It had been a few seconds, and still, the group remained quiet.

  ‘Elys, please do your thing.’

  And just like Rain was hoping for, Elys stepped forward toward the rest of the group.

  “Hey, everyone! Uhm, since we are going to be stuck together for some time, why don’t we introduce ourselves? My name is Elys, and this bag of joy next to me is Rain. We are both from the same area.”

  Elys was a social butterfly, and so, with some words and a warm smile, Rain observed how the rest of the group instantly changed their mood. A tanned-skinned girl walked up toward Elys and stretched out her hand.

  “You’re right! My name is Naomi, and the one behind me is my twin brother, Lance. It’s nice to meet you all. We are from the Lower Gardens.”

  The Lower Gardens, contrary to its name, were not a lower place at all. Even someone like Rain had heard of them. While the Upper Gardens were a place for the extremely fortunate, it seemed as if the siblings came from a very good family.

  Lance stood behind his sister and gave a small nod toward the group. At one look, one could tell they were siblings; both had similar tanned skin, dark hair, delicate features, and similar clothing. While Naomi wore a light blue skirt, Lance chose baggy pants, and both topped it off with a dark tracksuit jacket.

  They exchanged a quick handshake before the very tall individual stepped up next to Naomi.

  “Hello, I’m Yuol. It’s nice to meet you all. I’m from Greyton.”

  With a deep voice and a body unusual for a teenager, he would definitely stand out in the camp. Yuol stood at around two meters, his muscles almost seeming equally as broad. He had a short brown buzzcut shaped like a triangle on his forehead, a wide face, and a scar on his lower lip. Needless to say… Rain thought he looked quite mean.

  ‘Definitely don’t want to get on his bad side…’

  Yuol had simpler clothes, wearing a plain t-shirt and jeans. Rain did not know Greyton; it seemed like one of the many more common neighborhoods. Coming up for a handshake with Rain and the others, Yuol felt as if he could crush a body with his bare hands.

  “Hi, uhm, I’m Rina. I also come from Greyton.”

  Elys interjected.

  “Ah, so you know each other?”

  “Oh no, not at all. Mere coincidence.”

  She shyly struck out her hand toward everyone and pulled back to her prior spot quite quickly. She seemed far less confident than Naomi. Being on the shorter side, she wore a plain beige dress, letting her long red hair flow.

  The group turned toward their last member, expecting his introduction. He looked toward the ground and spoke quietly.

  “H-Hello… my name is Jun. I’m also from the slums… b-but not from their area and… I guess I’m here to survive…”

  Jun stood with Rina as the shortest of the group, being at least a head shorter than Naomi. He was wearing a simple, plain t-shirt and worn-out jeans.

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  The group stared at him, chuckling, before Naomi stepped forward and stretched her hand out toward him.

  “We all want that, don’t we? So let’s work hard and make it happen.”

  Jun looked up for the first time and, after taking a deep breath, shook her hand.

  “Yeah. L-Let’s do it!”

  With the mood lightened, they decided to explore their dormitory room. Rain sat down on his new bed. It was a simple bed, but still, it felt a lot better than his own lumpy mattress. The lounge area seemed like a comfortable place to relax after training. The multiple couches and bean bags looked awfully tempting, and a games console and TV added to that comfort. On the far end of the room, a hallway split two bathrooms into male and female.

  Elys, being himself, had already somehow dropped into conversation with Yuol while lying on the bean bags.

  “Should we… tell each other our Reflections? Or keep it a surprise?”

  From the other side of the room, Naomi was standing next to her bed, unpacking, and said:

  “What do you mean? Officer Trant will be back shortly to take us to the training hall… won’t we find out there?”

  “Oh, you’re right. I forgot about that.”

  Lying on his bed, Rain was quite pleased with the situation at hand. His group seemed nice enough, the accommodations were better than he had ever had, and he would even receive free Blessed meals to improve his physique rapidly. He had been given all the tools needed to succeed, but would it be enough? One month was far from enough time to engrave his body with combat techniques. He would learn the basics at most, which, in the Mirror, depending on his opponent, might not be enough.

  He still had many questions left unanswered. While his vision showed him dying at the hands of a forest guardian, he didn’t know if it would stay that way. Perhaps, just by knowing the outcome, his future had already been changed, and so, he might die instantly.

  ‘Maybe I can ask one of the instructors what the vision is about; surely there must have been others who experienced the same thing.’

  Looking up to Naomi and Lance, he asked them a question.

  “You guys have had weapon training, right?”

  Naomi looked toward Rain with her deep blue eyes.

  “Yeah, for some time now. Why do you ask?”

  She seemed genuinely puzzled for a moment before seemingly remembering Rain’s origin and the fact that he had probably never even held a weapon before.

  “I’m wondering what weapon I should focus on learning this month. It’s just not enough time to experiment with many different ones. Which one do you think would be the easiest to use?”

  Interested in the question, Lance looked Rain up and down before speaking in a calm voice.

  “Stand up for me.”

  Complying with his request, he stood up from his bed facing Lance.

  “You’re tall, and while your physique is weak, that will hopefully improve. I suggest you use a spear. It is far easier to use and learn than a blade, and with more reach… gives you a defensive advantage. Pair that with a shield, and you should do well, provided you learn how to use it.

  “It’s not my main weapon, but I’ve had training in it. Just let me know if you need any help.”

  “T-Thanks, I’ll do that.”

  Lance turned back around and continued unpacking his luggage. Rain stood there, confused for a second before sitting back down on his bed. He had mainly been asking Naomi, as she seemed like the more talkative of the two, so he hadn’t expected Lance to jump in.

  “Lance is very into swordsmanship, so if any of you have some interest in that, he’ll open up to you like a puppy.”

  Giving him a mocking look, Lance rolled his eyes.

  “Shut up…”

  Hearing steps from outside, the double doors opened swiftly, and Officer Trant stepped inside.

  “Attention, everyone! I gave you some time to settle in and get to know each other. We will now be going toward the training area for your assessment, so form a line and follow me.”

  The time had come to reveal his Reflection.