Ludwig sat back down, his posture relaxed but his eyes sharp as they scanned the room. The tension was palpable, the air thick with uncertainty and fear. The remaining students were a mix of confusion and desperation, their eyes darting between each other and the screen above, where the numbers taunted them.
Bron seemed to understand Ludwig’s reasoning for distancing himself from the rest of the group. Without a word, he walked away and leaned against a nearby wall, his arms crossed and his expression unreadable.
Minerva, however, moved closer to Ludwig, sitting down beside him on the cold stone floor. Her eyes followed the chaos unfolding in the room, her expression a mix of curiosity and concern.
“L-ludwig,” one of the students stammered, stepping forward. “Are you not going to help us?”
Ludwig paused, his gaze shifting to the student. “Why should I?” he replied, his tone calm but firm.
The student hesitated, his face flushing with frustration. “You look smart enough and already figured out three of the fake ones…”
“Five,” Ludwig corrected, his voice cutting through the tension like a blade. “But go on.”
“So… I can assume that you know…” the student began, his voice trailing off.
“Let me stop you there,” Ludwig interrupted, his tone sharp. “When you assume, you make an ass out of U and Me. I only figured out the way to solve my and the people I know’s clone problems. I don’t know any of you guys, so how can I help? Don’t put your faith into others. You’ll be led to death’s door without knowing it.”
The student’s face twisted in anger. “You just don’t want to help! Fine!”
“Don’t be a dumbass,” Bron snapped, his voice dripping with disdain. “Even if he knows, it serves him nothing to help you. He gains nothing and only makes one more competitor for himself. Do your own investigation, lazy slobs.”
“You’re not one to talk!” the student shot back, his voice rising. “You also were helped by him!”
Bron’s nose curled in disgust. “I didn’t need it. In case you didn’t notice, I’m strong enough to kill my own clone without assistance.”
“That’s just because it was caught off-guard!” the student yelled, his frustration boiling over. He placed his hand on his sword pommel and was about to show the student the reality of things.
“Bron,” Minerva said, her voice calm but firm. “Don’t fall to his provocations. If you mess up and attack the real student, you’ll be eliminated even though you passed. Remember the rules.”
Bron sighed, leaning back against the wall. “Fine. But if he gets close to me, I’ll rip his head off.”
Just as Bron finished speaking, two other students began fighting. It was a clone and a real person, but after a flurry of spells, one of the attacks landed directly on the chest of what could only be the real student.
A protective bubble immediately manifested around the student, lifting them into the air and disappearing through the ceiling. The remaining clone stepped back, a sly smile spreading across its face. Without warning, it slammed a spell into the ground, creating a thick smoke screen that filled the room.
The students coughed and stumbled, their vision obscured. When the smoke cleared, they realized that one of the students now had two clones instead of one.
“Oh, they’re smart. They’re adapting,” Ludwig said, his tone almost admiring.
The green number on the screen dropped by one, while the red numbers remained the same.
“Looks like this is going to get more and more interesting,” Ludwig said, his lips curling into a smirk.
The students quickly realized the danger they were in. The clones were already wary of the fact that killing the real student would make them targets, so they used the smoke to hide among the group.
“Who is the real one?” one of the students demanded, pointing a staff at the nerdy-looking guy who now had two clones.
“Wait, wait!” all three of them said in unison.
“I’m the real one!” they replied simultaneously.
“Quite a cruel test,” Ludwig said, his smile widening. “Professor Olim must be having a lot of fun watching this.”
“I wouldn’t be worrying about the guy that has two clones,” Minerva said, her voice cutting through the tension.
“What do you mean?” another student asked, his tone frantic. “This guy has two clones! He could further hide if he gets another. We need to kill the clones first!”
“That’s what the doppelgängers want,” Minerva replied, her voice calm but firm. “They want you to mess up. You’re already thinking of eliminating someone who is a survivor and has two doppelgängers. No matter what you do, you’ll be eliminated if you touch him.”
“Then what should we do?” another student asked, his voice tinged with desperation.
Minerva shrugged. “I don’t really know, but it’s not my problem.”
“It will be your problem once we’re all eliminated and only the doppelgängers are left. How would you deal with them?” the student shot back.
“That’s easy to handle,” Ludwig said, standing up. “Well, I guess it won’t serve us much to just watch you guys get eliminated one after the other. I have a way for you all to have a chance at surviving this without,” he pointed at the chaos, “this shit happening.”
“And what’s that?” the nerdy-looking guy asked, his voice trembling.
“Simple,” Ludwig said, his tone calm but commanding. “Battle.”
“That just happened, and look at what occurred,” another student said, his voice filled with frustration.
“That’s because it happened unsupervised,” Ludwig replied. “The fight broke out with us not paying attention. But if order is presented when there is chaos, all problems will be solved.”
“So what’s your suggestion?” Bron asked, his tone skeptical but curious.
“Simple,” Ludwig said, his voice steady. “Each student will go to one side. I don’t care if you’re a clone or a real student. One of you will go to the left, the other to the right. Splitting the students will lessen the interactions between you guys.”
“You do know that a doppelgänger can try and assassinate a student,” Bron pointed out. “If one of the clones ends up in the group with students, they can take them out.”
“I know,” Ludwig said, his tone calm. “That’s why we’ll have everyone’s hands bound.”
“I don’t consent to that!” another student shouted, his voice filled with panic.
“Then that means you’re a doppelgänger,” Ludwig said, his tone cold.
“No! If I were to be bound, that means you guys can eliminate me, and I’ll have no way to fend for myself!” the student protested.
“Well, you’re gonna have to trust us,” Ludwig said, his smile widening. “Otherwise, I’ll consider you as a doppelgänger and help your other copy kill you. If you end up being real, then,” he shrugged, “I lose nothing, since I already cleared. Then I’ll kill the clone afterward since it won’t have a surviving student condition.”
The student opened and closed his mouth, but he couldn’t argue further.
Soon, all the students were bound using the strings of their shoes. They were then placed separately on two sections of the room, with Bron and Minerva sitting in front of them, their eyes sharp and watchful.
“Like this?” Minerva asked, her tone calm.
“Yes,” Ludwig replied. “If anyone attempts to attack another student, point them out immediately.”
“What’s that going to serve?” Bron asked, his tone skeptical.
“If we locate the aggressor, we’ll stop him and put him in the arena,” Ludwig explained. “Then, we’ll make the other person kill him. A student will not try to attack another in risk of failing, but a doppelgänger doesn’t have that issue. Just make sure no one dies.”
Ludwig stood in the center of the room, his presence commanding. “Now, I’ll pick two students. You guys should remove their cuffs, and send them here. The moment a real student wins, they’ll go there,” he pointed behind him, “and if a fake student wins, I’ll personally eliminate them.”
He paused, his eyes scanning the room. “Since they won’t have the time to take the appearance of another person. So, I hope we’re all ready?”
Ludwig pointed at one student, his tone calm but firm. “Yes,” he smiled, “One by one, we’ll weed you out. And when the last of you fall, I want you to remember this—” Ludwig’s gaze darkened. “You were never going to win. You were just here to die.”