Soon, the first trial of the Alloces Academy Entrance Exam started. The students lined up to get their bracelets from the professors. There are two colors of bracelets: red and blue. Students with red bracelets would go to the right waypoint portal, while those who gained blue bracelets would enter the left waypoint portal.
Arriving in a rocky cliff field, Rumpel looks around in wonder and awe.
' Is this what it is? One of the things that I read and mentioned in the novel Are we inside a pocket dimension? Marbas mages are amazing! Space mages are truly one of the most powerful beings in this world! Or maybe it could be possible that a Room Mage has created this pocket dimension or that several types of mages have cooperated to create this pocket dimension. '
While looking around in amazement, he heard the voice of someone behind him.
"We are all in the same faction."
Behind him is the white-haired and golden-eyed Faust. Together with black-haired Gretchen, who possesses a distinct red eye, and Wagner, who has brown hair and emerald eyes,.
Among the three of them, the character that he has the most information about is Wagner. Someone showed up in the story set 10 years later in this world. Moreover, he was an important character in the story.
"Faust."
Rumpel was greeted once again.
"I'm glad we are on the same team."
Golden eyes looked at him intensely and with veiled suspicion and distrust before moving his gaze around.
"The blue faction has around 700 members, while our enemy has 800 members. It was an advantage that the enemy had more members than us since we would have more opportunities to steal bracelets because of their numbers."
On the other hand, the red faction was unlucky.
Pointing at Rumpel's ring, Faust gazes at him. Rumpel nodded his head in acknowledgment.
Faust started to walk, the three of them following after them, moving to a boulder of rock from the distance but not too far away from the Blue Faction base. Hiding behind the boulder to have a discussion.
After a while, Gretchen asked Faust with a frown on her face.
"Wouldn't it be a good idea to cooperate with the other factions?"
Faust shook his head.
"We are strangers. It would be no use for them to cooperate with us. And even though we are in the same faction, we are also enemies at the same time. The only difference between them and the Red Faction is that they are enemies that wouldn't gain us any benefits. Stealing their bracelets would amount to nothing. Unless... "
Faust trailed off. Wagner and Gretchen's faces turn ugly for a moment when they realize Faust's implications. Rumpel sighed.
' It doesn't matter whether someone is an ally or enemy. They would be your competitors in the next round. Others may take this opportunity to take out their future competitors. The fewer enemies they have in future trials, the better. '
While Rumpel concluded inside his mind, Faust asked him.
"Young master, as a part of our deal 2 days ago, what can you offer to us right now?"
Rumpel composed himself for a moment before smiling widely.
"Glad you asked Faust! I brought weapons as you suggested. I also have health potions, poison antidotes, and regents!"
Tapping his ring, Rumpel willed to bring out weapons. He focused on using his storage ring even when they started hearing shouts coming from the Blue Faction Base.
Throwing knives for Wagner, a bow and arrows for Gretchen, and a whip for Faust. As for Rumpel, he took out a scroll from his storage ring and a fencing sword.
Wagner's emerald eyes behind his round eyeglasses widened when he saw the scroll.
"Is that a summoning scroll?! "
He exclaimed. I was surprised and impressed.
Smiling, Rumpel replied.
"Yup! A one-time-used Summoning Scroll."
"So what is inside young master Rumpel? An item or a monster?"
"What do you think? I have my storage ring already to store things and items on it."
" Ahh.."
Ignoring Wagner's embarrassment, Rumpel told the trio about the monster inside the summoning scroll.
"The monster inside the scroll is a slime."
"Slime?"
Gretchen muttered in a disappointed tone. Faust was unimpressed while he was observing and gripping the whip given to his hands by his right hand.
Seeing Faust inspecting his weapon, Rumpel reminded him.
"The weapons that I have acquired for all of you are low-ranked magic weapons. I have gotten them based on the preferences that you told me 2 days ago. Wagner's throwing knives are coated with paralyzing regent. Oh, here's the antidote."
Rumpel summoned the regent from his storage ring and gave it to Wagner, who stored it in his pocket.
"Gretchen's are imbued with basic glyphs, making the projectiles of the bow faster."
Gretchen formed a smile when she heard Rumpel's words.
"And for Faust, the targets who would be hit by the whip would be shocked and paralyzed for every 30 seconds."
Gazing at the three who were observing their weapons with rapt attention, Rumpel asked.
"So how was it? Do you like your low-ranked magic weapons?
Rumpel spent a total of 20,000 gold coins just to acquire all of the three low-ranked magic weapons that he had provided to them. The Jungle Adventurer's Party almost cried, and Abe nearly fainted when they heard how much Rumpel spent on the three strangers whom he had barely met and who offered a deal of cooperation.
A brief, sly smile appeared on Faust's face.
"You can't get the weapon back from us, young master. Understand?"
"That's fine. As long as you helped me pass the entrance exam."
Later, the quartet has gotten out from the huge rock boulder that they are hiding in moving into another one. The quartet is observing the current state. There was indeed betrayal going on in the Blue Faction. Allies eliminate each other to cull their competitors in the next trials. The least barbaric elimination process was knocking out their targets and taking the bracelets from them. Forcing them to be teleported out of the test field. Others were brutal, cutting their target's hands off and forcing the target to be teleported while they were bleeding out and screaming in agony and pain. The most cruel ones are those who kill their targets before taking their bracelets from them.
They wouldn't gain scores from the allies they killed in this current round of tests, but it would increase their chance of making it to the next trials and benefiting fewer enemies later.
For the quartet, their choice was to head to the enemy camp like some of the other blue faction members who didn't choose to lessen their competitors in this stage. From running, hiding, and observing their surroundings from rock boulder to boulder, they get more and more far away from the edges of the rocky cliff pocket dimension.
They reached the middle, where they saw some members of the members of the red and blue factions fighting each other. Rumpel glanced at Faust and saw him shaking his head and pointing to the opposite of the pocket dimension, where the blue faction waypoint was located.
' Head deeper into Red Faction's base, huh? '
Rumpel mused with an amused smile. Like Gretchen and Wagner, he followed after Faust headed into the Red Faction's base. Eventually, from hiding from rock boulder to boulder and avoiding catching attention, with the absence of blue faction members other than them, they are noticed by some red faction members in the distance.
"Hold it!"
"Blue Faction members!"
"4 heading to the base! How arrogant!"
"Hey, one of them is mine!"
While some of them are bristling with offense and others are interested in taking their bracelets, Faust glanced at him and gestured with his fingers.
There's no need for Faust to gesture, as Rumpel has already taken out what they needed.
Regents.
Holding regents in his hands, Rumpel passed some of the regents to the trio before the three of them threw them to the members of the members of the red faction whom they encountered.
The flasks of the regents shattered to the ground before their contents were released. Various reactions from the Red Faction members followed.
"Aghhk!! "
"What is this?! "
"Regents!! "
"Too much smoke!"
"Uh... smell strange..."
"A... he..."
One by one, the first 7 members of the members of the red faction that they encountered collapsed to the ground. They remained in the distance for a few minutes and waited until the smoke and scent wafting from the distance disappeared.
The regents that they have thrown at Red Faction members are sleeping Regents. The 7 red faction members are merely unconscious and not dead.
Regents are brewed by alchemists and witches. Instead of being drunk like regular fantasy potions, Regents aren't safe to drink as they are mostly a type of concoction that was made for offensive purposes.
Poisons and Debuffs. That is what most of the Regents entail.
Crouching the unconscious red faction members, Rumpel and the others have taken away their red bracelets. Then they watched the seven members of the red faction disappear and be teleported away from their sight and the pocket dimension.
"Let's go deeper."
Faust suggested, with a sadistic smile forming on his face.
Even with them not attempting to eliminate their allies, it doesn't mean that they wouldn't eliminate more of their enemies in this round to make their next trials easier.