“Elves......?”
The trainees' eyes widened as they faced the assistants.
They had heard that the training ground was modeled after an elven forest, but they had never expected actual elves to appear.
Elves had long been one of the rarest races. That had not changed even now, when conflict among the races remained unresolved.
Of course, some elves lived among human society, but they were so rare that most of the trainees present had never seen one before.
“We finished preparing the training ground as you requested yesterday.”
One elf stepped forward from the group of assistants and addressed Alia.
He was the supervisor responsible for directing the assistants and managing the training ground.
“Good work, Roswell. Can we begin training immediately?”
“Of course.”
Roswell smiled brightly and bowed his head.
“He's handsome.......”
“This is insane.”
“He doesn't look like he belongs in this world.......”
“My heart feels like it's going to burst. What do I do?”
The female trainees exclaimed at the sight. The elves were so beautiful that admiration came naturally.
The male trainees were no different. Their faces slackened into grins as they stared at the female elf assistants.
“They say every elf is handsome or beautiful. I guess the rumors weren't exaggerated.”
Julian also voiced his admiration for the elves' looks. Ivan seized his shoulder and warned him.
“Julian, pull yourself together. We have a mission to fulfill. No matter how handsome he is, you can't fall for him.”
Julian's expression soured.
“Keep that up and I'll team up with someone else.”
“I'm sorry. I've committed a mortal sin. Please forgive me just this once.”
He had only been joking.
Faced with Julian's threat, Ivan had no choice but to apologize immediately. Until they managed to get the ‘forbidden book’ out of the library, he would have to watch what he said.
“Everyone, attention.”
Their warm-up had briefly ground to a halt while they stared at the elves. Alia drew the trainees' attention.
“It appears everyone has finished warming up, so we will now begin training in earnest. Before that, I will introduce the supervisor who will assist with your training from this point onward.”
Alia gave a look, and Roswell responded by stepping forward.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, trainees. My name is Roswell, and I have supervised this training ground for the past one hundred years.”
Roswell introduced himself to the trainees with a bright smile.
Wait, one hundred years?
The trainees showed their surprise and bewilderment at the claim that he had supervised the training ground for a century.
Their reaction was understandable. Roswell looked no older than his early twenties at most.
“Ha ha, I understand your surprise. From a human perspective, my appearance must seem quite young for my age. But despite how I look, I am four hundred years old.”
“......”
The trainees merely opened and closed their mouths, unsure how to respond.
It was widely known that elves were a long-lived race, but they had never imagined an elf of that age would look so unrealistically young.
‘How wonderful would it have been to be reincarnated as an elf?’
Ivan thought so with complete sincerity.
Most of the trainees were probably thinking the same thing.
After all, elves possessed stunning looks, tall builds, and lifespans measured in centuries.
“I am thrilled to have the chance to help another group of new trainees. Work hard, and I hope you achieve excellent results.”
Roswell finished his introduction.
Clap, clap, clap.
Alia applauded, and the trainees read the room and followed her lead.
“Now I will explain the training method. I will not repeat myself, so open your ears and listen.”
At her command, the trainees listened with both ears wide open.
Meanwhile, two assistants behind her opened the bags in their hands and walked to the front of the trainees.
“Each trainee will now receive five bells. There is a pin at the end of each bell, so fasten them around your waist.”
The two assistants handed five bells to each trainee in turn.
The bells hanging at their waists swayed and rang with a clear sound.
Alia continued her explanation.
“The training method is simple. For the next two hours, you will flee through the forest while avoiding the assistants. They will try to take your bells, and any trainee who loses all five will receive additional training.”
The trainees gulped.
Running away through a forest filled with obstacles would be extraordinarily difficult, unlike doing so on level ground.
“As you can see, this training ground has a very steep slope. Along with numerous natural obstacles, there are also traps that the assistants planted in advance.”
I see. Ivan acknowledged her point.
Just as Alia had said, the first day's training seemed exceedingly light compared to the intensity of this exercise.
“This training demands not only stamina, but concentration and situational judgment. Since it is your first day, I will give you one piece of advice. Flee as high as possible. The lower regions contain more traps and carry a greater chance of encountering the assistants.”
After finishing her explanation, Alia looked around at the trainees and asked.
“Is everyone ready?”
“Yes!”
The trainees answered with voices tinged with tension.
“I will give you thirty minutes. Climb as high as you can during that time. Go.”
Alia gestured with her chin toward the seemingly endless forest, and the trainees drew breath and began to run.
***
The trainees ran and ran along the rugged mountain path.
In truth, the forest was so harsh that it could hardly be called a path.
They constantly stumbled into sunken ground, caught their feet on roots, or slipped on leaves piled along the slopes.
And that was not all.
“Aagh! What is this?!”
“Guh! Wh-What is this...? A hole?”
“Ugh! Who spread oil here?!”
“Ow, that stings! B-Bees?”
Trainees who stumbled into hidden traps screamed, and the forest quickly filled with their cries and groans.
Of course, while some trainees fell readily into the traps, others skillfully avoided them.
Ivan sharpened his focus and surged forward.
Sweat ran down his forehead.
‘This is harder than I expected.’
Ivan wiped the dripping sweat away with the back of his hand and swept his gaze around.
The traps in the forest were cleverly concealed, so he could not let his concentration lapse if he wanted to detect them.
Although the effort doubled his fatigue, Ivan used his natural insight to avoid the traps scattered all around and press onward.
‘Even I failed to see that trap... That bastard is a greater monster than I imagined.’
Julian followed behind Ivan, unable to contain his inward admiration.
He had known from the first day that Ivan was extraordinary, but he had never imagined Ivan would be this capable. Thanks to him, Julian made his way uphill without falling into a single trap.
‘My eye for people was right after all.’
He was glad he had befriended Ivan. Thinking that, Julian followed close behind him.
In contrast, Meirin was already gasping for breath and slowing down.
Noticing her condition, Ivan stopped running and looked back at her.
“Are you all right, Meirin?”
He asked, but one glance made it clear she was not.
Ivan approached her.
“Want me to support you?”
At the question, Meirin shook her head while breathing heavily.
“I-I'm fine. Hah... hah....... Leave me and go on ahead.”
“Are you sure?”
Ivan asked again. Meirin forced a bright smile and nodded.
“Yes... I don't want to be a burden to you, and if I keep receiving help, there would be no point in training.”
“True.”
She was right. If they kept helping Meirin, she would never be able to grow on her own.
“I'll split up here too.”
Julian voiced the same intention as Meirin.
“I'm starting to get winded. Even if I follow you, I'll probably stop halfway. And with Meirin saying that, it wouldn't feel right for me to keep following you.”
Ivan felt momentarily embarrassed by their utterly honest answers.
‘If it were me, I would've thrown a fit until they took me all the way.’
His conscience pricked him for no reason. Ivan cleared his throat and did his best to bury the embarrassment.
“If that's what you want. I'll go on ahead. Good luck to both of you.”
“Yeah, you too.”
“...Thank you for leading us this far, Ivan.”
Julian answered casually and Meirin timidly.
With that, all three parted ways.
Ivan, who still had plenty of stamina, continued climbing through the forest.
Yet the end remained out of sight, and he could not even estimate how tall this mountain was.
‘The thirty minutes will be over soon.’
Estimating how much time had passed since they started, Ivan stopped briefly to catch his breath.
He seemed to have fled quite far from the forest's entrance, but Ivan could not relax in the slightest.
Even though he did not know much about elves, he possessed some basic knowledge.
Elves had often appeared in novels and comics in his previous life, after all.
‘They'll catch up before long.’
No matter how exceptional his stamina was, he did not believe he could escape an elf's pursuit this easily.
Elves were characterized by their light bodies and remarkable speed.
Especially for those who had roamed every corner of rugged forests since childhood, this training ground would be more comfortable than anywhere else.
Hiding somewhere would be useless as well.
Elves were also exceptionally skilled at tracking.
‘I have no choice but to keep moving.’
Once his breathing had steadied somewhat, Ivan started moving again.
***
How much time had passed?
Ivan could hear the faint groans of trainees from lower in the forest.
Judging from the many cries of ‘My bell......!’ the assistants appeared to have already caught up to the trainees below.
‘They came faster than I expected.’
Ivan was certain the assistants would reach this place before long.
He had deliberately left tracks leading in a different direction as he fled in preparation, but honestly, he doubted they would have much effect.
In any case, all Ivan could do was keep running.
After monitoring the activity below and catching his breath a few more times, Ivan ran again.
And by some coincidence.
“Hm?”
While moving, Ivan encountered Miliana and Kamel.
They had apparently crossed paths by accident while all three sought areas with the most cover.
“I didn't expect to meet you here.”
Kamel spoke while looking between Miliana and Ivan.
Before looking at their faces, Miliana checked the number of bells at Ivan's and Kamel's waists.
Her expression suggested she refused to lose to either of them.
“It seems the assistants will reach this place soon.”
“So it would seem.”
“We don't even have time to chat. This is going to get pretty intense.”
“I agree.”
“Gathering like this raises our chances of being found, so I'll go first. Good luck, Kamel.”
There was no time for a long conversation. Ivan looked at Kamel and offered a brief word of encouragement.
“You too, Miliana.”
He said the same to Miliana.
They were not yet close enough to sincerely cheer one another on, but he had received help from both of them before and did not want to ignore them.
“Good luck to you too.”
At Ivan's encouragement, Kamel answered with the faintest lift of his lips.
“I'll do my best without you telling me.”
Miliana worked her mouth for a moment before responding sharply to Ivan's encouragement.
There was no need to prolong the conversation. Ivan waved once at them and immediately turned his back.
No, to be precise, he tried to.
“......!”
A chill ran down his spine, and Ivan hurriedly stepped backward.
Then, in the very next instant.
SWISH.
The bells hanging from Ivan's waist shook with a clear jingle.
A pale hand barely brushed past Ivan's bells.
When did someone get here? Until the hand moved, Ivan had sensed no one's presence at all.
The same held true for Miliana and Kamel. Their faces stiffened as they quickly opened some distance.
“Impressive. You were chatting so peacefully that I thought I'd take one bell, but you actually dodged.”
At last, an assistant who had been hiding behind a tree appeared with an intrigued scoff.
She was a striking woman with short hair. However, Ivan could not afford to be distracted by her beauty.
If he had reacted only a little—a fraction—later, she would certainly have taken one of his bells.
“Why are you standing there? Aren't you going to run?”
The short-haired assistant spoke with a relaxed smile. Yet none of them could readily move their feet.