First Semester Hell Week (1)
"So, starting tomorrow, we'll have Hell Week for a full week. Make sure you all know that."
"Eek?! Professor Yulius! Wasn't Hell Week supposed to be next month?!"
The professor's sudden bombshell announcement sparked immediate backlash from the students.
Elan Academy holds three regular performance evaluations throughout the upper, mid, and lower semesters, each in the form of an event called Hell Week. The location changes depending on what the professors decide, so students never know in advance, but at its core, it's all about testing survival skills. There are missions you can take on for extra points, but they're not mandatory—just bonuses.
This timing lines up with the first-semester Hell Week, and if memory serves, the location should be...
The spot was the Black Desert, I recalled. Since I'd transferred in right at the start of the story, it had to be that.
"The location is the Black Desert. Teams will be four people each, mixed across grades and classes—except for F Class and S Class. F Class teams with F Class, S Class with S Class. Got it? It's supposed to test individual ability, but survival is a team effort, so teamwork matters too. First-years, this is your first Hell Week—get tense."
Sure enough, Black Desert.
Professor Yulius, our F Class homeroom teacher, left the room, and the students immediately buzzed about Hell Week.
"Black Desert? That place is brutal hot..."
"Gotta pack some sunscreen."
"Anyone wanna team up with me?!"
Everyone was scheming how to endure it and who to group with. I was doing the same, thinking about team comps.
But F Class sticking with F Class and S with S... I don't remember there being an exception like that originally.
In my memory, there wasn't any special rule like this. I'd planned to pull Esil and two others into my group, but that was scrapped now.
Who else, then? Anyone decent in F Class?
I scanned the room. Sure, F Class was the dumping ground for problem kids, but it had its share of real talent. As one of the academy's unique special classes without grade restrictions, there were upperclassmen who'd survived previous Hell Weeks. Locations changed every time, but they had experience—advice goldmine.
"Hey, Ijun."
"Yeah?"
Someone called me. I looked up toward the voice and saw a dark-skinned muscle guy standing there.
"Oh, it's you, Black Wind."
"How many times do I gotta say it's Black Wind, not that nickname?"
Black Wind hailed from Le Kan, a desert tribe nation near the Black Desert. He'd approached me after I beat Yujin, and we'd hung out a few times since—got pretty tight.
"Ijun. Team up with me."
"Not 'let's team up'—you're saying it like it's already decided."
"Got someone else in mind? Far as I know, I'm the only one in F Class you're tight with."
"I just transferred in; of course I don't have many friends yet. Yeah, I was planning on you anyway."
"Cool. Now we just need two more."
I'd had Black Wind in mind too. Guy treated the Black Desert like his backyard.
Grateful he suggested it first—I accepted on the spot.
"Then make one of those spots mine?"
"You?"
As I pondered the other two, a girl sidled up, asking to join.
A female student holding a strangely shaped weapon.
That's Erara Rururu.
Her name literally meant "dancer who cloaks herself in spirits" in continental tongue, but I picked it on a whim—just think of it as an odd name. From the spirit tribe on Spirit Island, a massive isle in the great ocean, ranked 986th—a solid upper-tier powerhouse.
"Erara? I figured you'd team with someone stronger."
"I'd rather team with fun people over strong ones. And with you, Ijun, I have a feeling something fun's gonna happen."
From my side, Erara joining would make things easier, but 'something fun' rubs me the wrong way.
Erara's Act was Dance, her Abl Precognition. Fitting for a spirit tribe dancer heir who divines the future through dance—she could peek ahead even without moving. And she says something fun's coming? Kinda ominous.
"Eh, works for me."
"Erara's in—now just one more."
Looks like most friend groups had filled up. Question was who was left.
***
"Hic..."
One girl huddled there, glancing nervously around, shrinking from the stares.
The sudden Hell Week announcement was bad enough, but teams of four? She was trembling at the thought.
T-Team...? If someone like me's on the team, I'll just drag them down, right...?
Her victim complex was off the charts. Her name: Lien Astray Argano, eighth imperial princess of the empire, with an extreme introvert personality to match.
Because of it, she had zero friends, just lurking in the corner of the F Class room, watching everyone.
"Hey."
"H-Huh? M-Me? Y-You're saying hi to me?"
"Who else? You're the only one in front of me."
Someone approached and greeted her out of nowhere. She looked up—and froze.
H-Han Ijun!?
Her face twisted in shock. No wonder—the hot topic of the academy lately was this special transfer student, Han Ijun.
Why's he talking to me...?
What reason could a total social butterfly(?) have for chatting up a total loner like her? Her head spun.
"Wanna join my team if you haven't found one yet?"
"Y-Yeah... Yeah? Eeeek?!"
She recoiled in horror at the invite, then blurted back at him.
"J-Join your t-team...?"
"Exactly what I said."
Me? On his team? I have no skills! Why would a powerhouse like him want me?
Her mind reeled with questions.
"A-Are you just grabbing leftovers? Like, no one else wanted me?"
Maybe everyone else teamed up, leaving her as the awkward last pick. Super negative Lien went there immediately.
"Leftovers? Nah, I'm asking you specifically."
"M-Me specifically? W-What...?"
His words made zero sense to her.
"'Cause you're one of the top four in F Class, in my book."
"T-Top four? What're you...?"
Top four? Me? What's this transfer guy on about?
Her already jumbled thoughts turned into a full maze.
"So, you hate the idea?"
"N-No, not hate, but... w-won't I just get in the way?"
She didn't hate it—that's why she said that—but the negativity lingered: she'd hold them back.
"Get in the way? Nah, I see you as the keeper."
Keeper—the term for the most crucial role in an organization.
"Ijun, you get her?"
"Yeah, she's joining us."
"Princess Lien? This'll be fun."
A massive, dark-skinned muscle dude and a tanned silver twintail girl with glossy skin approached Ijun—Black Wind and Erara. Seeing them, Lien's anxiety spiked.
Black Wind was mid-tier at 1050th, but his skills rivaled upper ranks. Erara was straight upper-tier at 986th. Teaming with them and the academy buzz Ijun? Overwhelming.
"Nice teaming with you, Lien."
"U-Uh... yeah..."
It was intimidating, but the vibe swept her up—she said yes, no backing out now.
***
The next day, Hell Week time arrived.
I boarded the teleportation circle with my team: me, Black Wind, Erara, and Lien.
On paper, dream team. Black Wind's 1050th rank was self-imposed—he didn't care for climbing, but he matched upper tiers. Erara, 986th upper ranker from the powerhouse spirit tribe, was one of the stronger recruitable allies in the game—reliable. And the real core of this team? Lien.
Lien Astray Argano, eighth imperial princess—that title was fluff, ignore it. Compared to Black Wind or Erara, Lien seemed weak. She had talent, but her personality bottled it up. What more than made up for it was her Abl.
Lien's Act: Faint. Abl: Unconscious Persona. In extreme situations, she just blacks out. Then her Abl kicks in automatically, awakening her true persona.
That's the gist, but I've never actually seen it.
Lien wasn't a character I created, and when I played the game, I preferred weak-to-strong builds over busted chars like her—so her awakened persona was a mystery.
But the guy who made her swore she was busted.
That's why I recruited her.
"Your team's last."
Professor Yulius, the exam proctor, checked our team off the list and activated the teleport circle.
"Missions will come via device. Good luck."
The circle glowed, whisking us four from the academy to the Black Desert.