"Happy 12th birth day, Wil," Alan clasped Williams' hand, smiling. "Thank you, Al. Just two more months for the entrance test, and then off to the Academy we go," Williams smiled broadly. Alan nodded with the mirrored expression.
More than two years had passed. In these two years, Alan had grown tremendously, utilizing the opportunities and teachings received to the fullest. He took the mantra "Knowledge is power" seriously, absorbing every subject that came his way.
All his training and sparring with Williams kept him physically fit and agile. Now, his appearance resembled that of an 18-year-old rather than his 12-year-old self.
On the other hand, Williams' growth was also noteworthy. While not interested in various subjects like Alan, he excelled in trading and economics. He was also becoming adept at healing, thanks to Helen's teachings.
Above all, he worked the hardest to improve his combat ability, and his efforts were paying off. Now, Alan had to use half of his strength to avoid beatings from Williams.
The previous year, just for the fun of it, Elizabeth made both Alan and Williams take the Merchant Guild's entrance test, and as she predicted, both boys performance were outstanding. To test their knowledge the guild master himself started giving advanced problems but to his surprise both the boys were solving them as easy as they were talking a stroll in a park.
The guild master of the Merchant Guild himself came to the Green Town and even practically begged them to join, even after knowing their desire to join the Adventurer's Guild.
After many visits and pleading with Elizabeth, they came to a temporary solution. Both boys would study at the Merchant's Guild every alternate day for an year. They would attend negotiations or any major goods delivery to Windon City. This arrangement was made only as a part of their training, and they would not be actively included in the process itself.
During this period, they witnessed numerous negotiations and showed significant improvement. Their journeyed to Winden City several times during this period, and wild beast attacks were also common, given that merchandise had to travel through the forest area to reach the city or other towns.
Alan and Williams were consistently on the front line whenever they encountered any beasts. Taking turns, they faced the challenges head-on, especially since there were rarely any pack beasts attacking the caravan so close to the city.
However, their true challenge awaited when they agreed to travel with the merchant's caravan to the town of "Emberfall." Even though Elizabeth was against it considering the dangers they might encounter in the grasslands, John and James encouraged the boys to embark this journey. It marked the final week of their studies at the Merchant's Guild and was a month before Williams' 12th birth day, whereas Alan had celebrated his 12th birth day five months earlier.
Emberfall, a small yet prosperous town, lay 250 miles to the south of Green Town, 7 days from the Green Town and requiring a journey through grasslands. Alan was excited at the prospect of encountering various pack animals like grassland lions, black-spotted hyenas, and wild dogs.
The journey toward Emberfall Town turned out to be uneventful. Merchants and adventurers escorting the caravan were pleased not to witness any bloodshed. However, Alan and Williams felt utterly disappointed by the lack of excitement during the journey.
After resting for a couple of days and exploring Emberfall Town, particularly Alan and Williams, the group prepared to return with the goods exchanged and additionally purchased from the town.
On the third day, early morning from their arrival, the team departed from Emberfall Town. Beast encounters were dealt with ease by the adventurers escorting them. Both Alan and Williams were feeling sleepy out of boredom when Alan sensed a rotten smell; Williams sensed it a few seconds later.
A sense of foreboding came over them. By the time these two came out of the caravan they were in, the adventurers also sensed the smell and were on alert.
"Which beast?" Alan asked. "Must be Black Hyenas. Other beasts will not emanate this kind of stench," the only A-class adventurers in the group said.
This route should have been devoide of any pack beasts. The information received was reliable, how can we encounter such a big pack now. Zain the A class Adventurer said looking a bit worried.
In a few minutes, they saw a pack of hyenas in front of them, who, once spotting their prey, started to spread wide.
They spotted more than 20 Hyenas, spreading in a wide arc and started to get behind the caravans. The group had 30 members, but 22 were Merchant's and caravan drivers. There were 4 C- Class, 3 B-Class and an A class adventurers.