'Eusen', a frontier town, its massive stone walls standing as a testament to its role as the kingdom's first line of defense. The fortifications stretched high, enclosing the city in an imposing barrier of stone. Meticulously positioned every hundred meters, watchtowers housed ever-vigilant sentries, their sharp eyes scanning the horizon for any sign of danger.
Beyond the walls, just three kilometers away, lay the 'Orcus Forest', the very edge of the kingdom's territory. It was there that the students would set up base for the duration of their expedition. While spawns were occasionally sighted in the area, they remained relatively safe, even frequented by the townspeople for gathering and hunting.
The headmaster stood before the assembled students, his voice carrying across the group.
"Today, rest as much as you can. Do whatever you want, explore the town, eat well, and enjoy yourselves. Tomorrow, we advance at first light. Savor this freedom while you can, because the next five days will be grueling."
He then turned to the instructors, his tone shifting.
"As for the instructors, we have a discussion after this."
A wave of cheers erupted from the students, thrilled by the rare chance to unwind. The instructors, however, groaned in protest, though they knew better than to argue.
Orders were orders.
For now, the town of Eusen offered a brief respite. The last taste of comfort before the real challenge began.
The students naturally divided into their respective crews, each group deciding how to make the most of their final night in Eusen. Some planned to explore the walled town, eager to enjoy the food and sights it offers, while others focused on gathering information and discussing strategies for when they entered spawn territory.
A voice suddenly broke through the murmurs of conversation.
"LoOk At 'em gO? WHaT sHouLD We Do?"
The words were strangely intonated, spoken with an unfamiliar rhythm. The speaker, a young woman named Urdu, tilted her head curiously as she looked at her companions.
Urdu hailed from a tribal community in the mountains, a people who had only recently begun integrating into the kingdom. Her mother tongue was vastly different from the kingdom's common language, and her unusual accent made her stand out, a clear reminder of her heritage.
Milo glanced around at their crew before turning to Dawn.
"Dawn?"
"Me?"
She blinked, startled that he was asking for her opinion. Despite the academy's policy of treating all students equally, regardless of birth, Dawn still held the highest social status among them. As a daughter of House Phoevel, her voice carried weight, whether she liked it or not.
All eyes were now on her, waiting for a decision.
"Then… let's talk with the locals," Dawn said, pausing for a moment.
They had been together for three years, yet a certain distance still lingered between them. She could call them her friends, but what about them? She who had spent more working on her sorcery, did they see her the same way? She wasn't sure.
"And… have fun, if possible." She added the last part a bit meekly, unsure of how it would be received.
"Then to the pub it is!"
A young man from their crew grinned, his name, Hunter, clearly excited by her answer. At fifteen, they were already considered adults by the kingdom's standards, old enough to use sorcery, old enough to fight, and old enough to drink.
"I think we should tame it down a little," another voice cut in.
A young woman sighed, pressing her fingers against her temple as if warding off an impending headache. Her name is Salliette Loufel, from a Viscount household. Her golden blonde hair, styled in tight ringlets, gave her the air of a stereotypical noble. Poised, refined, and perpetually exasperated by the chaos around her.
"First, we go to the marketplace, right Ms. Dawn" she declared, firm and decisive, as if that settled the matter. The crew did not say anything after.
...
"Ms. Dawn, look! This would look great on you!"
Salliette, 'Sally', as everyone called her. Held up a delicate hairclip, its star-shaped design glittering as the sunlight caught it.
Her eyes sparkled with excitement, already imagining it in Dawn's hair.
Sally, the daughter of House Loufel, had been by Dawn's side since childhood. More than just a fellow noble, she was someone who knew her inside and out, one of the few people Dawn could truly call a friend.
"S-Sally?" Dawn stammered, flustered.
In truth, she did like it. But admitting that, embracing something so delicate and cute, was another matter entirely. Her stoic nature didn't allow for it. Her face flushed red just picturing herself wearing the accessory.
"Come on, why not?" Sally teased, grinning.
Before Dawn could respond, another voice interrupted.
"Sally! Dawn! The boys are here!"
Their attention shifted as the rest of their crew approached.
Dawn's team consisted of nine members, a balanced mix of five girls and four boys, a common gender distribution among the academy's crews.
As the group gathered, the lighthearted moment passed, but Sally's knowing smirk remained.
Dawn sighed.
"Hey, everyone, it seems like a rumor is going around Eusen." They hadn't even greeted each other yet, but Milo had already blurted something important. Their attentions were triggered with a snap of a finger.
"A dragon was sighted days ago."
The words sent a ripple of tension through the group. A dragon, a high-rank spawn, powerful enough to level an entire city.
Spawns were born from prolonged exposure to high concentrations of key energy, that is mana.
Unlike regular energy, which came from food consumption and could be replenished like stamina, mana was a natural force, its exact origins are still a mystery. When left unchecked, mana accumulated, leading to dangerous transformations, and sometimes, the birth of monstrous creatures.
The Horus Mountains were one such place, a hotbed of concentrated mana. Spawns were always active there, but for a dragon to appear?
That was an entirely different threat level.
Dawn's expression grew serious, her earlier lightheartedness gone. Horus mountains lay directly at the Phoevel territory, an appearance of such dangerous Spawn is a threat not only for Eusen but for the whole of Phoevel territory.
"The Kingdom and the Empire have an ongoing agreement," she began, her tone measured. "They periodically send expedition parties to trim the spawns, ensuring that lower-rank creatures don't accumulate too much mana and evolve into something more dangerous.
"If the rumors were true, it meant that the last purge expedition had failed, or worse, hadn't happened at all.
"We didn't get much information," Milo added, crossing his arms.
"Seems like only one person started the rumor, but… there's a problem."
"What is it?" Sally asked.
"That person left town yesterday," Hunter replied. "So we can't verify if the sighting is real or just baseless fear-mongering."
A heavy silence followed."What should we do now?" Mika finally spoke up, her voice uncertain.
"Let's go to the headmaster," Milo suggested without hesitation.
No one disagreed. If the rumor turned out to be true, there was no way the academy would allow the expedition to continue. Their safety came first.
And if the rumor was false? Well, at the very least, they had to be sure.