That morning after breakfast, the Martial Class' Instructors brought everyone to a special building located at the very center of the Martial Class Division. This building was called the House of Heroes. A place that was heavily guarded because it contained the entrances to four special domains that belonged exclusively to the Martial Class Division.
Domains were small worlds that had their own set of rules and laws. Some of these domains were filled with important resources that were useful in advancing cultivation. Others were used as training grounds to raise expert fighters, and some were used to breed rare creatures and plants that were very hard to encounter in the wilds.
One of these domains was the Enchanted Forest. This forest had been used as a training ground for the students. In some cases, it was also used for special events like the choosing of the Head Prefect that would represent their grade.
Right now, William, alongside all the freshmen who chose to participate in the Prefect Battle, stood in front of a huge Copper Gate.
"Are all of you ready?" Grent asked.
""Yes!""
"Remember, only one of you will be chosen," Grent stated. "Goodluck to all of you!"
The instructors raised the emblems pinned on their chests and activated the door. The Copper Gate slowly opened revealing a green portal at its center.
"All of you will be teleported to random places inside the Enchanted Forest," Andy explained in a carefree manner. "This will prevent you from engaging in combat right away. However, remember that you can only stay inside the domain for three days. If in three days, there are still survivors inside the domain, the person who has eliminated the greatest number of people will become the Head Prefect.
"Make no mistake, this is a battle to the death. The only way for you to eliminate someone is to kill them. Don't worry, none of you will really die. Anyone who gets eliminated will be ejected by the domain and transported back to this hall. Are there any more questions?"
William raised his hand and Andy nodded his head in acknowledgement.
"What if we kill someone who has killed many people?" William inquired. "Will we get their points, too?"
"Good question! The answer is that you will only get 'half' of the overall points that they have accumulated," Andy replied. "At the end of three days, the one with the most points will become the Head Prefect. Are there any more questions?"
A skinny boy raised his hand and Andy once again nodded his head to encourage him to ask his question.
"Are we allowed to form alliances?" the skinny boy asked. "Is it fine for us to form teams?"
"Of course." Andy nodded his head. This was not the first time this had happened in the Prefect Selection Event and the instructors had already expected this to happen this year as well. "Feel free to form teams and alliances. In the end, only one Head Prefect will be chosen."
The reason why the instructors encouraged forming teams was because Martial Classes worked well when they were in a team. This also helped them form strong bonds, which were beneficial to their growth.
Some of the students smiled, while Drake and Spencer snorted in disdain. The two believed that the strong should fight alone and not rely on external help. Only weaklings would gang up together and fight.
Because this was an individual battle, the instructors didn't allow Ella to enter the premises. They had already seen her capabilities during the second part of the exam, but what they wanted to see was William's own ability.
They wanted to know if this boy, who had fought tooth and nail with the Ruler of the Forest, was just as impressive without his animal companion.
"All of you, enter the portal," Grent ordered. "May the odds be in your favor!"
One by one, the students entered the portal. All of them had determined expressions on their faces. William was the last to enter and all eyes were watching his every move.
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Meanwhile, outside the Domain…
Those who didn't want to participate were gathered just outside the building where several viewing crystals were enshrined. With these crystals, they would be able to watch the battle unfold in real time.
Ella and Kenneth were standing in front of one of these viewing crystals. These crystals allowed someone to view all the candidates that had entered the Enchanted Forest. Naturally, it also had the option to allow the viewer to choose only one candidate to spectate.
As William entered the portal, his image appeared on the viewing crystal. Ella bleated softly as if to cheer for William and wish him luck. Kenneth, on the other hand, was looking at William with a serious expression.
'Please show me the extent of your true power,' Kenneth thought. 'I want to know if you are worthy of that person's bloodline. Please, don't disappoint me, William.'
----
When William opened his eyes, he found himself inside a lush forest teeming with life. The sounds of birds singing, the roars of beasts, and even the subtle noise of the insects reached his ears. For some reason, it made William feel a little homesick.
This place reminded him of the forest near Lont. Although the Fauna and Flora were different, it still reminded him of home.
'I wonder how Gramps and the rest are doing?' William thought as he immersed himself in the sounds of the forest. 'Does Eve think of me as well?'
Suddenly, he heard a very subtle buzz in the air. William chuckled internally as he exaggeratedly jumped backwards. As he did so, he saw two arrows flying in his direction. The arrows harmlessly pierced the tree beside William with a thud, which reminded the boy that he was participating in a Battle Royale and not a field trip.
As an archer, who had been trained by two experts in Lont, it was very easy for him to lock onto his attacker's position. However, he didn't make any move to charge in that direction. Instead, he circled away and left the area.
Although the instructors had said that they would be teleported to random places to prevent immediate combat, it was very different when dealing with archers. They had the ability to attack from great distances, and only those with keen senses would be able to sense their sneak attacks.
After gaining sufficient distance from his attacker, William decided to find an elevated place where he could observe his surroundings. However, before he could do that, two wild boars came charging towards him from fifty meters away.
It seemed that William had unknowingly stumbled into their territory and they had taken it as an act of aggression.
William didn't want to fight with the two boars, because there might be other students around who might take advantage of the battle. Even though he was not afraid of dealing with them, he didn't want those who were watching him to know his abilities.
As William was about to make a run for it, two boys appeared in front of him wielding swords and spears. Clearly, they intended to prevent him from escaping.
With two boars behind his back, and two boys blocking his path, William decided to play a trick on the students who thought that he was easy prey.
The red-headed boy waited until the two wild boars were only a few meters behind him before he activated his movement technique, Heavenly Phantasm.
William easily passed through the two boys like a phantom and escaped. Before the two boys could even react, the wild boars were already in front of them. Since the two boars had lost their original target, they shifted their attention on the two boys that were wielding weapons in their territory.