The bustling atmosphere in the cafeteria continued. As time passed, the laughter dwindled. It was evident as the cadets left the room one by one.
All except for the group at the corner table near the wall. Cain sat a little distance away from the blue-haired girl beside him. Peter, who was sitting in front of him, was biting his tongue, not uttering a single word since Chloe appeared.
As for Chloe herself, she was busy chatting with Louise and leaving some important tips for the shy girl.
"I understand now, thank you very much, Senior Chloe."
"Don't mention it. I also got help from my former seniors like that."
While the two were smiling together. The other two members were staring into the distance, detached from the world due to their slow recovery.
"Oh yeah, I heard you guys will get a mission to explore outside the walls, right?"
Chloe slid her chair closer to Cain. Her aggressive nature made Cain accidentally squeeze the jelly pack in his hand. His mouth was filled with a bouncy texture, followed by a slightly bitter aftertaste that lingered on his tongue.
The girl supported her chin with the hand that rested on the table. Her blue eyes narrowed, radiating a mischievous aura that coiled around Cain's consciousness and made him swallow the food in his mouth.
"News sure travels fast here."
"Well, not really, I just have an acquaintance who was on the expedition team yesterday. He says, "Their job was to clear the area around the site."
Cain nearly opened his mouth as he was interested in the term 'site' that came out of Chloe's mouth. But he closed his eyes, twisting the cap from another chocolate-flavored jelly pack.
"Do you like sweet food, Cain?"
Without any warning, Chloe slid her chair closer until her shoulder and Cain's were almost touching. Her beautiful face leaned to the side, trying to peek at the flat expression of the boy.
The gray-haired boy shook his head. He shifted his attention to the food in his hand.
"Not really. I'm not picky about food, that's all."
"Hmm, is that so?"
Hearing Cain's evasive answer, Chloe raised the corner of her lips wide, beaming in glee.
Although he looked indifferent and calm on the outside, Cain was on edge, his expression stiff, as his heartbeat accelerated. The girl's distinct scent tickled his nose, almost shattering his calm persona.
From the start, he drew a blank line about Chloe beside him. Cain had only chatted with her once, briefly, and there was no redeeming quality or connection that made the girl's behavior so aggressive toward him.
One thing that came to Cain's mind was that he accidentally made Senior Luna angry. He clearly remembered Chloe's expression at that time. She was surprised, tinged with excitement, like a child receiving a new toy.
No matter what, Chloe's attitude was quite disturbing to Cain's teenage hormones.
'What does this girl want?'
Cain, who was about to eat the jelly, had to stop midway when he heard a 'beep' notification sound coming from Chloe's smartwatch.
The girl immediately checked the screen on her watch, then let out a soft sigh when she saw the notification about her upcoming training schedule.
"Huff, time flies so fast."
Chloe stood up, pushing the chair out from under her with a 'screech'. She glanced at her little brother, who gave her a dry smile, then turned to Cain, waving her hand.
"See you tomorrow, Cain and all of you. Peter, make sure you don't bother Cain and his friend too much, okay."
She parted her pink lips, showing a beautiful, thin smile that didn't reach her eyes, which turned sharp.
Peter nodded furiously. Cain gulped as he was afraid the blue-haired boy's head would come off his neck.
"Y-Yes."
"Good."
Chloe bid her farewell as Cain, Peter, and Louise watched her leave, and the atmosphere at their table quieted again.
The three of them let out a long sigh, plus the two boys who stared at each other. Peter gave Cain a resigned smile.
"Sorry, you see. My big sis tend to get closer to someone she found interesting."
Seeing Peter's relaxed guard. Cain nodded and immediately, before he slurped his jelly.
"You seem to have trouble dealing with her behavior."
"Ahaha."
Peter laughed softly while scratching his head. Louise, as usual, chose to remain silent and shifted her attention to the red-haired girl beside her, who had her forehead pressed to the table. It seemed Rika had no intention of eating the jelly she had taken.
"Rika, you have to eat at least one pack."
"...Impossible."
Rika's voice was low, like a lazy person who spent the rest of her life watching a monitor screen in a dark room.
"Don't be like that, here I'll open one for you."
"...Thanks, I'll take it."
"Thank goodness!"
Cain shifted his gaze to the side and saw Abel sitting, leaning against the chair. His face stared at the high, white ceiling.
'It seems they still need time to get out of their exhaustion.'
The gray-haired boy stood up from his chair. His action immediately drew the four's attention, then Louise opened her mouth.
"C-Cain, I think we should wait a bit longer."
"No, I just want to get more jelly."
"Ah, I see."
Louise nodded, feeling embarrassed as a faint blush appeared on her white cheeks. She scratched her cheek, averting her gaze sideways.
Cain dragged his heavy feet and stood before the android guarding the cafeteria counter.
{Please, you are free to choose the various flavors we provide.}
He ignored it. His eyes stopped at the vanilla-flavored jelly pack.
'If I remember correctly, Senior Luna had this flavor at that time.'
The boy took one pack of vanilla and coffee flavor, in case the vanilla jelly was too sweet for his taste.
"I'll take these two."
…
Time flew by. The five cadets, who had recovered from their intense training, were walking down the straight corridor leading to the arena.
Their small steps echoed in the empty place. Their expressions were stiff, filled with determination to prepare themselves because the test they would face was not something to be underestimated.
Cain, who led the pack, peeked over his left shoulder to see Abel and Rika's condition.
'They are still exhausted, although not as bad as earlier.'
Soon after, they stopped in front of the iron door, which scanned their faces using the sensor installed above it. When the red glow from the lens turned green, the door hissed and slid open, paving the way for them to enter.
Spread out in front of them was a large, round area. Every side and floor was covered in reinforced steel that could withstand significant impact. The air around them was thick with tension; it gripped the cadets' instincts to clench their fists tight.
"Thank you for coming, cadets."
General Dosh spoke; his female assistant stood beside him. Behind him, a long rectangular table was filled with lots of equipment.
"Come closer."
Cain strolled closer, followed by the other four, who swallowed hard. His gaze couldn't leave the neatly arranged weapons, giving them a deadly, aesthetic impression.
General Dosh stepped out to the side. His voice was soft yet boomed like a thunderclap in the empty space.
"In front of you, I have prepared all the equipment you might need later, including food."
The cadets' attention shifted to a metal box. It was covered with lightweight metal.
"Take the weapon that suits your path, and I want you to keep it until further notice."
Cain blinked in surprise and turned to the man. He wrinkled his eyebrows, not quite understanding what Dosh meant. Not only him, but the other four members also exchanged glances because of the ambiguous statement.
'Until further notice? You mean the exam was still later in the future?'
General Dosh turned away from the cadets and nodded to his assistant, who immediately operated the terminal in her hand.
Soon after, Cain's wrist trembled, buzzing with a 'beep' tone that crept into his ear. He raised his hand and saw a document displayed on the tiny monitor, probably detailing the mission they would be tasked with.
After seeing the cadets focused on their hands, General Dosh cleared his throat to pull everyone's attention.
"After you take your equipment, read the file and try to discuss it as a team."
The cadet's pupil shrank. After a brief silence, Dosh continued.
"For the next few days, you will be freed from training. So use that time as best as possible to prepare yourselves, understand?"
Cain and the other four placed their hands on their left chest and answered simultaneously.
"As you command!"
General Dosh nodded and roared his instruction.
"Good, now take your respective weapon and return to the dormitory for today."
The five of them stared at each other and shook their heads vertically. Cain scanned the equipment until he found a katana with a red hilt, a golden guard, and a large black sheath made from lightweight metal.
His fingertips froze, shivering as he traced the rough surface of the katana sheath.
'Finally, I'll have a chance to set foot on that barren land.'