected to support the family via money, food, and security. This was the difference between young and adults, helping and employment.
A stage was built over the three days they were not around. And out of the 161 trainees, only 131 remained. Needless to say, the 30 remaining people were the ones unfortunately killed by the monsters during this three-day examination.
Their uniforms with names were hung along the walls to remember them and show everyone the reality they'll face as adults.
At the start of the announcement, only a hundred trainees passed the final test. The remaining 31 people would be allowed to graduate only as second-degree graduates.
The award ceremony continues with the Titled Baron, Arc-Heart, coming up to the stage for his part of the announcement. As it was told to them earlier, a hundred graduates would follow him to the eastern front to establish a special 1000-men battalion.
Then, the placement award followed.
Undoubtedly, everyone in Hespar's group would receive a good placement in the 100 top students. But the notable ones would definitely be the top five students in the class.
Rory's name was the first to be announced as the fifth seat amongst the 100 students. Lucas, unable to perform his best in this examination, ended up third, with the second spot taken by Victor instead.
There's no doubt that Hespar was the top student this year. Another announcement followed after giving out all the rewards and officially announcing their graduation. Hespar was once again called up to the stage.
"Hespar, son of Hector! Make your presence to the stage." said the baron. His summon had a slightly different tone than before.