Chapter 187 : Alpha Division

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"Number 137!" someone called loudly.

Asami’s head snapped up. That was her number.

She stood quickly, as her gaze fell on the woman who had called out. The woman was a head taller than her.

'She's probably Korean. She's so beautiful.' Asami thought.

"Please, follow me," the woman said politely, her tone professional.

Asami nodded silently and followed behind her, trying to steady her breathing. They entered a large building.

Some applicants were standing in the hallways visibly waiting for something.

The woman in front of her explained, "There will be two interviews. The first will be with the school heads, and the second will be with ARAM's guild leaders."

"How can someone have such an ability? They read me like an open book." She heard a low level player whisper.

"I didn't mind sharing my secrets with someone as charming as that lady. But the man was so scary!" Another voice reached her ears.

Her friend whispered back, "I wouldn't say that out loud if I were you... I'm sure they hear us."

'Some of them are trembling, just like me.' She noticed the worry on many faces and the excitement on others.

'Is this how far they’ve come?' she wondered, thinking of her old friends, the duo everyone was here for.

'Their names alone had drawn this crowd.'

'Am I presumptuous for even thinking of them as my friends?' she wondered bitterly. 'We barely interacted back then. Maybe to them, I was just an ant—a nameless face they passed on their way to the top.'

The thought made her chest tighten, but she shook her head, forcing the negativity away. She remembered them, and how they had treated others in the past.

The woman had been gentle, always kind and approachable. The man had been fair and courageous, exuding a quiet confidence that made others want to follow him.

Taking a deep breath, she walked faster, closing the distance between her and the female assistant leading the way.

'I’m here to prove myself, to get a chance to become stronger.' She thought.

"Please wait for a moment. As soon as someone leaves this office, you can enter. " The woman pointed at a row of empty seats near the door, "Please take a seat."

Asami nodded politely, answering, "Thank you."

The assistant left, and Asami sat down. She didn’t have to wait long before the door burst open.

A man stormed out, his hands balled into fists.

He spat angrily, "I’ll make them pay for this!" As if speaking to himself but uncaring of who overheard. "Sending me on a mission to probe these monsters? They really want me dead!"

Asami did not understand what was happening. Her eyes followed the man as he stomped away. But before she could think about what had just happened, the door creaked open again.

A figure stepped out. Blond hair, about 1m80, and a smile that radiated confidence. It was Ralph.

'He looks the same. But something about him changed. His eyes are different...' She thought.

His smile widened as his eyes met hers. "Asami, it’s been a while!"

Her heart skipped a beat as she stood up. She barely managed a nod before he gestured toward the office. "Come on in."

She followed him inside, her steps hesitant. The room was simple but formal, with an interview table at the center. Two chairs were set on one side of the table, with a single seat positioned on the other side.

A woman stood up from one of the chairs as she entered. Asami immediately recognized her.

Kara.

Kara’s expression was gentle as her gaze landed on Asami. She took a few steps forward, then stopped, hesitating. "Asami, it has been so long..." she said , "can I hug you?"

Asami froze, taken aback by the question. She wasn’t someone who usually allowed others to invade her personal space, but something about Kara’s joy to see her, stirred warmth and relief within her.

'They're still the same...' Asami thought, feeling an overwhelming rush of emotions rising from within and threatening to burst at any time.

She nodded, managing to keep her emotions in check.

Kara smiled and closed the distance, wrapping Asami in a hug. The embrace was comforting, and less scary than she expected and feared.

"Welcome," Kara said softly as she pulled back, her hands resting lightly on Asami’s shoulders. "It’s so good to see you again. You look so beautiful."

"Let her breathe, Kara... Don't be rude." Sora said from the side.

Asami shook her head quickly, her cheeks warming. "It’s alright. Thank you for the welcome. How have you two been since Nara?"

Sora glanced toward the assistant who arrived with the next candidate. "Could you give this man access to the guest lounge? This interview might take a while," he said, his tone polite but firm. The assistant nodded and quietly led the next candidate away.

Kara gestured for Asami to sit. What followed was a conversation that lasted far longer than Asami had expected.

"You didn't need to go through this route to join the training camp. You could just have contacted us, and we would have gladly helped you." Sora said.

Asami looked down, "I didn't want to bother you, you're probably receiving hundreds of messages daily already."

Sora shook his head, "My friends never bother me. Next time, don't hesitate."

Kara looked at Sora and said, "We don't need to do the usual checks. It's clear she's not a spy."

Sora nodded, but Asami cut their conversation off, "I don't want any privilege... Please interview me like everyone else."

Sora hesitated for a moment before sighing. "I’ll be honest with you. This isn’t exactly a normal interview... We ask for permission from candidates and browse through their memories to understand their real intentions behind joining our program."

Asami froze, her thoughts heading to the darker parts of her past. 'They’ll see it all... how weak I am, how much I’ve struggled. This is going to be so shameful... How will I face them after this?'

"I’ll undergo your assessment like everyone else," she said finally, though her voice wavered. "But you might see some ugly things."

Sora smiled and gave , "If you want, we can forget your memories after watching them... And do not worry about your intimacy. Only Kara watches female players memories, while I handle male candidates."

Kara gave Asami a soft smile. "You’re brave to want this," she said. "It’s rare for someone to stand up and insist on fairness when it might expose their vulnerabilities. That tells me more about you than any memory ever could."

Sora extended a hand toward Asami. With his other hand, he gestured toward Kara, who put her hand in his.

"Here’s how this will work," Sora explained. "When you take my hand, I’ll gain access to your memories. I’ll project them for you and Kara to see, but I’ll lock my own senses so I won’t witness any of them myself."

He paused, giving her time to process. "Are you ready?"

Asami nodded. "I’m ready."

-------------------------------

Sora and Kara exchanged a glance, letting out a synchronized sigh.

Sora spoke first. "Amélie, Asami, and even Richard… Three friends applying to join the training camp. I didn’t see that coming."

Kara, still lost in thought, turned to him. "And to think I cried in front of Asami while watching her memories. It was so awkward when she thought my tears were out of pity. I was just… overwhelmed by the sadness I felt."

She paused, frowning slightly. "Now that I've already forgotten her memories, I don’t even know why I cried. This feels so strange. But I hope it doesn’t ruin my relationship with her."

Sora smiled and decided to change the topic. "Speaking of surprises, 193 players tried to infiltrate our Sky Academy, out of just over 2,000 applicants. Almost every major force sent one or two candidates to probe us. Even Hannah sent a few spies." His tone darkened. "Why is that witch still alive?"

Kara tilted her head thoughtfully. "If she’s still breathing, it either means Alius is still preparing himself or that his focus is elsewhere, like the person holding Hope prisoner."

Sora frowned slightly at the mention of Alius. "You’re probably right."

Kara added. "You know how he is. He won’t reach out unless we contact him first. Honestly, you’re not so different."

Sora chuckled and opened his interface, sending a message to Alius to check on his situation. There was no reply.

Kara broke the silence. "Emily and Kim are done filtering through players and sorting them by levels. It’s time to start training your recruits. But we still haven’t picked a name for your section."

Sora thought for a moment. "What about ‘Alpha Division’? It sounds strong. We can make it the first division—the best of the best. If we ever create other divisions, we'll continue with Beta and so on."

Kara nodded approvingly. "Simple, but it works. Doesn’t need to be complicated."

Sora stood, heading toward the door. "All the candidates who passed should be in the school refectory now. They’ve probably finished eating and gotten acquainted with each other."

"They're probably done eating and getting acquainted to each other by now. And since there's no kid among them, this time I won't have to hold back..."

Kara gave him a skeptical look. "You do realize that bullying the newcomers isn’t the same thing as training them, right?"

Sora grinned. "I don’t want to brag, but I trained troops inside the tower. I was pretty good at it, you know."

Kara rolled her eyes. "Alright, have fun with your recruits. I’ll head back to teach the kids."

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