36 Task Force Test

*BOOM! *

"UGH! " Adam spit out a mouthful of blood while struggling to get out of the wall.

[HP: 150/300]

His HP dropped by half with one blow.

'When the hell did he attack me?! ' Adam looked at the captain, who only stood there with the same indifferent expression and a stretched-out fist.

*Whistle~ *

"That must've hurt! Haha. " Sneed whistled and spoke with a smile. "Doesn't seem like he's coming out of that one, so I guess we all lose. " He continued in a helpless tone.

"Even the fact that he's still conscious after that is amazing... " Tyrone spoke with a shocked expression. "The captain has no mercy. "

"What was his rank again? " Marianne asked while looking at Darius.

"Upper C-rank. " Darius replied while keeping his eyes on Adam.

"10. " Kevin started the countdown to end the match. If Adam doesn't get up by the time he finishes the countdown, the test will end and whether he joins the task force will be up to the captain to decide.

"9. "

'This is too much... ' Adam thought as he checked his body's miserable state. 'The distance is vast... ' He looked at the captain with a gaze full of fear of his unstoppable force.

"8. "

'If I want to grow stronger... ' He stretched his hand and pulled himself out of the hole in the wall. 'I need to prove my worth. '

*Crumble. *

Adam got himself out of the crumbling wall with shaky legs.

"Let's go, newbie! That's the spirit! " Sneed cheered him on while waving a triumphant fist. "Just don't last too long. "

"Are you able to continue? " Kevin asked while looking at Adam with a worried expression.

Adam simply gave him a thumbs-up as an answer because talking would cause him to cough up even more blood than he already did.

"Continue. " Kevin announced before quickly stepping back.

'Sword... My sword... ' Adam started searching for his sword with a dazed expression. His vision was blurry and his legs seemed like they would give out at any moment.

'This kid... ' Captain Yamamoto noticed Adam's actions and a slight smile surfaced on his face. He looked at Adam's sword, which was on the ground near his feet, before kicking it towards the struggling young man.

*Clang. *

"Pick up your sword. " Captain Yamamoto said with a serious expression.

Adam slowly bent down and carefully picked up his sword while struggling to keep his balance.

"Now, come. " Captain Yamamoto said while gesturing with his index finger. "Time to check your offensive capabilities. "

"Haha! Checking his offensive capabilities when he's in that state?! The captain has some serious sadistic tendencies. " Sneed said while chuckling.

"Why don't you try shutting that radio mouth of yours and watch, Sneed? " Ash spoke while glaring at Sneed with an annoyed gaze.

"Woah! Someone's in a bad mood. " Sneed replied while matching Ash's glare. "Still struggling to get that stick out? " His smile turned to a slight frown.

"The newbie is making his move! " Elina stepped in between the two and exclaimed while pointing at Adam.

'Defeating this monster is simply impossible. ' Adam gripped his sword and walked towards Captain Yamamoto. 'But I only need to land one hit... '

*Fwish! *

Adam mustered all the strength left in his body to circulate his mana at the highest speed and raised his sword before dashing toward the captain.

Captain Yamamoto, however, only stood there and stared at Adam.

'Aura Slash! ' The young man noticed captain Yamamoto's uninterested expression and chanted in his head while gritting his teeth.

*Slash! *

His sword came down at a frightening speed.

But there was no impact. Captain Yamamoto simply swayed his body, easily dodging Adam's slash.

'Gravity Manipulation. ' Adam quickly cast his next skill to increase captain Yamamoto's gravity before raising his sword for the next attack.

[MP: 270/420]

'This is not the time to conserve my MP. I only have one chance to prove myself. 'He was using his skills in quick succession, which drained his MP.

'Hmm?! ' Captain Yamamoto noticed the slight change in his gravity and looked at Adam with a slightly shocked expression. 'This kid might be more fun than I expected. '

*STOMP! *

'But he's still lacking. ' The captain quickly stomped his heavy feet on the ground, which caused a tremendous shock wave to reverberate through the ground, breaking Adam's stance.

"Woah! " Adam exclaimed. 'Even that didn't work?! '

"Petty tricks won't work in front of true strength. " The captain said before his figure disappeared. "You might have some interesting skills, but you rely on them too much. " He appeared behind Adam.

"Huh?! " Adam turned around and looked at him with a fearful expression. "Dammit! " He gripped his sword.

"True strength is something much deeper... " Captain Yamamoto spoke in an icy tone while his black eyes shimmered in an ominous light. "The absolute belief in one's own ability, without relying on some god-given magic or mana. "

Adam's body froze mid-attack.

'What is this?! ' He felt a tremendous pressure weighing down on him.

'My body won't move! ' This was neither Aura nor magic, but something much darker and heavier than that.

Adam's eyes widened and his teeth clattered in fear, while his body refused to move according to his will.

It was as if his body was afraid of what would happen if it moved.

An outcome that he deep down knew, but tried to ignore.

Death...

'Move! Move! Move! ' It was just like the time he spent in the deep darkness during the class quest. Helpless.

"Abandoning your petty thoughts and converting your weakness into power. " Captain Yamamoto approached Adam with the same icy look. "That's... True strength. " Before placing his finger on the young man's forehead.

Adam's body went into complete shock before his eyes closed and he plopped down to the ground.

"This test is over... " Captain Yamamoto looked at Adam, who has miserably plopped down to the ground before turning to the task force members. "Treat his wounds and put him in a bed. "

"Y-yes, sir! " Kevin was the one who replied with a shocked expression before carrying Adam.

The rest of the task force members silently watched the scene.