Chapter 455: Group C

"That's enough!"

"Lady Haru…" shuddered the ruthless Fletcher, "-please reconsider. Interrupting the evaluation might reflect poorly on our teaching methods."

"Instructor," she leaped into the arena with the finesse and grace of a pro-diver, "-I care not of what happens to the school. I will safeguard the very few members in my guild, do you understand?" she landed with force which cracked the prior hardened ice.

"Instructor Fletcher and Lady Melisa, the semester's recruits are very much interesting. I see Guild-Leader Haru has found herself someone she fancies. Best leave her to her devices. My evaluation is complete as far as concerned. Have the students visit the guild by latest Friday," stood with files in hand, '-this batch seems promising. Time will show if they have the guts necessary to become climbers.' The tall figure vanished inside the passageways.

Below, Group C was at a loss by Jen's words.

"What do you mean died?" wondered a troubled Lampard.

"Move out of the way," ordered the Guild-leader pushing aside the students. The gruesome terror of battle, the loss of a comrade, a human, was there on full display. In name and mind might they have thought to be ready, the truth was, even experienced fighters dealt poorly with death. 

"Jen, please tell me," the spear dropped with a heavy thud, "-will Igna be ok?"

"Why worry now?" returned she with anger, "-wasn't it the plan all along to let the weakling not get in the way."

"Stop lashing out," refuted Rena, "-that's why we don't need people like him on the field. It will affect our morale and lower expectation of what we can achieve in battle."

"Would you two shut it?" returned Leonard, "-Jen, tell me what exactly happened?"

"I fully intend to blame this on you three. I never saw it coming, a goblin split past YOUR line of defense. The next thing I knew, the arrow was released and he stood with a dagger running into him from the back. The pain must have been awful since he pulled it from the tip and managed to deliver the final blow. The pain… can you imagine? THE PAIN OF PULLING A DAGGER AND STABBING… whilst," her stance broke, "-b-bleeding to d-death." The decrepit description tightened her stomach – it was as if someone had wrapped a noose around her belly and pulled. The urge of wanting to hurl cut short with the last image of Haru approaching the boy.

'Look at him,' she watched with curiosity, the tail and ears wiggled, and soon, her heels stepped into the pool of blood. 'If you are the man I think you are, the injuries should start to heal any minute,' she knelt and soiled the perfectly clean dress, '-come on,' his head rested on her lap, "-Staxius Haggard, wake up." The fist jittered in reaction to the name.

"Lady Haru," *cough,* "-Is that you?" the vision felt blurry.

"Yes, it's me," she smiled, '-Lyoko Igna, you truly are the King of Arda. The man who led a whole continent into an age of prosperity. It's time the continent gives back the peace you so graciously fought for.' His lost blood returned from whence it came. 'Sharp canines, the crimson-colored pupils which showed after you fell.' Alteration she spotted soon reverted to the norm.

"Lady Haru?" multiple steps stopped shy of her back, "-will he be ok?"

"Who knows, maybe," her reply came off as standoffish.

"Everyone gather!" screamed Fletcher, "-Representatives of each chosen subject are waiting outside." Troubled and worried about the situation behind, the students kept facing forward. Discipline was crucial, that much was spelled out in the prior battles.

"On another note, might I add that the wolves were nothing more than Tier-10 Porcelain. The weakest of the food-chain. We lied to try and keep a semblance of safety, well… what is done is done, welcome to the Adventuring Academy!"

Tuesday the 2nd of December ended with the assignments of the room. Two bunk-bed per room without restriction on gender, age, race, and, specialized fields. Tis was but an all-out first come first serve situation. 

'A white ceiling,' the weirdly comfortable nap broke, '-wasn't I killed?'

"Look who decided to wake up," said a lady dressed in skinny jeans and a leather jacket, "-Lyoko Igna."

"Lady Haru," subconsciously sat upright, '-it's 16:45. Must have been around three hours. The injuries seem to be healed.'

"Did you perhaps tend to my wounds?" 

"No, god forbid the day I apply first aid to another living person. The last I did so happen to be the last for my patient."

"A very encouraging start," he barely managed to give a warm grin.

"No need to fret," she laughed, "-I was messing with you. Before you ask questions, I'll give a summary of what happened." The tidy spotless room lightened with the outside shining ever brighter. "You basically died in that fight prior, the doctors' sort of wanted to have the death certificate signed, well, nothing of that matters. Surely the realization must have hit by now, you're not human. Far from it, from the canines to the immortality, you're a vampire, nightwalker, and being from Arda. Your kind is rare and of the noble trait. I don't mind teaching how to utilize the power, it's up to what you want."

"Vampire or not," the face held no care for her words, "-I swore to become a Trader. Lady Haru, please teach me the ways of the adventuring world. I want to know. Even despite how I pathetically lost earlier, there's something more aggravating and it's not knowing. I want knowledge, I want to know how things work, I want to understand people. My memory is gone and I think learning everything might bring a few parts of my past back. Whether it's good or not, I don't care, I want to learn," all the while speaking, the head slowly lowered as if begging.

"Rule one of lady Haru's personal teachings, never look away when asking for a favor. Watch the other and be confident, lie to yourself I care not. Don't look hopeless, it's unbefitting. I have a shop in Meke, my students often stand around the grand-market and voice their words to attract customers. There are around 10 people, including you, who are under my care in the Trader's Guild. The majority of them hail from Arda. As fate would have it, they are in the Ardanian branch of the Adventuring Academy. So, dearest Igna, you're the only student of mine in the Hidros Branch. Competition is hard, making a living without fighting will be twice as tough," having said all that, her priority remained upon his expression and aura. "Do you still wish to become a Trader?"

"More than anything," the ironclad resolve had her whiskers flutter.

"I'm pleased," she stood, "-since I'm the Guild Leader, I won't be able to babysit your progress. Instead, you will have to learn the ropes in the company of the other Masters. For today, here's the room number and key. Your training starts tomorrow," she handed over a phone, "-you'll use this to give me a weekly report. Remember, you're a vampire with the powers locked behind a massive gate. The regeneration is slow – it's the only ability of worth. Be careful young novice of the Trader's Guild, I'll see you around," she reached for a helmet on the adjacent bed. 

"Also," shy of the door, "-go to your room before 18:00 for a surprise." The loneliness of the room soon became overwhelming. 'So, this is the start of my life,' he shuffled to the closest window, little cactus rested in plant-pots. 'I have to go meet with the cafeteria lady tomorrow,' the phone displayed messages from Lady Haru with a sticker of a cat, '-I wonder what sort of person she'll be.' 

The medical bay was inside the gymnasium on the ground floor. Pushing aside those self-closing doors, the outside felt different. More people moved into groups, some with sports gear, others with weapons, and some with pickaxes. Towering behind the groups was the main-buildings of the Academy, with some on the roofs and others in the class. Trees and bushes were planted to accompany the greenness of grass. Stone-paths saved the plants from tramples of iron-boots or armor. Being glared at and given the side-eye was the norm. 'Everything feels on edge.' Worries on the back and anxiety of tomorrow waiting heavily, the word 'surprise' gave a much-needed motivational push. 

"I can't believe you guys are in Military-Arts," sighed Jen.

"What do you expect," shrugged Rena, "-it's not like I enjoy your company." The class was dismissed.

"Whatever happened earlier was out of the scope of possibilities," added Leonard calmly. The medium-sized classroom had members of differing Groups

"I still don't get why a mage would come here instead of Magecraft," inquired Rena as they stepped into the not so crowded halls. The buildings were separated into sections depending on the subject.

"I've learned magic for more than a decade – Military Arts is the next goal," said he without much thought. "What about you, Jen, why did you pick Military-Arts?" 

"I want to become an officer of the Azure wall," the reluctance of the prior battle had her on the verge of a mental breakdown.

"What about you, Rena? I thought you were going to be by Lampard's side. 

"My choice isn't related to him," she pouted; "-besides, he wants to become a Hero. I want to support him with the best of my abilities," her pace slowed with the setting sun perfectly slapping her cheeks.

"Jen," she stopped, "-I'm sorry for what I said earlier. It was insensitive of me to just cast him aside like that. I won't take back my views on weaklings needing to stay out of fights. I'm sure Lampard personally feels responsible." 

"By the way, you two are acting…"

"Leonard, don't you dare say it," gritted Rena, "-we're nothing more than people who had to fight in a Group."

"I suppose you're right," he shrugged, "-it was pure and utter luck. When you think of it that way, Igna's sacrifice does seem pointless. What if he was in another group, I bet Jen wouldn't have even spoken to him."

"Luck," sighed Jen, "-I've yet to hear from lady Haru."

"Don't worry," they soon left the building, "-I'm sure a scroll or potion will do the trick." 

"Hey guys," hailed Lampard from another batch, "-how's military arts?" the tall figure stood behind the trio as if a guardian.

"Pretty standard," said Leonard texting another.

"Oh. you know, military stuff," added Rena with a hint of embarrassment. "What about you, how was Adventuring class?" 

"A lot of strong people," he beamed with squinted eyes, "-I can't wait for tomorrow. Our group will head to the Guild and get temporary tags." None would say it outright, Group C had a definite connection. The quirky personalities would soon come to understand one another.

"Out of curiosity," they arrived at the same dorm, "-what room did you get assigned?" 

"Room 60 in Block D," mumbled Rena.

"Same…"

"Same…"

"This must be a joke," facepalmed Jen. The dorms were four buildings of six storey's high. The capacity for each was around 60 – 80 depending on the arrangement of the beds. As luck would have it, Block D rested closer to the outskirts of the forest. A fragile-looking iron-fence held the border. Paths went vertically and horizontally across the buildings to join at a sitting area. 

"You must be Group C," said one of the attendants, "-take the elevator and settle in the room. Return to the cafeteria before 19:30, the Dorm-lady is very peculiar on being timely." The climb felt long and awkward.

"I guess this is fate?" added Lampard in jest.

"Oh, shut it," refused the two ladies adamantly. Leonard kept to his phone. Floor 6 soon flashed with a quiet 'ding'.

'I fail to see the surprise Lady Haru mentioned.' Sat facing the window, Igna stuck his head inside a book the dorm-lady kindly gave earlier. 'The way to a men's heart is through his stomach,' read the title. 

"Listen, I'll compromise if we have to live together," the door barged opened. 

"That's fine with me," returned a heated Rena.

"What are you guys doing here…" wondered he with an opened mouth.

"A GHOST!"