Chapter 50: Welcome to Riki Handler Training

"There’s... barely anything here."

Arthur stood at the entrance of the Riki cultivation facility, staring at the massive room in disbelief.

He had expected something far more impressive.

After all, this was the Imperial Academy. Even the ordinary training facilities he’d passed through were equipped with advanced machinery, combat simulators, weapons systems, and all sorts of futuristic technology.

Yet this place...

It was practically empty.

There were only a couple of rectangular sparring rings positioned near the center of the room, their metallic surfaces reflecting the overhead lights.

Along one wall was a small storage shelf.

Instead of books, it contained several thin metallic codices, each one no larger than a tablet. Their dark surfaces were covered with faintly glowing inscriptions, displaying titles such as Riki Physiology, Riki Bonding Theory, and Foundations of Riki Cultivation.

Beside them sat several pieces of strange-looking equipment.

Arthur couldn’t immediately determine what any of them were supposed to do.

He slowly scanned the room.

That was it.

No massive training machines.

No holographic simulation chambers.

No advanced combat constructs.

Just a few sparring rings, several metallic knowledge codices, and some unfamiliar equipment.

"...Seriously?"

Arthur stepped inside.

His footsteps echoed softly through the spacious facility.

As he looked around, he spotted two other cadets already inside.

One was a tall young man with blonde hair. He stood beside one of the sparring rings with his arms folded across his chest, quietly observing the facility.

The other had blue hair and was roughly Arthur’s height, perhaps a few inches taller.

Both of them noticed Arthur almost immediately.

Their gazes met.

For several seconds, none of them said anything.

Arthur glanced between them before breaking the silence.

"Are you two here to look around the Riki Handler class as well?"

The blonde-haired cadet nodded.

"Yeah."

The blue-haired cadet gave a small nod.

"Obviously."

Arthur raised an eyebrow.

"...Right."

He turned his attention back toward the room.

The facility still seemed strangely underwhelming.

Perhaps there was more to Riki cultivation than he initially thought.

Maybe the equipment wasn’t meant for ordinary physical training.

Or perhaps the real training would begin once the instructor arrived.

Arthur walked farther into the facility, his eyes lingering on one of the metallic codices.

The title Riki Physiology briefly illuminated across its surface before fading again.

"Interesting."

Whatever Riki cultivation involved, Arthur had a feeling he was about to find out.

Arthur glanced around the facility once more before turning toward the other two cadets.

"Are we missing anyone?" he asked. "Did some of the others step out, or are they running late?"

The blue-haired cadet shrugged.

"Nah. Seems it’s only us three."

Arthur blinked.

"Only three?"

"Riki Handlers are really rare," the cadet explained. "I’d actually be more surprised if there were a fourth person here."

Arthur frowned slightly.

"Is it really that bad?"

Back in the game, every single player had a couple hundred Riki Handlers.

He remembered the countless Riki Handler units players could acquire, train, and deploy to enhance the combat effectiveness of their Iron Angels.

Sure, they weren’t nearly as common as Iron Angels, but considering the sheer size of the Empire, Arthur had expected there to be significantly more people with the talent to become Riki Handlers.

I guess it makes sense.

Players don’t exist in this world to awaken Riki Handlers.

So the Empire is stuck relying entirely on people with naturally occurring talent.

"Master!"

Arthur winced.

He had done it again.

Thinking like a player.

He lowered his gaze, quietly cursing himself.

Fuck.

I can’t help it.

His fingers tightened slightly.

How the hell is a person supposed to not think?

He had spent years playing the game.

He knew its mechanics.

Its systems.

Its classes.

Its statistics.

Its entire progression structure.

Even now, those things were so deeply ingrained in his mind that comparing this world to the game was almost instinctive.

But here, those comparisons weren’t harmless.

If he kept on thinking like this, it was only a matter of time before someone might start asking him questions.

Arthur took a slow breath.

I need to be more careful.

The blue-haired cadet glanced at him.

"You okay?"

Arthur immediately looked up.

"Yeah."

He forced a casual smile.

"Just surprised there are so few of us."

The cadet nodded.

"That’s Riki Handlers for you."

Arthur quietly sighed.

Arthur turned toward the other cadets.

"Didn’t catch your names."

"Oh."

The blue-haired cadet smiled.

"The name’s Rexi. And that big guy over there is Alexis."

Alexis looked toward Arthur.

He raised one hand and gave a small wave.

Arthur nodded.

"Nice to meet you."

Rexi then turned toward him.

"So, what’s yours?"

"Just call me Arthur—"

"So I have three cadets this year."

An elderly voice suddenly interrupted them.

"That’s quite the upgrade. Guess this old man will have to get to work this time."

Arthur’s words died in his throat.

He turned toward the source of the voice.

An elderly man had entered the facility without any of them noticing.

He had grayish-brown hair, Red artificial eyes which were indistinguishable from real ones and a lean, muscular physique that seemed almost out of place for someone his age. His Imperial uniform was neatly fitted across his body, but what immediately caught Arthur’s attention were his limbs.

Both of the man’s arms were mechanical.

So were both of his legs.

There was no attempt to conceal them beneath synthetic skin.

Exposed mechanical components were clearly visible at the ends of the uniform.

They weren’t designed to look human.

They were designed to function.

Arthur’s eyes narrowed slightly.

He lost all four limbs.

The fact that the man had deliberately left the implants exposed was even more striking.

Most Imperial citizens who possessed advanced prosthetics could have them covered with synthetic skin until they looked almost indistinguishable from natural limbs.

This man had chosen not to.

Arthur couldn’t help but wonder why.

Perhaps they were the scars of a battle he refused to forget.

Or perhaps, in the Empire, there was something more to it.

The elderly man walked toward the three cadets, the mechanical joints of his legs producing faint metallic sounds with every step.

Clink.

Clink.

Clink.

He stopped in front of them and looked over the three cadets.

His artificial eyes briefly flickered.

Then he smiled.

"Well then."

His gaze moved from Rexi to Alexis, before finally settling on Arthur.

"Well then, cadets."

He chuckled.

"Class is in session."

Arthur smiled as he approached the elderly instructor.

"Good day, sir. My name is Arthur—"

BAM!

A fist suddenly collided with Arthur’s face.

His entire body was launched backward.

"—Gah!"

Arthur flew several meters before crashing onto the metallic floor.

SKID!

His body continued sliding across the smooth surface until he finally came to a stop.

For a moment, Arthur simply lay there.

His mind was blank.

What the hell just happened?

He slowly pushed himself up.

His vision swayed.

Blood dripped from his nose, and he could feel the sharp sting of a split lip.

Arthur touched his face.

When he pulled his hand away, it was covered in blood.

"...W-what the hell?"

He looked toward the instructor in shock.

"Why did you suddenly punch me?!"

The elderly man calmly looked at him.

"Minus five points."

Arthur froze.

"...What?"

"Minus five points for what?!"

Arthur’s voice rose as he stared at the instructor.

"I didn’t even do anything!"

The instructor ignored his complaint.

Instead, he reached up and grabbed the bottom of his Imperial uniform shirt.

Then he pulled it off.

The sight beneath it immediately caught Arthur’s attention.

The man’s entire arms were composed of black metallic machinery, extending from his shoulders all the way down to his hands.

His muscular chest was also partially exposed.

Beneath the skin covering his torso were several raised mechanical structures, small components protruding beneath the flesh like artificial organs integrated directly into his body.

The elderly instructor tossed his shirt aside.

Then he looked at the three cadets.

"Lesson number one, boys."

His artificial eyes flickered.

"Always expect the unexpected."

Arthur’s expression hardened.

The instructor continued.

"As a Riki Handler, you’re going to be sharing your reasoning speed with thousands, if not tens of thousands, of Iron Angels at a time."

He raised one mechanical hand.

"Every command you give will be processed across an entire battlefield."

His metallic fingers slowly curled into a fist.

"If your reaction speed is delayed by even a fraction of a second..."

The instructor’s gaze sharpened.

"An Iron Angel dies."

Silence descended over the facility.

Arthur wiped the blood from beneath his nose.

The instructor looked between the three cadets.

"And when you’re responsible for ten thousand lives..."

His expression became cold.

"Ten thousand fractions of a second can become ten thousand graves."

Arthur’s eyes narrowed.

So that’s what this class is really about.

This wasn’t ordinary combat training.

It wasn’t even about controlling machines.

It was about learning to think faster than an entire army.

The instructor smiled.

"Welcome to Riki Handler training."

The instructor’s mechanical fingers curled slightly before he gestured toward the three cadets.

"Come now."

He stepped backward, giving them space.

A faint grin appeared on his face.

"Show me what you’ve got."