The candidates assembled inside Arena Block C, the tension so thick it felt solid. Conversations faded into uneasy silence, as if everyone sensed a predator entering the room.
Then the door opened.
A man walked in with long black hair tied carelessly at the back, hands stuffed deep in his coat pockets. His expression was a permanent scowl—less anger, more exhaustion—but the sharpness in his eyes cut through the hall like a blade.
Akirawa.
The most feared instructor in all of IDHA.
Not because he was strict.
Not because he was violent.
But because he never—under any circumstances—followed the rules.
If the handbook said "do A," Akirawa casually performed B, C, or occasionally an unholy Z.
Most instructors avoided him, torn between fear and respect.
He stepped forward, voice low and razor-edged.
"Alright, brats. Listen up. I'll make this quick. I hate wasting my time."
The entire hall turned to stone.
Even Ren—who never shut up—held his breath.
Akirawa continued, tone flat and bored.
"I don't care about your strength tests. I don't care how fast you can run. I don't care how many push-ups you can cry through."
His cold gaze swept across the candidates.
"So we're skipping all of it."
Whispers surged like a wave.
Akirawa ignored them entirely.
"You're going straight into a real combat scenario. No warm-up. No training wheels. No safety gear. If you die, you die."
A tremor ran through the hall.
He pointed lazily at the registration tablets.
"Make teams of six. No more, no less. Make friends or die faster—it's all the same to me."
Instant chaos.
Ren immediately grabbed Akira's wrist and lifted it high like a trophy.
"WE'RE TEAMING. NO ESCAPE."
Kaito sighed. "Ren, please stop manhandling the protagonist."
The Misoke twins—expressionless, slow-moving, yet radiating monstrous strength—approached with silent nods.
Then Ayla arrived last.
Perfect posture. Controlled expression.
But her hands… faintly trembling.
Ren brightened instantly.
"The strongest prodigy? YES. Our team is STACKED!"
The tablet flashed:
TEAM 7 — REGISTERED
Akirawa clapped once, loud enough to echo.
"Alright, kindergarteners. Here's your test."
Behind him, a massive metal door opened with a mechanical hiss, revealing an artificial city—skyscrapers, roads, bridges. A full-scale simulation environment.
Akirawa smirked.
"This is Simulation Zone R-13. A mock city."
A metallic roar vibrated the ground.
"And inside, we released a prototype autonomous destroyer. Fully hostile. Strong enough to level districts."
He raised two fingers.
"Your goals:
1. Minimize city damage.
2. Locate the Dreamer causing the scenario."
He waved dismissively.
"If you want to quit, go home now."
Nobody moved.
"Good. You chose the dangerous route. My favorite."
Teams entered one after another.
All failed.
Crushed in seconds. Overwhelmed. Panicked.
Akirawa yawned.
"If they can't survive this, they don't belong here."
Finally—
TEAM 7 — ENTER
The doors slammed shut behind them.
Silence.
Then—
BOOOOM!!
A shockwave tore through the mock city as a three-story steel titan lumbered into view. Its crimson scanners locked onto their heat signatures instantly.
Ren's eyes lit up like a kid at a candy shop.
"OH YEAH—BIG METAL PUNCHING BAG!!"
Kaito yelled, "REN WAIT—!!"
The warning was pointless.
Ren sprinted forward with insane stamina—his specialty—crushing debris under his boots without slowing for even a millisecond.
The titan's massive claw swung down.
Ren didn't dodge backwards—he tanked it, bracing himself with both arms.
Metal howled as the blow slammed into him.
Dust exploded.
A normal candidate would've been paste.
Ren grinned through the impact.
"That all you've GOT?!"
His feet dug trenches in the ground, but he held the blow long enough for the others to move.
The Misoke twins advanced—slow, steady, unhurried.
But when they reached striking range—
BOOOOM—!!!
Twin A grabbed the titan's ankle with one hand…
…and tore it clean off.
Twin B followed with a palm strike that shattered part of the torso like a steel waterfall exploding outward.
Their speed was mediocre.
Their power was catastrophic.
But the titan regenerated instantly—metal tendrils stitching broken limbs back together like a self-healing monster.
Kaito's eyes darted rapidly, processing every regeneration pattern.
"…We can't break it. Its repair rate outpaces the twins."
Ren, still tanking another blow, shouted, "THEN GIVE US A PLAN, BRAINIAC!"
Kaito inhaled sharply.
" Destroy its entire sensory unit—blind it!"
Akira moved before anyone else processed the order.
He stepped onto a fallen car, kicked off its hood, vaulted upward, and landed perfectly on the titan's shoulder.
Every motion was clean, efficient, surgical.
With zero hesitation, he drove a metal rod into the sensory cluster—
KRRSHHHHH!!!
Both crimson scanners exploded in a shower of sparks.
Kaito called out,
"Good! That stops its targeting!"
The Misoke twins resumed their brutal assault—each blow slow but world-shattering—but the titan's regeneration still kept pace.
Kaito shouted again, voice sharp:
"Ayla! Use that chain! Capture it before it regenerates again!"
Ayla froze.
Her hands trembled.
Her breath quickened.
Danger always triggered her deepest fear.
She couldn't move.
Until
Akira touched her shoulder gently.
"Breathe. Focus."
Her panic cleared—just enough.
Ayla nodded once.
Then she moved.
A silver flash kicked off the ground—Ayla dashing forward with perfect form.
Twin A grabbed the massive steel chain embedded in the ground.
Twin B heaved it upward with raw force.
Ayla snatched it mid-air, twisting gracefully—
And in an instant—
CLANG—CLANG—CLANG—CLANG—!!!
Silver chains wrapped around the titan's limbs, torso, and core, binding every joint.
The twins pulled from below.
Ayla anchored the final lock from above.
The titan toppled like a dead giant.
CRAAASH—!!!
Kaito scanned the readings rapidly.
"The Dreamer is still active—Central Plaza, 110 meters west!"
Ren didn't wait.
He ran.
Not fast—just endlessly.
His stamina seemed infinite.
He reached the collapsed shopping center and found a trembling boy trapped in a Nightmare trance.
Ren knelt and held his shoulders steadily.
"Hey. You're safe now. Wake up."
The Robot boy gasped awake.
Outside, the titan's body shut down instantly, collapsing in silence.
A chime echoed across the city.
"TEAM 7 — PASS."
The observation deck erupted into chaotic cheers.
Akirawa only smirked.
"Told them I'd get at least one competent batch this year."
Ayla stared at her hands—steady now.
Akira smiled faintly.
"You did great."
She looked away, cheeks coloring.
"…T-Thank you. For helping me earlier."
None of them knew it yet… but this victory was only the beginning of the bond that would change all six of their lives forever.