Mary looked back in her room wistfully, the last months of the first year in the academy flew by. They managed to advance to silver rank a few weeks prior, but would be confined there until the rest of her team managed to cast the first dragonrune.
Taimanu had already managed and Dehla didn't need to, she was unable to cast any magic after all, but the rest would still need some time. Though Mary was confident they would manage before the second year started if they didn't slack off during the holidays.
Furthermore Taimanu and her managed to train the team in proper woodcraft. They were still nowhere near her level but at least didn't alert everything listening in a few kilometers of their presence. Today was the start of their journey back and the students of the academy would split up in seven big groups.
One would go to the north towards the former domain of her father. The other six would all travel west and go to the five big cities around the capital as well as the capital itself.
The groups moving north was the biggest one with two hundred students and ten teachers.
The second largest one with one hundred and sixty students and nine teachers went to the capital.
The other groups were about one hundred big. Of course, the students didn't all come from the big cities, some would leave on the way back or continue their journey once they arrived at the city, the empire was a huge country after all. Of course the price wouldn't be joining them, his father sent a few mages who would teleport him to the capital once the term ended.
Furthermore several teams chose to use the time they had to go adventuring, something Mary’s team had no interest in. They were ambiguous but they had not seen their family for eighteen months and it was time to return home. Especially Taimanu missed them as the tribal nature of beastkin made them way more connected to their tribe than a human or elf would be.
Taimanu would meet with her tribe at the capital so they wouldn't have to seperate for some time. They had planned or Taimanu to visit her for a week before though as the lynxkin’s tribe would not arrive before that anyways. She packed everything she needed, her stones, her sword and a few changes of clothes as well as her new armor and all the necessities of life.
“Are you ready Tai?” She asked as she knocked on her friends door.
“A moment please, I still need to pack.”
“...”
“Should I help you?”
“No no I'm fine.” Taimanu replied. Ten minutes later the lynxkin left her room.
“That's an awful lot of stuff you have there. You sure your horse can handle it?” Mary asked.
“Of course. The monster you call horse is able to carry way more. I'm still angry you made us learn how go ride these. Why couldn't we just stay with the ponies they taught us how to ride on.” The small beastkin groused.
“You know why. They are weak slow and lack aggression. And we both know you love yours.” Taimanu deflated, admitting defeat. When they had returned from their last quest Mary took her team to get horses, they already got lessons on riding in the academy but had to buy a horse for themselves. Most other teams got normal horses bit Mary already had a perfectly healthy great horse and made sure her team would get one too. Ever since then, the times they needed for travelling had decreased significantly just like the random attacks of weaker monsters.
Taimanu had actually chosen the most aggressive and tallest of the horses the stable had to offer. Whenever the small girl sat on her horse she seemingly vanished. That was an illusion though, she had deeper bonds with her horse than the rest of them. That it could carry more than the rest of them because she was as light as she was was just a bonus.
They and a few others of higher years would travel ahead of the main group as their mounts were way faster than those of the main group. It would cut a week or two of the travel time and be way more fun without all of the teachers looking over their shoulders. It was also way more dangerous, crossing the eastern mountains with a group of twenty but that made it all the more exciting.
Apart from her Tai and Dehla only one of the two dwarfs she wanted to join her team were out of the capital. The healer would also be accompanying them and Mary was sure she would be able to get her to join her team over the next three weeks.
“Let's go, we wouldn't want the group to wait for us now would we?”
“We wouldn't.”
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“You are early, very good. The rest should be here in a moment.” The only other noble, the son of a minor Baron in the capital said. Vincent Lionstein was in the fourth year of the academy and quite nice. Normally no other nobles were allowed to join the group but she got a chance as their parents knew each other and were allied. The rest of the group were all kinds of commoners or people from other races that made a living in the capital.
They started arriving at the stables of outside of the town where the evolved mounts were kept over the next minutes.
When they set out one hour later Mary had been introduced to everyone of their small group of twenty. An hour after they started their journey Vincent rode up next to her.
“You wondering where the road we are currently using was when you arrived?” He asked.
“Not really, it was masked by an illusion, I just thought it wouldn't be all that well received if my group used it.” She answered.
“You are a ranger then?”
“I have been trained as one because I love the forest.”
“So if you only know how to be a ranger but are none, where do you see yourself in a team?”
“I am a team leader and supply any information my team needs. I also pack quite the punch with both air and lightning magic.” She said.
“So how good is your awareness, I heard rumors you know everything happening around at all times.”
“That's just that, a rumor, I have very good eyes and ears so I am able to perceive stuff most don't. They also don't know what to listen for so they ignore it even if they hear or see something that would tick me off.”
“So you don't have any supernatural awareness?”
“Nope.”
“Make sure to warn us if you ‘hear’ something.” He said with a wink. She would have done that anyways.
“Where did you hear those rumors, I thought nobody would really be interested in a first year like me?”
“Nobody was until you kicked the prince out of the rankings. That gave you quite some fame as most don't risk angering the asshole.”
“He should have been faster then.”
“That's not what you told him?” He asked. Mary grinned.
“Of course I did. People like him want to do everything through their social standing. Should he really become emperor as unlikely as that is then it’s better if he already knows not everyone will be intimidated by his birth.”
“And yet I heard him brag how you always go out of his way on the school grounds.”
“I'm not an idiot, he had me cornered once and I had to improvise and do a body enhancements to get out. Ever since then I was careful.” She said.
“That's wise, he is one of the most nasty and unforgiving people I know.” He said. Just as he was about to turn away to talk to others of her year, Starshadow spotted something.
A huge green cat was laying in wait a kilometer down the road. Judging by the muster of its fur as well as its size Mary assumed it was an elder Treecat. These monsters never stopped growing and if left alone would reach anything up to ten meters in length. They were incredibly smart, more so than most monster, which combined with their deadly bodies meant it was incredibly hard to kill them without losing one or two of your team in the process. They were probably just crossing its territory and it felt like eating a human and his horse so it waited for them. It was five meters long and three tall so there was that. While the plants drake had been bigger, this beast was ay more dangerous than the huge monster.
“We have a monster incoming.” She told Vincent.
“What kind of monster are we talking about?”
“An elder treecat, three meters tall and five long. A kilometer in front of us just next to the road.”
“Fuck. Exactly what we needed right now. Wait how did you know there is no way you can hear anything that far out how did you know?” Mary smiled innocently, she knew he had no time to linger on that question for now, he had to ensure their safety first.
“All right we have an ambush right ahead, an elder treecat five meters long. Any suggestions what to do?”
“We wait for the main group and go through its territory together?” One of the other first years called out.
“They are a day behind us and I for one don't want it to come and get us while we wait for them.” Vincent answered.
“Anyone here capable of a good illusion?” Mary asked.
“Y- Yes I-I a-am.” A small human girl called out, starting to stutter as everyone focused on her.
“Illusions are useless against feline monsters, they rely on their nose too much for them to be useful.” Vincent interrupted her.
“Yes they do, but that also is their greatest weakness.” Mary said.
“How can a superior nose like that be a weakness?” He asked intrigued.
“Well, you know how it is you” She looked at the nervous girl. “will create an illusion of our group about fifty meters in front of us, can you do that?” The girl nodded shyly.
“Good, I will go and cast one of the spell I created for adventuring and alter it a bit. Normally the spell marks the smell and sound of my team, but I can alter it to just displace the smell and sound right in the middle of the illusion. That way we won't lose anyone with the initial attack and if we are lucky we can kill it with before it understands what's happening.” She looked at Vincent as he would have to approve of the plan being their appointed leader by the academy’s staff.
“That sounds decent enough. If you can warn us of its pounce so we are ready and everyone can attack with everything we have. Anyone got a better plan?” He asked. None had so they started implementing her suggestion.
Instead of moving their smell to the illusion at once, Mary moved it forwards slowly, she didn't want to tick it off like that.
As they reached five hundred meters until contact the smell was on the same spot as the illusion and her countertrap was ready to be sprung.