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Chapter 38: Forest [1]

Did the nobles hate the commoners?

Not in particular. At least, the vast majority didn\'t.

As future lords of their territory, most nobles understood the importance of commoners and how vital they were to their territory.

In fact, most nobles tended to build good relationships with talented commoners.

Everyone at Haven was talented.

Some were less than others, but they were generally all very talented individuals. One needed to have a certain standard to get here after all.

As such, for aspiring nobles, it was important to build good relationships with them.

At least...

That was how it usually was.

Unfortunately, things were different this year. Without someone to properly lead the first years, cadets with different agendas were allowed to come to power, shifting the overall situation.

"What did you say...? He wants to talk to me?"

A well-built young man, his blonde hair framing his jewel-like blue eyes, felt his brows furrow at the unexpected news.

Clutching a cup filled with wine, he directed his gaze at the four figures standing before him, their heads slightly lowered.

Anders Lewis Richmond.

First heir of the Richmond family—one of the four Marquess families—and the current leader of the \'noble\' faction.

"Why is he suddenly interfering?"

His deep voice echoed in the quiet environment. His hold of the cup tightened as his expression scrunched up.

A face appeared in his mind.

He couldn\'t forget that face. How could he forget...?

His cold and overbearing gaze as he looked down on him. From the utter disregard and contempt within his gaze, and the last words he muttered to him.

\'.....Pathetic.\'

Anders\'s grip on his glass tightened as his teeth gnashed.

"Huuu."

Taking a deep breath, he suppressed the rage that was barely about to slip out of him.

Closing his eyes, he deeply pondered over the situation before asking,

"Tomorrow... Isn\'t it the survival guidance class?"

"That\'s correct."

One of the people in the room replied.

"And he said he wants to talk to me tomorrow?"

"That\'s correct..."

"..."

Anders stood in silence for a brief moment.

Then....

Seemingly having come up with a decision, he finally opened his eyes.

"Alright."

His eyes grew cold.

"...If thats\'s what he wants. I\'ll talk to him tomorrow. Might as well."

But...

Unlike last time, he was prepared. How could he not be when all he could recall during those two weeks was the cold disdain his eyes bore when they looked down at him in class?

Inserting his hand in his pocket, he rummaged through it to remove a small necklace.

"....."

Gently, his lips pulled into a thin smile as he stared at it.

Things weren\'t going to be the same this time....

After all, his emotions couldn\'t be tampered with anymore.

***

It was early in the morning, and the sun was barely up. The morning breeze wafted through, adding a certain chill to the air.

We stood at the edge of a towering forest where trees of various sizes comprised the vast majority of the landscape. The forest—Hargrave Forest—was connected to the Institute and was considered safe by the instructor.

"Line up quickly."

The instructor, Candace Wallace, positioned us in a long line before the forest.

I stood at the very front.

That was only natural since the order was assigned based on rank.

As such, Leon stood behind me.

He seemed a little odd today. Very odd. Especially since the first thing he had asked me this morning was if I had seen the book.

What book...?

"In the backpacks, you will find all the necessary equipment for the upcoming task. In total, it\'ll last for a day. Points will be earned based on the criteria given to you in the booklet."

The class was called [Basic Survival Guidline]. It was a class that focused on the basics of survival. The objective of the class was to acclimate the cadets to living in the challenging environments of the mirror dimension.

From what I read, they were a lot worse than this.

Given the nature of the course, a \'non-combat\' based one, I was judged to be eligible to attend this class.

"On that note, everyone please welcome Professor Bucklam."

Professor Wallance suddenly stopped to the side and introduced someone.

The individual in question was a middle-aged man with graying dark hair and a mustache. What caught one\'s attention the most were his distinctive circular gold-framed glasses which seemed oddly fitting.

Coupled with the wooden cane in his hand, he looked extremely refined.

Why does he seem so familiar...?

His appearance sparked something in my mind as I felt his figure to be vaguely familiar. But where exactly...?

".....Ah."

Then I recalled.

He was the one playing checkers by himself yesterday.

\'So it was him...\'

"I can\'t believe it\'s really him..."

"Hm?"

A noticeable change occurred in the faces of the cadets behind me.

"Holy crap, it\'s Professor Bucklam."

"...Wow, it\'s really him."

"But I heard that he was still ill..."

The way the students talked about him made him appear to be a very important person.

"He\'s a very important figure. One of the top professors in the Academy. Well... was."

Thankfully, I had Leon with me as he gave me a brief rundown of the situation while he whispered near my ear.

"Was...?"

"Yeah, he sustained an injury a few years back. He hasn\'t been the same since. His power dropped a lot too."

"Ah."

I looked back at that man who stood at the front. He seemed like an extremely warm person at first glance. Like a neighborhood uncle who everyone was friendly with.

"Haha, it seems like everyone is already aware of my identity."

Even his laugh was warm.

"Please don\'t worry about my appearance. I\'m only here to observe several cadets. As you are all aware, the draft will be coming at the end of the year. I want to make sure that we select the best of the best."

Draft...?

A new term I was unfamiliar with entered my mind.

I thought about asking Leon but chose against it given that he was currently speaking. I made a mental note in my mind.

".....So, while this is indeed just a regular class, I\'ll be here to monitor you guys and observe your performance. Don\'t feel too concerned. This won\'t be the only class I\'ll monitor, so please feel free to go at your own pace."

He then went on to ramble about the same thing for the next few minutes before finishing.

"I have taken enough of your time. Please go on your way to do your thing."

Clap. Clap. Clap——!

The cadets began to clap.

I did too.

He returned our claps with a slight bow as Professor Wallace stepped ahead.

"You\'ve heard him. Don\'t feel too pressured. There will be many chances for you to prove yourself."

She proceeded to clap her hands and I felt my body levitate all of a sudden.

"Uh...? What\'s go—"

Clap—!

"Have a nice trip~"

Those were the last words I heard before the world turned dark.

Thud...!

Light only returned after I felt my feet touch against something hard, and even then, the light was just minimal.

"....."

When I looked around, I realized.

I was in the middle of the forest. Alone.

***

Right as the students were teleported, Professor Wallace turned to address Process Bucklam.

"Has anyone caught your eye?"

"....A few."

The Professor replied with a thin smile. Leaning slightly on his cane, he stared into the forest as his eyes squinted.

"Aoife, Leon, Kiera, Julien, Evelyn, Luxon, Anders... There\'s a lot of interesting cadets."

"There\'s indeed quite a lot of talented individuals this year. More than the previous years."

"Haha, yes. The draft is going to be quite difficult this year."

"But isn\'t that a good thing?"

"Of course it is. The more competition, the better the final candidates."

"Indeed."

Professor Wallance nodded in understanding. The Draft was an important event for the Academy. It was an event that happened at the end of the year and only the top cadets were eligible for the honor.

But even that was just the start.

There were further steps down the line that the cadets needed to follow after becoming eligible.

And it was the \'scout\'s\' job to make sure the selected members were good enough to pass such steps.

Professor Backlam was one such scout.

"...I guess it\'s time for me to do my job."

Lowering his head slightly, Professor Bucklam smiled. Then, without turning back, he calmly headed toward the forest, his figure disappearing into its depths.

"....."

Candice remained standing where she was for several minutes. Her mind wandered back to the image of his back.

Though he seemed warm and kind, all Candice could see was loneliness.

It was to be expected given his situation.

He had once been so brilliant, and yet...

She pursed her lips and shook her head.

"A pity. If only he didn\'t... Haa..."

***

It was dark and humid. My clothes clung to my skin, and the smell of my sweat permeated around. I was uncomfortable, but this much I could handle. There had been times in my previous life when I had been subjected to worse conditions at my job.

\'Fucking bastards...\'

The thought still irritated me to this day.

In any case...

I took out the guidebook from my bag and stared at its contents.

: Find water source — 1P

: Find food source — 1P

: Create shelter — 4 P

.

.

In short.

"Survive for a day."

With each objective achieved, one would earn points. The one who had the most points by the end would be ranked first. Because of my obvious disability, my results didn\'t matter as much.

That said, just because the results didn\'t matter as much, it didn\'t mean that I wasn\'t planning on trying.

"Hoooo..."

Taking a deep breath, I dropped the backpack down and prepared to get my camp ready.

I felt energized and ready.

Although I wasn\'t in top shape, it didn\'t mean I couldn\'t do this.

Such was how I felt.

But...

\'Uh...?\'

Reality seemed to hate me.

Just as I was about to get ready to start, the world turned black. When light returned, I found myself back in the forest, but at an entirely different place.

Clank....!

Sparks flew in the air and the nearby vegetation shattered.

\'What\'s going on?\'

My voice refused to come out of my mouth. As if it were trapped in my mind. And it was then that I understood what was happening.

This familiar feeling...

The vivid sensations but the weird strange of entrapment...

\'Vision.\'

I was experiencing another vision.

\'Shit...\'

I wanted to curse. Of all times now...? No, when had it really had good timing? They always came randomly, and when I least expected them.

I once again wanted to curse at my situation, but I knew I couldn\'t.

The vision, though random, always ended up pointing out important events.

\'Perhaps, major or minor events from the game...\'

I wasn\'t aware since I had never played the game. But that wasn\'t currently important.

Booom——!

Several trees shattered, their remains flying in all sorts of directions. A figure gradually appeared, lying down on the ground with a pained expression.

"Ugh..."

It was a familiar face.

Long white hair, deep red eyes...

\'Kiera?\'

Was this vision about-

"Kh...! Shit."

Kiera forced herself up as blood dripped down from her mouth. Her expression almost seemed desperate. No, she really was...

"H-how... Why...?"

Her eyes widened as she suddenly screamed.

"Wait...! No!!"

Booom——!

Several more trees shattered as a huge explosion resounded. A gale rushed from the front as my ears rang.

Thud.

Something heavy fell right next to where I stood.

I couldn\'t see at first due to the dust, but when it all cleared...

\'....!\'

I stood rigid on the spot.

My heart tightened and my face stiffened. An array of different emotions coursed through my mind in that moment as I struggled to understand what I was seeing.

\'This...\'

I looked down at the familiar face.

The supposed main character. The strongest first year, and my knight...

\'...How?\'

His body lay next to my feet.

\'Dead.\'

Completely devoid of any life.

How...?