Just like the maid said us, a staff escorted us exactly 15 minutes later. Now in a vastly spacious room, we stood side by side. Along with an old man with wrinkled skin and limbs as thin as a stick.
"We shall be beginning the combat test now. Young men, are you both ready?" He asked as a manner of courtesy.
This man happened to be the examiner overlooking our second part of the exam.
In response, we both nodded our heads in silent agreement.
Then with a toothy grin, the man told us, "Don’t be expecting the same drills once again. This time we have prepared a set of umm...more difficult exercises."
He then explained, "The combat test has been divided into three subdivisions, each containing a total of ten points. The first one has been set up according to your personal fighting styles.
The second one is a teamfight, with you two in a single team and a hoard of soldiers on the other.
As for the third...let it remain anonymous for now." Then with a crooked smile, he added.
"Consider it a bonus from my side."
His bony hands suddenly dug into his pocket and took out a coin. He then raised it into the air. One face of it had the side visage of a bearded man and the other face had a number engraved on it.
The value of the coin.
Looking at us, he asked. For origınal chapters go to 𝖓𝖔𝖛𝖊𝖑~𝖋𝖎𝖗𝖾~𝖓𝖊𝖙
"Shall we play a game of luck to determine who shall be going in first?"
"Where shall we be going?" Reinhard counter questioned from beside me.
"You shall see, young man. But first things first let’s play it."
Reinhard and I shared a momentary glance as we both stepped forward.
"Whenever you are ready." He said as his body moved all of a sudden and his right hand streaked forward with such a speed that I almost stumbled while trying to jump backwards.
And then the next moment, the coin was in the air. Tossed and now rolling back towards the man.
Before Reinhard could even process what had happened, I quickly opened my mouth and shouted "Head!"
As my words left the mouth, the coin dropped on the man’s palm. On the face of the coin was the same bearded man.
Smiling mischievously, he asked me.
"So who goes first, Mr. Mordant?"
To which I poised my thumb towards Reinhard who was watching all this happen with a puzzled expression.
Maybe it was just too fast for him to process. A game of luck just in the beginning of a combat test and one where I already won? Hell yeah!
Hope this luck continues though...I seriously need it for whatever surprise the old maniac had prepared for us.
The man’s long tooth protruded out his mouth as with a shit-eating grin, he pointed between Reinhard and a bloody sun drawn right in the centre of the room.
"Now Mr. Reinhard, if you would be kind enough to proceed forward. Yes, just step on the sun. And you shall enter the first test." He said as Reinhard walked towards it.
As he stepped on it, a bright radiance covered our visions. I had to squint and close my eyes to block off the excess light.
After the brightness dimmed, I opened my eyes to find Reinhard covered in a slim, translucent layer of a red slimy substance. He was looking at himself in astonishment as well.
"Mr. Arlott what...is this?"
The old man whose name happened to be Arlott answered in his enigmatic manner.
"That red slimy thing around you? That’s a dimensional space you are in. It takes a few seconds to transfer you into the actual space. So grapple yourself for any sudden nausea and pass the test. Smoothly, if you will."
The red covering suddenly turned more luminous. In a haste Reinhard shouted out, "Wait! What about the rules of the test?"
Hearing those words, Arlott’s face scrunched in absolute bewilderment. Jerking back his head, he bellowed back.
"Rules? What rules? Don’t be uttering nonsense! Isn’t surviving enough for you?"
Alas, whatever curse he wanted to express to the world were all cut off as the bubble disappeared all of a sudden, taking Reinhard with it to whatever doom this man had made for him.
On the other hand, I stood in complete stillness as I let those words settle in me.
"Oye oye why are your eyes widening like saucers, ready to pop out and stink this cold floor?"
My neck mechanically craned towards the man. But I didn’t even see a man. All I saw was a monster.
No, I think..."Are you a sadist?" My lips didn’t hold back the words my mind whispered to me.
"Me? A sadist?" Arlott raised his index finger and shook it back and forth as he said, "Tch,tch, tch never compare me to those ragpicks, who desperately tag themselves as sadists just because they enjoyed their sibling’s lousy fall on the ground when they were just about a year old.
The true taste of thriving in others’ misery is not seen, it’s felt deep in your core, in your mind and in your bones. And counting that in, I declare myself... different. Got it?"
’What in the dao of bullshit was that..?’
But I still nodded with a stiff smile. Then he suggested, "Boy since you understand my tastes, how about I make your test a bit...harder? I promise it won’t be much, just a tad, tiny, little piece higher than what Reinhard is experiencing right now in the dimension."
My smile vanished instantly and I backed away.
"No way. I don’t want to even see your definition of ’a little more’. And moreover why shall I be doing something where I don’t gain anything?"
"Hmm...you ask the correct question. Though good news, you shall be gaining two things from here."
He raised one of his finger as if to count his points.
"Firstly, gaining ten marks in this first test shall be easier given the higher difficulty level for you."
Then he raised a second finger.
"Also, you shall get a brother."
"Of course. The main point of me doing this is to introduce you the realm of pleasure where you thrive in misery. And you shall have me as your guide in it."
"Sorry but I don’t have such fetishes." I rejected that flatly.
"Haha looks like the boy is in denial. I can see that fire in your eyes, lad. But that’s okay....someday you will realise it too."