Overlooking the entire city, is a large mountain with a long, winding stairway leading up towards the top.
The man who spoke to us before once again begins to speak.
“Alright listen up, cause I’ll only be saying this once. The trial dungeon you guys are going to be running today is called Order’s Tomb. It’s three levels, which each level being pulled randomly from around a hundred or so possible levels. Now, with that being said, the task at hand is simple, all you have to do is beat all three levels, and you pass.”
He pauses briefly to gauge the potential prospects’ reactions.
“I would like to remind you guys that there is a possibility of death, so if you have any ounce of reservations, please leave now.”
He remains quiet for a whole minute, giving each of us the time to really think about if we are willing to do it. Unsurprisingly, no one elects to quit.
“Ok then. Keep in mind that if your feeling change, you may leave at any time, but once you enter that dungeon, there’s no leaving until you finish the first floor. Am I clear?”
Everyone nods.
“Good. So we will be walking up those stairs towards the top of the mountain. There we will find the rest of the potential prospects from other branches, as well as the entrance to the dungeon. I want everyone to take this time to really think about whether you want this or not. I cannot stress this enough, there is a very real possibility of death. In fact, it’s estimated that about one in ten of you will die today.” The man leaves us with that, and turns his back to begin walking towards and up the stairs.
The walk up is honestly quite relaxing. If I were unawakened, this would be quite grueling, but now, with my increased stats and physique, it’s a scenic hike.
When I say scenic, I really do mean it. The view is enough to make a man cry, with rolling hills and cast mountain ranges. That, coupled with the various colors of the dawn sky really is quite awe-inspiring.
I even notice a few of my fellow potential prospects taking out some sort of recording device to capture the moment.
The breathtaking view, combined with some short conversations with Dodge here and there, overall make for quite the fun little mini-trip all things considered, taking no more than an hour.
Once we reach the top, we’re greeting by a scene I couldn’t have hoped to expect.
There had to be tens of thousands of people on top of a very convient mountaintop that is not only flat, but also large enough to accommodate a sizable amount of people, almost like it was designed that way in the first place.
Looking around, I see most either trying to relax by engaging in friendly conversation, mentally preparing to the side, or doing light stretches in an attempt to warp-up.
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What took me off guard the most was just the amount of people that were here. I mean, I knew the Saving Face Coorporation was big, but I guess I never really though about how big.
I mean if our group had twenty or so people, then assuming there’s about ten or so thousand people here, then that means there are at least five-hundred branches out there minimum. That’s not even considering the fact that the Temple of Archania branch is significantly larger than most, so there could even be double, or possibly triple that estimate.
“Pretty impressive huh?” A voice suddenly says behind me, causing me to jump and break from my train of thought.
Of course, it’s Dodge once again. I’m not sure what it is, but it’s almost impossible to know this guy’s there until he makes himself known. It’s like he’s invisible whenever the hell he pleases.
“Fuck man, you’ve got to stop doing that.” I say as I let out another sigh of relief.
He giggles mischievously before replying,
“Hah, sorry.”
“Why do I feel like you did that one on purpose.” I reply in a deadpan voice.
He shrugs his shoulders guiltily.
“Whatever, anyway, yeah there’s a lot more people here than I thought there’d be. Is this normal?” I ask.
“Well I’m not exactly an expert, but I’d say this looks about right for Saving Face.”
“What about for these kinds of organizations? Is this many people normal for other places’ tests?”
“Well, for our type of recruitment organization, I’d say so. But some other places could have close to ten, or even twenty times this number.”
“Holy shit, really? Why the stark difference?”
“Well there are basically two schools of thought when it comes to recruitment organizations like this. Get a large amount of people together and throw them to the flames, and gathering a smaller amount of generally more talented or vetted people together and give them a test with a smaller chance of death.”
“We are the latter I presume?”
“Yup. The downside with that being they normally get more inexperienced recruits, but they usually make up for that by being more conventionally talented overall. Also, these places generally have a better reputation.”
“What about the former?”
“Well, the risk of death during the trial test is significantly higher. On top of that, the test often pits the potential prospects against one another, causing resentment to breed between the prospects that do make it in. What this line of thinking does well is creating prospects who have experienced and lived through life or death experiences, generally causing them to be less-hesitant and more quick-witted in the heat of battle. Or at least, that’s the idea behind it. I personally disagree with that kind of barbaric thinking from a moral standpoint, but to each their own I suppose.” Dodge explains.
“Woah, I had no idea…” I reply, considering the implications of what I was just told.
“Don’t worry about it too much. All you really need to know is that the guys that come from those sorts of organizations usually have a bit of an edge to them, so be mindful.”
I nod and we both make our way into the crowd, content to sit in a comfortable silence until the test begins.
After another half hour of waiting, a loud, resounding voice booms out from a well-dressed human man with slicked back black floating above all of us.
“ATTENTION POTETNTIAL PROSPECTS! THE TEST WILL BE BEGINNING SHORTLY! EXPECT A NOTIFICATION IN YOUR STATUS IN A FEW MINUTES ASKING WHETHER OR NOT YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE TRANSPORTED INTO THE TRIAL DUNGEON! KEEP IN MIND WHAT YOUR GUIDES HAVE TOLD YOU ON YOUR WAY HERE, THERE IS NO LEAVING UNTIL YOU COMPLETE THE FIRST LEVEL! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED. WITH THAT I WISH ALL OF YOU GOOD LUCK!”
In an instant, he disappears like he was never there. The crowd then begins to erupt into a flurry of different emotions. Some nervous, some roaring vigorously, I see some even begin to leave and make their way to the stairs.
Dodge wishes me good luck, before finding an open space to sit and meditate. I feel a hand on my shoulder, and looking back, I see Regalius with a serious look on his face.
“Good luck Rowan my friend.”
I nod in response, causing him to nod back and walk elsewhere into the crowd, assumedly to give out some good lucks to a few other people.
After a minute, a notification pops up.
I click yes, and in a flash of light, I’m gone.