“What is that…?” Avali sat in awe as she watched the match between team K and X play out on the screens in the room.

It had been less than three minutes since the participants had entered, yet in that time alone, the opposition had not only located their flag, but also stolen and ran off with it. Staring at the camera keeping pace with the silver-haired blur, Avali could not help but feel envious of the girl that seemed to be around her age, and perhaps even younger.

An Ego that gave one speed no one could react to, now that was something she would kill to have. That said, she was not actually some murderer who would just go around killing people for their possessions. Taking a life was always distasteful.

On the other hand, stealing a prized possession from right under ten people’s noses, now that was something to be praised - and not just once either. The team X girl had stolen the flag not twice, not thrice, but five times over the course of half an hour. Meanwhile, team K could do nothing to stop her except try to cover the flag with their bodies, and even then, the speedster still managed to get through.

It was truly a spectacle to behold, and also a nightmare for those of team K.

Once again taking up the back corner, Avali watched on in amusement as the bespectacled woman, supposedly named Judith, tried desperately to substitute someone.

“Look, our team is being decimated out there. We have to make a substitution!” The 36,781st ranked all but shouted at the attendants stationed by the door.

“We apologise, but that is unfortunately impossible at this moment.” The left attendant said with a bow.

Judith sputtered, spurred on by urgency. “What do you mean? You said that we could make substitutions earlier. So what’s the issue?!”

The rightside attendant did not miss a beat, answering instantly. “The rules state that the leader of a team can make substitutions at any point in the game. Two free substitutions are given, and any more beyond that will cost the team one flag point per substitution.”

The leftside attendant elaborated on her peer’s statement. “As it stands, team K does not have a leader, and thus cannot make a substitution.”

“What? That makes no sense!” Even as the words came flying out of Judith’s mouth, Avali could see that the woman knew that she was wrong. The rules did make sense if one thought about it for just a moment.

If anyone can substitute anyone else during the match, then everything will just descend into chaos.

If substitutions were based on group consensus, then that defeats the goal of the Ascendant Program to elevate the strong. Giving power to the weak would only shackle the gifted few.

That being the case, giving power to the leader, assumedly the ‘best’, made the most sense from the perspective of the program.

“Well…how about we decide on a leader right now?”

The right attendant shook her head. “The entire team must be present in order to officially elect a leader. You are still a team, after all, and thus requires unanimous consensus.”

Judith scowled, gritting her teeth and balling her fists in anger. It was obvious that she was about to snap, but was also held back in fear of the repercussions that came with assaulting a Black Box worker. Even the lowest citizens of the Isle of Skye were worth more than middle-class nobles.

“Then answer me this…why in the name of Ataraxia were we not told about this?” The bespectacled woman asked.

It would be the left side that answered this time, pointing a finger upwards as she did. “It was a small, off-handed test devised by the wonderful Lady Athena. After receiving information from us, the observant and intelligent few would be able to deduce their team’s lack of leadership and attempt to establish a chain of command before proceeding into the match.”

“Of course, those who figured it out would have received a small boost in their performance review.” The right attendant added with a cheerful smile. “It is quite a pity that none in your team had picked up on it.”

With the explanation given, Judith had no more words to say. She simply turned around and returned to her seat, still fuming.

Avali watched on in silent amusement.

The sound of a whistle sounded through the arena, signalling the end of the match between team K and X. The final score had somehow turned out to be zero to four, still resulting in team X’s overwhelming victory.

Returning through the same tunnel they had arrived from, both those who participated and those who watched on the sidelines were quiet. Barely a word was spoken, as all had understood the gap in power. The girl named Vex would have stolen the flag regardless of who defended. If anything, the four defenders’ collaboration just before the last ten minutes mark was something to be proud of.

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In comparison, those who had gone off on their own in an attempt to capture team X’s flag fared much worse. Half of them, the lucky ones, returned with broken limbs. Gregor had supposedly been sent off to the emergency rooms after suffering head trauma. Only the seaweed-haired young man was fine, suffering nothing more than a scratch. Meanwhile, the worst of all was Magor, who had apparently been killed.

“Someone called ‘Zane’ punched through his chest and ripped his heart out.” Lavenna explained to the sore-jawed Zexus in a soft voice and with a frown as they walked up the stairwell. “It was really bad, but I don’t think they’ll expend something like a Second Life Ego to revive him.”

“Was the point deduction because of Magor’s death?” Zexus asked, to which the beauty nodded. “What rank was Zane?”

“Fifty two. He was quite a monster.” The Kitsune said, raising a finger as she recounted the details. “He didn’t do anything fancy, but he took on all of Magor’s hits without batting an eye. It was like he was made of tungsten and weighed as much as a mountain. I guess the scariest part though is that he killed the guy and didn’t really react to it. A tooooootal psycho if you ask me.”

“You must relate to him quite strongly then.”

She jabbed him on his side. “I’ll have you know that I’m completely mentally stable.”

Zexus said nothing, resisting the urge to jape as their team filed back into their living quarters. Now seven men short, with the second highest ranked amongst them permanently gone and the sixth ranked Asad gone off to the medical room after receiving the hit from Vex, morale was at pit bottom. There were a few exceptions of course, Zexus and Lavenna being the obvious ones. Some notable others included the stonewall mage June and the youth that had assisted their final defense - a Norkosi man named Warwick.

Taking a seat on their bedrolls for a rest, they had barely settled down before Vis appeared on the screen atop the stage.

“Congratulations for completing your first match.” The Watcher said without mirth as if he were simply reciting a script, which he may indeed have been. “Although your team had lost, the participants shall still receive their rewards.”

A list appeared beside the redhead, showcasing the points received in descending order. At the top was Zexus, receiving one thousand points. He was followed by June, who was awarded five hundred points. The names of Asad and someone named ‘Neo’ followed after that before ending with Warwick at a hundred points.

“Seems my assumption was correct.” Zexus thought as he scanned through the list. However, for the sake of double checking, he would proceed to ask the Watcher. “Can you explain to us the criteria for the assessment of ‘performance’?”

“Unfortunately, no.” Vis immediately rejected. “Just know that every effort you make and all you contribute to the team’s victory will count towards your overall performance.”

Zexus nodded, accepting the answer.

Seeing that there were no more immediate questions, Vis continued on to perhaps the most important part of his ‘visit’. “I’m sure you all must be wondering about the fate of your missing teammates. I shall clarify a portion of the system rules now.”

Two simple drawings of people appeared on either side of the Watcher. He pointed to the right side figure who had bandages wrapped around his arms and legs. “In the event of an injury, treatment shall be given at the expense of up to a thousand points. Even if you do not possess enough points, your accounts will not go into the negative.”

Vis moved his hand to the other figure whose eyes were marked with black crosses. “If you perish, an individual can be revived if they have one million points in their account. If you don’t, then unfortunately, you will be let go.”

Hearing this, the faces of many blanched. It seemed they had not considered the possibility of death inside Black Box. It was likely due to the fact that many believed the Isle of Skye to be the mortal Utopia, and its citizens benevolent deities. Their mistake was in thinking that these near-God beings would care for their lives.

One may care for a single person out of ten billion, but no mortal had the time, patience or effort to look out and provide for all ten billion. The reality was that resources were limited, and only those who have proven themselves may receive investment.

“Now, since the first match has been completed, it is time for your team to select a leader.” Vis moved on, changing the subject in an instant without any regard to the state of mind of the mortals he spoke to. He was not their therapist, after all. “Despite the title, the only power of the leader of a team will be the ability to make substitutions during a match regardless of whether they are an active participant or on the bench, so to speak. The method in which you choose your leader is up to you. However, you have precisely twenty four hours to make your decision. I will return at this exact time tomorrow to receive your answer.”

With an incline of his head, Vis departed, likely off to repeat the same thing to the next team.

Zexus ran his fingers through his hair. He looked at Lavenna, and found the fox chuckling to herself. “What is it?”

“Oh, nothing much.” The Kitsune waved off. “It’s just that, earlier in the waiting room, the glasses woman, Judith, was trying so hard to make substitutions. The attendants just kept rejecting her, and now we know why.”

Unable to find what exactly was so amusing about what she said, Zexus chose to remain silent as he laid back in his bedroll. The sheets did little to cover the hardness of the ground, but he did not mind it all too much. Resting for a short while as others went about doing their business and planning their paths forward, he would get up when the clock struck five.

Lavenna was still beside him then, sitting with crossed legs and watching something on her holobracelet. When she saw that he had awoken, she immediately grabbed his attention with a few light taps.

“Hey, hey Z. Come take a look at this. Apparently they recorded all the matches that happened today.”

Curiosity piqued, the amber-eyed man took a seat next to her and peered in. As he saw the video she was watching, he could not help but raise a brow in surprise.

“I didn’t think they would be participants.”

Lavenna nodded with vehemence. “Right?! Now I get why you’re only 777th.”

Upon her projected hologram, two women with manes of golden hair stood, surrounded by the unconscious bodies of ten fighters. Although the rankings of those on the ground were hardly noteworthy, the numbers engraved on the women with near-identical features were.

[20 - A Team]

[19 - A Team]

“But it seems like they’re in another block.” Zexus said, noting that the uniforms the two wore had blue line patterns instead of red like theirs.

“Good. I don’t wanna get my ass kicked yet.” Lavenna waved off, shooting him a look. “That said, you guys did get completely destroyed today. I’m assuming you didn’t sandbag on purpose.”

Zexus shook his head. He would have felt hurt by the accusation, but what she said was indeed correct. He really was not carrying his weight during the match, but he had his own reasons, reasons that she had likely already guessed. “I wanted to know how the point system worked, and find at least one more person to trust.”

“And that’s June, right?” Lavenna asked, receiving a nod from her partner. “You know, I’ve been thinking about it as well, but don’t you think this ‘team’ thing is a little odd?”

The Kitsune raised a finger. “I mean, think about it. The rule of the highest flag scorer going through, and then reviewing what just happened in your match. The system seems to be geared towards having one person with exceptional abilities capture the flag, just like that speedster girl did, and the rest basically just standing on defense and loitering.”

“But that’s only with an exceptional Ego. Not everyone has one that can operate well independently.” Zexus said.

“I mean…I do.” Lavenna said with a smirk.

Eyeing her, he smiled faintly. “I suppose you do. A solitary ‘hero’ then?”

“If I can get into the next match. Yes.”