Adrian lost consciousness at the very last moment. He stays on the ground for an unknown amount of time. Aries didn't bother to wake him up and let him be.
Time passes by and the sunlight gradually disappears.
"Urghh", He uttered as his body started to twitch. The feeling of pain is still there. He tries to ease it by rubbing his hand on his head.
Adrian slowly opens his eyes. His eyesight was blurry but it began to regain its sharpness. A few seconds later, the surroundings become clearer.
He looked left and right to confirm his location. Apparently, he is safe from any wild animals. Only now he realised the dangerousness of being alone in the forest. It seems like his sense isn't matched to a dunirrs yet.
"Yeah, I'm here because of that damn process. It hurts so much as if my head was split open." For a moment, he forgot the reason why he was there.
"Aries, how much time has passed?"
[5 hours 20 minutes and 49 seconds]
"That's too long! Well, it pretty much explains why the area is darker than when I arrive here."
Adrian tried to stand up but failed. His body dropped back to the ground, creating a large thud. He seems to have used all of his energy. He can only stay lying on the ground. While at it, he chose to recover his lost mana.
[+3.5 Earthia Mana]
[+3.5 Earthia Mana]
[+3.5 Earthia Mana]
[+3.5 Earthia Mana]
He can feel his body energized thanks to the mana he absorbs. Once he recovered a quarter of his total mana, he stood up effortlessly.
"Mana is sure helpful stuff. Now, let's check my dagger mastery skill," said Adrian to himself.
Adrian searched for anything that could help him test his new skills. His eyes landed on a relatively straight stick on the ground. Thus, he decided to use it as a replacement for a dagger.
He starts to make a movement by swinging the stick to slash the air left and right. His entire body moves accordingly and fluidly as he expected it to. Next, he tests his accuracy by throwing the stick at the target. It goes without saying that it flies exactly to its target.
"Cool! It's worth suffering for hours." Adrian is satisfied with the skill. He grins like an idiot in the middle of the wilderness. With this, he has nothing to worry about tomorrow.
He happily returned to Adrianopolis with a smile plastered on his face.
....
Adrian woke up early the next morning. Not only him but every dunirrs as well.
Today is a big day for him and them. It is a test of the legitimacy of his position as a chief.
It reminded him of an important exam he had to go through to continue his study. His parents would prepare a sumptuous breakfast for him. The difference is instead of stationaries, it's daggers this time. And there's no examination slip.
In his tent, he is making sure the daggers that he borrowed from Tombas are perfectly fine. The daggers are one centimeter long made out of iron which surprised him. He expected it to be bone-made. Iron was scarce to this dunirrs.
"Weapon, check! Food, check! Extra clothes, check! Good! Everything looks fine. Let's hope I don't get a stomachache out of nervousness."
"Unofficial Chief! Are you ready yet?" A familiar voice entered his tent.
"What the f*ck that idiot is calling me? Is he trying to pick a fight early in the morning?" Adrian cursed.
That idiot called Moja purposely called him that in order to ruin his mood.
Just as he was about to come out, he heard another voice belonging to Rosta whispering in a low voice. "Don't call him that, Moja. Even if he fails, he'll always be our chief in our heart."
"At least he can be our magic teacher once he steps down." Moja calmly said.
'These people...They never expected me to pass the ceremony test. And who's gonna teach you magic?!!'
Adrian abruptly exited the tent where Moja and Rosta's faces entered his sight. He gives them a polite smile and walks straight to Haja. He doesn't want to waste his energy arguing with them.
Haja, just like Moja and Rosta is wearing an armour protecting the vitals part of his body here and there.
The concept of full armour isn't popular in dunirrs civilization. They had long abandoned it because it was seen as impractical.
For dunirrs, mobility is the most important aspect whether during the hunt or the run.
"So, what's the procedure for this test?" Adrian asked.
Haja gives a long explanation, "It's pretty simple, chief. Moja, Rosta, Tusca and me going with you to the forest as an evaluator. Don't worry, we'll follow you from behind as to not disturb your focus. You need to search for one special beast and kill them. That's it."
"What if it takes days to find one?"
"Then, we will stay in the forest for days. If it takes weeks, then weeks it is."
"How long Tombas take? Did you know about it?" Adrian curiously asked. Dunirrs had a habit of recording many things to pass it down to future generations. Therefore, they must have this important stuff recorded.
Haja raised three fingers of his. "Three weeks."
"Three weeks!!" Adrian jaw dropped. "What about food and water?"
"You find it by yourself, of course. If you can do that much, you're not worthy of the position." Haja said in a serious tone.
Adrian was taken aback for a second. He never saw this level of seriousness from Haja before.
"Alright, alright. When do we move out?"
"Now"
"Let's go then."
"Chief, are you sure you're gonna bring three daggers with you?" Haja knitted his eyebrows.
"Yeah, why?" Adrian asked. He always brings extra pens to exams. It makes sense for him to bring a spare weapon.
Haja shook his head, "Nothing. I just thought it would be a burden during the journey. Considering you brought food and stuff...Anyway, let's not waste our time."
"Okay." Adrian slung his homemade bag over his shoulder and walked behind Haja towards the western exit of Adrianopolis. Followed closely behind him is Moja, Rosta, Tusca.
Dunirrs gathered at the gate, saying their farewell to Adrian. The former chief, Tombas stepped forward, "Although it has been a short amount of time knowing you, you have helped us build a new settlement and give us hope in using magic. We all, from the deepest part of our heart hope for you to be successful."
"Thanks" Adrian appreciate such kind word. But Tombas's words sounds misleading. The old man make it sound like they're not going to meet each other again.
"Chief, hurry up!" Haja call him from afar.
Adrian walks toward the gate where the rest is waiting for him. "Let's go."