Chapter 83

Yuri entered the room where the twelve trial judges were seated. At first glance, they seemed like perfectly ordinary people, but no one could fathom just how much destructive power was gathered in that room. The continent’s strongest hunters had assembled to carry out a major order from the League.

Yuri took on the role of the leader, while the rest of the group coordinated all other tasks: organizing the trial, screening the participants, dividing them into teams, and balancing their strengths.

"So, how are our little hunters? Anything interesting?"

A girl in a fire mage’s outfit was processing the data collected by the portal as the examinees entered the room. The players had no idea that the portal gathered detailed information about them—information used to form teams of roughly equal strength.

"This year, there are about twenty potential candidates. A motley crew, each achieving incredible success through their specializations. Oh, I almost forgot—we have two geniuses: a boy and a girl. And the boy? Pure evil."

"You’re hard to impress. What did he do?"

"Fourteenth-rank Titan Slayer, already has an enhancement skill, eleven streams of consciousness. He could already qualify as an apprentice in fourteen magical schools. When we found out a monster like him had received an invitation to the trial, we tried to scare him off. He sensed us and threatened to kill us if we made any aggressive moves. And this freak is just a kid who can’t even level up yet."

"And you got scared and let him through?"

"He knew exactly where we were standing and how many of us there were. His perception stat is two to three times higher than our invisibility. We’re hunters, and the only reason we’re still alive is because we trust our instincts—none of us wanted to get close to him. You could feel the hum and vibration of magi-space around him, the kind that comes with powerful spells."

Yuri covered his face with his palm. Half the people in this room had been recruited into the hunters by him personally, and now this was how the next trial was shaping up.

"What does he look like? If he passes the first trial, I’ll send him on a suicide mission in the next one. The world isn’t ready for monsters like him."

"Oh, here’s the funny part. He’s dressed like a girl—long golden hair and all."

Yuri nearly doubled over laughing.

"Pffft—" His laughter faded into a smirk. "So he came here thinking he could get a hidden class. He didn’t even know about the hunters or our skills."

"Maybe he’ll back out?"

"No. Guys like him don’t back out. Besides, now he can start leveling. If not this year, then next—but he’ll become a hunter. Alright, who’s the other genius?"

"The girl. She was here last year but failed the first trial. You should remember her—she wore black plate armor and wielded a bastard sword. Her swordplay resembles the fencer’s style."

"Ah, her. Got it." Yuri burst into loud laughter, his whole demeanor radiating excitement and anticipation for a good show. "Life’s so much fun when kids like these exist." Everyone in the room chuckled at the simple rhyme. "Any other standouts?"

"Two more… as far as I can tell, they’re professional assassins. They figured us out quickly too, but they didn’t ask outright."

"Also?"

"The boy genius realized it in about ten seconds just by observing. These two pros, though—they set up an environment where we could’ve taken lethal hits. We got out fast, exchanged some polite smiles, and went our separate ways."

"Ugh. Feels like the world itself reacts to people like this. What about the team assignments? Are they in different groups?"

"No, I moved them all into one. Their total numbers are way lower than the other three teams. Their survival chances are significantly worse. I assumed you’d want to weed out the most troublesome candidates, so I set it up that way."

"Good job. But did you consider what happens if they team up?"

"Uh… no. They’re lone wolves—their fighting style is solo. Besides, they might just kill each other."

"Oh, for—" Yuri’s entire expression screamed "who do I even work with?" "This is a constant battlefield. They’ll figure out on their own that teamwork is the only way to survive. Whatever, they still have a chance. Let’s move. Your job is to monitor the trial. Contact me in emergencies."

Everyone stood and stepped through the portal. What awaited them was a full day of observing the trial’s progress.