The next day was filled with nothing but workouts and joint training sessions with Lethis, lasting from morning until night.
During one of their sparring sessions, Mortis suddenly asked, "By the way, I never asked about this before… Do you know how much longer it will take for us to reach the locations of the testing grounds?"
Lethis looked at him, surprised. "Huh? I thought you knew that already. It's rather common knowledge, after all. But I guess before boarding this carriage, your only concern was drinking and causing trouble all day. So, I suppose it makes sense."
Mortis gave him a slightly sheepish look. "Well, everyone has their own dark past and all we can do is learn from it and strive to become better."
Lethis blinked in mild surprise before nodding. "You're right. Anyway, if everything goes as planned, we should be able to arrive there in about seven days. But it might take a little longer. After all, on the fifth day, we'll reach the edge of these barren lands, and once we cross the border, we'll enter the forest at the base of a mountain range. To reach our destination, we'll have to traverse those mountains, which are covered in lush green forests… but they're dangerous. After all, the mountain range is known as The Withering Peaks which already says a lot."
Mortis narrowed his eyes. "Dangerous how?"
Lethis hesitated, a flicker of unease crossing his face. "Well, I'm not entirely sure myself—it's my first time here after all. But I've heard that the entire forest and mountain range is full of monsters. Most of them are weak enough that even an experienced mortal could kill them, and anything stronger should be handled by the mysterious man traveling with us. But…" He hesitated before lowering his voice. "I once heard a rumor from a drunkard back in my kingdom. He claimed that there are a few truly powerful creatures hidden in those mountains—monsters that only high-ranking Magi could hope to defeat. But if it's not a lie, there shouldn't be more than five of them in the entire mountain range… so as long as we aren't too unlucky, we shouldn't encounter one."
Mortis frowned, a sense of unease creeping into his chest. "In other words, there's still a chance we could meet one… and if we do, we're essentially doomed. Our only hope would be to run."
Lethis swallowed. "Well… yeah, that's another way to put it."
With that scary realization, they returned to their training with newfound determination. Neither of them intended to die here—not when the opportunity to become a Magus Apprentice was within their reach.
|>>======|✦|======<<|
The next few days were nearly same. Each morning, Mortis would begin with his workout and then spar with Lethis until nightfall. When it came time to receive their food rations, he quietly set aside portions of raw oats and black pepper, carefully collecting them over time.
Yet, despite the calm days, a sense of unease settled in his chest. It felt like the calm before a storm.
Soon they'll reach the mountain range side and once that happens, they will have to climb to the peak of the mountain range, before they'll be able to make their way down on the other side.
Just thinking about it—the name Withering Peaks—sent a shiver down Mortis's spine.
He hoped that everything would go smoothly, that he would make it across safely. He even abandoned his plans to search for nettle leaves, unwilling to take any unnecessary risks in such a dangerous place.
Still feeling unsettled, he made his way to his room and fell asleep almost instantly, determined to be in his peak condition for the next entire journey through this place.
But to his surprise, they arrived sooner than expected.
A sudden commotion woke him in the early hours of the morning. Outside, the world was still shrouded in darkness, with no sign of the rising sun. Yet the air was filled with the sounds of fierce battle—roars, howls, and the unmistakable clash of combat.
The entire carriage jolted awake in that moment.
Mortis sprang out of bed, hurriedly dressed, and made his way toward the largest room in the carriage. When he arrived, he found the other candidates already gathered, pacing anxiously. Some were pressed against the windows, watching the scene outside with nervous eyes. Among them was Lethis.
Without hesitation, Mortis pushed through the tense crowd until he reached Lethis. "What's the situation out there?" he asked.
Lethis, biting his nails, answered with a strained voice. "It's not bad—we're winning. But the monsters just keep coming. No matter how many we cut down, more take their place. It's like an endless tide. If this keeps up any longer, we could really lose… not because of their strength, but because our fighters will run out of energy."
Mortis was about to respond when, suddenly, the tide of all these monsters broke apart.
As if scared by something, they turned around and fled all at once without hesitation, retreating into the darkness of the forest.
His brows furrowed. 'That's strange. Why now? From the looks of it, they could have kept up the assault for a while longer. If they had, they might've even won.'
His gaze narrowed. 'No… this isn't just a retreat. They're running from something with tails between their legs. But from what? There's no one else here but us.'
A creeping sense of dread curled in his stomach. He pushed the thought to the back of his mind—but not entirely. He would still remain cautious.
It was weird. Something wasn't right.
|>>======|✦|======<<|
After the chaos subsided and the situation gradually returned to calm. Mortis mostly relaxed along with the others, though a lingering sense of unease still gnawed at him. He couldn't shake the feeling that danger was still approaching—slowly but surely.
Lethis let out a deep exhale, still visibly shaken. "Sigh… That was close. I was already picturing them tearing me apart into pieces and devouring me to fill their bellies."
Mortis raised an eyebrow. "Wow, that's a gruesome imagination. Anyway, it all ended pretty well for us, so I wouldn't dwell on it like that if I were you." He chuckled lightly.
Lethis forced a laugh. "Yeah, you're right. I should stop thinking about it. I don't want nightmares haunting me for the rest of my life."
After a brief pause, Mortis's expression darkened. "By the way, don't you think that retreat at the end was… strange? If they had kept attacking a little longer, they might've actually won."
Lethis frowned, tapping his chin. "Well, they're just beasts, right? Their brains are probably empty, completely instinct-driven without any real intelligence. But now that you mention it… it was really a little weird. Even monsters withou brains like them should've realized that they had a solid chance to win. Wait… don't tell me… could it have been because of the mysterious man traveling with us?"
Mortis considered it. "Hmm… You're probably right. He must've scared them off with his strength or something." A dry laugh escaped him. "I just hope they really did run away and won't come back with something stronger… I'd prefer to leave this mountain range alive if possible."
A short silence passed before Mortis changed the subject. "How about a sparring match?"
Lethis nodded, and the two made their way to the spacious room once again, wooden training swords in hand. They dueled relentlessly until nightfall, only stopping to eat before retiring to their rooms.
That night, for a change, was completely calm.
The next day passed normally as well.
By noon, they had almost reached the Withering Peaks' summit. Once they crossed it, their descent should be much faster than the climb. It would likely be their last day in this cursed mountain range.
But just as they reached the peak…
A thunderous noise erupted from behind them.
In the next instant, something massive came hurtling from the sky—
—and crashed directly onto the carriage.
The impact obliterated it in an instant. Many candidates died right then and there, crushed beneath the wreckage.
But Mortis thankfully reacted fast.
Standing near the window, he heard the deafening roar and, before he could process why, his instincts screamed at him—jump.
Without hesitation, he leaped from the carriage, even though it was a slightly dangerous height.
The moment he hit the ground, pain shot through his body, but he gritted his teeth and rolled to absorb the impact. A second later, a deafening explosion followed. He turned just in time to see the carriage disintegrate—wooden fragments and bodies alike flung in every direction.
Splintered debris rained down around him. Limbs. Metal. Blood.
He lay still for a moment, his pulse hammering in his ears. By sheer luck, none of the falling wreckage hit him. Aside from the ache from his fall, he was unscathed.
But others weren't so fortunate.
As he got to his feet and took in the scene, horror settled in his gut.
Scattered across the ground were corpses—some of them candidates he recognized, others not. Among them were even crew members, their lifeless bodies twisted unnaturally.
The ones who weren't dead weren't much better off. Some lay on the ground, crawling feebly, unable to stand. Others sat in shock, eyes vacant, whispering to themselves that this was just a dream—that they would wake up soon, unaware that they lost some of their limbs. Some, paralyzed by sheer terror, had even lost control of their bodies, pissing themselves without realizing it.
The stench of blood and fear clung to the air.
Only about four people, including Lethis, had escaped serious injuries.
Mortis took a steadying breath. 'What happened to the mysterious man who was with us?'
Scanning the area, he searched for any sign of him. But before he could thoroughly look around, a strange sound echoed from above.
He turned his gaze to the sky—
—and saw an old man slowly descending from the air.
The elder's face was weathered, his brown skin lined with deep wrinkles. Black hair streaked with gray framed his sharp, hardened features, exuding an indescribable sense of manliness. But behind that rugged exterior, his gray eyes held something else—
—it was fear.
Mortis followed his gaze. 'What could possibly make a man like him so much afraid?'