[Raul PoV]
Before me, the real Raul de Garcia appears as a Guider in the Soul Room that I possess. I am curious, why can this happen, I wonder?
"Talking to a man who has the same face is actually a bit awkward, huh?" said the real Raul, scratching his cheek. "So, what should I call you? You have your own real name, don't you?"
"You can call me, Evans," I answered him. "At least that was my name before entering your body."
Honestly, I do not need to ask the Guider to find out the Profound Codex that I possess. That is because I already know what Profound Codexes the character Raul has in the game. However, I must have permission from the Guider to be able to activate them anytime after this.
However, I was a little surprised after seeing that Raul is the one who became the Guider inside the Soul Room that I possess.
So, all this time, the real Raul's soul really does still exist inside this body. Perhaps this is the reason I am always influenced by his emotions when I am near Ariel.
"Hey, am I dead?" asked Raul to me. "The last thing I remember before waking up in this place was when Brian hit my head hard during our duel."
That was also the first thing I saw when I regained consciousness in this game world of my making, which was lying on the ground with excruciating pain in my head.
"I think you are not dead because your soul is still inside this body," I answered him. "Even out there, your emotions towards Ariel still affect me when I am near her."
"Is that so?" murmured the real Raul. "Speaking of Ariel, how is she now?"
Do you really want to know, huh? Will her heart be ready to accept the bitter reality?
"She is getting closer to Brian these days," I answered directly. "There is even a rumor saying that they have become a couple."
Hearing my words, the real Raul fell down and then started clutching his chest.
"Gugghhh... That bastard man, Damn it!" Raul started pounding the floor with his hands. "Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!"
Is he that hateful towards Brian? Actually, I am the one who arranged for him to have extremely strong feelings of hatred towards the Hero. I did not expect to see him suffer directly because of what I did when developing this game.
"I... I cannot bear it if Ariel ends up in the hands of a disgusting man like him!" cursed Raul, venting his anger.
"Do you want to get this body back? To get Ariel back from Brian's hands?" I asked him sincerely.
"Is that possible?"
I only shook my head in response to his question. "But, I will find a way for you to return to this body someday later. How about it?"
The real Raul stared at the floor, looking like he was thinking about something after hearing my offer.
"My father... He never considered me his son at all..." murmured Raul. "The only person close to me—Ariel, prefers to be with the man I hate; I don't have anything valuable out there at all..."
That is true; in the game, Raul's life is very isolated. He never interacts with other students; he will only speak to others if it relates to harming Brian.
I think it makes a bit of sense why Raul became desperate to get Ariel back, even to the point of daring to sell his soul to the devil. Ariel is the only person in this world who cares about him.
For him, Ariel is the reason he feels the meaning of living in this world.
I understand his feelings because I have lost Liana—my lover who left me for another man. However, I am lucky to still have a dream to cover the feeling of despair after losing the woman I loved very much.
When we were children, we were always amazed and impressed by the actions of heroes and hated the villains who spread suffering to others. However, when we grow up, we understand why the villains do what they do to take back what was lost from them.
As a Child, we admire the Hero ... As Adults, we Understand The Villain ...
---
[Valeria PoV]
Tomorrow, we will arrive at the location of the third stage exam and carry out the exam where participants can lose their lives.
Previously, Raul and I managed to finish in first place during the second stage exam. We got 300 points after this victory.
I am very happy that I finally managed to get first place in one of these survival exams.
Currently, I am walking around the resting area of the participant convoy to look for Raul. However, I have not found him at all since earlier.
"Where could he be, I wonder?"
Searching here and there, I see a man and a woman sitting side by side under a tree. If I am not mistaken, they are both members of the disciplinary committee led by Raul, right?
Seeing me approaching, the two of them then stopped chatting.
"Do you two see Raul?" I asked them.
They looked at each other upon hearing my question. "The Captain, huh? He walked towards the west earlier, if I am not mistaken; he said he wanted to be alone for a while before continuing the journey," said the woman.
"Alright, thank you."
Leaving the two of them, I go walking in the direction the woman pointed out. Not long after, I see a black-haired man sitting leaning against a tree.
Walking closer, I realize the man is sleeping. A black Mark is seen shining on his hand.
"Huh? Isn't this a Mark for activating a Codex?" I murmured, a little surprised by what I saw. "Has Raul already awakened his Codex? But, why has he never used it at all?"
Speaking of a Codex, I have not even awakened mine at all. That is because there is no definite way to awaken it, as each person has different conditions.
Ughhh... Am I going to fall behind him again? Even without using Nature Mana, he is already terrifying. What will happen if he uses both of those powers when fighting?
---
[Raul PoV]
Profound Codexes are various kinds of special skills possessed by someone who has awakened their Codex. An example is Brian, who has a Codex with the themes of Justice, Bravery, and Tenacity.
If Brian's Mentality Codex has increased, then the skills that can be used will also be more. Each theme has three skills to unlock.
For Raul's character himself, he has a Codex with the themes of Hated, Anger, and Bloodlust. Each has skills with different abilities. However, the most dangerous to use are the skills from the Bloodlust theme.
Raul in the game could never control himself when activating these skills.
"You came here to activate your Skills, didn't you?" asked Raul, who is now calmer after venting his anger.
"You are right," I answered casually.
"I already know that," he said as he stood up. "When I regained consciousness in this place, suddenly my head hurt because of the large amount of strange information entering all at once."
So that's how it is, huh? The Guiders get information about a person's Codex? In the game, this is not explained in detail. The Guiders suddenly appear if the Player selects the Soul Room menu in the game to train.
"This has become my task, hasn't it? To help you become stronger?" said Raul, looking directly into my eyes. "I will give you the skill activation if you promise me one thing."
"Tell me."
"Please protect Ariel with this power."
Even without him asking, of course I will protect a person as important as Ariel. She will become the Saint and save this world from the demon attack.
"Of course, leave it to me."
Hearing my answer, Raul looked relieved.
"Before I go, I want to ask you one thing, Raul," I added.
"What do you want to ask?"
"Actually, which assassin organization did you hire to kill Brian in this third stage exam?" I asked him.
Previously, I received a mysterious letter saying that the preparations to kill Brian during the survival exam were complete. By knowing their originating organization, at least I can prepare something when fighting them later.
"Ughhh... Regarding that..." murmured Raul, looking unsure. "If I am not mistaken, its name is Ouroboros."
---
[3rd PoV]
At night, one day before the third exam begins.
Three men and one woman are seen gathering not far from the Monster Forest—the place where the survival exam will be held.
"I have scouted the surrounding area; the participant convoy just arrived and is resting outside the forest," said a man with short-cropped hair. From his appearance, he is a Brawler.
"Good job, Ape," said the man who had a sword tied at his waist. "When will the exam start, roughly?"
"I think tomorrow morning, considering they just arrived and have to rest before the exam begins," said a mage in a brown robe. "According to the information I got, there are eight instructors who will guard that forest."
The eight instructors will each stand guard at the points where the participants will start entering the forest. They will ensure that no one will interfere with the course of this exam from the outside.
"Foxy, those are your part, aren't they?" called the swordsman to the only woman in this group.
"Yes, yes... Don't worry, Marlin. I will give you time by drawing the attention of those instructors," said Foxy, looking confident.
"We are entrusting you with this task because you are the fastest among the four of us."
Tomorrow, the participants will carry out the third stage exam. However, they do not know that the real danger they should fear is not the monsters inside the forest, but these hired assassins who will disrupt the course of the exam tomorrow.