That evening, all of Liam's chosen belongings were delivered to his room.
Everything seems to be in order, he thought as he began to move his things to the appropriate places.
He had brought over a Hybrid printer (a device that prints both 2D and 3D), several machine parts, a professional toolkit, a first-aid box, a small drive, several clothes both casual and formal, a projector, and several other things that could be placed in storage.
After putting everything where it was supposed to be, Liam stretched, yawned, and jumped unto the couch in the living room.
Tomorrow marks the beginning of classroom studies...I should get familiar with the timetable so I don't end up confusing myself.
He groaned, then rolled of the couch, got his PC, and put it on the coffee table in front of his couch. After a few minutes of searching on his CID, Liam connected it to the other device, and finally took a look at the downloaded image of his course's timetable.
Classes would start from six in the morning to three in the afternoon. They studied three subjects daily, and more than half of the classes were practical training.
Makes sense, considering what we're aspiring to become. Let's see...
Their core subjects were Wilderness Survival, Martial Arts, Weaponry, Craftsmanship, Mo Biological Studies, Hunter Economics, and Geography. There were three elective subjects, also known as 'Majors', from which every student could pick two. They were as follows: Threat Assessment & Adaptation, Scouting, and Tactical Command.
None of the subjects were exactly easy, but Liam was determined to pass them all.
Tomorrow we finalize our elective choices... what should I pick?
Liam mulled over his choices.
Tactical Command was pretty straightforward. Generally speaking, it was about learning how to lead squads during hunts. When one delved deeper into the subject however, they would find that it was much more than that.
The subject approached several leadership styles as well as the way followers would respond to such styles. It also included how a leader responds to a situation, how they react to uncertain variables, how they bond with their teammates, and so on. It was a course that delved deep into human psychology, and was also the type of subject to put its students through the wringer.
Liam checked the statistics, and only two out of every ten students passed the course. However, having a certificate showing you majored in Tactical Command could put you on the fast track to great heights as a Hunter.
That reminds me. Both the Hunter course and the Hero course don't have second year seniors. I wonder why that is...
He shook his head to get rid of the distracting thought, then moved on to the next subject.
Scouting. Despite how simple it sounded, it was almost as hard, if not just as hard, as Tactical Command.
The subject held quite a few sub-topics, which were as follows: Monster Tracking, Wilderness Medicine, Terrain Navigation, Stealth and Infiltration, and Monster Ecology. The pupil was expected to not just memorize, but understand the information they were being taught. A good scout had to be able to traverse any terrain, pick up the faintest of trails, follow a target for as long as possible without getting found out, understand and respond to the various patterns of various monsters, and internalize the knowledge of how monsters interacted with the environment.
Very rarely did anyone pick the subject, and even more rare were people who picked it and stayed with it. Rarer still were people who actually passed, which was why Hunter Scouts were very sought after and well respected, not for their combat ability, but for their knowledge.
Knowledge is power huh...
Finally, there was Threat Assessment & Adaptation, the hardest practical subject, which revolved around one deceptively simple concept: identify the threat, understand it, and devise a means of overcoming it before it overcame you. That was basically all there was to it. It wasn't as fancy as the other two, but it was several times more dangerous...
But any and all individuals who possessed certificates in that specific Major would be accepted by the Hunter Association above most others, and cohorts would be very accepting of them.
Well, I guess I know what I'm choosing now.
Liam closed his laptop, yawned again, then went to bed.
****
5:00 a.m...
Liam woke up, groggy and craving more sleep. However, someone was ringing his doorbell without rest, refusing to let him continue sleeping.
Ding-dong!.
"Okay, okay I'm coming," he yawned.
When he got out of his room and opened the door, he looked up to see Lee glaring don at him.
"Lee? What are you doing here? Class doesn't start until..." Liam pause to yawn, "Seven thirty-woah!"
Liam exclaimed as he tilted his head out of the way of a punch, then stumbled back.
"What are you doing still asleep?" Lee frowned, "Get your butt into gear, we're going on a jog. Then Tai Chi, then Calisthenics. Since you are already in your gym clothes, hurry up and move!"
Liam obviously didn't have a say, so he dejectedly exited his dorm and followed Lee down the emergency stairs.
"This is also good for you, so from now on you take the stairs, not the elevator."
Liam paled at the words, since they were on the fifth floor of a six storey building.
"No arguments. Move!"
They jogged down the stairs, then from the dorms went to the auditorium, mall, classrooms, then the Crucible. They stopped there, did Tai Chi, then calisthenics, then a general workout. This lasted for a total time of one hour and thirty minutes. Then they jogged back to their dormitories to get ready for school.
Liam dragged his aching body to his dormitories bathroom, and spent fifteen minutes under warm water, then changed into his uniform. He picked up his bag and placed his laptop in it, heads straight to class.
I wonder where Lisa is, he thought quietly. Maybe still asleep? Wait, why am I even thinking about this?!
Right after internally berating himself-
"Gah-!"
"Heh, got you."
Liam turned his head to see Lisa, who gave a small wave.
He turned away, a little embarrassed. "Hi Lisa."
"Hi yourself Liam," she smiled as she walked in lockstep with him. "So, how was yesterday?"
Liam thought of the murderous teenager and the health and fitness nut that was now his coach. He sighed in resignation.
"It was... stressful."
"Oh? Wanna talk about it?" Lisa asked, her expression curious.
"Er, sure? Why not?"
Liam told her about Kazumi and Lee, and all that had transpired between him and either boys.
Lisa nodded thoughtfully. "Well, I'd say you should one hundred percent avoid Kazumi for now. I know it may not seem mature, but I feel like that's the easiest way to avoid conflict. As for Lee, I'd say you should try and get used to his way of thinking. You seem like you could be good friends, considering the overly logical view of things you two seem to share."
Liam mulled over her words in a few moments of silence, then Lisa interrupted his thought process by shoving a holographic image of a cat into his face.
Hopefully our teacher is a normal person...
Twenty minutes later...
"Alright class! You guys are meant to be a team in the future, so let's do some team building exercises! First up is the Trust Challenge!
The objectives to pass are simple: reveal your Venma and its Status to your classmates!"
I was wrong! Liam panicked.
This guy's a nutcase!