"do you like being bullied?"
Rin looked at Sunless asking seriously
"what? No of course not"
Sunless looked annoyed at Rin
"I understand why you're making yourself seem unapproachable....but you're probably never going to see these people again like ...ever...why not enjoy yourself for the couple of weeks we have?"
"Why are you grilling me...huh I haven't seen you talk to anybody"
"don't change the subject!!"
"alright fine how about we go sit somewhere else I don't like this place"
Both stood up and moved through the crowd they left to sit somewhere else...there was another corner that sleepers were unwilling to approach a bench..this one had a singular girl sitting on it
The quiet girl was delicate, demure and very pretty. Her clothes were tidy and neat. They weren't very expensive, but still rather tasteful. With her pale blond hair, big blue eyes and exquisite face, she looked like a beautiful porcelain doll.
Rin looked away the smallest hint of a red hue painted her cheeks
However, there was something wrong with her. Sunless frowned as rin looked at him with questions in her head
"hey what's wrong why are you looking at her like that"
"she's blind"
Rins eyes widened as she looked back at the girl
"oh"
'that is actually quite depressing.'
Sunless pulled her towards the bench, both sat on the opposite end of the bench.
Theres no way she survived the first nightmare being blind she most definitely lost her eye sight as the result of the Appraisal.
What a horrible flaw
I mean her own flaw was ass too she was going to die if she overused hers.
Rin predicted she herself wouldn't live to nineteen. That thought alone sent a cold sensation throughout her body
'i feel her pain'
There is no way her aspect ability was worth being blind for...being blind in the nightmare was just an exacution. This girl was a dead before she even entered the nightmare
She was a walking corpse.
The uneasy feely she had made her skin tingle. This was why everyone avoided her like the plague. The girl had a invisible aura of death.
I can see why People wouldn't approach her sunless called out to rin
"You can see it too cant you"
There was a very easy pattern to spot with the people inside the hall all grouped with their own people
At the far end of the hall, closest to the stage, were one or two small groups. People in these groups were distinct from the rest of Sleepers. They were all confident, calm and had an air of readiness. These were the Legacies: they were trained for the Spell since birth and had the highest chances of survival.
Next to them was a larger number of expensively dressed young people. They were lively and excited, and only a little nervous. They were the scions of rich and high-ranking citizens. Their training was pretty good since such families had ample funds to hire private tutors - even Awakened ones. Their chances of survival weren't bad.
Then there was the largest part of the crowd, which consisted of kids from middle-class families. They might not have had the privilege of training under Awakened tutors, but their education wasn't bad. The government spent a lot of effort to put all the necessary knowledge and skills into the school curriculum, preparing potential Sleepers in advance.
Some of them might have received additional training in private. To survive, these Sleepers would need to put in a valiant effort, and also have a bit of luck. But it wasn't improbable. Consequently, they were tense and nervous.
And guess which group she was in. If you guessed any of the above youre wrong and should feel bad about it she was in
The corpses
It sounds like an amazing suicide squad
Everybody else saw them as walking talking corpses with zero chances of survival
'I'm essentially playing sekiro with one life.....amazing'
Life obviously had to make Rin's existence harder to play....makes the rise to power feel better
'thats what i tell myself anyway'
The only one that wasn't in any other group when everyone divided themselves was the silver-haired girl she stood alone not a care in the world as she still listened to her music
One thing that every group regardless of social standing and training was immense boredom from the waiting
Come on...I'm probably gonna die soon I don't wanna waste my time on some idiot making a speech about how fucked we are
And that idiot came through the door with a dark blue uniform he walked onto the stage and.....
Damn
This. man. was. Huge
He wasn't just tall he was absolutely built like a unit
He was jacked beyond belief
He didn't stop bulking
I'm getting off topic
He had lumber jack brown beard and his brown eyes scouted the whole room of sleepers till his gaze finally reached the corner of death
I don't think he cares about us that much as his gaze returned to the people at the front of the crowd, and to nobody's suprise he had a deep and manly voice
"I am Awakened Rock. Sleepers, welcome to the Academy."
The whole room was silent not daring to piss off the giant
"In less than a month, you will be summoned to the Dream Realm. Some of you might think that you are well prepared. You're wrong. The Spell is merciless and cunning. The moment Awakened begin to think too much of themselves, they die. I've seen countless Sleepers like you lose their lives. I've also seen experienced Masters lose theirs. Even Saints are not assured to survive."
'Really improved morale there chief'
"In the following four weeks, we will do everything in our power to increase your chances of survival. You will receive training from the best instructors in the world. However, don't be misled by their fame: in the end, whether you return from the Dream Realm alive depends only on one person - you. The responsibility to survive is yours, and yours alone. "
His *amazing* speech was starting to affect the sleepers, not in a good way of course all of them except the legacies looked terrified
"You are not children anymore. It's a shame because you ought to be. But the Spell has decided otherwise. You have been to the First Nightmare, so you already know what it's like. Your parents, your teachers and your friends can't help you anymore..."
As she heard these words she elbowed sunless, to which he elbowed her back. Rin snorted. Both making fun of each other's parental status
"SLEEPER RED, IS THERE A PROBLEM?!"
"NO SIR!!"
Sunless grinned at her and she shook her head going back to listening to the imposing giant. She knew why he was trying to scare them: to get them to focus and listen, fear would keep them alive
At last, the speech reached its crucial juncture. Awakened Rock briefly halted, allowing the young listeners a brief pause to absorb his message. Afterward, he proceeded with a brief nod.
"Now we will talk about the difference between Nightmares and the Dream Realm..."