368 Birthday [2]
After locking away the Training Hall, I let myself be led by Trish. She took me to the edge of the Sect.
From there, we swiftly jumped over the Sect walls and snuck out of Mount Hua without anyone noticing.
After escaping into the cold expanse of the snowy mountains and leaving the scent of spring back at Mount Hua, we trekked for a while.
After around an hour or so of continuous yet enjoyable trekking, we arrived at the crest of a tall hill.
Since this hill was part of another big mountain, at the top, we could see a long fissure running along the slope of the bigger mountain.
It was a cave.
And outside that cave was… camping material – cots, electric grill, camp lights, a folding table, and a lot of other similar stuff.
A surprise smile blossomed on my face as I asked, "What… is this place?"
Trish smiled before answering with a slight shrug, "My hideout."
She then took out a number of raw food ingredients – cheese, veggies, hams, and buns – before placing it all on the folding table and starting the grill.
Under the fervent glow of the moonlight, we chit-chatted and made hamburgers.
Nothing fancy, but they were more delicious than any other meal I ever had in this world, maybe it felt like that because I was really hungry.
Also, it felt strangely good to have a smoky hot meal in the midst of biting cold with such comfort.
By the time we finished grilling and eating, it was midnight.
We fell back on the cots and continued to talk for a while more, gazing at the radiant stars lighting up the dark canvas of the night sky.
It was a memorable nineteenth birthday.
I remember my last nineteenth birthday as Noah. It was a disaster. Compared to that, this one was much better.
"So," Trish fidgeted with her fingers and turned to me, her silver hair falling down on the snow from the edge of the cot. "Will you be going back to the Academy in March?"
I nodded. "Right around the time for the final exam. I swear to god if I fail this year, I will cry."
Trish laughed, turning back to look at the stars above. "You'll be just fine. Actually, the written exam won't be that difficult."
"I know," I nodded. "It will be the practical one that's going to pose a challenge."
Trish nodded back before a smug smile formed on her face. "I passed my practical in only two days."
I half-lidded my eyes, suppressing an urge to roll them. "Yes, yes, you are great, Lady Zenith."
Trish brought a hand to cover her mouth and chortled again. "But jokes aside, just be careful. As long as you're cautious, you should be able to pass the test."
I nodded. "I will, but shouldn't you be worrying about yourself? After all, the second-year final exam is much more difficult."
For the first-year practicals, the academy would throw every first-year cadet on an island owned by them.
The cadets would then have to work with their Units to complete the task given to them.
What could the task be? Well, complete elimination of opponents, of course.
Basically, it would be like a Battle Royale but on a much, much bigger scale since all the first-year cadets would be involved.
Though it would be dangerous, at least the academy was going to closely supervise the cadets and monitor their activities.
Yes, everyone was going to fight but the environment was made as possibly safe as it could be.
However, the final exam given to the second-year cadets would be much more dire.
Their task would be an official military matter based on the major they had chosen at the start of the year.
It could be resolving a conflict, salvaging a problematic situation, or even downright political or private assassination.
Yes, even killing other people was on the table. Of course, if killing was in the cards then getting killed was also a possibility.
But all that was still manageable to some extent. The worst task a second- year could get was in any way related to the border.
Yes, even before graduating, the academy could send you to the border… only for the duration of their exam, of course.
Upon finishing whatever task they assign, you can return to the academy. However, it still is dangerous.
Usually, border tasks are given to the model cadets – the best of the best in their respective batches.
"I'll be fine," Trish shrugged.
I turned my head to glance at her for a moment before looking back away at the starry sky.
We lay there in silence for a moment before changing the topic and talking about different things – how fucked up both our families were, for instance.
That was a fun conversation. A real bonding moment. Also, I most definitely enjoyed bitching about my family on my birthday.
Heh.
†
It's been a week since my birthday.
Nothing particularly noteworthy happened during this time. Master threw me a party… though he was still disappointed it wasn't a surprise anymore.
Classes had resumed in the academy.
I, of course, wouldn't be returning until the very end of the semester.
However, Leo had to shuttle back and forth between the academy and Mount Hua since he was still an instructor there.
He said it wasn't very tiring because of the Teleportation Gate, but it was still somewhat of a chore.
By the way, Quinn and Grace paid me a visit. Since Quinn is in the Disciplinary Committee, he could use the Teleportation Gate.
So once the academy resumed, they were able to come and see me.
They handed me the Petals of Ambrosia, which I then used to craft a health potion with the help of my Edit Pen.
Since I already had the key ingredient, I didn't need to spend too many Edit Points. I used one to create the potion and kept the other Petal for myself.
Afterward, I handed the potion to Quinn and Grace and asked them to securely deliver it to Nero.
My task was complete. I had kept my promise to him, and Nero had done the same.
Now, I could give the other Petal of Ambrosia to Ella and gain her favor in the future whenever I feel like it.
But I could also give it to Grace, who would then give it to Ella. By doing so, I could fix their friendship and earn Grace's trust.
Haa, there were too many ways to go about it.
I was also almost tempted to keep the Petal for myself.
The Petal of the Ambrosia flower was roughly the size of a regular rose petal.
It emitted a gentle, pinkish glow.
By merely holding it in my hands, I could easily sense the essence of robust vitality trapped within it.
After all, it was the Petal of a flower that took five hundred springs to bloom. The sheer amount of mana and life essence that was trapped within it was outrageous.
It was an item that even nobles found hard to acquire despite gatekeeping it from the general public.
However, unfortunately or fortunately, I had no use for it.
