The floor beneath everyone turned into zippers, which began to open all at the same time.
Unfortunately, Ferris didn't react in time and fell along with the hundred other examinees.
For a brief moment, everything went black. His body was softly compressed from all directions as if he was descending into a warm sea.
Before he could even begin to process where he was, he suddenly landed on the top floor of an abandoned, unfinished building.
He looked around and saw a piece of paper that seemed to have been dropped along with him.
For now, he decided to focus on what was written on it.
Welcome to the Villain Physical Exams! Please fight our wannabe villains as hard as you can. Killing is permitted. We will remember your sacrifice by labeling you as a practice hero target. Good luck!
I can't believe I got myself into this, Ferris muttered under his breath, tossing the paper aside as he walked to the edge of the building.
The landscape that greeted him was an abandoned, rundown city that stretched all the way to the horizon. Crimson clouds hung low in the sky, and the atmosphere felt suffocating like a graveyard.
He scanned the streets below him.
Is that? Ferris squinted his eyes to see a man being chased by a group of assailants.
The man did everything to shake them off, parkouring over cars, changing directions, throwing debris behind him, but in the end, he was killed as an arrow pierced the back of his skull.
Obviously, this wasn't a physical exam. It was a slaughterhouse for young villains to play on.
And more than that...
Ferris's eyes locked onto several portals that had begun opening in the sky far ahead.
Dozens of people spilled out as they began plummeting through the air, only to slow down just before hitting the ground.
From their panicked movements, it was clear that they were just like him.
A sting operation?
He estimated the amount of people that fell everywhere.
That's way more people than the hero exam in my city...
Had the villains kidnapped examinees from other cities too?
A simultaneous abduction of potentially thousands of hero examinees. Just to cull them through a twisted physical exam made for villains.
If successful, it would be a devastating blow to the Hero Association.
But.
If the kidnapped examinees turned the tables and fight back, maybe even managing to kill the villains hosting this farce, then it could become a major victory for the heroes instead.
Ferris turned his attention to a massive broadcasting tower dominating the city skyline.
Though his eyes focused on the structure, he was more concerned with the three essence signatures he could sense near the top.
Are those the proctors? They're weaker than the Aberrant I saw...
but they're still Demon-level threats.
He checked his pocket and pulled out his phone.
No signal. But at least I managed to get a message through to Prodigy Prince.
To his relief, he saw the cat profile picture beside the sent message which indicated that Prodigy prince did see his message.
"Huh. There's a hero here?" A voice suddenly came from behind.
Ferris turned to the source.
A lanky figure stood there, wearing a bloodstained hoodie and wielding a long blade strapped to his back.
"I already killed five," the man said casually, "figured I'd slack off for a bit by coming here. But hey—
bonus points if I take you out, right?"
He unsheathed his sword and pointed it toward Ferris.
"Both of us are wearing hoodies, but damn... you look weak as hell."
Ferris said nothing as he simply stared back at him, although—his eyes were more focused on the villain's blade.
After a few moments, he finally replied.
"So... they need you to kill five examinees to qualify as a full-fledged villain?" Ferris merely assumed.
The killer hesitated and was confused. "Huh? Aren't you supposed to be scared or something? Everyone I killed just screamed. You're weird, man..."
You're the weird one. Excuse me?
"Anyway," the villain muttered, raising the blade, "I'll skip the torture part. I'll just kill you fast."
Ferris sighed at those words. "What makes you think your victory is assured? What's your blessing?"
"My blessing? Why would I even tell you?" He started walking towards Ferris with empty eyes.
Ferris, who was still undisturbed by the approaching degenerate, began rubbing his stiff neck as if to tell something.
"Well, because if you did tell me" Ferris locked his eyes with the villain.
"I would've said it didn't matter in the end."
"What the hell are you talking—
Slam!
Ferris moved like a blur in the villain's eyes.
Grabbing the mans face, he pushed it down and soon—the villain found himself being slammed against the concrete floor.
And in the midst of that surprise attack, the man accidentally released the grip on his sword.
"I'm confiscating this." Ferris grabbed the sword that was mid-air and drove it into the villain's throat.
A knight must vanquish all evil.
Stab.
The man convulsed while throwing up heaps of blood.
Twist.
With the job done, Ferris flicked the sword to remove the blood on its tip before inspecting its quality.
A two-handed longsword.
You're exactly my type...
He juggled the sword a few times to feel its weight. Once he was satisfied, he looted the villain's scabbard belt.
"Huh?" Ferris noticed that it was the wrong kind of belt.
Why was he wearing it on his back?
This is meant to be worn on the hips.
Rest assured, you're now in good hands. Ferris patted the hilt and twirled around.
For now, his plan was to properly analyze the situation.
With the first step being to find his wannabe hero comrades and group together.
Though he wouldn't even be surprised if there were already groups formed by now.
Making his way down the flight of stairs, he eventually reached the ground floor.
From there, he walked along the sidewalks and made sure his senses were sharp and alert to scan for any sudden ambush from the Unknown Danger.
After encountering almost nothing for a full minute, he decided to try and find a place where he could get clues on his whereabouts.
Even without a map, Ferris immediately assumed that he was in a villain-controlled city, but he just needed a more exact estimate of his location.
I feel like my location has been a recurring issue...
To his surprise, he stumbled upon what looked to be a store in great shape compared to the run-down buildings.
There was also a sign in front that displayed some drawings of skyscrapers and the prominent tower he saw.
City XXIII.
A tourist spot? Ferris quickly entered the store.
There should at least be a map somewhere.
Handicrafts, miniature buildings, souvenirs—he took a sneaky peek, but he ignored them to find what he was looking for.
After scouring the store, he eventually stumbled upon a map.
However...
It was a cartoon map that only displayed the major attractions of the city over a poorly drawn layout.
In the center was the broadcasting tower. Surrounding it were what looked to be a shopping mall, a water park, and a museum.
Given the number of people, and the fact that the villains chose a city as their exam grounds.
The entire physical exam for the villains would certainly take longer than a day.
So food was the top priority.
The obvious choice was to head for the mall, which might have a large store inside that has preserved goods.
But everyone would've thought of that.
So clearly, it wasn't the best choice.
So instead...
The best choice was to go around the hundreds of convenience stores that were here!