A surprise guest joins Suzuki and company at the compound. They must face the oncoming gladiator battles in order to challenge for the right to assume a position as a centurion.
Meanwhile, danger looms on the horizon as restless nations seek more dr...
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Suzuki's heart boomed like war drums before a great enemy. But, unlike most trainees who recoiled in fear and disbelief, the youth's gaze narrowed with dense killing intent. So great was his aura that the other trainees turned to him in shock when they began feeling like someone was running blades across their skin. Only James' familiar but annoying voice retained the last of Suzuki's sanity, preventing him from lashing out.
Perhaps because he sensed Suzuki's state, 'James' turned to look at Suzuki. His gaze seemed to contain the magnitudes of several realities simultaneously bombarding the youth's psyche.
Faced with the overwhelming pressure that felt like planets exploding in his brain, Suzuki gritted his teeth, refusing to back down before James' threats. He resisted the grinding force, eyes bloodshot with anger and determination. After a few seconds, blood seeped down his nose, and ten seconds later, even his ears began bleeding. However, even when it felt like his brain would explode if he refused to back down, the young man's eyes remained fixed on James' eyes, filled with innate defiance.
"Su—" Jade tried to reach for Suzuki, but Taiga held her back, shaking his head as he looked at Suzuki.
BOOM! Just when it seemed like Suzuki would collapse, a massive pulse exploded, sending the trainees scattering. The trainees' eyes widened with shock when a giant glaive appeared above Suzuki's head. Then, before anyone could react, the spiritual weapon shattered, forming several smaller glaives that streaked across the room in the blink of an eye, striking toward James' eyes.
However, just before the foremost projectile struck James, it paused before the alien's eyes, hovering mere millimetres away. James looked away from the translucent blade to Suzuki, whose hand was held out in a grasping motion. The youth had seized control at the final moment.
"Well, well, would you look at that?" James lightly teased while shutting his eyes. "Congrats on solidifying your expert realm, Suzu-kun. Most take a few months to years to take that final step."
"Shut up." Coughing, Suzuki groaned and squeezed his hand, causing the glaive to dissipate. He then leaned back on his chair and glared at James, the hostility in his eyes considerably lessened. "What the hell are you? Training us through the game, then familiarizing us with fighting aliens through the tests. Are you going to invade us? Why go through the trouble of training us then?"
Several trainees' eyes trembled as they, too, began to connect the dots. These men and women were elites capable of changing the course of history in L.N.E. They only needed a little illumination to finally realize how everything they had done so far was undoubtedly connected to Suzuki's proposed picture.
"Heh. You little bastard. You're always so perceptive on this stupid shit." James chuckled. "Yeah, you're about right. We're training you not to fix Parallel or fight some stupid interplanetary war but to combat an incoming invasion from my species. Well, it's not exactly an invasion, but more of a test."
