It had been a few days since the report to the vice head. The investigation team had returned and confirmed that it was indeed the Dragon’s Highway. Until further research could be done on it, they restricted anybody from entering who didn’t have the ability to defeat at least a Steel Wolf. This, of course, blocked us from entering. Even with Javi and I helping, Bella isn’t strong enough yet. On the bright side, we did receive a substantial monetary reward.

I was checked on by some of the more aether proficient members of the Union. They agreed that I’ll be fine and that as long as I use aether at least once a month, I shouldn’t have another overload. They recommended that I should try to get an aether related class as soon as possible, especially since I have talent for it.

Javi became more stern after they got back, if that was even possible. He had taken to doing extra training to get used to the spear and shield. Daniel had begun helping him out. Apparently, he used to fight with a shield when he was younger. I can’t help but feel that he blames himself for being unable to stop me or help me when I lost control.

And then there’s Bella. She has not been taking it well, no matter how hard she tries to hide it. She desperately wanted to be a part of something connected to her country in some way. It was actually hard to contact her at first as she holed up inside her room at the inn, but now she at leasts goes out and pretends to be okay. She’s been talking about needing a pick me up soon. I can only hope that she doesn’t mean anything too bad by that.

And that brings us back to now. To take our minds off of things we decided to do a simple mission. Flentel hunting. One of the easiest jobs there is.

“Come on boys! Get to it! We haven’t got all day to catch these things.” Bella was in a good mood finally. She also seemed to be in a rush for some reason.

“Don’t blame us! We’re half as fast as you. We can’t possibly keep up with your pace.”

“Oh, pish posh. Consider it training. You’re still doing it, even if you are past the initial phase. On with it! We’ve only killed two Flentels so far and we have to kill five to turn in the job.”

That was the thing with Flentels, unlike goblins, they hardly ever travel together. And if they hear you coming they’ll hide. However, they have pelts that are supposed to make very high quality boots. This makes them a very popular sell, especially with how weak they are.

“Get down!” Javi whisper shouted over and Wren crouched down in response.

“What is it?”

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“Two Flentels to our left. They haven’t noticed us yet. You get close and get ready to attack. I’ll throw my spear and get one while you ambush the other. Sound good?”

“What about Bella? She isn’t a part of this?”

“She dropped down well before we did. She probably could’ve taken them out already. This is in all likelihood a test to see how we do.”

“I see.”

That made sense. She had been making it easy for us so far but in the last job we were often left to fend for ourselves. It is much more her style to let us learn by doing.

Wren crept through the brush. The Flentels were visible now and within striking range. I certainly wouldn’t have been able to get this close to a wild animal before my training.

A spear flashed out through the trees and struck one of the Flentels. Wren lunged forward and slashed the other. A quick and easy victory. The hunt was much harder than the fight.

Looking down he could see the Flentel clearly now. It really was an odd creature. Similar to some creatures on Earth. The body, head and ear were much like that of a rabbit. However, the legs seemed to belong to a deer. And it was between the two animals in size. And most importantly, the pelt was much more precious. And the meat is delicious. I got a Flentel soup one time and it was quite the treat.

Wren plopped down by the bodies and was soon joined by Javi. They sat there for a minute before taking a look around.

“Where did Bella go?”

“I’m not sure. She might’ve not been watching us. Do you think something happened?”

Wren thought for a moment and then thoughtfully stroked his chin, “I’m sure she’s fine. Probably just needed to use the restroom.”

“Who the hell needed to use the restroom?” The boys whipped around and found Bella standing over them menacingly. She definitely was not happy about that little joke.

“N-nobody. Not important. Just wondering where you went.”

She dropped her stern expression and relaxed her stance, “I figured you two had this pair covered so I went and found our last kill. Took care of it, and now we can be done.” She threw a body beside the pair of Flentels we took out. “Now let’s backtrack, find the other two we stashed and get out of here.”

What is she so impatient about? She’s been like this all day. You’d think that if she were in such a rush she wouldn’t have chosen today to take a job.

And with plenty of speed the group made it back to the other Flentels that had been taken out. The biggest downside to hunting Flentels is that they have to be dragged back to town. After all, the price on them comes from the equipment that can be made from them.

Soon enough the group was almost back to town, but it was almost dark already. The hunt was certainly a time consuming process. Bella just kept picking up the pace more and more, only slowing down to make sure the other two remain in sight. What is going on with her? Is it related to that pick me up comment she had made? I feel like somebody needs to make sure nothing bad happens to her.