NOVEL NEXT 65 - Another Dark Day
(It's not the same as deactivating a skill. Honestly, I'm not sure how I reached this point. It's like I'm refusing to let the rot affect my spear.)
[I don't think I can do it this way. But at least you can choose whether or not Rotten Spear infects your target with rot-attuned mana.]
In the morning, Div and En were still discussing the consequences of En's actions. The latter was extremely proud; it was his first step in resisting the rot that had been affecting them since their awakening.
Div didn't make as much progress with Blighted Passage. However, he believed he could achieve a similar result by improving his mana manipulation.
(I can't wait to test it out today.)
The sky was overcast with clouds darker than the night. Though it was their second dark day, it remained awe-inspiring.
As they walked to school, they couldn't help but stare up, fascinated by those rolling monsters looming over the village.
It wasn't raining.
The calm before the storm.
Belilamos and Carmeta had urged them to be careful. They had experience fighting monsters, but the battlefield of a dark day was never simple.
The first dark day of the season was always the worst. But even if fewer monsters were left alive in the region for the subsequent ones, there would still be a lot.
Div and En's hosts weren't the only ones worried about their charges. When they arrived at school, they noticed most of their classmates had come accompanied by their parents.
Vedovessa was already there, shooing away the overprotective fathers and mothers. They had their own duties to attend to.
Div and En quickly joined with their group of friends.
"Really?" Ambisena was talking with Gennorina. "They make you sit out of the fight? That's unfair!"
"I'm not sitting out of the fight. I'll be close to the wall, trying to communicate with the spirit."
"Well, unless the spirit agrees to talk to you, you're not going to be fighting."
"Ambi, you know it's her duty," Segorix said. "She's a druid."
Ambi made a face, "Oh yeah? Thank you Seg, I didn't know Genno was a druid."
"Um, hi," Div and En said, joining the conversation.
"Hi Div, hi En," Ambisena greeted. "Don't you think it's too much? Genno wants to fight too!"
[We should have stayed quiet.]
(Too late now.)
"I'm sure Gennorina can speak for herself," Div said, raising his left hand.
After much confusion over whether Div or En was the one talking through their shared mouth, they had come up with a system. Div and En would raise their left hand when Div was talking and their right hand when it was En.
It wasn't enough to eliminate every misunderstanding, but it was the best they could think of. Furthermore, Div and En were glad to finally have a way to show themselves to their friends.
"Exactly," Gennorina said. "It's fine, Ambi."
"Ambisena," Vedovessa said, stepping away from a group of parents she had just told to leave. "Being ready to defend the village is good. But don't be over-eager to put yourself in danger."
"But, teacher! Look at how many skills Div and En have! We have to catch up."
"No you don't," the teacher said, looking at Div and En. "Those two are lucky to be alive. Would you say it was worth it, Div, En?"
"We didn't really have a choice," En said. "In an ideal world, I'd be in Kheiron learning sun magic. Not here."
En let their right-hand drop while Div raised their left hand and spoke, "But, in a way, our misfortune took us to Camboaci, so it wasn't all bad."
For once, Lugsellos was the last to arrive. Unlike the others, he came alone. Nobody needed a skill to tell he wasn't feeling well.
"Stressed?" Segorix asked, putting a hand on his arm.
Lugsellos nodded.
"I can't help it."
[He lost his parents during a dark day. The prospect of fighting today…]
(It must be hard.)
[I wonder how ours are doing.]
En didn't answer.
"You're not alone, Lug." Div and En said, together.
Once all the students arrived, Vedovessa took them to the armory to get equipped, then to the walls to wait for the assault to start.
Standing between the forest and the village, Div and En couldn't help but wonder how this phenomenon started.
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
It was so calm.
The clouds overhead were so menacing. They announced a power only expressed by the sheer force of nature.
Yet they were silent.
What was going on up there, behind the opaque, dark curtain covering the sky that would cause all the monsters living in those parts of the Wildlands to go berserk?
It reminded them of Elenvind. When the giant, transcendent deer had crushed their encampment. When its legs pierced through the sky, covering unimaginable distances in a single step.
The world had cried, and reality was torn apart as rifts appeared left and right.
Were dark days a similar occasion?
Nobody in Camboaci seemed to know. Ultimately, it didn't matter. Beings such as Elenvind were so far beyond understanding that people could only treat them as forces of nature.
The dark days came a few times every fall. Camboaci had no choice but to deal with them.
Unlike the Evolved Ranks warriors that were manning the frontline, the class of new awakened led by Vedovessa stayed closer to the walls.
They would fight, but not alone—adults were there to support them.
"The Evolved Ranks will filter the beast wave," Vedovessa explained. "They will only let appropriate monsters through. Even among Basic Rank creatures, there are some too dangerous for you to face yet."
It wasn't just them. Upperclassmen were spread out all around the village, undergoing similar training.
And there were the adults who had not evolved yet. Some of them had given up the pursuit, preferring to spend their time working on crafting, farming, or other necessary jobs for the community.
Others were still committed to fighting and hadn't quite made it yet.
Gennorina had sat down against the wall of trees. She was protected by two Evolved Ranks, the leadership didn't want the incident of the previous dark day to repeat itself.
"By the way, Div, En," Segorix asked. "How do you two handle fighting?"
"It's mostly me holding the weapons," En said.
"I'm left with the rest of the chores," Div added. "This guy refuses to touch rot-attuned skills."
"It's not true, all our weapon skills are rot-attuned."
"It's not the same."
"So you manage to work together?" Segorix asked while tapping his fingers in rhythm on the hilt of his sword. "It's a big advantage."
"It is," Div and En said. "But the cost is that we are stuck in the same body."
"Teach me how to get a mind skill!" Ambisena said. "The world needs more of me."
It wasn't the first time she asked. Each time, Div and En categorically refused. They were never going to teach anyone mind skills.
Not with what had happened after they learned theirs.
Regardless, if anyone was qualified to teach mind skills in Camboaci, it wasn't them. Theaphilia would make a much better teacher.
"Silence!" Vedovessa ordered. "Remember, you are on a battlefield. Just because it hasn't started raining yet doesn't mean there is no danger."
At her word, everyone fell silent. Their expressions grew somber, their mood turned heavy.
Lugsellos was clutching his bow with both his hands, Div and En saw his knuckles whiten from the pressure he was putting on them.
"You fought a pack of dire birds on the first dark day of the year," Vedovessa said. "You've won."
She paused, letting her students appreciate the facts.
"But today will be different. It won't be a single fight, lasting a few minutes. No, the fight will last until the end of the day. For the past months, I've prepared you. And while you still have a lot to learn, you are ready to take your true first step onto the stage where Camboaci's history is written."
Div and En listened, but the words didn't resonate with them as much as expected. They were not for them. The history of Camboaci was not their own. Had they been fighting for Kheiron, maybe it would have been different.
(Maybe someday.)
Div didn't say anything. He didn't think it would happen. For En, perhaps. If he pulled off his plan to obtain a sun-attuned bloodline. But for him? No. He was lucky he was even allowed to be in Camboaci.
It stung a little.
More than he'd like to admit.
But he couldn't find it in himself to deprive his brother of his dream. He made his decision a long time ago. He would shoulder the rot. Hopefully, En could live the life Diven had dreamed of.
The black clouds rolled down toward the treetops. He could almost touch them, feel them.
There was only the sound of the wind whistling through the bare branches as the forest's edge gradually darkened until it was nearly impossible to see past the first row of trees.
It was just as intimidating as the first time.
When the first drops of rain fell, it was almost a relief.
But this feeling was swiftly washed away by the increasing intensity of the weather.
The rain made it hard to see. Drops fell into their eyes, forcing them to squint.
"They are coming!" Vedovessa shouted to prevent her voice from being drowned by the rain. "Youths of Camboaci, make us proud! Stand tall against your foes!"
Div and En regained their wits they had briefly lost. Their focus was impeccable. A cursory glance at their comrades told them the others would be ready by the time the first wave hit them.
(Let's see if I can make Rotten Spear work as I envisioned.)
[I'll be there to support you all throughout.]
The first monsters came out of the woods, rapidly making contact with the frontline of Evolved Ranks warriors.
Div and En recognized some. A few deruses, some deers, and there was even a wolf similar to the one they had encountered soon after Uncle Basil had abandoned them in the Wildlands.
They couldn't resist inspecting it.
Species: Famine Wolf
Skills:
Hunger - Basic - Lv4
Starve - Basic - Lv7
Bite - Basic - Lv2
[This is rather pathetic.]
(What are those skills even for? I thought the world didn't give detrimental skills.)
[We have Sundered Mind, the definition of detrimental might be a little vague.]
The wolf was one of the beasts left for the group of students to fight. Div and En decided to leave it to the others. It would be too easy for them, and they were here to train.
For the first half hour of the battle, Div and En held back and observed without interfering. It wasn't that they didn't itch to fight, but there was nothing strong enough for them.
Furthermore, their comrades were doing a great job.
Maybe it was a bit arrogant of them.
Still, they reserved themselves for later, when they would be truly needed.
Vedovessa had obviously noticed, and she didn't say anything.
(Which means she approves of our strategy.)
[I wouldn't presume what she's thinking. But I agree, she'll tell us if she thinks we need to take action.]
Div and En were happy to watch their friends do their best. Even if their skills weren't as developed, they were still quite good.
Lugsellos was riddling every monster that got in range with arrows. It didn't kill all of them, but it often crippled them before they even reached the melee fighters. Ambi and Seg were doing great, darting all over the battlefield to support their classmates.
As for Gennorina, she was still sitting motionless further back.
But as much as they appreciated seeing their friends blossom into real warriors, they couldn't wait for their turn to come.