“Luna, did you also go on this Annual Camping trip of Dud Manor a year ago?” Ethan asked.
Luna nodded her head. “Yes. Last year was an eye opening experience. The previous Head Prefect could smash a Dire Wolf’s head like a watermelon with a single punch. It was the first time I saw someone use Might over Magic, and it was truly an unbelievable sight.”
The corner of Ethan’s tWitched after hearing Luna’s explanation. He thought that the members of Dud Manor could not protect themselves without magic, but it seems that his assumption was completely wrong.
As if proving this fact, he heard several wolf howls in the distance, which made the Third and Fourth Years take a defensive formation, surrounding Ethan, and the Second Years of their Manor, placing them at the center of the formation where they were protected.
“Take a good look, Ethan, Chloe,” Noah said. “You will be taking on missions in the future, so pay close attention to how two teams of Quatros work together.”
When doing missions for the academy, people could choose to go solo, or team up with others forming a Duo, Trio, or Quatro.
The highest number of people that a team could have was eight people (Octo), which was composed of two Quatros.
Suddenly, Dire Wolves that were bigger than normal wolves leapt out of the shadows, and attacked the Third Years and Fourth Years, who were keeping their younger members safe.
Ethan had also taken out his Moulding Ball and transferred it into a Pitchfork, while Chloe had already summoned her Fire Fox, Kon, ready to fight at a moment’s notice.
However, to their surprise, the Seniors made short work of the Dire Wolves, by kicking, stabbing, smashing, punching, and slashing them with the magical weapons in their possession.
The battle only took one minute before the surviving Dire Wolves deemed that enough was enough and retreated.
Out of the two dozen Dire Wolves that attacked them, eight were lying on the ground, dead, which almost made Chloe puke.
“Noah, Luna, check for Beast Cores,” Henry ordered. “We’ll keep watch just in case the bastards come back.”
The two Second Years nodded their heads and took out small daggers from their storage ring.
The first thing they did was stab the head of the dire wolves, checking if they had any Beast Cores inside their body.
Ethan noticed that Luna’s and Noah’s movements were quick, and on point, as if they had done this countless times in the past.
After checking the eight dead Dire Wolves, Luna and Noah handed four Beast Cores to their Head Prefect. 𝞸𝔳𝗅xt.𝓒𝒪𝓂
“Take one each, the both of you,” Henry said as he handed one Beast Core to Luna and one to Noah. “Ethan, Chloe, you take these two cores as well. You can exchange them for Merit Points at the Exchange Center, or you can exchange it for gold. If you want to, you can also keep it as a souvenir of our first camping trip together.”
Henry grinned, making him look two years younger than his current age.
“Um, what about the Dire Wolves’ bodies?” Ethan asked. “Will we just leave them here?”
“We have limited space in our storage rings,” Henry replied. “But, if you want them, you can get them. I’m sure that you can get a good price for their furs, as well as other monster parts. You can choose to sell them at the Academy, or you can go to Limeburg Town.
“Although the trip takes half an hour on a flying broomstick, they can purchase the Dire Wolves for a higher price compared to the Academy. What you do with them is up to you.”
“Thank you, Head Prefect!” Ethan said with a smile.
He then placed the dead Dire Wolves inside his ring, which had a storage space that was as big as the Academy’s training grounds.
After making sure that the Dire Wolves had really gone away, the group continued their journey at a leisurely pace.
Luna and Noah even told Ethan and Chloe many things about the Magical Creatures that lived in Great Eagle Forest, giving the two First Years a better understanding of what kind of beasts they might face as they head deeper inside the Enchanted Forest.
“Since this is the Great Eagle Forest, do they have Giant Eagles here?” Ethan asked.
“Yes,” Luna replied. “They are the Apex predators of this place, but you don’t have to worry about them attacking you. The Giant Eagles and Brynhildr Academy have some sort of pact with each other, which prevents both sides from antagonizing each other.
“There was even a time when the Giant Eagles extended their help to the Academy when Demons tried to invade Eastshire. Oh… and we’re here.”
Ethan and Chloe looked at the thick wall of trees in front of them and wondered what Luna meant when she said “we’re here”.
However, it didn’t take long before the answer presented itself to the two First Years whose mouths hung open due to shock and disbelief.
The thick trees in front of them started to move.
“Ah… Henry,” one of the Giant Trees bent its body to look closely at the Head Prefect of Dud Manor. “Is it that time of the year already?”
“Yes, Mr. Oak,” Henry replied. “It’s that time of year again.”
The Giant Oak Tree nodded as he walked to the side, creating a path for the teenagers to pass through.
The other trees did the same, causing Ethan and Chloe to look at them in wonder.
“T-Treants!” Chloe stuttered. “I’ve only read about them in books. This is the first time I’m seeing the real thing.”
“There’s… a first time… for everything… young lady,” one of the Treants replied as it lowered its body to take a good look at Chloe.
The frightened girl hurriedly hid behind Ethan’s back, which made Henry, and the other seniors of Dud Manor chuckle.
“This girl… is a… Witch,” the Treant replied. “Is she… really a member… of Dud Manor?”
Henry shook his head. “She’s a special guest that came to experience our Annual Camping Trip.”
“… I see,” the Treant slowly nodded its head before standing up tall. “Be careful… Big Foot is… active right now. If… you need… assistance… just shout.”
The Treants then closed their eyes one by one, until they once again looked like normal trees. If Ethan and Chloe hadn’t experienced talking to them first hand, both of them might have thought that what they saw was just a figment of their imagination.
“Let’s go,” Henry stated. “The camping area is just a ten minute walk from here. You can rest when we get there.”
True to his word, they did reach a clearing with a small brook flowing merrily a short distance away.
Ethan and Chloe felt so tired that they just sat down on the logs, which were purposely placed near a make-shift campfire.
Henry then took out a couple of bags from his storage ring and tossed them on the ground.
A moment later, these bags inflated themselves and turned into tents that were big enough to accommodate eight people each.
“Magic sure is convenient, right, Chloe?” Ethan asked as he looked at the tents that only took a few seconds to form.
“Yes,” Chloe replied. “It is a wonderful thing.”
Truth be told, Ethan was itching to ask Henry how many merit points he needed to exchange for one of those tents.
If he could get one, it would definitely make his life easier because he would no longer need to set it up manually.
After a short rest, everyone gathered at the campfire, while Henry and the other seniors cooked their dinner.
Looking at this scene, Ethan was certain that he would enjoy a relaxing camping trip with everyone.
What the blue-haired boy didn’t know was that somewhere in the Enchanted Forest, a pair of light-brown eyes was watching them from a great distance.
Beside the creature was the dead body of a panther, which it had been feasting on for a while.
A moment later, a throaty laugh escaped the creature’s lips, as he tore off the leg of the panther that it had just killed.
Seeing that several humans had entered its territory, the giant creature thought of a nice way…
To give them all a camping trip that they would never forget.