"Congratulations on clearing the test!"
The jungle was gone, like a bad dream.
A cheery voice greeted her as she seemed to wake up from her slumber. The golden walls of the large hall seemed to convey a sense of peace and security, but she could still feel a lingering fear. Belatedly, she realized that the scrawny body that she was slowly getting used to was once again changed to the supremely frustrating wax doll.
Her gaze slowly turned to the one talking, and it was shockingly a blue-haired beauty who uncannily resembled an amateur cosplayer in a bikini suit. After the blankness in her mind had worn off, she was ready to face those unfriendly voices from before the test, but instead was greeted by this strange person.
Her heart was briefly elated. It felt the same as when she had been dreading for a practical exam with the stingiest of the teachers, but when she entered the room, the kindest one was waiting instead.
"Your test supervisors seemed quite upset with you!"
And… the kind teacher told her the examiner was in the other room, where the stingy teacher was staring at her with disgust for being late.
Well, regardless, this person at least seemed to not hate her personally.
"Hoho, what's with the silent treatment? Not used to the container, maybe? Or is it the broken jaw? Nevermind then, first let's get that patched up and then we can talk!"
The 'bikini cosplayer' gave her no time for response as she abruptly grabbed her immobile wax arm and dragged her doll body to a corner of the hall.
"Please, pick one!"
Evelyn's baffled gaze shifted from the strange girl to the wall she pointed at. There was a row of capsules containing people, or was it just bodies? A total of sixteen capsules, all containing different body types. The first one was mysteriously empty, or was that an invisible body?
Evelyn was a bit apprehensive and excited as she looked through the selection. 'Is it going to be my body in the future?' she wondered, and the other person seemed to have guessed her thoughts.
The blue-haired girl twirled around with uncontrollable laughter, though Evelyn had no idea what she possibly found so funny. "Hahahaha… you'll just be borrowing it, just so you know. Tem-puh-rari-ly. You can call me Vera, by the way."
"Oh…"
Some of the pressure she had been feeling to judge the best possible choice disappeared, and she picked the capsule closest to her, which contained a young, pink-haired girl. Vera nodded, and the next moment, Evelyn was looking at a collapsing wax doll from inside the container.
'Wow… I couldn't tell what happened at all. Is it so easy to change bodies?!'
Vera seemed oddly cheerful, as if pleasantly surprised by her choice. "It seems like number eleven is the lucky one today, huh? Come then, let's get started, follow me."
'If I was going to pick one for myself from the selection, it would definitely be the four-armed army looking guy. Although it would be a massive change from what I'm used to, survival comes before anything else. But since this is just temporary, it doesn't matter.'
Her thoughts stopped abruptly as she started to notice how amazing this body was compared to her old one.
'Wow, it's so… springy. And it feels like I have an endless amount of energy. Like I can tear apart mountains with my bare hands, and reach the moon with a single leap.'
It was probably just her imagination, but in any case, this body was definitely far, far superior to the one she used to have.
'I might have been wrong earlier… Maybe for these beings you really can't tell how strong someone is just by looking. Maybe that four armed thing is actually weaker than this little girl.'
She was interrupted from observing 'number eleven' further by her guide, who was now standing in front of a pedestal with a glowing yellow orb floating on top of it.
"This is the crystal core of the supervisor palace. You'll decide on your future here."
As Evelyn stared at the orb blankly, Vera bought up the topic she had been dreading all this time.
"Now then, like I said before, your test supervisors seemed quite upset with you."
The calmness of her tone made a sharp contrast with the peppy and cheerful self she had been showing so far, and it made Evelyn slightly unnerved.
"What did they say? I wasn't told of any rules, so I don't think I could have broken any."
Vera nodded with a smile, but Evelyn could not feel any warmth. "Of course, of course. There are no rules in the test, so how can you break any? According to your supervisors, you barely won by a fluke, and ended up killing a truly outstanding candidate that they were very hopeful for."
Her heart made a dull thump as grievances flooded her mind. Was she supposed to just roll over and die? Even when she somehow managed to win with all the disadvantages, she now had to justify her survival? Mixed with her grievances was a deeply concealed rage.
However, she had dealt with injustice and discrimination before, and she knew that responding based on her emotions when facing such things would only make the results worse.
"I passed the test. I didn't do anything I wasn't supposed to do. If the other person was so outstanding, how could they fail even with all their advantages?" Evelyn's voice was firm, and although no hint of anger could be detected, it was clear that she wasn't pleased with the assessment given by her so-called supervisors.
Only an idiot would be okay with such an assessment, she thought.
"Aww, don't look like that. It's not all bad."
Vera's eyes twinkled, and words seemed to pop out on the 'crystal core' that was supposed to decide her future.
It was a language she had never seen before, but just a glance was enough for the meaning to be conveyed directly into her mind.
[ Evelyn Knox ]
Test Cleared.
Starting condition: 10th of 10 (Bonus +100%)
Injuries sustained from opponents: 0, ranked 1st of 10 (Bonus +100%)
Highest direct elimination: 1st of 10 (Bonus +100%)
Even Vera, who seemed to have expected something, looked shocked. "Y-you… you really killed the guy with the strongest pick with the weakest pick?! And no injuries? No wonder they called it a fluke… but, even if it's a fluke, that's amazing."
Vera's smile was far more genuine this time. "With this, there's no need to worry about what those people said. Normally, all passing candidates get five hundred points, and the supervisors can award a bonus of up to twenty percent if they think someone deserves it."
The blue-haired girl clapped her hands, and a number replaced the 'results' on the core.
<< 2000 >>
"The core is a very objective judge. It cannot be flexible, and only awards based on facts and results. Normally, if the first pick with the strongest body wins, he gets zero bonus. If the supervisors like them, they might get a little, maximum twenty percent, but that's it. The core, however, can give a bonus of up to four times. If your objective bonus is greater than twenty percent, the supervisors not giving you any bonus doesn't matter at all!"
Evelyn's gaze was slightly complicated as she stared at her maxed out score. She had a bad hunch that the entire thing was rigged somehow to make her feel that the system was very fair, and even if everything was against her, she would be judged fairly. But perhaps that was just the pessimist in her. At the very least, this wasn't a bad thing.
[ Base Reward: 500 Energy ]
[ Supervisor Bonus (basic authority): 0 Energy, Penalty Recommended ]
[ System Bonus (core authority) is +300% = +1,500 Energy ]
[ 'System Bonus' is higher, 'Supervisor Bonus' is discarded! ]
[ Total Energy: 2,000 ]
"With this, you can decide your future. I don't know what world you will go to, and what your situation will be like, however, it will almost certainly be very different from what you have been used to till now. You can use this energy to modify your soul, and the benefits it brings you will be with you forever."
It was impossible for Evelyn not to feel moved at all, whether it was rigged or not. As someone who had spent her entire life struggling due to a low starting point, however short that life may have been, she could still feel a burning heat through her heart at the thought of starting fresh. Not just starting fresh, but starting fresh with an advantage.
Even as she was lost in thought, she continued to pay attention to Vera's monologue about the uses of energy points and how they affect the soul. But there was one thought that kept nagging at her since the start. Nevertheless, she had refrained from asking directly, because it was a question that she did not want to know the answer to.
Suddenly, Vera stopped speaking and cleared her throat before continuing in a more sombre tone. "Now before we really begin with the process, let me first inform you of something. Please pay very close attention. Ready?"
Here it comes, she thought. But she could only nod helplessly. "Yeah."
Although her voice was sombre, Vera's gaze was still quite warm. "Evelyn Knox, Lord Chronos has given you this life. You should have died, but you did not. In your new life, you may go to various places, learn various things, and grow stronger."
Contrary to Vera's kind words, Evelyn's thoughts were quite pessimistic. In other words, after the initial investment, they are thrown away to survive on their own. If they prove to be of some use later, good. Otherwise, they are to be discarded like trash.
The warmth from her eyes was replaced with indifference, and her tone grew more professional. "In due time, we shall reach out to you, and you must assist us to the best of your ability. In this matter, you have no choice."
Of course, a tool's usefulness is limited to the resourcefulness of the user. Given how unfathomable this bunch of people seem so far, Evelyn was certain they would find a use for all manner of 'tools', herself being one of them.
Vera seemed to have given this little speech countless times, and even the mannerism and timing of her gestures seemed almost robotic at this point. Nevertheless, her words did not fail to convey the meaning they intended. "Remember, what Lord Chronos can give you so easily, he can take away with just as little effort."
Evelyn couldn't help but commend them for being thorough, if nothing else.
First appeal to her conscience – You would be dead if not for us. If you know how to repay gratitude, your second life should be dedicated to us.
Then, appeal to her logic – You only have to do what you're capable of. It's not like we'll be making unreasonable demands. Moreover, as part of an organization, it is only right to obey your superiors.
Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, dispel any thoughts of rebellion with the threat of death – If you betray us, you'll be crushed like a bug!
All very simple and straightforward, but no doubt very effective. No fluff and filler, no cushioning to make the person delude themselves somehow.
With a clap of her hands, Vera seemed to suddenly switch back to a cheerful, grinning idiot. "Oh, don't look like that. You should already know we're fair if nothing else. Even if there is someone who wants to harm you intentionally from within, the procedures are so rigorous that it would be nearly impossible to do so. Not to mention, you have me looking out for you!"
Evelyn nodded with a gentle smile, wondering internally whether or not this blue-haired girl meant even half of what she said. "Thank you."
Vera seemed to have guessed some of her thoughts, but either she didn't care or did not think exposing them would do any good. "Enough of the depressing stuff! Let's get you the system that suits you the best, and you can start your new journey! The sooner you go, the sooner we can meet again as equals… Hehe, hope you won't forget little ol' Vera when you're a bigshot!"
Vera's words were like a ray of light scattering the dark clouds in the sky, completely evaporating Evelyn's pessimistic thoughts. "I thought I would just get a stronger soul or something… making my body or luck better than others… A system… upgrades? There might be a lot more to this than I thought…"
Vera reached into the solid looking crystal core with a look of concentration on her face, and her hand phased through it easily. After a few minutes, each second of which filled Evelyn with more uncertainty, she finally pulled out a strange yellowish rubber ball.
"Alright then, wait a bit, let's see… hm…"
Evelyn could only make a look of confusion. There was just too little she knew, so she could only remain quiet and wait helplessly.
Suddenly, the blue-haired girl jumped with a smile. "Alright, we'll go with this then! Based on your memories, I've decided that a game like system would suit your growth path best. What do you think? Although it's not very good in terms of growth rate, it's great in terms of managing your growth path. It's not necessarily a good thing to progress faster if you're not going in the right direction, after all."
Evelyn's eyes went wide, and for the first time since she woke up on that meat grinder, she felt a surge of excitement. In her past life, games and novels were her only friends. After all, her strange but proud personality and poor background, combined with her scarred face, were a bit too exotic a taste for most.
"That would be great! That, um, if you don't mind me asking… does that yellow thing contain… my memories?"
Vera seemed to find her reaction very amusing, and burst into giggles. "Hehe, I knew you would think so… It's a bit different, but I suppose you can think of it that way. It's very vague and scattered, but it works. Anyway, no worries, let's just move on to the next step. Place your hand on that crystal ball. Be careful not to use too much force!"
Although the thought of some of her memories no longer being private deeply unsettled her, Evelyn could only reluctantly drop the topic and do as she was told.
As her hand rested on the crystal ball, the room seemed to quickly fill up with windows like some futuristic movie scene. She couldn't help but think it was cool.
"You notice that number on the top, right?"
Her eyes moved, and she noticed the corner that said 'Energy: 2000'.
Vera started patting her on the shoulder as if commending her for a job well done. Even her tone was slightly proud.
"This is the highest amount of energy I have seen anyone get so far. Although it must have not been easy winning with the worst body against someone who got the best of the best, even if it involved a little luck, it's not without its merits. Greater risks mean greater rewards! It's just… there's something I'm curious about…"
"… what is it?"
"Why did you choose the weakest body? Did you already know you will get the highest bonus that way? And how could you be sure that you will win with that? Even the boon must have already been taken by the time the last picker arrived. Only an idiot would put themselves at an even further disadvantage, right?"
Evelyn's mind spun as something clicked. "So the other body wasn't supposed to have its legs crushed…"
As for the boon, she must be talking about the coin.
Vera's look turned grave. "Crushed legs…? No way, we don't give that much of a handicap… no, maybe one of the earlier participants sabotaged it! But in that case, they would have received a heavy penalty from the core after passing, and the energy they would end up with should be abysmal…"
The blue-haired girl looked a bit distressed as she kept mumbling to herself. "Why wouldn't the supervisors stop it? It makes little sense… what the hell are they thinking?"
Evelyn felt a twisting feeling in her gut as Vera's mind seemed to wander. It was like the doctor that was going to operate on her kept arguing with someone about something irrelevant, as if her operation was an afterthought. "Uhm… Vera…"
"Ah! Sorry… I guess I can take care of all that later… Let's get started then… You can place your hand here, and the targeting moves with your thoughts, if you focus on one thing for a long time, more details will be revealed if available… and then…"