Nishem Serapis
The five of us were enveloped by my protective spell and teleported us out of immediate danger to a safe point I’d marked. Nuhem fell into the ground, his armor already melting and fusing with the leather he wore beneath. I began casting water over it repeatedly, trying my best to sap the heat out of the molten mess. Already, I felt mana signatures rushing our way from the fort. The entire attempt was a disaster.
“Go and hide deeper in the forest then circle around and attack the fort again. I’ll keep our pursuers pinned down here.”
With my work finally done, I lifted the unconscious paladin over my shoulder to heal him on the way back.
“Thanks, we’ll get this do-”
Before the words could leave my throat, I felt my thoughts slow as I fell to the ground. My vision blurred as the world began spinning, and I saw my body collapsing with Nishem to the floor.
Why was I seeing my body from a distance…?
***
Aptera Rehu
As I decapitated the last standing member of the enemy team, her body exploded into mana particles. I had easily annihilated the entire party except for the unconscious leader and my mysterious stalker, as expected.
“I know my beauty is too much to resist, dear fan of mine, but this is starting to get a little creepy, don’t you think? Why not introduce yourself, and maybe I’ll grant you the honour of an introduction?” I called out in the open with the world’s most dazzling smile.
I didn’t receive a response and only felt the presence fade away. It seems they’ve decided to run instead of coming to the rescue of their last companion.
“Oh well, this dreary play is going to end without a satisfying conclusion. How disappointing.” I shrugged, tossing my delightfully curvy blade into the forehead of this last ‘foe’ of mine, dispersing his body into mana particles.
Still, to think my bait failed to draw out the last enemy – I expected too much of my cowardly opponent.
“Even my mistakes exist only because of others’ flaws… What a tragedy! Such is the burden of a perfect being.”
I sighed, tossing away the flag Kiara had squirreled away and walked deeper into the forest in search of somewhere to rest.
***
The stars faded overhead, and we finally found ourselves in the arena room – the five of us standing opposite the opposing six of the enemy team. I recognized all of them except the one standing furthest to the right. He was wearing a plain white mask and otherwise looked to be a regular adventurer – he must’ve been the one to take out Asty and steal the flag.
“Let’s go, we shouldn’t keep the major waiting.” Nico said with a sigh, seemingly preparing for the scolding we’d be getting.
“Aye, aye, captain.” I said tiredly, getting no response from her.
Everyone except Aptera and the rogue looked mentally exhausted with the whole affair, even though our bodies and gear looked pristine. What were they doing throughout the whole match?
As we passed through the door, we found the major waiting for us.
“Good work. Take a seat next to Captain Hatshepsut for a review of how you performed.”
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***
We ended up spending the rest of the day reviewing what we did right and what we messed up, with it mostly aligning with our own analysis of our mistakes during the match. Satisfied with our takes, the major told us to sleep in preparation for our early morning tomorrow. Neither team was victorious, and as such, we’d both have to run all the way to Romellus on foot.
I had a feeling the major intentionally made the game difficult to win without an overwhelming advantage, especially since she didn’t seem particularly upset at our performance. Regardless, the punishment came all the same.
***
“Remember – no one may carry the other, fly, or swim to Romellus. You are to follow the convoy, simplicity itself. How you pull it off is entirely up to you. If you fall behind, you might as well turn back and find the closest ship home. Am I clear?”
The major was standing at the door of the ornate wagon at the head of the convoy, which carried the supplies, supporting personal, and diplomats from Tamery. Once she received a hearty ‘Yes, ma’am!’ from all of us, she closed the door and ordered the wagon to move.
The head wagon carrying the VIPs of the Tameryian delegation began moving, and the rest of the convoy followed after it. Soon after, the twelve of us followed as well. As we finally settled into a stable pace on the road from Thebos to Hebnopet, I took the chance to move next to Nico.
“How long is this trip going to take?” I asked.
“It can take between a week and two, assuming we keep moving at this pace and avoid any complications.”
“Isn’t the tournament held in nearly two weeks?! That’s hardly any time at all!”
Nico gave me a chagrined smile.
“I imagine that’s the point. Why the major is doing this, though, is beyond me.”
As we began running, the hours bled by, and Hebnopet came into view. Instead of heading to the gate, we took a turn northeast as the fertile river delta faded behind the desert on our way to Kengir territory.
Despite being rank B and A creatures, those with less physically inclined classes on both teams began showing tiredness, despite having roughly similar stats as the fighters. As usual, Aptera seemed to be the eccentric exception to that rule, running without a care in the world.
“Nico, Astekhu’s not going to last before we make camp, not by a long shot. The same goes for half the commoners’ team.” I said, giving our struggling teammates a worried look.
The sun still shone brightly overhead, and we were only halfway through the day. Nico didn’t respond right away, thinking the matter over as we ran.
“The major said we can’t fly or swim, and that we can’t carry each other. Aside from that, she said we have to keep up with the convoy, and she didn’t care how we did it. I think she’s expecting us to do something to compensate for our less resilient teammates.”
“Maybe I should make something like the maiden to follow after the convoy? It’s not technically flying if I add wheels to it or carrying them if I use magic to propel it.”
Nico shook her head.
“I don’t think it’s smart to play on technicalities like that. She could also disagree on what counts as carrying or flying and what doesn’t. It’s not worth the risk.”
A few minutes of thinking later, I spoke up again.
“How about this? I could transform into Nisos’s form and share stamina around from our SP pools. Would the major have a problem with that?”
Nico thought over the matter for a minute before answering me.
“I don’t think so; nothing in our orders even comes close to restricting that.”
Grinning, I went to share the idea with everyone else, who happily agreed to it all. With a unified stamina pool, we all swam or sunk together. Still, that didn’t mean this was the only thing we could do.
“Drink one of these every six hours, twice a day at most!” Asty said, distributing stamina regeneration booster potions. Though there was a limit on how many could be safely consumed at a time, having twelve bodies to spread it through made a massive difference, and Astekhu could make more than enough of them on the fly with the herbs she had in her pouches.
Nishsm cast a rejuvenation buff on all of us while Aui began using her flute to make our steps feel lighter and easier. By the time night had arrived, the convoy had stopped to make camp, and all of us were still feeling spry. The major stepped out of the wagon as the rest of the convoy was setting tents and cooking up dinner.
“We are halfway through the road to the Kengiran city of Erdu. Since we have enough supplies, we will pass through it without stopping on our way to Iona. Does anyone take issue with that?”
With no one voicing an objection, the major gave a thin smile.
“Now wind down, enjoy your dinner, and go to sleep. We get back to the road at the crack of dawn. Dismissed!” she said, walking away towards the rest of the convoy staff.
“…Was it just me, or was the major looking pleased with us?” Netos asked.
I agreed; there was a chance we wouldn’t figure her test out and let someone fall behind. She’s using even our trip to the Republic’s capital as a way of training us and keeping us on our toes, and we’re still pulling through.
“I just want to get there and finally relax,” I sighed, “these mind games the major is playing are wearing me down.”
Durreg chuckled.
“In that case, you’re in for a long, long expedition, Kiara.”