Already being drenched, the cold air didn't do anything to help Kai's situation. His body shivered, not from fear, but from the biting discomfort of wet cloth clinging to skin and the wind cutting through the fabric like knives. He was knee-deep in cold mud, and his soaked school uniform clung to him like a second, miserable skin. The fabric had turned heavier, dragging against his body with every step.
It was awkward, to say the least being this wet, this cold, and still technically weaker than most people out here.
His level was only 6.
One useful spell to his name—Lightless Slash—which, while powerful and full of potential, was still hard to use repeatedly with his current mana control and reserves. His Talent Grade had increased, sure, and he had the backing of an ancient inheritance, but right now, he was a low-level fighter in the middle of a live-fire exercise where most people were out for blood.
He remembered the map of this artificial forest well it was huge, broken into four major quadrants.
He'd landed in the north, which was, for lack of a better word, tame. Calm. Serene even. Wide rivers. Slow breezes. Rolling terrain that seemed almost designed for beginners.
But Kai remembered what was happening in the other zones.
The south was chaos.
An absolute war zone, packed with the most students. They were already fighting in packs, betraying each other, stabbing friends in the back for a chance at survival. It was madness down there. A frenzy. The instructors had placed the most volatile students in the same quadrant just to see what would happen. It was a pressure cooker waiting to burst.
Then there was the west, where things were quieter but darker.
Rose and Marlon had landed there, and Kai knew exactly what they were doing: building an army. But not just any army—an army of controlled people. They were using the Slave Tokens hidden around the map, subtle items no one talked about at the start but which changed everything once you knew how they worked. Most people wouldn't trust each other in a game like this. A "last man standing" survival game didn't invite cooperation. But if you made someone into your slave real magical enslavement they didn't have a choice.
And Rose?
She was always ahead of the curve.
She'd tricked Marlon early, turning him into her slave. He didn't even know it. He thought he'd won an Ally Token match, but the truth was worse. Now, under the surface, he was doing everything she asked, smiling like it was his idea, and dragging others into the fold.
Meanwhile, in the east, you had the two biggest monsters of the year: June and Eugene. They weren't fighting. They weren't building armies. They were collecting. Stacking resources. They were already preparing for a test of unknown length
Kai considered all of that for about a second.
Then he made a decision.
He'd go south. Not to throw himself into the meat grinder, but to wait near the exit path—one of the few known escape points in the zone. That's where the stragglers would go. The half-dead. The broken. The students too slow, too weak, or too scared to keep fighting.
And Kai?
He'd pick them off.
He'd use Lightless Slash, the spell he'd spent a month honing. It had a special mechanic—the more cuts you landed, the more mana you drained. One slash pulled energy. A second one doubled the drain. A third tripled it. Each strike layered on top of the other until the opponent collapsed from exhaustion, unable to lift their weapon, much less fight.
But before he could hunt, he had to get there. And at Level 6, that wasn't easy.
So Kai moved carefully. Slowly.
He traversed the quiet northern woods using the ample tree coverage and bushy terrain to stay low. The moonlight barely filtered through the canopy, casting broken patches of silver light over the mossy ground. He walked in silence. Not out of fear but out of instinct. He was a predator now.
It took time, but eventually, he spotted someone.
A student. Moving alone. A little too casual, like they still believed they were in a test with rules. stepping on sticks and pushing past branches carelessly. Kai watched them from behind a cluster of bushes. He hadn't memorized every student, but this one didn't stand out.
Which made him perfect.
The student hadn't seen him.
Kai crept forward, step by step, not rushing. His breath was slow. Calm.
Just about in range now.
He didn't summon his blade with sound—he willed it into existence, the curved shadow forming in his hand like a whisper made solid. A ripple of darkness curled off its edge. He lifted it. Aimed.
And then
Lightless Slash.
The first arc of black energy soared across the forest floor, nearly silent, like a knife sliding through silk.
The student reacted barely.
They dodged left at the last second, just enough to avoid the hit.
But Kai had guessed the direction. He always guessed the direction.
The second slash came a fraction of a second after the first, already aimed left. The third followed fast right on its tail. Twin arcs of darkness carved through the air.
Two solid hits.
The first hit the student's arm. The second cut across their ribs.
The boy cried out, stumbling, crashing into a tree as his foot caught on a root. He didn't try to retaliate. Didn't even try to look back.
He just ran.
Kai let him.
Because now the drain had begun.
Mana flowed out of the student's body like steam leaking from a cracked valve. He was still moving—but each second drained more of his core, eating away at his strength, his focus, his ability to cast.
If he'd turned and fought now, he might have won.
He probably would have.
But panic made people stupid.
Kai chased after him, but not in a full sprint. Just enough to keep the pressure on. Enough to watch.
The student's sprint became a jog.
The jog became a stumble.
Then his legs buckled.
That's when Kai made his move.
C-rank physical ability didn't sound impressive in a world like this—but compared to Earth? It was monstrous. His legs launched him forward like a bullet, and before the student could react, Kai was in front of him.
He spun mid-air and brought his elbow down hard
Right into the boy's chest.
The crack was sharp and immediate.
The boy crumpled with a broken gasp, breath gone, eyes wide in shock as he hit the dirt face-first. His limbs twitched. He tried to crawl.
Kai stood over him, breathing only slightly harder than normal.
No words.
No threats.
Just method.
He knelt next to the boy and dug into his jacket. Every student was given a small pouch with essentials. Kai found what he needed a blank Ally Token, and next to it, the inverse: a Slave Token.
Kai pressed the Slave Token to the student's hand.
No resistance.
The seal activated with a faint burning red flash, embedding into the skin.
The student twitched once, then stopped moving.
It was done.
One token used. One slave bound.
Kai stood again, rain now starting to drizzle through the canopy, mixing with the river water already soaking his coat.
He said nothing.
Just stared out into the trees, the distant sound of shouting and magic echoing faintly in the southern distance.
There was still time.
Still prey.
And he was just getting started.
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