Dark, lush and evergreen, the forest awaited them as it was nestled into the side of the mountain. It was draped by a now seemingly overcast sky, nimbus clouds spreading all over the now less blue sky, a far cry from the earlier bright rays of the sun that threatened to hurt some Vampires who were in their vans before.
One by one, the Vampires stepped out of the line and received a small weapon from the Bureau of Defense members, one of them being Iolathane Durand herself.
Each one found a dagger placed in their hands, not a sword or even a spear—just a simple dagger that lacked any ornate design whatsoever and would have been dull-looking if not for the way the metal sheened.
"All of you must be wondering why we've only issued you all a single dagger." Iolathane watched the less than stellar reactions of the Vampires. "Once again, let me remind you that this is still a workshop and none of you are certified to be hunters yet, thus it will only function as self defense. More importantly, being in close quarters means that there's not much elbow room to work with in case you do find yourself being attacked by one of the creatures. However, do not worry, since this dagger's metal is quite—"
"AH!" A sharp cry emanated from the back row.
"Oh man, this guy just sliced off his thumb."
"Gross."
"Hey, can I see? Where is it?"
"Can someone pick that up?"
"You do it."
Iolathane's shoulders sagged a little at the ruckus, but this wasn't the first time that a curious Vampire found themselves toying with a weapon and getting into trouble. This was a piece of work, and already, the assigned medic quickly came to assist the injured Vampire.
"Moving on, remember to keep the necklace on your person and only press the bead when you are in trouble or got separated from the group. If there's anyone who's feeling unready to enter the forest now, please let us know right now so you may stay back with some of the officers." Iolathane said.
"I hardly doubt anyone's going to want to stay, it's our first time out here." A cloaked figure said behind Lukas.
Lukas glanced over his shoulder and saw that it was none other than Anthony himself. He pulled his hood over through his head, casting a shadowy look over his face and the glow of his red eyes was slightly, if not, quite intimidating.
Anthony already strapped the dagger to his side and seemed to have switched to something else. It was a miniature crossbow and looked easy to lock and load.
"Are you allowed to use that?" Lukas couldn't help but ask.
"Miss Durand saw it earlier and did not see any issues. I think she trusts that I won't be having any use for it, this is our first out of the several workshops we need to attend in order to be a hunter after all."
"Oh." Lukas didn't realize that it'd take several sessions for them before they'd get the chance to actually get the certification. He was honestly hoping for it to be a one day deal and then he'd get his certification.
Make money. Boom.
'Did Serena ever make an offer about Nyx Credits again before I've left? I can hardly remember, but once Lily wakes up, I need to at least have savings and stuff.' Lukas thought to himself.
Every now and then, he'd get swept up in thoughts like this and it was something that bugged him to some degree.
'The Tenebris are well-off and Chaerin plus her sister has the apartment and everything.' Lukas couldn't help but smile depreciatingly. During the Nox Chambers fitting, he once remembered Chaerin offering to get him something.
She didn't want to get anything for herself but offered to buy him clothes for the anniversary party of Lux.
'Man, I really miss her. I hope she's doing fine at the Carmilla's House.' Lukas thought again, before concentrating on the young man in front of him. He nudged him.
"Hey, Matthew."
"Yes, sir?" the young man glanced over his shoulder.
Lukas hadn't noticed it when they were sitting down, or it was probably because of the boy's posture, but he was actually quite tall in size.
"Just wanted to check on you. You feeling excited?" Lukas asked. "And it's Lukas or big bro, alright?"
"About the forest? Not quite, but we'll be learning today and I'm ready to listen, um Lukas, sir."
"That's something at least." Lukas agreed. He then turned his gaze towards the Dark Forest.
There was no sign of any thick and eerie fog that might have separated the group or was caused by a sleeping water nymph, however there was a distinctive taste in the air as a cold breeze made its way past the forest and slipped towards them.
"Brrr, little chilly isn't it." Lukas remarked. He also had his cloak on, also covering his head but somehow goosebumps still spread itself over his skin.
ƥαṇdα- ηθνε|·ƈθm "A bit yes." Matthew agreed.
"It's rather quite toast if you wear another layer of clothing." Anthony said helpfully, getting the attention of the two and patting on his padded leather-vest like armor. "This item I have on is a splendid product. If you want, I can get you a discount when you buy it."
Lukas blinked and looked at Anthony.
"Is that… a product that your family sells?" Lukas asked.
"Mhmm, so is this crossbow. I don't think I'll be able to show it off, but it is pretty powerful. I think one bolt is enough to destroy a giant spider's carapace."
"I see. That is impressive." Lukas agreed, but then couldn't help but eye Anthony from top to foot. He was dressed well, enough for Lukas to consider him to be above average in terms of wealth.
Maybe even more.
But that didn't stop the fact that Anthony was a working advertisement, in of itself. Lukas didn't know what to feel about that, except he somehow felt a bit more relieved.
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