Other Participants

[Congratulations]

Prime Surge Enhanced:

Every RBC energy will now activate the ability for 15 seconds.

10 < 15 seconds.

Woo, this shit is crazy. Who knew it would be this useful? If I'd known earlier, I could have easily exceeded the one-hour mark in the first test. Ugh, I'm such an idiot, he thought to himself.

"Hey, you look stressed. Does it have some side effects or something?" she asked, patting him on the back.

"Oh no, it's just that I should have used it earlier. It boosted my power significantly."

"Good to hear."

"Bella, I think I should take the lead in the fight while you and Fenrir cover my back. Is that alright with you?"

"Absolutely, I'd love to team up with the doggo," she said, patting Fenrir. Fenrir didn't seem to have any objections either.

"Alright, let's head to the building," he said, pointing his sword toward their destination.

~

Somewhere in another building, a different team faced a horde of Misfits. A guy with blonde hair and another with hands covered in a transparent substance-like gauntlets-fought against three-foot-tall mutated baboons and a black bobcat with iron jaws.

The blonde guy moved effortlessly through the Misfit ranks. Whenever a Misfit tried to attack him, they were instantly sliced apart. Meanwhile, his teammate hammered his fists into the Misfits' maws, crushing them to death. The fight was brutal, with blood splattering across every wall of the hallways as they advanced.

"You're not half bad," the blonde guy said, glancing at his partner. "So how come I didn't see you in the top 20 during the first test?"

"Just unfortunate timing," his partner replied, smashing a baboon's head with his fist.

"I hope your misfortune doesn't affect us this time," the blonde guy said, his tone laced with mockery.

"Yeah, I hope so too," his partner responded.

~

In another building, a bizarre scene unfolded. A guy with silver-colored hair dashed through the structure at breakneck speed, his agility and swiftness unparalleled. He navigated every corner and turn with precision, all while carrying a girl on his back. With a single flick of his hand, he unleashed an invisible force that cleared the horde of Misfits in seconds.

"H-h-hey, c-can y-you stop? I-I'm about to p-puke," the girl on his back stammered, her words barely audible.

He halted immediately.

"Do your business quickly," he commanded.

"T-thank you, waaaaaaa—"

~

"Wow, your summons are so powerful, Lyra. You have incredible control over them," a girl said, admiringly, to another girl with yellow hair tipped in blue.

"This is nothing; I can do this all day," Lyra replied with a confident smile, her summons effortlessly dispatching every Misfit they encountered.

"Let's wrap this up quickly. I want to buy the new Jin merch dropping today," the other girl said to Lyra, who nodded in agreement.

Lyra began summoning more water-based creatures, filling the hallway with over twenty angelic figures, each armed with various weapons. The summons split up, taking down Misfits with incredible speed while searching for hostages.

"This test will be over in seconds," Lyra said, a small splash of blood landing on her pinkish cheeks. She wiped it away with a tissue as she and her partner moved through the sea of Misfit carcasses lining the hallway.

~

"Hey, wait for me!" a student called out to his partner, who was crashing into the horde of Misfits with his pure black-skinned body.

His partner didn't respond, continuing his rampage without a word.

"Hey, are you even listening to me?" the student persisted.

"Hey kid, if you want to stay alive, shut up the fuck and follow me." The partner's voice was so deep and menacing that it sent a chill down the other boy's spine.

"O-okay," he stammered, falling into line behind him.

~

Back to Crudele, where he, Fenrir, and Bell sprinted through the first floor, searching for any possible hostages. They had no luck on this floor, but on the bright side, they hadn't encountered a single Misfit along the way.

"Let's head upstairs," Crudele said, as he regrouped with both of them while climbing the stairs. A tree-like Misfit was hanging on the wall, and as they entered its domain, its branches began to move towards them. Fortunately, Fenrir spotted it just in time and tackled the branches in mid-air, knocking them away.

Crudele and Bell both noticed the attack. Crudele leaped and sliced through the branches with his sword, preventing any harm from coming to them.

[ Congratulations ]

You killed a Level 3 Mutant Mangrove Tree

You Gained 100 Exp

2011<2111

Crudele didn't have a moment to celebrate his earlier success due to the aftermath of the fight. As they reached the second floor, they encountered a horde of baboons blocking their path.

"Bell, don't forget the formation," Crudele said, quickly shedding his uniform. "Take care of this for me," he instructed, tossing his uniform to her.

Beneath the uniform, Crudele wore a white vest. The sight of his well-built body, with muscular arms and back, caught Bell's attention.

"Wow, I didn't know you were that muscular," she said, her expression one of mild shock.

"Level 1 to 5, huh? They're nothing," Crudele said, his voice calm and steady as he wielded his sword and slowly walked towards the incoming horde.

"Kyaahhhh!!!"

The baboons charged at him with a fierce roar, but before they could even reach him, Crudele moved with precision. His sword swung in a horizontal arc, slicing each Misfit from maw to tail in a single, clean strike. The baboons fell in a heap, defeated in an instant.

[ Congratulations ]

You killed a Level 2 Black Baboon

You Gained 80 Exp

2111<2191

He then kicked a nearby Misfit in the face and proceeded to kill another with his sword. Crudele's swordsmanship was unparalleled, as he slashed through Misfits one after another until the entire horde was killed.

Blood splattered across the hallway, coating Crudele's hands and body with a mix of blood and fur. Despite the carnage, he emerged unscathed, having torn through the horde with relentless precision.

[ Congratulations ]

You killed a Level 2 Black Baboon

You Gained 80 Exp

2991<3071

"You're so strong, Crudele. Did you use your ability?" Bell asked, wide-eyed.

"No, I didn't. It's just my raw strength," Crudele replied.

"The Misfits here are just a time-wasting nuisance, and using a sword takes a lot of time. We should avoid them if we can; otherwise, it'll be impossible for us to win this," he said, looking serious.

Bell nodded in agreement. "I think we should split up. The Misfits aren't that strong."

"Yeah, I'll search upstairs while you and Fenrir thoroughly check this floor," Crudele said.

"Hurry up; we don't have much time," he added as they both went their separate ways.

Bell and Fenrir started their search on the right side of the floor but found no hostages. They continued by kicking open doors, glancing inside, and moving on to the next until they had searched every room. They encountered Misfits but no hostages, which they quickly dealt with.

Meanwhile, Crudele was on the third floor, clearing out a horde of baboons to make his way. "This method is too slow," he murmured. "I should use my ability."

Activating X-10 speed and X-10 agility, Crudele's movements became a blur. With his enhanced speed, he tore through the horde and managed to check the entire third floor in just about 15 seconds.

[ Congratulations ]

You killed a Level 3 Steel Jaws Bobcat

You Gained 120 Exp

3551<3671

[ Congratulations ]

You Level Up

6 < 7

You Gained 1 Strength

12<13

You Gained 1 Agility

11<12

Your RBC Energy Increased

66<70

On the other hand, Bell and Fenrir ascended to the fourth floor. Bell began their search on the right side once more. To her surprise, she found a group of five hostages. They were tied up with rope and had pieces of cloth in their mouths. Even though they were fake, the announcer had made sure the scenario felt real.

Ignoring the deception, Bell started untying the hostages one by one. Once they were free, she gathered them and headed towards the staircase.

"Crudele, we got the five hostages! I'm taking them outside!" she shouted.

"Okay!" Crudele's voice echoed through the building.

As Bell was making her way to the ground floor, a massive obstacle appeared in her path: a towering 6-foot-tall baboon with 10-inch-long canine teeth stood blocking the exit.

"Are you kidding me? This isn't staged, right?" Bell muttered to herself, feeling a surge of frustration and disbelief.

Meanwhile, Crudele had finished clearing the fifth and sixth floors and was now assessing the seventh. The corridor ahead was swarming with various types of misfits.

Kyahhh!

Crudele activated his X-10 speed and moved with a blur. He thrust his sword, slicing through four misfits simultaneously. The speed of his movements was so great that the misfits couldn't react in time before being cut down. His sword swung with such velocity that it appeared as a blur, cleaving through the misfits effortlessly.

At this point, Crudele resembled a cold-blooded killer, his entire frame covered in a gruesome mix of red and green blood from the fallen misfits.