Trapped as an NPC in a Dating Sim

Chapter 77: Impromptu Trial!

About 200 kilometers north of Fiona City, the vast sky was suddenly filled with a large number of flying monsters.

Leading them was a massive Wyvern with crimson flames, and behind it, countless Sky Cranes blanketed the sky in white.

Traveling in arrow-like formations, the Sky Cranes moved so fast that before fifteen minutes had even passed, Soren and his team found themselves above the massive expanse known as Whiteleaf Forest.

From above, they could see the central core of the forest, completely white as if bleached from a distance.

The dense forest surrounding it only made the contrast more striking.

Truly, the C-rank dungeon Bleachwood Hollow had altered the entire topography for several kilometers around.

*Whoosh!*

Before they could take in more of the view, the Sky Crane they were riding abruptly changed direction, diving toward the ground at incredible speed.

The same happened with all the others, their formations twisting and turning as the white blur of Sky Cranes surged forward like a living wave.

In no time at all, Soren found himself in a large grassfield nestled within the forest, somewhere near the edge of the massive woods they had seen from above.

But he keenly realized that this place wasn’t a camp at all, just an unfamiliar, empty clearing. The others seemed to notice it too, murmuring quietly among themselves when—

“We’ve finally arrived! Now, dismount those cranes, will you?”

As soon as everyone landed, Professor Kael called out, smiling as he waited for the students to step off their mounts. He didn’t seem to notice the confusion in their eyes at all.

Only once the Sky Cranes were free did he nod and speak again, loudly enough for everyone to hear:

“Alright, as you can see, this is Whiteleaf Forest, where you’ll be training for a while. But this isn’t your camp.”

Still perched on the back of his massive Wyvern, he continued with a reassuring smile:

“Don’t worry, I didn’t get lost. This is exactly what the Academy planned.”

“From this moment on, you’re officially in training, and this will be your first trial since joining the Elite Hunter Academy.”

“The objective is simple: find your camp before the sun sets.”

Professor Kael suddenly pointed southeast and said loudly,

“The camp you need to find is in that direction, where all the professors and your seniors are waiting for you.”

“So, all you have to do is travel through this forest, fight or hide from the monsters along the way, and arrive at your camp before sunset. Simple, right?”

The burly man flashed a grin, showing all his white teeth.

“Don’t worry, the monsters in this forest aren’t beyond your ability. Well, at least you should be able to run.”

He continued,

“Anyway, since this is a trial, although unofficial, the first five teams to reach the camp will receive certain rewards.”

“Of course, that only counts if all the team members reach the camp together.”

“Okay, that’s all I have to say. I hope you’ll use your knowledge, stay calm, and take this chance to increase your strength.”

After saying that, Professor Kael signaled the Wyvern, and it took off along with all the Sky Cranes.

“Professor—”

Before any student could even ask a question, he vanished into the distance with all the mounts, leaving them stranded and confused.

No wonder the Academy provided these mounts, so they could send everyone straight into a remote area for the trial.

“…”

For a moment, everyone went silent.

None of them had expected to be thrown into a so-called trial the moment they arrived.

Even Soren stayed quiet, thinking that this didn’t happen in the game at all.

’Did the event change because we conquered the E-rank dungeon principle thrown at us before?’

He couldn’t help but wonder when, suddenly, someone spoke softly beside him.

“Ah, my dear Ivory… will I be able to see her again?”

The voice belonged to Sylvia, who was staring at the sky where the Sky Cranes had disappeared, her eyes slightly moist.

It seemed that, rather than worrying about the unexpected trial, Sylvia was concerned for that bird instead, her eyes never leaving the sky even after a long time.

The girls and their preferences.

’She even named it already…and how the heck did she know its gender?’

Soren was left speechless when Evan asked him from the side.

“Ahem…so…what should we do now? Should we just head in that direction?”

He signalled the way that Professor Keal had pointed them.

“Yeah. Since this is a trial, I think we should start moving immediately. With our levels, first place is definitely ours.”

Aurelia also spoke lightly, a trace of pride in her voice.

She had prepared extensively for this practical training and wasn’t afraid of an impromptu trial.

Rather, she seemed pumped for the competition, her amber eyes flaring brightly as they settled on Soren.

After that day, she had become a little more expressive, it seemed.

“Well, well, it seems Miss Aurelia is quite confident that she will be the first. Then again, it’s natural for a daughter of an Archmage.”

Just as Soren was about to reply, a sudden voice interrupted from behind.

“Darius?”

Surprisingly, it was Darius and his team, the same ones from before. This time, however, he wasn’t accompanied by Morgan or the twin sisters.

It seemed they were already content showing everyone they could conquer an E-rank dungeon as well.

“Soren Kingswell, right?”

Darius met Soren’s gaze and offered a faint smile.

“If I remember correctly, you’re the captain of this team. Great, so…I have a proposal for you.”

He didn’t mince his words, speaking lightly but clearly after gaining everyone’s attention.

“You see, this trial was unexpected, and nobody knew about it. Professors are really doing whatever they want with students these days.”

He let out a faint sigh of dissatisfaction before continuing.

“But… I think for our teams at high levels, this trial isn’t that hard. All those weaker teams can’t even compete with us.”

He showed a faint disdain.

“So I thought, why not spice it up with a bet, like before?”

Darius clapped his hands and showed his teeth, an unreadable look flickering in his dark eyes.

After losing that day, he had been feeling extremely suffocated.

Not only had he lost the competition he hosted, but he had also lost the precious token given to him by his father.

Of course, he was feeling terrible.

For the past few days, he had been thinking about how to get it back from them, and this trial seemed to give him the perfect opportunity.

Thinking that, Darius was about to continue when, unfortunately for him, Soren cut him off in the middle.

“No need.”

“Hmm?”

“Mr. Darius, we aren’t interested in betting on anything in this trial.”

Soren shook his head firmly before Darius could even say another word.

“I understand your reasoning, but we aren’t interested in this game. In my opinion, it’s best if we just take the trial as intended.”

He refused outright.

Soren could already guess what Darius was trying to bait them with. It must be that D-rank Clearance Token he had from before.

Of course, he wouldn’t fall for that.

Even if Darius pulled out another token, he wouldn’t agree, not after the dungeon incident where Sylvia almost lost her life.