Chapter 19 - Darug Village (5)

Stephanie stepped out of the bus. She put her arms on her waist as she looked at my classmates and I proudly. Stephanie's lips curled up into a wide smile, "Alright, gather up!" she shouted. My classmates and I did as she said, gathering near the bus. "Good job in dealing with those Armadillon," Stephanie praised.

"Armadillon?" I slightly tilted my head. "It's the name of the monster we beat earlier. They're quite common actually in Terra Australis," Dorothy whispered. "Oh," I nodded. "However, there are some things that you all can improve," Stephanie continued. "Miss Renata, if you would," Stephanie stepped back, inviting Renata. Renata walked out of the bus and stepped forward. "Good job in protecting the civilians," Renata said with a smile. "Then again, there are still a lot of things to improve. For example..." Then, Renata proceeded to explain to us, the students, about our performances. She pointed out a weak spot in Wortel's advances, Rie's technique, Gilbert's battle tactics, and Eliza's positioning.

While Renata was talking, my classmates' were eagerly paying attention with sparkles in their eyes. Strangely enough, she did not say anything about me and Dorothy. "That's all from me, really. You guys got a solid foundation. What you do with your foundation…. Well, that's up to you," Renata said.

"Yes, ma'am," my classmates saluted. Except for Dorothy and I, my classmates had stars in their eyes when looking at Renata. "Huh…. I guess I underestimated how popular she is," I mumbled.

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After the brief detour, the bus resumed its journey toward the location of our study tour. "Darug Village….." I could hear Dorothy mumbling right beside my ear. "Darug Village….." she mumbled again. "Darug Village, hmm," Dorothy kept mumbling while rubbing her chin. "Darug Village, huh…." I kept hearing Dorothy's mumbling get closer and closer to my ears. The tip of my right eye twitched, and when I turned my head toward Dorothy, she was right before my face. "Darug Village, what do you think?" she stared dead into my eyes. I nearly jumped out of my seat when I saw Dorothy's face right before mine. "Damn it, Dorothy! Don't do that," I rubbed my chest. "Darug Village—"

"Yeah, yeah, Darug Village, right?" I cut off Dorothy, "I don't know. It's a fishing village?" Dorothy got back to her seat and crossed her arms, "So you've never been there?" I shook my head, "No. When I arrived at Terra Australis, I went straight toward Eora City." Dorothy slightly lowered her head, "Is that so?" I strangely looked at the class president beside me. Ever since she met Renata, Dorothy's behavior became stranger. To be honest, her current behavior spooked me a little bit. Oh, Renata. Just what did you do? "Hah…. What a drag," I sighed. I turned to look outside the window, resting my chin on my hand; I felt a sudden drowsiness hit me. My eyelids felt heavy, and soon I gave myself up to the peaceful slumber inside the bus.