Chapter 443:Test.

Chapter 443: 443:Test.

By the third week, academy life no longer felt new. Silver stopped checking maps.

He knew which cafeteria was least crowded after weapons training. He knew which shooting range had the better moving-target systems.

He knew the dorm gym became unbearable after six in the evening. He knew Peter arrived approximately ten minutes before class regardless of weather.

He knew Ravenna preferred sitting near the window during theory lessons. He knew Helena drank something horribly bitter before morning conditioning.

He knew Mina talked rapidly whenever she became excited about beast biology. He knew Caleb snored during lectures if the room became too warm.

He knew Shirley always sat where she could see both exits. He knew Dillian studied late and Jude studied quietly.

Antony claimed he didn’t study and somehow always knew more than expected which was weird on it’s own. The guys spend most of his day making sure he was the talk among the first years.

The four roommates developed their own strange rhythm. Some nights they barely spoke. Other nights Antony started an argument that lasted an hour.

Once, Jude and Dillian spent twenty minutes debating whether defensive abilities were undervalued in independent Contractor teams.

Silver joined and Antony disagreed with everyone purely because he was bored.

Ravenna developed her own routine too. Some mornings she ran with Silver while others she trained alone.

Sometimes they ate breakfast together. Sometimes schedules didn’t line up and they met at lunch instead.

They still kissed, still teased one another and still found quiet time together whenever possible. But they no longer behaved as though losing sight of each other for several hours was unbearable.

One evening Silver finished firearms training and found Ravenna sitting with Helena outside the library, both surrounded by tablets and notes.

Ravenna looked up. Silver raised a hand.

She smiled and went back to her discussions. He didn’t interrupt either and went to eat with Antony.

Later that night Ravenna messaged him complaining that he hadn’t brought her anything.

The next morning Silver handed her a pastry. She kissed his cheek, then immediately left for ability training.

It felt strangely ordinary.

Silver liked ordinary.

---

Near the end of the third week, Peter destroyed that comfort.

Training Hall C-Four had been transformed. There were walls,barricades,narrow streets and artificial ruins.

Class Four stood before the entrance in field equipment.

Peter walked along the line.

"Today’s objective is simple."

Nobody believed him anymore.

Peter noticed.

"Good. You’re learning."

A few students laughed.

He gestured toward a training mannequin lying on a stretcher.

"One member of each squad will be designated critically injured."

The laughter disappeared.

"You will transport them from Entry Point Alpha to Extraction Point Delta."

The map appeared.

"Distance: 2.8 kilometers."

Ravenna frowned.

That wasn’t far, ehich meant something horrible was coming.

Peter continued.

"Simulated hostiles will engage throughout the route."

There it was.

"Each squad receives limited ammunition."

Another condition.

"One randomly selected member will have their primary ability restricted."

Another.

"Abandoning your casualty is automatic failure."

Another.

"Casualty receiving three confirmed strikes is failure."

Another.

"Time limit: forty-five minutes."

Peter looked around.

"Questions?"

Caleb raised his hand.

"How many hostiles?"

Peter smiled.

Silver immediately knew the answer.

"Enough."

Caleb lowered his hand.

Peter divided them.

Silver found himself with Ravenna, Helena, Shirley, Mina and another Class Four student named Rowan.

Helena was assigned casualty.

She stared at Peter her eyes pleading with him.

"Why am I injured?"

"Because reality occasionally fails to respect your preferences."

Ravenna smiled.

Helena looked toward her.

"Don’t you dare."

Then the restriction was announced.

Ravenna couldn’t use fire.

Silver looked at her and smirked. She looked at him, then smiled.

"I have a sword."

Peter heard.

"Exactly."

The exercise began.

For the first ten minutes, they fought brilliantly, which was the problem.

Silver used Phantom Draw, Ravenna tore through opponents physically, Shirley struck from concealment, Mina tracked movement, and Rowan covered the rear.

They won every engagement.

At twelve minutes, they had moved only six hundred meters.

Silver checked the timer, then the remaining ammunition.

His expression changed.

Ravenna saw it.

"We’re too slow," she said. ℴ

Silver nodded.

Another hostile signal appeared.

Ravenna lifted her sword but Silver caught her shoulder.

"Leave it."

She looked at him.

"The route."

Ravenna understood.

They changed their planned route and took another. They stopped trying to win and just wanted to get to the exit.

Shirley moved ahead.

"Three left corridor. Two right. Right route has cover."

"Right," Silver said.

Mina shook her head.

"Movement under the flooring."

Silver changed immediately.

"Left."

Nobody argued with him.

Helena couldn’t walk, but she could still use her ability from the stretcher which wasn’t banned.

That became crucial.

A translucent barrier appeared sideways across an intersection and the hostiles struck it but they couldn’t get through.

The squad didn’t counterattack but just ran towards a different direction. Ravenna stayed beside the stretcher.

Without fire, she used her newly strengthened body to carry most of Helena’s weight whenever terrain became difficult.

Silver Short-Stepped ahead, grabbed abandoned equipment and returned. He also moved ammunition, checked corners and relayed Shirley’s information.

Once, a hostile appeared directly behind them.

Silver raised his gun, then stopped. The target wasn’t pursuing them which meant the mission irrelevant.

He lowered the weapon.

They kept moving through the hostile environment as they expertly avoided every way that would make them work harder than necessary.

The last kilometer became ugly; they were tired and low on ammunition.

Helena’s barriers weakened. Shirley’s concealment had nearly reached its limit. Mina’s head hurt from constant vibration processing. Ravenna was carrying the front half of the stretcher almost alone.

Silver looked toward extraction point which was three hundred meters but hostiles blocked the central street.

Ravenna breathed heavily.

"We can break through."

Silver looked, then shook his head.

"No."

"Why?"

"That’s what they want," he carefully said.

He pointed toward an alley.

Shirley immediately understood.

"Too narrow for the stretcher."

Ravenna looked at Helena, then at the stretcher.

"Who says we need the stretcher?"

Helena stared her eyes narrowed with each second.

"Don’t you dare."

Ravenna easily lifted her off the stretcher.

Helena’s eyes widened.

"Ravenna."

She threw Helena over her shoulder without caring much for her refusal.

Silver started laughing.

"This is not funny!" Helena shouted.

"It’s a little funny."

Ravenna ran towards the pathway. The Titan-Horn Mountain Bison’s strength finally showed its value as she managed to pass the hostiles before any could even attack her.

Silver and the others followed with the help of the dying shield from Helena. They reached extraction with less than two minutes remaining.

Peter waited for them at the end.

Ravenna put Helena down who immediately stepped away from her, while glaring at everyone.

"I’m never being your casualty again."

Ravenna smiled.

"You survived."

Peter approached.

"How many hostiles did you eliminate?"

Silver checked.

"Eleven."

"How many did you encounter?"

"At least thirty."

Peter nodded.

"Which part of the exercise was better?"

Nobody needed clarification.

"The second half," Silver said.

"Why?"

Ravenna answered.

"Because we stopped fighting."

Peter looked around.

"You were not ordered to clear the area." Silence filled the area. "You were not ordered to defeat the enemy."

He pointed toward Helena.

"You were ordered to bring your teammate home."

His gaze moved across them.

"Combat is sometimes the mission." Peter paused. "Sometimes combat is merely the thing standing between you and the mission."

Silver remembered that, and so did Ravenna.

And as the third week at Alpha Three Academy came toward its end, Class Four was finally beginning to understand the difference.