Chapter 24: Chapter 23– Escape!
It didn't take long before he saw his team in sight. They were only a block away from him, after all. Sen separated along with the others in a frantic attempt to find someone, and luckily he was somewhat successful. If you call that a success, Sen thought grimly.
He spotted his team not so far away without using his earbud device. They all had a lost and distressed look on their faces as he drew near with their new teammate.
At least I found someone to join our team, and maybe he won't be that useless since he has a good super sense, he thought on the bright side. Kaiyo spun her head and made eye contact with him while he drew near, and with a delighted tone, she waved her hand in the air.
"SEN! You actually found someone?"
"Hello, fellow teammates!" Baru puffed out his chest in greeting. Sen couldn't help but cringe at the sight of that.
"This is Baru, Baru this is Kaiyo, Hana, Hyo, and that's Hono."
"YEP, THAT'S ME!" Hono smiled happily at Baru.
"I don't like her… she's too happy," Baru whispered in Sen's ear.
"You could say she invited herself into the team," he taciturnly responded. Eyeing down Hono's expression, Sen couldn't help but ponder how she even got that information from the start.
Sen couldn't say it was useless. After all, it did give them a head start in finding a teammate. Hmph, it's possible that she overheard it as a rumor. I'm guessing what's being spoken in the academy doesn't stay there long before it's leaked to the public.
"Hono, do you know anything about the first challenge?" Sen decided to push his luck by asking that question, and as he foresaw, she shook her head disappointingly.
"Sorry, sadly I don't. I only accidentally overheard the academy was doing teams of six this year, so I do not know any other details."
Hmph, it looks like I was right about her just overhearing it, but the way she replied is quite odd. Scripted or preplanned, if you will. I'm overthinking things. I need to focus on the current objective.
Just as Sen contemplated those thoughts, a loud announcement at the entrance sounded off, making him whip around and gaze at the grand stairs that led up to the academy.
"Young Knights, please enter the academy with your group. There, someone special will explain the next Challenge. Keep in mind, it would be much appreciated if you enter the academy in a single file line, and don't rush—"
Too late.
Before the announcer could say another word, contestants at the academy's bottom were running up the stairs as if a vile monster was chasing them. Hundreds of people pushed each other away in an attempt to be the first to enter the academy.
I'm not sure what they get out of trying to be the first to enter. It won't make them superior to the other, Sen suppressed a sigh while bluntly observing the chaos.
"GOOD RIDDANCE! PLEASE WALK UP IN A SINGLE FILE LINE!" the announcer exclaimed, fed up. But that ended up being useless; the young Knights still ran forward like it was a track race.
"Alright then, this year's students are going to be a hassle," the announcer sighed. "Guess it doesn't matter, just come in the academy." He deliberately gave up, touching his long, grey mustache to calm his nerves. I almost feel sorry for him.
"Guess we need to follow them up there then?" Hana asked. Sen nodded his head at the rest of his team. And so they started following the big crowd of people up the stairs of the academy. Shortly, Sen realized that the stairs themselves were made of marble.
That must have cost a lot. It could have been used to clean the dirty cities and to help our inflation crisis. Maybe even put that money into our corrupt educational system. Better yet, make our health care more affordable or attempt to reduce homelessness. But I'm just a kid, so what do I know, huh?
But of course, this was one of the most famous academies out there in the world. They had to upkeep their grand and powerful status somehow. So, he wasn't really shocked.
Since Sen's team was pretty much at the rearmost of the crowd, it was a lot easier to navigate through the large numbers of people, not to mention that it gave a good opportunity to look at the competition.
Most people looked average, but Sen knew the most dangerous were those who kept silent. So, he couldn't possibly judge people's strength by their appearances and speech. He could know someone's personality and other characteristics, but power was a completely different ball game.
I wonder… that guy who bumped into me, Sen recalled. It was only for a brief moment, but his gut told him he wasn't like the other contestants. And with a shiver running down his spine, he predicted that there would be many challenging people ahead. I'm going into an elite place where only the strongest get accepted. Since I don't have God-given strength like a super sense. I'm going to need to rely on my brain.
With every step Sen took on the marble stairs, he grew more uneasy. Was he being watched? He felt uncomfortable. Well, the truth was, he knew that they were watching. Somewhere hidden from the naked eye had to be hundreds of cameras monitoring everyone's movements.
What you plan to do is going to be interesting, Asashi, Sen bluntly stared at a drone that hovered silently above him. I doubt you figured out I'm even here yet, but when you do, what will occur next? Throw me out? Punish me? Put me in jail for breaking a rule that doesn't exist? I'm more than two steps ahead of you, so it would be best if you don't stand in my way.
He knew Asashi wouldn't be able to hear his rather bitter words, but if Sen saw him standing in front of him, he would have said the same thing.
"FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!" Baru's voice made Sen shake out of his thoughts.
"HOW MANY GOD DAMN STAIRS DOES THIS ACADEMY NEED!" Baru complained. Even though they were behind thousands of people, the announcer unfortunately heard his complaint.
"If you are having trouble with this, how could you even become a Knight?" the announcer retorted with a microphone on top of the stairs.
"Humph, that announcer guy is pissing me off," Baru cursed in a silent voice.
"I HEARD THAT!" The announcer made eye contact with Baru from above. "I might be old, but I have the best hearing alive, you little shit."
Hmph, he must have HEARING as his super sense, Sen realized. It wasn't possible for someone who didn't have that specific Sense to hear from that distance. Not to mention, it was impressive that he could even hear him since there were so many people. From Sen's observation, the announcer had to be at least a Silver ranked Knight.
Finally, as they reached the top of the academy's entrance, Sen witnessed the grand golden academy doors swing open to let the contestants in.
Interesting, Sen started to gather a few hints already…
He recalled the announcer stating that the first challenge would be held in the academy itself. However, Sen couldn't imagine how they would facilitate thousands of people to compete against each other in such a small space.
That must mean, the first challenge won't include contestants going up against each other in hand-to-hand combat, but mostly targeting a team's coordination.
To put it simply, Sen guessed the next challenge would be something that would disqualify many without making them fight each other with their own strengths.
If I am right, this would help me survive longer in the challenges ahead, Sen let out a satisfied grin. Everything is working a little too well.
Sen walked behind thousands of people and entered through the huge doors. To his surprise, there was nothing inside. He didn't know what he was expecting, but it certainly wasn't this. It almost made him stop in his tracks.
It was just a football field-sized room. There wasn't any special décor around the walls like the outside of the academy had, but more or less just a large empty room. At least, that's what he guessed. It was quite dark inside, so Sen wasn't able to confirm.
"What is this some kind of joke?" a few people in the crowd bellowed.
"Yeah, this is supposed to be a high-end academy!" another joined brashly.
"This is ridiculous. What do they expect us to do in here?"
While everyone was jumping to conclusions, he had to hold back from letting out an exasperated sigh. There's obviously something more to this…
"ENOUGH!" A voice so deep and powerful silenced everyone's complaints in an instant. The room suddenly brightened with lights illuminating from above. Out of nowhere, in the middle of the large room, appeared a tall cylindrical pillar. Standing on top of it was a mysterious figure with a mask covering their face. The mask itself was completely white, with black fangs drawn on the lower end. Sen didn't even know how the person could see through it since there weren't any holes in the mask, to begin with.
"No, it can't be…" Baru gasped. Sen looked at him with confusion.
"Who's that guy?"
"YOU MEAN YOU NEVER HEARD OF HIM?" Baru exclaimed in his face.
"No, I haven't. Care to take a couple of seconds to explain who he is?" Sen pushed him away.
"Well, he's one of the diamond-ranked Knights!" Baru explained. Sen looked back at the masked Knight and pondered briefly. That's odd. I remember each diamond-ranked knight by name, but I've never heard of an edgy man-child with a mask before.
"It's said he has the power of all the Senses…" Baru stared in awe. "They call him the White Storm. They even have a statue of him."
"Why do they call him the White Storm?" Sen asked.
"It's quite ironic since he has long black hair, but one of the reasons they call him that is because of his mask. Second, legend says that the moment you make eye contact with him, you freeze in fear. Hence why they call him the White Storm," Baru explained.
Should have probably guessed so. I wonder why I never knew about him? Sen thought. Well, I guess even I make mistakes sometimes. I'm only human, after all.
"Dear students…" the masked man began. "This school only expects perfection, every flaw, every minuscule detail will be observed. Any slight defect in your power will affect your chances of joining, but I don't expect you to pass. After all, you all might not even know how to use your powers efficiently yet. But this is where you get the wrong idea for this academy. We only pick the people with natural talent. So, if you think you'll have a chance with no talent, I hate to break your delusion, but you're dead wrong…"
Something was menacing about the way he spoke. The difference in power between him and the people was already apparent. Sen didn't feel threatened by many people, or even monsters at that, yet he couldn't help but feel a shiver run down his spine. He hated that feeling.
"I want you all to understand that, in this world, the strongest survive," he spoke firmly to the contestants. "Or should I say, only the strongest have a chance to thrive."
Sen didn't know if it was a coincidence, but the stuff the masked man was saying felt worryingly targeted at Sen. Of course he doesn't know I'm senseless. A diamond-ranked knight wouldn't even care about that.
"This day and age, people say you should be proud of yourself, weak or not…" he began again. "Those people will get nowhere in life. If you take pity on yourself and accept you are weak, then you deserve to be eaten by monsters. You can always improve. You can always be stronger and smarter. DO NOT ACCEPT YOURSELF!" he bellowed in a dark, commanding voice.
After a few moments of pure silence, someone snorted in the crowd.
"Pfft, that's so rude. You're making people insecure about themselves," a young woman called out. A few gasps arose around Sen.
Hmph, probably not the smartest move. How is this going to play out?
"HAAA!" The White Storm cackled as if he had heard the best joke of his life. "Listen here, little girl, you are clearly not fit to be here… Guards, take her away!" He commanded, letting out a volley of crude laughs.
"WAIT WHAT? - this is outrageous you cant do tha-?" Her voice was cut off as Sen guessed the guards took her out of the academy.
"Oh dear…" Kaiyo gasped.
There was a long pause followed by confused and afraid murmurs after the White Storms' display of authority.
"Humph, let that be a lesson for whoever considers to say such idiotic things." He spat in disgust. The silence still hung in the air as they watched the masked man on the pillar with shock.
"What are you all looking at? What are you shocked? HAAA! You all are so soft. This is nothing compared to what you are going to go through. Alright then, moving on… Above will drop down techno watches. On the watch, you must fill out your name and your team's name. Then, participants need to register themselves as part of it. Is that understood?" A murmur of agreement came from the students. "Good, now let's begin."
Thousands of watches fell from above when the masked man finished his short explanation. Sen and the rest of his friends caught one before it crashed on the ground.
"A weird way to give us the watches, but okay…" Hana narrowed her eyes. "Alright then how do you work this?"
"Greetings fellow Knights I am techno watch. Please fill out your full name here (_____)," ordered the watch.
"HOLLY CRAP DID THE WATCH JUST TALK?" Baru exclaimed. "This is fricken sick! How old are your techno watch?"
"Well, I'm currently ten years old, since that's when my programmers made me."
"Oh… Well, guess she's too young…" Baru sighed sadly. "Damn it! I even get rejected by an AI!"
"I'm not so sure you should even hit on an AI." Hana curled her lip in disgust.
"Listen, I don't have that many options, so it was worth a shot."
"I don't think that should be an option," Hana snapped back.
"Alright, let's start this already," Sen shook his head, unamused from Baru's childness.
He attempted to drown out the arguing and murmurs from people so he could calmly think rationally to himself.
I already gave my real name to the register lady, so this won't make a difference, regardless. If I try to make a fake name, it'll most likely block me. If I use my real name, though, that will put me in the center of attention, and Asashi will spot me far quicker than I planned ahead. But… what if go a completely different route than he would expect? It'll catch him off guard that's for sure, Sen let out a soft murmur of enjoyment.
"Hello MR Sen Ano, please Enter your team's name (_____)."
"What should our team name going to be?" Kaiyo wondered.
"DUDE! It should be an awesome name, like Team Baru or something like that," Baru suggested.
"No, not happening. What do you think Sen?" Hana prompted.
Sen decided on a pretty bold move…"Your team name is now (TEAM SEN)."
"NO FAIR! Why did he get to do his name as the team and not min-" Baru stopped as Hana stared at him with a menacing look. "Actually, I think it's a great name. B-B-Best name ever if you ask me. Hahaha…" Baru laughed nervously as Hana gave him a death stare.
"Good Baru, now let the adults talk," Hana ordered.
"I like a girl who puts me in my place."
Hana blinked. "OKAYYYYYY, this the part where we kick him out of our team, right, Sen?"
If I had I a choice, I would kick all of you out. But that's not possible in my case. I need their strength to help me pass through these challenges. They'll be the body, and I'll be the mind.
"Congratulations, you are now part of (Team Sen)."
"Looks like it worked. I registered as a part of your team!" Kaiyo looked at her techno watch.
"Already done, too." Baru put his thumb up.
"Same here." Hyo nodded.
"YAY! I'm officially part of your team!" Hono giggled.
"Looks like I'm in, too," Hana confirmed.
It didn't take long before more people started finishing.
"I gave you degenerates plenty of time. Are you ready for the first challenge?" The masked man asked in a harsh tone.
"WE WERE BORN READY WOOOOO!" Baru exclaimed. The masked man turned to look at Baru. "Hmph looks like we have some genuine energy alright moving on…"
"OH MY GOD, Sen, did you see that? He just looked at me and complimented me! AGHH! I think I shit myself. This is the greatest day of my life!" Baru cried.
I guess being complemented by a diamond Knight is big for some people. Sen shrugged.
"Before I explain the first challenge, I want to remind you this challenge is supposed to test your survival skills, thinking, and fast reaction time. So, without further ado…" The masked man's voice trailed off...
Why did he stop? Sen thought.
"SLAM!"
A loud slamming noise came out of nowhere, and the natural light in the room disappeared.
"The academy's front door closed?" Sen realized. "Why?"
"Wait, I don't get it. How are we supposed to get out?" Baru asked. The dark, ominous room was filled with murmurs of confusion and fear. The artificial beams disappeared along with the natural sunlight that came from the door. It's so dark I can't even see the pillar where the masked man is, he grimaced.
Wait, now I understand. Something clicked in his brain, but before he could even exclaim his thought out, it was too late–
"HAHAHA!" The masked man cackled in the darkness. "The first challenge starts here! Escape the Academy…"
Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
-- Power
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