Chapter 28: The West Settlement: City Of Aqia (Part 1).
Julius and the group stood at the settlement's entrance where the vehicles would usually be parked. Exhausted, they were breathing heavily.
They had ran the entire way there, stopping only to pay their taxes, hand in their house keys, and explain that they were leaving the settlement to the government's office. Because the process had gone smoothly they were able to spare some time.
But it was still exhausting.
Amongst them Ruby was the only one who showed no signs of being tired. She hid her appearance and pointed ears with the cloak, usually she'd hide her ears with her hair but the cloak made it easier.
"You guys looking for a driver? I'm taking expeditions to the city of ruins for five credits." Said a middle-aged man as he approached them.
"Actually we are looking for a driver but to the settlement west of the city of london where the military academy is." Julius responded after catching his breath.
"Oh, the settlement northwest from here… It'll be difficult to find drivers during this period of time. There's been a lot of monsters, appearing on the path down that road so a lot of driver's have been reluctant."
The middle-aged man looked around.
"You can try looking around but I doubt you'll come across any drivers willing to risk it… good luck."
After that he left, leaving the group behind.
"Shit… just our luck." Julius cursed. "Ruby, you're up. Can you bring out that flying dragon to fly us over there?"
Ruby looked at Julius, she seemed hesitant.
"Actually, the portal from my world that I came from is in that direction. Aerius is big and easy to notice in the sky. Since I ran away I'm sure they've sent people to look for me. If we fly by there, there's a chance I'll be noticed and they'll pursue us."
Julius scratched his head.
"What happens if they catch us?"
"They'll do everything in their power to bring me back to Ingram."
Julius sighed.
"Haa… We definitely can't have that happening. You're already a precious member of my team after all."
Ruby's cheeks flushed red.
"We'll need to find another way… A way to get to the settlement northwest from here fast-"
"Did you just say northwest settlement?"
From behind Julius, a familiar voice had interrupted him. When Julius turned to the source he frowned.
It was a tall dirty blonde haired muscular man with a trimmed beard, wearing a worn out black armoured outfit. A large two-handed longsword hung from his back.
There was a short girl with emerald green eyes and light brown hair tied up in pigtails next to him.
'Gah- It's the unusual duo.' Julius thought to himself.
"What's with that look?" Asked the dirty blonde haired hunter.
"I'm not in the mood for a fight if you're here for one." Julius responded.
"Haha, of course not. I overheard you just now, you said you and your group were on your way to the settlement northwest from here? We were too, we can give you a ride if you want."
Julius narrowed his eyes.
"What's the catch?"
The dirty blonde haired man glanced at the group and grinned.
"There's none, we were actually headed the same way so why not just go together?"
Julius glanced at the girls and they nodded in response. It looked fishy but there was no better alternative.
"...Alright, I'll gladly take you up on that."
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The six-seater vehicle's engine resounded loudly as it traversed the difficult terrain of the post-apocalyptic world.
Around them were no signs of life, only pollution, broken roads filled with litter and abandoned vehicles.
They drove through the barren lands, yet to encounter a single person or monster in sight.
"The weather's nice at least, no rain." The dirty blonde haired man muttered.
In the rearview mirror, he saw the group staring silently at the scenery. It didn't seem like they were fond of him.
Even his own student was looking at the scenery without speaking to him. She was mad that he had offered to give them a ride for free.
"So I was wondering, why are you guys heading to the settlement west of the city of ruins? Is it because it's a far bigger settlement? I'll let you know now that the tax is very pricey." The dirty blonde hunter asked.
"Nope."
Julius responded, still looking out of the window.
"Since you're hunters, is it because you're looking to settle in an area with better quests? The hunter's organisation there is far better after all, facility and questwise."
"I wasn't aware of that."
Once again, Julius gave another vague response
"Then are you heading to enrol for the military school that's based there? One of the best still standing in all of England"
"Yeah." Said Julius.
"Haha, what a coincidence. That's where she's headed too. If you have any questions you ought to ask her." The dirty blonde man pointed to the girl beside him.
The brown haired girl on the other hand, sighed.
"Haa… don't bother asking me anything." She responded.
"..."
"She's a little shy."
She clicked her tongue.
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They continued on the move for hours, the distance from the settlement south of london to the settlement far outside west of london was far but not impossible to cover in a day.
The problem was the fact that they had to constantly search for different paths and change trajectories because the roads that they were on had become too rundown to pass through.
Sometimes they'd blow a path themselves.
If you're wondering why not just take the path everyone would take, it's because that path was overrun by monsters.
Although they wouldn't mind dealing with monsters, it would put the car at risk, their only means of transport. So they tried their best to avoid confrontation.
Even so, they encountered some monsters on the way, but they were easily defeated by the dirty blonde haired hunter's single sword swings.
The fact that he was abnormally powerful wasn't surprising to anyone. Based on Julius' caution around him, they had already anticipated it.
They could also feel it, the aura of a seasoned veteran being emitted from him.
Any how, they had left the settlement in the afternoon, and before they knew it... the sun had set and night had fallen.
"Let's take a quick break." Said the man before stopping the car. "We're almost there, we just need to head down this road and we'll start to see the facilities."
They had stopped in the middle of a straight road. Having driven for over 5 hours, the man needed a quick break.
"I also gotta use the toilet."
'No one asked.' They thought to themselves as they watched him hurry away.
After he left, the girl however, also went on a walk to stretch her legs. Julius and his group were left behind in the car.
"So, Julius, mind telling us why you're on bad terms with that guy?" Lyra asked from the seat behind him.
Ruby and Ava listened in.
"What makes you say that?" Julius whispered back.
"We could tell he wasn't a friend of yours from the moment you met him. Who is he? Someone who hurt you?"
Julius shook his head.
"No, he's not a bad person… He's just the type that's hard for me to trust."
"How comes?"
"That guy caused a scene at the organisation. He made himself look weak to attract the attention of other hunters then beat up and took all their money… using self defence as a reason."
"Well either way It should be fine. It doesn't look like they have any plans on hurting us." Said Ruby.
"True, but you can never be too sure with the types of people good at deceit."
The girls nodded.
"I am grateful though, if this trip goes well I'll look at him in a positive light."
-
After the man returned, the light brown haired girl returned to the car shortly after, and just like that they were back on the road.
It was just as the man had said, after reaching the end of the road, they could finally see it… the settlement that they were looking for.
"Whoa, that's a settlement?" Lyra asked.
"It's huge… and bright compared to ours." Ava continued.
"Looks more like a city if you ask me." Said Ruby.
Although they called it a settlement, from the plane that they gazed upon it from, it looked like a city, surrounded by a hundred to two hundred metre tall wall.
Nothing but ruins and broken houses surrounded the wall, a barren wasteland. In spite of this, they could see sources of light coming from inside the walls.
From where they were, they couldn't exactly see what was inside but it looked lively.
"Haha, well it does house one of the great military schools and one of the hunter's organisations headquarters after all."