The morning was cold, and a thick mist enveloped the mountain village where the elite class students were staying. The air was filled with the scent of damp earth and pine trees, and the faint chirping of birds gave the place a serene aura. However, the village’s tranquility did not reflect the moods of the students, who barely managed to get out of bed at Jian Xing’s command.
Isaac yawned widely, rubbing his eyes as he walked along a narrow, rocky path with Cornelius and Lucy. They were heading to a clearing where their morning warm-up, ordered by Jian at an absurdly early hour, would take place.
“Why does he always wake us up at such an inhuman hour?” Isaac muttered, stuffing his hands into his hoodie pockets to shield them from the cold.
Cornelius walked beside him, calm as ever, holding a thermos of hot tea. His gaze wandered somewhere among the mountain peaks.
“At least the sun is already rising. That’s almost like a reward” Cornelius remarked, though his tone was full of irony.
Indeed, the first rays of sunlight were breaking through the mist, illuminating the trees with a golden glow.
Lucy, walking a few steps behind, suddenly rushed closer. She was holding a notebook in one hand and a pen in the other. Her cheeks were slightly flushed from the cold, and her eyes sparkled with enthusiasm.
“Hey, do you know this place has an interesting history?” she began, nearly bouncing in place. “Apparently, a group of Awakened used to live here, protecting these mountains from mutants. It was back when humanity was just starting to understand what Awakening was…”
Isaac glanced at her with a faint smile.
“Oh, so you can write?” he asked, with a hint of amusement.
“I can even read!” she retorted indignantly, tapping her notebook with her pen. “And you should appreciate that someone here cares about culture, considering all you do is complain about mornings.”
Cornelius chuckled quietly, his eyes still fixed on the mist dissipating over the clearing.
“If culture can help us do thirty thousand push-ups and run through the mountains, then by all means, educate us further” Cornelius said in his characteristic calm tone.
Lucy rolled her eyes but didn’t respond as they reached the clearing. Jian was already there, standing with his hands clasped behind his back. His silhouette was almost motionless, as if he were part of the landscape.
“Five minutes late,” he said calmly, though his tone was firm enough to command respect. “That doesn’t bode well for today’s task.”
Isaac sighed softly, knowing the day had only just begun, and he already wanted to go back to bed. Cornelius glanced at Jian, pulling a twig from his mouth.
“What’s on the agenda today, coach? A marathon, rock climbing, or throwing rocks at mutants?” he asked with a smile that was clearly meant to provoke Jian.
Jian looked at him coldly, though the corners of his mouth twitched in something that might have been almost a smile.
“A bit of everything” he replied, pulling a whistle from his pocket. “Now, warm-up. Thirty thousand push-ups. And before you ask—no exceptions.”
The group groaned in unison, but they knew they had no choice. The day in the mountains promised to be long and full of challenges.
The entire day for the elite class students was spent in exhausting activities and constant challenges thrown at them by Jian. After the grueling warm-up that left them drenched in sweat, they moved on to scaling steep slopes, balancing exercises on fallen tree trunks, and a run through the forest with obstacles. Everyone had their moments of triumph and failure—some fell into mud, others tripped over protruding roots.
Makoto, who was starting to open up to the elite class students, discovered something remarkable during one of the breaks. After a short walk into the forest, he stumbled upon natural hot springs hidden among the rocks. He informed the rest of the group, causing a stir—it was finally an opportunity to wash off the dirt and sweat of the entire day.
When evening came, the students gathered around a campfire. Cornelius sat to the side, leaning against a tree trunk and flipping through his book. Tommy, as usual, entertained everyone with his comments, while Anna and Maya tried to prepare a makeshift dinner from the supplies they had. Lucy quietly sketched something in her notebook, occasionally glancing at Makoto, who, with a stone-cold expression, announced:
“I stumbled upon natural hot springs nearby. Want to check them out?”
That was enough to prompt the rest of the group, tired and dirty, to immediately set off in that direction. Only Cornelius, Isaac, and Lucy stayed behind at the camp—for various reasons, they weren’t keen on taking another walk.
Isaac stood by the fire, holding his phone and staring at the screen with growing frustration.
“Damn it… There’s no signal here at all!” he muttered, shoving the device into his pocket.
Cornelius glanced at him over his book, raising an eyebrow.
“Maybe because we’re in the mountains? Genius.”
Lucy looked at Isaac with curiosity.
“Does it bother you that much? It’s just one day without the internet.”
Isaac furrowed his brows, feeling almost accused.
“It’s not just one day. You don’t understand how important my… online matters are.”
Cornelius rolled his eyes.
“Online matters. Sure. Did your favorite actress upload a new video?”
“It’s not… Okay? It’s guild stuff!” Isaac retorted, blushing slightly.
Before anyone could say more, Isaac suddenly looked around the camp and then at one of the tall evergreens nearby.
“Actually… there might be a way to get a signal.”
Lucy raised an eyebrow, watching as he headed toward the tree.
“You’re not actually planning to…”
“Of course I am,” Isaac interrupted with a determined expression. “I just need to climb to the top of this tree. Problem solved.”
Cornelius burst out laughing.
“Great idea, Pilsudski. I’ll enjoy watching you fall on your ass.”
“Thanks for the support” Isaac said sarcastically as he started climbing.
The boy turned out to be surprisingly agile, and after a few minutes, he reached one of the higher branches, finally catching a signal. Triumphantly, he pulled out his phone and immediately began scrolling through his guild chat notifications.
He didn’t notice that Lucy, with natural grace and almost noiselessly, had climbed onto a nearby branch. Her curious nature drove her to see what Isaac was doing. She leaned slightly to peek at his phone screen and saw Isaac logged into the NoHealing guild chat under the name AlphaSigma69.
“Wait… You’re AlphaSigma69?” she asked suddenly, almost shouting in amazement.
Isaac flinched violently, barely maintaining his balance. He looked at Lucy with wide eyes.
“LUCY?! Where… How did you even get up here?!”
“I’ve been sitting here for a few minutes,” she replied calmly, pointing to the branch she was perched on. “So, you’re AlphaSigma69! I can’t believe it’s you!”
Isaac froze, his cheeks turning red. Before he could respond, he lost his balance and fell from the tree, landing with a thud on the soft forest floor below.
“Hmm… Cornelius was right after all,” Lucy murmured, gracefully jumping down from the branch and standing over Isaac. “You should work on your coordination. That was pathetic.”
Isaac groaned, sitting up, while Cornelius, who had witnessed the entire scene, burst into loud laughter.
Isaac, still rubbing his aching side from the fall, looked at Lucy, who was gazing at him with a mixture of surprise and amusement. Cornelius, standing nearby, clutched his stomach as he tried to stifle his laughter.
This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
"How do you know my nickname?" Isaac began, catching his breath. "And stop pulling stunts like that—thanks to you, I nearly broke my ribs."
"It's not my fault you didn't notice I was sitting here," she replied with a grin. "But seriously, AlphaSigma69? I can't believe it. I thought you'd be... you know... more of a sigma."
Isaac looked at her in confusion.
"What’s that supposed to mean?"
Lucy shook her head and sighed.
"Nothing, nothing. It's just… you know, you seemed cooler in the game."
"So, you're saying I’m not awesome enough?" Isaac raised an eyebrow. "But never mind that—how do you know my nickname?"
Lucy looked at him seriously and pointed at herself.
"Because I’m in the guild too. Hero112."
Isaac froze, his mouth opening as if he wanted to say something, but no words came out. Cornelius, who had been silent until now, raised an eyebrow, pretending to be surprised.
"Well, well, Pilsudski, it seems our little Lucy has bigger secrets than we thought," Cornelius remarked, leaning against a tree.
Lucy eyed him suspiciously.
"What do you mean by that?"
Cornelius shrugged and adjusted his red scarf.
"I'm just saying I knew Isaac was AlphaSigma69, but you, Lucy... that was unexpected."
"You knew?" Isaac asked, staring at Cornelius in disbelief. "Why didn’t you say anything?"
"Why should I have bothered?" Cornelius replied dismissively. "We weren’t supposed to mix the game with our real lives. But since another player has revealed themselves, there’s no point hiding the fact that I’m in the guild too."
Lucy, suddenly animated, pointed at him.
"Aha! Then you must be Supplier!"
Cornelius looked at her with a mix of embarrassment and irritation, shaking his head.
"Really? You think it’s me?"
"Well, yeah. It fits!"
Cornelius let out a heavy sigh.
"No. I’m Hunter11, at your service," he announced theatrically, bowing.
A moment of silence followed. Isaac and Lucy stared at Cornelius as if trying to process this revelation.
"Hunter11?!" Isaac exclaimed. "Why didn’t you tell us?! That explains everything!"
"Explains what?" Cornelius asked coolly.
"That you keep beating me in every strategy! I thought you were using cheats!"
Cornelius rolled his eyes.
"I'm not your enemy, Pilsudski. But do you know what’s really strange? That the four of us from the guild all ended up in the elite class at the same school. That can’t be a coincidence."
"Wait, the four of us?" Lucy asked, confused.
"Yeah," Cornelius replied, sitting on a fallen log. "If I’m Hunter11, Isaac is AlphaSigma69, and you, Lucy, are Hero112… that leaves 8Supplier8. I’m almost certain that if we’re all here, then they are too. Maybe even in our class, or someone connected to it. It could’ve even been their plan to gather us here."
At that moment, Lucy's phone vibrated. She glanced at the screen and furrowed her brow.
"Okay, this is weird… I just got a message."
"Wait, how do you even have reception here?" Isaac asked, leaning in to look.
"Not everyone has such crappy phones as you," Cornelius replied, but then his tone grew serious. "But really, who’s the message from?"
"Supplier," Lucy replied, sounding surprised.
The words hung in the air as the trio stared at her phone screen. Lucy read the message aloud:
"Hello, Hero112. I’m tired of hiding. I want to meet you because I trust you the most. I want us to be friends in real life. I know who you are, Lucy, and I’m closer than you think. Let’s meet at the abandoned factory near our camp at 3 AM. Remember, come alone."
Isaac and Cornelius exchanged stunned looks.
"That sounds… suspicious. But if they know this much, then I was right—it’s someone from the class or staff," Cornelius said, frowning.
"Don’t go alone," Isaac said firmly.
"I wasn’t planning to," Lucy replied, slipping her phone into her pocket. "But if it really is someone from the class, we need to find out who it is."
Cornelius stood, dusting off his pants.
"Then we’re going together. The abandoned factory, right? We passed it on the way up here."
"Yeah," Lucy confirmed. "It’s not far. But what if it’s a trap?"
Isaac smirked.
"That’s why we’re all going. If it’s really one of us, we’ll figure out who they are. If it’s someone else… well, we’ll handle it."
Cornelius nodded, though a shadow of unease flickered in his eyes.
"Let’s meet at 2:30, by the camp exit. Let’s hope everyone will be out cold after today’s training."
With the plan set, they waited until everyone returned from the hot springs and fell asleep. The biggest challenge was their instructor, who had disappeared somewhere. The teens hoped they’d be back before he noticed.
Before leaving, Cornelius scanned the sleeping students, ensuring everyone was accounted for. His gaze lingered on Maya, who slept with slightly furrowed brows, as if still processing the day’s events.
"No students are missing," he said quietly, glancing at Isaac and Lucy. "That means the fourth player isn’t one of the students."
Isaac leaned against the doorframe, lost in thought.
"So, who could it be? Maybe Simon, Barbara, or Jian?"
Lucy, holding her phone, looked at them seriously.
"What if it’s Philip? I mean, he could’ve arranged to gather us all in one class."
Cornelius raised an eyebrow.
"Philip? Well, it’s possible."
Isaac shrugged.
"Maybe, but if that’s the case, why drag us into something like this? And why operate this way? He doesn’t seem like the type to hide."
"Maybe we’re trying to figure out too much at once," Lucy said, putting her phone away. "For now, let’s head to the factory and see what’s going on."
They ran toward the abandoned factory, trying to make as little noise as possible. The night was eerily quiet—too quiet, which Cornelius noticed almost immediately. Earlier, while hiking through the mountains, they occasionally heard the sounds of mutants roaming the nearby ruins. This time, though… nothing. Not a single noise or silhouette moving in the darkness.
Cornelius glanced around nervously, listening, but he didn’t see or hear anything. He decided not to mention it to the others—he didn’t want to stress them unnecessarily.
They reached the factory after about fifteen minutes of brisk walking. It was a massive structure made of rusted steel, its tall chimney disappearing into the night sky. The shadows of the building seemed even more sinister under the pale moonlight.
"And now what?" Isaac asked, resting his hands on his knees and trying to catch his breath. "There’s no one here."
Lucy pulled out her phone to check for any new messages from Supplier. Her eyes widened in surprise as she saw a new message on the guild’s general chat:
(8Supplier8): "Someone hacked my account! If anyone got messages, ignore them. Hero112, I know you’re naïve. Don’t go to any suspicious places!"
"It’s a trap…" Lucy whispered, feeling a chill run down her spine.
Before they could react, ten masked figures emerged from the shadows surrounding the factory. Each of them radiated the aura of an Awakened—quick, skilled, and their movements showed years of combat experience.
"This must be plan B" Cornelius said, grabbing a nearby rusty pipe and channeling his spiritual energy into it.
Isaac narrowed his eyes, preparing for a fight.
"We don’t have a choice. We’ll handle this."
The fight erupted violently. Five attackers charged at them head-on, while the other five stayed back, cutting off any escape routes. Isaac and Cornelius fought with everything they had, trying to hold their ground and protect Lucy. She, on the other hand, focused on dodging attacks—her speed was the only thing giving her a chance to survive against such experienced opponents.
"Left, Lucy!" Cornelius shouted as one of the attackers swung at her.
She managed to avoid the strike, but moments later, another assailant hit her in the side. Lucy fell to the ground, only for a third masked figure to knock her unconscious with a powerful blow to the back of her head.
"LUCY!" Isaac yelled, charging toward her.
Before he could reach her, the five attackers who had stayed back grabbed Lucy’s limp body and began retreating deeper into the factory.
"We have to stop them!" Cornelius shouted, but the remaining five attackers blocked their way.
The fight grew more desperate. Isaac and Cornelius pushed themselves to their limits, but the attackers' experience and numbers overwhelmed them. One of the masked men landed a heavy punch that sent Isaac flying several meters back, slamming him into a steel wall.
Cornelius, realizing how dire the situation had become, knew he needed to do something drastic.
"I have no choice..." he whispered, gathering his spiritual energy into one concentrated point.
But before he could unleash his power, the factory doors burst open with a deafening crash. Jian Xing stormed in, moving with incredible speed. His eyes glowed with red light, and the aura radiating from him made the attackers instinctively step back in fear.
"Alright, kids," Jian said in a calm yet commanding tone. "It’s my turn now."
What followed was chaos. Jian moved like a blur, his precision and strength unmatched. Each strike he delivered incapacitated an attacker in a single hit. Within minutes, the fight was over, the masked figures lying defeated on the ground.
Jian turned to Isaac and Cornelius, who were both breathing heavily and nursing their injuries.
"Neither of you broke anything, right?" Jian asked, his sharp gaze scanning them.
Cornelius released the energy he had been gathering, nodding.
"Nothing serious, but Lucy... they took her."
Jian clenched his fists, his expression growing colder.
"Go back to the camp. I’ll handle this."
With those words, Jian disappeared into the shadows, leaving Isaac and Cornelius alone in the wreckage of the factory.