"As you all know, this time next week, you will have begun your first Dungeon raids. I'm sure at least some of you are feeling nervous about it, understandably so. To make sure you're as well-prepared as possible, we'll be doing things a bit differently in today's session," Remarked Glenn, as he glanced around at the class with a smile.
Today's the 11th of March, 2168, it was the following Friday. The raids are scheduled to take place next Friday, and honestly, my excitement and anticipation has been dampered over this last week.
And that's entirely due to Trey. No matter what any of us say, he refuses to change his mind on the flawed formation he'd settled on.
A couple of the others had even complained to Glenn, but that didn't accomplish anything. He told them that the students picked to be the Captain of each team will be assessed on their leadership skills, and seeing how sound their decision-making is is an important aspect of that.
He also said that, sometimes as a Hunter, you could end up in a party with a bad leader, and in such cases, being able to adapt will be crucial.
On the bright side, any leadership failures won't affect or reflect on the scores of the rest of us, only the leader himself will be assessed on that.
But regardless, the fact remains that this raid is likely going to be tougher than it should be thanks to that self-centered idiot.
Anyway, for today's Practical Training session, Glenn had told us yesterday to bring our gear and weapons, and to equip ourselves before attending the class.
Most of the other students were sporting some pretty flashy gear, and based on my Appraisal Skill, a lot of them have got pretty high-quality stuff on.
I thought my simpler gear would help me fly under the radar a bit, but I think I'm actually standing out more, thanks to the disparity between my gear and everyone else's.
"The first time you encounter a Monster can be quite a harrowing experience, since for most people, that's the first time they come across something that's intent on killing them.
We don't want you freezing up in the Dungeons, so to help prepare you...each of you will be sparring against a Monster today, except for the Support Mages, of course.
No need to panic, calm down and let me finish. You'll only be facing one Low Level Monster each, and I'll be sure to intervene if you freeze up or panic, so you're in no real danger here.
This is simply an exercise to help you know what to expect from the Dungeons. So...who wants to go first?" Glenn prompted, glancing around.
"Let me, I'll show everyone how it's done. A Low Level Monster is no threat to me," Volunteered Trey, stepping forward.
"Very well, then," Nodded Glenn, before pressing a button on a device, a whirring sound echoing out as the middle of the floor opened up, revealing an arena about ten meters below.
There were rungs across the side of one of the walls surrounding the arena, Trey walked over and climbed down, hopping off as he reached the bottom rung, his feet thudding against the floor before he began stretching.
A large holographic display then appeared above the arena, streaming a live feed of the space below, giving us a clear view of what was going on.
Trey was pretty heavily equipped, he had on thick, dark brown leather armor with metal plates over his chest, abdomen, forearms, hips and calves.
He isn't moving all that freely, it doesn't look like his gear is slowing him down too significantly, but his movements do look a little awkward, seems he didn't quite get the right size.
"Are you ready?" Glenn called out, as Trey finished warming up.
"Yeah, bring it on!"
Glenn pressed a different button on the device he was holding, the wall ahead of Trey sliding open before a vicious, blood-curdling snarl rang out as a small figure rushed out aggressively, a frenzied look on its face.
It was about four feet tall, with gnarly dark green skin, pointy ears, yellow eyes and sharp fangs and claws. It was humanoid in appearance, with a slightly hunched back.
That's a Goblin, right?
Crazy how closely it resembles Goblins from most fantasy anime from my previous era.
I see.
Well, anyway...let's see how this going. I'm really hoping that prick screws up and gets humiliated, or ideally, killed.
Oh. That's too bad.
"Alright, take this! [Water Arrow]!" Exclaimed Trey, firing out a rapid, piercing water projectile towards the Goblin's chest.
The Monster snarled before springing off to its right, roaring in pain as the arrow pierced through its left bicep, its arm slumping down to its side as blood streamed out, before it let out a fierce, furious roar and shot towards Trey in a blind rage.
As he met the Goblin's gaze, Trey flinched and stumbled back, a hint of panic in his eyes. I glanced at Glenn as he began to reach for a sword strapped to his hip, a concerned look on his face.
"[W-Water Slash]!" Chanted Trey frantically, whipping his staff across and firing out a rapid, slashing wave of water, decapitating the Goblin right as it closed in and sprang at him.
Its severed head hit the ground with a thud and rolled away, its body collapsing onto the floor and slumping as blood gushed out of the stump left around its neck.
Trey's face had turned pale, a shaky look on his face as he let out a sigh of relief, before composing himself as he began to climb back out of the arena.
"You did well to recover at the end there. But your skillset isn't suited for close-combat, so-...," Began Glenn.
"No clue what you're talking about, sir, that went perfectly," Trey cut him off, walking away before Glenn could respond.
Seriously?
This goes beyond stubborn, it's downright foolish, I'd even go so far as to say suicidal.
There's no way he'll ever admit that he picked the wrong formation for our upcoming raid. At this point, I'm starting to seriously dread it...