Chapter 72: Half

"Eren!" Celeste called out. She and the rest of the group sat up from their logs as they spotted him emerge from the tunnel.

They looked worse for wear, Eren observed. Bodysuits caked with mud, its fabric frayed all over. Haggard looks on their faces. They’d been through the wringer, it seemed. Much more than he was.

Celeste rushed over to him, inspecting his entire body. "What happened to you?"

"You were gone for so long. We thought... we thought you..." Sierra looked at him with disbelief.

They didn’t have much confidence he’d come out of that alive. Eren wasn’t surprised. He hadn’t displayed any fighting skill that would indicate he’d win a life-or-death encounter with Ormann, who they considered an elite fighter.

Celeste was the only one unsurprised. A knowing look was exchanged between them. It was a silent understanding.

Sierra started, suddenly remembering something. "Wait! Your Concrete Block. Did you get yours?!"

Celeste gave him a tight-lipped smile. "We were lucky we found Concrete Block on one of the Burrows. That map helped out a lot."

She then explained that while he was gone, most of the tunnels became explored. And by then, it was only a matter of time till more and more examinees found a Concrete Block to pass the test. Only few were as hard as the Quicksand Burrow.

"We think the day is ending soon," Bernadette said. "Most of the Concrete Blocks had been found as well..."

Meaning, five hundred examinees were eligible to move on to the next round of the License Exam. Well, less than five hundred, seeing as Magnus already destroyed a few Concrete Blocks for his own sake.

"Can I ask?" Sierra approached carefully.

Eren took a deep breath, as though it was hard for him to talk about it. "He sowed his own demise."

She nodded, as if she was trying to convince herself that she was very relieved to know Ormann was dead. The others showed complex expressions as well.

It seemed that Ormann had a much bigger influence in this group than Eren thought.

"There’s no need to feel guilty," Celeste assured Sierra. "He wouldn’t have cared if we fell to our deaths."

"You’re right. He’s a traitorous bastard," she replied.

Sierra sat back down and conversed with the others. Meanwhile, Celeste turned to Eren. "Did you find a Concrete Block?"

Eren nodded. "Of course."

Celeste seemed really relieved by that. Why would she, he didn’t know.

"Was it really something from a Prominent Family? Abe asked.

"It was. I got a loot box from it. A strange flame fruit."

He described the Quintessence Fruit perfectly. He needed to know if his guess about them was true.

"Ah, I’ve heard about those," said Henry. "They’re special fruits that completely replenish your Psions. Lucky!"

I was right. They think it’s just a rejuvenating resource.

"I hope you guys don’t mind that I ate it all."

"Not at all!" Sky said, beaming as she looked at him. "We wouldn’t have been able to follow... Ormann... like you did."

She nuzzled closer to him, beady eyes looking up at him with admiration. "That was amazing! I never thought you were that skilled in Reinforcement. How did you keep your fists empowered with little to no light?!"

Eren scratched his nose, feigning an awkward humbleness. "It’s nothing special. I only use the Primal Strike so my consumption of Psions is lower than normal."

"Still! Doing that with your life on the line... I think that’s really admirable!"

"I thought you were just a quiet guy too. Who knew you were capable of insane acrobatics!" Abe said, grabbing his shoulders.

"You were like a real hero...," Bernadette muttered.

Eren always thought that parades for cultivators during a successful hunt were excessive and a bit corny. But hearing their praises now, he kind of understood why they liked it so much. It made him feel like a real cultivator.

Celeste tilted her head as she noticed that expression on his face. Then, she smirked filled with a lot of teasing. "If you wanted to be praised, you should have just asked me."

Eren’s face steeled. "Shut up."

She chuckled.

"Examinees!"

It was at this moment that an authoritative voice echoed throughout the Subterranean Burrows, silencing the chatter around the cavern.

Everyone looked up. The voice came from the darkness above where the grey smoke of the campfire disappeared seemingly into oblivion.

Kaiser walked on the walls. Leisurely, with his hands on his pockets as if defying the rules of gravity was inconsequential to him. His red hair and cloudy left eye stood out against the darkness around him.

Once he was only a few meters from the ground, Kaiser jumped, somersaulted, and landed deftly on the ground.

"To those of you who have broken through a Concrete Block, congratulations. You have successfully passed the First Test of the License Exam."

Amongst the sighs of relief and elated jubilation, there were an equal amount of silent sobbing and anguished groans.

More than five hundred applicants found their journey through the License Exam cut off, just like that.

And it may not even be their fault. They had the skills. It was only unfortunate that they couldn’t find a Concrete Block to prove it.

"For those who have failed, you are required to exit the premises. Do it on your own accord, or you will be forced to do so. And trust me, you do not want to know how."

Kaiser then pointed towards an empty wall, just beside the cliff face with the cooking pots.

All of a sudden, the entirety of its face groaned and vibrated. Then, it split in half.

The two halves separated, showing a large staircase leading upwards through the Subterranean Burrows.

Torches on both sides of the walls lit the ascending path, making it look tribal and ceremonial.

Beyond the stairs was a bright white light. A complete contrast to the gloom that infested the tunnels.

It was a staircase that led to the outside world. It was both a relief and a point of regret for most of the examinees.