Chapter 11 - Reunions at Camp Alpha

The train took off, quicker than I expected it to. It wasn't a bullet train like we had back in Japan, but it wasn't a steam engine either. This train was different, it ran on a mysterious type of energy that was unknown to me.

As the train approached its top speed, I gazed out of the window, watching the trees fly past me. We traveled through forests and fields, rivers and lakes, and even saw some other camps in the distance. We were also passing by numerous landmarks and locations throughout the country. It was about a 30-minute train ride back to Camp Alpha.

On the way there, Cyprus informed me of something important. The competition factor within the Hero Camp. It was something I hadn't considered before, but now kept in the back of my mind.

"Yukio, there's something I want to tell you about the Hero Camp entrance exam. It's known as the competition factor. To put it simply, you'll be going against other hero candidates who wish to enter the camp."

"The competition factor? Can you tell me more about it?" asked Yukio, confused.

"Sure. Every time we get transferred, there are always groups of people wanting to enter the Hero Camp, whether they came from other camps or traveled to Alpha on their own. They're put into a group, and only the highest scores will be admitted."

"This month, I believe there are 39 candidates who are applying. Only the top 15 will be admitted as heroes, to keep the weakest out, and prevent people from throwing away their lives if they're incapable of being a hero."

Yukio looked concerned. He had practically no skills in combat. If he wanted to be admitted to this Hero Camp, then he would have to really ace this exam. He was going against 38 other people and had to score higher than at least 23 of them to become a hero. Suddenly, his stress rose a bit.

"Damn, do you have any information about these people? Will I know who I'm going up against?" asked Yukio.

"Unfortunately I don't. That information is disclosed to the administration only. But, when we arrive at camp, you'll definitely meet a few of them. Some of them have established hero backgrounds, either by having heroes in the family or working alongside them. So don't expect to place at the top of the class or anything."

"I don't plan to, but if I can make the top 15, that's all that matters," replied Yukio.

"That's the spirit. Hey, I can see Alpha in the distance, we should prepare to get off."

The train was approaching Camp Alpha, and the conductor got on the intercom to announce their arrival. The group looked out of the window, at the camp. It was basically a small city. It was bordered by two layers of steel-reinforced walls reaching nearly 70 feet into the air, as well as a large moat, and numerous guards.

"It's been a month since I've been here, but every time we return, it feels like a family reunion. I can't wait to see my sister again!" said Mayumi, excitedly.

"You have a sister?" asked Yukio.

"Yeah! Her name is Emiko! She's my older sister, and her hero name is "Crystal Batter". She wields a baseball bat made out of Adamantite, making it incredibly powerful and blunt. She's a Level 6 hero. The last time I saw her, she was rank 15, I hope she moved up!"

"She sounds cool! Maybe I'll get to meet her when we get to Alpha. Is she similar to you?" asked Yukio.

"Hah! Not at all, we're basically polar opposites! She's much taller, and bigger than me! She's also 8 years older than me, she's 28, and I'm 20. She has kind of an attitude, but she's really soft inside, she'll talk rough with you at first, so just don't mind her." replied Mayumi.

"Dang, she sounds dangerous. Well, I hope I can at least make a good first impression on her, I'd hate to get on her bad side,"

"Well, we heroes are a family, so I'm sure she'll welcome you into the camp! Hey, we're getting close, let's pack up," said Cyprus.

"We're now approaching the grand station, please grab your belongings and prepare to exit. Thank you for riding with us!" said a voice on the intercom once more.

The train approached the gate of Camp Alpha and entered the Grand Station. Inside, we saw numerous other trains stationed within and saw heroes exiting them. Some of them looked like average people, while others looked threatening, wearing full sets of armor. Their train then stopped, and the doors opened. The party stepped off of the train and began their walk into Camp Alpha...

The camp was huge, with buildings in all directions. The roadways connected all of them easily, and there were heroes gathered almost everywhere. People were reuniting with comrades, while others were making their way into different buildings. There were multiple quest boards in the center of the town, as well as a grand campfire, similar to Camp Theta. This wasn't just a camp, it was a city.

There were trees and plants and numerous fountains throughout the camp. It was fully decked with luxurious decorations. It made Camp Theta look like the slums! As we walked, I breathed in the fresh, crisp air of the area, and it left me feeling refreshed. But then, I heard a high-pitched voice yelling in the distance, getting closer.

"YUI!" screamed the voice. Yui turned around sharply and was immediately tackled by a girl, about her height, with bright red hair similar to mine in color. Now that I looked at her, her features matched Yui's almost identically.

"AH, SHIT YUA, You could at least greet me formally for once? That hurt!" said Yui.

"Hahaha! I just missed you is all! How have you been? How was Theta?" asked the girl. Yukio was confused and decided to chime in.

"Yui, who's this girl that poses a striking resemblance to you?"

"This is my sister, Yua Misako! We're identical twins, except for our hair and eye color, which differ. She's a combat hero, she's a level 4, and her hero name is-" Yua then interrupted her sister.

"Death Chemist!" shouted Yua. She seemed very proud of her status.

"Also, Yui! I'm not a level 4 anymore! I completed my level 5 quest while stationed in Camp Phi! I'm officially Level 5, Rank 38 now!"

"WHAT? THAT'S AWESOME! I'M SO PROUD OF YOU SIS!" shouted Yui in excitement.

Yua Misako, alias "Death Chemist". Hero Level 5, Rank 38. She specializes in the usage of poison darts, as well as other deadly chemicals. She is known for killing every monster she comes across, regardless of level, as she will go to great lengths to ensure the death of anything that stands in her way. This has almost gotten her killed in numerous cases, but she has never left a monster undefeated. She kills monsters by stunning them with poison darts and then pouring deadly chemicals on them which kill the monster from the inside. She is a medical genius similar to Yui but uses her abilities for combat.

"It's nice to meet you, Yua! My name is Yukio Sazuke, and I wanna be a hero," said Yukio.

"Oh? That's wonderful! You should apply today considering you're already in Camp Alpha!" said Yua.

"That's the plan! So, it seems like you and Yui are having a nice reunion," said Yukio.

"Yeah! I haven't seen my sister in a month, we do this every time we get transferred, if you don't mind, I'd like to catch up with her," said Yua

"No problem! Take all the time you need Yua! I'm going to go explore the camp, and I'll grab Yui when I need her!" replied Yukio.

The party continued to walk through the camp, meeting different heroes, and reuniting with their comrades. Yui and Yua went their separate way to catch up, and Mayumi left to find her sister. Cyprus also left to go see some of his friends. Yukio decided to go on his own and explore the camp.

Something that Yukio took note of, were the many badges that some heroes were wearing. It seemed like heroes were awarded specific honors for completing quests or reaching milestones. Every hero also had a badge that displayed their Level and Rank. Yukio saw many heroes, ranging from level 1 to level 7, throughout the camp.

Although, he barely had time to talk to any of them. They all were busy with their own groups, as well as their tasks, such as turning in quests and receiving rank-ups. Yukio continued to explore and decided to visit the bulletin board to check out the different monsters listed on it. The bulletin board was filled with pictures of dangerous monsters, similar to Camp Theta's.

"Interesting, so this board has pictures of the same monsters as in Theta, but there's also a few higher leveled monsters here... these guys look really dangerous, I can see why their bounties are so high..." said Yukio.

"Yo, Yukio!" called out a voice.

Suddenly, Mayumi caught up with Yukio, accompanied by a taller girl, matching Yukio's height. She had short golden hair, similar in color to Mayumi, except darker. She didn't have glasses and was wearing a silver crop-top and bra, and denim shorts reaching her thighs. She had a red crystal baseball bat, this must be her sister.

"Hey, Mayumi! Is this your sister that you were telling me about?" asked Yukio.

"Yeah! This is Emiko! Emiko, this is Yukio Sazuke, he's applying to be a hero!" said Mayumi.

"Heh, it's nice to meetcha Yukio, I'm Emiko, Mayumi's sister. They call me Crystal Batter 'round here," said Emiko.

Emiko Tsokuda, alias "Crystal Batter" - Hero Level 6, Rank 12. She specializes in the use of blunt force weapons such as clubs and bats. Her specialty is her adamantite baseball bat, which she swings with incredible force to inflict fatal injuries to monsters.

Mayumi was right, Emiko was definitely much "bigger" than Mayumi. She had a naturally smug expression on her face and the physique of a softball star. You wouldn't be able to tell that they were sisters unless they informed you of it!

"Nice to meet you too Emiko! As your sister mentioned, I'd like to be a hero, so I was planning to apply today and take my entrance exam!" said Yukio.

Emiko analyzed Yukio's features and chuckled to herself. She smiled smugly and gave Yukio a glare, then she began to speak.

"You look like you'd make a fine hero, Yukio. Has Mayumi shown you the way of the sword? She's one of the best sword heroes in the third level, I'm sure you could learn a lot from her."

"Well, we practiced a bit in Camp Theta, and I watched her slay a few monsters, but I've never tried to kill one myself," said Yukio.

"Good, I wouldn't recommend doing that unless you know damn well what you're doing. But I'm not concerned, you look like you could handle yourself if you needed to. I wish you luck on your entrance exam, Yukio."

Emiko seemed dangerous. Though, she was also genuine. Yukio could tell she had good intentions and wanted Yukio to pass his exam. Yukio also took note of the many male heroes checking Emiko out. She was the center of attention for anyone nearby. Emiko also noticed this and turned around, raising her bat in the air.

"If you perverts don't go turn in your quests, you'll miss your opportunity to rank up. Go away before I clobber you all!" said Emiko to a group of lower-leveled male heroes.

"AHH! Sorry, Emiko! We'll leave right now!" said the group. Emiko then turned back around.

"Well, Yukio, Mayumi and I are going to go catch up. I hope to see you soon, in a proper hero's outfit. Good luck on your exam!"

"Thank you! Mayumi, when I'm ready to go, I'll come to find you!" said Yukio.

"Sounds good! Bye for now Yukio!" said Mayumi, walking away with her sister.

Yukio turned back around and continued to analyze the quest board. There were monsters of all threat levels tacked to it. Giant bird creatures, tigers and foxes, huge goblin-like monsters, and even some large monkey-like figures. Yukio took it all in and had mixed emotions.

"Well, I know for sure that I won't be able to take on any of these big guys yet, but perhaps, if I train hard enough, I'll be able to take them down. If my task is to defeat whoever The Shade is, then I'll need to be able to defeat these guys first."

"To do that, I'll have to start small. I'm going to aim for level 2 initially, but if I'm placed into level 1, I won't really care too much," said Yukio.

Suddenly, someone approached Yukio from behind and tapped his shoulder. When Yukio turned around, nobody was there. Then, someone flicked him on the back of his head. He turned back around and looked down to see a short girl with cream-colored hair. It was Ambrosia.

"Well well, you showed up to Camp Alpha, Yukio Sazuke. Welcome..."

"Hey! You're that loli hero from the camp! Wait, how did you do that? I turned around and you were gone, you couldn't have run around me that quickly!" said Yukio.

"Wha--LOLI?? Who are you calling a loli hero, you creep!" shouted Ambrosia, kicking Yukio.

"My bad, my bad.. please go on, how did you do that?" asked Yukio.

"I have my ways... I heard what you said just now. Taking down the shade has been the goal of every level 7 hero since he was first sighted. If you really want to take him down, you'll have to work your ass off. I doubt you could ever do it though." said Ambrosia.

"Oh, just you wait! I'm going to grind until I take the number one spot in the camp!" said Yukio. Ambrosia closed her eyes and sighed. She looked disappointed.

"You really have no idea what you're getting yourself into, do you," said Ambrosia.

"What do you mean?" asked Yukio.

"Just wait, and you'll find out. Yukio Sazuke..." said Ambrosia. Then, she started thinking to herself.

"This is the guy, for sure. He's emitting the same power I felt earlier in the forbidden flower field. There's something unusual about him. I'm sensing no limit to his potential power. It's almost as if he's able to possess infinite power but just hasn't unlocked it yet. I'll have to keep my eyes on him, as he could be the key to our problems." then, Ambrosia spoke aloud.

"Well, either way, good luck on your entrance exam, I guess. I must go now, bye-bye, Yukio Saaaazzuuuke!" Ambrosia then floated into the air and flew away. Yukio gazed into the air, shocked.

"What an interesting hero she is... I hope one day that I'll learn to fly. Anyway, I should probably gather Mayumi, Yui, and Cyprus. I'm going to go apply soon..."