(3rd person)Chapter 28: Wildcard Part 2
Minato and Toma stepped into the chamber together.
The room was enormous. Steel bridges stretched across the facility, suspended above thick safety mattresses. The entire structure resembled an industrial obstacle course rather than a school examination.
Toma glanced toward another corridor.
"Hm. I suppose Haruto chose the same path as Jun."
Minato shoved his hands into his pockets.
"Maybe. Either way, I don't care about him. It's none of my concern."
A loud mechanical buzz echoed overhead before the intercom activated.
«Section One: Blindwire.
Three students will form a team. One member must cross the suspended bridge while blindfolded. As time passes, the bridge will become increasingly unstable.
Once the crossing begins, the remaining two teammates must unanimously predict whether the blindfolded student will succeed or fall.
If they correctly predict failure, their class gains 100 Class Points, and both predicting students receive 150,000 Private Points. However, if the student who falls has a GPA below 3.5, that student is automatically expelled.
If the prediction is incorrect, every class represented in the team loses 200 Class Points.
Predicting success carries no reward. However, if the student fails after being trusted and possesses a GPA below 3.5, they are expelled.»
The announcement ended.
Toma yawned.
"Far too many rules for such a simple game."
Minato merely sighed.
After several minutes, they recruited a quiet second-year girl to cross the bridge with them.
A staff member approached.
"State your prediction."
Minato answered immediately.
"She won't make it."
Toma looked at him.
"She will."
Minato frowned.
"What are you doing? We have to agree."
Toma lazily pointed toward the girl.
"Did you happen to notice the calluses on her palms? Or the balance in her posture? She's in gymnastics."
Minato looked at the girl again.
Only then did he notice the subtle confidence in the way she stood.
"...Fine."
Reluctantly, he changed his answer.
"We believe she'll make it."
The girl stepped onto the bridge.
Each step caused the cables to sway harder than before.
Despite the blindfold...
Despite the increasing instability...
She never hesitated.
After nearly a minute...
She reached the opposite side.
A buzzer sounded.
Success.
Minato exhaled.
"Well... we survived."
The three quietly exited their section.
As they walked through the hallway, Toma suddenly spoke.
"Tell me something, Minato."
"What?"
"What do you think would happen if everyone revealed who they truly were?"
Minato smirked.
"Society would collapse."
Toma shook his head.
"No."
His eyes remained forward.
"Society would finally begin healing. We'd expose hypocritical politicians... tyrants... people hiding behind masks."
Minato chuckled.
"You're an odd one, Toma."
Neither of them realized how much truth hid beneath the conversation.
---
A few minutes earlier...
Haruto and Jun entered the second route.
Unlike the first section...
This room was filled with monster trucks.
Massive engines rested silently inside a warehouse-sized arena.
Jun's face paled.
"...No."
He stared at the trucks.
"They wouldn't..."
The intercom answered his thoughts.
«Section Two: The Three Hercules.
Teams of three will be attached to a monster truck.
Your objective is simple.
Pull the truck across the finish line using only your combined strength.
Failure to reach the finish line results in elimination for participants whose GPA is below 3.5.
Each expelled student causes their class to lose 70 Class Points.»
Silence followed.
Jun instinctively remembered his GPA.
Below 3.5.
He looked toward Haruto.
Haruto's GPA...
3.4.
If they failed...
Neither of them would survive the exam.
A third participant—a junior—joined their team.
The finish line wasn't particularly far.
Thirty-three feet.
Yet the truck refused to move.
Around them, other teams slowly dragged theirs forward.
Jun pulled until his muscles screamed.
Nothing.
Haruto calmly observed the distance.
"Thirty-three feet."
Jun looked over.
"The finish line."
Haruto continued.
"Thirty-three feet."
"It's too heavy."
Haruto looked directly into Jun's eyes.
"Get rid of that mindset."
Jun's breathing became uneven.
Every other team was moving.
Slowly.
Painfully.
But they were moving.
His legs gave out.
He collapsed onto the floor.
His hands covered his face.
"I..."
His voice shook.
"I can't be like Daiko..."
"I'm not brave enough..."
"I can't become the kind of person he was..."
Before Jun could continue—
A hand seized the front of his shirt.
Haruto lifted him off the ground.
His expression had completely changed.
Gone was the calm, gentle leader.
His eyes were cold.
Sharp.
Unforgiving.
"You're not Daiko."
Jun froze.
"You never will be."
Haruto's voice cut deeper than any insult.
"So stop copying someone else's ideals."
"You fraud."
Jun's eyes widened.
It felt as though someone entirely different was speaking through Haruto.
"You are standing at the edge of natural selection."
"You adapt..."
"...or you die."
"It's that simple."
Haruto released his collar.
"Answer me."
"Are you Jun Arata because you're Daiko's copy?"
"...Or are you Jun Arata because you chose who you wanted to become?"
For the first time...
Jun couldn't answer.
Everything he had built his identity upon suddenly felt hollow.
His fists slowly tightened.
His body trembled.
Then—
"I WON'T..."
He stood.
"...LET IT END LIKE THIS!"
He grabbed the harness.
The junior followed.
Haruto pulled alongside them.
One step.
Then another.
The truck moved.
Barely.
Every inch demanded everything their bodies could give.
Their muscles burned.
Their legs shook.
But they never stopped.
Little by little...
The finish line drew closer.
They crossed it.
Only moments before another team.
A buzzer echoed through the arena.
The losing team collapsed.
Three students.
Each with GPAs below 3.5.
Each automatically expelled.
One cried uncontrollably.
Another screamed in frustration.
The last simply stared blankly at the floor.
Jun looked at them.
Then toward Haruto.
His breathing was ragged.
His heartbeat pounded louder than the arena itself.
"We..."
He struggled to find the words.
"...We did it."
His eyes remained fixed on the defeated students.
"We crushed their dreams..."
A strange feeling settled inside him.
It wasn't relief.
It wasn't guilt.
It was something darker.
"...Why does this feel..."
He swallowed.
"...so amazing?"
Haruto said nothing.
His face returned to its usual calm expression, as though the ruthless man from moments ago had never existed.
But Jun couldn't forget what he had seen.
As they left the facility and boarded the bus back to the NIFL...
One thought lingered in his mind.
Who was the person that spoke to him during that game?
Because the Haruto standing beside him...
Didn't feel like the same person at all.