The Doppelganger Test
Imperial Capital Zone 1, Great Council headquarters.
Beneath the silver spire stretched a massive central plaza of overwhelming scale.
On one side, warriors clad in heavy armor trained so fiercely it seemed the ground might cave in. On the opposite side, mages were engrossed in experiments, weaving flames and ice through the air.
Every explosion made the ground rumble, and every shout sent birds fluttering up from the rooftops.
In the midst of it all, hundreds of applicants from across the nation—gathered for the enlistment test—stood frozen in tense anticipation.
...Can I survive in a place like this?
I swallowed dryly. The path to becoming a wealthy NEET was long and arduous. My goal was simple: eventually buy a small, cozy house somewhere in the Imperial Capital and live a normal life among ordinary people with Sariya sis and Lannancy sis.
I'd even grown somewhat close to Ronan and Reina. They were oddballs, but they didn't seem like bad people.
But money—that harsh wall of reality—loomed impossibly high. I was trembling over the cost of fixing the front door, after all.
Base pay: 200 gold. Performance bonus: 1,000 gold.
Tempted by those words, I'd come all this way, but now my legs were shaking.
This would be my first real job. Common enough for someone my age, but the workplace I'd chosen was probably the weirdest among my peers.
To live among people, I had to paradoxically join an organization that hunted yokai.
What would my parents say if they knew?
Would they be proud of the runaway kid who only ate veggies and tormented them, now becoming a proper civil servant in the Imperial Capital? Or would they give me a good whack for running away?
Probably the latter.
The enlistment exam was held inside a massive dome-shaped building next to the training grounds, with applicants entering one by one.
In front of the building, including me, the applicants sat in a line, waiting our turns. Every one of them was older and bulkier than me.
I'm the only kid here.
Clunk.
The building door opened, and the first applicant emerged.
He was a swordsman with a blade at his waist. From the murmurs, he was a renowned fixer from the east—a Sword Expert just below Swordmaster level. Word was he'd once beaten a troll single-handedly.
Everyone expected him to pass.
"Hoo..." "What a mess."
The first applicant's condition was poor. His clothes were torn in places, his face covered in wounds.
Above all, his expression was grim. He'd failed.
The second was the same. Then the third.
Thorough soundproofing magic prevented us from knowing what happened inside, but the emerging applicants looked rough.
The other applicants' faces grew sterner as they watched.
"Rumors were true—this year's test is tougher than usual."
"With ManShinJeon stirring up trouble everywhere lately, they're short on field agents."
"So they ramped up the difficulty? Shouldn't they make it easier to recruit?"
"Opposite. In a crisis, you pick the proven ones. Cleaning up after idiots who die stupidly is work too."
Their conversation drifted to my ears.
Idiots who die stupidly.
Those words stuck with me.
"Next."
My turn.
I stood and walked the corridor toward the building. With each step, sweat seeped from my clenched fists. A faint breathing came from inside my clothes. Sariya sis.
If sis were awake, it'd be less scary.
I hesitated on waking her.
But...
I need to build the habit of handling things with my own strength, or I'll always rely on her.
Frightening as it was, just knowing sis was with me was immense comfort.
I stood before the heavy iron door at the corridor's end.
Whoosh.
I exhaled deeply and opened it.
"...?"
A man stood inside the room.
This guy.
He was the applicant from right before me—burly build, dazed expression.
Why's a failure standing here?
The moment our eyes met, curiosity turning to recognition...
...Ah.
A smile crept unbidden across my face.
I get it.
The subtle ripple beneath his skin. The wrinkles in his clothes moving like an extension of his body. And above all, the familiar feel.
For 14 years, staring into mirrors at my parents: that black liquid mass.
Doppelganger.
My heart raced with joy. First time meeting one of my parents' kin.
His form blurred, as if shifting into me.
But...
"...!"
The transformation halted midway.
His body flinched, snapping back to its prior shape.
He forced his creaking jaw open.
"It's you... the human... cherished by the Lords..."
An awkward voice, like someone unused to speech piecing words together. His throat bobbed unnaturally large.
He recognizes me?
From what my parents said, yokai had their own society of sorts.
Yokai pursued primal desires: survival and predation first, negative emotions secondary.
Among solitary yokai, the weak gathered around the strong. Same kind formed packs; different kinds, swarms.
My parents had been in a pack but split off to raise me.
Regular doppelgangers were too dumb to help my emotional growth, they said.
Were my parents helpful, then?
Anyway, a doppelganger knowing about me wasn't odd.
I dropped my guard and greeted lightly.
"Nice to meet you."
The test: survive 10 minutes.
I eyed him. No malice. Not even the usual sticky killing intent.
Just a pitiful being trapped here.
Want to help, but taking him out? Who knows what I'd hear.
Thud.
My legs ached from standing, so I plopped onto the floor.
"How'd you end up here?"
He slowly worked his mouth.
"Lords'... command... entered Imperial Capital... got caught..."
Caught because of my parents.
And now, as you see, a Council tool for tests.
...Feels bad.
Guilt pricked me—he'd suffered for my parents' reckless request.
Nothing I could do, so I passed the time in silence.
He didn't attack. Just stood gazing down at me on the floor.
The hourglass signaling test end was nearly empty.
"By the way."
I looked up at him.
"How are my parents?"
His throat bobbed hugely. He squeezed out each syllable.
"The Lords... are furious..."
My heart sank.
"...What?"
He pointed at me. Twisted finger aimed right at my forehead.
"The Lords... seek you..."
Parents hunting a runaway son. Normally from worry, but...
...Knew they'd react like this.
Our parents' anger was on another level. They'd flip the yard upside down.
If they find out where I am, the city's done for.
Unease crept up.
"Do they know I'm here?"
I asked desperately. He paused, then spoke.
"Beware... mirrors..."
Mirrors?
"We... see through... mirrors."
Good—they don't know I'm here yet.
Ding.
The bell rang: time up.
"Last thing... how'd you know they were looking for me?"
Was there a tell? If so, I needed to watch out.
"Can't... transform... into you... Don't know why..."
With that, he fell silent. He stared at me lingeringly, then retreated to a corner.
Beware mirrors...
The hand mirror from home surfaced in my mind. The one my parents gave me for emergencies.
Through that?
Thoughts spiraled, but it was still test time. I'd ponder later. I opened the iron door and stepped out.
The waiting applicants' gazes snapped to me.
Ah.
I read their eyes: He must've forfeited. No way a scrawny kid lasted 10 full minutes.
Then.
Boom!
Something crashed into the training grounds like a meteor.
M-Meteorite?
No, closer look...
Smoke cleared instantly, revealing a figure.
White mustache, sharp eyes.
His presence alone made my body shrink instinctively.
"Th-That's!"
Someone pointed at the badge on his chest.
"Golden eye badge...!" "Heart's Eye Squad Leader!" "Merciless Sword Gallahal!"
Squad Leader—Ronan and Reina's boss.
Meaning this old man was a massive bigshot powerhouse.
...Why's he here suddenly?
I shrank back, glancing around.
Because I slacked off chatting with the doppelganger?
But I couldn't sprinkle salt on my parents' acquaintance.
Didn't even bring any, not knowing the test.
Gallahal approached, scanning me top to bottom, then snorted.
"Hmph, terrible frame."
"Eh."
Never exercised once, after all.
So, failed?
Disappointing, but unavoidable.
Look for other jobs.
"Don't neglect training. You're in. Proceed to the second test site."
Gallahal said flatly.
"......"
"Pardon?"
Silence fell.
"...Passed?" "He said passed?" "That kid who doesn't even look of age?"
Murmurs spread; someone shot to their feet.
"No way! There's a doppelganger inside—10 minutes?! I didn't last 30 seconds!"
The very first failure.
"Doppelganger!" "That kid beat a doppelganger?" "Reveal the test process fairly!"
"Quiet."
Gallahal's hand touched his sword hilt; the room silenced instantly.
"Can't last 30 seconds and you're proud?"
"Wh-What?"
"You're saying the Council gave that boy special treatment. Is that it?"
Shing.
His sword half-unsheathed.
The man's face cycled colors: first red with rage, now pale white.
"Then prove it. That you're superior to this boy."
"Y-You want me to duel that boy now?"
"If not, I'll take it as slandering the Council."
...?
Something's off here.
"A warrior proves with action. One exchange suffices."
How'd this turn into a one-on-one with a failure?
This ain't right—I glanced at Gallahal, but he ignored me.
"Kuh! Kid, don't resent my blind sword!"
Hold up.
He's really coming at me?
I'm not even a warrior!
No time to react.
His sword flashed like lightning at my arm. He held back somewhat, but still menacing.
Whoosh—Clang!
Just before it hit, a gust erupted at my feet, deflecting his blade. Clear metal clash rang in my ears.
"Kuh?!"
The man tumbled from recoil, scrambling up. But the exchange was over.
"Result's in."
Gallahal's tone was dry. As if he'd expected it.
"Test details are strictly confidential. You just broke protocol. Drag him out."
Before "out" finished, a silver-badged guard rushed him. He was subdued, arm twisted, before resisting.
"Everything is proven by results. The Council doesn't accept fools who deny even those."
All fell silent. The other applicants just stared at me like I was insane.
Why look at me like that...
The stares burdensome, I kept my head down and headed to the second test site.