It was almost noon when all the preparations for the Trial were ready. The trial consisted of three phases, running, strength and the ring.
Lucio, Mark and two more guys stood behind a line. Han stared at them for a while and threw a log into the sky. Time passed slowly for Lucio as the log slowly came down and the moment it touched the ground, he moved.
The four ran through the village, towards the river with Mark in the lead and Lucio taking the rear. He was quite slow but faster than his usual jogging.
Lucio felt light as he ran without much effort but was still keeping up with the three in front of him. He planned on running slow until the last two hundred fifty meters, where he would burst through all of them.
They all ran with Han running closely behind them. Mark ran faster as they neared the rived and jumped in before swimming to the other end of the river with the other three right behind him.
Lucio luckily was a really good swimmer and overtook the two in front of him. He could swim faster but he didn't as he did not want to risk an injury right in the first round.
Mark touched the riverbank and turned around before pushing himself towards Lucio who was right behind him. This action made Lucio annoyed as it slowed him down.
He still swam behind Mark as the race wasn't finished. It didn't take long for Lucio to swim past Mark and after a while, he climbed up from the river and continued running.
A few meters later, he saw Mark right beside him, smiling widely as if mocking him.
Lucio simply shook his head and let him run ahead of him. The two boys behind him looked too tired to catch up. Mark and Lucio ran until they were about three hundred metres from the finish line and Lucio sped up.
He felt adrenaline hit him as he kept accelerating till he hit the top speed he could reach. The villagers all cheered for Mark but when they saw Lucio speed up, they were shocked. Many of them went crazy due to the excitement, roaring and shouting at the top of their lungs.
They all saw Lucio rapidly get close to Mark and eventually overtake him.
Mark was shocked but didn't give up as he also sped up trying to take deep breaths, but unfortunately his efforts were futile as Lucio kept getting further away and eventually reached the finish line.
Mark finished soon after and looked at Lucio who was staring at Mark proudly as if seeing a bug standing on his way before he shook his head and turned away before chuckling to himself, which angered Mark to no end.
Lucio loved the look Mark had when he ran past him and thinking about it made him chuckle. Lucio's calves were burning when Han returned with the two other boys who came back panting.
Han told them to take a seat, which indirectly was an elimination.
Lucio and Mark headed towards the forest where they had to lift logs of different sizes and weights.
"You have to lift the logs over your heads and let them fall behind you as you walk forwards. The one who goes the furthest, wins."
Lucio and Mark nodded and stood in front of the smallest log. Lucio took calculated deep breaths to calm down his racing heart before Han shouted "STARTTT!"
The outcome was set in stone as they went forward taking one step at a time whilst throwing the logs behind them. While Lucio started struggling halfway, Mark had already bulldozed through the entire round and flexed his muscles.
Lucio could just swallow his anger and continue struggling. The round ended with Lucio being unable to lift the last two. The people booed him, just like the way they booed Mark after the race.
The final round was the ring and it was basically a fight inside a "ring" and the person who faints, accepts defeat or is thrown out of the ring would lose.
They were both given a break for Lunch before the fight started to make sure they got enough rest and energy for the last round. A fight between two exhausted teenagers wasn't too exiting after all.
Lucio and Mark ate quietly with Han who had specially brought out deer meat which Amelia had cooked for them. Lucio didn't eat till he felt bloated as it would make him feel slow in a fight. A good amount of meat and bread was the best thing for the current situation.
The two soon stood in the ring made of think rope. Lucio jumped lightly to warm up while Mark stretched. Han suddenly said "You can start."
Before Lucio could take a stance, he saw Mark run towards him with his fist pulled backwards. His instincts kicked in before the punch landed and he ducked, before going for marks legs.
Lucio held Mark's strong legs, locking his hands behind his knees before pushing through, making Mark land face first on the ground. Lucio didn't let go but stood up and walked towards the rope, aiming to throw Mark off the ring
Mark realised what he was trying to do and caught Lucio's legs. "Even I can play dirty, Lucio."
"Tch." Lucio sounded annoyed before he fell backwards, on top of Mark but unfortunately mark was too strong and pushed Lucio away before going forward to punch him again.
This time Lucio was prepared as he dodged the punch and threw his own, which barely affected the muscular donkey in front of him. Mark pulled back his fist to punch but the action took a bit too long and Lucio did not let the chance go.
Mark felt his face being hit multiple times and most of them were barely effective but the sly fox in front of him poked his eyes and nose sometimes, which hurt.
Mark was pushed to the ground and Lucio continued showering punches until he heard Amelia cry out "Stop!"
He stopped instinctually but that was a huge mistake as Mark pushed him away. Lucio fell down near the edge of the ring and was about to get up when he saw a leg coming towards him from the corner of his eye.
He wanted to evade it but his posture didn't allow him to. He felt like he was flying before his vision turned dark.
***
Han sat on a large log as he saw Lucio shooting punches at Mark and smiled. "He might win if this continues….."
Mark was a beast when it came to physique but was a toddler when it came to actual combat, which Lucio seemed to have a great talent for.
Things changed when Amelia yelled as Mark threw away and jumped up before kicking Lucio who was standing up, with all his might.
"Oh god, this Amelia…." Han said before walking towards Lucio, who seemed to have lost consciousness.
The villagers all shouted, some cursing Amelia while some cheered for Mark.
***
Lucio woke up a few hours later, when the sun was about to set. Han was busy roasting some meat and he looked quite sad as he did so.
Lucio waned up to Han and sat down bedside him "Looks like I lost huh?"
"No, you won…. Gary has been banished from the village."
"Huh?.... Was it because of Amelia?"
"Yeah… they were leaving anyways so it didn't really matter but they won't be allowed to come back here. Samael, do you blame Amelia?"
"Well, Mark was her brother. I don't blame her."
Han nodded and went silent for a while before speaking "You know, this village is named after me…. The Great Han village."
"Stop joking old man. Did you drink too much?" Lucio asked as he found the idea funny.
"No, I used to work for the late king and won many battles for him, but after his son succeeded him, I retired. This village was given my name for the contribution I did for the empire but, what's the use when the nobles have the real power?" Han said dejectedly and looked at Lucio.
"The village is named after me but is owned by the nobles. I have no power…."
Lucio nodded in silence and he listened to Han. He never thought that Han had such a history.
"Here you go, Don't fall into the nobles traps like me and think twice before accepting any mission as a mercenary or a hunter." Han said as he gave Lucio a pouch which had twenty silvers.
"Thank you…." Lucio said before coming into realisation "How am I going to go to the Silver moon town if they already left?!"
"I'll give you a mule. They left it for you as an apology."
Lucio sighed before looking at the dark sky. "I guess I'll have to leave tomorrow."
They poured some soup for themselves and tore off some meat to chew on for their dinner. None of them felt like eating bread for the night.
Lucio felt empty as he stared at the fire in front of him "To think that I got attached to a kid…. Mark…. the next time I see you, I'll make sure to return the kick."