18 Candidates.

After hovering inside the humvee, Cain's gaze pierced straight toward a towering twin tower connected by thick concrete painted in white. On each side, it stretched far away, creating an impenetrable wall that acted as a garrison for defense war.

Henry pressed the button on the dashboard of the humvee and opened his mouth in a rigid tone "I'm bringing a new candidate. Open the south gate!".

{Copy that!} Come a hoarse reply from a communication device, startling Cain.

As the humvee stopped, Cain wondered what would happen, but suddenly, he felt a tremor beneath him and the rumbling roar in front of him, making his jaw slack as he saw the sight of a massive, heavy door made of unknown steel being lifted from the ground.

The rumbling kept his attention forward as Cain saw a scene inside the Academy.

"Woah, that is the Academy".

Seeing the childish side of Cain return broke Henry's lips into a warm smile, reminding him of his first arrival at the Academy. Being from the same environment, Henry could understand how majestic and awe-inspiring it was for them to see the technological gap between the two sides.

"Lets' go, kid".

Henry started to tense his leg, letting the humvee rev its engine and move slowly forward.

Nothing grand happened while it was just a long straight path with no interference, except the busy figure of the same military men and some women mixed in, loitering around the place and some of them running along the road in groups while yelling some song.

From the window, Cain could see a row of simple buildings and many stalls selling food or other products. His eyes glazed, he pondered why the inside of the Academy seemed to have downgraded its building style compared to the outside of the Academy gate.

"Are you curious about the place?". From the side, Henry asked while focusing on the road.

"...Rather curious, I wonder why the place seemed like it was on the outskirts?". Like Cain said, the place seemed more reserved and lacked cheerfulness.

"Bwahahaha, you are right, but this place near the main road was built like this to maintain safety".

"Safety?". Cain tilted his head as he gazed at Henry.

"So, it was like this…". Henry paused for a moment before began to explain. "First of all, you must know the place you are going to live. The Academy was divided into five sections, which is the Market district which is in the south, where we came in, there is also West district for the students and teacher to live, East district is the place where production happened whether it was weapon, a cure and etc, there is a middle section where you will receive your educational as a students and train as a Resonator. Also last but not least, the North district or you could say, a frontline!".

Cain gulped his saliva. Hearing the word "frontlines," his body started to tense. It was his dream to stand in it, and yet a heavy feeling began to oppress his chest. He could feel it inside. His heart drummed wildly, and slowly, his consciousness began to drift away from the place.

Noticing something strange with its partner, Noir barked telepathically, bringing Cain to the present {*Woof!}

"!? Tsu… ha…".

Cain, who woke up from his stupor, began to regulate his breath, trying to calm his raging heart. He clutched his clothes while leaning back toward the seat, letting the anguish flow away from his heart.

"Are you okay, kid?" Henry, who had noticed the kid's strange behavior, asked in concern, but upon seeing Cain regain his calmness and shake his head, the man sighed in relief.

"Where was it again?".

"About this building".

"Oh, right. So, these buildings were built as a defence system in case something happened within the Market. You know it, right? For this place was a vital point for the goods to come and out".

"...I see, it was built so the Void creature wouldn't get involved themselves from this place?". Cain nodded.

"Hmm, not exactly!".

"!?". Hearing Henry's response, Cain's head tilted to the side while placing his palm to cover his mouth in deep thinking.

"Like any other place within the central city, this place is also not exactly immune from Void creature terror".

"Hm!? But how? You said that the outskirts…".

"Well, you can seek that out later, be prepared kid! We are arrived!".

Before Cain could ask any further questions, Henry stopped the humvee, having no intention of continuing the talk from earlier. This left Cain in a half-curious state. Cain looked forward toward a building.

It was a tall and wide building painted in white, the same material as the wall outside where he came from. Reluctantly, he looked to the side and saw Henry salute for some reason, so Cain replied by doing the same.

Henry lowered his hand and opened his mouth. "I hope we can meet again later".

Cain lowered his hand and nodded his head before opening the door, leaping down, and touching the hard and even road. He turned back for the last time and nodded in understanding, before closing the door with a thud.

The humvee began maneuvering, turning around and blaring its horn once to say farewell. Cain bowed his torso for a brief moment to say his thanks before turning around and walking toward the building.

As he walked, he observed his surroundings with deep curiosity. In front of him stood a magnificent building that looked like a temple. It had massive pillars standing in a row on each side. Even the front door was huge for a person to enter and probably too heavy for push, but luckily, it was opened to welcome new candidates.

Cain's heart rate quickened as he passed the door, and he could feel his fingertips and feet getting cold. However, once he entered inside, he was alone, welcomed by a vast hall with high ceilings adorned by a scene of a battle against the Void Creature.

The sight reminded Cain once more of what kind of place he was in. He became aware that by becoming a Resonator, he must shoulder a burden of responsibility for the people he left behind those gates. 'Responsibility, huh! Can I do it?' while he is having doubts.

In the middle of the scene, Cain spotted a single human figure accompanied by a Guardian standing imposingly while being surrounded on all sides. The figure was holding a sword and fighting recklessly in the center of the enemy's heart. 'Is that…?'.

"Woah, the place is wide!".

A cheerful voice that reminded him of a warm summer came from behind him, prompting him to turn back and see a cute girl his age. Her large emerald eyes almost captivated him. She stood on the shorter side, at 156 cm tall, but this was emphasized by her other aspects, such as her bust and hips, which were larger compared to a girl Cain had seen.

She is wearing a casual white shirt and a long blue skirt, giving her an elegant and reserved appearance. The girl's eyes filled with innocent curiosity as she scanned her surroundings, but upon making contact with Cain, who stood dumbstruck by her figure, the girl stiffened and soon bowed her head in an embarrassed manner.

'Those clothes, is she from high ranking or something?'. While the girl's identity remains unknown, another pair of teens walked behind the girls.

"Mina, please refrain from doing something childish!".

"Ah, Lisa and Rin!?".

With his attention drawn toward the incoming people, Cain saw two of them—a boy and a girl—soon stand next to the first girl who came inside, arguing.

The boy who the girl mentioned could only smile wryly after being called his name, which resembled a girl's name. He was a tall boy, even taller than Cain at 177 cm. He wears a casual outfit of a white T-shirt and navy jacket. For his lower part, he wears loose navy jeans and a pair of white shoes to match the fashion.

Both recognized each other's gaze, and Cain only nodded his head in response to the boy's deep smile. Cain redirected his gaze and soon met the other girl who happened to observe him.

She is a bit tall, 160 cm, and wears a casual long-sleeve red T-shirt tucked inside her Blue jeans. One thing that piqued Cain's interest was the girl's sharp golden eyes and multicolored hair blended in black and blonde. He kept observing her, trying to ascertain something.

'Well, it's rude for me to keep looking at an unknown girl, so let's keep it short'. Cain nodded his head before turning his gaze toward an empty space before continuing to look above.

"Hey, you…?".

"You guys are all here!".

Before the sharp-eyed girl finished her words, the dignified and clear tone of a military man echoed within the building, prompting others to look to the source. As the man finished his line, many other youngsters entered the building, and all of them began to gather in the middle of the hall, forming a crowd.

While focusing his attention on the man, Cain could feel a subtle prickle of gaze behind him, but he ignored it and kept his gaze straight.

"Candidates! Thank you for coming to this academy. As of today, we will commence a test for you to enter the Academy".

The room atmosphere began to tense after the military man announced the next agenda they would face. Calmly, the military man scanned the candidates and peeked through the terminal in his hand.

"...Good. It seems all of you are ready. With this, I will announce the start of our test. All candidates follow me!"