Chapter 316: Begin!

“Captain, you don’t need any?”

“That’s right. Don’t waste your attention on me. I won’t need buffs or replenishment.”

“Captain, I’ve received professional training. Supporting four people is not much different from supporting five for me.”

“No. I’m not being polite with you, nor am I trying to put less pressure on you. My reserves of spiritual power are enough to handle this exam. I truly don’t need any support. Also, let me emphasize it again, but when it comes to squad combat mission deployment, I am not used to being polite or saying perfunctory things.”

“I understand, Captain.”

“Lastly, let me clarify my responsibilities and how I intend to allocate roles. First, as the captain, whenever I am able to clearly issue commands, those commands must be followed unconditionally.

“Second, Vintral, I can endure more damage than you. Bart, I can fight better than you. Ashley, if your soul power becomes insufficient, then the moment I appear next to you, lower your defenses and allow my soul power to enter so that I can help you establish a soul bridge and guide the demonic beasts into assisting you. Mars, once your array is set up, open the core region of the array to me. I can help you control and coordinate the array alongside you.

“As for Blanche, unfortunately, I’m still not proficient in intermediate or higher-tier healing and enhancement Arts, but I can still use low-tier ones. If necessary, I’ll assist you in supporting the team. The difference is that I may compensate for the lack of quality with sheer quantity.

“In short, whenever a problem arises in any area and support is needed, I’ll step in whenever appropriate. Also, if I do step into your area of responsibility, trust my ability and focus on your own task. Don’t divide your attention.

“All right. Does anyone have anything to add?”

Everyone was stunned for a moment, clearly a bit overwhelmed by Karon’s allocation of responsibilities and functions. Soon enough, however, they all shook their heads to indicate they had nothing further to add.

Vintral, Ashley, and Bart had already been fully fired up, their eyes practically shining. They had long since confirmed Karon’s strength through both direct and indirect means, so when Karon spoke this way before them, all they felt was excitement. After all, their goal had always been to secure one of the final slots. Mars and Blanche exchanged glances. Seeing the reactions of the original team members, they instinctively concluded that Karon must possess tremendous prestige back in his own region, and they gradually became convinced as well.

At a time that teamwork was required, no member would be foolish enough to dislike a captain for lacking humility. If anything, everyone wanted their own captain to be overwhelmingly confident.

“Then we’ll settle things like this for now. As for the finer details of our coordination, we’ll work things out with practice after the exam begins. My guess is that things will proceed in individual rounds and that they won’t throw us straight at the highest difficulty from the start. The people above want to peel away one squad after another, like stripping layers from a fruit to leave only the best bits at the very core.

“Theoretically, we’ll have time to grow familiar with one another, but I still need all of you to get into the proper mental state immediately. Our squad is excellent, and our composition is well-balanced and complete, but in the end, victory will come down to who can grasp the finer details better and who makes fewer mistakes.”

“Understood!”

“Understood!”

Karon extended his hand, face down. The others glanced at each other, then stacked their hands on top of his.

“I haven’t thought of a specific slogan yet, but that’s no problem. After we pass this exam and enter the Reincarnation Gate, we’ll still be a squad. There will be enough time in between for us to think of a proper slogan. We are hunting hounds, while they are ducks. They are here to frolic in the water, but we are here to hunt!”

***

“Has it begun?”

“It is about to begin, my lord.”

“Mm.” Cardinal Claude handed his cloak to the attendant beside him as he stepped into the hall. Inside, many people were already seated. Upon seeing Claude walk in, everyone stood up, and most bowed to the cardinal.

“Greetings, Your Eminence.”

“Greetings, Your Eminence.”

Claude nodded.

The few people whose status was similar to his, or were close enough to have a good private relationship with him, greeted Claude with smiles. In the end, he walked to the seat that had just been vacated at the center of the first row and sat down.

“There are quite a lot of people today,” Claude commented to the man beside him.

That man had a head of golden hair, and he looked very young, yet subtle details betrayed his true age. Traces of time and hardship had long since settled upon him.

His name was Mosvath, and he was one of the leaders of the Shadow of Order, which was responsible for external intelligence and infiltration operations. The Church of Order’s recent war against the Church of Reincarnation had gone so smoothly in large part due to the outstanding preparations carried out by the departments under Mosvath’s command.

“Everyone is very eager to see the quality of our church’s next generation. As long as people have the time, they are here to take a look. After all, all of us are old, and the future of the church will ultimately rest on our young. In addition, some here have their own descendants participating in this selection, so they want to see how their family’s children perform. However, please rest assured, Varg is an extremely reliable man. There’s no possibility of him showing favoritism.”

“I remember he was pushed out back then to garrison Ogureth Fortress precisely because he was too selfless?” Claude asked.

“Yes, that is correct. It was only to protect him. After this selection ends, with a bit of time, I will work to have him transferred back.”

“Mhmm.” Claude looked to his other side, where a woman sat beside him. Like Mosvath, she initially appeared young, but was no longer truly young. Her name was Glorian, and she was the chief editor of Order Weekly. Strictly speaking, she was not qualified to sit in the front row, much less beside a cardinal, but she had another identity. She was the spokesperson for non-church propaganda organizations.

In the current era, methods of preaching had evolved far beyond the traditional mission chapels. In accordance with the social and civilizational structure of the modern epoch, newer methods had emerged, such as using propaganda organizations that outwardly bore no obvious religious affiliation. Their activities were not confined solely to the traditional territories of the Church of Order. In fact, their very purpose was to operate within the jurisdictions of other churches, spreading the ideology of Order, attracting lower-level believers, and even recruiting the opposing side’s priests.

It was all of that that qualified Glorian to sit beside Claude.

“Anything interesting?”

Glorian opened a hand and tossed out a sapphire. The gemstone dispersed, unfolding to form a flat projection screen.

The massive display overhead was currently broadcasting the selection taking place within Ogureth Fortress, while Glorian was controlling the eyes of the Ogureth statue itself to conduct more precise and flexible observations. “This squad is quite interesting. They’re from York City, and they were the first to establish their internal structure. They started with four members, then brought in an array master and a healer.”

“Oh?” Claude smiled. “A very reliable approach.”

All of the candidates were young, and when young people gathered together, problems tended to arise rather easily. For example, when forming teams, they subconsciously gravitated toward those who appeared strongest, but from the perspective of a leader, while a team certainly needed a truly outstanding figure to serve as its spearhead, what mattered even more was ensuring the team was well-rounded and stable. Without that, the very meaning of a team’s existence would be lost.

As for the high-ranking members of the church, such as those sitting in the first row with Claude, they looked at things from yet another angle, because what they were building was not a team, but a platform. Only a healthy platform could provide outstanding talents with an environment to develop and grow, allowing them to develop to the level where they could stand independently and establish truly mutually beneficial relationships.

“Yes. Their purpose was clear from the very beginning. They’ve enjoyed a large advantage from the starting line,” Glorian said.

In the image, Karon was giving a speech to his squad members. However, the display only provided an image and no sound, because the distance was too far. The transmission of the entire projection relied on Ogureth’s “eyes.” Arranging for sound would not have been difficult, but it would have required embedding a separate ritual array, which would have disrupted the operation of the fortress’s own array in the exam grounds, adding unnecessary trouble. However, even from just the image, it could be seen that the young captain’s words were very clearly motivating the other members of the squad.

“Heh.” Seeing this image, Claude could not help laughing.

Glorian asked, “Do you see your own younger self?”

“Mm, a little. What is this young man’s name?”

A notebook flew out of Glorian’s pocket. A quill opened the book and started automatically searching through it. Very soon, it found the answer and stopped on that page. There was a sketch of Karon included, drawn so well that it looked no different from a photograph.

“According to the record, that young man is called Karon. Karon Silva.”

“Karon?” Claude pondered slightly. “That name sounds a little familiar.”

At that, a bishop seated in the second row stood up and approached, whispering, “My lord, you once praised him on Darkmoon Island.”

This bishop had been a member of the delegation that had participated in the negotiations on Darkmoon Island. He remembered that night, when the cardinal had suddenly stopped and mentioned to everyone the name of a young man called “Karon.”

“Oh, I remember now.” In truth, Cardinal Claude had an excellent memory, truly excellent. The reason he only vaguely recalled Karon’s name was because he had never considered the name necessary to be remembered. At the time, the young man had only been noticed because Karon had used the Code of Order to lecture a junior of the Church of Reincarnation’s Gatekeeper, forcing her to leave in the middle of a chat with Claude and personally resolve a matter between mere children, which had amused the cardinal.

However, even a careless sentence from someone who truly stood at the top could leave those below making many connections. Most importantly, those below simply did not dare to ask for clarification, much less gamble on whether the leader was hinting at something or just joking. Archbishop Wolfram had originally wanted to demonstrate a small bit of displeasure by deliberately not including Karon’s name, wanting to see which great figure would come and ask for a favor. However, that comment from Claude had not only pushed Wolfram into taking the initiative to add Karon’s name to the selection exam, the archbishop had even leaked some details of the exam to him.

Glorian tore out the page with Karon’s information and handed it to Claude. This was the first time Claude took a proper look at Karon’s record. “A Divine Servant?”

Glorian smiled. “He might simply be lazy about it. That is not an uncommon situation.”

Cardinal Claude said, “There still has to be rules.”

Mosvath, beside him, said, “I will convey this to the relevant departments and have them launch a rectification campaign targeting this situation.”

Glorian chimed in, “Indeed. This will ensure that our church can better understand the distribution of strength and development conditions within the church as best as possible. All districts should push this forward together.”

“Mhmm.” Claude nodded. “His record is very simple.”

“Yes, somewhat too simple. This means he may be a true genius.”

“A true genius. Heh. There was once such a story from the Temple of Order that there was a young genius who once directly contradicted a Temple Elder to his face, angering that Elder so much that he raised his hand several times, yet ultimately still lowered it.”

“I’ve heard that story too,” Mosvath said.

“Using this story, let us see how this young man Karon performs. Are there any other squads worth paying attention to?”

“Yes. There are also these two squads, Squad 1 and Squad 7...” Glorian proceeded to share a very detailed introduction of the squads with Claude. When the cardinal started to close his eyes a bit, Glorian knew that his interest had faded, so she stopped talking.

Claude lightly tapped his fingertips against the armrest of his chair and said, “I’ve discovered a problem.”

Mosvath and Glorian both picked up their notebooks, preparing to write it down.

“Our various systems have become too isolated from one another. While it is possible that this guarantees professionalism and reliability, it has also led to an increasing disconnect between departments, especially among our youth.

“Every system, and every department within those systems, has spent too much time on its own development and passing down its own legacy within closed internal circles. Given enough time, problems are inevitable. When the former High Priest, Lord Rasma, was still in office, he specifically warned that the hereditary nature of the various departments would not only cause our standards to stagnate, but would also weaken the church’s direct authority.

“At the previous Round Table meeting, High Priest Norton likewise placed a heavy emphasis on the increasing hereditary nature of church organizations, and even issued a direct warning that if this trend continues, it will ultimately undermine the church’s healthy development.

“That’s why I believe these interdistrict selections should no longer be constrained by rigid formalities. Holding them once every year would allow young people of the appropriate age to become familiar with one another and build connections across systems, while also granting them a second chance to choose their own paths.

“I checked earlier. At their age, most of them are still only probationary members or interns. They haven’t truly settled into their own departments yet. Since that is the case, shouldn’t they be allowed another opportunity to choose?”

“I see,” Mosvath replied. “Once the organizational framework for next year’s event has already been drafted, it will be submitted to your office.”

Glorian smiled. “While the next event may have to wait until next year, giving our young people another opportunity doesn’t need to wait. That can start as soon as this selection ends.”

“That’s an excellent suggestion,” Mosvath agreed.

Claude glanced at the two of them and chuckled. “Neither of you are who will be offending people because of this, so of course you can speak so lightly.”

Mosvath and Glorian both smiled, as that was indeed the truth. Reassigning successors who had been painstakingly raised by the local factions of every system and department would inevitably provoke enormous resistance. This was an effort that was destined to offend a great many people.

“Perhaps,” Glorian said, “there’s another way to approach this. There is one place capable of taking them in while also dissolving them again when necessary. Both sides would probably find it easier to accept. A compromise, essentially.”

Mosvath immediately nodded. “I know exactly which department you mean.”

“Then have Voren come to my office tomorrow,” Claude said.

Voren Elrod, the highest-ranking Whip within the Whip of Order system.

***

All squads were assembled. The last six people were automatically made a team. Philomena was part of that final team. They were the last to obtain a squad number, which made them Squad 20. When they passed through the center, the attention of all of the squads on both sides fell upon them.

Karon lowered his head and did not look over. He was the one who had excluded Philomena from the squad, but that did not mean that he had any interest in taking pleasure in the matter or mocking her in any manner. That would be meaningless.

Varg stood on the platform at the very front, looked at all the squads before him, and said, “Let me repeat this one more time: do not force yourselves! Survival is more important than anything.”

After saying this, Varg raised his hand and shouted: “The final selection begins!”

The array masters began chanting, and sounds rang out from within the giant Ogureth statue. Karon then discovered that the tiles forming the ground where his squad stood were starting to expand outward farther and farther. The distance between the squads was increasing, and the expansion only stopped when each area was roughly half the size of a football field. Dark radiance appeared along the boundaries, as barriers formed, separating the squads and preventing interference.

“Now!”

Vintral shot to the perimeter of the squad’s territory. Because they were unable to distinguish front from back for the moment, he proceeded to patrol the perimeter, with Bart following behind, walking in a circle behind Vintral with a slightly smaller radius. Farther in, Blanche also began walking. Early on in this exam, the array master and summoner would not require support, so Blanche’s top priority at the moment was ensuring she would be able to instantly support the two defenders on the frontlines.

Mars began setting up the array. Karon appeared beside him and asked, “Which array are you preparing?”

This was not something that could have been decided in advance, as they had not known how large of a field they would be working with.

Mars replied, “Kendos Triple Defense.”

“I’ve studied it before. Give me some of your materials, and I’ll help you set it up.”

The squads who immediately got busy other than Squad 3 were Squads 1 and 7.

At that moment, a dark vortex appeared above each squad’s territory. The roars of beasts and the clanging of iron cages echoed from within. It was likely that the vortices connected to the fortress’s prison.

Varg’s voice reached each squads’ territory. “The target of the first round of trials is the void illusion demon Meka. One will enter your field in ten minutes. Everyone, please make your preparations.”

Meka were illusion demons that bred in the void. Meka was not an individual name, but the name of the entire species. They were far inferior to the illusion demon Corvasini, and only at that level were qualified to possess individually identifying names.

Vintral immediately moved beneath the black vortex and slightly to the side. Behind him stood Bart and Blanche, though at varying intervals.

Karon turned to Mars, “I believe our target for this first round won’t be able to break through our outer perimeter. Continue setting up the array without worrying.”

“Yes, Captain!”

Karon immediately gave another order, “Ashley, summon the weakest, most useless demonic beast projection you have and send it into that vortex to die. We’ll use it as a scout to find out what our next target will be. Same old rule: we get answers before the trial starts.”