Chapter 31: Chapter 31: First
Throughout these few years, they had lost many of their friends. Every time they separated, they didn't know if they were going to ever meet again. It was a long and painful cycle. However, none of them regret it. For them, it was all worth it.
Although it took a long time, they had finally found the light at the end of the dark tunnel. They had finally managed to free Raven, although still incomplete.
As the train continued its journey through the snowy landscape, a heavy silence filled the air. Each of them was lost in their own thoughts.
After half an hour, the Train passed through a special barrier that covered an entire mountain. Once inside the barrier, the scenery transformed dramatically. The snowy landscape gave way to lush greenery, with colorful flowers and vibrant wildlife.
The air was filled with a pleasant fragrance, refreshing their spirits after a long journey. As the youngsters gazed out the window, they couldn't help but appreciate the beauty.
They had all heard that Great Sage Merlin loved the beauty of nature. Seeing the surroundings, none found it hard to believe.
The train finally came to a halt as it reached its destination. Lively chatter filled the air as everyone eagerly disembarked.
There was no platform this time. All of them stepped on the beautiful grass. As far as the eyes could see, only the beauty of nature was visible.
Although the scenery was beautiful, they couldn't see what they were there for. None of them came here to see a garden after all.
"Why have we stopped here? Where's the Academy?" One of the young nobles asked. "Is something wrong with the train?"
"Nothing seems to be wrong with the train. There's just no track ahead, look." Another youngster chimed in, pointing in the distance.
They also noticed that none of their Knights had stepped out. They tried to step out, only to be stopped by some barrier that prevented them from leaving.
Uther also stood up, leaving his Knights behind. He had already been informed that there was going to be a test. Even he wasn't free from the test. As for what that test was going to be, he didn't know as every time, there was a different test.
"Best of luck," Count Atlan told Uther before the young boy could step out.
"Hahaha, I suppose I shall take that." Uther laughed as he stepped out.
Allen wasn't much behind. He left his Knights inside the train as he stepped out alone.
And finally, it was Raven's turn. However, before he stood up, Leira approached him, whispering in his ears. "I believe this is as far as we will be able to accompany you. Don't forget, you will only have less than a month before that disguise is gone."
Zephyr also spoke. "If you are in danger, just crush the crystal I gave you. Even if I have to force my way in, I'll take you out."
He wanted to hide in Raven's shadow and accompany him. Unfortunately, the barrier made it impossible to do it without getting detected. It was just as Leira had suggested. This was something that Raven had to do all alone.
Raven nodded, as he kept the pen in his pocket, standing up. He stepped out of the train, passing through the barrier that even Zephyr couldn't break without getting noticed.
The barrier covered all the exits of the train, only allowing those who were younger than twenty years old to step out. No magic was able to fool the barrier.
Raven stepped on the soft grass, feeling a slight breeze brush against his face. While most of the youngsters were getting impatient, there were also a few who were standing calmly. He was one of them.
"This is as far as the train will take you. From this point on, you will have to walk." Suddenly, a voice came from every direction.
Raven looked in the distance to see an elderly man perched on a nearby tree branch. His kind eyes and gentle smile hid a lot of things within.
All the youngsters looked at the old man in the distance, who appeared like an ordinary commoner.
"Walk?" One of the young nobles frowned, looking in the distance. As far as his eyes could see, there was nothing. He couldn't even imagine how far he had to walk.
Another young noble climbed up the train to look father. Unfortunately, this only made him more concerned. He had very keen eyes. However, even from the top, he couldn't see anything but green grass as far as his eyes could see. It was as if there was nothing for hundreds of miles.
As the young nobles scanned the vast expanse of green grass, a sense of unease settled over the group. They had come so far, and now they were told to walk such distance like some commoners?
Whispers of doubt began to circulate among the youngsters.
"Is this some kind of test?" one of them wondered aloud.
"Why would they make us walk through such a desolate place?" questioned another. "How can they have such a stupid test?"
"You can either wait here or reach your destination. The choice shall be yours." The old man spoke, his eyes gleaming with wisdom. "And if you don't want to, you can return to the train. I'll consider that as your failure."
"Hmph, why would we be scared of walking? You think this is enough to scare us?" One of the Nobles scoffed, feeling as if they were getting insulted.
None of them wanted to return home and explain to their parents that they failed because they couldn't walk.
With the first noble taking the lead in running towards the other end, the others soon followed.
As they ran, each step brought them closer to the unknown. The silence that enveloped them was broken only by the sound of their footsteps and the gentle rustling of the grass beneath their feet.
Hours turned into days, and still, the endless grassland stretched out before them. Doubt crept into their minds once more, but they refused to let it consume them.
All of them ran without sleeping, only taking breaks for a few hours within. Although they didn't know why this was the test, none of them wanted to finish the test second.
With this test, all of them had hopes of finishing first and making their families proud, especially since the Prince was in their batch as well.
Chapter 32: Chapter 32: The Three
"Now that I think about it, where's the Prince?" One of them looked behind, realizing that he hadn't noticed the Prince for a long time.
"That's right. Shouldn't he be in the lead? He's the son of King Arthur after all. How could he be so weak?"
"Hahaha, he must've fallen behind. Who says that a dragon father will certainly give birth to a dragon son? Now I understand why His Majesty kept his son hidden. He must've been ashamed!"
The youngsters who were in the lead kept running, proud of themselves. To further boost their ego, they compared themselves to Uther, repeatedly mocking the young boy that they had only heard about.
It wasn't just them as many others were wondering about Uther's whereabouts as none had seen Uther ever since they started running.
None of them knew that while they were running fiercely, Uther was simply lying on the grass at the starting point, appreciating the scenery around him.
He wasn't the only one there either. There were two more youngsters who were still at the starting point. One of them was Allen.
Instead of running, Allen remained in his place. He wasn't resting like Uther. Instead, he was practicing his sword skills, taking this time to train himself.
As for the last person, it was none other than Raven. Raven wasn't near Uther and Allen. Instead, he was sitting right next to the tree over which the old man was lying.
Raven's back rested against the tree as he sat beneath the tree.
"How peculiar... Do you three have no interest in the test? Did you come this far, only for sightseeing? It's the first time I've seen someone so eager to fail," The old man stated, his voice carrying a hint of confusion.
"If you have no interest in the test, why don't you return to the train and have it take you back?"
Unfortunately for him, none answered him. Let alone answering him, none even glanced at him.
Uther only occasionally paid attention to Raven who was sitting under the tree. He had heard about Allen so he wasn't surprised that the boy hadn't joined the test. But it came as a surprise to him that there was a commoner in this test who had also stayed behind.
He didn't know if it was because the boy was clever or if he just stayed behind after noticing that they had stayed behind. If it was the latter, it made more sense. However, if it was the former, he believed it was worth paying attention to this boy.
As the days passed and the other youngsters continued their relentless run, Raven remained rooted to his spot.
The old man, intrigued by Raven's silence and composure, approached him. "Young man, why do you choose to stay behind? Are you not interested in proving your worth?"
Raven kept his eyes closed, not responding.
"I know you can hear me. You don't have to pretend to be asleep," the old man said, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "How about it? If you can even walk for one day without getting tired, I'll take it as you pass this test."
As the old man received only silence in response, his smile widened. "How interesting... You haven't stayed behind because of them. Instead, you have your own reasons. Did you also notice it?"
Raven finally responded, nodding. There was no surprise in the fact that all three who had stayed behind had managed to see through this test.
"I suppose it's time to end the test in that case." The old man stood up, landing lightly on the ground.
He clapped his hand. The youngsters who were still running, felt their surroundings change. The beautiful scenery around them changed. The grass disappeared, turning into barren land. But as they looked closer, they saw sprouts of green pushing through the dry, cracked earth.
Mountaintops peeked through the distant horizon, revealing a mountainous region. In this entire place, there was only one tree. And it was the tree on which the old man was lying.
Seeing the tree before them, the youngsters were stunned. They looked around, finding the train next to them. Uther, Raven, and Allen were also there.
"How are we back here? What's happening?!"
"Did we pass the test?"
"We ran for so long, yet we're back? I was in the lead before we were brought back. Does that mean I came first in this test?"
Many youngsters directed their questions to the old man, all of them filled with a lot of confusion.
"You are wrong on three things." The old man smirked. "Firstly, you haven't passed. Instead, all of you have failed. Only three people have passed."
"What? How can we fail? And they didn't even take part in the test? How can they pass? Are you cheating?" One of the noble children asked, not controlling his mouth.
He couldn't believe that he had failed despite putting in so much effort, while three who didn't put in any effort passed.
"I'll tell my father everything! You'll definitely be hearing from him!" Another noble child exclaimed. "How can you cheat so openly? Just because we're not the blood of His Majesty, you want to take our rights from us?"
The old man waved his hand lazily. At that moment, all who were speaking had their mouths forced shut. None were able to open their mouths.
"Much better." The old man smiled kindly. "So where was I? Yeah, the second thing you were wrong about. It's not that you were pulled back. Instead, you had always been here. You haven't moved an inch, only running in the same spot."
The crowd fell into a puzzled silence, their anger momentarily forgotten. The old man's words lingered in the air. The youngsters looked at each other's faces. They started to question their own perceptions.
"And lastly, you had failed the test the moment you started running," the old man continued.
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received Weekly Power Status
200+ Power
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