Though we’d scrambled to prepare for the training in a single frantic week, everything was finished with more breathing room than I’d initially expected. This was likely because the most daunting task—securing the necessary personnel—had been settled in a flash, with everyone I contacted giving an immediate, enthusiastic "yes."
Everyone had been incredibly motivated, after all.
"Well then, I’m off to pick up Yuji-san and the others."
"Right, I’m counting on you, Muroi-kun. We’ll finish the final briefing while you’re gone."
"Understood."
I gave my regards to Genya-san, who was on-site as the supervisor, and drove off to fetch Yuji-kun and his friends. Fortunately, I arrived at the Hirose residence without getting snagged in traffic. Since I was well ahead of schedule, I ended up waiting for the group to assemble while sharing tea with Juzo-san in his dojo.
"My apologies for the sudden request this time, Muroi-kun."
"Not at all. It was certainly short notice, but this arrangement is beneficial for us as well. Please, don't let it weigh on you."
"Is that so? I’m glad to hear it."
After we’d finished the polite social dance of formal greetings and pleasantries, we settled into a more casual conversation. I couldn’t exactly sit there in stony silence until Yuji-kun arrived.
I took a sip of tea to moisten my throat before speaking my mind.
"Even so, Juzo-san, this request seems quite harsh for Yuji-kun and his friends. If you’ll forgive my saying so, this isn't the kind of training usually imposed on high school students. It’s more akin to the final exams our SP candidates undergo."
"Well, I suppose that’s true. Normally, even with a fair bit of training, a mere high schooler wouldn't be able to clear this sort of thing easily."
Juzo-san responded in a matter-of-fact tone, as if stating the obvious.
If that was the case, did it mean Juzo-san didn't actually expect them to "clear" the training in the traditional sense?
"Eh? Then why go through all this trouble?"
"Human beings can react quickly to what they know, but their response to the unknown is inevitably a step behind. You know this too, don't you, Muroi-kun? You know just how fatal being that one step behind can be."
"T-That’s... yes."
I nodded deeply, a slight bitterness rising in my mouth. I knew exactly what Juzo-san was talking about; I had lived it. Even now, looking back, I could only lament my own inadequacy—my lack of imagination and my insufficient effort. Why hadn't I pushed my mind further? Why hadn't I listened more intently to the stories of my experienced seniors?
As Juzo-san said, I knew all too well from my own failures that reacting to the unknown inevitably leaves you a step behind.
"The dungeon Yuji and the others are heading into is a place where monsters prowl in droves, and even those you slay will eventually reappear. That means that even if they clear the area around their bivouac site to secure it, it can never truly be called a safe zone. There’s no telling when they might be attacked at an unexpected moment, right in the gaps between tension and fatigue."
"So that’s the purpose of this training..."
"If they experience an ambush while exhausted and stressed during a simulation, they might avoid being a step behind during the main event. When a person is worn out, their thinking slows down; if you have to process things through your head first, you'll be even further behind. Ultimately, the best-case scenario is for them to perform the optimal response through pure reflex, but..."
Wasn't that a bit much to ask? Certainly, Yuji-kun and the others were exceptional—even when viewed as explorers rather than just students. However, that kind of instinctive mastery was usually something cultivated over years of experience.
Then again, if they possessed a truly genius-level talent, the rules might be different.
"Well, they can learn to do that in due time. For now, the priority is turning the 'unknown' into the 'known,' though it will be quite an ordeal for them."
Juzo-san chuckled, sounding somewhat amused. It was going to be more than just "an ordeal." I couldn't find the words to respond to the entertained Juzo-san and could only manage a wry smile.
After we had talked for a while longer, I heard the dojo entrance slide open. Yuji-kun appeared, still dressed in his school uniform and carrying his bag.
"Hello, Muroi-san. I'm sorry to have kept you waiting when you came all this way to pick us up..."
"Hello, Yuji-kun. No, don't worry about it. I just arrived much earlier than planned."
I told Yuji-kun not to worry as he bowed and apologized in a rush. In truth, it was my fault for arriving so early because I had left ahead of time to account for potential traffic. There was no reason for him to apologize.
"Yuji, don’t present yourself like that before a guest," Juzo-san chided. "Stop dazing off and go change. Fetch the gear you're taking, too."
"Ah, right. Sorry, Muroi-san. I’ll change right away."
"Ah, you don't have to rush that much. Just make sure you don't forget anything in your haste."
"Yes. Then, please excuse me for a moment."
With a polite bow, Yuji-kun left the dojo.
"Forgive him, Muroi-kun. He’s a bit ill-mannered."
"Not at all. I’m sure Yuji-kun just wanted to greet me as soon as possible after seeing my car parked outside."
"Is that so?"
I waited a short while longer until Yuji-kun reappeared, now dressed in casual clothes and carrying his luggage.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
"Ah, Yuji-kun, good work. It’s still before our scheduled departure, so you really didn't have to rush so much, you know?"
"Ah, no. I already had my gear packed and ready, so it wasn't that much of a rush."
"I see. Then shall we have some tea while we wait for the other two?"
"Yes."
I spent the rest of the time chatting with Yuji-kun while we waited for Kokonoe-kun and Hiiragi-san. We didn't discuss the "behind the scenes" details of the camp, of course; it was just casual conversation about how they’d been doing lately.
Kokonoe-kun and Hiiragi-san arrived exactly ten minutes before the scheduled time.
"Well then, Juzo-san, I’ll take your students off your hands now."
"Right, I’m counting on you, Muroi-kun."
With Juzo-san seeing us off, the three of them piled into the car and we departed.
As I watched them in the rearview mirror—chatting amicably, a mix of excitement and anxiety on their faces—I internally imagined the hardships that awaited them. I couldn't help but feel a twinge of pity. Live strong, kids, I thought.
I watched as Muroi-kun’s car wound its way back up the mountain road.
"All right, everyone, the stars of the show have arrived. Are the welcome preparations flawless?"
"Yes, we're all set."
"The advance team is already lying in wait at their designated positions."
"Good. Then we have no problems."
I scanned the room, looking at the faces of my team. Every one of them looked sharp and focused. They were all burning for a revenge match after what happened last time.
Muroi-kun's car pulled up in front of the prefab hut. After a brief silence, there was a knock at the door.
"Excuse me."
"Oh, welcome, welcome."
When the door opened, Yuji-kun and the others stood there with their gear. Not much time had passed since the last training session, but the aura they radiated was noticeably more refined. It seemed they had spent the interval sharpening themselves through dungeon clearing and actual combat. This time, we might have a harder time than before.
I ushered them into the hut and began the briefing over tea. Despite the looming tension of the training, the reunion started on a friendly note—until I mentioned that we would be using sleeping pills. Their expressions cramped up instantly.
"Y-You're using drugs?"
"They are absolutely necessary for the goals of this training."
I carefully explained why the sleeping pills were a requirement for this specific session. They still looked somewhat unconvinced, but eventually, they gave their consent. It was a natural reaction; if someone suggested that to me out of the blue, I’d be skeptical too. However, without the pills, I had no idea how many days it would take to push them into the state of exhaustion this exercise required. Even during the previous training, they had never seemed truly depleted, no matter how much we worked them.
Once the matter of the pills was settled and they regained their composure, I moved on to the rules.
"Now, as for the content and rules of this training, the task itself is simple. You will spend three days and two nights surviving in these mountains."
The rules were straightforward: survive for three days and two nights while fending off pursuers. On paper, it seemed like a manageable task for a group that had cleared the previous training, but the introduction of sleeping pills turned it into a high-difficulty challenge. Maintaining vigilance against pursuers in a mountain with poor visibility is hard enough; doing it while your mind is fogged and your movements are dulled by medication makes even simple navigation a nightmare. And when you add the fact that the pursuers will attack at any time, day or night...
I watched them frown as they realized the difficulty, then moved on to the final catch.
"Furthermore, for this training, you will visit specific points marked on the map. The order in which you visit them will be determined by the roll of this die."
By forcing them to move toward fixed points rather than allowing them to roam freely, we were restricting their routes. This significantly increased the risk of being ambushed. Even if no one was actually lying in wait, the mental stress of knowing they could be at any moment would slowly eat away at them. Between the sleeping pills and the constant psychological pressure, their concentration and judgment would eventually crumble.
In essence, they would be under relentless, high-intensity stress for the duration of the training. Hmm... though this was what Juzo had ordered, I might have overdone it a bit. Still, the stage was set. We would just have to proceed and be ready to pull the plug if it became too much for them.
"Now then, go get changed. Let’s get this training started."
" " "Yes! We look forward to it!" " "
The three of them replied with a burst of energy—though it felt more like a desperate, "do-or-die" kind of vigor—and headed for the changing room. They say acceptance is the first step, after all. I wished them the best.
Once they were ready, Muroi-kun and I performed the final check before they set out.
"I’d normally have you roll the die to determine your first destination, but given the time, we’ll start simple. Tonight, you'll bivouac at the mountain summit."
It would be too dangerous to have them navigating the mountains at night while experiencing the effects of the pills for the first time. Tonight would be a trial run to see how they handled the basics. Of course, I’d already made a few... "arrangements" at the site.
After giving them a few pointers for mountain survival, I had them take the sleeping pills.
"Training begins now. I wish you all luck. Don't forget to eat and rest when you can."
" " "Yes!" " "
Their faces etched with anxiety, the three of them began the trek toward the summit.
Just for good measure, I decided to repeat the surprise attack we’d used at the start of the previous training. However, the moment Muroi-kun even reached for the paintball gun at his waist, all three of them simultaneously lunged away from him. In the end, the paintball Muroi-kun fired did nothing but paint a red blossom on the forest floor. Judging by that reaction, none of them had grown soft. The lessons of the past were very much intact.
And with that, the trio officially disappeared into the trees.
"There they go..."
"Yes, they're off."
We watched until they were completely out of sight before speaking.
"Now then, let's see how they handle this. It should be quite a show."
"They’re going to be pushed to their absolute limits... I’ll stay ready to intervene the second things look like they’re getting dangerous," Muroi-kun said.
His concern was valid.
"True. We’ll go check on them early tomorrow morning. If they look like they’re in a bad way by then, we’ll have to rethink the curriculum."
"Surely they aren't so fragile that one night will break them?"
"Perhaps not, but we should be able to see the warning signs. If we see those signs after just one night, we have to stop. If we push too hard, we risk leaving them with permanent trauma."
Explorers of their caliber carrying trauma were a recipe for disaster; a minor trigger could cause them to lose control. The potential fallout for everyone involved—including the kids themselves—was something I didn't even want to contemplate.
I believed they would be fine, but in this business, there was no such thing as being too careful.