The Path To Eternity

Chapter 5: The Tenth Captain

Stepping through the portal, the group found themselves in front of a military outpost, standing upon a platform before the open portal.

They were awestruck by their surroundings. The landscape before them was akin to a beautiful painting: in the far distance stood a colossal tree, the source of nourishment for the entire region. Its height extended far into the heavens, its branches spreading across the sky, enveloped by clouds gathered around its leaves.

The gigantic leaves of the tree, shrouded by swirling clouds, turned the heavens into a kaleidoscope. The clouds near the tree were a brilliant crimson, transitioning to a splendid orange further away, then to a stunning yellow before finally settling at a marvelous mixture of gold and white. Small crimson particles fell from the heavens like snow, bathing the land in a spectacular mixture of fiery light.

They were all stunned by the complex beauty of this plane. Their trance was soon broken by the voice of their instructor.

"Attention!" His voice reverberated across the clearing, drawing the attention of the other classes who had arrived before them. All the students turned to their teacher, awaiting his instructions.

"Listen well. As you all know, this program is designed to grant you sprouts real-world battle experience, helping you grow and develop as Awakened. This is the first objective of the training program. The second is to allow you to gather and accumulate resources needed for your cultivation. The third objective is to eliminate as many monsters as possible to subjugate the monster zone.

You will have five days to complete these objectives to the best of your ability. At the end of these five days, your progress will be assessed, and rewards will be given to the team that performs best in each objective. Additionally, ten percent of all your earnings will be transferred to the Academy as tribute. The Academy has given you this opportunity to change the course of your career as Awakened, so make the most of it.

I will now call out the names of each team captain. Listen carefully! Once the captains are named, they will select their team members and proceed to the armory to pick out their combat equipment before heading to their assigned monster zone." He paused, causing growing suspense among the students.

Everyone listened attentively as Sir Vincent began announcing the names of the captains.

"Captain of team one...Douglas."

"Captain of team two...Renault."

"Captain of team three...Christopher."

As Sir Vincent listed the names, everyone nodded in approval. The names he listed were their top fighters—the cream of the crop, the highest ranking in their class. No one objected to them leading the teams.

Then Sir Vincent mentioned the final captain. "Lastly, the captain of team ten...Daniel."

A deathly silence engulfed the clearing. They couldn't believe what they just heard.

The only exceptions were the captains. They knew something the others had forgotten: Keith was the tenth-ranked member of their class. With Daniel taking his rank, it wasn't surprising he would be the last captain. This was the common thought among the captains, even Keith. Daniel, though unaware, soon came to the same conclusion.

The rest of the class experienced a rush of emotions, but they weren't happy. They were livid. They didn't approve of Daniel, believing him to be a cheater. They didn't accept his victory over Keith and certainly didn't accept him as their captain.

"Sir, you can't be serious!" An uproar shattered the silence.

"Yeah! You can't appoint that cheater as a captain!" The rebellion began.