Return Of The SSS-Class Hunter

"I am preparing to participate in the half-yearly Ranker's Test," Derek repeated.

Emma stared at him as if he had lost his mind. "Are you nuts? Do you even know how tough and dangerous that test is? Don't think that just because it's held under the academy's supervision, it's safe. There have been death cases in the past. And the difficulty?! It's on a whole different level."

She leaned toward him a little, voice firm. "You may be strong, but most of the participants are third-year or final-year students. The ones who aim for the top three spots are the best of the best. And even the teams who join just to take it as training… even they are strong."

"I know," Derek replied calmly. "But I'm still going to participate. And how will I know whether it's too hard for me or not unless I try?"

"You really are a crazy one, you know that?" she said, staring at him. 'Or else who in their right mind would charge at a magical beast knowing full well they would lose — maybe even die?' The memory of Derek rushing in to save her flashed vividly in her mind.

Derek only chuckled softly at what she said as if it were a compliment.

"By the way," she continued, "who's in your team? Have you selected everyone yet?"

"Umm… not fully. Two of my friends are joining — Henry and Art. Currently, we have three members. We still need two more."

"You haven't even completed your team? You do know you only have three more days to submit your names, right?"

"Yes. And I believe I'll find two more members by then."

"You're awfully confident, huh?" Emma smiled slightly. "How about I join your team too? You still have two vacant spots, right?"

"You?! No way."

She narrowed her eyes. "Why? You think I'm weak? You should know I'm the top student in the fourth-year elite class. And don't judge me based on that day in the forest. I was helpless because it was a C-class magical beast. What was I supposed to do?"

"I know you're strong," Derek said quickly. "But you recently had an accident, and I don't want you to go through that kind of pressure again. And I already know how talented you are — you're already an E-class mage, close to a breakthrough. Your chances of landing in the top three will be much higher if you join any other team."

He spoke gently, genuinely. It wasn't that he didn't want her in his team — if anything, he would've been glad. But he didn't want to take advantage of her willingness or harm her chances just because of him.

"If you know I'm strong, then just agree already. Because I will definitely be joining. And you'd better not let anyone mock our team," Emma said firmly.

"If you really want to join, then I'm actually grateful," Derek replied with a small smile. "And don't worry about people mocking us. You should be more concerned about whether we end up scaring the others too much."

Emma raised an eyebrow, amused. "Is that so, huh? I'll be waiting to see that."

"Alright, Senior Emma. I'll get going now. Once you have fully recovered and been discharged, please contact me. By then, I'll have arranged a place for our team to train together."

"Okay. Take care."

Derek then left the infirmary. After resting for a bit in his room, he headed to the training chamber and cultivated for the rest of the day, taking only a short break for dinner.

The next day, classes began as usual. Paul, Mia, Billy, and Harold were sprinting from the starting point to the finishing point while desperately trying not to trigger the bells. They still hadn't succeeded yet, but they had improved tremendously.

Although their main focus had been mastering Lightning Pace, it wasn't the only thing they had learned over the last five months. Their instructor had also taught them several fighting techniques.

As usual, the instructor and Derek stood at the back.

"Now that you've conditioned both your body and senses for Lightning Pace," the instructor began, "it's time for the third phase. The practical phase. And that won't be possible in a classroom. So, we'll have to go to the training chamber."

"Training chamber? Which one?" Derek asked.

"It's a special one. You'll understand once we get there."

"Are we going now? What about them?" Derek asked.

"They're coming with us," the instructor replied. "It's not like they need much space for their training."

"Alright."

With that, they walked toward the front of the class.

"Everyone," the instructor announced. "We're heading to a training chamber for Derek's third-phase training. You'll continue your training there as well. Let's move."

"Yes, sir!"

The group followed him to a particular training chamber. But unlike the usual ones, this wasn't just a room — it was a long hallway, almost like an indoor forest. The atmosphere felt wild and uneven. Some places had puddles of water; elsewhere, fallen logs blocked parts of the path.

"What kind of training chamber is this?" Derek asked, astonished.

"It's a chamber designed to hone one's reaction speed and reflexes," the instructor explained. "It uses a formation. The moment you start running toward the finish line, various traps will activate. Normally, the task is to dodge every obstacle and reach the end."

He paused, then grinned as he pulled out three bells from his pocket.

"But for you… You'll tie these bells to your body, just as you did in the first phase. Then you'll blindfold yourself, like in the second phase. Combine both methods — and run to the finish line. Your task is simple: don't let the bells ring, and don't get hit by the traps. Well… you can get hit if you want to feel pain."

"Why does this feel less like training and more like 'kill Derek while training'?" Derek said, raising an eyebrow.

The instructor chuckled. "Don't worry. You won't die here. But you will be seriously injured if you're careless. This chamber may be for academy students, but the test you'll be doing is meant for veteran hunters. Normally, people master Lightning Pace only after 12 to 15 years of training. So when they take this challenge, they're usually 20 to 25 years old."

He looked at Derek with a mix of admiration and disbelief. You, on the other hand, mastered the first two phases in just five months. What else can I do except push you to the third? Still, you can refuse if you don't want to master Lightning Pace."

"Forget it. I'll do it."

Without hesitation, Derek took the bells and tied one at his waist and the other two around his ankles. Then he blindfolded his eyes with a strip of cloth and positioned himself at the starting line.

The other four students gasped at his courage — or insanity — to agree to such a test. Even Harold's eyes tensed with worry.

The instructor raised his voice. "Ready?"

"Yes."

"Alright then…

Set…

Go!"