When the morning dew condensed into droplets at the tip of the flagpole, Oscar strolled into the playground with a self-made Sausage in his mouth. The red marks left by the razor were faintly visible on his chin. Max, who was choking on bread, thumped his chest hard and said, "Did a man-eating flower chew on your face?"
"This is called a strategic shift." Oscar flicked away the stray hair that covered his eyes and twirled the sausage at his fingertips. He glanced towards the girls. Xiao Wu was spreading strawberry jam on Ryan's bread, Ava's silver braid tips were adorned with the morning light, and only Aria was leaning against a sycamore tree with her arms folded, impatiently tapping the tree root with the heel of her boot.
Suddenly, Blake's metal wrist guard let out a soft beep. "Line up!"
The shadow on the stone path appeared before the person. The dull, upright-collar windbreaker was stained with oil stains, and the three brass buttons were misaligned. When Frank showed his signature yellow teeth, Xiao Wu tugged at Ryan's sleeve and said, "It's that scammer who sold us the fake soul guide device!"
"Business practice classes are also required credits." Frank flicked the pilling cuff. "Pay now, a hundred gold coins each." His action of taking out the ledger reminded Leo of the bandits who collected tolls in the Star Dou Great Forest.
When Oscar was called out, the sausage got stuck in his throat. "Twenty laps? That's murder!"
"Remember to leave the sausage recipe in your will." The dean kicked him and then winked at Ava. "Run slowly. This guy has licorice candies in his pocket."
Aria's cold sneer startled the larks on the branches. Just as Blake was about to speak, the girl walked towards the dormitory stepping on the scattered sunlight. Suddenly, a white figure sprang from Leo's shoulder. The little fox precisely stepped over Oscar's head, jumped over the rusty fence, and plunged into the field of cornflowers.
"Your pet should pay a foster care fee." Frank rubbed his fingertips, but was left speechless by Leo's pretense of tying his shoelaces.
An acorn clicked and rolled over the cobblestone path. Oscar's wail pierced through the wisteria trellis. "Fifteenth lap! Ava, you smell like a blueberry pie..."
"It's poisonous ivy berries." Ava suddenly stopped and stared at the crushed purple berries in the stone crevice. She looked up towards the west wall. Leo was leaning against a hazel tree, tossing and catching pinecones, and the little fox was squatting on the branch, sweeping his nose with its tail.
"This isn't fair!" Oscar slumped down in the dandelion patch. "We were supposed to have special training for support-type soul masters!"
"Stay in shape before dark." Leo flicked his finger and knocked down an acorn. The pulp splattered on Oscar's knees with a slap. Suddenly, the little fox jumped onto Ava's shoulder and left a pink mark on her earlobe with its paw pads.
When the church bells startled the crows, Frank's hoarse voice tore through the twilight. "Late for dinner, lose your meal allowance!" The white figure flashed across the playground, pulling Leo off balance. Taking the opportunity, Oscar stuffed the last half of the licorice candy into Ava's palm. The setting sun made his red ear tips transparent.
The fork clanged against the wooden table. Aria pushed the green beans onto Blake's plate. "Twenty laps for a candy?"
"Better than some people trading chicken legs for green beans." Xiao Wu swung her legs and fed the last bite of pudding to the soft-boned rabbit on her shoulder. Suddenly, Ryan grabbed her wrist. "The dean is looking at you."
Frank emerged from the shadows with a kerosene lamp in his hand. The lamp oil dripped onto the table Aria had just wiped clean. "The first lesson is simple—" He deliberately drew out the end of his sentence, startling the owls perched outside the window. "Survive the Misty Forest."
When the moonlight climbed up the stone corridor, Leo was squatting at the foot of the college's outer wall. The little fox was pawing at the luminous moss with its front paws and suddenly let out a low growl towards the drainage outlet.
"What did you find?" A faint glow of soul power lit up at Leo's fingertips. In the damp brick crevices, half of a broken beast's tooth glowed blue—it was the fang of a thousand-year-old ghost tiger.
In the distance, Oscar's strange cry came. "Ava! The sausage is going to burn!"
The bonfire crackled and burst into sparks. Ava was turning the makeshift grill. "You carry skewers with you?"
"Professional habit." Oscar patted his waist pouch proudly. A dozen seasoning bottles jingled inside. Suddenly, he lowered his voice. "Actually, I prepared an escape pack..."
Suddenly, the bushes shook, and Blake appeared carrying a water bottle. "The dean said there's miasma around the camp." Behind him was Aria, standing with her sword in hand. The moonlight formed a frost on her forehead.
"Three kilometers southeast." Leo unfolded the yellowed map. The little fox poked a marked point with the tip of its tail. "You want to find the old training ground of the Xingluo royal family?"
Suddenly, the sound of a broken branch came from behind the tree trunk. Ryan walked out holding a glowing crystal. "We're looking for clean water." The soft-boned rabbit on Xiao Wu's shoulder suddenly fluffed up its fur and bared its teeth towards the depths of the mist.
A sticky wriggling sound came from the thick fog. A ten-meter-long purple-scaled python dropped from the treetop, and the mucus dripping from its venomous fangs corroded the edge of the map.
"Back off!" When Blake's tiger claws tore open the python's skin, Aria's sword had already picked out the snake's gallbladder. Oscar trembled as he lit the snake-repelling incense, only to find that Ava was collecting the venom with silver needles.
"Don't waste the materials." She put the venom gland into a glass bottle. "This can earn thirty credits."
Suddenly, Frank's voice came from the treetop. "Five extra points for the collection class." The dean, hanging upside down on the branch and counting coins, looked like a giant bat.
When the dawn pierced the mist, everyone slumped on the steps of the ruins. Oscar's sausage grill was tilted and stuck in the broken wall. Xiao Wu counted the snake tooth marks on Ryan's arm. "Twenty-seven wounds!"
"Twenty-eight." Aria suddenly threw over a medicine bottle. The bottle still had the warmth of her palm. Blake's movement of wiping his tiger claws froze, and blood droplets dripped through his fingers.
Leo crushed the last poisonous ivy berry, and the juice formed a purple rune in his palm. Suddenly, the little fox jumped onto the broken goddess statue and let out a clear and long howl towards the rising sun.
When the first ray of golden light swept across the college flag, Frank's abacus sound mixed with the morning class bell. Oscar was snoring loudly, his head resting on Ava's medical kit, and half a licorice leaf still stuck to the corner of his mouth.