After the classes had ended we got the dreaded homework to be submitted by the end of the week. It'd be nice if we could go home and get some sleep, but sadly that wasn't the case today.
As soon as we got back to the hostel, preparations were made so no one could disturb or worse, eavesdrop on our conversations. After that, Ichika faced an entire division of twenty-four survivors of the screening. She was a team leader along with three others, and someone who gained more influence than anyone else in the screening and the events that followed.
"It has been a week since we started the operations. I would request each team leader to submit reports on their missions and findings," said Ichika.
"My team encountered two third-tier demons last week. Although we had to rush it, we were able to exterminate both of them," reported Alex. Taylor belongs to his team. He describes Alex as a sharp and disciplined individual. His violet eyes and purple hair add more to it.
Considering his team operated in areas demon sightings are rare, this is lucky.
Next to stand up was Katie. Of all the people I knew from the time in screening, only Courtney was on her team. Ain't no way Courtney is talking to me.
"We encountered three demons," she said in an informal tone, her shoulder-length bright hair tied in pigtails now visible after she took off her disguise, "two of the first tier and one of the second tier," she continued to give us a vivid account of the sightings to the best of her ability.
Next was my team. Everyone turned around to look at him, my team leader. There, he sat in a chair with his legs crossed on the table, and a mirror in his hand continuously checking his blond hair. He didn't care a bit about us, or this discussion, or his manners.
"The hell you want?" He asked, uttering his first words in the whole discussion
"The report, Colin," said Ichika.
"You weak shits flail about at every small thing that comes your way," he spat out, "this week was just morons being morons."
Well, that certainly wasn't true. Katie sighed. Alex had the same look as if analyzing his behavior and Ichika continued on her pursuit.
"The report," she repeated.
He stood up, grabbed a newspaper from the shelf, and threw it in her face. If you take his abrasive behavior out of it, you might come to see that that indeed was the report, just not by us.
"You ruined my perfectly good mood," he said as he put the mirror back in its place and left. No one cared, so the discussion went on.
As part of this routine, we analyzed the mission to figure out any attack patterns or something that will give us more insight into the demons. But nothing stood out, at least about the demons.
"Look at this," said Ichika.
"What is it?" asked Katie.
"This mission that Alex led was conducted in a rural area, you know. And yet the response time of the authorities matched that of yours," she pointed out.
Since I had nothing to say, I sat there contributing nothing like most of the others.
"What's so weird about that?" Kelan asked.
"The police mostly rely on the information it receives by the helpline set up. And here in his report, Alex didn't mention the existence of any bystander," said Ichika.
"Isn't it possible for them to have some surveillance in the form of cameras or something?" Christine, a girl on Katie's team, raised a good point.
"Alex, did someone follow you on your way back?" Ichika asked him.
"No," he replied.
"There you go," she concluded. If there were cameras, Alex's team would certainly have been followed. They'd probably be breaking news by now.
I looked at the newspaper which now lay on Ichika's side of the table. There was a photo of a masked person who was spotted in the fifth district's local market Battling a demon with a flux gun.
"I don't hate being famous, but this was a step too far,"
If not for the disguise or my mask, I would already be caught and my death set in stone by the instructor. This class had 25 people not long ago.
"Wouldn't it be too expensive to plant surveillance cameras and have a ton of people monitor them?" Katie asked.
"For a small region it is possible, but not for an entire district or country," said Ichika
They detect demons without being there. No people informed them, and no surveillance happened. That means they have some special methods available for detecting the presence of demons.
"We also have to take into account that such a method only applies to demons. Our presence was not detected by this method," said Alex
This narrows down the possible correct answers to one.
"A method to detect the presence of Kai," said Ichika.
Demons possess Kai. Kai is the energy they release from their bodies. My experience in the screening tells me not to mess with it. Humans can learn Kai too, but we have to train for a significant time before we can battle demons using it. Until then, the Flux guns we have, or rather we stole will be used.
"When do we start our training?" I asked her.
Ichika took her time to think before giving an answer.
"There are two requirements to start training and learn the use of Kai. One is that we need a place where we can train without any problems. And second is--"
Her face turned a bit serious before she completed her statement.
"That we prepare ourselves for being investigated seriously by the Government of Asnad," she said.
It was inevitable. At this point, we have been spotted multiple times in more than one district while fighting demons. They are going to try and catch us. Avoiding the authorities should be our priority.
This got a reaction from almost everyone in the class.
"We can't be caught, no matter what, or else..." muttered a girl from Alex's team.
If someone is caught and confesses something significant to our assignment which should be unknown to any outsiders, that would be the end of them. They won't be given any mercy by the instructor. That is the rule of this assignment.
"And it's not just us. The other divisions of the survivors are trying their best not to be discovered by any outsiders," said Jason, a guy on Alex's team.
The other divisions, huh? I wonder how they are doing. We were separated into divisions right after our screening. And since then no contact has been established.
We in Asnad have some measures in place already which allow us to shield ourselves and stay in plain sight while carrying on our missions.
Everyone in this class wears a disguise when they are in school, and when we are on a mission we wear masks. Even if someone were to be caught while on a mission it is a safeguard that they won't connect that person to the students at Iven high in the fifth district. We just have to make sure we are not in trouble while we are at school.
"Taylor, I asked you to make that report on the history of demons. Is it done?" asks Alex.
"Yes. I have sent it to everyone's phones via encrypted mail," said Taylor
"Take note of that information and then erase it," said Ichika as she left. Watching her hair swaying left and right, I recalled I had something to talk to her about. Now might not be the best time for it.
* * *
After the discussion was over, Taylor and Kelan came over to my room. There was one other person with them.
"We're really doing this, aren't we?" Kelan asked before I could put forth my question.
"Unbelievable," said Phil, a guy on Ichika's team, "this is just so frustrating... I mean I can't bring myself to accept it."
"I know, right? We thought we'd be enjoying our lives when suddenly one day we are screwed all over by the instructor. Who the hell is he?"
"We don't know his name. We don't know his face. Nothing... just nothing. He's out there planning the demise of all of us probably," said Kelan
Those who do not comply with his orders are killed. We had seen that first hand during the screening and a little over a week ago.
"I don't know how long I'll last. A part of me just believes the guy who died did the right thing," Phil's voice sounded weak. His hands trembled as they moved on from rubbing his chest to head then his neck. This isn't good
I rushed straight to him, "Calm down," I restrained his hands from moving which caused his voice to break a bit more but he couldn't speak properly," We do the right thing the right way. We have time, right? All the time we want," I tried my best to bring him back.
He stopped trying to get his hands out of my grip and buried his face near his elbow, "I don't wanna die like that," he goes. He was under stress and he didn't look like he could handle much of it.
"The weak hold no power. It is frustrating, to say the least, but we have no choice except to obey the instructor, for now," I had to be a bit forceful here and make him aware of reality while giving him some hope, which I wasn't certain existed.
For us, there is probable death one way and certain death the other way.
I glared hard at Kelan, why did you bring him here?
I don't know...he just came with us. Of course, this was what I assumed his words were by the expression he wore.
"Yeah. If there was a clear deadline for the assignment we would have been told so by the instructor," Taylor tried to follow my lead and console Phil.
That is our one saving grace. There is no time restraint on us. But then the whole assignment can be interpreted another way, as Ichika had pointed out once.
"Yup. But I also agree that this will be going on for a while. The very fact that we were given as much time as we liked means the instructor wants us to take it slow and steady," said Kelan, repeating the words that came out of his team leader.
We are promised to be relieved of our duty as soon as we complete our assignment to eradicate demons in their entirety.
So I believe that our first step should be to acquire as much information on the demons as we can.
"One last thing," Kelan said. It was as if he had wanted to ask this but somehow couldn't put it forth until now, "has anyone recovered their memories yet?"
No. And that is the most frustrating part of the assignment.
None of us know anything about our past life. The only memories we have are of the screening and everything that happened after it.
I don't know my name, where I used to live, my family and friends, or anything else.
If let's say, I was born in this country and I found my family here, they would know that I have been missing for a long time. And then they would ask more about me. If I told them, I would be killed by the instructor. This is the number one reason all of us go out wearing disguises.
What is strange is that until now we haven't found any news regarding any missing people in any of the newspapers for anyone we know from the screening. The instructor had planned something nasty.
Seeing our blank faces and no responses, Kelan understood the answer without a word.