Military College

Unlike Max, Finn was a high-ranked ability user with the power to control rocks.

Max's mind immediately recalled that he and Finn were supposed to work on a project the previous night. However, due to the whole ordeal with the Demon and system book, Max had forgotten about the online project.

"Dude, I'm so sorry, it completely slipped my mind," Max tried to explain, but then he noticed that Finn wasn't angry with him.

"Don't worry about it, Max. Are you okay? I heard about what happened yesterday. Damn! I should've been there to teach that punk a lesson," Finn voiced out angrily, referring to Jacob.

The reason Max didn't contact Finn last night wasn't actually because of that, but anyway, it seemed like a convenient cover-up story for the main reason.

"I managed to finish the project all by myself, anyway," said Finn.

"Wow, you did? That's great news."

****

Soon, the green school bus arrived, and they both boarded. They took seats in the second row since the back was already occupied. Finn took out his laptop and opened the project they had been working on. Indeed, it was well done and completed.

As they go through the project, Max heard his name whispered from behind. Reluctantly, he turned to see who was calling his name. To his surprise, it was Ivy, the same girl who had helped him yesterday.

"What's she doing here?" Max muttered.

"Who?"

"Ivy."

Finn also turned to look and noticed Ivy sitting among the other students at the back. They were surprised because Ivy's family was one of the richest in the country and she had her own private car that takes her to school. So why was she taking the public school bus?

Ivy waved at Max and Finn, causing them to abruptly turn their gaze in shock. She was practically a celebrity in the school, and she was waving at them? Were they supposed to wave back?

Soon they heard approaching footsteps. "Is that her?" Finn whispered to Max, signaling him to check. But Max was hesitant to look, not wanting to make a big deal out of Ivy's presence.

"Hi, Max Hernandez! Finn!" She greeted with a smirk and a smile. "Can I sit here?" she asked.

"Uh...rh"

Both boys were momentarily speechless, so Ivy simply took a seat. She settled down next to Max, while Finn sat by the window.

"Ivy, you're on the school bus today. Should we be concerned?" Finn inquired, clearing his throat.

Ivy smiled and glanced at Max before responding, "I came to check up on Max. How are you feeling today?" she asked.

"Uh... huh, I'm... I'm doing better," Max stuttered, caught off guard by Ivy's unexpected reason for being there.

Ivy delicately brushed her hair behind her ears and continued, "Also, I'm here to apologize for what I said yesterday. I know it wasn't my place to..."

"It's fine!" Max interjected.

"Okay, that was easy. So, does that mean we're friends?"

Max's heart skipped a beat upon hearing the friendship request. All his life, he had wished to befriend Ivy, and now she was the one asking him. However, Max's excitement was tempered by the realization that they wouldn't be seeing each other after next week.

While Max was still contemplating, the other students at the back began murmuring about something.

"Hey! Driver, this is not the route to the school!"

"Turn the bus around!"

"Where are you taking us!"

The students shouted at the bus driver who seemed to have deliberately taken the wrong turn from the school grounds.

Max, Finn, and Ivy were closer to the driver, so they politely informed him that the route he was taking did not lead to the school. However, they were completely ignored.

Soon, all the windows and doors locked automatically, and a whitish smoke flowed out from the AC vents. Initially, they thought it was smoke from burning wires, but after inhaling it, they started feeling drowsy. Gradually, all the students in the back seats began to slump down, unconscious.

Max, Finn, and Ivy covered their noses as the whitish smoke reached the front areas. However, they still began to feel drowsy despite their blocked noses.

The smoke didn't just take effect when inhaled; it could also react upon contact with the eyes.

Throughout this time, the bus driver had been wearing a nose mask and special goggles that protected him from the effects of the smoke.

"Ivy! Ivy!" Max exclaimed as Ivy fell into his arms, unconscious.

Turning to Finn beside him, Max realized that Finn had already lost consciousness as well. He was now the only student who was still slightly awake.

As Max was gradually passing out, he heard the driver speaking to someone on the radio.

< Bus 190: Acquired >

< Passengers: 31 >

Before Max completely succumbed to the smoke, the response from the radio played faintly in his head.

< Bus 190: Confirmed >

< Passengers: Oversupply >

Max wondered what that meant.

****

After a prolonged nap that felt like a coma, Max began hearing his name repeated over and over again. His vision was blurry when he first opened his eyes, but soon the entire scene came into focus.

"Arh...uh. Where are we?" Max questioned.

"I don't know. But I think we're all locked up here," Finn replied after surveying the room.

Max stood up and noticed that there were over 200 students in a large, empty hall. The hall appeared to have only one glass door, which was locked. Some students were already attempting to break the glass, but despite their Abilities and strength, the door and walls remained unscathed.

The hall had an unusual appearance, resembling a room from a video game. Max also observed that speakers and CCTV cameras were positioned in every corner.

All the students were wearing the same outfit, resembling the attire seen in 'Star Wars' movies. The striped patterns on these suits emitted a soft glow that corresponded to the physical condition of the person wearing it.

Unbeknownst to the students, the glowing stripes indicated their health points (HP). Each color had a specific meaning:

< Green: Full HP >

< Orange: In Use >

< Red: Low >

< Black: Unconscious or Dead >

****

Max's body was still experiencing pain, causing the stripes on his suit to glow orange. However, Finn's suit had green-glowing stripes, and the same was true for everyone else they had observed so far.

When Max noticed that he was the only one with orange stripes, he just assumed it might be due to his D-user status. However, Ivy soon approached them, and her suit was also glowing green like the others'.

"Why am I the only one with an orange-striped suit?" Max questioned himself.

"Ivy, are you okay?" Finn asked, and she nodded. The three of them stood together, awaiting what would come next.

Max couldn't recognize the other students in the room. He quickly assumed again that they were probably from another high school, or even colleges considering how huge some of the students were. Indeed most of the other students were from different schools.

An hour later, a hologram of a young woman in her early thirties popped up in mid-air, and her voice echoed from the speakers that were hanging around the hall.

[Hello, everyone! Welcome to Set A Military College.]