The Last Of The Lost Chapter 5 Read Online for Free

My eyes snapped open as the glare of the sun suddenly appeared and pierced. I tried to open my eyes and vaguely saw a man getting angry at me. I didn't reply to him and hurried to get off the horse-drawn carriage that had been my bed for the night. The old man was still ranting and I gave him a piece of bread, as payment for letting me sleep in his carriage.

I was still staggering and my eyes weren't even fully open. But I knew where I was going. Two hundred meters ahead of me was the three-meter-high wall that bordered the training grounds of The Vigilante Union's troops. There was nothing special behind the high wall, other than a large field adjoining the forest and also some buildings that served as resting places for the troops.

I pulled over when I saw a bakery. My purpose was not to enter the store but to go straight to the back of the store. The water tap is the only thing I need right now. To wash my face and also drink a little to wet my throat before I return to the road.

I wasn't the only person heading towards the wall. There were dozens or even hundreds of people. The heck with the new policy. At first only a handful of people were willing to become troops, even some men if offered many still refused. But after the general distributed leaflets about the benefits of joining the troops, many people flocked to sign up.

Of course, it was hard to refuse the offer of food guarantees during this famine. But not me, that wasn't my purpose in the first place. After all, I'm used to lack of food, at least there are still plenty of wild plants near the forest that I can eat.

Oh my God. Dad, Mom, look at your daughter. Growing up to be a brat who wants to be a hero. Please don't scold me in the end about how I dressed and how recklessly I lived.

After passing through the big gate, there were some papers to fill out. I took one and suddenly felt nervous. They never mentioned there would be a written test and I hadn't studied.

I read the writing on the paper and breathed a sigh of relief because it was just filling in my personal details and also a question about why I wanted to join. It wasn't hard for me to fill in my personal details, but it was different with the reason column. I wasted a lot of time thinking of good words. Maybe I could reach the examiners heart with my words and then I could be accepted without any other testing.

"Remember, don't write down reasons about family grudges. You'll be immediately blacklisted." said someone from behind me.

I turned around and saw that the man was dressed the same as the troops except that the color of the crest on his left chest was different. It's yellow.

"Uncle Josh?!", I shouted with a happy face.

Yes. My uncle was one of the first generation soldiers. He was unmarried and wanted to devote himself to The Vigilante Union. Of course, the main reason was because of his brother, who was my father. Just like me, my uncle had a grudge against that creature.

Uncle Josh put his forefinger in front of his lips, giving me a signal not to make too much noise, "Trust me. Don't write down your real reason. They want to get rid of people who join because of personal grudges because it will only be troublesome during the real battle."

"Then what should I write, uncle? Can just.. I copy your answer?"

Uncle Josh chuckled and shook his head, "Just write that you have no money, unemployed and have to join to get food support." , he said and patted my shoulder a few times before walking away.

I nodded in understanding and looked back at the paper in front of me, "Well, it's true that I'm unemployed and have no money." , I muttered and started moving the pen to fill in the excuse column.

The queue was getting smaller by the time I finished writing. With a friendly smile I handed my paper to the neatly uniformed man behind the long desk and waited for him to stamp my answer paper.

Although the man's face was unpleasant, he looked even more annoying when he saw my paper. The expression on his face was too much for me. What's wrong with writing honestly?

"Taking back the silver dagger? That's your reason?", he asked now looking at me in confusion.

I nodded confidently, "Yes. That's all. Nothing else."

His breath was so big that it was felt on my face, "Whatever it is," , he replied and pressed his stamp firmly on my paper then returned it to me, "Next!"

Those who managed to get a large stamp with dark blue ink would be guided to the field where everyone gathered. The field looked barren with the ground as a base and not a single blade of grass growing there. I imagined the soldiers who were required to immediately pull up the grass that appeared even if it was just a single leaf.

I was immediately led into the line where the newly qualified applicants were already lined up neatly. I came last and got the back row. A dozen meters in front I saw a simple wooden pulpit and behind it sat several people dressed in neat uniforms of the same color as the soldiers of The Vigilante Union, except that on their clothes there were many accessories such as stars and suns things. They were the top brass of The Vigilante Union.

My gaze turned to the soldiers of The Vigilante Union who formed a neat line on the right and left. When viewed from above, we form a rectangle that extends sideways and has a thin side on the upper side, which is the line of top brass. The rows of registrars were the bottom side and the soldiers were the left and right sides.

My eyes searched for Gerard's whereabouts. He was nowhere to be seen in the front row where the top brass were and I understood that. He was too young to join the older elders. However, I didn't find him in the ranks of the soldiers either.

Maybe I hadn't found him yet, but I found something more interesting. Not far from me, just three people in front of me and two rows beside me, I saw the thief. The bread thief! I was sure it was him. The hair and the side of his face are really similar. Plus when I looked at his left foot, I could see a white fabric behind his shoe. I'm sure she bandaged her ankle.

Instantly, the grudge that I had previously let go of came rushing back, as if the chase had only happened a few minutes ago. I intended to get closer to her by switching lines, but unfortunately the three people standing in front of me weren't that good. So I just continued to stare at him sharply, hoping that his intuition would soon realize there was a dangerous gaze stalking him.

It's been almost two minutes since I glared at him, but he didn't even move his head to look at me for a moment. Unlike when he ran away from my pursuit, he kept looking back.

Before I could say a word, the sound of a buzzing microphone distracted us. Immediately our attention went to the pulpit, where a man with a well-built body and a stern face despite a long line of scars stretching from his right temple to his left cheek. The scar left the impression of how manly he was.

"Good afternoon, my brothers. Thank you for volunteering to be part of The Vigilante Union. Give a big round of applause to each of us!"

Damn. Even his voice sounded so authoritative. I'll respect that.

After a not-so-long speech, the opportunity to speak at the rostrum was given to the chairman of the committee that would test the applicants. Apparently it was Gerard. Right then and there I could feel how my road ahead would not be easy.

"First of all, I would like to congratulate those who have successfully passed the first test. But I hope you don't get too complacent, because the real test is just about to begin." he said, his voice echoing as he raised the volume of his voice.

I swallowed my saliva. This was the real nervousness.

"The first test is to test the stamina of the candidates," he continued, deliberately pausing, "We all know our opponents are the beast who used to live in the forest. While the forest tracks are not all horse-passable, so we have to work on our own strength. Do you understand?"

"YES SIR!", said all the soldiers or candidates around me, simultaneously.

"The first test is," , he said then his hand moved as if giving a signal and at that moment someone came along with a familiar voice.

The sound of barking dogs began to sound faint and became clearer until finally the dogs actually appeared with their necks bound with iron chains and held by their instructors.

"These are the mad dogs that have been our faithful comrades over the years when we're chasing in the forest. Unfortunately, one of them managed to get bitten and escape, spreading the virus to the other dogs. Because of their uncontrollable behavior, we call it the mad dog virus and it can be transmitted to humans.", Gerard explained, "That's right, the first test is to run from the mad dogs!"

Chapter 4 : The Reason I Had Is You