As Reinhardt signaled the start of the exam, the barrier in which the students were confined started glowing.
"W-what?! Why is there so much light?!" Students bickered among themselves. The light glowed so bright that it blinded all the students. When they opened their eyes, all of them were teleported to a mountain near a cliff. All the students were astonished by the sight they were seeing. Two mountains separated by a cliff 2 km wide with many pillars of rock erected by magic acting as obstacles and footing for the exam. Some students went near the edge of the mountain and looked down.
"H-how deep is this?" A student exclaimed in curiosity.
Reinhardt, who was also teleported, said in a stern voice "Students, some of you may have guessed by seeing the sight in front of you, that today's exam is an obstacle course. The distance between the two mountains is 2 km and as you can see the start line present here is where you will start and finish on the other side of the cliff where the finish line is present." The students seemed anxious about the cliff, Reinhardt noticed it and exclaimed "Don't worry about falling down as a magic circle is placed for the safety of students". After hearing this information, the anxiety disappeared from the students and they let out a sigh of relief. But, Reinhardt smirked and exclaimed
"You will be alright, except for a few broken bones here and there."
The students became scared and concerned. But, Reinhardt ignored them and continued
"There are only two rules for this exam
1. Don't kill
2. Don't be killed
If you understand, Then answer me!"
The students reluctantly replied in a reverberating voice.
"Yes sir!"
Reinhardt then commanded the mages to activate the magic circle. A barrier was conjured at the bottom of the cliff. Reinhardt then ordered all the students to get ready and stand near the starting line. The students reluctantly obeyed him and started to get ready for the exam. Jimmy approached Ric and Yota, he requested
"Uh-umm, Mr. Yota?"
"Who is it?" Yota replied as he turned towards him "Oh~ Jimmy, what's up?"
"I-I was just thinking… if you will become my partner for the exam?" Jimmy asked in a reserved manner. Hearing this, Ric glared at him from behind.
"I-If you dont-!" Jimmy was interrupted by Yota "of course buddy! Ric, It's ok if I go with him right?"
Ric sighed and replied in a stern voice "Do as you wish" he then walked away from there. Yota talked with Jimmy with a smile on his face and slowly went away with him in the crowd. Ric who was watching them thought "I am sorry Yota, But, you need to learn this the hard way"
Then after some time, all the students gathered near the starting line. Some of them made teams, Some didn't bother (like Melvin), Some got ready physically, And some readied their magic spells, But, all of them were awaiting the signal to start. Reinhardt came forward and signalled the start "The time limit is till sunset! Now, Day 2 Exam: Obstacle course, begins!"
As soon as they heard this, all the students rushed forward at max speed! Including Jimmy, Yota, Jim and Ren. There were a few exceptions like Melvin, who was lazy, so he started slowly like a turtle. And there was Ric, who went near the instructor Reinhardt and asked
"Sir, are there traps on the pillars?"
"Yes, otherwise this exam won't be called Obstacle course." Reinhardt replied calmly.
Ric started thinking "ok, so there are traps, then maybe 20 minutes? No, let's make it 10 just to be safe."
"Everyone is gone, Why aren't you going forward?" Reinhardt asked in a serious tone.
"That's because I just need some help from you, sir," Ric replied with confidence.
A council member who was standing beside Reinhardt exclaimed "Why would an Examiner help with the exam? Are you stupid?"
"Only 2 rules were stated for this exam, that means we can do everything that doesn't break those rules, like asking help from an instructor. Well, it depends if you want to help or not. But I think a good teacher should help the students when they are in need. Don't you agree sir?" Ric spoke with a smile on his face.
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"What do you–" As the council member was speaking, Reinhardt gestured to him to stop and said "Interesting, Very well, what do you want". A wicked smile crept on Ric's face as he knew his plan would work with the help of the instructor.
Meanwhile, all the students were trying to be the first to reach the finish. Some started fighting each other, Some fell down due to the traps, while Some just stealthily escaped. Yota and Jimmy were trying to figure out the trap's locations and slowly move forward. But, they encountered two people, a mage and a tank, who ambushed them. Yota got slightly cut, he activated his fire suit and counterattacked. The two of them dodged it and took their positions. The mage stood back, at another pillar and started chanting, while the tank fought with Yota at the front, not allowing him to attack the mage. Tarha, the tank who was fighting Yota, was being overwhelmed by Yota's raw power. He thought "What is this guy?! If not for the fact that my class is a tank with high defense, I would've already fainted!" Tarha looked at the mage and asked "Hey, Vivi! Are you done?! I can't hold him any longer." Yota saw an opportunity, as Tarha was distracted and punched him in the face, Knocking him down. But, Vivi the mage was ready with her magic, she exclaimed
"Burn this world with thy flames! FireBall!"
The fireball was as big as Yota. It was rushing towards him. Yota was thinking "heh! I can easily dodge it!" He jumped aside and dodged the fireball. But, as he jumped aside, he saw the fireball going towards Jimmy, who was standing there scared.
"No! Jimmy!" Yota exclaimed, his face full of concern. He ran towards the fireball while thinking "I have to save him! I need to reach there before the fireball does!" Yota marched at full speed and stepped in front of Jimmy to shield him from the attack. The fireball hit Yota and an explosion occurred. Yota got injured and his fire suit got undone. But, he was still worried about Jimmy and asked
"Hey, Jimmy! Are you okay?"
"I-Am fine, but are you ok?" Jimmy asked with concern.
"Don't worry, I'm fine," Yota replied as he stood up and started walking toward the mage. "Even though I can't use a fire suit right now, I can still defeat her. She's a mage, not a tank." Yota reached the edge of the pillars he was standing on and added, "Don't worry, I'll protect you, Jimmy."
"Ugh, I hate this!" Jimmy exclaimed, his frustration evident.
"Huh? What did you say-" Yota's words were cut off as he saw Jimmy, whom he had trusted, suddenly betray him. Without warning, Jimmy pushed Yota from behind, attempting to make him fall down from the pillars. Shocked by this sudden betrayal, Yota managed to grab the edge of the pillar, desperately clinging on to avoid falling.
Yota's voice faltered as he tried to comprehend Jimmy's malevolent demeanor. "Jimmy, why did you-" Before he could finish, Jimmy interrupted with a twisted, evil smile on his face. "How do you feel, Mr. Hero~?" he sneered, dripping with sarcasm. "Acting all cocky, like you're above me. Who do you think you are? You *******!! A hero? How delusional can you be? You're just a show-off, a rat! I can't stand people like you who act like they're something special!"
Yota, who lived a sheltered life in the orphanage under the care of the old man, has only felt love, compassion and brotherhood. It was the first time that he felt this feeling called betrayal. He felt a pang of hurt and confusion as he saw that all of this was a trap.
Jimmy woke up Tarha, Vivi also jumped to the pillar where the both of them were standing. Tarha regained his consciousness and saw Yota clinging on the pillar, he said
"You brat! You dare you hit me like that? How do you feel now that the tables have turned?"
Tarha looked at Jimmy and said "Hey, Jimmy. Let me take care of him!"
Jimmy nodded in agreement as Tarha walked towards Yota to make him fall, with a wicked smile on his face. Yota was confused and many thoughts came to his mind "What did I do wrong? Why are they doing this to me? Is it wrong to save someone?" He remembered what Ric said to him about everyone being an enemy. "Ric, you were right, I am sorry I was naive, I shouldn't have trusted Jimmy. I'm sorry" Tears came out from his eyes, and Yota closed them tightly as he braced himself for the fall. But, he heard something.
*Whoosh*
*Punch*
"Argh! Aaaaaaah!" Tarha groaned
"W-what? Tarha fell down!" Vivi exclaimed in bewilderment.
"You! Why are you here?!" Jimmy yelled in anger.
"Huh? Who is it?" Yota thought as he slowly opened his eyes.
"Yo! Crybaby, How are you doing?" Ric exclaimed with a smug face.
"Ric!" Yota said, his eyes filled with tears. "Waaaaah! I am sowwy!" Yota started crying as Ric pulled him up.
"You stay back buddy, I will take care of them" Ric said to the teary Yota.
"D-do you think you can handle us? You rude *******! " Jimmy uttered with anger and confusion.
Ric released his blood lust, the air became heavy, everything was painted in red.
"W-what is going on?!" Jimmy and Vivi uttered in confusion.
"You’re asking the wrong question, The question should be whether you are capable of handling me or not?" Ric said, a malevolent smile playing on his face.
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