In the auditorium, which had been opened to the public as a lunch area, I sat with Yuji and Hiiragi-san, munching on a sandwich I’d picked up from a convenience store near the station.
I had to hand it to modern convenience store food—the quality was impressive. It was a marvel they could offer such a decent product at that price point.
“So, are you even listening, Daiki?”
“Hmm? We were talking about how the convenience store egg sandwich is the undisputed king, right?”
“No. Nobody was talking about that.”
“Right. Sorry. I wasn’t listening.”
Yuji leveled a flat, unimpressed stare at me. Well, uh, my bad.
“Sigh. I was asking what we’re actually going to do for the practical training session.”
“Oh, that.”
“Anyway, my money’s on either monster countermeasure techniques or a trap-disarming workshop,” Yuji said, moving past his exasperation to offer a prediction. That seemed like a reasonable guess.
“Do you think so? I suspect it’ll be a check of our basic physical capabilities,” Hiiragi-san countered.
“Basic capabilities?”
“Yes. Jumping, leaping, running. As long as you have the bare minimum physical ability, you can manage well enough as long as you aren’t diving solo.”
Hiiragi-san had a point. In a team setting, tasks like fighting monsters or disarming traps can be handled by whoever is best suited for the role. If we assumed party-based movement, meeting a baseline of physical fitness would allow for a functional division of labor.
But...
“In that case, maybe I should offer a different guess?”
“Got something in mind?”
“Let’s see... how about warm-up exercises?”
“...Warm-up exercises?” they both repeated in unison.
Their expressions immediately shifted to the look one might give a particularly disappointing child.
“I don't mean the simple stuff we did in PE. I’m talking about the meticulous routines professional athletes use before a match.”
For instance, the kind of routine a pro baseball player might spend ten minutes or more on out on the field.
“If an amateur just half-heartedly does the basic stretches they learned in school and then gets jumped by a monster, do you really think they’ll be able to move instantly?”
“Well, probably not...”
“I see. Put that way, warm-ups are a plausible inclusion for the training,” Hiiragi-san admitted.
My reasoning had reached them, and they both looked convinced. I was glad I’d managed to get the point across.
We continued our idle chatter while quickly finishing our lunch.
“Phew. Thanks for the food.”
After finishing my meal, I pressed my hands together in a brief gesture of gratitude and began tidying up. Since it was just a matter of stuffing the wrappers back into the plastic bag and scrunching it down, it didn't take much effort.
“What’s the move? Take a quick break and then head to the changing rooms?”
Yuji, who had finished tidying up his own trash, asked about the schedule. I glanced around the auditorium, scanning the room before replying.
“Doesn't look like many people are moving yet. Why don't we change first and then rest? If we wait, everyone’s going to rush there at once, and it’ll be a mess.”
“Good point. It’ll be much easier to get it over with before the rooms are packed,” Hiiragi-san agreed. Yuji nodded as well. With the plan decided, we waited for Hiiragi-san to finish cleaning up, then grabbed our bags and left the auditorium for the designated changing rooms.
The changing rooms were located in a building near the training field. After parting ways with Hiiragi-san, Yuji and I headed inside. The room was simple: just rows of folding tables in a large space. I set my bag on a table and pulled out my school-issued gym clothes and tracksuit. For a student, this was the most accessible athletic gear. We changed quickly with practiced efficiency and headed back out with our bags. While we were chatting and waiting in the hallway where we’d split from Hiiragi-san, she reappeared, wearing the same tracksuit as us with her hair tied back in a ponytail.
“Sorry to keep you.”
“Nah, we just got here ourselves. Right, Yuji?”
“Yeah. We weren’t exactly waiting, so don’t worry about it.”
This exchange felt suspiciously like the dialogue from a first date. Whatever. I decided to move us along before the atmosphere got weird.
I suggested we go scout Ground A, where the training was supposed to take place. Neither of them objected, and we headed toward the field with our bags in tow.
Before long, the artificial turf came into view, along with several installations. There were five cylindrical wooden boxes about the size of shipping containers and five pitching machines equipped with screens. They were clearly for the training, though their specific purpose wasn't immediately obvious. As the three of us watched, staff members moved busily about the field, making final adjustments.
“What do you think those are for?”
“No clue.”
“We’ll find out during the lecture. More importantly, look at that.”
Hiiragi-san pointed toward a set of blue tarps and signboards marked with numbers.
“A luggage area?”
“Probably. Looks a bit flimsy, though.”
“...Well, I suppose it’s better than leaving things directly on the grass,” Hiiragi-san remarked, her eyes half-lidded in a look of begrudging compromise. Personally, I thought providing tarps at all was fairly considerate.
“Well, we’ve seen the field. Since we’re here, why don't we take a quick look around the campus?”
“Sure. Why not?”
“I agree. Better than just standing here killing time.”
“Then let’s go.”
We left the field to wander the university grounds. Being a national university, it had plenty of impressive facilities. There was a massive library with an enormous collection, an engineering wing with actual cars and aircraft on display, a stylish cafe-restaurant, and more. Hiiragi-san and Yuji even started talking about applying there, eventually picking up a few different brochures from the administration office. Naturally, I grabbed some as well.
We returned to the field ten minutes before the session was set to begin. A large crowd had already gathered, so we jogged over to the blue tarp corresponding to our number to drop off our bags. Since everyone was congregating near the morning assembly platform, we followed the flow of the crowd.
“Hmm. Maybe we cut it a bit too close?”
“It’s fine. The lecturer hasn’t even stepped up to the podium yet.”
“Yes. We’re still technically early, so it’s okay.”
As the three of us chatted, a voice boomed from the platform.
“The pre-practical training session for the Armed Exploration Permit for Special Underground Structures Issuance Exam will begin in five minutes! All examinees, please gather where you can see the platform!”
At the announcement, the students scattered across the field began to converge on the podium.
“It is time, so we will now begin the practical training. I am your lecturer, Sakamaki. Pleasure to meet you.”
The training kicked off with an introduction from Lecturer Sakamaki, who possessed the rugged, athletic build of a career PE teacher. The students within eyeshot looked to be about fifty-fifty between excitement and anxiety.
“First, the very first thing I will be teaching you in this session is warm-up exercises.”
My prediction had hit the mark. Hearing “warm-ups,” a wave of confused murmurs rippled through the crowd, and the field grew noisy.
Lecturer Sakamaki raised his hands to quiet the commotion before beginning his explanation.
“Now, I hope none of you are taking this lightly. If a human being attempts intense movement without a proper warm-up, they cannot achieve their peak performance. Furthermore, skipping your warm-up before exercise dramatically increases the risk of injury. For instance, you might tear your Achilles tendon the very moment you try to leap sideways.”
The explanation effectively silenced the crowd.
“The routine we are about to teach you is a meticulous menu used by professional athletes before practice and matches. By performing these correctly, you can ensure peak performance and reduce the risk of sudden injury. There are many steps to get through, so please follow our instructions closely. Now, everyone, please spread out across the field so you have enough room.”
Following Sakamaki’s lead, the students spread out across the turf.
The three of us also spaced ourselves out and waited for the next command.
“Is everyone ready? Then, we will begin. First, your arms...”
Under Sakamaki’s direction, we spent about ten to fifteen minutes performing a thorough warm-up routine.
At first, I was clumsy with the unfamiliar movements, but the effects were undeniable. After fully engaging muscles and joints I rarely used, I felt a sense of lightness and clarity I’d never experienced before.
The difference was so stark it made me wonder if I’d been carrying around invisible weights until now.
“That concludes our warm-up. Next, we will divide the examinees into two groups for trap breakthrough training and monster countermeasure training. This will be the practical application of what you learned in this morning's lectures. Let’s do our best and keep that knowledge in mind.”
Lecturer Sakamaki delivered this rather daunting instruction with a smile. Excluding the rare prodigy, there was no way someone could handle traps or monsters just by listening to a single lecture.
Ah, I see. The point is to let the students experience failure.
“Numbers 1 through 200 will be Group A and proceed to trap countermeasure training. Numbers 201 through 387 will be Group B and proceed to monster countermeasure training. Once everyone in a group has finished, the groups will switch. Group A, please follow me to the containers. Group B, please follow Lecturer Kamiya to the pitching machines.”
The examinees began to move in a mass, following the lecturers as instructed.
“What exactly are we doing for monster countermeasure training?” Yuji asked as we followed Lecturer Kamiya, who had a gentle, refined appearance.
“They’re using pitching machines, so it’s likely evasion training using the balls as monsters,” I guessed.
“I agree. Since they have screens, they’ll probably play footage of monsters and have us dodge,” Hiiragi-san added.
Our predictions were identical. It didn't seem like there was much else to do with a pitching machine in this context.
“So basically, it’s an evasion game.”
“Probably.”
Given that a single hit could result in a major injury, it only made sense to train our ability to avoid them. After all, if a blow landed in the wrong place, it could easily be fatal.
Once Group B had gathered, Lecturer Kamiya began explaining the session.
“Alright, Group B. What I’m going to have you do now is evade these rubber balls fired from the pitching machines.”
Lecturer Kamiya continued his explanation while casually squeezing a rubber ball between his fingers.
“The screens on the pitching machines will display the interior of a dungeon and various monsters. Please evade or deflect these rubber balls, which represent attacking monsters. Each person will have ten balls fired at them. For safety, we’ll have you wear these catcher’s masks. Now, please form even lines in front of the machines.”
The students in Group B murmured nervously but lined up as directed.
“Then, let us begin. The first person in each line, please step into the circle.”
The students at the front took the masks, put them on, and stepped into circles marked on the ground about five to six meters away from the machines.
The screens on the pitching machines hummed to life, displaying a dimly lit stone corridor—a dungeon. The footage moved forward at a walking pace, progressing through the depths. After the footage had run for a short while, a shadow suddenly emerged from the gloom of the corridor. The moment the monster’s form filled the screen, a rubber ball shot out of the machine.
Out of the five examinees, only one managed to dodge or deflect the ball. Lecturer Kamiya stopped the footage and addressed the crowd in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear.
“Based on that, four out of the five of you just suffered serious injuries... or died.”
At Kamiya’s matter-of-fact declaration, the murmurs of the crowd died away like a receding tide. The students were plunged into a heavy, oppressive silence, forced to remember the reality they had been trying to ignore. The examinees who had been hit by the balls stood pale, the blood draining from their faces at the mention of their own "death." A chilling, unnatural atmosphere took over the field.
“This time it was only a rubber ball, and you won't walk away with any real injuries. However, in the dungeons you will enter once you become explorers, a single moment’s lapse will lead to disaster.”
Kamiya gave the silent students a brief, sweeping glance before declaring with a cheerful smile:
“Now then, everyone, let’s put some heart into this practical training!”
We were thoroughly repulsed.
This guy is definitely enjoying himself...