~ Five days after the arrival of the examinees ~
Yoel was getting used to his daily life, at first, he had to face a lot of setbacks, but one way or another.. he had gotten over them.
Every time he visited the training facilities he saw more and more people practicing different kinds of bizarre techniques or following some bizarre exercise routine.
Whatever the people there were doing, was certainly not normal, and that was a fact.
Today was another normal day of hardship and practice for Yoel.
Upon entering the facility, he saw Loki using those huge dumbbells once again..
How come I always see this person using those ginormous dumbbells.. that can't be all he does, right..?
He shifted his gaze until it landed on that beauty he saw on the first day, she was still as bright as ever.
This time, the rapier she once used for training was now set aside, and she was now practicing normal hand-to-hand combat.
She was practicing against a hologram that weirdly enough, could physically block and send out attacks.
Yoel, at this point in time, did not pay any mind to it.. he was slowly starting to get used to weird technology being capable of normally.. impossible feats.
The age they lived in had certainly allowed for technology to flourish. It would be odd to think technology wasn't capable of such feats, actually.
So, he just let it do its thing, no need to question it. Probably.
He went over to an unoccupied spot in the facility, which had now become his little corner.
Nobody wanted to approach him, so he could fully focus on his exercises and turn his attention to improving his imperfect stance with the spear.
Grabbing the spear once again, which was now like a familiar object to him, he stretched and then began his training.
He had learned many other things besides this weird spear-dagger technique, hence why he couldn't spend much time in the facilities here.
He had no free time, as one would expect. However, he didn't care.
If it meant getting through the first trials, he wouldn't let it affect him personally.
He had to pass, after all.
If he didn't, then how could he survive out there?
After his parents had died, he had nowhere else to go... except here.
As long as there was a chance, he would do whatever it takes to grasp it.
He couldn't let himself die, no.. he wouldn't succumb to the same fate as his grandfather, who had died alone, away from the warm embrace of a human.
Determined once again, he had gone into hyper-focus. Because of that, however.. he didn't realize that someone was looking at him.
The girl he had been fascinated with before, momentarily stopped her training and spared him a glance for.. maybe a few seconds.
An interesting person had shown up to take the exams, huh?
His eyes are filled with determination, yet a slight dullness persisted around the outer layer of his eyes..
It throws me off. I don't like it.
The beauty's expression darkened, but she didn't let herself get too distracted. There were better things to do.
More urgent matters to attend to.
At the same time, Loki put down the huge dumbbells he had been lifting all this time, letting his arms rest, whoever looked at him could easily see his well-defined muscles.
They coated his arms almost like armor. However, one did not necessarily have to look at only his arms to see this phenomenon. His entire body was fit.. beyond fit, actually.
He glanced at the girl and then at Yoel, an unnoticeable light of curiosity shifted in his eyes. He did not let himself stare for too long, however.
After a few moments, he walked out. He was running out of time.
~ Evening, Yoel's Room ~
Yoel struggled to unlock his door, as he had been dead tired. This training routine he had picked.. certainly, took a great toll on his fragile body.
He was unsure if his body could even hold until the first trial.
This was.. another problem of his, that he had to deal with. While he was of average size, his build was naturally skinny.
He was the type to easily blend in with crowds if he didn't drag any attention onto him.
This wouldn't have bothered Yoel in the first place, if it wasn't for the intensity and difficulty of his training regime.
Yoel thought this physique to be a curse, if there were any advantages to his body, he certainly hadn't found them yet.
Yoel sluggishly walked over to the bed, each step took all of the energy he had left.
He tiredly fell on the bed, face first. The soft mattress of his bed was threatening to whisk him into a deep sleep.. however, he persisted.
There was still more work to do.
But he could use a bit of this time he had to..
Complain.
To hell with this academy.. to hell with these damned abilities.
To hell with all of it. It's so tiring, I want to quit. I want to leave.
His entire life, he had to get by on his grandfather's money, he felt shameful for relying on him, even after he had passed on..
What was he still living for?
It irritated him. It irritated him so much.
His soul did not deserve even a shred of pity.
Before he realized it, Yoel's breath was shaky, and he had even begun to throw a few weak punches at his bed.
He had gone too far again.
Damn it.. I need to pull my shit together. Why am I being an emotional wreck right now of all times?
Yoel urged himself to abandon emotion, time and time again.. every time he had these breakdowns.
However, that was easier said than done. One had to go through very rough experiences to be able to feel minimal emotion, if any at all.
Such experiences that Yoel would not wish to go through, even if it would remove his emotions in return.
With a sigh, Yoel sat in an upright position on the bed.
He believed his fate was sealed, however.. what was the point if he didn't even try?
To hell with this predetermined destiny stuff.. I will choose my own destiny.
Yoel's previously dull eyes ignited with dark determination.
Now, he sat cross-legged. This was another routine of his technique.
The guide didn't specify what it was for, but Yoel felt significant changes to his body after meditating.
Certainly, it was a moment of bliss he could look forward to after hellish training for hours upon hours.
He used this time to also think about his future decisions.
There were still many days left till the first trial, so he had time to improve his skills.
His scavenging and foraging experience had grown by a huge margin, but it was still considered minimal in an actual dangerous situation in the wilderness, uninhabited planet, or dungeon.
He still had more to improve on, however.
This wasn't enough.. not yet.
He had to do more.
~ Same dorm building, in another student's room. ~
Cole was considered to be one of the more average examinees this year, with an awakening chance of 70%, nobody paid him much attention, nor did people look at him with gazes of jealousy or pity.
He had been skinny, a bit too skinny, but that was about it. Aside from the fact his hair and eyes had been an unnatural color.
The only thing that was considered different about him was his unnatural white hair, and his grey eyes, which didn't fit in with the rest of society.
Nobody really cared about where he went or what he did. He pretty much had free reign to do whatever he pleased.
For others, this might've been a blessing.. an average life, not having to risk being sent out to conquer anything.. simply remaining a guard, with an above-average income.
Cole, however, did not dream of this lifestyle.
His instincts thirsted for battle. He was not content with living a quiet life away from all the danger.. he wanted to challenge the danger head-on.
He welcomed it wholeheartedly. Why? He himself didn't know. It might be something he couldn't comprehend.. right now at least.
However, Cole was hellbent on passing these trials they were preparing and enrolling into this academy as a full student.
His family wasn't poor, nor was it rich. If anything, they were middle class. Cole didn't feel the need to work to help support his family, he knew that they were capable of doing that themselves.
Apart from fulfilling his weird crazy tendencies, he wished to also learn more about what existed in the past, or even what exists outside of the earth..
Under the bloodlust he feels every day, there lies an adventurous soul that wishes nothing more than to explore.
But ultimately, he believed there had to be a reason for his murderous intent.
Something had to have happened.. he just can't remember what.
Frustrating. But alas, what could he do?
Nothing. For now, there was nothing he could do.
Not until he moves on from being a single ugly speck in this world, and becomes something greater.
I.. I have to win. There's no other way. I'll prove myself one way or another.
I'll do whatever it takes.
Was what Cole thought, as his thoughts dispersed and he drifted into the mysterious world of dreams.