The class had only shortly begun, and Sir Antonio was once again standing before his students, delivering another interesting lecture about Corrupted Monsters.
However, this ti, he did not linger on his teaching for as long as he usually did.
He simply finished off his final point and let out a brief sigh.
"From now on, till the end of the week, there will be no lectures from any of us officials."
At his words, the entire class broke into a cacophony of cheers, murmurs, and ultimately words of gratitude.
To them, it wasn’t just freedom from classes—it was freedom from Lieutenant Harold’s long, horrendous training sessions.
One had been scheduled to take place after Antonio’s class, and hearing it had been cancelled filled every recruit with joy.
"But don’t be mistaken," Sir Antonio continued, reclining slightly against his table and twirling a pen between his fingers as he watched several students’ smiles widen. "This is not a chance for you to slack off or take your tasks for granted."
The classroom gradually quieted.
"This Friday will be your first expedition into the Corrupted Forest—the demonic land of monsters, curses, and endless death. Because of that, the Academy has given all students ti to prepare on their own."
"You will have access to training halls, Grey Knights such as myself, Beth, and the others for guidance. However, it is your responsibility to learn how to prepare yourself to court death. That is one of the most important rules of being a Grey Knight."
The atmosphere imdiately tensed.
"You have four days to prepare as best as you can. The Academy has also incorporated a new rule into the expedition to ensure better survival rates among recruits..."
He paused, allowing the suspense to linger.
"Instead of the usual three-man teams, we will now be increasing the number to five. You can team up with others to watch each other’s backs, hunt together, and survive outside the Corrupted Wall. It’s much harder for Fiends to kill an entire group than it is for a lone mage."
Sir Antonio remained silent for a mont, as though trying to recall any other information he had forgotten to ntion.
Then his eyes lit up.
"Oh yes. The reward for this expedition will be a Corrupted Weapon of your own, crafted by the Academy."
Finn’s eyes imdiately shot open.
Instantly, the sword Artemis had wielded during the battle against the ch flashed through his mind.
He rembered the hunger.
The thirst.
The overwhelming need and desire in his heart to wield such a blade.
Even after everything he had gained since then, that yearning had never truly faded.
’Even with the Blood-Devouring Sword, Admonis, I still want a Corrupted Sword of my own.’
Finn thought, his hand tightening around his garnt.
A while later, Sir Antonio finally gave the go-ahead for recruits to form groups of five.
Once a team had been assembled, the leader was expected to submit the nas of all mbers, along with the group’s official na.
From Finn’s row, Terrence was the first to stand, turning toward Finn and then Doram with excitent dancing in his eyes.
"Do I even need to ask?" he said with a bright smile.
Finn rolled his eyes and shook his head.
Doram smiled weakly before shrinking slightly into his seat. Being asked that question seed to stir emotions the young man wasn’t particularly fond of revisiting.
"We need a na for the group, right? Any guesses?" Terrence asked, turning to Finn.
Finn grunted.
"It’s supposed to be a team of five, genius. Wouldn’t it make sense for the na to be chosen when... I don’t know... five mbers are actually present?"
The dashing blonde opened his mouth to reply when a beautiful young woman approached him, accompanied by two others.
"Hello, Terry. You’re looking quite dashing today," the leading girl said with a charming smile.
Finn was baffled.
His eyes widened.
’Terry, huh? I’ve known this fool for longer than any of them and it never once crossed my mind that he had a nickna...’
But did he really?
Terrence smiled politely and waved.
"Hi?"
The leading girl chuckled softly, while the other two seed almost enchanted by the handso fighter’s deep, baritone voice.
Finn imdiately facepald.
The entire situation was so absurd that he briefly contemplated gouging out his eyes and embracing a life of blindness.
At that mont, one of the girls turned her gaze toward him and Doram.
She spared them both a single glance.
A glance that suggested they were nothing more than background objects that paled in comparison to Terrence’s brilliance.
Finn’s stare even received a hint of irritation.
A look so oddly personal that it actually startled him.
’The hell...? What the fuck did I do to earn that stare? Can’t an ugly bastard live his life in peace?’
Finn frowned.
Obviously, the three girls had co to ask the handso fighter to join their party.
Just him.
And probably four more girls.
How...
Repulsive.
Estes suddenly giggled, breaking her silence.
"Oh, Finn. A four-way has to be one of the naughtiest things you can tick off your bucket list. Hmmmm... too bad you’re a eunuch."
Finn’s frown deepened.
At this point, he had learned to simply ignore the shaless Guardian.
After all, until he found a way to switch her out for a dog...
This, unfortunately, was his life.
Terrence smiled apologetically at the offer and shrugged.
"I am genuinely sorry, ladies, but I already have a team of three here. Unless you’re asking all three of us out to dinner, there really isn’t anything left for to agree to."
Almost instinctively, the three girls’ gazes shot toward Finn and Doram.
The sa irritating, vaguely repulsed look returned.
Then they turned back to Terrence.
"No thank you."
Without another word, the girls shifted away and disappeared into the crowd of recruits.
At that mont, Finn wanted to leap out of his chair, summon Admonis, and walk away with all three of their heads.
But he restrained himself.
Only barely.
Almost imdiately after the girls left, another group approached the boys.
This ti, however, it consisted of only two girls.
And unlike the previous trio, these ones didn’t seem particularly interested in Terrence’s appearance.
"Artemis isn’t here yet... good."
That was the very first thing Frey said.
Her empty eyes scanned the classroom, searching for any sign of her sworn rival.
Finn had seen sothing like this coming.
Either from Artemis or Frey.
Since the two were locked in a fierce rivalry, it only made sense that each would try to recruit one of the strongest mages in the class.
Terrence.
It was a race to see who got him first.
Because both girls would probably rather die than beco teammates.
Finn sighed.
Truthfully, he would have preferred being in a team with the beautiful Corrupted Sword user rather than Frey.
But alas...
Finn glanced around the room.
There was still no sign of Artemis Bryce.
After a mont of consideration, Terrence finally replied in an even tone.
"There are three of us. You can’t have one without the other two."
Frey turned to Doram, her gaze lingering on him for a mont.
Then she simply looked away and returned her attention to Terrence, seemingly dismissing the pale young Finn’s existence entirely.
"As long as you’re present," she replied coldly.
Finn raised an eyebrow.
Then his expression turned completely blank.
He could only imagine what it would be like being in a team with the famous Frey Antigonous.
Nothing short of harrowing.
Not for the Corrupted Beasts...
But for him.
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