Tang was in forefront, she didn't even look tired which went to show that her title as hunter was not just for show. Luke was also trying his best, Noah was sure he wanted to prove something and didn't want to be expelled from his training.
Milo the smiling kid surprised Noah a lot, he was second but from the way he was running, he didn't look like he was trying hard, just conserving his energy. Cody the thin kid was deadlast, it was understandable just looking at his physique but Noah could see determination in his eyes. He never once complained which Noah couldn't help but give him props for.
The most surprising were the two female, Rita and Julia. They held the middle spot throughout the course without even taking any breaks, although their speed wasn't comparable to the ones leading in the front it was good to see them giving their best for the test.
Noah expected them to whine because they were just kids in his eyes but frankly they were better than some of the adults that he had served with in his past. He smiled because it was something that he could work with.
" Alright stop everyone! I have seen enough." Noah shouting prompting them to look his way. They still have few more laps to go but since he say it was enough, they stopped and walk over to him.
" Alright, stand in line. Keep your head up proudly." He began walking around trying to correct their posture. Discipline was something that he had to hammer in their heads. Whether it was formation or handwork, if they were not consistent, it would only hurt the overall structure of the army.
" Tang?"
" Yes?" She answered haphazardly.
" Speak up!"
" Yes!"
" You will the leader of this division. Since you all think that you are adults I will treat you like one so get ready for training." Noah walked around drilling the rules in their head.
" First, I will congratulate you for enduring through it. Even Cody was able to held on which is commendable." Noah looked everyone. Other than Tang and Milo who were a little sweaty, everyone else's clothes were completely drenched.
They were huffing and trying to catch their breaths while in attention position which didn't help their case. He sighed and said," We will take a few minutes break before continuing." He couldn't rush it even if they only had a week.
Smiles return to their faces as soon as the water hit their parched throats, instead of loitering around with him, they sat under the shadow of a tree. Noah didn't stop observing them even during their short break.
Tang seemed popular like always, she was close to Mera and every kid new about her and respected her for being able to wield magic so the girls were around her along with Luke and Cody but Milo on the other hand was sitting a little away from them.
For some reason they didn't find it odd and even the kid in question behaved normally, sipping on water while watching the distant mountains.
" Was he an outcast?" Noah thought, he wanted to find out but their break was running out. He called everyone to gather again. He didn't know if this world has seasons and if it did, he could clearly say that it would be summer because of the intense sunlight roasting them as soon as they came out of the shade.
Normally mountain regions that were situated at an elevation experience more cold but that didn't seem to be the case for this island. Nonetheless he didn't mind it much.
" Alright, we have already established the first rule so I will move to the rest of them. Second is that you have to keep things that happen here a secret." He again looked around only seeing confused faces.
" There is a reason but we will go through with it soon. Just remember to not tell anyone, they will find out on their own but I don't want them to know right now." Everyone nodded. They didn't know what he was talking about but since he was teaching them, they had to obey his commands.
" Now the next things is that if we are losing just abandon the mission that doesn't mean to bring harm to your colleagues but I want you to protect your life first."
" But, isn't it disgraceful to leave your post?" Surprisingly it was Milo that asked the question.
" Nothing is disgraceful if you can keep yourself alive. I will explain it once more, running away doesn't mean you abandon your mission when there is danger ahead. If you see your teammates in trouble, you have to fight tooth and nail to rescue them but if you don't see any hope, just run away."
" I will go over everything. There is a whole list of things and plans which is why I remind you always to follow orders. If our enemy is too strong we can regroup back to come up with a better way to deal with them. It's no use to lose your teammates for a foolish mission which is why it is essential to have a good leader to lead the army."
Noah started his speech and for half an hour reverberated the things he learned when he was a soldier. Everyone that was skeptical at first began listening to him more closely because everything he said was from his experience.
" I will tell you more over the week so let's not waste our time and learn actual 'magic'." The tiredness they felt standing in sun instantly left their faces just from hearing the word 'magic'.
" For now gather around me, I will show you your future weapons."