Transcendent Gene
Chapter 214: Two Paths [4]

Chapter 214: Two Paths [4]

This time, the Riftworld was simulated.

When people said the First Institute was one of the best Sequencing Academies in the entire Stratum, it painted a grand picture without much detail.

Their curriculum was good, and their professors were all very qualified professionals who taught students all the skills they needed, but that wasn’t the end of it.

As one of the top academies, the First Institute was backed by countless sponsors who gave them a lump sum of money they could use however they pleased.

The main building was used for homeroom classes and basic courses where students had to stay inside, but the main curriculum of the academy took place outside or in training facilities.

And there were plenty of them all across the grand island of the institute.

The training ground Gio’s class used was near one of such facilities. They’d been inside before. It was a gymnasium that could be used for really any purpose.

Most of the time, they just put mats or conditioning equipment out for training, but they entered for a different reason today.

The students were gathered near one wall of the gym. They stood in a line before Professor Farris, who handed each of them some equipment.

Gio was handed a pair of sunglasses and something that looked like a wetsuit. He already knew what they were for, so he went into the locker room and changed without saying much.

On one side of the sunglasses, there was a wire with a small circular attachment at the end. After putting them on, he placed the attachment behind his ear, where it latched to his head like a magnet.

He came out of the locker room looking strange, but the rest of the students were just the same. Instead of feeling embarrassed by their appearances, they were much more concerned with the way the gym changed in the few minutes they were gone.

The empty space was now filled with machines and wires that appeared like magic. The machines were capsules big enough to fit humans, usually used for gaming experiences in virtual reality.

However, when the same consoles were modified by companies like Taurus-Roth and Rotom Corp, they could be turned into something so much greater.

’Simulated reality isn’t something like a VR game,’ Gio thought to himself.

Before the tower, it was the closest he got to fighting on the battlefield. He knew just how real it could be.

"Alright," Professor Farris said, grabbing the class’s attention.

"All of you, pick a capsule and get comfortable inside. The assistants will come by and check that your goggles are on right before they close you in."

Tieran had 4 TAs, which was mostly uncommon but not something to be questioned.

Gio walked over to a random console and climbed inside. There was still a decent amount of space left above his head when his feet were planted on its floor, but–

"So this is where you were!"

Gio looked up, his eyes already in the process of rolling.

"Where else would I be? We’re all here," he replied

"Sure, but I wanted to take the spot next to you so we can spawn together. I still need my revenge for last time."

The grinning boy with dark grey hair and green eyes in front of him was called Shiro. If Gio developed any kind of friendship with someone other than Neriah or Serene over the past few weeks, it was with him.

Shiro was his first sparring partner in this class. He was the one who got humiliated so Gio could earn a place among his seniors.

Instead of taking it as an insult, Shiro gained an appreciation for the skills of the first year who joined their class and challenged him almost every time they had to spar.

He was a kid with a bright personality who liked to cling to people he liked. Even though Gio had a relatively unfriendly personality, he wasn’t put off by it at all.

"You know the capsule doesn’t guarantee your spawn, right?" Gio said.

"It doesn’t?" Shiro responded, tilting his head.

"Of course not. It’s random. We don’t even know what Riftworld we’ll enter. It might even be one where none of us ever encounters each other."

Shiro hummed for a second, considering the words before shrugging.

"Well, not like it matters. It’s open, so I’ll just use it anyway. I was planning to ask for a spar after class too."

It wasn’t that he was willing to put up with someone who didn’t entertain his personality. It was more like he didn’t care at all.

As Shiro got into the capsule next to Gio, a TA approached and checked him before closing the capsule’s lid and sealing him inside.

A minute later, he heard Professor Farris’ voice in his ears.

"Ahem...check, check. I’m going to assume all of you can hear me. Most of you already get it, but I’ll explain for those who don’t. In a second, you’re going to feel a jolt like you got hit by something big. Everything will go dark, and you’ll open your eyes again in a new environment," he explained.

"None of it is real, but it will feel real. You’ll feel pain and the sensations of the environment around you. If you die inside, you’ll be pulled out with a failing grade. As for your actual goals..."

His grin was audible through his words.

"...that’s for you to figure out when you’re in there. That kind of information is never a thing until people die to obtain it. At the end of the day, you’re trying to escape. Move with that in mind."

There were no grandiose introductions. There wasn’t more of a warning than what Tieran said, and there wasn’t an inkling of an expectation set in their heads for what they’d see.

The "first" simulated Riftworld of every school year was different just to keep things interesting for the students involved.

Last year, they were in a fully aquatic world that they had to learn to navigate and escape. This time...

Voom!

It was just as Tieran described. A figurative block of cement hit Gio in the chest, turning his vision black. In the next second, it returned, showing him a scene he certainly didn’t expect.

"Wow..."

He breathed the word audibly as he looked around.

It was truly beautiful.

Near the peak of a mountain looking out at a sea of clouds was where he stood. Vaguely through their translucence, he could catch glimpses of the canopy of trees on the ground.

At his feet was a cliff face with a steep drop leading to a lower part of the mountain, and behind him was the path to the top.

The world was filled with sound: the rushing wind, the lively flora, and most importantly, the ambient growls, howls, and chirps of monsters.

Riftworlds, assumed to be pieces of the home of monsters, were some of the most dangerous environments humans could enter.

And although this one was merely simulated, it was entirely based on a real Riftworld that humanity had already cleared.

Gio’s eyes narrowed as he took the world in.

’First things first, let’s understand where exactly we are.’

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.