The Tutorial-5
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"What do you mean? The Great Wolf has been sleeping for almost three decades now. Why do you need me to suddenly awaken it?" Asked Haldon, who was on one of his knees with his gaze pointed to the ground.
His question was directed to what seemed like a holographic screen.
"Do you think that you are strong enough to doubt the Lord's orders?" Said a person from behind the screen.
"No, No! I could never doubt the Lord's wisdom. I am just confused as to why Lord Mark would suddenly want such a thing," Replied Haldon, his voice full of bone-chilling fear.
"Lord Mark works in ways that normal rankers like you will never be able to perceive! Just do what is asked of you!" Ordered a voice from behind the screen.
"Of course, sir!" Said Haldon; his gaze shifted more to his feet as if he was afraid of what he would see if he raised his head.
After a long silence, Haldon looked up and noticed that the screen had disappeared.
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When I opened my eyes, the morning rays were already enhancing the beauty of the trees.
Liam was still asleep while Elizabeth was engaged in a conversation with Ignis.
Noticing me awake, they stopped whatever they were talking about and came toward me.
"Good morning Nox!" Said Elizabeth in a weirdly cheerful tone.
Why was she exchanging pleasantries?
"What do you want?" I asked in what may have seemed like a slightly irritated tone.
Elizabeth seemed to be taken aback by my directness.
"We just wanted to thank our brave leader!" Said Ignis bowing her head, maybe sarcastically.
I stood up, taking support of the tree on which I had been leaning on, and said "I don't like beating around the bush"
Letting out a heavy sigh, Elizabeth replied, "Well, as you saw yesterday, Ignis isn't the best with a staff."
"So?" I asked.
"I would like you two to train me," Said Ignis.
Train her? It made sense that she would ask Elizabeth, who used a long weapon similar to hers. But why would she ask me, a person who only knew how to wield a sword in her eyes?
"Why me? Elizabeth can give you all the basic information you need." I said.
"Well, I did ask her to teach me. She agreed, but only on the condition that you would teach me too." The young woman answered.
What? Why did Elizabeth want me to teach her?
"Wouldn't it be more fun that way, Nox?" asked Elizabeth, a slight grin appearing on her face.
Wait! Was this a plan to examine me better? She could easily gauge a portion of my knowledge and skills if I taught what I knew to Ignis.
Although I didn't wish to show all my skills to someone like her, showing that I know various things may help solidify the rest of the team's trust in me. Plus, even she would teach Ignis, giving me a chance to examine her better.
"Sure," I said, "Let's begin."
"Wh-what? Right now?" asked Ignis, maybe slightly shocked to see that I agreed.
"Any problem?"
"None at all"
All three of us went to a patch of land that was clear of trees or tall shrubs while still being close to Liam, who was still asleep.
"Why did you choose the staff?" I asked.
"Well, I thought that it would be better to neutralize my opponents rather than kill them. But, the battle with the wolves yesterday made me reconsider my thought process." Replied Ignis.
"Don't be relieved yet, they will return today."
"What!?" Shouted Ignis, taken aback.
"Wolves are animals that hold grudges, at least they were like that on Earth. It would be best to go ahead assuming that they will return to exact revenge on us."
"That's true. Its better to be cautious than careless," Said Elizabeth.
"Coming back to the topic at hand, do you have any experience with the staff?" I asked.
"Yes! I learned a little about how to use the staff when I was learning kung fu," replied Ignis.
"I see, perform some basic movements so that I can see what needs improvement." I said as I stepped back.
Ignis took her staff, supported by a tree until now, and started performing some basic movements. She began with basic staff spinning. First with one hand, then with the other, then with both. She spun the staff around her entire body.
Although she could improve by a large margin, it looked like she had the basic knowledge of staff spinning techniques.
"Strikes Next!" Shouted Elizabeth, who was now right beside me.
Ignis performed some basic staff strikes. Cross strike, down strike, up strike, and downward smash. Even though her form was a little off than the ideal one, she was still able to perform them nicely.
"Blocks!" I said.
The young woman then did a couple of blocks, including the rowing block, low block, and side block. It seemed like she had the most trouble performing blocks.
Ignis stopped performing the techniques and then ran towards us. She could barely breathe after the long performance of her techniques.
"How was it?" Asked Ignis.
"You can improve," said Elizabeth.
"Indeed," I replied, "You need to first strengthen your staff spinning skills. They are the most basic things you need to master if you even hope to be able to fight with the staff."
"Yes, by mastering staff spinning, you get better control on the staff. You can't fight if you have no control over your weapon," said Elizabeth.
"Ah, I see! Then please teach me how I can improve," said Ignis. Looks like she really wanted to improve; I guess it wasn't just for show.
"You first," said Elizabeth while lightly tapping my shoulder.
"Sure," I said, "Pass the staff to me, Ignis."
Ignis gave the staff to me. Leaving my sword by a tree, I moved to where Ignis had performed her techniques.
I had learned how to wield the staff long ago, before becoming a detective. I was still a boy back then who wanted to learn everything the world had to offer. Most probably, I drowned myself in learning to forget the pain that my parents' disappearance had caused.
Letting out a sigh, I started spinning the staff. It felt as if the staff was just an extension of my body. I spun the staff with such speed and accuracy that even I was slightly taken aback. Even though I hadn't touched a weapon like it in a long time, it felt like I still remembered even the most minor details about it.
Moving on, I performed all the strikes that I could remember. Even though I tried to control my strength so as to not display my full ability in front of Elizabeth, my strikes were still powerful.
Not bothering to do the blocks, I walked back and threw the staff to Elizabeth. She caught it and then made her way to where I was standing before. I picked up my sword and stood beside Ignis.
She started performing various staff techniques. Even though my staff skills contained strength and speed, hers were a lot more fluid. Looking at her performing with the staff, I was almost charmed by how gracefully she used the staff and how beautiful she herself was. Maybe I should trust her more? Shaking these thoughts away, I examined her more closely.
Elizabeth was focused and performed the techniques to near perfection. It looked like she had much more than just passing experiences with weapons.
After 20 minutes of performing near-flawless techniques, she stopped and came toward me.
"Not too shabby," I said.
"I could say the same for you," she replied.
"That was just spectacular! Please teach me how to do that," Shouted Ignis with a bright glow in her eyes.
"There is not much to teach when it comes to weapons. I can teach you the techniques, but you need to strengthen them yourself," Replied Elizabeth as she handed Ignis's staff back.
"Then please guide me!" said Ignis in an excited tone.
Elizabeth then began to slowly demonstrate the steps of the different techniques she had performed before.
I went over to Liam, standing beside a tree, observing the three of us.
"Hello, sir!" said Liam when he noticed me coming toward him.
"Hello," I replied.
"I am deeply grateful that you are guiding my sister in the proper way to use her staff," said Liam as he slightly bowed his head.
"It's only right that I work towards improving the team's strengths," I replied.
After a short silence, I asked, "Where did you learn how to shoot the bow?"
"My father was a huge fan of bows. He is the one who taught me how to use it," answered Liam without thinking. It was as if he had already anticipated my question.
"But the skills you displayed are not that of an amateur," I said. Even if his father was a fanatic about bows, the skills he displayed didn't match his explanation.
"I would be grateful if you don't pry too much," Liam replied coldly. It was a tone I had never expected to hear from a child.
"Indeed, I apologise," I said. It made me curious as to what made Liam behave this way, but it was best to keep my curiosity in my mind for now.
"Don't worry about it too much, kind sir!" Liam said, returning to his usual innocent tone.
Returning to the ashes of the fire we used yesterday, I relit it. I cooked some of the leftover wolf meat with the help of Liam and then called the two ladies to come to eat.
"This is delicious!" said Ignis as she dug into the meat.
"Of course, it will be. Sir added some peculiar leaves as well as plants while cooking the meat." Replied Liam.
Finding plants here that I recognized back from Earth was not too difficult. Adding a proportionate amount of them to the meat made its flavor increase 5 fold.
Everyone dug into their breakfast and soon devoured all that had been prepared.
Just then, a sound like the rustling of bushes was heard from within the jungle.
I turned to the source of the sound and almost lost footing when I saw a giant wolf coming out of the forest.
This wolf was unlike the ones we had faced yesterday. It was at least 8 feet in height. Its fur was a dark shade of purple, and its underbelly was of a greyish hue. Its eyes were red with tinges of orange like lava, and its long ears pointed to the sky. The single horn on its head was black and orange like that of free-flowing magma. The mane along its back was so red that it appeared to be caught in a fire. Its claws and teeth looked sharper than the sharpest swords known to man.
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[The Tutorial's Sub Challenge]
[Clear Conditions: Defeat the great wolf
Time limit: none
Rewards:?
Failure: Death ]
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What the hell was going on!?