Chapter 240

"Aspirants!" The militants shouted as they rushed toward the kids, who were currently panting in sheer exhaustion.

"You are okay!"

Ray shot them a quick, sharp glare.

"Okay? If being swallowed by a strange plant creature, falling through a massive hole and almost turning into a bloody pulp, and nearly being electrocuted to the atomic level by a King-rank beast is considered ’okay,’ then yes. We are okay! Tsk."

The militants stared at the boy in complete shock, their eyes wide in disbelief at his blunt words.

"Did you say King-rank beasts?!" they shouted in unison, their voices echoing with alarm.

....

A few moments later, the men calmed down and led the kids back toward the gate.

They had rushed over from their posts the moment they spotted the group, leaving their station unattended for that brief minute.

When they reached the entrance, the older militant reached into his bag and pulled out three bottles of cold water, tossing them to the group.

"Here. Sorry, I don’t have much. Kindly share."

Felix snatched the first bottle from the air.

Kai caught the second, quickly twisting it open to drink greedily.

"Hey! Pass it here!" Trish shouted, snatching the half-empty bottle from the blonde boy and drinking just as ravenously.

Felix shared his bottle with Ray and Van, while Caster shared the final bottle with Chloe as it reached them.

In unison, the teenagers all heaved a satisfied breath of relief.

The scorching sun felt a little more bearable now that their parched throats were quenched.

"Thank you," Kai and Ray uttered together, offering a slight bow toward the older guard.

The man just waved his hand dismissively with a small, weary smile.

"It’s not a big deal. Now hurry up into the shelter before you get left behind by your group."

With a nod, the Aspirants rushed forward and bolted through the gate opened by the younger militant.

They hurried toward the area where the gate back to the Aspirant Corps was located.

If the group hadn’t departed yet, that was exactly where they would be found.

***

On an open, dusty field, the remaining group of Aspirants could be seen gathered under the blazing overhead sun.

Two meters ahead of the pack, the bulky instructor could be seen panting.

The swirling white gate leading back to the Corps illuminated his rugged features from behind as he crouched down with his hands on his knees.

They had all run here, delayed because they were forced to battle a few stray beasts before they could make it back to the safety of the shelter after the others had been snatched by those strange tree creatures.

"What do you mean the expedition is off?! Just because some weak Aspirants got killed doesn’t mean we should call the whole thing off!" one student yelled.

"Yes! Why do we have to pay for the clumsiness of the others?" another added.

"What about our scores? How are those of us with low scores supposed to manage?" 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

"Exactly! You said a week-long expedition. We should complete that week!"

The bulky instructor was still struggling to catch his breath.

On the way back, he had sent an emergency transmission to Captain Jake requesting his immediate presence.

The only reason they hadn’t stepped through the portal yet was that they were waiting for the Captain to arrive.

The instructor finally rose to his full height as he brought his breathing under control.

He opened his mouth, ready to address the angry crowd, when the gate behind him began to churn and swirl with greater intensity.

From the white light, Captain Jake stepped forward.

His aura was imposing and deadly as his gaze swept across the assembled crowd of Aspirants.

Their numbers were reduced, but not by a significant margin.

"What happened?" Jake asked, his voice low and dangerous.

.....

It took several minutes for the instructor to finish his grim report.

A dark, heavy look settled on the Captain’s face as he gazed at the crowd.

He was searching for specific individuals—a few Aspirants he had been keeping an eye on—but he couldn’t find them anywhere in the throng.

He squeezed his fists for a moment before glaring at the students.

"The expedition has been called off. We will be heading back to the Corps immediately."

The Aspirants opened their mouths, wanting to retort or argue their case.

However, the more they stared at the terrifying expression on the Captain’s face, the more the words refused to leave their throats.

Pressure radiated from him, silencing every complaint before it could be voiced.

It hung there like a persistent bone, forcing them all to swallow their protests back down.

Berg just shrugged indifferently.

’Fine by me. After all, my mission has been completed and I’m sitting comfortably at the top of the leaderboard.’

Lifting his hands and placing them behind his head, he beamed with arrogance.

’... It’s going to be smooth sailing from here on, Berg,’ he chuckled inwardly, almost like a madman, until the sound of footsteps could be heard rushing from behind.

Everyone turned around to stare in the direction of the noise, and this included Berg.

The moment the sources of those footsteps revealed themselves, the smile on his face froze instantly.

His eyes lit up in horror as seven figures rushed forward, reaching the field just in time before collapsing onto their knees.

The moment Jake set eyes on them, his expression lit up in delight.

Berg’s hands slowly moved from the back of his head and then fell limply to his sides at the sight.

’Ho—How—How?!’

The Captain and the bulky instructor dashed forward instantaneously.

They reached the Aspirants, who were gasping for air on the ground before them.

Deep injuries lined their features.

Fresh, black ichor mixed with tints of crimson clung to their skin and clothes.

Ray’s uniform was almost entirely ripped off, leaving him with only half-length pants.

It was the same with Felix.

The others had several tears through their uniforms, their hair disheveled and matted with dust.

The moment Berg set his eyes on Ray, anger bubbled beneath his surface.

His eyes burned with primal rage as orange flames unconsciously crackled around his fingers.

’How did he survive?!’

With the sudden increase in his Perception stat, the Tribrid could feel the intense glare fixed on him, causing him to lift his head to stare in Berg’s direction.

The moment he locked eyes with the Legacy heir, anger consumed the Tribrid instantaneously.

His body trembled, not out of fear, but from uncontrollable fury.

He was about to rise up when Van, who was right beside him, noticed his gaze and quickly held his hand down, stopping him from acting out.

"Not now. Not here," he whispered toward his best friend.

This seemed to ground the Tribrid, allowing him to calm down.

The Captain looked at the battered state the Aspirants were in, his face etched with concern and curiosity.

"You all? What happened? How did you survive? Most importantly... where did you fall into?!"