Training Camp

Day of Tuar, 9:46 a.m.

Vivian was at the Gym and inside one of the private rooms for Magic Art training.

She ran out of mana and was waiting for it to recover.

Having nothing else to do and she didn't want to risk using [Greater Origin Enchant] on her [Halo] to boost her mana recovery, she decided to busy herself with something else.

She glanced at her hands.

No matter how much I try to deny it, it really is turning back…

It's been 3 days since she last ate humans. To be specific, she ate 3 humans. After eating the husband and wife, she also ate their child. She thought about leaving the child alone. But after realizing that the child would be an orphan and most likely go on to live a worthless life -- at least according to her assumptions -- she decided to eat the child as well.

I was hoping that if I ate more than one human, the time before my blood turned back to blue would be longer…

But no matter how much I deny it, the answer is clear as day…

To be precise, once Vivian eats a human, it was on the third day that her blood would start to transition from red to blue. And it will be on the seventh day when her blood will completely turn to blue.

She let out a sigh.

So I really have to eat someone every 3 days, huh…

Vivian thought about eating animals but was too lazy to do so because of her [Nemesis of Beasts] Lore Magic. On top of that, most animals are outside and she didn't want to risk being seen in her demon form. After all, she needed to be at least 3 meters tall in order to swallow a human in one go without any problems or being too messy. And then after that, she still needed to wait a couple of minutes before the food inside her stomach was digested.

But if she could find a farm where animals are kept, then she would consider it.

I think I've already recovered enough mana…

She activated a spell.

[Soul Enchant].

A white water-like aura appeared on her hand.

Ooo…

She touched her other hand and felt her mana being drained.

She deactivated the skill.

Tch!

Time to wait again…

***

Sometime later…

Vivian could hear noises coming outside the room.

I think it's already 11:00 a.m.…

Time to leave…

She got up and exited the room.

The rest of her fellow recruits were indeed out of their rooms, done training their Magic Art.

"Sister Platoon Leader!" Uliah called out.

Vivian turned to her and noticed that she was with Kara.

"Sister Squad Leader."

"Where are you heading now? Wanna train more?"

Although Vivian agreed to help Uliah and the rest train their Physical Arts in exchange for smuggling food for her inside the Training Camp, the agreement was only during the Mock Training between 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. And despite it only being an hour, technically, Vivian could easily defeat them in less than 5 seconds -- a single second if she didn't allow them to fight back. So the number of mock battles was a lot. But to allow Uliah and the others to level up their Physical Arts, she had to let them throw a few swings.

"No, I just want to take a bath and rest before the next class."

"Oh okay."

"I also want to take a bath," said Kara.

They began heading for the exit.

***

At the female dormitory…

Vivian and the rest of the women were already half-naked and preparing to take a bath when a visitor arrived at their room.

"Officer on board!" Sally announced.

Everyone quickly turned to where the officer was and stood in attention.

It was Julia.

"Where is Crusader Vivian?"

Vivian quickly went over to her and saluted.

"Sister High Lieutenant Julia!"

"Get dressed and head over to the Main Office building. Brother High Captain Marshall wants to talk with you."

"Yes, Sister High Lieutenant!"

"Dismiss," Julia said before turning around and leaving.

"Any idea what it is, Sister Platoon Leader?" asked Sally.

Vivian shrugged.

"I have no idea."

Did I do something wrong…?

Maybe they found out I'm a demon and have been eating humans…?

***

At the Main Office building.

Knock.

Knock.

Vivian knocked on a door twice before entering an office.

Marshall was sitting behind his desk and reviewing some documents.

She stood in front of his desk and then saluted.

"Brother High Captain Marshall! I am Crusader Vivian and I have received orders from Sister High Lieutenant Julia that you wanted to have to have a word with me!"

"At ease and please take a seat, Crusader Vivian."

"Thank you, Brother High Captain!" she said and took a seat in front of the desk.

Marshall began looking for something on his desk. When couldn't find it, he tried checking for the drawers. And when he still couldn't find it, he pressed a bell.

Ding!

A secretary entered the room.

"Yes, Brother High Captain?"

"I can't find Crusader Vivian's file here. Where is it?"

"Please excuse me," the secretary said and approached the desk before rummaging through the papers until she finally found it. "Here it is, Brother High Captain."

"Thank you. That will be all." 

"Yes, Brother High Captain," she said and then exited the room.

Marshall read the file for a few minutes before putting it down.

"So, Crusader Vivian, it says here you were given a medal and recommendation letter as a potential future administrator, you have 4 Magic Art Affinities, and your Physical Force is Adamantite while your Magic Force is Orichalcum-Adamantite. And during your stay here…"

He paused for a moment to read the document once again.

"...so far, your performance has been excellent. However, you've filed restraining orders against people who have been harassing you. And one of them is a new recruit who was 5 true Affinities."

Vivian wasn't sure how to respond so she remained silent.

"Was everything I mentioned true?" asked Marshall.

"Yes, Brother High Captain."

Marshall put down the file.

"You're close to finishing Basic Training and will be eligible for the Training Course. Have you already decided which Division you will be applying for?"

"Yes, Brother High Captain. I plan to apply for the Exploratory Division."

Marshall mumbled under his breath and didn't say anything after that, letting the silence stretch out.

However, Vivian was unfazed and patiently waited.

When enough time passed, it was Marshall who ended the silence.

"Given your 4 Magic Art Affinities, I'm sure you're already fully aware that many people are interested in you, both good and bad intentions. And you must be thinking that your Physical and Magic Force is enough to deter these people. And although our Temple can indeed protect you from the people with bad intentions, I believe you're also aware that the Temple can't protect you from the people who are hiding in the shadows and have bad intentions.

"Do you understand what I'm trying to say?"

"Yes, Brother High Captain," said Vivian.

"Good. Now, because of this, as a fellow member of our Temple who wants to see young talents like you grow to their full potential, my advice to you is to apply for the Inquisitory or the Infantry Division."

Seeing the brows on Vivian's face knit together, he promptly continued.

"Allow me to explain clearly. 

"If you apply for the Air, the Sea or the Exploratory Division, you will be out on missions where you have limited backup. So if you encounter an enemy during a mission, the probability of you getting killed or captured is very high.

"Meanwhile, if you will be part of the Inquisitory or the Infantry Division -- well, let's talk about the Infantry Division first.

"Our Temple has many talented people when it comes to Affinities. In fact, we have the highest number when it comes to people with 3 Magic Art Affinities. However, strength isn't limited to Physical and Magic Force alone. Someone could be a genius in fighting. But in battle tactics or managing forces, they can be… lacking.

"But despite that, the Infantry is actually one of the safest Divisions that a brother or sister with 4 or more Affinities can stay at because most of your enemies are out in the open and you will have veteran warriors to fight alongside.

"Now let's talk about the Inquisitory Division.

"In this Division, I will admit, it's not an easy Division.

"In order to pass its Training Course, you will need to pass its mentally grueling exams which require a high level of intellect. 

"And once you become an Inquisitor, your job requires you to rely more on brains rather than brawn and a single mission could last for weeks, months or even years. 

"Furthermore, due to the nature of their job where their main objective is to eradicate corruption and heresy within the Temple, you would be involved with a lot of politics that you will inevitably accumulate a lot of enemies along the way among our brothers and sisters.

"And to reduce the number of enemies you have within the Temple, you will need to keep your identity hidden by wearing a mask at all times and using an alias, and only the Inquisitory Division would know your true identity.

"However, despite all that, there are 2 positive things.

"Firstly, as an Inquisitor, you will have political powers that are at the very least equal to Red Cloaks.

"And secondly, considering your 4 Magic Art Affinities, being an Inquisitor would allow you to keep your identity hidden without relying on and being exposed to too many people.

"What do you think? Do you have any questions?"

"Um…" said Vivian.

Truth be told, in Vivian's head, the only reason why she wanted to apply for the Exploratory Division was because it would allow her to go to the Pagan Lands and level up her Physical Arts without worrying about overhunting. 

And although she could level up her Physical Arts here by training with powerful brothers and sisters, she had her blue blood to deal with and it wasn't like she could eat someone every 2-3 days in order for her blood to remain red without people noticing.

Tch…!

If only I didn't have this blue blood I could've just rampaged my way on the battlefield under the Infantry Division…

And if I didn't have to worry about Physical Arts, the Inquisitory Division sounds like a cool Division to be part of…

Vivian recalled the Inquisitor she met last week.

Sister Inquisitor Mabel…

Sister Inquisitor Vivian…

Not bad I guess…

She shook her head mentally.

Political power…?

What is that in front of absolute power…?

Nothing but a piece of paper…!

"You don't have to decide right away," Marshall said, interrupting her thoughts. "Once you graduate from Basic Training, that's when you have to decide."

"Thank you for the advice, High Brother Captain. I will definitely think about everything you've said. But I have one question."

"What is it?"

"I was told that once we're done with the Basic Training, we will leave this Training Camp and be sent to the location of the Division we are applying for and stay there for another 3 weeks before finally heading out for the Holy Crusade. Will we be under the same rules when we get there, like we're only allowed to leave the camp or base once a week?"

"No, the rules are more lax. Think about it like during your time in your respective Chapter Temple while you were taking the Holy Missions. The only difference is that your attendance will be checked every day to make sure that you haven't escaped or neglected your duties and there will be both a written and practical exam."

"I see. Thank you, Brother High Captain."

"Do you have any more questions?"

"Nothing that I can think of at the moment, Brother High Captain."

"Okay. Come see me again if you have further questions. You are dismissed, Crusader."

Vivian got up and saluted.

"Thank you, Brother High Captain!"

Marshall nodded.

She turned around and left the office.

********************

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Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

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Please note that the chapters posted there are only drafts. So when those said Chapter Drafts will be published here, there will be some edits. They also involve a few secret outline notes/details that I won't publish here because they contain spoilers or dispel some of the mysteries. And at the moment, Chapter Drafts 253-257 are posted there.

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