Spirit Taming

Chapter 45: Loose End

Looking over the battle where Ralph and Crim had just gone to work, Clark discovered a lot. He saw that the earth hamster had been crushed by a harsh force against a tree before it had a single chance to really fight the goblins. Ralph had listened closely.

Crim had easily dispatched the goblins left behind and then finished off the red bobcats with the help of Ralph's boar. Since Ralph had gotten his butt kicked by Clark, he had maintained his focus. This let him escape the attacks from the lackeys until his boar and Crim came to team up against them. Not that the goblins hadn't done their damage first.

"All that seems to be left is our classmate. He ran off in fear between everything. The others didn't seem to survive." Ralph was constantly flexing his fists now that Crim had started to leave him alone. Clark could tell it was a nervous habit.

"Crim seems like he protects you. Right?" Clark waited until Raph gave a slight nod. "Good job Crim. you did very well." A deep breath later and Clark looked over toward Ralph again. "We cleaned up people who spent their time abusing power and not helping anyone at all. They didn't deserve what they had and they would have hurt many more people."

"I know that! But it was…it's not what…well maybe it is…"

"It's what you should do to make this city a better place. I admit that you and I are not friends. Far from it. You call me a cheater. Did you know that not until recently I was thought to be a beastless tamer who was weaker than everyone? Well, I trained until I was stronger than everyone.

Then I found my beast and have still been training." Clark only told a select version of the truth. He knew he couldn't say everything.

Maria could see through some of it. But while Lit was finishing healing Ralph's arm, she didn't let her knowledge slip through to her expression. "Take your time and accept this. They were letting the goblins come at us anyways. We were going to be seriously hurt or even left to die unless we bowed down to that bastard." It clicked in that single sentence from Clark.

"I can't die just yet. I refuse. I will be much stronger." The clenched fists were no longer due to uncertainty and anxiety. Ralph clenched his fists in determination which was exactly what Clark needed from him. Ralph may have been a bit thick headed, yet he could be trusted to a degree.

"Let's take what we need and can from their spatial rings. We can't just survive in nothing this whole time. They gave us three days to find our way. I assume because no professor has appeared to help that we were the group they thought would be without any issues."

"If they don't think we would have problems then that means we just need to keep going and let them find what's left here later." Ralph looked down at the bodies again. He knew the scent of blood was filling his nostrils and the scar left by his healed injury would go as proof. He was finally grasping just how well Clark could think things through at a moment's notice.

"Exactly. Maria, are you fine to move? You are very quiet? You are the only one that didn't have to deal with this unpleasantness…you can choose to pretend it never happened if you want." Clark could not say he lacked a heart. He could see that the one person not involved in this would be negatively affected by this.

"I…no. This is fine. I don't like death. I want to help people heal like Lit. But," Her breathing slowed and calmed. "This will help me too." Clark and Ralph had seen how the lackeys and Allen had looked at her along with what they had said.

It was clear that she would have been hurt in some way as well.

"Then I won't ask anymore. I don't need to know why they seemed to hate you so much. As long as you are with us we can safely move on. Crim, stay close and be ready." Since they knew the general direction that their classmate had gone, Clark set off with the intention of finishing what he had started. The Cain family could not have a hold on the Nova academy students like this. It was despicable.

"Look, footprints in the mud." From what Ralph's boar found, they were able to narrow down the path that their traitorous classmate had gone. Ralph surprised Clark and Maria by revealing his tracking knowledge by making out the footprints in the dry dirt and grass. "He went that way. And he is running."

"So he probably fell in to some more trouble." Clark knew this was a good thing. From what had happened, things appeared that the group had been attacked and separated due to poor teamwork. They could all vouch that the third years had told them to stay out of the fight then there were overpowered. From there, the four had split up leaving only three to find their way back to each other.

"I can hear it." Maria stopped and stepped backward. There were screams ahead. And not small ones.

With a single thought, Devi was off to see what was going on. He knew that Clark was going to ask this of him anyways. However, Clark didn't wait for Devi to return. He lowered his stance and slowly headed toward the noises of growling and tearing. "Stay low and silent."

The three eventually found a gruesome sight. There was a massive clearing with many bones scattered about.

'Deformed hobgoblin- rare

Due to ingesting improper growth materials and poisoned foods, this hobgoblin mutated. The mutations caused additional muscles to grow where they should not. This made it much more powerful but removed a great amount of intelligence. This hobgoblin can no longer process any thoughts that are not related to instinct and food.

The host is strongly recommended to avoid this beast due to the high potential of death when facing it.'

The system even added a warning that told Clark not to dare to attack this demented hobgoblin. Clark made a shooing motion to get Maria and Ralph to back away with their beats. The only problem was that their arrival had been heard bu the demented hobgoblin.

"Here's the issue, we need to escape for real or fight together. You have one chance to make a choice." Clark had his spear out from his spatial ring already. He would use it as a way to escape if necessary.

"Fight, I hate to run like a weakling." Ralph brandished sharp brass knuckles.

"I will not leave you two here alone. I know what being alone is like." Maria whispered the second half but the two boys just needed to hear the first half.

"Then we fight. Maria will support us while we deal attacks where we can. Let Crim take the main offensive. Even if Crim has a limb ripped off keep fighting. I promise he will be fine." Clark was going to trust Crim to keep the demented hobgoblin distracted as it stood to face them with a bloody maw.