Chapter 29: Isolation (1)

Chapter 29: Isolation (1)

The cave was shrouded in silence.

In this place where no sound could be heard, the sudden roar of waves echoed. Soon, along with the raging torrents, furious waves swept through the cave.

Swooooosh!

Waves swept through every nook and cranny of the cave.

After a moment, three figures emerged it was Ulan, Ibella, and the ashen-haired girl.

Ibella and the girl didn't even move, likely having lost consciousness due to the sudden torrent. In contrast, Ulan stood up nonchalantly as if nothing had happened.

Naturally, he hadn't lost his wits.

From the moment he was swept away by the wave until now, he had been holding his breath. As a result, he remembered everything that had happened.

The moment we entered the cave, the entrance closed.

More accurately, it collapsed. Huge boulders blocked the entrance.

Afterward, with a loud rumble, the cave moved; as if sinking beneath the lake's surface.

At this point, a memory flashed through Ulan's mind.

It's somehow similar to the Trial of a Warrior.'

The Trial of a Warrior he had undergone in the grasslands.

The situation was similar then as it is now. Soon after he had set foot in the ruins of the Trial, all entrances were sealed shut.

'Then maybe this is.

Another Trial of a Warrior?

The thought crossed his mind, but he quickly realized it wasn't the case. He'd heard all about where each of his past life companions had taken the Trial of a Warrior.

'Not a single one of them said they took the Trial of a Warrior at Arsene Academy.

Even Dilia Arpen, the famously distinguished alumna of Arsene Academy, had mentioned undertaking the Trial of a Warrior elsewhere.

Then what is this place?

As he pondered his situation anew, Ulan's brow furrowed. However, he was soon pulled out of his reverie. The ashen-haired girl began to shiver uncontrollably. Ibella was the same. Perhaps their bodies had gotten cold due to being soaked.

Furthermore, the cave's current temperature was lower than that of the outside, exacerbating the situation. Realizing this, Ulan surveyed the cave's surroundings

and in the process, he noticed something.

Is that debris from a boat?

As he suspected, it was the remains of a boat.

Though it was wet, it wasn't a significant issue. By infusing the wood with spirit, circulating it quickly, and generating heat, any moisture could easily be removed.

Moreover, it had another advantage.

Fwoosh! Fwoosh!

The wood fragments quickly caught fire.

Boom! Boom!

Ulan collected other debris as well, ensuring they could be used as firewood.

Next.

It was time to remove their wet clothes.

With wet clothes, their body temperatures would drop rapidly. So, Ulan wasted no time in stripping.

Afterward, he moved them closer to the campfire. He spread out their wet clothes to help them dry more effectively.

I wish we had blankets

It was highly unlikely that they would find any here.

As Ulan lamented this, something caught his eye. A large bag. It was the backpack Noah had been hauling around with a grunt.

I wonder if.

Could there be something useful inside?

She has mysterious powers of foresight, he thought, and as he opened the backpack, his speculation quickly turned to certainty.

A towel wrapped around bundles of thick paper. There were also emergency rations and water.

She must have foreseen a situation like this with her foresight.

Classic Noah.

After a brief moment of admiration, Ulan wrapped the towels around them both. After a while, as he listened to the crackling sound of the fire, he thought of Noah.

I hope she's okay.

He saw Professor Miel use the stone.

In truth, Ulan's reason for saving Noah wasn't profound she was just the closest, and therefore the easiest to throw.

Next, he tried to throw Ibella, but due to the wind created by the wave, he failed.

First, I need to find a way out.

If Ulan had been the only one stranded here, he would have immediately searched the cave for an exit.

But he couldn't do that now.

He couldn't leave behind the two unconscious girls, and more importantly, he couldn't ignore what Noah had said.

Ulan glanced at the axe.

He said I'd find a use for it.

In other words, there might be a battle. Even the stone-headed Ulan had guessed that much.

That was why he couldn't leave them alone.

If he left for even a short moment, and a monster were to appear, they would be in serious trouble.

As he whiled away the time in thought

".....Ugh, ugh."

a faint moan came from nowhere.

It was Ibella. She blinked her eyes open, her eyelids trembling. Eventually, she fully opened her eyes and glanced around in a daze.

"Where am I?"

"A cave," Ulan replied briefly.

Her gaze soon shifted to this direction. Since she didn't seem to grasp the situation yet, Ulan continued to explain, "We were swept away by a wave and landed here."

As Ulan's explanation concluded...

Ibella had barely regained her composure. Then, her eyes widened like lanterns.

".....Wha-!?"

She realized she wasn't wearing any clothes; all her clothes were gone, except for her underwear. As if someone had taken them off.

"I took them off," Ulan gave a calm answer.

The nonchalant manner in which Ulan said this only fueled Ibella's flustered expression. She asked in a small voice, "Did you, um, see...?"

"What?"

"The underwear and .."

"I saw it."

Ulan had excellent eyesight, after all.

He had seen every inch of smooth skin, every curve of her well-defined figure.

Yet, despite his bluntness, Ibella's flustered reaction only intensified.

"But don't worry. Nothing has happened to cause you concern."

"Yes, huh?"

"Even barbarians know when and where to draw the line. Pouncing on an unconscious woman is for cowards, not warriors. It's not something a true warrior would do.

Ulan was a strong man.

And, naturally, he had a lot of sexual desire.

But at the same time, he was a warrior.

An honorable warrior. He respected honor and, by extension, the honor of others. He respected theirs just as he valued his own.

"Where can I find the list of courses?"

"In the orientation brochure. You must not have looked at it yet, because the list of courses starts on page 60."

As soon as she finished speaking, Ulan replied confidently, "I'm on page 11."

"Huh?"

"That's 49 days left."

He had successfully performed a subtraction in his head.

Ulan's eyes narrowed.

Sequentially speaking, there were 49 days left, but come to think of it, there was no need to read the orientation brochure in order.

I will start reading from page 60 when I go back.

He had to choose his courses for next week.

Just as he was making that decision, Ibella nudged him in the side, "Or should I just tell you the course list?"

"Do you have the brochure?"

"Not exactly, but I remember some of it."

"Then I'll ask for it."

Ulan nodded his head slightly.

Then, one by one, Ibella then began listing the courses she remembered, mostly focusing on the ones she intended to take.

A little while later, Ulan had a thoughtful expression.

I'm not particularly drawn to anything.

In reality, he didn't really mind which courses he took. Ulan was a monster who had reached the realm of a Master without learning from anyone else.

'Except.

If he had to choose, he did have some degree of interest in a few courses. So, he gave his answer with a murmur, "Hunting and Martial Skill would be good."

{T/N:- Martial Skill - the skill of fighting using weapons such as swords and spears.}

He chose Hunting because he suddenly remembered Stella. She was the test supervisor for the Monster Hunt test. He recalled her confident attitude vividly.

The next reason he was interested in Martial Skill was even simpler. The professor in charge of the course would probably have extensive knowledge about the various weapons in the world.

Perhaps I could gain some clues about a very powerful weapon.

A weapon powerful enough to fight a Giant King and not break. That, too, was one of Ulan's goals.

Meanwhile, after hearing Ulan's words, Ibella shouted with a momentary smile, "You're going to learn Martial Skill? Really?!"

"If there's nothing else I feel like learning, then why not?"

"Wow, then we could take it together."

"I suppose we could."

Ulan nodded his head again. As Ibella's eyes sparkled with anticipation, she let out a suppressed laugh.

"Mmm, mmm."

There was a faint groan.

The ashen-haired girl who had been passed out all this time.

When she showed signs of opening her eyes, Ibella returned to her expressionless face, as if she hadn't smiled since when? As if she were wearing a mask.

'This is similar to the past life.

When she spoke to the warriors, including Ulan, she took off her mask. But when she spoke to strangers, she always wore her mask.

Knowing this habit, Ulan didn't mind, and by then, the ashen-haired girl had finally opened her eyes.

"Huh, where am I!?"

Wide eyes and a startled expression.

The two explained what had happened.

Meanwhile, Ibella took responsibility for undressing the girl. Probably to save some unnecessary trouble.

After all the explanations were done, the girl burst into tears, "Huk! Ugh! Mommy...!"

To be honest, this was a normal reaction. She had been suddenly swept away by a wave and isolated in an unknown cave. After some time, the girl managed to calm down somewhat.

Then, she introduced herself.

"I, my name is Sylphie."

Sylphie Ludhina a student who entered the Academy with the goal of majoring in Ancient History and Archaeology in the General Studies Department. She was sixteen years old; a year younger than Ulan and Ibella.

Meanwhile, clinging to Ibella's side, she kept glancing at Ulan. Was he bothered by her repeated glances? Ulan asked straight away, "Do you have something to say?"

"Uh, yeah, I was just wondering."

She seemed to have many questions.

Ulan nodded his head, indicating that she could go ahead and ask. Sylphie, sensing that she had the opportunity, asked with a trembling voice, "......why were you screaming in the auditorium?"

She was probably curious about what happened at the entrance ceremony.

Ibella, too, gazed at Ulan with curious eyes. With both sets of eyes on him, Ulan answered as if there was nothing to hide, "To convey sincerity."

"Sincerity?"

"Yes. I wanted to express my sincere desire to get along with everyone, so I shouted from the heart."

His gaze remained steady and unwavering. He wasn't lying.

Sylphie had a blank look on her face, and Ibella was barely able to contain her laughter.

"So let's get along."

"Y-Yes, of course!"

"Just speak your mind."

"W-Well... that's a bit... It's scary..."

Sylphie awkwardly forced a smile.

As the atmosphere eased a bit, Ibella, who had been silent, spoke up, "So, what should we do from here?"

"Using common sense, the best course of action would be to wait here until rescue arrives."

It was Sylphie who answered the question.

Professor Miel had said that if anything happened beyond the boundaries of Zone One, the Guardians of Fountain would act. And this cave was located within Zone Two, so it was reasonable to assume that the Guardians would take action.

However, Ulan shook his head, "That seems a bit difficult."

"W-What? Why...?" Sylphie asked with a puzzled expression.

In an instant, a chilling coldness enveloped the area. Turning his gaze reflexively, he noticed that the water had risen up to ankle level. It seemed that water was continuously pouring in from outside.

Sylphie looked bewildered, "Uh, uh, what do we do?!"

"We need to move."

A quick glance around revealed what appeared to be a passageway in the back.

Ulan lit a thick piece of wood to make a torch, then stood up, "Let's find a safe place and wait for the Guardians to rescue us."

"Sounds good. I'm in favor."

"Me, too!"

Ibella and Sylphie nodded.

Unanimity of purpose.

After putting on the slightly damp clothes, the three of them started to move. Their objective was to find a safe area and wait there for rescue, while avoiding the rising water.

(End of Chapter. . . . . . . .)

T/N:-

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