Chapter 22
Boardinghouse of Fountain Grove, State: Percival, Republic of Shantu, Continent: Barat Year: 2040, Planet: Grimoire
Well, Shiloh had to give them credit for taking the time to think over everything carefully and thoroughly. "All right, which can be arranged within the next two days." That wouldn't be easy to arrange for all of them simultaneously. As far as Shiloh knew there was a waitlist.
Hermina cleared her throat. "I'll see what I can do about pulling some strings." She murmured. "The circumstances are such that I believe the guild masters will make an exception and put them on a different list." Her mouth twitched. "Both of them happened to be in the marketplace when we showed up with the excess materials after the hunt."
Ah so that was what happened. "Sounds good," Shiloh stated calmly. She tapped her fingers.
Out of a corner of her eyes, she saw Marcus, Hermina and Joan nodding appreciation. Next on the agenda. "So, what are your temporary choices, if any, for an educational institute of interest?" Shiloh wouldn't force them to make a permanent choice. That would make them frustrated since it involved their futures.
All eight of them glanced at each other. Much to Shiloh's bemusement, Jennifer straightened her shoulders and spoke first. "Right now, the top contenders are Cornell, Burdock and Mannock." She smiled faintly. "They all have flexible schedules, financing opportunities and allow students to work for credits toward early graduation."
Right, Shiloh remembered that was an attractive feature that none of the others within that area offered. Now that she reflected upon it, the other academies didn't have the same stringent requirements for their students that Fang's Cliff and Fremont possessed.
Joan, Marcus and Hermina exchanged uncomfortable glances. "So, you chose not to attend Fremont Vocational Academy, eh?" Hermina didn't seem too surprised.
Harper shrugged. "Too many strikes against it." He stated calmly. "I for one don't want to lose hours that should be devoted to classes simply because we'd be forced to drop everything without warning to go hunt." Clearly, he had his priorities in order and when it came to hunting that was more of a pastime than a career.
Shiloh admired that attitude.
"Good," Hermina told them bluntly. "I was worried that you would be upset if word came down that none of you met their requirements." She made a sour face. "Evidently word reached them already of your backgrounds and exact circumstances." Hermina shook her head. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say that the headmaster and directors of Fremont Academy were the same as Fang's Cliff." She folded her arms beneath her chest.
Harper and the others grimaced. "We took that into account when selecting our choices."
Shiloh sighed in disgust. "Well that settles that." She muttered.
Strangely enough only Fang's Cliff and later Fremont Vocational Academy made monster and criminal rogue hunting a mandatory part of their requirements. It was as if they'd joined forces to ensure that no one but the strongest of young talent would dare enter their gates. That would need investigation later, but for now Shiloh was pleased with the youngsters' initiative when it came to their futures. "All right, you're dismissed for the night."
*
Harper bowed to the adults. He hadn't expected that the interview would end so swiftly but now he was exhausted. Harper saw that the others were weaving on their feet. So, he wasn't the only one who was on their last foot as far as remaining upright was concerned. "Good night." He said simply.
Shiloh waved a hand at them to reinforce that they could leave.
Relieved that the ordeal was over, the eight siblings headed upstairs and went to their rooms. They washed, changed into nightclothes and immediately fell into dreamless sleep.
The dawn came early but all of them were refreshed. They were happier than they could express. With a new day came further opportunities to explore different areas of Fountain Grove.
One thing Harper hoped to do that day was look at different districts that composed the varied ecosystems that made it a grove and fountain at the same time.
However, when he reached the main floor, Harper discovered that Hermina made good on her promise to see about getting them into the guilds for official testing and certification.
They would go there at ten a.m. That would give the eight of them just enough time to help assist with the first meal preparations. They could eat their portion in the kitchen after receiving the morning updates. Then they would have to get dressed in appropriate clothing for the testing.
Harper found that the hardest part of the whole ordeal. "What is with the weird uniforms?" The clothing fit him too well, he felt exposed and didn't care for the sensation.
Harper noticed that his sisters weren't better off. Of all of them, Sapphire and Anara managed to keep the most coverage. Then again, they'd outright refused to wear skimpy outfits that emphasized their feminine attributes to the point of shamelessness. He hadn't blamed them. After all, they wouldn't be taken seriously if they weren't properly covered right now.
As for Jennifer and Holly, they had more confidence in their choice of apparel and resulting appearances. They too had disdained the more revealing outfits for practicality.
When they gathered in a hallway off to one side away from the main eating hall. Hermina surveyed them critically. "You look like proper adventurers now." She nodded with approval. "No more makeshift equipment and weapons for any of you starting now."
While Hermina hadn't outright disdained what they'd worn in the past, she clearly understood that they'd made do with whatever materials they scrounged from discards after each hunt.
Harper understood now that was where the claims of theft originated from. What angered him the most was at the time the other adventurers and hunters had been fine with it on the front. Now it was obvious they'd meant to ruin their reputations from the start of their careers. Jerks. Well, whatever, he and his siblings no longer had to deal with those creeps from the township any longer.
*
Hermina was more than pleased with this manifestation of the eight siblings seriousness and commitment to their course of action. She also didn't blame them for being uncomfortable in some of the uniforms. Especially Harper and Daryl, they were clearly in clothing too tight for comfort. She produced some more clothing. "Here try these on instead." She offered more sets to the other brothers as well. Not to her surprise, they accepted the looser versions with grateful alacrity.
Less than ten minutes later, they reappeared. It was very clear that they were vastly more comfortable with the modest looking trousers, jerkins, vests, and knee-high boots that were obviously made with hard work integrated into their designs.
"All right, let's head out." Hermina led the way. She knew where the weapons were stashed. She'd checked them to ensure that none of them had been meddled with. However, she wanted to observe how they handled the inspection of their weapons. Hermina had been surprised at their versatility, but after seeing them in action the prior day she understood the necessity of their proficiency.
What a rough life they'd led up to that point. Hermina now understood why they chose to form their own party. Not only that but they were planning for a future when they wouldn't need to resort to hunting or adventuring to maintain a stable income.
What she wouldn't give for knowing more accommodating clients. However, these kids weren't clients they were more like nieces and nephews. Only Hermina wouldn't say so unless they wanted to acknowledge her as something of a godmother or step-aunt. She suspected that Sapphire sensed that she hid a secret or two about her health. The young girl knew better than to blurt anything about it though.
*
Two hours passed in a blink of an eye.
All eight siblings had gone through rigorous testing they'd never imagined was necessary. Even a health exam was required and that brought about some shocking surprises to all eight of them. One of which was that they didn't have separate fathers. Somehow or other, they all had the same sire. It appeared that they did have older siblings out there somewhere.
Even Hermina seemed surprised at the new information. "Interesting, what a tricky situation has come up." She looked at Harper and company. "So do you want to search for those older siblings?"
Harper and the others glanced at each other. While they'd been provided with the names, ages, genders, and most recent locations. None of them were truly inclined to go searching for siblings they hadn't known existed. "Not right now. Maybe when we're more established in our own right, we will." Harper shook his head warily. "Besides, they're also hunters and adventurers, correct? We may run into them eventually somewhere in Three Pronged Fork, or somewhere else."
The future was endless and now all the siblings wanted to do was take that next step.
To be continued in 1st Journey Arc - Volume 3