"Stressed, huh? Well… I dragged you here right after we met after all."
Ivyda spoke as the two of them headed out the side entrance to the main building. The great double door on its outside front was something Midas hadn't laid eyes on for a while—not having left the university grounds after the exams came to an end.
At the gate that led onto the university grounds, a carriage had been parked—a group of five seemingly waiting for the club head to arrive. As they came closer, Midas noticed their size—all of them older than he was, some sighing as their leader arrived late.
"Finally, Ivyda…"
"I can't believe we had to wait for you this long… We said right after the second lesson of the day, didn't we…?"
"Is he our applicant…? Thought there were two of them."
Ivyda sighed at her clubmates, her expression growing tired at their words. Pointing her finger out at the group of students. Most of them covered by chainmail or leather, metal shoulder protections, and helmets shone at the sun's dimmed light.
"Listen… let's show this newbie here what our club is really about, alright? Who cares if I arrive late or not?"
Her carefree nature made Midas look slightly more concerned, puzzled by the fact she was Avalon's student. Eventually stepping into the ride as the last one of them, still not able to entirely understand everything her comrades spoke.
Ivyda sat in front of him; next to him was a tall boy with a broad build—hidden under a blue robe that hung around his body, holding onto a metal hammer, the wooden shaft holding onto the heavy metal head, nearly as long as his torso.
The other three students were built smaller, two of them wielding swords on their side; the one that sat beside Ivyda held a lance in his hand. The last of them sat in front, making the horned beasts tuck the ride by whistling.
"Our destination lies on the edge of the elevated plain that surrounds the city. I don't know any details, but we most likely will arrive at sunset."
Stopping the chat she had with her clubmates, she turned to Midas, informing him in a somewhat tired tone. The news made the youth slightly stressed; he had time to recover his mana—yet, knowing that people might share the experience he had after entering his first ruin, terrified him.
"You said you will be able to get my classmate back from the person who dragged her away... How exactly do you plan on doing so?"
Midas eventually risked asking, using the silence in between him and the still foreign club head in front of him. He had time to spare, making him think back to what happened mere moments ago as he looked back at the university building that grew distant from them.
"The guy who forces her to comply with his words is the brat of some army general; he thinks he can do whatever with her because his father found a liking to her... And the most ridiculous thing about it is the fact that he's positioned at the southern border at the moment."
Midas's eyes lit up at the mention of a water kingdom general, his body freezing at her words—able to remember having met one in the mountains. Pictures of the fire that spewed from the windows of the central building, Almas's bloodied body, and the wound that stretched out around his pale cheekbone began to resurface. The youth was forced to sink his head in quiet, his clutched teeth flashing to himself as he felt the stares of the other club members lingering on him.
"These are only rumors... but from what I've heard, this general offered her a place at the university alongside his son. He frequently came by the orphanage downstream to look at the children there... I guess he found a liking to her unusual hair color."
Ivyda halted her speech as she glanced at the youth in front of him; his eyes were blankly looking at the wooden floor beneath his feet as he listened to the club head—his grim expression filled with dim shadows as he sighed to himself, eventually dropping his tensed shoulders.
"Once we're finished with this, I will help you get her back... I can't risk her being taken away by someone like this general, who knows what will happen to her if I just let them go."
Midas glanced up at her with stern brows, the two of them silently looking at each other while being watched by the other students, the four of them unable to understand their language—unaccustomed to hearing the southern tongue. Eventually forming a grin on her face, she nodded to herself.
"Alright, alright... I won't stop you from getting back your girlfriend. Just don't do anything stupid once we stand in front of them; she is a member of this club bound by contract after all... I just have to show them a paper, and that brat is forced to hand her over."
"She's not my girlfriend, you know..."
Midas dropped his glance; tired, he rubbed his lids as his brows relaxed—eventually turning to look out onto the back, the carriage had already left the town that was built around the university. Cobblestone and market stands were now replaced with pine trees, bushes, and a rougher gravel path they rode on.
Abruptly, the carriage halted; the bored glances of all of them that sat inside the ride eventually lit up as their bodies were slightly shaken due to the sudden halt; the horned beasts bleated—their hooves clacking as they were pulled back by a rope. The driver eventually turned, his expression more concerned than confused.
"You might want to look at this, Chief Ivyda."
Following her, as she jumped out of the ride, Midas was quick to find someone familiar lying on the side of their path, recognizing the washed-out brown color of his hair—the long wooden staff still in his hand as he lay face flat on their track.
"Patriq... he's in my class!"
Midas said out loud as he rushed over to him, No visible wounds or blood were able to be seen on his body—clothed in a blue-dyed top, shielded by chainmail and a chest plate, its leather straps wrapped around his torso, he carefully moved his body to the side. Almost instantly, Patriq's eyes opened up—his expression dimly confused as he registered the parked carriage that belonged to the students that surrounded him from afar.
"Ah, I remember that name... he was the third applicant; well, he should have been... It was decided to make him a member of the knighthood instead—though they already have plenty of members to choose from."
"Doesn't seem like they waited for him. If they even go out this far, that is..."
Turning in both directions, Midas wasn't able to see anyone else wandering the path they halted on—the distant bridge that spanned over the lake was barren as well. Crouching down to Patriq again, he met his dim glare—eventually forming an idea.
"Why won't he come with us then...? It doesn't seem like his club is searching for him."
"I did plan rations for two extra members, but taking the member of another club with us might get problematic... I really dislike the thought of having to talk to the head of that club, to be honest."
The mute boy eventually stood up, balancing slightly on his staff as it stood on the rugged path. Midas followed his motion, looking at him with a concerned expression. Him helping them out might prove useful—he already saw his skills as he fought against Javelin at the exams; handling beasts might be easier with him onboard.
"I will gladly take the blame for abducting a foreign member without warning if it means being able to make rescuing these people an easier job."
"Huh, well then. I won't complain about that... Let's move already, shall we...? We need to get there by sunset after all. I hate driving at night..."
Her declaration made her members move into the carriage again; some reluctantly asked about the foreign student who joined their ranks—barely able to make enough room for Javelin to sit, he eventually planted himself onto the wooden floor, sitting in between the filled benches as he looked up at Midas with a tired glance.
"Do you know why the ground collapsed...? Did something from outside cause it to collapse?"
"There can be plenty of reasons; sometimes one accidentally bumps into an old pillar underground, and the whole floor collapses... Sometimes there are attempts at drilling for resources that cause the ground to loosen up and collapse, and on other occasions the ruin just falls under its own weight by itself—too old to stabilize under the pressure."
Midas's expression became grim at her words, frowning with stress at how carefree her voice sounded. His stressed expression mustered her briefly before asking again:
"Why risk exploring these ruins if they are that fragile...?"
"Haha... silly question, riches of course."