NOVEL NEXT Book 2: Chapter 42
Chapter 42.
The meeting was in front of the Red Brick Warehouse, and the regular members of the Chariot came out from the doorway of the warehouse.
The participants could also see Godo, Numata, and Ushiro, and their stately walk made the participants involuntarily shout "Oh!"
"Wow, is that Godo-san?"
"Hey, isn't that Numata-sama!"
"I can tell just by looking through that if they are regular members of Chariot. That's very exciting."
The participants, perhaps seeing the chariot explorers in the flesh for the first time, expressed their impressions as they went along.
All of them were full of respect for Chariot, and a few, but not all, of the participants were bullish, saying, "They don't deserve this much."
At that moment, Godo looked at Tenji and smiled gently.
"My uncle's looking at you, Tenji."
"Yes, I know. I knew that Godo-san was so kind as to give me a glance. I honestly long to be an adult like him."
"I understand why you admire him, but I'm afraid you're going to have to surpass him," he said.
"It bothers me when people expect so much of me."
Rui had a tendency to be somewhat dreamy about Tenji.
Then the Commander of the Chariot picked up the microphone connected to the speaker and coughed.
Seeing this, the participants quickly shut their mouths and began to listen to the Commander's voice.
"Well gathered, promising future explorers. I know a few of you have seen me in the interview room, but once again. I am Kirie Kujo, founder of the guild [Chariot]. Everyone calls me Commander Kujo or Sister Kiriei. You can call me the former."
The real leader of the major guild [Chariot], and one of its founding members, was Kiriei Kujo.
She was younger than expected, having just turned 29 last month.
Her brown hair was loosely and softly curled, and her bangs were elegantly brushed back, giving her the air of a strong woman. She has a beautiful face and is so charismatic and popular with women that she even works as a model for a magazine.
Her height was in the low 170's, which was very tall for a woman.
She looks around slowly as if she were assessing the faces of the participants.
She then looked at some of the participants with very amused eyes.
"This year seems to have a good mix of participants. Is it thanks to Godo-san?"
Kujo changed the subject to Godo as if she was teasing him.
Godo said, "Do not say that," and flapped his hands with a smile.
"Congratulations to all of you who have made it this far. This year we received more than three times as many applications as the previous, and you all should be proud of the fact that you've made it this far. You all have good eyes, and it's even better that you've got a fighting spirit burning deep in your eyes. However, please consider that this is the real selection test. If you make it to the end, you'll be one of. The Heroes of Japan"
Participants were undeniably motivated by her words.
'If I could pass this test, I could become a member of the famous Chariot.'
Each of them had the same dream, and the Chariot Guild was the perfect stage to complete that dream.
"As I have said in previous years, we have never set a limit on the number of successful applicants."
Everyone knew that.
The entrance test for the major guilds was like a narrow gate. This year only, the ratio was about 3000 times higher. Unlike ordinary university or high school tests, these were real geniuses chosen from 3,000 talented people all over Japan.
The participants swallowed the tense air as if they had made up their minds to face the reality as Commander Kujo once again told them.
"The test from here on out will be the same as every year, the fifth-grade sub-dungeon to see how strong you are. Some of you may have already obtained a calling, but they will be temporarily sealed with the items we have prepared for you. Show me your actual earthly power, not borrowed power."
Chariot's entrance test was also very famous for its unusual test, "sealing the calling."
Although it does not seal the entire process from beginning to end, it is still certainly the only selection method among the top 10 guilds. That was why there were so many participants from the general public.
[Can I seal my calling with that item too, that would be good information.]
Tenji thought about that inwardly.
The grade "special grade" was different from the specials of this world. It is distorted to a level that even the skills of Leon, a zero-grade explorer, cannot estimate.
If there was an item that could seal this calling, Tenji would love to know about it.
"Well, here we go. There are a total of 104 participants today, but be prepared for the number to drop below half within a few hours. Those who pass today's test will take the next and final test. This is, so to speak, a prelude to the final test. So, get ready for it."
'What exactly will the test be?'
Almost all the participants were thinking the same thing.
Chariot's is well known, but the details of the test have not been made public. It is said that the participants are required to sign a contract that forbids them from disclosing any information about the test to others.
So, the participants here were going into this with no way to prepare for what kind of test they had to take.
"From here, we will officially move on to the test. As in previous years, the contents of the tests are to be kept private by contract. Those who cannot agree to this may withdraw on their own accord. Now, right away... bring it in."
"Okay."
Tenji couldn't help but relax when he saw Ushiro, whom he hadn't seen in a long time.
Ushiro is a well-established figure in Chariot as a character who gets tossed around a lot, and this test setting didn't change that, as he learned.
When instructed by Kujo, Ushiro impatiently carried out one large screen from inside the building.
There were 104 names and groupings displayed. Everyone stepped forward a few steps to look for their names.
"We divided the 104 participants into 26 groups in advance. We've tried to avoid having people who are close to each other or from the same school as much as possible. We'll start the test in the order that the names are called, until then, you can start adjusting as you like. Now, you guys have work to do, so start as per our coordination."
At Kujo's words, the regular members of the Chariot, who were lined up side by side, began to move.
Some were running to the gates of the sub-dungeon, some were adjusting items for rationing, and some were staring at other participants as if assessing them.
The participants saw this and knew that the test had really begun, and they began to be careful. There were people doing mental training, stretching, yoga, reviewing swords, and so on.
With each and every action, there is an air of being judged by a chariot member somewhere.
"Now, we'll start with the first group."
A few minutes later, Kujo was speaking again with a microphone in her hand.
Seeing this, everyone gulped and strengthened their hands while gripping their weapons.
"Riko Hayashi, Soma Keiji, Aida Kousuke, Aika Asagiri, all four, please enter the tent in front of the gate. Participate in this test only if you want to."
Kujo told them that much and put the microphone down again.
Then she sat down elegantly on a chair and started eating Hawaiian shaved ice under a parasol. By the way, this shaved ice was brought from somewhere by Ushiro.
"Ah, it seems to be me. I'm off then."
"Go for it."
"Asagiri-san! Good luck!"
Aika called out to them, looking a little nervous, and immediately walked towards the sub-dungeon gate that appeared along the coast.
The gate was about five meters tall, and in front of it were a number of tents that Chariot had built.
After about five minutes, Kujo picked up the microphone again.
The next group, I call your names. Hikaru Watanabe, Rein Oono, Rui Inagaki, Namie Yuki. The above four should enter the tent as well!
"Oh, it's me."
"Good luck."
Rui didn't look surprised to hear his name called and headed towards the tent, answering Tenji's cheer with one hand.
His posture was imposing and showed no signs of nervousness.
Tenji was still standing after some time.
Tenji waited impatiently for his turn to go, looking over at the participants who were being called one after the other. Almost everyone had been called and there were only four of them left.
Already nearly an hour had passed since the first people had been called, and still not a single person had reappeared in this plaza.
"Now, for the last time. Rikka Tachibana, Kusatsu Gouta, Mizue Katsunari, and Tenji Amagi, these four, please enter the tent!"
In the last 26th group, Tenji's name was finally called.