The Murklin System: Rise of the Dark Hero

Chapter 10

Finn stared at the tunnel leading to the Night Hunters' headquarters or hideout, whatever they called it. He had decided to become a Night Hunter after hearing about them at the restaurant. 

He didn’t have a choice but this one. The higher ups don’t just randomly pick people from the road to become a katona. Of course, they had a training program or some sort to test candidates.

If he wanted to climb the ladder, he had to take that one important step. He knew it wouldn’t be easy, and he had already prepared himself for the worse. He would overcome anything that he would have to face here, no questions asked.

At the end of the tunnel, everything was dark, the way he liked it. He was expecting to see a lot of people who aspire to become a katona like him, but he only saw a single house resting in the middle of the woods. He thought they were just resting since it was already eight in the evening.

When he discovered that the Night Hunters were getting paid, he knew he didn’t have to go back to that restaurant. The gold he received the other night was also enough to feed him for at least three days. The expenses here in Flexure were surprisingly high.

“Hello?” he called. “Is anyone here?” He tried to speak louder, but no one was coming down to greet him. So he knocked on the door loudly instead. “Is anyone home?”

Finn almost jumped when the door opened, and a man around his fifties came out to greet him. The first thing he noticed was his missing left foot, and the crane he was holding for support. Finn looked up to see his face, not wanting to look rude.

“Is this the Night Hunter’s residence?” asked Finn.

“It is. Come in.”

Finn didn’t think twice and followed the man inside. It was clean and neat inside, no sign of dirt, like it was cleaned regularly. Everything was organized.

“Please, take a seat,” the man motioned to a chair. “The others are having their dinner at the dining hall, so no one’s here to greet you.”

“It’s okay. I’m sorry for coming here so late.” He accepted a glass of juice, watching the man sit in front of him.

The man looked at him with his dead eyes, and Finn noticed that he had a scar across his left eye. “You can call me Ronim, by the way. I’m the Night Hunter’s instructor.”

Finn stood abruptly and bowed in front of him. “Finn, sir. Please call me Finn.”

He nodded. “Please. You don’t have to bow in front of me. Take a seat.” Finn did what he was told. “Finn, you said you wanted to become a Night Hunter. It’s been a while since we had someone who wanted to join us.”

“Yes, sir. It's been my dream to become a katona ever since I was a kid.”

Ronim raised an eyebrow. “You joined the Night Hunters because you wanted to become a katona?” He nodded. “You know that joining the Night Hunters to become a katona is like getting struck by lightning, right?”

“I am aware, sir. But this is my only chance in achieving my dreams. I’d rather do this than not do anything at all.”

Ronim stared at him for a long time, and that made Finn awkward. He didn’t know why the man was staring at him so intently, like he was trying to read his mind. Finn thought that he might have said something wrong, but he only mentioned his dream, nothing more.

Ronim stood from his seat, and said, “I’ll guide you to your room.”

It took Finn a while to process what he said, and he abruptly stood and thanked the man before following him upstairs. The man was telling him about the house rules, where the bathroom was, and other parts of the house. He also mentioned about the training tomorrow that usually starts at four.

“A newbie isn’t an exemption in the training tomorrow,” Ronim said. 

Finn nodded. “The earlier I start, the better.”

“Good. For now, take a rest and settle your things. I’ll introduce you to the others tomorrow.”

Finn thanked him again as he watched him walk away before looking around the small room. But for him, this was big enough. 

There were all the necessities inside, but he had to buy his own clothes next time. He had nothing in him, aside from his worn out shirt and pants, and the hoodie that he stole. There was a new shirt and pants folded on top of the bed, but this wouldn’t be enough if he wanted to stay and train here for a long time.

He washed up before changing to his new clothes, and then he jumped on the bed and fell asleep in an instant.

He woke up with the sudden blaring sound resonating in the whole place. He covered his ears, but the sound only intensified. Grunting, he stood and went outside to wash his face, but before he could do that, a woman greeted him on the doorstep.

“Good morning, newbie!” she beamed, grinning from ear to ear.

Finn gaped for a while, processing the scene in front of him. Behind the beaming woman were another woman and a man. They were watching him like sharp eagles, but they were either grinning or smirking.

“Ahm… Hello?” 

“Training’s about to start. Let’s go!” The woman who greeted him grabbed his arm and pulled him down the stairs.

“Wait! I need to wash my face at least. I’m barely awake.”

“You’ll have time for that later. If you’re late on your first day, you’ll receive a punishment. Do you want one on your first day?”

Finn gaped and let the woman pull him. “I don’t.”

“I know.” She giggled.

She continued pulling him, the man and the woman following from behind. He didn’t even know their names yet, but here they were, pulling him by the arm like they were close friends. Finn couldn’t keep up. After all, he never had a friend before.

When they reached the backyard, Finn stood beside the woman who pulled him. There was already a man and a woman waiting for them aside from Ronim, who was holding a timer while counting down.

“That’s it,” Ronim said before looking up from his timer. “Since there is a newbie among you, I’ll say it again. Like usual, you all will climb the top of the mountain with this one liter bucket, and come down to fill your tank.”

Finn looked at the huge tank beside Ronim and almost choked. It was almost 500 liters, and they needed to fill it using a dipper with only a liter. Not to mention, it had no lid. One wrong move and its content would spill, no doubt.

The woman handed Finn two dippers, and said, “If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask me.”

“Thanks,” Finn mumbled. “I didn’t catch your name. My name’s Finn.”

“Oh, sorry! I forgot. Silly me. You can call me Day, as in daylight. Nice to meet you Finn.” She looked at the man and woman beside her. “These are Honey and Kiel. We got here almost at the same time, so we’re all close.”

Finn greeted them before starting the training. They were walking leisurely while watching the others go ahead of them. They had plenty of time to finish the task, or so Finn thought.

“I just noticed,” Finn said, “that there are only seven of us here. Do you have another branch where Night Hunters reside?”

“I’m not sure, but if you’re looking for other night hunters, there’s none. This is all of us. Being a night hunter isn’t really the ideal job for a lot of people.”

“Job? We get paid for being a night hunter?”

“Of course! Some night hunters don’t become katonas and just grow old here, so the elite armies proposed that we help in catching cri.minals, at least the mortals. We leave the immortals in their hands.”

“Like bounty hunters?”

“Like bounty hunters.”

So, immortals really do exist, Finn thought. All this time, he thought Edward and Efrelyn were just playing with him. But on the other hand, no mortal could produce that black thing out of nowhere. 

Finn looked above again where the others were starting to disappear in his sight. “I was expecting a lot more candidates than this, you know.”

“Sorry to disappoint. It’s just us here.” She picked up her pace. “Let’s go. If you want to have water to use to take a bath, you need to fill that tank on time.”

When Day ran faster, Finn followed behind her, still thinking about what the woman told him.