The Elemental Relics

As soon as they were ready, the group was led down some stairs until they arrived outside one of the labyrinths as one of the first groups to attempt the test. For this test, there were ten labyrinths in total that had different layouts. The enemies were the same and the travel distance was similar so the difficulty didn’t vary much between them. Ten groups were sent first and, upon their completion, new enemies were summoned while a new group participated. They were told that, as soon as they escorted the hostage to the exit or the hostage got injured, they would be done with their exam. For groups that went early, it was very possible for them to wait awhile until all the groups got their turns. The four of them discussed the plan moving forward before they stepped into the maze.

“Kamis can serve as the frontline,” said Ali. “He will make sure none of the minotaurs get past him.”

Standing outside the entrance, they could see the width of the passages which Kamis could easily handle on his own. The walls were too tall for anyone to scale them, though the proctor likely had an answer to such an approach. With the vanguard figured out, they had to figure out who would cover the rear. Kurata was quick to point out he wasn’t very useful against the minotaurs due to his low damage. He stated that he needed fifteen hits to kill a single minotaur which be plenty of time for him to get killed.

“I’ll hold them in place,” said Kamis. “You take your time and whittle them down at your leisure.”

“But those minotaurs hit hard,” said Kurata.

“They won’t leave a scratch on me.”

The confidence from Kamis’ voice ended further arguments from Kurata. Ali then stated that he would cover the rear with his air serpent. He needed five hits to defeat a minotaur while Tian needed four hits. As long as they weren’t overwhelmed, they could take on two minotaurs at one time, though two of the creatures would have a hard time squeezing through the narrow passages. With the roles of those with yellow tags assigned, Belen was selected to figure out the labyrinth. The others would be too busy fighting to keep track of their progress so she should focus on directing them where to go. With the plan in place, the squad entered the labyrinth and the door closed immediately behind them. Kamis followed Belen’s instructions until they encountered their first minotaur.

“Take this!” said Kurata as he let loose a handful of fireballs at the minotaur.

The minotaur roared after it was hit by the fireballs but Kamis didn’t budge and it couldn’t reach Kurata any other way. The creature unleashed its attacks but Kamis wasn’t even breaking a sweat. Four batches of Kurata’s fireballs later, the minotaur was defeated and the group resumed its search for the way out. For the rest of the labyrinth, only a single minotaur showed up at a time. Either the creatures were held in place by Kamis as they were steadily chipped away by Kurata or Ali and Tian made short work of them. Finding the way out proved more time-consuming but the group eventually reached the exit.

“Congratulations,” said a proctor. “You four have the fastest time so far. Please go to the resting area and wait there until the others are done.”

The group went to the resting area where they ate and took short naps. Eventually, all the groups either passed or failed the exam. After the results were announced, the groups waited several minutes as the slowest groups were eliminated one by one until only ten groups remained. The ten groups were herded into a separate room where they were given the details for the final stage of the promotional exam through a speaker.

“I would say congratulations but you aren’t there yet. Still, good work making it the final stage. As all of you know, C rank members are expected to go into the field a few times a year. While that isn’t much, the situation can drastically change when a simple mission becomes one where you can lose your lives. The final stage is meant to gauge how you can handle dangerous situations so you will not be given a simulation like the one you just had. For the final stage, you will be tracking down and killing deserters of the liberation army in Usnana. These deserters turned to crime after the defeat of the liberation army so you are going after criminals. Kill them and provide proof you are responsible. Failure to kill or having the kill taken by someone else will result in your failure. Now, you are dismissed!”

Each group was then given a piece of paper with the target’s face and name on it.

“Use everything you learned in the first stage to get you through this. While there isn't a timer, I don't recommend you taking your time as there are bounties on these criminals, albeit smaller ones. You won't be given time to prepare so be ready to think on your feet! Enjoy and don’t get killed!”

What the?

Ali looked down to see a portal similar to the one that got him out of the liberation army base. A quick glance confirmed that the portal was large enough to engulf his entire group. Before he knew it, he fell onto a dirt road in a dark alleyway. Ignoring the pain from the fall, he quickly looked around. Familiarity swept through his senses as he tried to recall why the place made him feel this way.

Wait! Is this where I think it is?

“Looks like we are back in Dalcis,” said Belen with confidence. “They weren’t joking when they told us to use everything we learned in the first stage.”

“I’ll take the lead now,” said Kurata. “As shown by our race, I’m better at gathering intelligence than Belen…by a long shot."

As Belen chased after Kurata demanding the teenager to take back his comment, Ali made a vow that he would make up for his abandonment not so long ago.