The equipment storage facility of the 2nd Procurement Division was fairly large.
Claude was currently inside the facility browsing over various different equipment while being accompanied by one of the staff under that scarfaced guy at the reception desk.
"What do these do?" He asked pointing at rows of thin-looking white metal spear that he had seen Rex and company carried during their first meeting.
"They're called shock spears. They were considered the unofficial weapon of ERA's Rangers." The 2nd Division staff proudly introduced them to Claude.
"they're preferred by most since they have both good distance and power for fighting various types of beasts. The bladed tip can give strong vibrations while also capable of delivering over 5,000 volts of electricity in a single charging stab! Though of course, they need to be recharged after some usage."
'Vibrations and shock... These are some fearsome weapons right here.'
"Ah, what about these?" Claude continued to peruse some familiar looking weaponries.
"Those are vibration heat blades. When you twist the handles of those daggers, they will vibrate at high enough frequencies to heat up the blade, allowing it to cut through iron like butter."
"And this?"
"That is a high-conductivity metal tripwire, they..."
"How about these?"
"Electric bolas..."
"Those..."
"STOP!"
*pant* *pant*
"Mister Claude, are you SERIOUSLY going to ask about every single equipment here??" The staff asked with great difficulty as he caught his breath.
He had been explaining each and every single weapons and tools that Claude had pointed out with great details. But by the end of the first section, the staff had already started to run out of breath because of the fast momentum of Claude's questions.
"Eh, I can't?"
"N... Not that you can't, but--"
"As you've read in my file, I have amnesia, most of these stuff are not familiar to me." Claude lied with a straight face.
"No, it's just, if you really had to ask about every single one of them, you can just read the descriptions in the catalogue from my tablet here."
"Oh, that'll be much faster! Why didn't you tell me that before?"
'How would I know that you're going to ask about every single damn thing here like a lost child!' The staff almost screamed out loud.
.
.
In the end, Claude had spent over an hour reading and looking through every weapons and tools as he tried to find the best set of equipment for his examination.
He was a very meticulous person. When he put his mind towards something, he would try to cover every aspect that would be beneficial for him in achieving that thing through whatever means possible.
Right now was no exception.
He had to prepare for all sorts of variables in the wild to not allow any chance for failure. Because only by passing the test could Claude had access to the Bio-Contact strengthening.
Before coming here, he had confirmed about the process of how one could apply for the Bio-contact procedure should one successfully entered a combat Division.
'They're more straightforward than I thought.'
The scarfaced guy had told him that the moment he cleared the test, he would be properly arranged by the Division to register and choose the type of Bio-Contact he'd want.
And since Claude had applied and started the exam 2 days earlier than the trainees batch, he'd also be at the frontmost queue for receiving the Bio-Contact procedure if he succeeded in passing.
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There were currently three types of Bio-Contact ingredients available for three different procedures in Sector-07:
The first was [Iron Skin].
This was a Bio-Contact procedure that made use of the crushed bones of Grade-4 beast Steelback Rhinos as its main ingredient. After completion of the procedure, the receiver was said to be able to have higher density muscles and bones with the skin being the main emphasis for strengthening.
Although the receiver won't have any significant increase in explosive strength or stamina, the body's toughness will become its own weapon when polished properly.
The second procedure was [Heat].
Making use of the tendons of the Grade-4 Crazed Mandrills as its ingredient, [Heat] procedure promised it's receiver the same strengthened skin, muscles, and bones as [Iron Skin]. And although the durability and toughness of the three will never be on the same level as [Iron Skin]. Receiver of [Heat] instead adopted the Crazed Mandrills physical capability to enter the 'Crazed State'.
Crazed Mandrills were known to be one of the most aggresive species in Eden. When in their Crazed State, they increased their blood flow and caused their muscles to heat up and release smokes from all over their body, allowing a temporary burst of strength in muscle springs.
This procedure gave the best effect in terms of short burst of speed and explosive power during combat situations.
And last but not least was [Vigor].
This procedure gave the receiver stamina and vitality as its main enhancement focus. And just like the previous two, the heart of a Grade-4 beast Combat Ursa also gave the receiver a change in the qualities of their skin, muscles, and bones as a whole.
Not as tough as [Iron Skin] nor as explosive as [Heat]. [Vigor] strengths against the other two lie in its balance and stability during fights.
A Combat Ursa was a bear-like creature that went around all corners of the Forest Biome: Eden looking for fights against other strong beasts without rest. Other than its overflowing stamina, Combat Ursa's unyielding tendencies could also be credited to its vitality.
The so-called vitality not only enhance their self-healing capability, but they also seemed to add another layer of enhancement to the physical body in the form of gentle inner force-like energy.
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"I should take this one step at a time." Claude hadn't even had the time yet to decide which one he'd want. Although he looked calm on the outside, the thought of getting these superpowered abilities excited him.
How could it not? Ever since the start of the Third World War period, he had pretty much honed his body potential to its peak and exhausted every room for growth in terms of his self-defense capability.
But now, there was a chance for that barrier to be broken!
There weren't many things in the world that Claude would obsess himself with, but self-preservation happened to be at the top of his list, together alongside his curiosities.
Self-preservation is different from power. It signified his ability to not be harmed in many different scenarios through any means necessary.
Though inevitably, 'any means necessary' also meant that sometimes he needed the option of being able to harm to not be harmed.
"The test will most likely involve some form of hunting to a certain extent, and since I haven't been briefed on the specifics, equipping myself with an all-purpose type weapon will serve a better purpose than a specialized one."
He started to pick out some items from the racks as he pondered on.
'Now if only I could bring some kind of encyclopedia with me to learn about the dangers on the go...'
"Ah!"
Claude suddenly turned towards the staff who had been waiting by the entrance this entire time.
"What is it?"
"Do this tablet also have catalogues on the flora and fauna within the surrounding ecosystems?" Claude waved the tablet with the semi-transparent screen as he asked.
"Yes, they... do but--"
"Can I also borrow this tablet during the exam?"
'...Are you going to ask about every single thing you see in the forest too?' The staff mocked in his mind.
The request was not really unprecedented so the staff had no problem allowing anyone to borrow it. In fact, the Division also encouraged this sort of behavior.
What the staff was worried about was that, just like how Claude had behaved in here, he would also be distracted by every single thing he saw in the forest later.
But of course he had no say on the matter, it was a formal request after all.
.
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"Oh, you're looking good! In fact, you look like a proper Ranger!" The scarfaced receptionist noted.
At present, Claude was back at the 2nd Division administration cabin carrying two sets of shock spears on his back, a heat vibration dagger on his waist, and a roll of steel wire rope tied to his leather belt pouch through some kind of harness.
The rest of the equipment that's not outwardly visible was carried in his single-strap leather backpack on his shoulder.
"I will be in a couple of days." He nodded.
"Good confidence as always, I guess we'll see. Come, I'll brief you on the examination content." The guy hooked his finger on a calling motion as he moved towards the back room of the cabin.
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Inside the back room, Claude was handed some papers with lists of things he had to procure for the test:
5 pounds of Smilodon's pelt (intact)
5 pounds of Forest Boar's Tusk (intact)
100 pounds of meat
10 stalk of Eyeball Plants
10 stalk of...
The list went on and on covering a full 3 pages worth of papers. Claude turned his focus towards the list as Scarface explained the significance of each item one-by-one.
"...A 2-star rank officer of 2nd Division can finish this list in half a day, and it's not just because of his strength I assure you." The guy noted, "You have 5 days."
"Now, I'll show you the range of area that you'll be operating in. Pay close attention since you'll be found dead faster than you'll realize if you go past the boundaries..."
Claude, of course, took notes of everything the receptionist had explained.
.
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Before long, the two finished their briefing session in a timely manner and exited the meeting room.
"Well, guess it's time to set off. Thank you for the lessons." Claude expressed his gratitude.
"I wish you luck!" Scarface nodded.
Claude promptly walked out of the administration cabin and 2nd Division District, going further out the premises passing by the farmlands, breeding grounds, and small forests on the outskirts of Sector-07 until he reached a familiar structure.
'The electric fence.'
It had only been a full day since he'd first arrived in Sector-07 escorted by Rex and company from the 4th Division. Yet he somehow felt it to be even longer than a single week he'd spent inside that bunker underground.
"4th Conquest Division... I guess those guys are strong even for normal Rangers standard." Claude mumbled.
He started flipping through the rest of the list as he moved forward, but before he even reached the range of the fence, a spirited shout was heard from one of the huts stationed near it.
"Heyy, the amnesiac over there!" A silhouette of a figure could be seen from afar waving his hand towards him.
'That's--'
Claude briskly walked another paces forward to meet the face of the person shouting.
"Gill, good to see you again." He returned a light wave back at the guard.
"What's the occasion? Coming to visit?" Gill asked.
"Sort of. I'm also trying to go out for my examination." Claude smiled and pointed towards the fence.
"Oof, you really didn't waste time did ya? Even Rex still hasn't filed his report regarding his last trip."
"I'm sure he's quite busy, I, on the other hand, have nothing else to do in here." He shrugged.
"As if! He probably drank himself dead beside some campfire till late at night yesterday." Gill chortled a bit before turning serious,
"So? Which Division? You're going outside so it won't be the 1st or the 3rd..."
"The 2nd."
"Hm, that's a good pick, it's stable work at least." He commented,
"Just scan your print before going out since you haven't got your Division tag yet."
"Understood, oh by the way can I ask you something?" Claude suddenly remembered something he'd wanted to ask ever since he'd learned about Bio-Contact types.
"Shoot."
"Which Bio-Contact procedure did you go through, I mean what type is it?"
"Me? Mine's [Iron Skin], It's the most appropriate for a Guardian isn't it?" He laughed proudly as he punched his chest.
"I see. Good to know." Though in Claude's eyes, Gill's relatively lanky build was hardly the most suited to be called a Guardian.
"Alright, I'm going to scan myself and go."
"Good luck. And don't die if you can." Gill let him go with a warning.
"Couldn't if I tried." Claude returned the warning as he walked away from the scene.
"That cheeky..."
As a 5th Guardian Division member in charge of manning the fence, Gill had seen too many departures that didn't end with a return trip. He had been too used to it that all he could do was to warn the other parties not to die.