Ms. Elisa led us to VR ground, and the other students left for the screening stadium, where they could see the fight on screen.
'So that guy is the no. 1 in this class, huh? Rank 2451: Taren Reisig, the only guy who talked to me in this class.
"What is your rank?" I asked, curious to know his rank.
"E rank. What about you?"
'Man, that's quite fast progress.'
"E- rank." I replied
"Ehh! Didn't you breakthrough when the mana levels rose?" He asked in confusion.
I shook my head. "I can't increase my rank fast; you know it, right?"
"Ahh, sorry about that," he apologized, remembering my condition.
"Nha, it's fine."
We reached our destination, where thousands of VR capsules were placed and guarded by security.
"So this is the VR battle ground; it's amazing." Taren exclaimed, surprise evident in his face.
As we walked through the VR ground, we saw a small crowd split in two.
'So that's elves, huh? They are so beautiful, as mentioned in the novel.'
Every elf is born with more pure mana than humans. Because of that, they have a cast system in them. Gold and platinum are common hair colors for elves; they are considered normal elves. Elfs with silver hair are called pure-blooded, and elfs who have silver hair with white strands are called nobility. That's because they think elves who have pure mana are god's blessings, and elves with white hair like me who have the purest mana are considered god's helpers.
'What a weird culture.'
"That's Elfilial Academy students; I can't see a human student in them." Taren said it suddenly.
"That's because the academy is solely for elves," I said to him.
Elfilial Academy, as the name suggests, is an academy for elves. It's not that they are discriminating against humans; it's because they know better what is right for them, so they created this academy. They also kept good relationships and have helped the Supreme Royal Academy many times.
"Huh, isn't that Jadel?"
Hearing someone say my name, I turned to the side where I heard the voice, and I saw Shreya's stupefied face. Hearing her surprised voice, the main cast looked at her, and seeing her surprised face, they looked in my direction.
"? Are you sure that's Jadel?" Lucy asked, confused by her remark.
"I don't think that's him either." Asher said
"I also think that's not him." Alicia said. Hearing her words, I felt a pang in my chest.
Thump! Thump!
As my heart started to beat fast, I ignored them and walked away, not wanting to let these disgusting emotions influence me again.
"Hey Jadel, stop. I said, Stop fucker." Shreya called me.
"Stop, Shreya. You're making a bad image in front of them, and why do you think that's him? Even I can't recognize if it's him." Lucy asked.
'Can't they talk quietly? And how did she know it was me? Even Alicia can't recognize me.'
"I didn't think you wouldn't ignore her." Taren said as I started to walk away.
"Let's focus on what we came for, and seeing them here, I think they are going to participate."
"Didn't Ms. Elisa say only the top 2 students from a single class?" He asked, confused by my statement.
"It's just a guess; since they're in the top ten, I think the Elfilial Academy wants to see their capabilities."
"So we don't have a chance of winning, sigh."
"Yep, even if they don't participate, we don't have a chance." I confirmed
"Let's make a pla—" before we could speak further, we're interpreted by a loud voice.
"Listen here, students; as your class teachers said, there will be a friendly battle between the Supreme Royal Academy and the Elfilial Academy. I know it's an unexpected battle, but there will be rewards for the top 10 winning groups. The rules are simple: take down the students you see and become the top 10. Also, your opponents are not only students; there will be monsters. Angela will explain in more detail. do your best," vice principal Sebastian announced.
Murmur!
Hearing the word reward, the students became excited and started conversing with each other.
'No one is thinking the top 10 is participating in this fight; they don't even consider our opponents strength.'
"You don't seem fazed by the word rewards," I asked Taren, seeing him keep a composed look.
"Well, Ms. Elisa said, always keep a clear mind, and how can we win when monsters like them are participating?" He looked at the top 10 rankers and said, "All of them are D- ranks, while the top 1 and 2 are D rank."
"You're certainly right."
"All of you, when we call your names, enter the VR capsule," instructor Kiva said loudly.
They started calling names, and it didn't take long before our names were also called. Walking to it, we entered the VR capsule.
***
***
***
After everyone arrived at the lobby, Angela started explaining the rules.
[All cadets listen carefully. The top 10 groups will be decided by the points they gather. There will be monsters ranging in rank from F to C+. F rank has 10 points. The F+ rank will be 20 points. The points increase by ten with an increase in subrank in monsters, so rank C+ will have 110 points. By killing a person, you can earn 100 points, so it's best to target them.]
'She is emphasizing killing the students so they could make the battle interesting and see the students' full potential; that's also why they are giving out rewards.'
[Register your teams, and each participant will get 100 points. Buy anything that'll help you in the battle. You will have 5 minutes to decide.]
A screen appeared in front of me stating to select a team member. After selecting Taren's name, I opened the shop section.
"What are you choosing?" approaching me, Taren asked
"I don't know, something that helps in our battle. What are you choosing?"
"I'm also thinking of something that helps me." he said
"So both of us don't have much choice." I don't have much experience, but I have memories of Jadel using poisons in training. Thinking for a bit, I asked Taren
"What is your occupation?"
"Assassin"
"Huh, really, that's perfect. Buy some potions and poisons."
"Poison?"
"Yes, that will compliment our fighting style." Opening shop in the system, I brought potions and poison-related things.
[Your 5 minutes are over. Your team will be sent into the battleground in 10, 9, 8, 7,... 3, 2, 1, 0.]
As the countdown went to zero, the space around us was distorted, and we were sent into the battleground. When my vision came back, I saw massive trees covering us. The place looked dark, as no sunlight came through the thick leaves, making it hard to tell if it's nighttime or daytime.
"Is this daytime or nighttime?" Taren asked.
"Well, it's advantageous for us, whether it's daytime or nighttime. But now it's daytime," I replied.
"How do you know that?"
"I can sense that these are shadows; we are covered in the shadows."
"Okay, so what's our plan?"
"Hmm. Typical assassin strategy: we'll ambush everyone while hiding; it's the same for the monsters."
"Okay," he nodded.
"First, we'll look for the low-ranked monsters," telling him that I jumped to the nearest tree, which he also followed.
Jump! Jump!
"Can you see ahead of us?" he asked.
"Yes, my eyes are trained for it," I replied, shivering a little when I thought about the training he received.
'Drake that fucking maniac' He sent his children into a dark place and sent a few people with orders to attack the children nonstop. When this was happening, Jadel was only 4 years old, and they didn't see light for 3 and a half years.
Grrrrrrr! Grrr!
"Stop," I said in a low voice.
He stopped and looked in the direction I'm looking. "Isn't that Ragen an F+ monster?"
"Yes," I nodded. "Killing it is simple if that monster can't smell us."
Ragen is a mutation of a dog. It has the face of a dog and the body of a tiger. What makes them different than dogs is their high senses; they have a high sense of smell and hearing compared to dogs, and their biting power can threaten even D rankers.
It won't smell us, as our bodies won't produce body odors because of our assassin occupation.
"Taren, can you kill that monster? Because of your E Rank strength, you can one shot—"
Grrrrr! Grrrrr!
"Ah, that monster heard of us. Let's kill it together then."
Swoosh!
Jumping from the tree, we rushed to the monster. Taren approached the monster quickly. Avoiding its maw, he slashed its neck.
BRR—
Before the monster could growl and alert the nearby monsters, I arrived in front of it and stabbed his head through its jaw.
Pierce! Splash!
Blood spattered from its neck, head, and ears. 'Huh, I thought I would feel guilty and disgusted, but I can't feel anything.' Even though it's a VR world, it's no different from the real world.
'Damn, is there any way I could completely remove his emotions?' I have been contemplating this for a while now. Even though I'm overcoming his emotions, I feel like there is still a small part of him in this body.
"You good, Jadel?"
"Huh, yeah, thinking about something; let's go."
'If I meet the entity again, I need to ask him about this.' I made a mental note.
We started searching for monsters again. The atmosphere felt eerie, and a cold wind brushed past my face while I was running.
Sensing something was wrong, he asked, "Can you feel the sudden chillness in the atmosphere?" I nodded at his question.
"Yeah, something feels amiss."
Shiver!
Both me and Taren halted our steps instantly as we felt something peering at us. No, we didn't halt our steps; it didn't move from the spot as if something was holding it from moving. Fear gripped my heart, and I felt like insects were crawling on my skin. Looking at the direction in which I was sensing the gaze, I saw two pairs of glowing red eyes that gave me chills.
In the dark, I can make out that it's not monsters.
'H-humans, no elfs'
"Elfs, 300 meters away," I informed
"Elfs?"
"Yes, judging by their gaze, they're far stronger than us and using a fear inducing skill; let's run for it; we don't stand a chance."
Seeing me looking at them, they rushed to us.
"SHIT! Run."