Midka Academy was a long-standing institution that housed many facilities to meet every need of its students. While the school's centuries-old system was constantly being improved, many changes had also been made in various areas.
For example, in the past, the school grounds were controlled with much greater meticulousness. Attempts were made to tame the entire area. But after the great wars and losses of the last century, Midka Academy discovered something.
Chaos, blood and random shit were the greatest teachers when it came to war.
So they named this area the "Hunting Zone" and the wild atmosphere was deliberately preserved.
At least, this was the story Orion pieced together from what Teacher Remy told him.
The young man at the gate saw him with the other two by his side. He spoke coldly and formally with other students but immediately addressed his trainer as "Mr. Corra".
Orion decided that 'Remy Corra' was a name that suited a proper soldier perfectly.
"Give him a Bracelet. He is the Champion. Remember his face, guys." Teacher Remy showed no warmth toward the staff, his tone shifting into that of a strict instructor.
The young official immediately rummaged through his desk and pulled out a small wooden bracelet. He handed Orion a wooden bracelet with a small teardrop stone on it.
"Hunting Inspection Bracelets were developed by Midka Academy's Alchemy Department and top-tier hunters. Normally worth 100,000 AC but it's free for you." Teacher Remy didn't show any friendliness to the staff. He talked like a proper teacher now.
"Free?" Orion asked.
"You have special privileges as the top ranker and the Champion. Please take this and use it for this time. I will tell the Alchemy Department to make a custom one for you."
Orion also learned how it worked as he put on the bracelet.
The bracelet stayed Green if there were only Tier 1 Awakened animals around. Green meant safety, at least by Academy standards. And if there was even one Tier 2 creature, the colors changed.
"But you didn't explain what a Tier 1 or Tier 2 creature is..." Orion stopped himself before asking something that would expose his ignorance.
He still had no idea about the school's system, Tiers or other important things.
Outwardly, he appeared confident. Every worker and student here treated him with respect, as if he were a monster himself, because of his clothes and student ranking.
"I wonder if I would be humiliated if I asked Teacher Remy for the names of the creatures, or what to expect?"
Thinking about the danger within his own thoughts, he tightened the bracelet.
"Is there anything else I need to know?" He liked that question. It saved him from asking ten others.
"Private bodyguards aren't normally allowed in the Hunting Zone. Please take care of yourself, just try to hunt something."
Remy patted his shoulder. "You don't need to push yourself too hard by the way. I'll be watching to see what you can do in any difficult situation."
Orion's stress level increased the moment he realized he wouldn't have a bodyguard inside. But acting as if he didn't care, he told them to open the door.
Orion had no idea how they were observing him from afar, but he chose not to ask.
Both Kalista and Remy could watch him regardless of the distance while he was inside and save him in a bad situation. Orion was the only person in the environment who didn't know the meaning of Warlords.
The door opened quickly, and Orion stepped onto a road that turned into a dirt path with many footprints. There was nothing around.
He just needed 6 Exp for the next level.
Finding the same kind of slimes he had dealt with before would be ideal.
As Orion continued to walk, he thought that gaining just one level wouldn't be too difficult. Moreover, he had come here in the early hours of the morning. A sleeping slime or two around would be very useful.
But what he didn't know was that this Hunting Zone was designed with the experience of real death in mind. It was built to train future human warriors or brave magicians.
Furthermore, the Hunting Zone was a place that at least second-year students could enter for free. First-years were only allowed in with a bracelet sold for 100,000 AC (Academy Points).
The only people with these kinds of academy points were previous years' S students.
So, Orion was in a hunting zone built with the expectation that no first-year student would enter unless they were confident in their combat skills!
Although Tier 1 monsters were considered very weak and basic in the eyes of the Academy, things were very different for Orion.
Even Seraphine V. Dumont, one of the Hell Maze exam commanders and a Royal Noble, was still considered Tier 0, despite constant praise for her mana control and rapier skills.
Orion took a deep breath. He saw or heard nothing but a few birds.
"Come on, show yourselves... Here kitty, kitty, kitty."
He chuckled nervously. "Actually, maybe calling out 'silly, silly, silly' would make more sense for slimes."
He would appreciate any animal that was small and easy to bully. Occasionally, he heard the sound of a few bushes rustling very close by, but they were all false alarms.
Realizing that this place was completely empty, Orion continued to walk deeper into the trees. He began to trust himself even more as the bracelet remained green.
For the next ten minutes, he saw birds flying in the sky a few times, but that was the extent of it.
Starting to sweat slightly, he took off the robe he was wearing and wrapped it around his waist. The morning chill had disappeared, and the sun had started to warm the surroundings. The air quickly became sticky.
Just as he was losing hope, Orion heard a loud rustling sound. When he turned his head, he couldn't understand what the creature looking at him was.
It was some kind of dog-wolf thing. It had a dog's body and a wolf's head.
Orion was sure dogs didn't have such big teeth.
"Fu*k Me!"
Orion started running not backwards, but in a direction to the west.
When Teacher Remy and Kalista mentioned there were animals here, Orion hadn't taken into account that they were in a magical world.
He was running in the exact opposite direction of where he entered the Hunting Zone. Due to panic and the growl of the animal behind him, he had completely forgotten that he couldn't actually die. Fear didn't care about logic.
Since it had been a day since he last came face-to-face with death, he was making mistakes.
Suddenly panicking was the greatest enemy of a body trying to survive. At least Orion noticed this after climbing a big tree.
He chose one of the biggest trees around. It was a giant tree with a thick trunk. Before even he could blink, he had climbed it.
He waited in despair until his heartbeats slowed down.