Chapter 144: Blessed With Such Good Comrades

"Are you sure that you are going to accept this Mission Order?" Ron Samuel stared at Calvin with a frown. It was easy to understand why he reacted as such. This was Calvin's first day as a member of the Cavaliers. Usually, newly-minted Cavaliers weren't allowed to take solo Mission Orders like this one that Calvin had just received.

James Branzuela turned his attention to Ron Samuel and said, "Yeah, this doesn't make sense. If they wanted to know how strong a holder of the golden class is, then they could've just turned to the archives and read the books there, it's pretty cut and dry. Yet, why did they bother sending a mission order to a newly-minted member of the Cavaliers..."

"Are they purposely targeting us?" Bruce mumbled out a possibility that made Ron Samuel think hard and long.

"That is probably the reason..." Eventually, Ron Samuel couldn't help but agree.

"Someone is targeting us, and I might know who that person is..." A cold smile appeared on Ron Samuel's lips.

"Who is it, Captain? Who dares to target us, the Cavaliers?" James Branzuela said in a chilling tone of voice. People seemed to have forgotten that the Cavaliers were a group of people known to be as the executioner of the Kingdom. If those people needed a reminder as to how terrifying the Cavaliers were...

James Branzuela didn't mind giving them a sample.

Ron Samuel shook his head, "Don't even bother. The person I have in mind isn't someone that you can casually offend."

"Captain... Are you saying that...?"

"Yeah, the one who did this is probably one of those sons of bitches that came to observe the spectacle yesterday. But I have no proof whatsoever, so I can't just raise any accusations."

"Indeed..." James Branzuela nodded, "So what should we do now, Captain? If this is indeed the work of one of those bastards, then this mission order would be incredibly difficult to refuse. We've already butted heads against them once already and we already know how shameless they can be..."

"That's right..."

"But who said something about refusing the job?"

"What?"

"Captain, are you saying that Calvin should go through with this mission order?" Ashlynn almost stood up from the shock. She had read the details of the mission order and even though it wasn't that dangerous, the danger was subjective. The mission might be easy as pie for Ashlynn, but for a newly-minted Cavalier like Calvin?

He might as well just commit suicide to save himself from the potential suffering under the effects of the Curse of Sleeplessness.

Ron Samuel closed his eyes for a moment, but when he opened it. He stared right at Calvin and said, "Calvin, are you sure that you are going to accept this mission order? I asked for more details after pulling some strings here and there. It turns out that this Village of Sleeplessness isn't that simple..."

"Not only is the fog so thick that you won't be able to see anything a few meters ahead of you, but it's also impossible to disperse. What's more, the villagers are unnerving and strange. From the archived records, they seemed to be under the Curse of Sleeplessness. Those afflicted with this curse aren't able to sleep at all until the day that their body crumbles from the lack of sleep..."

"So, what? Are you still going to accept this mission order knowing that you might turn into one of them? The Curse of Sleeplessness has no cure, so I hope you'll think about this properly." Ron Samuel said with no emotions on his face.

"The Curse of Sleeplessness, what a horrible curse... Imagine being so sleepy, but also being unable to sleep until you die due to this curse..."

"If I was the one that received this mission order, then I would do anything to refuse this mission! Even if I had to go and pay the Cardinal a visit bringing with me some expensive gifts!" Bruce gasped in shock.

"Speaking of expensive gifts, I remember that I still have that gift that I received from the Captain during that Lantern Rites Festival last year, Bruce... If you received that mission order, then I would gladly let you have that gift so you can bring it with you to the Cardinal!" Ashlynn turned to look at Bruce.

Calvin was speechless.

He didn't know what to say.

But at the same time, he felt warm in his heart knowing that his comrades— even though he hadn't known them for so long, they were willing to sacrifice their valuables for the sake of his wellbeing.

"It's okay, Ashlynn... Bruce... I should be able to do it with the guidance of the Captain. Besides, I have such a pretty laidback job right now aside from his occasional mission orders. I must do my best to keep it and that includes not offending the big players in the church..." Calvin smiled at the two, hinting that he appreciated their care for his wellbeing.

Bruce and Ashlynn stared at each other for a moment before Ashlynn sighed, "Fine... Since you have already decided, then I can only wish you good luck. You better return safe and well, you still have your family waiting for you here..." The time that Ashlynn spent together with Calvin was brief, but she could already tell that Calvin was a loyal and fun person to be with.

This was why she was willing to go so far as to sacrifice the gift that she received from the Lantern Rites Festival last year, just so she could save Calvin from accepting this unethical mission order from one of the church's bigwigs.

"All right, now that the decision has been made, then it's time for me to give Calvin the perks that he deserves as a holder of the golden class." Ron Samuel gave a mysterious smile to the others.

"Perks? What kind of perks do I have, Captain?" Calvin asked in curiosity.

"As a holder of the rare golden class, then you must already have your Aspect, right?"

"Aspect?" Calvin pretended to not understand.

"Yup, your Aspect... You can summon it while closing your eyes and wishing for your Aspect to appear in front of you with all of your heart."

Calvin nodded and promptly closed his eyes.

To be honest, his expertise with his Aspect enabled him to summon it at will naturally as if he was breathing. But since he was just a newly-minted Cavalier, he had to pretend that it was his first time summoning his Aspect and he had no idea how to summon it. He closed his eyes and time quickly spanned.

After judging that it was about time for him to open his eyes, he opened his eyes and a burst of golden light followed.

A surreal-looking golden quill materialized in front of him and the others.

Ron Samuel nodded his head and said, "So your Aspect is a quill, as expected of a Writer. Since you have the Writer class, then I must give you a notebook for you to use... The first ascension class of the Writer is the Diary-Keeper. You must record everyday things that you see around you so long as you judge them to be significant enough to be recorded. Keep doing this, and you'll be able to gain experience points."

"Once you have enough experience points, if you are curious as to how many experience points you have, you'll be able to see them in your status window. I'm sure you know how to summon your status window, right?" Ron Samuel stared at Calvin as if he was in doubt.

Calvin nodded, "I'll try it out now, Captain..."

He closed his eyes once more and softly whispered into the air.

"Status..."

A bunch of transparent windows appeared right in front of him.

[Skills Available in Slot: 0/???]

[Experience Points: 0/1000]

[1000 Experience Points necessary for Ascension to Scribe.]

"Ah, there it is! It's like what I saw in the church, but I see more windows!" Calvin exclaimed in surprise.

The others smiled.

They found Calvin's actions and reactions as amusing.

It made them remember of the times when they were still a newly-minted Cavalier like him.

"Bruce, why are you smiling and looking all melancholic there. You're also a newbie just like him!" Ashlynn noticed the proud and melancholic look on Bruce's face, so she couldn't help but comment.

"What? I am just proud, proud that the child I raised grew to be such a man..." Bruce glared at Ashlynn.

Calvin's lips repeatedly twitched, "So you are my father now?"

"Stop playing. Let's keep this serious."

Ron Samuel interrupted before the situation could even escalate. Fortunately, Bruce and Ashlynn complied as they closed their mouths. But of course, despite their mouths being closed, their eyes were still glaring at each other. It was obvious that once all of these was done and over that they might duke it out outside.

"But Captain, I really am curious... Could it be that perhaps, the class that I get isn't that good...?" Calvin suddenly said these words which silenced the others.

It took Ron Samuel a few seconds of silence before he could reply.

"There is no such thing as a bad class, Calvin. The Goddess would never bestow upon a useless blessing to someone. Granted, your class isn't suitable for battles, but you can still benefit humanity with your class in all sorts of ways!" Ron Samuel encouraged.

Calvin didn't look so depressed anymore as he asked, "Is that true, Captain? Then, will you tell me how I can benefit humanity with my class? I heard those people whisper that it's a waste that I have such a useless class when it's classification is golden. To be honest, I've been thinking about their words since last night.

"So that is the reason why you want to accept this mission order? You want to prove them wrong?" James Branzuela asked with a frown.

Calvin paused for a moment.

James Branzuela's misunderstanding was a convenient one, so he had to take advantage of it.

"Yes... That's right... Vice-Captain might think that the reason why I accepted this mission order is so silly, but I need to prove that I am capable enough for the church's resources and attention. If I can't even do that and I stayed mediocre, wouldn't that mean that I wasted the Goddess's blessing? That I wasted this golden class?" Calvin said.

James Branzuela felt his blood boil with determination hearing Calvin's words. Yes, Calvin's reason for accepting the mission order was immature but who here didn't want to prove themselves to the masses when they were still young? Who in here wasn't hotheaded like Calvin when they were still young?

No one!

This was why James Branzuela could only sigh and say.

"Fine... I wish you good luck."

"May the Goddess be with you."

James Branzuela drew the sign of the Goddess on his chest.

Calvin nodded and responded likewise, "And upon you too..."