Oscar's eyes shot awake. He was no longer within the smoke-filled, terror-stricken town, with piles of bodies and destroyed homes surrounding him. No, he was in a comfortable bed, a light hanging overhead. His first thought was to look at his stomach, which was tightly wrapped with bandages. Touching it with one finger still prompted him to feel pain, and he quickly stopped.
I'm in the infirmary. Oscar quickly realized.
So I'm alive.
The door busted open, Kai and Leah charging through.
"O-Oscar, we're really sorry!"
"It's out fault you're like this! Damn it!"
They bawled their eyes out, huddling around Oscar. Reluctantly, he smiled. The door opened a second time. This time, a threatening aura peeked through the room. One that instantly put both Kai and Leah in an 'at ease' position.
It was none other than General Yesynore, one of the many highly skilled Generals of the Anore army, and the one who had sought out Oscar on the first place.
This was also the man who conveniently came in time to behead the dragonling and retrieve Oscar.
"Sir… I-"
"No need to apologize, Oscar."
"It was you who saved me, right? I am giving my thanks."
"Again, no worries. I cannot just let a cadet die. Your unwillingness to give up till the very end was incredibly heroic."
Yesynore turned around to stare at the two cadets who were still in position.
"Although these knuckle heads didn't play much of a combative role, they still helped recover many citizens and control damage, along with calling for back up.
"All of these factors, though many casualties occurred, it was inevitable against such a powerful force. Congratulations. Oscar Tolien, Leah Kernesk, and Kai Veloz. You have officially become a private of the Anore Army, completing you first mission."
The two in the at ease position cheered. A small smile crept on Oscar's face.
"Heal up quickly. We'll be retuning to the barracks by tomorrow."
With that, General Yesynore left the room. After a bit of conversation, Kai and Leah left the room, leaving a book for Oscar to read. He took in a deep breath. Time passed, as he read the book.
Had it not been for General, I would've died.
I'm incredibly grateful.
He shifted his hand, reaching for the book that Kai and Leah had given to him to calm his boredom. Upon doing so, he stumbled across another piece of paper. It was a letter that his doctor wrote to him.
"… Huh?"
After reading the note, Oscar walked downstairs. The entire building was well put together, wooden bookshelves here and there, filled with books encased by vibrant covers. It served as a hospital, from the looks of it. There was a very peculiar smell of old people.
Leah sat in the space nearest to the door, an area with two sofas parallel from each other. In between them was a fluffy grey rug, with a table stop. Leah was placed on the sofa.
Upon seeing Oscar, her worried expression lightened.
"It's good to see you walking," she said, laughing softly. Oscar nodded.
"To be honest, it's really a pain to do so. My stomach is killing me, surprisingly. This is a new feeling," he replied.
"What? Have you never been injured before?"
"Not… no, not really."
"Wow. It seems like everyday I learn more about you.
"Oh! Right, you should go see General. He'd definitely like to see how your feeling!" she suddenly remembered, as her eyes lit up.
"Where is he?" Oscar asked.
"Probably outside. The old nurses managed to convince General and Kai to go and water the flowers, along with a few other tasks. To be honest, I think you should avoid them as to not get dragged into any work."
"It's fine, I'll go."
Oscar did just as he said, and walked outside. The sun still hung high up in the air, casting its beautiful glow onto the ground. In front of the hospital he resided in, their was a winding path that likely led to the town he had fought in the previous day.
The hospital was surrounded by fences, and following the fences behind, it extended into a beautiful garden. This is where he found General Yesynore and Kai.
With the sun shining like this, Oscar actually got a good look at Kai Veloz. Perhaps he was not that bland looking, and Oscar was being shallow about it. His eyes were a very lazy green, there was this feel like he never wanted to be there. Half lid, almost shut. His black hair was reaching the jet black barrier, though not yet.
General Yesynore was a well built, tall man, with an imposing feel that surpasses Oscar's own. There was definitely some age to him, as one could see by the slight wrinkles by his light greeneyes. Streaks of white painted his pastel green hair. But he still managed to retain a bit of that youthful elfness.
"Ah, Oscar. You seem to do be doing better. That must be the youthful human recovery speed, huh?" Yesynore spoke, with a deep, almost reverberating voice. Oscar promptly nodded.
"Yes sir."
"Glad to hear that, Oscar!" Kai chimed in.
"It's only because of the amazing doctors that managed to help me," Oscar noted.
Suddenly, a loud shriek was heard. It was coming from the ground.
A thick vine shot out of the ground, wrapping around Kai's leg. Kai quickly dangled, hanging from his leg upside down. He yelled.
"Damn it! G-get me out of here!"
General Yesynore chuckled. He chucked an axe toward Oscar. Wasting no time, Oscar leaped into the air, slicing through the thick vine. It was as thick as a tree trunk.
Kai fell to the ground.
"Ack!" he let air out of his mouth sharply.
"Now you see, this is quite troublesome. This'll take a lot of time, and I don't want to leave these helpful nurses to do this themselves. So, it would be great if you landed a hand."
Oscar nodded.