Chapter 153 - Beginning Round Two

The month flew by in what seemed to be a matter of moments to Jien and the others. They spent some time with their families, but the majority of it was spent in either gathering items they had on their lists and continuing their personal training regardless of whether their mentors were present or not. They had started building a routine and they felt the need to continue it, working to refine what they had learned and burn it into their very bones.It was now time for them to gather once again to start their next training session under the guidance of their varying mentors. There was a certain sense of excitement for the new adventure, mixed with no small amount of anxiety over whether their preparations were actually enough for this next leg. Most of all however was the homesickness that struck all of them as soon as they stepped out from their doors, giving their families a final goodbye for a year.This time around they did not travel separately, all gathering in Afrem City where they organized themselves, talked about how they intended to approach this new adventure and discussed their break. Only after ensuring that they had everything they felt they may need did they take the first step out of the Afrem City gates and into the fields where farmers could be seen working.They traveled together, already putting their prior training to use. Barret took to the front of the group as a scout, even on horseback seeming able to move quietly and elusive. Bernard moved up as the vanguard, now bearing an iron buckler strapped to his right arm. Through his training in the past year he found that as the vanguard having an extra defensive measure was always handy, but the sword style he tended toward was two handed. This led to the decision to use a buckler strapped to his forearm. While bulky in some manners it allowed for a better defense than just his sword would, especially against ranged attacks from bowmen.Olivia and Rosalind flanked the sides while Jien remained in the center, monitoring everyone's movements and the surroundings with a critical eye. Lesley remained in the back as their ranged fighter. Their team lacked a dedicated rearguard and healer, however they had all been trained in a basic standard of healing and first aid. As for the lack of rearguard, Jien was taking both the role of controller and rearguard, though not last in the formation. This was because he was definitely the swiftest of the cohort. If he abandoned his mount temporarily and used one of his wind spells he would be able to relocate at a moments' notice to defend the rear, giving the others time to reorganize.More than a meter behind them their mentors rode while having casual conversation about the year to come and the break that they had been able to take. The month had actually been a rather decent break given that they would usually only get a week or so at a time. That being said the trade off was being stuck in a dangerous wilderness while being tasked with keeping several youths safe for the span of an entire year.During the trip nothing occurred, which the young cohort found both excellent and a bit disappointing. It wasn't uncommon to come face to face with dangers, whether it be bandits or beasts, but none approached them as they rode. Jien and the others had hoped for something to use as a warm up for the venture ahead, but they found nothing to assist them. Still they weren't disheartened by the relaxing trip, nor did they let down their guard, even when they approached Dunn.The small farming town was the same as they had remembered it last year, still quiet and peaceful as they had remembered it to be with its large fields and small collection of farms. Unfortunately the plan for their travel was different from last time. They were not staying in Dunn, instead they would be heading directly for the barrier of the Warping Forest. They would also be leaving the horses behind in Dunn, having found them to be too much of a burden during the previous years' training.Travel by horse had been convenient and allowed them to save time on the way to their destination. However the wariness and stubbornness of the animals once they had entered the wilds of their destination had only made their lives harder. In the end the horses had only been a burden in terms of both travel and supplies, ultimately leading to the unanimous decision among the group of noble heirs that they would not bring them along this time around to avoid the same issues.The horses would be left here in Dunn and retrieved by attendants of the different families, allowing their children to take better advantage of their training. With this in mind they shortly met with Sherman family once again to hand off their steeds and have a short meal. After eating they left once more on foot. This unfortunately would lead them to traveling until night before they would reach the barrier of their destination, but this was accounted for as well.They intended to enter at night, find a temporary location that would be fortified enough to allow them to rest for the few hours they would have before sunset and then start their training in earnest. As such they made their way forward even as the sun began to sink in the sky, slowly dipping beneath the horizon. Only when the last shred of light was about to be extinguished by the endless expanse of radiant stars, did they see their destination in the distance, its foggy boundary as ominous as ever and its towering evergreens mere shadowy spikes reaching for the celestial mass of the silver moon above.They had made it back and their training was about to start anew.