Takihi sat in his room, watching on his large plasma screen as all the teams entered their respective rooms, with guards directing them.
"Let's see how many monsters I can draw out, and which monster among them could be the number one!" Takihi smiled playfully, eating his puff-puff with delight.
"This is truly worth watching." He pressed a button on his keyboard.
"Strong devouring the weak, and weak devouring the strong? Ahhh, this feeling is…. ahhh forget about it."
"This has always been human nature!" Takihi smirked.
"Anyways..."
Meanwhile, everyone from Team A entered their room, where electric energy lines were connected to the walls. They looked around, now in their new uniforms—one-piece outfits with black and white stripes.
"Something is still off about this whole premise," Michael thought, feeling strange and bothered.
"Regardless, I'm hyped about this!" He grinned.
Just then, a voice echoed.
[Welcome, I'm your assistant representative, Joann.]
Michael and the rest of the group turned to see a figure standing in front of them. The person wore a uniform, their face covered by a white mask with black stripes.
[Before truly becoming a team, you all have to eliminate one individual before you proceed from here on.] Joann said coldly, looking at the nine individuals in front of them.
"Hold on, damn minute. What?!" Nishi yelled in anger, glaring at Joann.
"Aren't we already a team from the start? What are you talking about, damn masked face?!"
Nishi, a light-skinned guy with blonde hair and silver pupils, glared furiously at this sudden twist in the situation.
Meanwhile, Michael looked around as everyone exchanged glances.
"I guess the real game has beg—"
His thought was cut short when he saw Jake's terrifying gaze, his teeth clenched, sending Michael into a realm of pure terror.
"Don't tell me—"
Suddenly, Michael felt a hand strangling him, choking him with alarming force.
Jake's arm tightened around Michael's neck, a thrill evident in his voice as he always wanted this moment.
"Say less, mister. We got one right here," Jake sneered.
"How about you take one for the team?" he hissed sinisterly into Michael's ear.
"I'm sure you wouldn't mind. It's the easiest ticket to escape the academy faster anyway."
"Damn it," Michael thought, desperation taking over as fear gripped him. He struggled to pry Jake's hand off.
"What are you all waiting for?" Jake yelled, his voice filled with excitement and command.
"I'm sure he won't mind. Besides, the weak one among us has to go if we want the team to advance," he continued.
"After all, an opportunity like this is only meant to eliminate the drag on the team!"
Jake said, convincing the others.
"Damn this bastard," Michael thought, struggling against Jake's raw strength as he neared the edge of losing consciousness. Saliva poured uncontrollably from his mouth.
Death was something he had always heard about, but he had never feared it, always keeping his distance from that dark side. Now, the fear of his dreams being crushed intensified, and worse—he saw some of the team rushing toward him to eliminate him.
Then, a bullet whizzed past his face with incredible speed, coming from Joann.
"I'm guessing you've decided on him, then?" Joann asked emotionlessly.
Michael, in desperation and shock, felt a drop of blood slide down his cheek from where the bullet had grazed him.
Jake's sinister gaze never left him, his grip on Michael's neck tightening, pushing him closer to the brink of unconsciousness. The pain from the bullet scratch added to the agony as Michael's neck felt on the verge of snapping.
"Goodbye, Michael!" Jake smirked, his choking pressure growing even more intense.
"Is this the end for me?!" Michael thought, drifting into unconsciousness, as the masses prepared to respond to Joann's command and rushed toward him to finish him off.
Michael felt hopeless about his situation, the dream of becoming an OG slipping away along with his curiosity about the outside world.
"Well, if I'm going down, then I'll have to bring—"
Just then, a voice cut through the tension.
"Michael Walker, right? Nice to meet you!" Tohira said, Facing at Michael as a few members from their team stepped in front of him, halting the others who were about to jump him.
"mister or miss Joann, or whatever your name is, we've changed our minds," Tohira said, a sweet smile on his face.
Michael felt Jake's choking grip loosen slightly as he faintly saw the sleeping boy from earlier.
Tohira smiled sweetly as he lifted his sleeping mask just enough to reveal one of his breathtaking golden pupils, with a ocean galaxy design within it.
"What are you talking about, sleepy boy?" Jake's voice snapped angrily, glaring at Tohira.
With a swift move, Michael felt himself released from Jake's choking grip and fell to the floor, gasping for air. As he regained his breath, it hit him: he looked back to see Tohira on top of Jake, wearing a maniacal smile on his face as he strangled Jake's neck.
"What do you all say, we get rid of the strongest one amongst us instead?" Tohira began, his smile widening.
"The hell? Are you stupid, sleepy freak?" Jake growled in rage.
"Yes! Yes! That's the beginning of desperation!" Tohira continued, thrilled. "Exactly what I want to see."
"Shut it, freak! I'm not in any desperation!" Jake yelled, pushing Tohira off him, though he couldn't deny the slight desperation Tohira had been talking about.
Meanwhile, Tohira dodged Jake's push, quickly getting off him before Jake could strike.
"See what I'm talking about, everyone?" Tohira addressed the group, his gaze focused on them. "If we let him live, we'll suffer the same fate as Michael here."
Tohira looked down at Michael on the floor, who was watching in slight shock.
"An individual like him preys on the weak to ensure his own survival. After all, we're all weak compared to him." Tohira pointed at Jake.
"Besides, this is a trial of survival, isn't it?" Tohira smiled as usual, glancing back at Michael on the ground. "And I'm sure we all want to make it to the top without being the prey of the strong."
"So why not get rid of the strongest threat first?" Tohira winked at Michael.