Chapter 16 - Darug Village (2)

Along the way, the atmosphere between Dorothy and me was a bit awkward. The former glanced in the direction of my sister multiple times with a slightly reddened face. Renata, on the other hand, seemed to enjoy the predicament I was in. Besides the first confrontation in the classroom during the day earlier, they seemed to get along fine. I don't get women….

Letting out a sigh, I turned my thoughts elsewhere. I didn't even know how many sighs I let out today. Outside the window, the city's busy street was now replaced by the serene greenery of vast, open pastures. I saw herds of cows, sheep, and goats on the pastures as we passed one of the biggest and most famous ranches across Terra Australis, Lachlan's Ranch. Any meat products coming out from Lachlan's Ranch were guaranteed to be delicious. The price, though, was through the roof. I guess where there is money, there is quality. Not long after, the bus drove past the pastures as the road led us through the East Coast of Terra Australis. Unlike the West Coast, which was famous for its beaches, the East Coast was full of rocks. The rocks made a formation, forming a natural quay wall, protecting the land from sea erosion.

I saw something interesting to our right. A rest area crowded with people. I could understand why it was as the rest area took full advantage of the beautiful terrain around. The vastness of the sea, the cool breeze that you could only get near the coast…. "Looks nice," I muttered under my breath. As soon as those words left my mouth, the bus suddenly stopped, and the momentum pushed me forward, hitting the seat in front of me. "What happened?" I massaged my forehead. Then, I heard a loud scream from outside the bus. It was coming from the rest area outside as monsters in the shape of large armadillos were attacking.

"Monsters!" the Bus Driver exclaimed. Renata's eyes squinted while Stephanie quickly stood up. "Miss Renata!" Stephahie said. Renata nodded before looking toward the students. "Students. This is your first assignment. Go out there and defend the civilians!" Renata barked. "Yes, ma'am," my classmates said in unison. Right after that, the Bus Driver opened the bus doors. "Don't leave a single monster alive!" Stephanie shouted as she pointed toward the monsters. "Hah," Wortel snickered, "This is what I've been waiting for. I'm about to fall asleep on the bus, but entertainment always comes knocking. Here I come!" He dashed out of the bus with his weapon in tow. Like his hair, Wortel's weapon was orange. A long pole with an axe head attached on the tip, a halbert, was Wortel's weapon of choice.

"Hahaha! Is that all you've got?" Wortel mowed down the armadillo-like monsters easily with a wide grin on his face. "Seriously, that guy…." Gilbert scratched the back of his head. "Where did he even put that halbert?" Eliza questioned. Rie squinted her eyes. Seeing Wortel taking out that many enemies did not sit right with her. "I'm going too," Rie said softly