"You got here rather quickly." A lady stood beside a large barrel-like equipment that faced the sky. It emitted a large red beam, the beacon that was visible to the youths who were all taking the test.
Her deep blue eyes were focused on the man that had just arrived; he was dressed in simple blue clothing and a cap that covered his eyes.
His jaw moved and the corner of his lips curled into a smile as he approached the lady.
"Maja, I never thought it would be you that would be sent by the commander."
"I also didn't expect that I would be sent here."
The train master arrived before Maja and rested on the barrel, his head raised a bit as he stared into the sky, his lips pursed.
"How are this year's cadets?" Maja asked with a lackluster expression. It was obvious she was bored and needed something to take her mind off the current situation.
"You are in for a surprise!" the Train master chuckled. Maja's ears perked up as she raised a brow.
"Wow, coming from you, it must be something worthwhile."
"Of course it is! There are three youths that especially got my attention!"
"Three? That's a lot. Normally, we would only have one very talented individual per year. To think that there would be three." Maja muttered a bit absentmindedly. There was a strange glint in her eyes and from time to time, she would lick her plump red lips with a crazed smile.
"There's one you would especially love! He's not just extremely talented but he's also good looking, just how you like them."
"Come one now Sal, you make me seem like a pervert." Maja rebuked but she couldn't hide the wide smile that formed in her lips.
"He defeated this year's noble talent. He's a true error!"
"And the last one?" Maja asked,
"He's the weakest for now, but I have my suspicions that if he enters Golgotha, he'll immediately become the second strongest." Sal, the mysterious train master, chuckled.
Maja furrowed her brows, she was surprised that not just one but two outsiders were seemingly said to have more potential than a noble. But no matter how much she felt it was unreasonable, she ultimately accepted it.
This wasn't because she was open-minded, no, it was simply because Sal said so.
"Even better than even the noble boy?" She asked in confirmation.
"When it comes to immediate strength, then yes. But in their overall potential, the noble boy remains second."
"You must think really highly of this error who had taken first place." Maja glanced in Sal's direction, hoping to gleam something from his expression but apart from the fact that his face was obscured by the cap, his body language gave out nothing.
"Quite the contrary."
"What? You think lowly of him?" Maja asked.
"I don't know what to think of him. For now, I can't seem to get a read on him. Maybe after he enters Golgotha and gets to his limit, I'll be able to peer into him."
Maja looked genuinely surprised at Sal's words. It wasn't everyday that a master at observation is unable to see through a youth.
"Well, once they get here, I can help you —" suddenly, Maja paused mid speech.
Her head whipped in a particular direction, her gaze narrowing as she spoke in a surprised tone.
"Do you sense that?" She asked and Sal nodded. Although his expression was obscured, it was obvious from his body language that he was alert.
"Two. To think that there would be two named monsters in Unbrye." He muttered.
"How's that possible? Named monsters are extremely territorial. There can only be one in a grade two danger zone."
"Normally you will be right but… there have been a few instances where there are more than one named monsters in a small zone. But one thing that's for sure is that one of them would be inherently stronger than the other and the gap wouldn't be a small matter."
"What do we do?" Maja asked. It was part of the exam for the youths to survive under the nose of a named monster but with the appearance of an anomaly, they might have to take action.
"Stay here, I'll go check it out."
***
Ichor and the one eyed beast stood at a standstill, their eyes locked in a stare down. Ichor had his battered umbrella in one hand, partially shielding him for the rain and his baton in the other, already extended.
The beast in front of him stood on two feet, its arms spread from its body, its claws gleaming under the darkness sky.
Both of them moved.
The beast vanished from its spot, so much faster than one's eyes could keep up with. Ichor only registered a slight blur but his expression didn't falter.
His cold amber eyes gleamed like a pair of golden orbs, his left hand moving as his umbrella dropped from being above his head to shielding his back.
Bang!
The beast's claws clashed with the umbrella, the tip of the umbrella twisted in an odd angle at the impact, its force pushing Ichor forward.
The sudden boost in speed sent him hurtling towards a tree and the wolf moved after him, hoping to land a follow up attack immediately Ichor bashed into the tree.
Ichor's smile widened, his both legs moved as he repositioned himself. His heels connected with the tree trunk, his body pausing for a moment as the shock passed through the body.
Then he kicked off, his umbrella already positioned above him. He lunged at the beast headfirst, ignoring the pain that wracked his feet.
The one eyed beast couldn't stop in time and its torso was rammed into by the umbrella. The beast merely staggered backwards, its durability was insane.
Its single eye gleamed as it struck out, aiming to take off Ichor's head. But Ichor had already moved.
The moment he landed, his knees buckled and with a wide swing, his steel baton connected to the leg of the beast with shocking force.
The beast staggered, its attack missing Ichor by only a hair's breadth.
Ichor immediately followed up with another chained attack, swinging his baton upward and ramming it into the nether region of the one eyed beast.
A resounding crack rang out, followed by a heart wrenching howl that resounded through the mountain path.