บท 6: The Second Trial
A vast underground cave stretched out before their eyes, revealing a seemingly endless expanse. Without the torches hanging everywhere, barely illuminating the place, it would have been impossible to guess its true size.
"Ah!"
"Argh!"
The children's screams echoed throughout the cave as they emerged from different gates, each a reflection of the pain and surprise they felt.
After months trapped in darkness, where light was only a distant memory, the brightness of the torches hurt them as if their eyeballs were about to explode.
Jun wasn't foolish; of course, he wasn't the first to step onto what could very well be hostile ground. That's why he patiently waited far behind the group, gripping the sharp edge of the broken plate tightly, his eyes not fully open.
Slowly adapting to the light, he waited patiently for his eyes to stop hurting, but this took a long time.
When he finally adjusted, he looked around. There were still children who couldn't open their eyes, but Jun paid them no mind. Instead, he focused on exploring the underground cave that unfolded before him.
The cave appeared to have formed naturally, with enormous stalactites hanging from the ceiling, a testament to its age.
The cave's structure narrowed upward, like an inverted bowl. However, what caught his attention the most were the wooden buildings filling the cave's interior. These were rudimentary constructions that seemed inspired by a mansion.
"What is this?" Many children murmured, now recovering from their initial suffering.
The existence of such a vast underground cave was already incredible, but discovering that it housed structures made by human hands filled them with distrust.
Jun advanced toward one of the buildings, closely followed by Liu and Lau, who stuck with him as soon as they identified him as the first person they encountered.
Upon reaching the entrance, Jun observed the interior and murmured, "There's no one here."
"Really?" Liu asked, with a spark of suspicion in his eyes.
They explored each of the buildings but found no trace of life. The children were puzzled; they feared finding someone, but now that they were alone, they didn't know what to do.
While the others remained lost in confusion, Jun continued inspecting the buildings.
They weren't old. Judging by the condition of the wood, it was evident that they had been built recently.
The grain of the wood and the accumulated dust indicated that the constructions had been erected during the time when Jun and the others had been locked in their respective cells.
But despite their exterior appearance, the interior of the buildings was in deplorable condition, as if they had been deliberately constructed to be uninhabitable.
Jun knew there had to be a reason behind all this. He had learned from his fragmented memories that everything around him was full of information; he just needed to observe the place correctly to understand what surrounded him.
And then, when he thought no one else knew what was happening, a group of children smarter than the rest formed a group without saying a single word.
What was going on with them?
Their appearance was much better than that of the other children, so Jun immediately knew that these children knew something.
From what he had seen, the sections of the cells were different in one detail: the food.
Yes, there was a difference in the food that was delivered as the cell sections progressed.
Jun, who had discovered something, thought, 'If these children know each other beforehand, that means they are here by choice, children who aspire to be assassins. Adult assassins must have families, which leads to offspring.
If a father is an assassin, it is expected that the son will be one too.
If these children had prior knowledge of where they were, there was a clear advantage for whatever they were about to face here.
"You're Jun; nice to meet you. I'm Liu."
Jun looked at the boy who greeted him and nodded slightly. "You're Liu. I recognize your voice. The pleasure is mine."
"Huh?"
'I made a mistake.' Jun faked a polite smile but knew he had slipped up. If he was supposed to be an orphan, how could he know about etiquette and manners?
By revealing this, he was giving people more information about himself, so for now, he decided to keep his mouth shut before his way of speaking betrayed that he was different from the others.
He recognized much of the behavior of these people—the honor and loyalty were surprising qualities. But like everyone else, there were treacherous ones who didn't follow that code of honor.
Jun had to be careful.
"What are you doing, Jun?" Liu asked again as he followed Jun, who was observing the walls of the cave.
"Just observing, but I'd prefer to be alone so I don't get distracted."
Jun's response seemed to take Liu by surprise.
Lau, on the other hand, appeared a bit annoyed, not understanding why Jun acted as if he knew everything or pretended to be smarter than the others.
Both understood that the long period of isolation in the dark could drive someone mad. Some had managed to maintain their identity thanks to their mental strength, but not everyone could do so.
Moreover, all the children trapped in that underground space were only between nine and ten years old.
Being imprisoned in a state where their minds were not yet fully developed made the collapse of their egos particularly severe.
It might not be noticeable on the surface now, but no one knew what problems it could cause in the future.
Jun didn't want to mix with them yet. He didn't trust the other children, not even himself, as he didn't know what he was capable of now. Although he seemed normal, he couldn't be sure if he had already developed some kind of mental issue.
Lau, after a brief moment of confusion, smiled softly at him.
"Don't stray too far. Come back when you've observed enough. If you feel lonely, you can stay with us without any problem."
Jun simply nodded without saying a word.
"Shall we join the others?" Liu turned to where Lau was and asked.
"Better than wandering aimlessly. We'll die if we think we're smart."
The two returned to where the other children were, shoulder to shoulder, while Jun watched them silently.
Only then was the second trial underway...
It had only been a few hours since the children had seen each other for the first time, but they quickly formed like-minded groups.
It couldn't be any other way.
They were anxious to survive in that place. It was natural to seek comfort in others. The factions began to form in groups of three to five people. However, Jun did not join any of the groups.
He observed the movements of the other children, carefully determining who was allied with whom. The factions formed almost immediately, but conflicts also arose among them.
The leaders of the different groups clashed over food and space.
At times, it even led to physical violence.
The nature of the children, who instinctively behaved like wild animals in extreme situations, was no different from that of adults.
The larger and stronger factions held the power. A boy named Cheng emerged as the leader of the strongest faction of all.
They had superior physical strength, and their control over the group was formidable. The other children began to rely on them for protection.
Jun, on the other hand, briefly assessed his own appearance: he had long, black hair, black eyes, slightly pale skin, and was slightly taller than usual for his age.
He didn't know if he considered himself handsome, but he didn't think it would benefit him in any way when, in the near future, there would be war wherever he was.
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