Inside the Chamber
Six white tents stood side by side, arranged in a loose circle deep within the ancient forest.
Five of them served as accommodations for the second-year students of Class S, while the sixth belonged to their monitor—Yoruichi.
At the very center of the tents, a bonfire crackled softly, its orange glow pushing back the creeping darkness of the forest. The fire illuminated the massive trees surrounding them and cast long shadows across the ground.
The group sat around the flames on a long fallen log, enjoying the warmth after a long day.
"Ahhh~ that was such a long day," Nejire said, hovering lazily in the air while resting her index finger on her chin. "I can't believe this was the test they gave us. I thought we'd be fighting real monsters or something!"
Monet didn't even look at her. She was concentrating on reading her book, but she still asked Nejire, "What did you expect, Jire-Jire?"
"It felt just like those rescue training sessions we did before," Nejire replied with a pout.
Black Maria exhaled smoke from her kiseru, her voice smooth and elegant. "Well, it doesn't really matter what they prepared. I'm just hoping some tough men show up eventually."
Soi Fon snapped her head toward her. "Focus. You're just going to flirt again. No wonder people call you a bitch."
"Fufufu~ they're just jealous," Black Maria replied, squinting teasingly at Soi Fon.
Across the fire, Konan remained quiet, calmly sipping her tea as she observed their banter.
Nejire suddenly perked up. "Hey—where did the Flash Goddess go?" She leaned closer to Soi Fon. "Hey, hey, Feng-Feng, do you know?"
Used to Nejire's behavior—and nickname—Soi Fon simply shook her head. "She said she found something interesting. Then she transformed into her cat form and ran off."
"Aren't we supposed to be evaluated and graded here?" Monet asked flatly, still reading.
"The job's simple," Black Maria said. "Wait for the signal, confirm their location, then rescue them before their injuries get worse."
"How many people have already been disqualified?" Nejire asked cheerfully. "I rescued about thirty-two!" She counted on her fingers.
"Two hundred sixty-four," Konan replied calmly after another sip of tea.
"Whaaat?! Already? It's only the first day!" Nejire exclaimed dramatically.
"That's not so bad," Monet said. "When I took this exam, nearly five hundred were eliminated on day one."
"Can't relate," said Black Maria. "Right, Konan?" she added while looking at her.
"Mm," Konan replied while nodding her head.
"Was the recommendation test that easy?" Monet asked. She stopped reading her book and looked at Black Maria.
Black Maria leaned closer to her and teasingly said, "Oh~ Monet, do you want to know about it? Then call me Big Sister and I'll tell you everything."
Monet stared at her and said, "Again with that fetish of yours, Maria."
Nejire, who was looking at them, asked, "Hey, Monet—was it a bad thing to call Marcy Big Sister?"
"How should I know? Maybe it's one of her ways to gather girls to work for her," said Monet before continuing to read her book.
Konan was stoic as ever. She simply watched their interactions, unbothered by the topic.
"Fufufu~ looks like someone is being shy," Black Maria said while backing off, fixing her posture, and sipping on her kiseru.
But Soi Fon scoffed at them. "Look who's bragging... you're just lucky you've got recommendations," said Soi Fon, who was still stretching her legs down.
"But for us who took the examination, the problem wasn't really the monsters or the supplies. It's the setting and the terrain—and how we have to adapt quickly," Soi Fon added while stretching her legs. "Imagine surviving in a desert environment while looking for points and supplies at the same time. That's really troublesome. But this time, the examinees were lucky. It's a forest setting."
"Still… this batch is disappointing. I don't feel any strong aura among them. No S-tier candidates."
Konan said nothing, simply closing her eyes as she enjoyed her tea.
Then—
"You're wrong about that, Soi Fon. I just met one. And he was just chilling. Looks like he doesn't really care about the examination at all. A really pretty interesting fellow."
The voice came from behind them.
They all turned to see Yoruichi standing there casually, a tub of popcorn in her hands.
"Oh, you're here, Monitor-san," Monet said. "Looks like you came out of the chamber."
"Hey, that's not fair!" Nejire pouted. "I wanted snacks too!"
Konan gave Yoruichi a small nod.
Soi Fon frowned. "Sister… did you really leave the chamber just to buy popcorn?"
So she likes popcorn… she thought.
Black Maria's eyes widened slightly. She leaned forward with a playful smile. "Oh~ Yoruichi. Where is this fellow who doesn't care about the whole test?"
"Hey, don't change the topic!" Nejire protested. "Where did you get that popcorn?"
Yoruichi smirked. She picked up a piece of popcorn with her thumb and index finger and tossed it into her mouth.
"Oh? Curious?" she said casually. "I stole it from his house. And you know, we were even watching movies together, but he got sleepy and went to bed first."
She said it as if it were the most normal thing in the world.
The group stared at her.
Movies…?
Bed…?
House...?
Stole....?
Inside this forest?
The same questions kept running through their heads, and their confusion was written clearly across their faces.
"Well," Yoruichi added, turning toward her tent, "if you're that curious—and want to kill some time—go find and discover it yourselves."
She waved over her shoulder. "Don't forget your duties, ladies."
Then she entered her tent and closed it.
"...Him?" Black Maria murmured, lips curling upward. "Now I'm curious."
Nejire stared into the fire, clearly thinking hard while whispering many questions.
Monet didn't care—she returned to her book. But she clearly wanted to see it for herself. A house in this forest. Was it an ability? She smiled as her fighting instincts kicked in.
Konan stood up quietly, deciding to get some sleep. But on her way to her tent, she released some of her origami creations.
And Soi Fon had already begun calculating her search route—how to look for this mysterious individual while completing her mission at the same time.
They stayed silent because all of them knew that if the Flash Goddess—known for her power and skills—was telling them that she had met an interesting fellow partaking in this very exam, then that could only mean one thing.
He was strong.
Maybe even stronger than them, if Yoruichi herself had left her monitoring duty just to look for him.
( ﾟ∀ﾟ)人(ﾟ∀ﾟ )
Black Maria stood up, looked at the rest of them, and said, "Well, ladies—first come, first serve."
"Hey, Maria, don't forget the rescue duties," said Soi Fon, who had finally finished stretching.
Monet put her book down and stood up as well. She removed her reading glasses, turned around, and walked toward her tent.
"There's still six days left, and I'm sure if he's really that interesting, he'll surely pass."
Nejire dropped down from hovering in the air and said, "Hmm... well, I'll try to search for him while doing my rescuing at the same time."
Then...
A robotic snail suddenly rang.
Purupurupuru...
The snail robot suddenly opened its eyes and, with its robotic voice, announced:
[ Location: southwest, Latitude 30°; Longitude 70° ]
The five of them, who had wanted to do their own business, suddenly stopped when they heard the snail.
It's a rescue operation!
But before the other four could react—
Konan had already used her paper manipulation. She created angel wings behind her and flew away.
Someone was really excited.
( ﾉ^ω^)ﾉ
AM N. NOT.(っ－＿－)っ♤♤DRAFT♤♤