And how right she was.
Boom!
Another explosion. This time, it was from behind. 8 figures emerged, 2 less than what Cordelia expected. Eldrich…
“Damn, he put up a good fight. Too bad he was weakened.”
The brawny examinee spat out a splotch of blood, soaking into the scorched earth which had been deprived of any moisture. He carried a body on his shoulder but she could see the faint fall and rise of its chest. Their wild maroon brown hair was all that she needed to know that it was Eldrich.
Cordelia wasn’t confident she could take all 8 of them down. The group she had ‘slaughtered’ before was weak, unorganised and panicked. In contrast, this one was focused and ready, albeit fatigued from their hunger and previous fight.
Chloe was out of commission for now and she was backed against the wall by the Hellfire Wolves which were drooling for her flesh. Indeed, this wasn’t a very optimistic situation. She only had one choice left. If this gamble didn’t work, she didn’t know what would in her situation. Her sword was broken. Her teammates were unable to help. She was injured, surrounded by enemies and was cornered.
Hellfire Wolves were naturally averse to water. This applied to any fire-natured beast. But what were they attracted to? In a stroke of luck, Cordelia had picked that exact same thing up. It was hidden from their keen sense of smell due to being mixed up with dozens of other miscellaneous herbs so its scent was muted. But now…
She had no time to grind it down into dust so she simply did the next best thing. Grabbing a handful of herbs, she really hoped to catch it in the first go… she didn’t, of course.
“The hell? What is this girl doing? Why is she throwing herbs at us?”
“Haha, is she so desperate?”
“Hmm…”
The one who looked to be their leader narrowed his eyes at Cordelia, trying to figure out her tactic. She didn’t look like she was an idiot. Her eyes weren’t desperate or fearful. No. They were determined. Then he realised her intent… but it was too late.
It was her 5th throw now and this time, she had hit the jackpot. Seeing the trademark petals with the texture of magma, she smiled, adding extra effort into this throw. The Hellfire Herb flew straight at the leader, hitting him in the face. In an instant, the Hellfire Wolves crazily sprinted at the group, ripping apart anyone and anything who got in their way.
The one who was carrying Eldrich hastily threw him down in a rush to defend himself, now too distracted with the Hellfire that was about to descend upon him. Casting a strong wind spell, his body was carried over and trailed her as she ran away, leaving them to their fate.
Before she was able to leave however, their leader yelled out to her.
“My name is Soheil!”
She didn’t stop, only leaving two words behind her.
“Cordelia Auster.”
He heard those words crystal-clear despite the carnage going on around him, smiling.
❈ ❈ ❈
28th of March, the Year 1202
17:33
Laeon Federation, Horn Mountain Range
❈
Eldrich awoke to a very familiar scene, except that his position had been switched. This time, he was the one lying down and Cordelia was tending to the campfire. Mareike and Abelard were already awake, leaning against the cave walls and eating their meal.
The only difference in them was that there was no fear or terror in their eyes; there was only heartfelt-gratitude and guilt. She had saved them. Again. Even after they had spurned her, she returned and gave them a helping hand. It was presumed that while other examinees could kill you, the native beasts very well could. There was no rule blocking that.
“Cordelia, I-“
She held up a hand, stopping him from speaking.
“I did this for Chloe. Thank her instead.”
He looked around, unable to find the little girl’s figure before finding a tuft of blonde hair poking out from behind Cordelia; she was sleeping in her cloak of fur, wedged between it and the swordswoman’s back.
His heart almost melted at the sight but then cleared his throat, trying to get rid of those thoughts.
“I know, but you still saved us for a second time. We… we didn’t hate you for what you did that day. It’s just that its something we’ve never seen before.”
Trying to explain, he was again cut off but this time by her cold voice.
“You misunderstand. I didn’t misinterpret your feelings towards me and I know that you 3 are truly grateful. It is just that I am not here to make friends. I am here to become strong.”
Eldrich was stunned into awe at the absolute certainty and conviction in her voice as if she would pass, break or move all obstacles out of her way in her path to becoming strong. And then he suddenly felt like he was only seeing this black-haired examinee for the first time. Her bones radiated the aura of a ruler and her disposition made you want to submit. Every pore of her skin, every strand of hair, everything about her… was that of a king.
Mareike and Abelard who had been listening in were similarly stupefied. The trio felt almost compelled to follow this girl for the rest of their lives for seemingly no reason or rationale. Their body and mind just demanded it.
Gulping audibly, their leader nodded and received the bowl of soup she passed to him. Time elapsed as the party rested, ate and talked about minor topics. Everyone was too tired and injured so there was no way they would risk their lives going out again in a weakened state.
Cordelia didn’t throw the trio out, even if they wasted her resources because she knew that currently, strength came in numbers. Her own power was limited due to her lack of a weapon and while she had training in hand-to-hand combat, it wasn’t nearly as amazing as her expertise in swordsmanship.
A small string began to attach itself between everyone in the cave, their conversations fuelling it. It was frail right now. Thin. Weak. But it was still there. And Cordelia didn’t know yet.
❈ ❈ ❈
29th of March, the Year 1202
21:22
Laeon Federation, Horn Mountain Range
❈
The group of 5, having expanded again, had begun to trek as early as possible. The cracks of dawn spilt out on to the mountain range, deterring any demonic beasts from coming out.
Chloe raved on and on about their past few days to Eldrich with his friends listening in. Their journey was lit up by her childishness which seemed brighter than the sun itself. Moods uplifted, the exam quickly came to an end due to how much fun they were having.
They set out at approximately 6 in the morning and arrived at their final destination in 15 hours with little to no breaks in between. Along the journey, they met up with more and more people who only gave them curt nods. Nobody attacked or provoked anyone else since it was nearing the end of the exam and they didn’t want to be eliminated by initiating a fight, only to find that they had bit off more than they could swallow.
On the contrary, the frequency and strength of the magical beasts increased drastically. It was most likely done on purpose to wear out the already fatigued examinees and catch them with their pants down. This was offset by the influx of examinees who were flooding into the area on the last day, frantic to finish this part of the exam.
It took a few hours to scale the final mountain as it was very steep and the tallest of all. Not only that but the path, already quite narrow, was packed full of examinees. Many had purposefully stayed back as the forest was great training and gathering ground; there was an abundance of herbs, ores and valuable materials, as well as a near-endless supply of magical and demonic beasts to defeat for their cores.
The five had arrived at the summit where a great gate resembling a torii stood proudly, etched with complex runes and enchantments. Knowing that there was only an hour or so left until the midnight deadline, Cordelia lead her group through. All around her, examinees were sprawled across the mountain top, their armour in tatters and covered in bandages. Their hair was matted and oily as there were few lakes and rivers in the area to wash with.
It wasn’t until they stepped through the gate that the party felt the exhaustion sink into their bones, almost collapsing, especially Chloe. She had been carried a lot but she was still a sickly 11-year-old after all. It wasn’t fair to expect too much from her when it came to physical ability. They fell down into a heap of bodies.
Only Cordelia remained standing, her back straight and face stern. She stood out a lot because of it, especially with her battle-worn appearance, yet still had strength in her to stand so unbendingly. Unknowingly, many felt a fire of competition light itself within them as they too stood up, some leaning against rocks and others staggering but staying vertical nevertheless.
“Get up. Laying in the dirt won’t do you any good.”
She picked up Chloe, leaving her other companions to their suffering as they groaned. So biased… they thought. As Cordelia was moving towards a discreet corner of the summit, a familiar person intercepted her path.
“Soleil.”
She stated his name, not really surprised the boy survived. There was no real animosity between the two groups as they knew what was at stake when they entered this exam. Cheiss Academy didn’t want weaklings, even if that meant killing them off. It was the survival of the fittest.
His auburn hair swayed in the light wind, his eyes narrowed and slightly complicated. He had not seen the girl in front of him fight properly but he could already imagine her valiant figure, drawing blood with every swing. Looking at the katana by her waist, he was surprised by her eastern roots.
“It was a good fight, Auster. Let’s turn over a new leaf and get along in the academy if we both make it in the next part.”
He used her last name, thinking that she was used to it due to her eastern origins.
“Call me Cordelia. I hope we both pass and become fellow students.”
She looked around, trying to find his other members but only saw the boy who carried Eldrich back then, his tall stature hard to miss.
“Where are your other friends?”
“Friends? They were just temporary examinees who I believed were strong enough. My only real friend is Axel, that redhead over there.”
He pointed to the boy she saw before who waved back, a grin stretched over his face.
“I see.”
She held out a hand in an offer to shake his, which he accepted with a firm grip.
Neither of them knew.
Not one of them knew that this moment would herald the beginning of an epic to be hailed across the ages...
❈ ❈ ❈
In mmos what she did would cause a lot of snotty tears kiting mobs to other grps, Ive done this often, unintentionally and on purpose, no guilt either unless it was a raid wipe, or I did a leeroy jenkins....
It took me a long time to think about how Cordelia could reverse the situation and this method was a slight stretch. The coincidence of having that exact herb was too coincidental, so yeah
Hey thanks for the chapter ! Sorry for the late comment been busy these days
It's okay. And welcome back!
