Chapter 150 - So Close, Yet So Far (1/2)

(Tom's PoV)

That night, I was brought back to the same house where all the elders and white-clothed men were sitting the last time. I guessed I passed the first trial and now I was 'invited' to follow the second one. I looked around and noticed that there was an additional chair on the right side of the big chair. The last time I came here, there was only one chair on the left side. Since there are two chairs on the either side of the big chair, I thought that someone more important than Sir Ahmad would eventually come.

Would the King finally show himself?

I couldn't wait!

I was curious about the man who ruled this Satu Village. The excitement to finally see the King filled my mind, but I tried so hard to keep my expression in check, not to show anything. The situation was still the same, where the elders closed their eyes and the white-clothed men stood like statues. After I made sure that they did looked the same, I finally noticed the additional soft cushion being put a meter away from me.

Someone must have passed the first trial.

Somehow, my mind reminded me of my encounter with the woman in grey hoodie. I had a strong feeling that the other person would her.

Well, whoever it was, it didn't have anything to do with me. The trial was meant for individual test, knowing my rival would mean nothing to me. After all, I didn't even know her and where to find her if I wish to spy on her ability so that I could prepare myself. It's better to just leave it alone and try my best in this trial that I didn't sign up for.

Ah, right. The woman seemed eager to be the General, it meant she knew about it before and probably had been practicing for a long time. I, on the other hand, was summoned here without my consent and too confused to realize what had happened until the first trial started. I had no other choice but to follow the trial.

Honestly speaking, I didn't care whether I got selected for the position or not. I just couldn't give up halfway whenever I started something. I must give my best no matter what the outcome was.

So, even though I really didn't care about this General position, I was still obediently sitting here and waiting for the Supervisor to come.

A minute later, I heard sound of someone's coming. ”Candidate Number 2, please, take a seat and wait for a while.” The voice of the man that led me here was heard.

There was no response, but I could hear the light steps of this Candidate Number 2. I took a peek from the corner of my eyes and saw a tall woman sat cross-legged on the cushion beside me.

Judging from her height, she was really the one who attacked me that night. But, her appearance really caught me off guard for a while.

It's rude to stare, I reminded myself as I forced to turn my head around and fixed my sight ahead, wherever my eyes would land as long as it's not on her.

I was sure she was not from the same region as me. It was most probably that she came from the further east region. Her dreadlocks was tied up in a pony tail. Her eyes didn't show many expressions, but remained steady and cold. She was wearing a black tank top and army trousers, complete with military boots. Her arms looked strong and even though I could only see a bit of her, I could see that she had a perfect body as a soldier. Was she in the army? That explained why she looked so tough.

My judgement over Number 2 was soon over as the door from the furthest end was pulled open. There were three people came in this time. But, somehow I couldn't see the other two clearly. They looked more like shadows than humans. The only difference was I could see their feet touching the wooden floor, solid and not floating. But, based on the height of these people, I could guess that one was a girl and the other one was a man. Or, maybe I was wrong. The big cloak covered their figures perfectly, which reminded me...

I wrongly guessed the gender of the person that night! Fine, let's just say these two were men.

Oh, there was someone sitting in the big chair! Was that person the king?

As usual, Sir Ahmad sat on the left chair. The other one occupied the chair on the right.

”Let's begin!” Sir Ahmad said.

The man who brought me here stood up. ”Congratulations for those who passed the first trial; Soul Endurance. The candidates are invited here to follow the second trial to test candidates' attitude and aptitude in battling enemies. Any battle strategies are welcomed to support your trial. Your performances will be supervised by Sir Ahmad Ismail, and two of our honorable guests; The Master and Adviser of the First Army. For further secrecy and objective assessment, we put on some enchantments that will not allow you to see the appearance of the Master and Adviser of First Army, and otherwise.”