Nothing unusual.
It had been exactly ten days since the group left Solus City.
During these ten days, a small number of examinees had fallen behind, and there were some, like those who had been attacked by the Ambush Vines earlier, who could no longer continue.
But for the most part, everyone remained safe.
Before all the examinees departed, they were forced to sign a Life-and-Death Waiver, stating that they would bear full responsibility for any dangers encountered during this assessment.
After all, being a Holy Knight was inherently not a safe profession.
The dangers they would face in the future would only increase, never decrease.
Anyone who wanted to become a Holy Knight had to be mentally prepared—though the profession had already degraded somewhat, rules were rules.
In the first few days, some had been gloomy because of this, but as time passed, they realized that the dangers they encountered were actually few.
Their faces brightened with smiles.
Night fell again, and the camp was brightly lit.
“Everyone! Everyone!”
Maggie, the overall commander this time, raised her wine glass.
Her black hair was tied into a neat single ponytail hanging behind her head.
Dressed in plain clothes, her spirited demeanor immediately drew everyone’s attention.
“According to our current schedule, we should reach our destination by the day after tomorrow, or even tomorrow!
Once there, we will camp on-site for several days to ensure everything is safe.
At that point, this mission—this assessment—will be halfway complete!”
Not only the examinees but the soldiers around them all raised their cups and cheered.
Maggie wiped her nose with her hand.
“As for me, I won’t say anything fancy. Alcohol is banned in the army, so I’m substituting with water.
Thank you all for your tireless efforts, and I wish in advance for our mission to be a complete success!
Without you, none of this would have been possible! Cheers!”
“Cheers!”
Juices, water, wine—various liquids were filled into different cups, all raised simultaneously to celebrate the same thing.
Momoka was the most enthusiastic, as if afraid no one would see her.
She stood up directly from the ground, happily raising her cup above her head, then tilted it to drink the remainder in one gulp.
“Momoka, you’re way too excited.”
Rita leisurely sipped her own cup.
Though the wine was cheap, this was one of the few moments Rita could truly relax each day.
“Not at all. The moon is so full tonight, and everyone’s in such high spirits.
How could I not relax properly?” Momoka slammed her cup down on the ground.
Albert teased from the side, “It seems like you’ve never been nervous at all.”
Momoka defended herself, “That’s not true! When we passed the Ambusher’s Forest a few days ago, I was pretty nervous.”
“Nervous enough to almost set the forest on fire, huh?” Rita joked.
“You—you too!” Momoka blushed, and the atmosphere around the campfire instantly filled with cheerful laughter.
Momoka drank and then noticed an empty spot beside the fire, sighing.
“Such a pity. Johnson went back to his tent early again.
I wonder what’s up with him lately. It doesn’t look like he’s avoiding us.”
Rita agreed, “Yeah, it feels weird just the three of us drinking without him here.”
Albert pondered for a moment, “Indeed, he’s not out here for such a festive occasion.
Why don’t we go check on him?”
“Forget it! It wouldn’t be right for two girls to barge into his tent.
You can ask him properly tomorrow!” Momoka waved her hand.
At another tent, Cecilia’s.
“Your Highness, Your Majesty, the journey must have been tiring.
I’ve been busy commanding the entire Army and haven’t had the chance to properly… well, entertain you.
I apologize for that.”
Maggie stammered, her wine glass already set down.
Anyone could tell she wasn’t comfortable in these situations.
It had been easier with Angust at the plaza earlier, but now she was alone with Cecilia, naturally feeling a bit nervous.
“It’s alright, General Maggie.
Your command has been flawless, and it’s thanks to you and your Army’s protection that our journey has been so smooth,” Cecilia took the lead in conversation.
“Ah, it’s not all my doing.
There were many who helped a lot too.
Without Promi, we wouldn’t have broken through the jungle so quickly.
And Momoka as well…” Maggie said politely.
“As a substitute examiner and commander of the entire Army, you have a perspective on the examinees that none of the rest of us can match.
That’s your role.
But don’t belittle yourself.
You’re still young, and commanding such a force is already remarkable.”
“Heh heh.” Maggie scratched her head and smiled.
“Thank you for the praise, Your Highness.
It’s just that I haven’t seen Lady Dorothy since the beginning.
Every night, she returns to her tent early, so there’s no chance to meet her.”
“Lady Dorothy’s movements are always unpredictable.
Even if I want to see her, it’s not easy.
But I’m sure she’s doing her duties well.
Any dangers trying to harm her will find it difficult, so there’s no need to worry.”
“Sigh, really, are all magicians this mysterious?” Maggie grumbled before quickly covering her mouth.
Seeing Cecilia’s expression, who clearly knew what she’d said but didn’t press on, Maggie smiled awkwardly and quickly took her leave.
This impromptu gathering didn’t last long.
Rather than a feast, it was more a small, pleasant interlude before everyone settled down for the night.
After nightfall, most people had gone to sleep.
A few hundred meters from the camp, atop a small hill.
“Phew… that’s enough for tonight.
Save your strength.
We might face a tough battle tomorrow,” Momoka wiped the sweat from her brow and paused her assault.
“All right! Good work today!” Rita sheathed her sword, bouncing on her feet to relax her muscles.
“The last two days scared me to death.
You went out training with me and didn’t tell Your Highness?” Momoka and Rita walked side by side, chatting about the past events.
“Well, now Lady Cecilia knows.
Also, why do you ask that every night?
Do you find teasing me fun?” Rita’s face reddened.
What happened afterward was definitely not something Momoka could be told, but Lady Cecilia had agreed to her nightly extra training long ago, so Rita had no way to refuse sparring with Momoka every night.
“It’s pretty fun.
Don’t forget, you beat me once.
Even if I’m helping you train now, it doesn’t mean I’m better than you.
I have to find ways to tease you,” Momoka grinned, completely unreserved about sharing her true feelings.
“W-what are you saying!” Rita stomped her foot in frustration.
If training hadn’t just ended, she might have kicked Momoka twice to vent.
Suddenly, a strange scent drifted into Rita’s nose.
It was like the moist earth after rain, mixed with a nauseating metallic stench—as if something rotten was fermenting.
“Hey, do you smell something weird?” Rita put aside her playful mood.
“Where? Weird smell? Even if there is one, it’s probably just some camp cooking under cover of darkness.
Don’t change the subject!” Momoka sniffed the air, trying to catch the unusual scent Rita mentioned.
Her expression soon turned serious, and she gripped her spear tighter.
Although Momoka lacked much experience in wilderness survival, she recognized the smell as abnormal.
It smelled like a long-decayed corpse, with a faint sourness Momoka had never encountered before.
Despite its faintness, the scent was easy to pick up given the rocky terrain and trees around.
To avoid disturbing others, Momoka and Rita always practiced a few hundred meters away from the camp every night.
In a way, it was a form of night watch.
If anything unusual happened, these two, armed and alert, would be the first to notice.
And now was one of those moments.
“It smells like… a corpse,” Momoka warned.
But out here in the wilderness, there were many types of corpses.
It could be a wild rabbit accidentally fallen off a cliff, or a half-eaten stag left behind after a hunt.
Of course, the worst possibility was that it was an animal—or even a person—killed by monsters or demons and abandoned here.
Rita asked, “What do you think we should do?”
“Go check it out?” Momoka suggested.
Though Rita didn’t need campfires or supplies after escaping the Demon Territory and could fly wherever she wanted with her wings, her experience surviving in the wild was actually greater than Momoka’s.
If anything, you could say she was a little more cautious.
“No way.
It’s too dark around here now.
We don’t know what’s waiting ahead.
Charging forward recklessly could be dangerous.
Better to head back to camp first,” Rita rejected Momoka’s idea immediately.
Rita’s refusal had another reason.
Even with her dark vision, she couldn’t see any abnormalities ahead.
The possible corpse was likely deeper inside.
“True enough,” Momoka thought and gave up on moving forward.
The two turned to leave, but just as they started walking, the ground beneath their feet suddenly trembled.
The vibration was so slight at first that it was almost imperceptible, but a few seconds later it grew into a low rumble.
An earthquake?
No—it wasn’t an earthquake.
Something was moving beneath the ground.
Momoka and Rita almost simultaneously made the same judgment.
They jumped to the left and right respectively.
At the same time, their weapons were already gripped firmly in their hands.
The spot where they had just stood cracked open.
A round, one-meter-long creature with segmented limbs burst from the earth.