Confrontation Already?
Osho had to say, this testing area was very well done.
Were it not for his Mana sense, he would have a hard time telling it was a simulated forest. And even with his Mana sense, it wasn’t so simple.
Mana is quite the interesting energy, both upon closer inspection and with a cursory glance.
With his Mana sense, he could observe how the trees took Mana from the earth, specifically, nature affinity Mana, and nourished themselves. This energy spread through the roots, bark, leaves, and so on. Supplementing the trees in ways that normal nutrients couldn’t hope to dream of.
It’s also for reasons that humans, despite the large disparity in strength compared to beasts, still tend to be stronger than normal humans before Mana arrived.
Mana was everywhere. In the air, water, ground, and so on. From the moment a child forms in the womb to their first breath after being born, they are constantly being saturated by Mana and are passively strengthened by its presence.
The only reason why this doesn’t seem apparent is that this passive strengthening doesn’t only affect living creatures.
There was a study in the early days when Mana appeared that revealed that the entire world had been strengthened considerably. Be it Mana, oxygen density, air pressure, the viscosity of water, etc.
That’s why humans with little to no cultivation could still get tired as though they were on a planet where Mana didn’t exist. The world had been strengthened along with them.
Anyway, back to how the Mana moved. While the trees still took the nature Mana from the ground and surroundings, there were still some telltale signs that made it clear that the trees weren’t naturally occurring.
The rate at which they absorbed Mana was abnormally fast, hinting at the fact that they were temporary and would only take the Mana they needed, disappearing not long after the exam ended. In comparison, normal trees absorbed the Mana at a more steady pace, growing gradually like normal trees.
Another factor was that these trees didn’t recycle the Mana.
Just like with oxygen, the trees of Azure Star also recycled Mana. Other than the Nature Mana from the ground, they also took in the atmospheric Mana, removed the Mana that had affinities and turned it into pure Mana that was pumped back into the atmosphere.
How did this process work one may ask? Well, it was slow, and only happened in small amounts as the Nature Mana in the trees which had the effect of being able to purify Mana to an extent would grind down the impure Mana and pump out the remaining, clean Mana.
These trees didn’t do that.
’So many interesting things about this place.’ Osho thought as he jumped from tree to tree. He was no longer content with just jogging as it was too slow. A fact that became even more apparent as the terrain changed to that of a swampy area, making moving on the ground hard, dangerous, and time-consuming.
With his kill from before, Osho already had 50 points and entered the top ten for a few minutes, but that fact soon changed as everyone started killing wantonly, making his rank drop quickly. But he wasn’t particularly perturbed.
Suddenly, he came to a stop as he spotted something through Gale’s vision, the bird who had been hovering some distance above him also choosing to circle as they observed.
A group of alligators could be seen relaxing lazily in a more open spot within the swamp. The majority of them were at the Novice rank, but there were a few Apprentice ranks, and a single Adept rank.
’Hm, while I’m confident, there are about thirty of them, in the place. Too risky, but it’s a nice spot to take note of.’ As he had that thought, there was a sudden bang that made him look up.
On the large Mana screen, it briefly from the rankings to show the portrait of a student with a large red X covering them while saying ’Eliminated’.
’Already, huh?’ Osho shook his head. Not his business.
Without wasting more time, he decided to go around the congregation of alligators towards where he believed Ellie would be.
"Mrs Eleanor, I truly believe that an alliance would be mutually beneficial for us." Close to the 8th entrance, Ellie found herself in quite a predicament.
She anticipated that Osho would head straight for her due to their proximity, so she decided to stay put and wait for him. However, she couldn’t have anticipated this...
9 students in red uniforms were currently surrounding her. They all had their beasts out and looked wary, but they also had placating smiles on their faces.
"Sir Jiwon has already established himself as one of the strongest examinees this year. Him accumulating a large number of points is only a guarantee. On the other hand, your experience along with your talent is apparent. If you can ally with us, it will only do you good." The person in the lead, a muscular girl that had a bear-like beast by her side said, sounding confident despite her caution.
Ellie just regarded them with a brief glance, not getting up from the rock she was sitting on.
"Can y’all drop it? I’m waiting for someone, and you’re making that wait a lot less enjoyable." She said with a sigh.
’Fight!’ Sugil hissed through their bond.
’No, not yet at least. They haven’t done anything to warrant a conflict.’ Ellie replied. If she could help it, she’d avoid engaging the other students, both because the benefits of doing so at such an early stage were limited, and because she wasn’t a fan of attacking her fellow humans unless she had to.
"Mrs Eleanor, please understand. We’re making an offer that will do you and us good." The girl said again before adding.
"In fact, Sir Han is planning to take down an Adept rank beast. We have no doubt that he can do it, but the risks will be significantly less if you agree to group up with us."
’Now that’s a little surprising. I wonder if Osho plans on doing something similar. Probably, considering his plan to not hold back.’ Ellie thought.
Seeing her thoughtful expression, the girl smiled, believing that Ellie was considering her words.
"Sir Han is a bit proud, but he’s very competent. I assure you that working with us, with him, will do you good." Ellie sighed and shook her head.
From a logical standpoint, her words made sense. Han Jiwon, similar to her, had a beast with Elite rank potential, and both of them had shown themselves to be competent and resourceful. Even if they had to share points, the number of points they could get while working together would make up for the sharing.
However, Ellie had no interest in working with him or his school. Why? Well, for starters, she already knew that Osho and her group were a better choice. Not only did they have synergy, she also hadn’t an idea of what they could do, especially Osho, and needless to say, it wasn’t anything that could be topped by Han Jiwon.
The second reason was that killing beasts and amassing points isn’t the true reason for wanting to ally with her.
Similar to Ellie, Han Jiwon came from a prominent family, and growing up, the two of them interacted on several occasions. Be it high-profile dinners that just served as a front for meetings, or business parties where those involved brought their children.
Ellie never truly got around to liking the guy. He seemed too rigid for her taste. Not to mention, she was keenly aware of how he saw her as something to be possessed and not as a person. From what she observed about him, he was one of those people who saw women as prizes to be one, and Ellie seemed to be an especially big prize to him.
Ellie, for her goofiness, had a lot of self-respect, and had no interest in a guy who saw her as nothing more than a possession. Moreover, she already had a boyfriend.
"Look, I get that you guys are here on orders. But I can’t comply, and again, I’m waiting for someone." The girl from before frowned.
"But why? Who is this person? Surely they can’t be a better ally than sir Han." Ellie resisted the urge to roll her eyes.
’If dad was here, he’d probably lecture me about how I shouldn’t be so nice when people are giving me a headache.’ She sighed inwardly before saying flatly.
"I’m not interested in an alliance. Leave." Gone was the upbeat and relatable girl as Ellie’s demeanor changed.
The 9 flinched as they realized she was no longer playing around. But even then...
"We can’t go back without you." One of them said and stepped up.
This seemed to bolster the rest as they began inching forward bit by bit. They intended to use force.