In 9..8..7..6..5..4]
Sean pulled off the helmet as the number in front of him kept dropping. But it would not still budge.
[3..2..1]
The helmet turned around and from the eye holes, he saw other people in a similar situation. Most of the others also looked confused except for one guy. He had a short sword and a wooden shield. He had no helmet or armor. Others were in armor that covered their vital parts.
Some people even had swords and metal shields.
[Trial One- Joust]
Out of thin air, it appeared right in front of him. Men on horses rode towards them with a lance.
"Stand your ground" a guy in partial armor with a sword and a shield screamed. When the riders were closer some turned to run. When the riders were close the boy without armor or helmet dived to the ground. Sean followed his lead. Others had lances through them, even ones with armor on. They were about 50, now there were only about 22. The riders turned around and came at them again. As Sean saw the dust cloud drawing near. He picked up a sword from one of the fallen guys. The riders who were still fifty rode towards them. They couched their lance when they were close enough.
"Think, their lances are long. They would stab me before I could even reach them." Sean said and picked up a shield too.
"If only I had my gun," Sean said and dived out of the way. He cut the horse in the process. The rider and his horse fell. As the other riders tried to trample him he rolled out of the horse's path. He got up to see the rider he had brought down was walking towards him.
He drew a sword he hand on his person and held it with both hands.
[Fight Degore ~Dread Knight]
Once again, the words flickered into existence. Sean put his sword up and suddenly it flew out of his hands. The knight had knocked it out of his hand. As he hurried to grab it Degore hit him in the chest with the hilt of his sword. This knocked Sean back. He placed his hand on his chest. With one step in the knight closed the gap between them. He swung his sword at him but Sean dodged.
"Time out," Sean said making a T with his hands. This did not stop Degore. He kept walking towards him. The raiders had turned around and were heading their way. Degore kept swinging his sword. Sean kept evading his attacks.
Degore swung cutting Sean in the abdomen. It was not deep but it changed Sean's perception of the fight.
"What kind of SERE training is this?" Sean said to himself as he evaded Degore's attacks. Sean had a lot of questions but he needed to survive to get answers. As the riders got closer Sean dived out of their way. He shielded his eyes from the dust as horses jumped over him. This did not stop Degore, he stood there watching. Waiting for the horses to pass. Immediately after the horses passed he walked towards Sean.
"Halt" Like a thunderclap a voice cracked through the sound of receding gallops and clashing swords. Everyone's attention turned toward a man in high-end armor.
Degore sheathed his sword and walked towards him. The others on the horses joined them later on. Sean and the others could not catch their breath. Unlike Sean and the others, the knights were much more composed.
"Does this mean we passed?" The boy without armor asked taking a breath before finishing his sentence.
"I am Sir Bors De Ganis, and no this does not mean you passed. This was to get rid of the chaff. Do not fret they are fine, they will wake up in peak health. The experience they had here would be a distant memory of a dream. Or a nightmare based on how badly they performed. Come with me your real trial starts now." Sir Bors turned around and started walking. Sean and the others hesitated then followed
The knights mounted their horses and followed them. Sean wondered where they were going and if it was far. The sun was scorching hot and he was tired. He was not the only one, he could tell from their sighs.
As they walked a castle appeared before them.
"Welcome to Camelot"
Sir Bors said immediately the Castle had appeared. That was another weird thing he had noticed and he was keeping count.
Sean had heard tails of transmigration and wondered if what he was experiencing could be one of those. He looked around at a lively town. Stores on both sides of the street, if you could call it that. It was not tared and was filled with horse dung. Flies were everywhere and so was the smell of horse dung. It was like they had traveled back in time. The clothes and the food they sold looked strange.
"What did he say?" Sean asked, not asking anyone in particular. He turned to his right and a young man shrugged. As he walked through the mud a boy approached him.
"How does he expect to protect himself with that?" the boy said walking at the same pace as Sean.
"Huh?" Sean said confused by the boy's statement.
"That's what he said." the boy said and Sean nodded.
"I am Sean." he reaches out his hand and the boy shakes it. Sean was surprised to know they were speaking English. He did not understand what the man said.
"I am Arthur." the boy said looking at Sean's face. Sean stared back at him.
"You know, like King Arthur." the boy said Sean smiled and nodded.
"My dad was in a knight trial some year back. He failed but he got obsessed with Knights and the Arthurian lore. It influenced most of his life, hence my name. He also believed people would be teleported back here. He raised me in preparation for that day. Now I would be able to keep my promise to him."
"I guess that explains why he was prepared."
Sean thought just as the group beneath his feet changed.
As they got closer to the castle they noticed the road was tiled. The tiled road was of huge pebbles and the sides were stone bricks. Up close the castle was huge.
"I guess that's why it is invisible, it sticks out like a sore thumb," Sean whispered to himself. As he saw the castle up close he questioned where he was. He thought back tracing his steps.
"What if I'm dead, what if I am on the ground at the warehouse not breathing?" Sean thought and started to wheeze. He took a deep breath. He had watched and read stories where people reincarnated after death.
"What do they even say, System call, Menu, information" Sean tested our possible command to see what would happen.
"Status," Sean said and an animated banner appeared and rolled down.
«~»
NAME: Sean Tucker
TRUE NAME: ######
RANK: Prospector
CLASS: Saint
HONOR: Inactive
TIER: Ordinary
Sean watched in awe he did not know what any of them meant but he was happy. He could not stop smiling.