1 A Hunting Mission
Rama never asked for much in his life. Basically, he just wanted to live peacefully within the thick walls of this city. Waking up the next day without worrying about how to eat, and not stressing over his rent.
But of course, that was too much for a poor and orphaned eighteen years old.
Rama tried to pull his body to get up from the dull, thin floor mattress he used to sleep on. A groan escaped his mouth as soon as he finally sat down.
Sunlight was only able to enter a little through the small window above a wall in his back. Not enough to provide warmth to his room when the winter came.
Rama looked at the calendar. This day finally arrived, the day he finally left Portnight Academy. A school that became education and hell for him during those three years.
Rama did not bother to go to school for graduation. No friends to celebrate it with. No family will congratulate him. So there was no point in him going.
After all, there was a more important thing for him to do right now. And that is going on a mission to earn a little money to survive the next day.
Finished dressing, Rama looked at the mirror on the wall. His black, slightly wavy hair was messy with unrulyness. The irises of his eyes were also pitch-black and surrounded by a dark tint from the lack of sleep.
All of this seems to contrast with his pale skin, especially since Rama also has slender cheeks because he doesn't eat well.
He sighed at his pitiful appearance. But, realizing there was nothing he could do about it, Rama shrugged.
He picked up an old dagger which, fortunately, still had a sharp blade. It was the only weapon he had because as a porter, Rama didn't need to fight on the front lines against the Supernaturals.
He exited the basement house, locked the door, and then went on foot to the nearest Hunter's Guild.
The job as a Supernatural Hunter is very dangerous. As the name suggests, Rama works as a person who hunts the Supernatural.
Supernaturals are monsters that crawl in the shadows, suck blood, transform into people you once loved, eat corpses, and many other things that only come from the deepest nightmares.
Those thick walls protect the cities from Supernatural threats in the outside world. It was no ordinary wall made of cement and concrete. There was some kind of spell running through the wall so that no Supernatural could penetrate it from above, below, or the sides. Because of course, there are Supernaturals that can fly or crawl underground.
The walls were constructed thousands of years back, Rama couldn't pinpoint the exact time, but they arose after the Great Supernatural War. These walls must have endured for a considerable span, shielding the cities.
The Great Supernatural War. Every time Rama hears about that incident he struggles to fully fathom it.
He couldn't imagine how the great war against the Supernaturals happened. Even just by looking at them Rama felt overcome with unspeakable fear.
Their appearance and strength during that great war must have been far more terrifying than what he saw right now but somehow, the warriors of humanity back then managed to fight them off and forced them to retreat into deep caves and remote forests. They are powerful human warriors.
And that's the truth. Several descendants of the warriors in the Great Supernatural War became immensely powerful and respected Hunter families. They were treated as the nobles in this city.
Those families eventually gave birth to powerful Supernatural Hunters. They provide special training for their children so that they have extraordinary abilities even though they are still at a very young age.
Rama knew some strong kids in his academy. They are the descendants of the warriors of that great war. And also the kids who often bully him.
There's nothing that Rama, or the other children who are victims of their bullying, can do other than surrender because he really can't fight back. At least if he didn't fight back, he wouldn't be beaten to death.
Those children who were born with a "golden sword" in their hand immediately become B or even A Grade Hunter when they join a Hunter's guild.
It was also possible that the Hunters guild belonged to their parent.
Meanwhile, Rama is still an E Rank even after having been in this profession for two years since his second year at the academy.
Rama was forced to become a Hunter as that was the only job he could do while still in school. The guild he worked for these two years had never asked him or paid any attention to his background. As long as they have people to carry their things, that's enough.
After an hour of walking Rama finally arrived at the building of the Veil Guards Hunters guild which had been his place to work for the past two years. It was a five-story building, the logo of a purple eye surrounded by a black circle with the distinctive inscription reading Veil Guards prominently atop it.
The Veil Guards guild was embroiled in a dispute with the Dusk Warden guild over having a similar logo. Namely those giant eyes.
The difference is that the Dusk Warden has giant dark green eyes with the silhouettes of several Hunters below them. Even so, they often clash when they meet and accuse each other of being imitators. No one knows who is the original and who is the copycat.
There were already many Hunters with their respective weapons gathered in front of the building, awaiting departure. They looked at Rama with disdain, they knew who he was. A porter who is often injured and unable to fight.
Rama who was used to their gaze just ignored it and walked straight inside. He headed for the reception desk which was also looking at him with disdainful eyes.
"I want to register for this mission," said Rama to the young brown-haired woman.
The woman didn't even bother to say anything and just dropped a piece of paper on the table. Rama immediately signed the contract agreement and turned around without saying anything else. He had long ago decided to ignore almost everyone in this Guild because it was pointless trying to form good relations with them.
After a few minutes, three people came down from the top floor. It was the leader of this Guild, Rudy, and two other people. Rama widened his eyes when he saw who they were. It was a pair of teenage Hunters who had been in the same academy as him. Donovan and Alexa.
'Why are they here?!' Rama screamed in his heart. He remembered very well that the two of them weren't part of the Veil Guards.
"Everyone gather!" Rudy said loudly. His voice instantly summoned all the Hunters to gather in front of him.
"Today we are going on a mission to hunt down a group of Ghosts in a forest. The forest is on the route that merchant from Lutha City used to come here and last night a group of merchants were ambushed on that path. So, we must kill the Ghosts as soon as possible."
The Hunters nodded in understanding of Rudy's instructions. But Rama gritted his teeth tensely. His hands were clasped tightly at his sides.
Donovan's being here could be a worse disaster for him than the Ghosts.
'What should I do now? Should I just run away?'
But that wish was soon dashed by the memory of the invoice his landlady had given him. If he didn't get paid for the mission today he would be kicked out.
'Shit...'
In this situation, whether he likes it or not, Rama is left with no choice but to join this mission, all the while hoping that Donovan won't notice him. However, the likelihood of that is quite slim.
~~~
"HA HA HA HA are you serious?"
"Yeah, I'm serious. He once went to school wearing a rumpled T-shirt because he said his uniform wasn't dry yet."
"HA HA HA!"
"HA HA HA!"
When they arrived at the forest, it turned out that Donovan and Alexa had spread rumors about Rama already. Most of the rumors are true because they relate to how hard it is to live his life as a poor orphan.
Laughter echoed throughout the forest; perhaps even louder than a wolf's howl in the distance. The object of their laughter is Rama and the pathetic image that is getting attached to him.
There were a few Hunters who didn't laugh, but they looked at him with pitying eyes and didn't bother to help. To Rama, they were just as bad.
Rama could only remain silent and looked down at the ground. A large bag of ammunition and several weapons hung from his back, adding to the boy's weight.
He had expected this to be the case when he saw Donovan and Alexa on this mission. He will only become the object of their bullying and insults.
But of course, he couldn't do anything but stay silent. Who is he but a porter? How could he fight against the two children of that great Hunter family?
Rama often cursed himself for his helplessness. There were moments when he wished for death. Yet, his fury compelled him to abandon those thoughts and instead stoked his desire to persevere.
One day, he will get his revenge. No matter how.
After a long walk, the group finally stopped. This is the deepest part of the forest which is the nest of the Ghosts.
There were a lot of Ghosts that they had to kill so there were quite a number of these members. 25 Hunters to be exact, including Rama who is just a porter.
Donovan drew his sword from his waist. "Let's kill these Ghosts bastard!"
"YES!"
The others immediately shouted in response to Donovan's words. They suddenly already made him the leader.
Meanwhile, Rama could only stare at them from behind. Due to his dull senses, Rama did not realize that another figure was targeting them from behind.
~~~
