The platoon gathered in front of the familiar stump, the air damp from the earlier rain. Kaiden stood at attention alongside the others, eyes focused on Sergeant Boran as he rubbed his bald head thoughtfully. The sergeant’s gaze swept over them, as if sizing everyone up, before he finally spoke.

"Alright, listen up," Boran began, his voice firm but not loud. "Today we’re going to go over the basics of dungeon tactics—what to expect, how to handle yourselves, and how to keep each other alive. If you've got any questions, raise your hand. But keep it relevant. I don’t have time for dumb questions."

Kaiden glanced around at the others. They were all silent, eager to absorb whatever knowledge the sergeant was about to impart. Everyone knew how crucial these tactics would be—not just for passing the final trial dungeon, but for their survival in the real thing.

"After I’m done explaining the basics," Boran continued, "I’m going to split you off into parties of four. These will be your potential parties for the actual dungeon run at the end of training. Consider this your first step toward working as a team. You may be unacquainted as of now, but you’ll learn to trust each other. In the dungeon, everyone’s life depends on each other."

Kaiden shifted on his feet, his mind already racing with thoughts of who he’d end up with. Other than Davick, he hadn’t really interacted with anyone else besides a few other Bracers, but he wouldn’t be teamed up with another Bracer.

Sergeant Boran paused, rubbing his head again before stepping forward. "Alright, let’s talk about formations."

Sergeant Boran began pacing in front of the platoon, his boots crunching softly on the damp ground. “In the dungeon, there’s no perfect formation. Everything is fluid, depending on the terrain, the type of dungeon, and the monsters you’ll face. But, there are some basic principles to follow.”

He stopped in front of one of the privates, gesturing toward him with a quick nod. “You, Private Drever. Stand up.” The mousy girl from earlier quickly complied, standing straight. “Bracer, right?”

“Yes, Sergeant,” she replied.

Boran pointed to another trainee, a tall guy with broad shoulders. “You, Dalry. Defender?”

“Yes, Sergeant.”

“Good. Drever, I want you to stand behind Dalry. Now, you two over there, Striker and Caster, right?” Boran gestured toward two others who nodded. “Stand on either side of Dalry.”

The platoon watched as the four of them shifted into position. Boran motioned to the rest of the group. “What you’re looking at is a standard party formation. Defender in front, Striker and Caster flanking, and Bracer at the back. The Caster could sometimes stand beside the Bracer, or sometimes behind, depending on the situation and the range of the Caster.”

He let the image sink in for a moment before continuing, “The Defender’s job is simple—keep the enemies off the rest of the party. Strikers, your job is to hit hard and fast, picking off the enemies while the Defender holds the line. Bracers, your role is to keep everyone alive and support where needed. Casters are the ranged damage dealers, taking out enemies from a distance.”

Kaiden listened intently, already picturing himself in the role of Bracer, despite his earlier reluctance. He didn’t have healing magic or buffs, but his Regeneration skill might keep him on his feet long enough to keep others alive.

Boran continued, “The key to success in any dungeon is communication and trust. If your Defender goes down, the whole formation falls apart. If your Bracer gets taken out, the rest of you won’t last long either. You need to watch each other’s backs at all times.”

He scanned the group. “Any questions so far?”

A hand shot up from the middle of the group. “Sergeant, what happens if the formation breaks? Like, if we get overwhelmed?”

Boran nodded, expecting the question. “Good. In the heat of battle, formations will break. That’s inevitable. The most important thing to remember is to regroup as quickly as possible. If you're separated from your party, fall back to the Bracer or Defender—whichever is closest. The last thing you want is to be isolated in a dungeon."

Kaiden absorbed every word, thinking back to the chaos of their mock battle in basic training. If things could get that messy during a simulation, he could only imagine what it would be like in a real dungeon, with monsters and death on the line.

Boran clapped his hands once. “Alright, now we’re going to split off into parties. I don’t care if you like the people in your group or not. You’re going to learn to work together because that’s the only way you’ll survive in the dungeon.”

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Kaiden’s heart raced as Boran began calling out names.

Once the parties were formed, Kaiden glanced around at his group with mixed feelings. He was the Bracer, which he had finally come to terms with, and Davick was their Defender, something he was genuinely happy about. Davick was reliable, strong, and more than capable of holding the front line.

Their Striker was Coren Jass—a guy who had a no-nonsense vibe about him. Kaiden had observed Coren throughout training and noticed the guy never smiled, never joked around, and only spoke when necessary. He was all business. While Kaiden admired his dedication, it felt like working with a rock—solid but cold.

Then there was their Caster, Tybalt Hargrave—the noble’s son. Every piece of fiction Kaiden had consumed on Earth painted nobles as proud, arrogant, and disdainful of anyone who didn’t share their status. He’d hoped that here, things might be different. He prayed that Tybalt would prove him wrong.

He didn’t.

Tybalt was the epitome of every stuck-up noble stereotype Kaiden had ever encountered. The guy walked around as if the world owed him something, his head held high, not in a way that showed confidence but in a way that screamed superiority. He wasn’t outright obnoxious or the type to throw out "Do you know who my family is?" threats, but the smugness that oozed from him made Kaiden’s skin crawl.

Everyone knew it was odd for a noble to be placed in Dungeoneer training with them. There had to be some story behind it, but no one knew what it was. A few had asked, but Tybalt always brushed them off, dismissing the questions with an air of superiority. His favorite response was, "The affairs of nobles aren’t the business of commoners." That shut people up quickly, and after a while, no one bothered trying to speak with him anymore.

The message was clear: Tybalt Hargrave wasn’t interested in making friends.

Kaiden, trying to at least make nice, approached Tybalt and said, “It’s nice to have you on the team, Tybalt.”

Tybalt snorted and replied, “Don’t ever refer to me by my given name. While I’ve been reminded we don’t use titles in the military, you may refer to me as Private Hargrave only.”

What an asshole! Kaiden grit his teeth. “Fine. Private Hargrave, glad to have you on the team.”

Tybalt raised an eyebrow and said dryly, “The honor is all yours.”

Kaiden sighed internally, hoping that the noble’s attitude wouldn’t get in the way of them actually succeeding. The last thing they needed was someone with a superiority complex messing up their cohesion. Tybalt’s abilities were impressive, no doubt—but personality-wise? He was going to be a problem.

Davick face-palmed and shook his head, clearly annoyed by the exchange, while Coren remained completely unphased, his expression as stoic as ever. Kaiden caught Davick’s eye, and they shared a look of mutual exasperation before turning back to focus on Sgt Boran who had just finished making the last party of four.

Boran said, “Get to know your party members' abilities, strengths, and weaknesses. You’ll live or die by them in the dungeon. Begin!”

Everyone started discussing their capabilities. In Kaiden's group, Coren went first. He explained his two abilities: "My first ability is Crushing Blow. It's an offensive skill that lets me strike with enough force to break armor or shatter shields. Then there’s Titan's Might. It boosts my physical strength for few minutes at a time." Coren’s tone was matter-of-fact, showing his no-nonsense attitude.

Davick went next, stating, "I’ve got two abilities as well. First is Gust. It creates bursts of wind, useful for pushing back enemies or slowing them down. At level 1, it’s not too powerful yet, but it can buy us some time. The second is Arcane Empower. I can infuse arcane energy into my shield and weapon, which lets them take more punishment. Handy for taking hits."

Then came Tybalt. He gave a condescending look before saying, “I have three abilities, but I’ll only be disclosing one—Ice Shards." He said it like that was all anyone needed to know. Davick and Coren tried to press him to share the others, but Tybalt held firm. "The others won’t be relevant for this dungeon. If you have an issue with that, feel free to take it up with Sergeant Boran. He’ll vouch for me."

Davick and Coren exchanged irritated glances but didn’t push further and Kaiden didn’t feel like getting into it with the man either.

Kaiden then shared, "I’ve got Arcane Vision, which lets me see magic, and Regeneration, so I can heal myself quickly." He decided to keep his third ability, Mindforge, to himself. It wasn’t combat-related, and like Tybalt, he didn’t see the point of mentioning it. No one questioned him, except Tybalt, who looked outright insulted.

“How the hell are you supposed to be our Bracer with those pathetic skills?” Tybalt sneered.

Before Kaiden could respond, Davick jumped to his defense, “What the fuck are you on about!” He got right in Tybalt’s face, his voice low and dangerous. Even Coren stepped in to back Kaiden up, sort of. “While his abilities might seem lackluster,” Coren said flatly, “we can count on him to be sturdy enough to support in combat and he can at least spot magical traps.”

Magical traps? Kaiden thought, surprised. He was pretty sure someone had mentioned there were no traps in Wood-grade dungeons, but he decided to keep quiet about that.

Tybalt, feeling the pressure, scoffed and backed off. “Fine, whatever. This dungeon will be a piece of cake anyway,” he muttered dismissively.

The group discussed their abilities a bit more, working out a few strategies and possible synergies, but before they could dive deeper, Boran cut them off.

“That’s enough for today. Tomorrow, we’ll discuss dungeon gear,” Boran announced.

“Does that mean loot?” someone asked from another group.

“No,” Boran replied sharply. “That means potions, weapons, supplies, and bags of holding.”

Let’s freaking go! Kaiden thought with a grin as he couldn’t help but feel a tinge of excitement.