Vol. 2: Chp. 60 The Journey Continues!

"Everyone, please get back into one big group!"

Instructor Oshieru could be seen standing in front of his students once more, indicating that the fighting has ceased.

After the death of Takoshiki, Oshieru and Haishi began recouping all of the students and each of the warriors who were either uninjured or alive. Out of the four assisting warriors; only two made it out either alive or uninjured. Haishi and Kaminari Nozomu.

Once Haishi stepped foot over the fallen tree, he was able to immediately spot the white-haired Nozomu standing next to the unresponsive body of Jinshu. Not many questions were asked, except for basic health checkups. "Are you in good health?" "Are you under the influence of any hostile substances?".

The two unfortunate warriors who were harmed were then placed gently on the dirt ground. They did have to lift the giant tree to obtain the dead warrior, but every warrior deserves a proper chance to be buried with honor. Shortly after, Haishi informed the group that he had contacted the council of Buraun, notifying them of their situation. With the new warriors able to safely return the bodies of the two warriors, Oshieru and Haishi were finally able to continue their journey to Ryakudatsu.

Returning to the present, we can see Akogare raising his hands with anxiousness. "Are you sure it's okay to continue the trip, Mr. Oshieru? WE COULD'VE DIED!"

Oshieru nodded in acknowledgment, understanding exactly where the blonde was coming from. "Yes, we are. We need to make it to Ryakudatsu. We aren't too far now. We have already passed Junction Point. The rest should be smooth sailing."

The students of Class 1AB still expressed expressions of nervousness or shock, still seemingly registering the recent events. Oshieru cleared his throat to speak up. "Hey, this was almost like the time in the Kodaina forest, right? That time, you guys were actually involved. Don't let this get to your nerves; that'll only bring you down." Oshieru's miniature speech seemed to have only worked slightly. 'I'll just have to take what I can get.' The blue-vested instructor proceeded to clap his hands loudly, snapping the students out of their negative emotions momentarily. "We're resuming our trip now! The rules are the same as before; don't deviate from the path and follow me throughout the whole path!"

XXX

As Class 1AB resumed with their travels, the warriors, even the replacements, began following immediately after. With a group of two additional warriors than originally supplied, making it six warriors, being grouped up, and assisting the academy students in their journey, we can see Kaminari Nozomu walking right beside Haishi, the leading warrior of the group.

"Nozomu." With a stern expression on his face, Haishi abruptly called out to the new warrior in a hushed tone.

Nozomu turned his head to his left, an eyebrow raised in question. "Yes, Haishi?"

"I didn't have the opportunity to question you about this before, but I wanted to ask you about the people you faced," Haishi explained, keeping his voice quiet but stern. "It shouldn't take too long. For the time being, just remain quiet about this."

Nozomu nodded briefly, complying with his current leader's words. Only the moon in the night sky provided enough light for either of the people present to be vaguely visible. Haishi parted his lips to speak, a quick intake of breath indicating an incoming question. "Were you able to obtain any information about that man you called Jinshu? Or even from the other assailant with the name Dento?"

Nozomu remained silent for a few moments, contemplating his next few words carefully. "They did say something about them being a group about preserving the benevolence of the gods. It must be a band of rogue warriors if I were to assume. The lowest amongst them was probably a middle-class warrior. Especially that Jinshu guy. He, I assume, was a high-class warrior."

Haishi faintly nodded, absorbing each of Nozomu's words intently. "That adds up with what Oshieru explained. We had a run-in with these rogue warriors on our end as well, and Instructor Oshieru faced a man named Takoshiki. He supposedly rambled on about them being a Hellenistic group. That fills in the notion of them being devoted to some type of deities. But most concerning was the claim of a curse, the Kekkan No Sosei, being what they were after."

Nozomu nodded, recalling the words of his opponent.

—Flashback—

"You and your group are nothing more than a swarm of intruders to where we're going. We're heading to a certain village near here. At that village, a blessing was transformed into a curse after the departure of the gods. The Kekkan no Sosei. It was created by a goddess by the name of Psyche. We're going there to snatch it and prevent it from getting into the hands of heathens."

—Flashback End—

"One of the assailants, who was named Kono, told me about the Kekkan No Sosei. It was supposedly created by some type of goddess with the name Psyche." Nozomu's words are built off of Haishi's information.

"Psyche was conveyed to be the goddess of the soul. With stories about how the Gods descended onto Earth and bestowed blessings on the human race, it must've been stated somewhere that she was said to have created a blessing called the Kekkan No Sosei." Haishi then explained, digging deep into his memory for anything useful. Haishi inhaled once more. "This is all information we should be bringing to the council of Buraun once we make our return."

Nozomu hummed in a concurring tone, glancing down at his right arm. His arm, like all parts of his body, was noticeably roughed up and dented. Being tossed into multiple trees and smacking into the earth's surface was bound to have done at least some type of damage to the armor. 'But having that strength back, it felt weird to have it again. It doesn't feel right. I also want to know how that Jinshu guy was able to nearly match my strength. I was only using a small amount of the dragon's strength, but even with what I was given, I should've overpowered any ranked warrior completely.'

Haishi suddenly exhaled, garnering Nozomu's attention momentarily. "Well, if a village does have the Kekkan No Sosei, I send them my condolences. It must be a trending item amongst the religious."

XXX

After a long, laborious amount of time, where even the sky began to light up once again, Class 1AB and its aiding warriors had finally stumbled upon something in their long, man-made, dirt path. It was a wooden sign that was kept aloft by chains that were rusting. Those chains were also wrapped around the branches of a tree tightly, ensuring that it doesn't suddenly fall. The wind rocked it back and forth gently, the chains emitting low sounds of creaking.

Mr. Oshieru raised his hand slightly, signaling to the group behind him to halt. The blue-haired instructor then traversed over to the wooden sign, his eyes tracing the contents that were imprinted onto the wood. The sign only held a few words on its cover, but those words were enough to bring relief into all of the students, and even the instructor's bodies.

"Welcome to Ryakudatsu!

—

The Home of the Montgomery Church."

XXX

Hey! They finally made it to Ryakudatsu! The students of Buraun can finally indulge in some training after a long and perilous journey! What will happen in Buraun? Will the students be able to rest in peace and get some training done? Who is the Montgomery Church? Stay tuned for more!

Have a Great Day!

Peace - Cr1ticalz_