Luther walked in silence, still processing what he had just experienced in the showers. The foul smell of the black fluids that had covered his body was gone after the bath, but the feeling of being somehow filthy still clung to his skin. As they advanced down a dark corridor and exited to the outdoors, the fresh air hit his face, but what he saw there chilled him to the bone.
A cart full of corpses passed in front of them, dragged by a guard. Among the pile of lifeless bodies, Luther recognized one that left him in a state of shock.
"It's him... the man who argued with the guard..." he thought, astonished. The same man who had shouted during the king's speech, who had refused to undergo the core creation process, now lay dead, piled among other bodies. His face was twisted, frozen in an expression of horror.
Unable to contain himself, Luther commented on it to the man who was still walking beside him. The man looked at him for a moment, serious, then nodded toward something even more chilling.
"Look closely, kid," he said with a quick gesture. "There are hundreds of carts like that."
Luther looked around and saw, with horror, that the man was right. Along the path, several carts carried more bodies, all covered by sheets or carelessly piled together. They were the remains of those who hadn't survived the core creation process or had chosen not to participate. A shiver ran down his spine.
"So this is how they see us..." Luther thought, finally accepting the truth he had been trying to deny. "We're nothing but livestock to these bastards."
The man noticed Luther's somber silence and, with a forced smile, patted him on the shoulder. "Don't worry, we'll get out of this." He tried to sound optimistic, though a shadow of doubt lingered in his voice.
"What's your name?" he asked, trying to distract the young man.
"Luther," he replied, barely able to say his own name through the lump in his throat. "And you?"
"Borik," the man said, giving a wide smile that tried to ease the weight of the situation. "Pleasure to meet you, kid."
Luther nodded slowly, unsure of what else to say. Just as they were about to continue the conversation, a guard interrupted them, guiding the group toward an open-air training field.
Luther and Borik, along with the remaining summoned, walked in silence toward the field, a wide outdoor training area. Sunlight reflected off the armor of knights standing at a distance, watching them. Their gazes were evaluative, cold, as if inspecting goods that needed to meet certain standards.
A tall guard with a severe face and a scar running down from his forehead to his chin stepped forward to address the group. His presence was intimidating, and the harshness in his gaze made it clear that there would be no room for compassion or weakness. Luther felt his shoulders tense as he took in the discipline and disdain radiating from this man.
"Listen up, scum," the guard began, his voice like thunder resonating across the field. "You will address me as Captain Radek. I will be your instructor in this initial level of trials. You were brought here for reasons beyond your comprehension, and frankly, I couldn't care less what your opinions are about it."
Radek scanned the group, his eyes lingering a moment longer on Luther and Borik, as if sensing some spark of defiance in them. Luther stood firm, though the knot in his stomach tightened further. Radek took a step forward and continued:
"All of you have undergone the core creation process. This doesn't mean you're capable of controlling it yet. Most of you won't last a day in these trials, but those who do will have proven that they're not completely useless. So don't think you're anything special for surviving. Is that clear?"
A murmur of assent ran through the line of summoned, most of them staring at the ground, not daring to look the captain in the eye. However, Luther clenched his fists and took a deep breath, casting a defiant glance at the guard. Radek seemed to notice and smirked mockingly.
"Do you have something to say?" Radek asked, stopping right in front of Luther, who held his gaze without flinching.
"No, sir," he replied firmly. But Borik noticed the slight tremor in his voice, a mix of restrained indignation and defiance that hadn't yet faded.
Radek walked away, satisfied, and began pacing down the line of summoned, stopping briefly in front of each one. Then he raised his voice and gestured toward a series of structures scattered across the field.
"From now on, you'll be subjected to intense training to strengthen your bodies and learn to manipulate the mana now flowing through your veins. This training ground will teach you the basics: survival, combat, and control over your mana core. Make no mistake—this process will be relentless. Those who fail to meet our standards will be eliminated."
The word "eliminated" cast a shadow of tension over the group. Some of the summoned exchanged fearful glances, and Luther felt the knot in his stomach tighten even more. "We can't fail here," he thought, growing increasingly aware of the gravity of his situation.
Radek continued in a cold tone. "This is your last chance to prove you deserve a place in Ethelia. Here you'll learn to be useful, or you'll become a burden the kingdom has no interest in carrying."
The captain gestured to several soldiers, who stepped forward and began distributing weapons and shields to the summoned. "The first tests will be of endurance and strength," Radek explained. "You newcomers have no idea how to face the dangers of this world, and for most of you, this will be your first and last lesson."
"Good luck, kid," Borik said, keeping his characteristic grin from ear to ear. "Looks like this is going to be more interesting than we thought."
Luther, taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, nodded. He had seen and endured terrible things, but the fear he felt now was different: it was the fear of knowing that his life depended on every move he made in this new world.