He looked around for a bit, finding the orc not of much assistance in navigating the foreign area, as Redrum practically stuck behind him like a lost child.
"Lost?"
Noah looked over to find the twin elves, with Otto holding a gleeful smirk, seeming a bit too happy to see him without a sense of direction.
"Yeah, sorta," he said. "Gotta go to a Trial Hall–whatever that is."
"Oh, that's…" Astrid quietly said, putting her hand to her chin.
"What's it? When you have that sorta look, you definitely don't make it sound like sunshine and rainbows," Noah questioned.
Otto exhaled, "It's a combat test. Doesn't take long, but…since Astrid and I travel together, they tested us as a duo. Probably will be the same for you two."
"A combat test?" Noah glanced over at the orc standing a couple heads over him. "You up for that, big guy?"
"I'll…try," Redrum hesitantly answered.
"Right, very reassuring," he quietly responded.
Astrid lightly tapped his chest, looking right at him, "Please take it seriously. When we did it, the test was…intense. I've heard stories of others, some have been seriously injured, or even killed–"
"I think that's just stuff they say to weed out the cowards," Otto tried to assure them. "You're made of tough stuff, the both of you–honestly, wouldn't be surprised if you kicked their asses."
"I'll try not to embarrass them then," Noah laughed.
"Good luck, brother," Otto said, holding his forearm up.
The gesture was returned as he tapped his arm against the archer's own, giving a nod of reassurance to the mage as well before moving alone. It was towards the back of the building, down a narrow corridor that a pair of sturdy, metal doors were found: "Trial Hall."
"Looks like it's just down there–" Redrum pointed out.
Just as the giant pointed, the doors flew open forcibly by a woman in thick, scarlet armor flying out and crashing onto the ground.
"Eurgh…!" The swordswoman groaned.
Right after her, a demi-human sloth flew out as well, landing right on the warrior as he also huffed, dropping his stave in the process. By the looks of their cut-up, bruised bodies, it wasn't a picnic they arrived from.
"Wolf rank!" A deep, female voice shouted from within the Trial Hall.
"Next chumps, come on in!" A masculine voice also came from the room.
'Great. This looks like it'll be…eventful,' Noah thought.
Upon entering the enigmatic chamber, it looked like it'd been through its fair share of battles, and tornadoes, with a touch of earthquakes; pillars were chipped, the marble flooring cratered, and blood staining the walls.
Standing in the middle were two figures:
[Identification]
["Ajax, Half-Dwarf, Half-Giant"] [Designated Level: Appx. 12]
On the left, a mountain of a man dressed in a full-suit of obsidian armor wielded twin hammers, each large enough to crush an elephant's skull.
[Identification]
["Freja, Half-Human, Half-Cyclops"] [Designated Level: Appx. 11]
At the right stood a single-eyed woman with braided, scarlet hair yawned, wearing sparse, leather armor that revealed a muscle density that surely left zero fat, as if carved from stone. In her right hand, she rested a thick club that more so looked like the trunk of a tree she uprooted.
"You two are the next recruits? An orc? Well, might be more entertaining than the last dozen, at least," Freja yawned again.
The half-dwarf, half-giant released a belly laugh, smacking his hammers together with a sound that made the two newcomers wince, "Hah! My twin beauties have crushed plenty-o' orc skulls in my years! What's one more?!"
'They're already starting–just like that?!' He realized.
There wasn't a moment to waste as both of the towering figures initiated the trial, leaving him and the orc to respond.
"Handle the one-eyed chick, alright?!" Noah shouted.
"Leave it to me," Redrum calmly accepted.
Just as he got the request out, he found a shadow looming over him, bringing his gaze up to discover the hammer-wielder leaping right onto him.
"Ga-ha-ha!" Ajax roared with joyful laughter behind his helm.
[Strengthen]
Packing his legs with abundant power, he kicked himself to the right just as the armored giant slammed into the ground, landing hammer-first. The thunderous impact brought a new crater into the marble, rumbling the entire hall.
"Agile lad, aren'tcha?" The dwarven giant rolled his broad shoulders, lifting his hammers as sediment rained from their metal.
"Just trying not to die," Noah muttered under his breath.
As he glanced to the right, he found a giant, red mass flying towards him–the orc, speeding right through the air, though unwillingly. He ducked down as his companion smacked into the wall, looking ahead to find a hammer being brought down over him.
"Ge-he!" A joyful snicker escaped the dwarf's helm.
[Minor Shield]
The translucent barrier emerged against his forearm, lifted in the hammer's path. As contact was made, the blunt weapon was repelled, though the shield shattered in response. All of the residual force transmitted through his arm, echoing through his bones.
"Urgh–" Noan winced.
There was no time to process the pain as he found the towering dwarf spinning around, leading the other hammer right towards his stomach.
[Muscle Hardening] [Enhance] [Strengthen]
Clenching his abdomen with everything he had until it felt like his gut was hardened to stone, he braced for impact–
"Pyuh!" A mixture of saliva and air was forced out of his mouth.
This time, there was no holding his ground as the direct hit violently threw him off balance. Before he could force his lungs to work again, his back already slammed into the wall. A warmth swelled in his abdomen, throbbing within him as he coughed out a messy combination of spit and blood.
"Nnngh…" He slid down the wall onto his feet with shaky stability.
["Grit" Proficiency Up +20] [40/999]
[Skill(s) Acquired: "Adrenaline"]
"Haaah, whew, yeah, that's taking the edge off," Noah groaned, rolling his shoulders, feeling the second wind flow through his body like a supercharged energy drink.
His shirt was left wide open by the hit, exposing his black-and-blue stomach, though the swelling pain was promptly ignored by the adrenaline coursing through his veins.
While the orc was busy dodging, and mostly running, from the cyclops' club, the dwarf laughed with enthusiasm at his chosen recruit's return from the brink.
"Still up after a direct hit from my beauty, eh?" Ajax observed with joy. "Wolf is out of the question, aye, lad! Let's see what metal you're really worth, now!"
Once more, the hammers were slammed together like a barbarian's clap, sending that ear-wrenching ring out that joined the dwarf's laughter. With a mighty stomp, the dual-wielder launched forward with surprising swiftness.
[The Snake's Eye]
Knowing the sheer threat of the laughing dwarf, his right iris burned as the world around him crawled to a silent halt. Everything moved at a tenth of its speed as he kept that one eye open, though with each moment, the burning sensation heightened.
'I see it,' he viewed.
The hammer in the tester's right was already being swung for the side of his skull, though it was a feint; the weapon in the left was being primed for another blow to his gut.
'There's no doubt that this guy is trying to break me, without holding anything back–another strike like that last one to my stomach again…Don't want to think about that,' he thought.