Day 1: The scorpion king

"Hey, what's with that smug of yours? What the hell is your problem? Again, I didn't even ask for your help! Besides I'm strong on my own!" Akira pointed at the stranger, he was annoyed by the stranger's funny face as if he was being rude.

"You knucklehead. If I were a second late, you would've died. You're welcome! And be quiet, your loud mouth is going to alert other monsters." The stranger replied and stood on top of the Scorpion's corpse.

"That's none of your business! And, I'm not thanking you for that! I'm not some guy you should look down on. Don't believe me? Then let's have one on one match... Wait... Does, that count sabotaging warriors?" Akira didn't thank him. However, if he had no immortality, he could've thanked him.

"You're rather a comedian, aren't you? And yes, it counts. Hurting warriors or killing them would get you disqualified if it's on purpose. That aside, I should be going. Bye now."

"Yeah, you better be! And don't steal my kill ever again, you hear me?"

"Hmph, good luck with your survival. If you need help feel free to ask other "future" warriors for assistance. And don't say I didn't warn you, these monsters are difficult to take on. If you insist on going alone then I will interrupt you no longer." The stranger landed, walked off, and bid farewell.

"Oh, I almost forgot to mention something... Huh!?" The stranger's attempt to speak with Akira was interrupted as the ground rumbled. "Hey! Look out! Beneath you!" he shouted a warning, but it was too late.

In a sudden turn of events, a massive worm emerged from the ground and swallowed Akira whole. The stranger swiftly distanced himself from the giant worm, drawing his blade. A muffled scream emanated from within the worm, revealing that Akira had summoned his scythe. With a fierce slash, he cut through the worm's stomach and liberated himself.

"Phew, that was a close call!" Akira exclaimed, emerging from the monster's grasp.

The stranger stood astounded and flabbergasted, realizing he had underestimated Akira's capabilities, assuming him to be defenseless.

"Argh! My clothes! It's only been a day, and they're already torn and drenched in that monster mucus. Ugh!" Akira removed his jacket and attempted to clean off the repulsive substance by shaking it.

The sliced-open monster commanded the stranger's attention as he examined its innards. Its numerous sharp teeth indicated instant death for anyone swallowed, yet Akira emerged unscathed.

Curious, Akira queried the man about the hovering board system, initially perplexed by its presence. The stranger explained that the boards represented examinees participating in the exams.

Akira was astonished, recalling that he had seen only a few dozen examinees when he last checked. The man clarified that the exam encompassed various areas, hence the diverse origins of the participants.

Observing that the number of remaining examinees was 929, the stranger grew suspicious of the examiners. Meanwhile, Akira came to a realization. His danger sense had failed to alert him to the worm's presence, catching him off guard.

"(This whole place is in danger...)"

Swiftly comprehending the situation, Akira voiced his concern that the entire area was fraught with danger. Lacking the proficiency to effectively sense danger, he couldn't focus on the multitude of threats. Despite five years of training, his combat experience had been limited to battling small creatures and slimes, with the exception of a previous encounter with a serpent. The heightened threat levels of the current adversaries far surpassed anything he had faced in his village.

Akira cautioned the stranger to stay or hide somewhere safe. The stranger took it personally and thought he was insulting him.

Akira chuckled and pointed at the group of monsters drawing his attention. He began to smirk.

"Alright, let's kill those monsters, and who kills the most, wins!" Akira challenged the stranger.

"Hah! Eat my dust!" Akira abruptly launched off first to the monsters before the stranger even consented to the challenge.

"Hey, since when have I consented?!" The stranger pursued Akira. Feeling challenged, he accepted his challenge and joined him.

Hours later, they had killed all the monsters they spotted.

______________________________

You've slaughtered 24 Scorpion giants.

Type: Sand crawler.

Enemy's level: 40

Rank: C

[EXP: 100,800+]

______________________________

"Ha, how's that? I kill 24 and you only kill 23. So, I win!" Akira gave a complacent smile.

"Ha, you must've got your math wrong. You're the one who stole my kill, so that doesn't count!" The stranger claimed he won and accused Akira of cheating.

"What? I did not!"

As the two conversed, a distant rumble drew their attention. Suddenly, a massive dust explosion rocked the area, heralding the arrival of a colossal scorpion four times the size of its counterparts.

Assessing the scorpion's immense size, the stranger determined it to be 24 meters tall, dwarfing the 6-meter stature of the regular scorpions. The gargantuan creature unleashed a torrent of acidic projectiles, prompting both of them to evade. However, Akira's ring finger fell victim to the acid, while the stranger emerged unscathed. With a snicker, the stranger derided Akira for his apparent sluggishness.

"Shut up! You're just lucky you managed to dodge," Akira retorted, bristling at the insult.

"Maybe, I'm just faster than you.'' The stranger grinned, showing his superior in speed.

"Oh, You'll see. I'll wipe that smug off your face." Akira pointed his scythe at the stranger's face.

"Haha, try it then!" The stranger laughed derisively.

"Hohoho, you'll regret it. But first, let's focus on that bastard!" Akira cut the conversation short, emphasizing the need to concentrate on the boss. With swift agility, the stranger lunged at the creature, aiming to sever its head. He descended from an impressive height, gathering speed and force for his strike. However, his astonishment was palpable as his sword shattered upon impact with the creature's shell.

"It's incredibly resilient!" the stranger exclaimed, swiftly leaping away from the monster upon realizing the exceptional toughness of its carapace.

Stepping into the fray, Akira took action. Leaping onto the scorpion's head, he relentlessly swung his scythe until the shell finally cracked.

"Ora, Ora, Ora, Ora, Ora, Ora, Ora!" Akira repeatedly shouted "ora" as he struck the shell with his might.

Seconds later, as the shell cracked, the monster thrashed about in an attempt to dislodge Akira from its head. Despite his efforts, Akira was knocked off balance by the scorpion. As the creature's exoskeleton shattered, revealing its vulnerability, the stranger sprang into action. Utilizing his broken blade, he pierced the scorpion, ultimately vanquishing the scorpion king.

"Hey! You stole my kill, you jerk!" Akira shouted at the stranger, incensed that the kill had been taken from him. After all, he had been the one to destroy the creature's shell and felt entitled to the glory of the kill.

"Thanks for the assistance, and now... We're even!"

The challenge was a tie.

"Heh," Akira chuckled and accepted the challenge results.

After the king had been defeated, the landscape shifted from a desert to a forested area, revealing a river, a waterfall, a lush forest, and various edible animals.

"So, it's onto stage two, huh?" Akira dispelled his scythe and finally relaxed, his danger sense subsiding with the cessation of the threat.

"Well, it's been nice meeting you. Goodbye for now!" Akira bid farewell to the stranger and departed. However, the stranger found himself intrigued by Akira and decided to follow him.

Three hours later, Akira set up a campfire and settled in for the night in the dense forest.

"?" Akira noticed a rustling in the bushes. Suddenly, the stranger reappeared, this time bringing a boar. He remained silent, his gaze fixed on Akira.

"Oh, it's you again," Akira remarked as the stranger approached, still holding his gaze.

"What're you looking at?" Akira, looking confused.

The stranger locked eyes with him for a full three minutes without flinching. "You can have some of the meat if you want. I don't mind," Akira offered, holding out a piece of cooked meat. But the stranger kept on staring...

"Alright, what's your deal?" As the minutes dragged on, Akira's unease grew with the stranger's unyielding gaze. No matter how many times he asked, the stranger remained silent, fixated on him for reasons unknown.

"Enough! You're really pushing it! First, you act like a total jerk, and now you're just plain weird." Akira jabbed at the stranger with his meat skewer, feeling the pressure of the unwavering stare. Still, the stranger held his uncomfortable gaze.

"Stop staring! Are you looking for a fight?! You're killing my appetite with your staring!" Akira snapped, standing up in frustration. Finally, the stranger broke his gaze and began to eat the meat. Feeling relieved, Akira sat back down to enjoy his meal.

"*Chomp* I was observing you." The stranger answered while eating the skewered meat. Just like that, after minutes by minutes, he answered simply that he was only observing.

"That's an unusual way of observing someone; are you some kind of freak?" Akira furrowed his eyes, his answers making him appear perplexed by his odd observational behavior.

"Oh yeah, I never got your name. My name is Akira Keita. What's yours?" Akira introduced himself first.

"My name is Shura Bradiere. Pleasure to meet you!" Shura revealed his name.

"Pleasures mine! And why are you here?" Akira felt quite suspicious of him since he was always staring at him and now followed him here. He didn't understand what was wrong with this place or something because he was an outsider, so he wasn't feeling too familiar.

"None of your business," Shura responded effortlessly.

"Hey! This is my camp! Of course, it's my business!"

"I was just following you, nothing to be concerned about my presence." Shura reasoned that he was just following him, without any reason of why he was here for.

"Yeah that's definitely to be concerned about now that you're acting like a creep... Why is it you're here anyway? You're lacking food recourses?" Akira scowled, his appetite nearly vanishing once more. "No, it's more like wanting to team up with you. I'm talking about combining strength and smarts."

"Because you're all brawn, and I'm the brains," Shura explained.

"I'm not stupid, you jerk! I welcome the compliment about being strong, but I won't stand for being called a musclehead," Akira clarified. He understood Shura's point, taking the reference to brawn as a compliment due to his physical prowess, but being labeled a "musclehead" felt like an insult to his intelligence.

"Hmm... who's to say you don't have a brain the size of an acorn. I believe I'm the one with the brains here. Let's be real, you lack strategy and intelligence in your fights. You just charge in with brute force. That's hardly very prudent, is it?" Shura criticized.

"Well... You have a point, but don't underestimate me. Hit me with your best questions!" Akira challenged him to a quiz.

"Okay, here's one for you: In a battle formation with a tank in front, a fighter in the middle, and a mage at the rear, if an assassin-type warrior enters the fray, who would they target first?"

"The mage!" Akira swiftly recalled Sora's teachings. However, he felt Shura's question was too basic, and he was determined to prove him wrong about underestimating his intelligence.

"Hmm? Wow. It seems I was wrong about you. Impressive!" Shura was impressed that Akira could answer the obvious question. Though, he believed that Akira was just muscles and he proved him wrong.

"Hehe, anyway, what kind of quiz is that? That's too basic!" Akira smiled and giggled complacently after he was correct about the quiz.

"Well, it's basically a children's quiz, but I guess I've misjudged you."

"Wait? Did you think of me as a child?" Akira heard he mentioned the child's quiz and thought that Shura pointed out that Akira was a child.

"More or less, from your stubbornness, I thought your intelligence would be slightly lower than I thought. But unexpectedly, I was proven wrong. Congratulations, you have graduated!" Shura congratulated with sarcasm.

Exasperated, Akira declared, "Whatever, I'm turning in. Good night!" and settled down to watch over Akira as he slept.

"(His ring finger was melted by acid, yet it looks perfectly normal. Just like the last time he was swallowed by a giant worm. Could it be... he has advanced self-healing?)" Shura pondered, contemplating Akira's extraordinary abilities.

"Hey, can I borrow your scythe for a moment?" Shura woke Akira.

"Sure," Akira mumbled sleepily.

Struggling to lift the scythe, Shura exclaimed, "What the...?" He was taken aback by its weight but was able to hold it at last.

"Pfft, couldn't handle it, huh?" Akira chuckled.

"Tch, I suppose a muscle head like you is the only one who could lift this," Shura retorted.

"Yeah, yeah, even a weakling like you couldn't manage it," Akira fired back.

"Hmph, I'm out. Good night!" Shura grumbled, retreating to his bedroll.

"What a strange guy..." Akira muttered before drifting off to sleep.

As the first stage concluded, the next two would face stage two, with 658 examinees remaining.