Rain turned around to see Elys waving at him from afar.

  ‘Those eyes really are going to be a pain in the ass…’

  Elys has always been a very curious person, meddling in the business of others whenever he could. As such, he was quite the troublemaker. With his now enhanced vision, no one would be able to hide from him.

  Having caught up, both now stood together among the masses of moving trainees. Elys spoke up first:

  “Damn, that dude was not playing around.”

  “Who? The Berserker?”

  “Yeah…I only took a peek at him with my eyes, and he instantly sensed me.”

  Elys shivered with his whole body.

  “Anyway, what group are you in, Rain?”

  Taking another look at his bracelet, he turned it around and showed it to Elys.

  “B3, and you?”

  “Ohh, that’s crazy! So am I!”

  Rain was relieved, at least this way he wouldn't be alone for the month, and he could also keep an eye on any shenanigans Elys might do.

  With a serious face and straight posture, Elys joked:

  “Lead the way, Trainee Rain.”

  “... You're so stupid.”

  “Sir, yes, Sir!”

  After a small chuckle, Rain turned around and together they walked across the filled courtyard towards their Training Officer. Making their way, Rain had a rather morbid thought. Looking around them, the thousands of young Selected, and how many of them would return. Usually, there were between three to four thousand Selected at each camp, and the survivors were in the low hundreds.

  The survivors are treated like heroes, receiving many boons and benefits, though now, society expects them to be protectors. After all, it wasn’t just the Mirror that was dangerous. Earth had been reshaped by the Mirror and its overflowing onslaught of Shards. Regions and continents have been abandoned by humanity and turned into a barren wasteland filled with horrors. Even though the defensive measures nowadays seem to hold, there was never certainty. The Blessed were humanity’s last line of defence and their bastion of hope.

  ‘Even if we survive, the next fight will be waiting.’

  Surviving was the first goal, and so, the duo arrived. Their training officer was conversing with another member of their group, a frail-looking boy with bright hair, with some others standing nearby. The officer quickly turned towards them and held out his hand to the frail boy.

  “We can speak more about this after we are done.”

  “You two, names?”

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  Rain and Elys exchanged a quick look before Elys stepped forward first.

  “Elys, Sir.”

  “Rain…Sir.”

  “At ease, both of you, while we are at a military camp, this isn’t the army. Now that the last members have arrived, let's begin. Follow me, please.”

  Rain looked around the group; there were eight people, including Elys and him. The frail boy was clearly from the slums as well, while the others clearly looked wealthier. While walking, Rain finally got a clear view of the training camp, if one could even call it that. It really was like a village with tons of buildings sprawled across the area.

  “As you can see, we have plenty of space here. First, I'll bring you to your dormitory; it’s a bit quieter there. I appreciate this year being very well organized; last year, we already had trainees fighting each other with their Reflections. Leave that to the classes; there will be plenty of fighting there.”

  Their instructor had a warm voice, around Rain’s height, but built widely. Wearing the military uniform and typical haircut made him look a bit older, but Rain thought he was probably in his mid-thirties.

  After around 5 minutes, the giant crowd of trainees could only be faintly heard in the distance, and after the brisk walk, the group arrived at the dormitory.

  ‘Well, this doesn't seem much different than what I know.’

  While the building looked to be in a better state than Rain’s old apartment, it still reminded him a lot of it. Heading inside, the instructor guided them through the bleak concrete walls, with only military advertisements filling the insides.

  “Alright, this is it.”

  He opened a double door, and a big room came into view. Numerous bunk beds filled the entrance, behind them, what looked like a lounge area with small sofas and bean bags littered around.

  “Now that we are here, I can properly introduce myself. My name is Officer Trant, and I will be following and aiding your month here at Training Camp CB47. It is my job to check your current skills and improve them as much as possible for your excursion next month.”

  “This…will be hard, I will do all I can to instruct you regarding your martial skill and provide guidance with your Reflection, but ultimately, you guys have to…for the lack of a better term, work yourselves to death here.”

  While he looked at the group as a whole, Rain knew those words were meant even more for him and Elys.

  “First things first, Rain, Elys, and Jun. You three are from the slums, correct?”

  The three nodded slightly, while the rest quietly looked over them.

  “Alright, you know what this means. You have to work twice as hard. Due to your unfortunate upbringing, you naturally have a weaker build than others, and so, the government provides all trainees from the slums with special meals. This Blessed enhanced food will help you with weight gain, muscle growth, and fatigue.”

  The frail boy looked up, about to speak.

  “And yes, Trainee Jun, the training camp has eyes everywhere and makes certain that no trainee gets their food stolen by ‘stronger’ trainees.”

  Jun gave the instructor a slight bow before the tension on his shoulders became visibly less.

  “Now for today’s schedule. I will give you half an hour to get acquainted with your new space and group members. After that, we will go to the main training hall, where you will show me your Reflections and your current martial skills. The rest of the day is yours to recover and prepare.”

  Officer Trant walked towards the doors before stopping decisively and turning around.

  “Oh, right, I almost forgot the rules.”

  ‘So the most important thing…’

  “Number one: Under no circumstances are you allowed to use your Reflection outside of the designated training areas. We don't care if yours is non-combat related; this rule goes for everyone.

  Number two: 10 pm is lights out. So be here before that. Anyone caught outside after hours will be punished.

  Number three: Absolutely no fighting, like I said, leave that for the duel training.

  Other than that, the rest is basic human decency, so I won't list it all off. I’ll be back in half an hour.”

  With that, Trant turned around and closed the door behind him. Seconds passed, and the silence in the room spoke volumes.

  ‘This is awkward even for me.’