Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Harganto first noticed Theron by chance.

I-I think I'm going to die...!

It had already been six years since Harganto was dragged to this unknown place.

Yet he still had not gotten used to it.

Every day, the training pushed his mind and body to their absolute limits.

Just when he thought he was beginning to adapt, the training became even harder.

If they were not at least given proper meals and occasional rest between training sessions, some of them probably would have gone insane.

But...

"..."

Harganto's gaze settled on one boy.

Idiot Theron.

He had earned the nickname because he was small and seemed useless at everything.

Then, at some point, he changed.

Even during the most brutal training, Theron never complained.

He simply endured.

And when training ended, he remained behind longer than anyone else.

But...

Was that really all?

Harganto did not know why.

But he found himself calmly watching what was happening in front of him.

"If we fail and they cut off my arms, I swear on everything I have that I'll kill every single one of you. So either kill me here before that happens... or follow me."

It was a direct threat.

Theron had challenged every trainee in Section Five head-on.

His body was different now.

His presence was different too.

For some strange reason, Harganto felt drawn to him.

That was why he decided to follow him.

"I, Harganto, will follow Theron. I'm still not completely convinced. But because of him, one thing is already certain."

The training here was hellish enough already.

The instructors' constant beatings made them want to die every single day.

Some trainees really had taken their own lives.

Now that the beatings had stopped...

That alone was enough for Harganto to gamble on Theron.

And the result...

"I'll follow him too."

"So will I."

"Me too."

Every trainee in Section Five eventually began following Theron.

Even Palcoat and Valk, whom Theron had beaten.

And from that day onward...

The atmosphere in Section Five changed.

"Rowan. Hold on a little longer. Isn't struggling now still better than getting beaten by the instructors later?"

"Huh? Ah... Y-Yeah."

At Theron's words, Rowan, who had collapsed, forced strength back into his trembling legs.

He returned to the horse stance and slowly raised one foot while trying to maintain balance.

He immediately started wobbling.

Theron lightly grabbed his arm.

"Your balance is collapsing this way. Try consciously putting more strength on this side."

"Huh...? It works! It works!"

Rowan shouted in amazement.

A single piece of advice from Theron had allowed him to perform a movement he had never managed before.

Theron nodded.

"Your left-right balance isn't very good. From now on, focus on exercises that improve your body's balance."

"Th-Thanks!"

Theron continued watching the others train.

Whenever he saw something lacking, he gave advice.

Strangely enough, problems that had never improved before began disappearing almost immediately.

Watching him...

"...Doesn't he seem more like an instructor than the actual instructors?"

"He doesn't feel like another trainee anymore."

Tioren nodded at Perka's words.

Ever since Theron returned from the Shadow Forest after the first test, it felt like he had entered a completely different level.

But what impressed them even more was...

"Hey, Theron. Aren't you going back?"

"I'll stay a little longer. You go ahead."

Even after training ended, Theron remained behind and continued training alone.

The others could only shake their heads in disbelief.

But that day was a little different.

Rowan, who had been heading toward the dormitory, hesitated.

Then he carefully approached Theron.

"...Theron."

"What?"

"Could I... train with you too?"

"...?!"

"What?"

The nearby trainees were the ones who reacted in shock.

They could barely stand after the normal training.

And Rowan wanted to train even more?

But a small smile appeared on Theron's lips.

"Of course. I'll show you some exercises that will help your balance."

He nodded.

"Let's train together."

"Thanks!"

Rowan smiled brightly and moved beside Theron.

The others looked somewhat uncomfortable.

"Forget it. Extra training? I'm already dying..."

"No way. What we did today was hard enough."

Palcoat and some of the others frowned and walked away.

They had submitted to Theron.

But they still did not believe this hellish place could truly change.

Yet...

It was changing.

The training facility on Hell Island.

Section Five.

One month had passed since Theron's unbelievable declaration.

Berton, Head Instructor of Hell Island, had been receiving reports about the changes in Section Five.

Eventually, he summoned Bengle.

"I heard you made an interesting bet."

"...That's correct."

Berton had never seen a trainee dare to challenge an instructor to a wager.

To the trainees, instructors existed only as objects of fear.

The method of this place was simple.

Beat them.

Crush them.

Push them even harder.

Yet during the past month, nothing like that had happened in Section Five.

Instead, reports said that after completing their already difficult training, some trainees remained behind for additional practice.

Some had even started smiling.

"Of course, I have no intention of interfering with your training methods."

Berton lowered the book he had been reading.

"As long as you produce results, I don't care how you train them."

His eyes rose toward Bengle.

The moment their gazes met, Bengle felt as if he could not breathe.

Like a frog in front of a snake.

There was nothing he could do before the absolute pressure of a predator.

Berton looked at the frozen Bengle.

"However, I trust you won't let your ambition make you cross the line, Instructor Bengle."

"O-Of course not."

"The next test will be announced soon."

Berton smiled faintly.

"I hope you get the result you're hoping for."

"...Thank you."

Bengle lowered his head and left the office.

"Haaaah..."

Theron's face immediately appeared in his mind.

That brat had provoked him into making a ridiculous bet.

Still...

During the past month...

Even Bengle had to admit that Section Five had changed tremendously.

After finishing the brutal daily training, the trainees willingly remained behind and continued training.

Theron was always at the center.

What exactly...

Bengle had always believed that a club was the best way to discipline disobedient trainees.

But after watching the changes in Section Five, his old beliefs were beginning to shake.

Maybe...

He shook his head.

No.

If only one month of hard work could completely change things, everyone would have done it already.

Section Five had always been near the bottom in every category.

That was exactly why Bengle had constantly pressured and beaten them.

Still...

As he walked back toward his office, his thoughts became increasingly confused.

The second test was decided.

The test was always chosen by Head Instructor Berton.

And this time, even Bengle wondered if Berton had deliberately chosen it for a reason.

"...Of all tests, why this one?"

Bengle muttered after reading the instructions.

The test was called Token Defense.

The rules were simple.

Enter a huge forest and protect the token given to you until the designated time ended.

In one sense, it was easier than the first test, where they had been required to collect Moltir Flowers.

The only natural threat inside the forest was wild beasts.

As long as the trainees avoided them, there was little chance they would lose their tokens.

But that was not the real problem.

"What terrible luck."

The Token Defense Test included trainees from five different sections at the same time.

To increase their own score, each section had to steal tokens from other sections.

The team with the highest total score from its own tokens and stolen tokens would win.

Keeping your own token was worth three points.

A stolen token was worth one point.

Competition was unavoidable.

And...

"Of all sections, why did we have to be placed with Section Three...?"

Section Three was overwhelmingly the strongest section on Hell Island.

It constantly ranked at the top.

Naturally, it had also taken first place during the Shadow Forest test for Moltir Flowers.

It had suffered the fewest casualties too.

Furthermore, the other instructors certainly knew what had recently happened in Section Five.

They would probably tell their trainees and encourage even more competition.

Looks like I was hoping for too much.

For a moment, Bengle had allowed himself to believe Section Five might surprise him.

But he quickly abandoned that thought.

He was used to expecting something and then being disappointed.

The only person he felt slightly sorry for was the boy who was about to lose both arms.

Bengle stared bitterly at the paper in his hand.

All the trainees of Section Five gathered together.

They were there to hear the announcement for the second test.

Then...

"...Token Defense?"

Theron narrowed his eyes.

The second test he remembered from his previous life had been a rock-climbing test.

But now the test had changed.

Which meant...

Should I assume my actions changed things?

He had made an outrageous declaration.

He had promised to pull last-place Section Five into the top three.

Perhaps that was the cause.

But Bengle was not finished.

"And unfortunately, one of the sections assigned to the same group as us is Section Three."

"G-Gasp!"

"Section Three?!"

The trainees looked shocked.

Everyone knew that Section Three consistently received overwhelmingly high evaluations.

People even said their instructors barely interfered with them anymore.

And above all, Section Three was ruled by a monster.

"...We probably won't run into them, right?"

"It's a competition. How are we supposed to avoid them?"

"We could just keep our own tokens and leave each other alone."

"...Yeah, sure. Like hell they will."

A shadow fell over everyone's expressions.

Theron's roommates looked especially worried.

Perka asked,

"Theron, can we really reach the top three?"

"Damn it... Why did we have to get grouped with Section Three? And why the hell are they making us fight other sections during a test?"

Renil cursed.

If Section Five failed to enter the top three...

Theron's arms would be cut off.

Yet Theron remained calm.

The sudden change in the test bothered him.

Berton must have made this decision.

Theron already knew the Head Instructor was watching him.

Still, he had not expected Berton to change the test just to examine him.

But none of that mattered.

Section Three.

Their ability truly was far above the other sections on Hell Island.

And the boy ruling that place...

Isaac.

In Theron's previous life...

Isaac had been one of the few people who followed him most faithfully.

One of the few people Theron had trusted enough to turn his back to in battle.

When they were forced to take the Death Sigil, everything had been too chaotic for Theron to properly look for him.

But now...

Theron unconsciously smiled.

Of course, having to compete against Section Three was troublesome.

But if Isaac was there...

"It's fine. We can do it."

Theron paused.

Then his smile deepened slightly.

"No... I think we might even be able to take first place."

"...What?"

Everyone stared at him in shock.