The students were dismissed after the speech and began to leave the hall in groups. Kael, who still contemplated how to handle the matter with Silva knowing his secret, now had another thing on his mind.
Jeremy and Eric, walking just by his side, looked very worried and plagued with thoughts, probably because of the announcement of the Farm Hunt.
Come to think of it, he had no idea what a Farm Hunt meant or why they were so stressed about it.
"Jeremy, can you please explain what a Farm Hunt is?" he asked in a way that would not annoy Jeremy.
Jeremy nodded, a frown plastered on his face as he didn't like the idea of being disturbed while he was thinking. "After the wave, a group of soul beasts was called a Farm. So, a Farm Hunt is basically us hunting those beasts to get their soul cores and grow stronger."
Kael still couldn't tell why everyone was so pressed about just hunting beasts. Were they that powerful?
"The problem isn't the hunting but the fact that we'll be teleported into a large forest filled with soul beasts of many forms and heartless nature. Beasts that can simply wipe out the whole class because of their numbers and special abilities. In our first year, we were sent to an area already claimed as almost safe, and we still lost about twenty students from our class."
Now the reason for their fear was starting to make sense to Kael. Being dropped into a forest filled with countless soul beasts for who knew how long, with no shelter and constantly using your abilities against powerful beasts, sounded terrifying.
Kael imagined going up against several soul beasts with superspeed. It would be a losing battle.
"The second-year test, according to the academy, is held in an area yet to be investigated. An area that will surely be swarming with soul beasts," Eric continued. "If I were you, I'd take my offer to be my slave. Jeremy can protect himself just fine—he's part of the Red, after all—but you, young Kael, would be better off caring for your—"
"No, thank you. I don't need to be anyone's slave to survive. I can manage just fine," Kael replied, having a little confidence in his abilities, especially his self-healing ability.
Eric, on the other hand, was resentful of how rudely Kael had cut him off.
"Beasts are just like us with soul powers. They have abilities, innate traits, armor, speed, venom, and other dreadful things you can think of. That's why they are far above us. And that is why you should be scared. The test is going to last about two days. I advise you to train, Kael Auron. Despite your height, you are still the most inexperienced in the entire academy."
With those final words, Jeremy broke off from the group. Feeling the awkwardness between him and Eric, Kael also broke away and decided to find somewhere to train.
---
Kael, having left the academy's premises, went into the forest surrounding it. It was a thick forest devoid of wildlife or any signs of life.
This was the perfect place to train.
After getting far enough into the forest, he decided to test his strength on a nearby tree. He recalled the last time he had punched a wooden pillar at home and barely left a mark.
Determined to see his progress, he approached a tree with a wide, thick trunk, perfect for practice.
Kael tightened his fist and adopted a stance he had learned from one of the notes Sir Leonard had given him after their spar. He had only practiced it a few times in his room, making this outdoor session even more worthwhile.
Exhaling sharply, he sprang forward and hit the tree with full force.
A splitting crack echoed as the impact shattered the upper part of the tree, causing it to fall to the side. Nonetheless...
"Ahhh!" Kael yelled in pain. His right hand had suffered greatly from the punch. Though his flesh tore from the bones, he hadn't broken any bones.
It didn't take long for his self-healing ability to activate. His flesh regrew, and his hand returned to normal.
'Wow, I've really gotten stronger. If only I had more long-range skills, I'd have an advantage against someone like Elliot.'
Kael summoned the system by thought, commanding it to display his ability list.
[Shockwave Lv. 1]
He had only used this ability once while fighting Leonard. Based on that experience, it seemed like a useless skill. However, the ability raised a question in Kael's mind:
If he grabbed another weapon, would that also mean he could absorb its ability?
The system responded promptly.
[Not at all. You may pick up another weapon, but it will not share its ability unless it has compatibility with the user.]
[Abilities can grow stronger through repeated use under specific conditions.]
Kael absorbed the information but wasn't entirely satisfied. "Then how do I get stronger? How can I improve in just two days?"
[The Beast Grimoire you had would have been a great advantage. However, since you no longer possess it, the best way to level up is to defeat opponents or engage in system quests, which you are currently too weak to activate.]
Kael sighed in frustration. The only viable option now was to train as much as possible. Seeking opponents wasn't practical, given his current strength.
For now, he decided to focus on honing his existing abilities and hope for the best during the Farm Hunt.