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Location: Throne hall Beneath the Crypts of Purgatory
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“What do I desire, you ask?” He chuckled. “I desire to live. If only you would be kind enough to grant me my life.”
“I could, but—I see no reason to.” A demon replied. It sat on a throne crafted from the bones of a primordial dragon. Its skin emanated red flares like magma, and its eyes—the black eyes of the devil. “Do not misunderstand, human. I do relish your presence, but even I, cannot easily grant anyone such a wish.”
Kneeling in front of the demon was a human. A human shackled in chains. “Then, I must ask, why did you ask about my desires? You must know better than anyone. Any man who has ever been sent here only ever desired one thing—to live again. Did you hope my answer would be any different? I’m but a human no different than the 1000’s before me. How can I not, but want to live again?”
The demon’s eyes narrowed. “But you’re different. In a way, you don’t yet realize. Most who asked me to let them live, asked with a purpose. After years of rotting in here, they sought salvation. A chance to redeem themselves. You possess no such desire. Should you get another chance, you would live exactly the way, you did before.”
The human’s eyes met the demon’s, “What’s so wrong about that?”
⓵
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Location: Forest of DeadWood
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➤〣 You Leveled Up〣
➤〣 You Leveled Up〣
“I leveled up twice!” one kid shouted.
“Humph? Just two? I’ve already reached level 10,” another one reciprocated.
The forest spread wide over 1000 meters. Unlike what its name implied, it was overflowing with life. Brimming trees, lesser monsters—it was a place where young ‘Venics’ were sent to first level up.
“Hehe! I killed a slime.” A girl giggled.
“Pft! A slime? I killed a wolf and a goblin.” A boy declared proudly.
Students aged 12 on average roamed the forest searching for lesser monsters to hunt. They wore the academy’s red blazer. The boys wore black cotton fleece pants, while the girls wore mini skirts with black stockings.
All kids eagerly hunted lesser monsters and leveled up for the first time. All but one—Alasteir Moonbleed. He rested beneath a tree, one leg stretched, one leg folded. His back leaned against the tree and his arms crossed behind his head.
Sunlight crept through the tree branches and caressed his snowy skin. “How nice.” he murmured as he closed his eyes and decided to take a nap.
But an unwelcome shadow loomed over him. “Shouldn’t you also hunt?” Vivian asked.
Alasteir opened his eyes in annoyance as he heard an annoying question from an annoying person—Vivian Rothsavoy. Her straight lavender hair gently reflected the sunlight. Her eyes expressed the same shade as her hair. Although she was only 12, her breasts were fairly developed and compared to other girls. She was relatively tall.
“Hunt?” Alasteir scoffed. “The wolves here, lack claws and fangs. The goblins have no eyes. The slimes are harmless. Every creature here is crippled. This forest is nothing but a playground created by the academy for fools who lack any experience. I will ‘hunt’ when there are real monsters, not some joke of a creature.”
Vivian sighed. What else could I have expected? She thought. For a moment, she deemed herself as a fool for asking such a question to such a person.
Ding! Ding!
The sound of the bell attracted the attention of all students. Understanding the signal, all students gathered around in a line. In total, eight lines were formed. Each line carried a total of 15 students.
“Wasn’t that exciting?” The one who stepped out of the teacher’s tent, and stepped up the podium, was a young man in his 30’s with amber eyes and blonde hair. His name was Cain Moonbleed. “To most of you, this might have been the first time you ever encountered an inhuman being. You all have been sheltered your entire life. The purpose of this forest was to give you some experience about what is to come,” On his face, Cain had a gentle and encouraging smile. “I feel proud to say, in just one day most of you managed to reach levels unreached by previous batches.” He flicked his fingers, and a wide and transparent blue screen emerged above him.
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
Students List:
➤〣 Isadore Selwood〣 Level 19
➤〣 Fredly Misor〣 Level 18
➤〣 Quinn Misor〣 Level 18
➤〣 Vivian Rothsavoy〣 Level 17
➤〣 Claire Kelrington〣 Level 16
➤〣 Serina Rothsavoy〣 Level 16
.
.
All names of all students and the levels they reached were presented on the screen. Alasteir found his name at the very bottom.
➤〣 Alasteir Moonbleed〣 Level 0
He expected that much, considering he napped the entire day while others hunted.
*Ahem* Cain continued his speech. “The overall average level reached is level 10. That’s two-level higher compared to previous batches. You have all done well,” The students felt pleased hearing Cain’s words. “But, this is only a start. Currently, you all are Rank 10 Venic, once you reach level 20, your levels would reset, and you would become Rank 9 Venic. Meaning, there’s still a long road ahead of you, before you become enlisted. And today, you all shall take the very first step.”
Cain again flicked his finger. The screen above him disappeared. But in front of each line, a spherical portal appeared.
“Your entrance examination result determined your dorms and your class. The following test will determine your rank. Do not take the exam lightly. You will all be transported inside dungeons manufactured by the academy. The monsters present there will not be the same as the ones in this forest. Many have even received life-threatening injuries before.”
Some of the students clenched their fists and gulped.
“You will all enter by the order of your rank in the entrance exam. And, this might be obvious, but—the killing of fellow students is strictly forbidden.”
Alasteir felt Cain’s sharp gaze towards him. Alasteir shrugged, his body language saying, “I know, I know.”
“Now, I bid you all, good luck.”
After announcing all that, Cain left the podium. The students entered the portal one by one. The one to enter first was Alasteir Moonbleed, followed by Vivian Rothsavoy and Isadore Selwood.
Once they entered through the portal, they found themselves in a dark crypt. The portal closed immediately after the three entered the dungeon.
“This dungeon seems specifically made for only the three of us,” Vivian whispered near Alastair’s ear.
Alastair’s eyes scouted the crypt. The walls were made of up plastered bricks, and the floor was rigid. There was no source of light. The little light present in the crypt seemed to flicker out of the seven tunnels in front.
Meanwhile, Isadore’s eyes fell on Alastair and Vivian, who stuck together. Isadore was a boy, with blue eyes and black hair. He was fairly tall for his age and was extremely good-looking.
Isadore walked past the two and entered one of the tunnels. He did not bother interacting with them. He’d tried interacting once before, during the entrance examination, only to get blatantly ignored by both of them. It was to be expected, after all, Alastair and Vivian were both high-born and came from an esteemed family while Isadore was a low-born.
②
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Location: Velrood Dungeon
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Underneath the crypts, on a room engulfed by darkness. A little egg shone. It was inky black, covered with blue stripes. The egg was about 11 inches tall. For years, the creature inside the egg had slumbered, waiting in the dark. All alone.
It remained in solitude for ages. Patiently waiting.
It’d a purpose. A purpose—a burden placed upon its shoulders even before birth.
After all the years, it’d sensed the time had now arrived.
Crack!
A small crack appeared on the shell of the egg.
Crack! Crack!
Soon, the crack got bigger, and a little claw emerged out of the shell. The claw was transparent like ice, yet it glowed and covered its surroundings with blue light. It even looked like a piece of ice, sculptured to look like a sharp claw.
Crack!
The claw tore through the shell, and soon an arm emerged, followed by a small head. Its slit azure eyes looked cold and fierce. At last, even its reptile-like black tail emerged out.
〣 You have awakened〣
〣 Name: Elbos〣 〣 Race: Frost Dragon〣 〣 Purpose: ????〣
Its skin was ink-black. However, it was covered by azure blue stripes. Even in the darkness, the azure stripes glowed, so did its slit azure eyes.
Underneath the crypts of the Velrood Dungeon, a dragon had awoken from its slumber.
⓷