Back at Chris's village..
"How much for this?" Chris asked the vendor who was selling a few bread sandwiches, he had just finished helping the farmer with his crops and received his payment of a few copper coins. He was in a mood for a snack and approached a nearby vendor that caught his eye.
"2 Copper Coins." The vendor replied and Chris smiled, he took out two copper coins from his pocket and handed them to the vendor. He then grabbed the sandwich and began walking away.
Taking a bite of the sandwich Chris noted that it was quite stale, bearing almost no taste. "Did i get scammed? This sandwich tastes horrible!" Chris frowned as he clicked his tongue, but continued to eat the sandwich anyway, since he had used the money he worked hard for.
The village was bustling with activities as usual, Chris was making his way to the newly opened training grounds for the Awakened, hosted by the village lord.
Ever since the "Weird" Incident in the Dark Woods, the village lord prohibited children and adults from entering the place until they figured out what happened inside there.
Instead the village lord decided to open a training ground that would help the Awakened children practice their abilities, at first some of the children were scared to participate in the activity, but as time went on they eventually found enjoyment training under the guidance of the village lord.
Many of the children that were scared about facing monsters, started to return slowly, and before long everyone had participated in the training activity.
As Chris neared the gates, the sounds of battle echoed through out the field. The children were training hard with the golems the village elder was spawning, each one fighting to the best of their abilities.
The village elder watched as the children continued to train hard, a proud smile etched on his face. He suddenly turned to see Chris approaching him, his expression sour as he continued to munch on his bitter sandwich.
"Ah! Chris, glad to see you're here." The village elder said as he walked up to Chris.
Chris then looked at the village elder and managed a small smile, despite the bitter taste in his mouth.
"Good morning, sir." Chris greeted warmly, "I see things are going well with the training so far."
The village lord nodded, "Indeed, things are looking up for our adventurer candidates. Many of you kids are really talented with your abilities, and are able to utilize them brilliantly for beginners." The village lord said as he looked over in the distance.
In the distance was Elara and Jack, who were facing off against a multitude of golems, about 5 of them in total.
The battle was intense was the duo worked together to wear the golems down, Elara blasted through with her high power flame attacks, and Jack attacked more with precision with his low but deadly water attacks.
'Those two together are really good, if only Jack wasn't such a jerk.' Chris commented inwardly as he watched the battle go on.
One of Elara's fireballs landed a direct hit on the chest of a golem and caused an explosion, crumbling it to pieces. Jack rushed in towards another golem and began to strike with small water swipes, avoiding the attacks of the golem while slowly wearing it down.
Chris sat down on the green grass as he watched the battle come to a climax, with them defeating the golems and ending the battle.
Elara breathed heavily as she wiped a sweat off his brow, and Jack too was really tired, but not as tired as Elara was.
"You shouldn't just keep blasting at your enemies in a fight like that, though your attacks are strong, they cause your magic to burn out way more quickly." Jack said to Elara with a serious expression, but Elara only laughed it off.
"Yeah yeah, but that's just the way i like to fight." Elara said with a cheeky grin, "And don't take this too seriously, we're still only training after all."
Jack rolled his eyes as he let out a scoff and proceeded to wander off, Elara watched him leave for a moment before looking in the direction of Chris and rushing up towards him.
"Chris!" Elara called as she approached him, a smile on her face "Did you see me back there? I was amazing, taking on those golems like it was nothing."
Chris chuckled under his breath, "Yeah, Like it was nothing, but here you are sweating and breathing heavily." Chris said with a teasing smirk.
Elara laughed awkwardly, as she looked away momentarily "Maybe it was a little challenging." She said in a voice barely audible. "Anyway, are you here to train as well?" Elara asked with a curious expression.
The village elder looked at Chris and awaited for his answer. Chris stared at her for a few seconds before shaking his head, "No, I'm not here to train, because I'm not in the need of it. I'm already much stronger than many of the kids in our village, and I'm planning on leaving the village soon to become an adventurer." Chris explained.
The night before, Chris had already talked to his mother about it and got her permission, albeit very difficulty. She was very reluctant at first, but Chris managed to convince her in the end.
Elara blinked surprised at Chris's words, her eyes wide in momentary shock. The village lord also had an surprised expression on his face, he clearly didn't expect Chris to be leaving the village so soon. The village lord placed a shoulder on Chris's shoulder, his touch gentle but firm with importance.
"My boy, are you sure you're ready to become an adventurer? This occupation can be really dangerous, and i worry that you may lose your life. So are you certain about your decision, you may want to think a little longer." The village lord said.
"It's okay, really. I'm very confident about my decision, thank you for your concern, but it is not needed."
Chris said as he stood up from the ground and dusted off his clothes, with the wind brushing against his frame and the sun shining brightly upon him, his journey as an adventurer was about to begin.