Blowing out my candle and closing my curtains, I was freaked the hell out. Seriously? Why is someone spying on me? Damn, that's scary... thank god I'm leaving for the capital soon. Lying back in bed, I started to get a bad feeling. That's when I heard a knock on my door. Reluctant to answer after what I just witnessed, I grabbed the knife Gibbit gave me as a gift and headed towards the door. Opening it slowly, Bronn appeared before me, completely drenched and wearing what looked to be some sort of raincoat. "We're leaving, now," he said.

"We have to go get Ravinia as well. I have some food and water in my bag, but make sure to pack some as well just in case," he stated, leaving no time for me to talk as he started to run down the hall. "Meet me by the field in 5 minutes!" he shouted, forgetting what hour it was.

Tossing on the leather coat which had some sort of slick on it and picking up some food, I headed out for the field. Why were we leaving tonight without Gibbit? Did Bronn change plans again?

Coming into view, I saw both Bronn and Ravinia, looking like they were trying to climb Mount Everest. "What's with all the gear? Don't you think you're overdoing it a bit?" I asked, smiling sheepishly at the sight before me. "I'd rather be safe than sorry," said Bronn with a sigh.

The journey didn't seem all that hard; for me, at least. After we crossed the field, Ravinia needed to take a break and rest. Already needing to take a break... this will be a long journey after all. Looking over at Bronn, he looked pale and in distress. "Seriously dude, what's going on? You didn't say anything yet." I asked Bronn in a serious tone. "I may be wrong, but I think there's a dungeon opening by our village," he said with his voice shaking.

"There's a strong energy coming from a cave nearby?" I asked while we were running. "Yeah, I've always seen that cave but it's never been like this before. I'm wanting to be able to defeat it by ourselves, but..." he paused. "You think it's too strong?" I asked him, already knowing his response. "I believe so."

According to Ravinia who has been to the capital before on business with her father, Gibbit, we only have a little way to go until we reach the main gates. I personally thought the journey would be a lot longer, until I realized that the sun was coming up, meaning we've been running for a good 7 hours or so already.

"I see it! The gate!" Bronn shouted, his voice hoarse from all the running we've done. As of right now, the sun was in the middle of the sky, signaling that the day was already half over. With my feet starting to feel like they were going to fall off, I started to run even faster. "H-hey, wait up!" shouted Ravinia from behind, eager to catch up. Tripping over his own feet, I quickly hoisted Bronn onto my back and kept running. Admiring the gate from below, I could tell that it was constructed with careful planning. It seemed almost impenetrable with all the supports and braces it had.

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After entering the gate, we had to check with a guard, but thankfully they recognized Ravinia and let us through. "We should stop by somewhere to eat and rest. Is there anywhere you recommend, Ravinia?" I asked, hoping to get somewhere cheap but good. "There's a small diner we can stop by on our way to the guildhall. It should only take us a few minutes from here."

Looking around at all the street-side shops, I couldn't help but be amazed. Fruit stands, jewelry stands, even armor, and weapon stands riddled the streets. Ravinia, who seemed to speed up, turned into a building that had a cute little exterior with a large window where you could see inside. Going in after her, we were met with a waitress who sat us down at a table for 4. "Hey, this isn't so bad now is it?" Bronn asked while looking at the menu. Checking the prices, I had to agree. They weren't bad at all. After I ordered my meal, which happened to be a ham sandwich, I took the time to collect myself and think about the future. Should I try heading back to my world sooner? I still don't know if time passes there while I'm here. If so, I can probably kiss that life goodbye... Fuck, I still have a lot to do over there.

"So, how exactly do we become registered as adventurers?" I asked Bronn, who seemed to know a bit about it. "Well, we have to take a physical test in order to get our rankings as an adventurer. You're going to have to hold back a lot since we won't be able to join together if you're too high of a rank, so go easy on the instructor when you fight," he said. Go easy, huh...

"One ham sandwich, one omelet, and one steak! Let me know if you need anything else." the waitress said as she put down our meals. One steak... he'll be paying, that's for sure.

Finally reaching the guildhall, I opened the large door in the entrance to reveal, well, the guildhall. There were tables all around, but in the center was what looked to be a receptionist desk. Walking towards the reception desk, I noticed all eyes were focused on the three of us.

"Lucky you came today! We're having an instructor from Wilcove Academy test the trainees. This is a special occasion, so make sure to give it everything you've got! Now let's see... Meritum, Bronn, and Ravinia, all from Aperzus. You may now enter the training room. Good luck!" said the receptionist, a rather pretty lady who wore a dress and glasses.

The training room didn't seem like a room to me at all. Rather, it was a dirt field with bleachers encased in some sort of transparent barrier. In the middle of the field was a man and a woman both talking to each other. The woman was dressed in an expensive-looking dress and the man in what looked to be some sort of training suit, making me guess that he was the instructor.

"Hey, where's everyone else? There's only 6 of us here... is that seriously it?" Bronn asked.

Sitting down on the bleachers, we waited until the instructor stopped talking to the woman. "Hello everyone! My name is William and I am a striker instructor at Wilcove Academy. Today I will be assessing all of you and possibly finding a new student. Now, first up, we have Bronn." said the instructor.

As Bronn entered the field, I began to grow curious as to what Bronn would do. Is he a trained striker, or has he never done anything with his ability?