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Chapter 7 - Army's Reality
🕑 Added 2024-10-12 21:00:05 +0000 UTCAlan felt more at ease upon seeing the other recruits' results. He knew this wasn't one of the tests where he would stand out, but it wouldn't be terrible. Therefore, it wasn't surprising that he was disqualified at the third level.
"Ouch! That hurt," Alan muttered quietly as he returned to the line.
As for Isabela, she entered the test with her hands trembling. The first levels were relatively simple, but she accidentally stepped on one of the shots at the third level, causing her to slip and get hit by one of the bullets. She sincerely wished to explode at that moment and rip the machine guns off the wall.
'Breathe! Breathe! Breathe!' she kept thinking, trying to calm herself down. Yet, it was evident from her flushed face that she was on the verge of bursting.
"Nice work to those who survived the first test, but you won't have much time to rest. We'll move on to the second stage right away. This one will be simpler, but don't confuse simplicity with ease." The officer spoke as he guided the students out of the testing hall.
The entire group was led to the area outside the building. Around them were a few meters of open ground before the first trees, and within this small space, some running tracks were marked on the ground. Before the recruits could understand the next test, the officer began the explanation.
"Your second test will start in three minutes. This will be the endurance test. You will start running around the building, and during the next hour, you will earn points for each lap you complete. Pretty simple, except this time, you will all start at the same time." The old man explained.
[Countdown initiated.]
[180 seconds remaining]
"Everyone line up on this line. When the countdown ends, start running." The officer explained
[3 seconds... 2 seconds... 1 second...]
[Second test initiated]
As soon as the signal echoed, every recruit began running. Some used all their strength to gain distance, but most stayed close together in a pack. For many there, this was the first time having to run for such a long time. However, they understood this wasn't just a race to complete more laps. It was also a test of endurance, as they had to keep running for an entire hour.
There were no surprises in the first few laps, although some of the recruits were already starting to worry. Some were having trouble keeping up with the group's pace, and their breathing was becoming labored.
Oliver was calm, having had time to recover from the previous test. Isabela, on the other hand, was feeling confident. She knew that endurance was one of her strengths, and she was determined not to let this test ‘fail’ like the first.
[The second phase will start in 60 seconds]
[Any candidate one lap behind will be eliminated]
[3 candidates will be eliminated in 60 seconds]
Two girls and a boy were far behind the group; above their heads appeared a hologram with a red cross. Their faces were red from the heat, and their breathing was labored. Still, they needed to speed up and keep up with the others, or they would be left behind.
"Shu pa pa"
The sound startled the group, who tried to discover what was happening. Up ahead, a muscular boy had kicked another competitor in the knee, causing him to fall to the ground. The fallen competitor began shouting in anger while massaging his leg. However, he didn't have much time to recover; the group had already passed him. He needed to get back up and run, or he would soon be eliminated.
[3... 2... 1...]
[4 candidates eliminated]
As soon as the elimination announcement was made, several soldiers dressed in white appeared around the eliminated recruits and once again quickly vanished from the area. Some competitors looked at each other, expecting the officer to give some punishment or even eliminate the competitor who used brute force. However, that punishment never came.
'He never said we couldn't hinder the competitors,' everyone started thinking the same thing.
The group that had previously stayed close to maintain the same pace slowly began to spread out, fearing becoming targets. Meanwhile, small subgroups began to form alliances. Oliver started looking around for allies. Near him was Alan, but Isabela was far ahead of the group.
The two began running closer together, trying to avoid becoming easy targets for other competitors. But they both started hearing another group approaching and speeding up. Oliver turned his head to the side, but there wasn't enough time to react before a punch landed on him.
Oliver hit the ground from the blow, feeling slightly dazed, but it wasn't enough to take him out of the competition.
The girl who had knocked him down just slightly turned her head and spat, "Stay down, Nameless, it'll be better for you."
"Ptiu!" A spit passed by his face.
Alan was still shocked by what had happened but quickly went to Oliver's side to grab his arm.
"Come on, we have to keep running..." Alan spoke.
'If I stay alone, I'll become the next target.' Alan understood the situation; he needed Oliver to take the target off his back, although he felt sorry for him.
[The third phase will start in 300 seconds]
[Any candidate more than 200 meters behind the first place will be eliminated]
[9 candidates will be eliminated in 300 seconds]
Oliver stumbled but forced himself to keep running. As the second wave of eliminations loomed, the group competition intensified. Oliver and Alan tried to avoid getting too close to the others, but it was nearly impossible as they needed to stay close to the leaders.
"What was that?" Oliver shouted as he saw one of the groups ahead. A boy had punched the ground, and from the point of impact, several spikes of stone began to rise, making it difficult for the other recruits to advance.
Oliver wasn’t sure how to get past this barrier, but he didn’t have to think for long. A girl just ahead of him started running faster, charging straight at the spikes. The boy expected her to jump to avoid getting hurt, but instead, she plowed right through the rocks like a bulldozer.
Oliver had heard of equipment using Z Crystals to grant powers but had never seen anything like this up close. He also hadn't noticed the gear the others were using.
But he decided not to worry and focused on picking up speed as the countdown was ticking away rapidly.
"So that means we can use anything we want in the test," Alan thought, observing how the other groups behaved, freely using their powers without hesitation.
Alan wasn't too worried about the obstacles that might appear, as he had other ways to get past them. Minding the groups around him, he noticed that the elimination mark had been removed from him and Oliver.
After a few minutes, the main groups began to close in on the first-place runner. Oliver was already running with all his energy, his eyes struggling to stay open as sweat dripped down his face. His breathing was labored, but he kept up the pace.
[5 candidates eliminated]
Only 11 candidates remained of the 20. Oliver could see that Isabela and the blonde-haired girl were still far ahead while Alan was beside him.
"Are they among the 11?" Oliver wondered. He couldn't tell if those who remained were the ones who had attacked them earlier. The only thing he remembered was that it had been a girl who had attacked him. But he wouldn’t be surprised if others had the same intention.
[Second test completed]
Many recruits collapsed to the ground to catch their breath and rest.
"Rest while you can; you still have two more challenges today. But before we move on to the next one, each of you will receive your grades." The old officer warned them.
[Evaluating …]
A new hologram appeared in front of each recruit, displaying their evaluations.
[Evaluated status: Endurance]
[Grade: Pawn]
Oliver and Alan were satisfied with their evaluation. Oliver felt he might have scored higher, but with the risk of being attacked by others, this was realistically his best outcome.
The happiest person with her evaluation was Isabela, who was practically bouncing with joy. In front of her was a display showing the Knight grade. Next to her stood the blonde-haired girl, who seemed to have received the same evaluation.
"Let's move on to the third challenge; it will be in another building this time. Follow me, " the old man said.
Taking advantage of the walk, Oliver tried to calm down. His head and ears were still ringing from the punch he had received, and anger continued to boil inside him. Ever since he had been reawakened, the boy had struggled with the prejudice against Nameless, but he had never expected to be treated like this, especially twice on the same day.
