Chapter 123: Chapter 121: Night Ops Combat Training
"This time," Dmitri continued, "your objective is simple."
A holographic image of glowing armbands appeared in the air.
"All classes will enter the dungeon."
The entire class immediately groaned.
"Again?!"
"I can feel my grades dying."
"This is Blanca’s fault somehow."
Dmitri ignored us and continued explaining.
"As usual, each student will wear an identification band." The glowing bands rotated slowly in the hologram. "However, these bands will emit light inside the dungeon."
Several students frowned immediately.
"That defeats stealth."
"That’s the point," Dmitri replied flatly.
The hologram shifted again, revealing a pitch-black dungeon map.
"The dungeon visibility will remain extremely low. You will not know who your teammates are unless you approach close enough to identify their faces."
At that, the long-range fighters in class collectively looked offended.
Dmitri smirked coldly. "So yes," he said. "Long-range attacks are practically useless."
Someone in the back gasped dramatically.
"My entire build..."
"Additionally," Dmitri continued mercilessly, "if you accidentally attack your own teammate, both of you will be immediately eliminated."
The entire class froze.
Then chaos erupted instantly.
"WHAT?!"
"That’s unfair!"
"How are we supposed to fight in the dark?!"
"What if someone’s ugly and hard to recognize?!"
"Can we sacrifice teammates strategically?"
"No."
I slowly raised my hand.
Dmitri narrowed his eyes immediately. "...What now, Miss Frostine?"
"So basically," I said thoughtfully, "this is blindfolded friendly fire simulator?"
"...No."
"Can I punch someone first before checking if they’re my teammate?"
"No."
"What if it’s Silvano?"
Silvano looked offended. "Why me specifically?"
I turned toward him sharply.
"You were the one who insisted on letting me drink that goddamn coffee and embarrass myself in front of everybody!" I hissed.
Sebastian sighed beside me. "She’s recovering."
"Excuse me?"
"The violent Blanca is slowly returning."
Dmitri immediately continued speaking before the class could spiral into another unnecessary argument.
"Five teams each from all classes will enter from different points inside the dungeon," he announced. "Your objective is to survive and locate the exit."
The holographic map shifted again, showing several branching tunnels and glowing checkpoints scattered across the dungeon.
I slowly raised my hand again.
The moment Dmitri saw it, he looked physically exhausted. Then without hesitation, he grabbed Nueve by the shoulder and shoved him forward.
"You handle that little menace for me."
Nueve looked deeply betrayed. "Why me?"
"Because I still value my remaining lifespan."
Nueve sighed before turning toward me with the patience of a saint. "What is it, Miss Frostine?"
I blinked innocently. "What if we can’t find the exit?"
"That won’t happen."
"But what if it does?"
"That’s your problem."
"Nueve," Dmitri warned.
"Right. Professionalism," Nueve coughed lightly as he looked back at me. "Once the night is over, Omni Drones will automatically guide the remaining students toward the exit."
"Oh." I nodded thoughtfully. "So there’s a pity system."
Several students snorted.
Nueve ignored them professionally.
"However," he continued, "points will be deducted if you fail to locate the exit within the allotted time."
"It’s time to be blindfolded everyone," Sheng said as the remaining instructors stepped up blindfolding us one by one.
~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~
[You may all take off your blindfolds now]
The Omni Drone’s mechanical voice echoed throughout the dungeon.
I immediately removed the blindfold and blinked several times as my eyes adjusted to the dim surroundings.
The dungeon was dark, illuminated only by faint glowing crystals embedded into the walls and the glowing armbands strapped around everyone’s arms.
I looked around at my team.
’...Oh for the love of suffering..’
I somehow got grouped together with all the main characters again.
’What kind of cursed matchmaking system keeps putting me with these people?’
I clicked my tongue internally.
Absolutely not.
Something important always happened whenever these people gathered together. Arguments, emotional trauma, near death experiences, property damage, and might I add, romance.
There was only one logical solution.
Separate myself from them immediately.
"Gawain, let’s team up," I said instantly while turning toward him.
But before I could even take two steps away, Sebastian grabbed my wrist. "And where exactly are you going?" he asked.
I looked at him innocently. "Exploring."
"With Gawain?"
"Yes."
"We’re your team," Sebastian said flatly. "Not him."
"We’re ALL a team," I corrected quickly. "But to cover more ground efficiently, shouldn’t we split into pairs? That way we can find the exit faster."
Silence.
Silvano stared at me flatly. "What kind of bullshit strategy is that?"
"AH!" I pointed at him dramatically. "Quick! Kill it! A Rogue infiltrated our group!"
Silvano looked deeply offended. "Are you seriously still mad about the coffee?!"
Stephano suddenly crossed his arms. "I agree with Silvano. You’re obviously trying to abandon us again, Troll."
I gasped loudly before pointing at him too. "Oh shit! The monsters here can understand human language now?!"
"You piece of—"
"You even learned profanity?!" I interrupted while backing away slowly. "This dungeon’s getting dangerous!"
Stephano looked one insult away from attempted murder.
Ravian narrowed his eyes at me. "Why are you trying to leave immediately?"
I smiled nervously. "...Team-building exercise?"
"That sounds fake," Vivienne said softly.
"It IS fake," Silvano muttered.
Meanwhile nearby students from other classes had slowly started backing away from our area entirely.
Probably because our team looked one misunderstanding away from murdering each other before the actual test even started.
Sebastian still hadn’t let go of my wrist. "Bella," he said suspiciously, "why do you look like you’re trying to abandon us before we even start?"
’Because I don’t want to be involved in all your drama...’
But I obviously couldn’t say that.
I smiled sweetly. "I simply believe in independence."
"No," Ravian said calmly. "You believe in running away from responsibilities."
Gawain finally walked closer carrying his weapon over one shoulder. "If My Lady wishes," he said pleasantly, "I can simply kidnap her from the group."
"Try it," Sebastian answered instantly.
"Oh?" Gawain smiled.
"Oh?" Sebastian smiled back.
The air instantly became dangerous.
Diana sighed. "Why does every interaction with this group feel like a hostage negotiation?"
[The test starts now! Good luck and have fun!]
The moment the announcement echoed through the dungeon, the entire area exploded into chaos.
Weapons clashed.
Students screamed.
Someone immediately got tackled into a wall.
Another student ran past us crying.
Honestly?
Beautiful atmosphere.
While everyone else got distracted, I saw my chance. "GAWAIN LET’S GO!"
I immediately grabbed his hand and bolted into the darkness.
"You TRAITOR!" Sebastian shouted from behind me.
"ONLY MAN FOR HIMSELF!" I yelled back.
"That’s not even the right phrase!"
"YOU KNOW WHAT I MEANT!"
~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~
"MY LADY—!"
A spear suddenly shot through the darkness.
SHING!
"Damn it!" Gawain muttered as he instantly tilted his weapon and deflected it before it could stab straight through his shoulder.
The corridor had completely descended into chaos, the other classes had already started closing in.
Students from different classes were attacking blindly, glowing armbands flashing everywhere like moving targets inside the dark dungeon.
"What the hell is happening?!" Gord shouted while trying to block two students rushing toward him.
Ravian frowned sharply while scanning the darkness. "...Wait."
Everyone looked at him briefly while fighting.
"If Gawain is here," he said carefully, "then whose hand did Blanca pull earlier?"
Silence.
Gawain blinked once. "...I don’t know either," he admitted. "It was too dark to see."
A horrifying pause followed before everyone reacted at once.
"She kidnapped the wrong person?!" Gord shouted while kicking away another student trying to ambush him.
"She literally abandoned us after five seconds!" Diana exclaimed.
"She planned this from the beginning," Silvano grumbled while dodging an incoming arrow. "The moment she saw the team lineup, I knew she’d try escaping."
Another student nearby groaned dramatically.
"Seeing that our ears haven’t bled yet," Chester said thoughtfully while fighting someone off, "it was probably Stephano she grabbed."
Vivienne looked deeply offended. "What?! No—" She froze, her gaze drifting as she slowly looked around. "...Stephano?"
But no one responded.
Her expression darkened immediately. "That stupid bitch," she muttered under her breath. "Why did she have to take Stephano?"
Meanwhile Sebastian cracked his neck while staring toward the direction Blanca disappeared.
His expression slowly darkening. "Why did it have to be him?" he muttered.
Gawain glanced at him briefly. "...So you noticed it too."
Ravian immediately narrowed his eyes. "Noticed what?"
Both Sebastian and Gawain went silent.
Julienne pointed at them suspiciously. "Why does it suddenly feel like you two are plotting something?"
"I’m getting my teammate back," Sebastian answered immediately before taking off into the darkness.
"You sound like an angry husband!" Diana yelled after him.
"Shut up!"
Meanwhile the rest of the group was still being overwhelmed by the surrounding students.
"WAIT!" Helio shouted desperately while blocking another attack. "Gawain, you can’t leave too! We can’t handle this horde ourselves!"
Gawain didn’t even hesitate. "My Lady comes first," then he immediately vanished into the darkness after Sebastian.
The remaining group stared at the empty corridor.
Silence
Then another student from another class charged at them screaming.
Ravian looked exhausted already. "...I hate all of them."
