The three buses had finally come to a stop, and all of the students aboard had deboarded. When they did they look around them, they noticed that in front of their eyes was the sea. Everywhere that they look at was surrounded by its bluish waves, and there were many large s.h.i.+ps and ferries docked on the waters."What are we doing at a port?" A student asked.
"Are we going to do some more training in the water? But I can"t swim."
"No, of course. What does that have to do with anything about the game?" Another student said.
"Well, they made us do some crazy things during the a.s.sessment."
The teacher who had a large forearm, known as Bune, walked up ahead with the fish-hat man teacher by his side until they finally stopped just outside of one of the large s.h.i.+ps.
"Now, before we start, I suppose I better introduce myself." The fish-hat man said. "Your first term at t.i.tan will decide whether or not you are qualified enough to be considered for a regular position. As you know, that spot is mainly reserved for our main team, but if you perform extremely well, there is a chance that the lot of you, primarily students, may also become a part of the team."
The fish-hat man then used his rod to point at Bune that was next to him. "Mr Bune and I, Fix, will be your two coaches during your first term. Now, I need you all to get on the s.h.i.+p behind me."
"What?! are we leaving the country?!" the student shouted.
"But I didn"t bring my pa.s.sport."
"Can they really do this without our parents" permission?"
"You guys can either get on or go home," Bune said.
Although the students were reluctant to board the s.h.i.+p, in the end, they all had already come so far, so each student boarded the s.h.i.+p eventually. Once everyone was on, the s.h.i.+p blasted its horn, ready to set sail.
There weren"t any seats for the students. However, on the two floors of the s.h.i.+ps, there were large mats that had been placed. Currently, most of them were sitting down, talking in their groups of five. Most of them had gone through similar trials as Novis in places all over the country, and had formed a bond with the people that they took it with. Right now, Novis and the others were sitting on the floor together.
"Any clues on where we"re heading off to then?" Yaz asked.
"If I had to guess," Lucas replied. "It can"t be in another country. Most of us didn"t bring our pa.s.sports with us, so most likely it will be a privately owned island."
"An island?" Novis asked. "What are they going to make us do there? I was sure we would be heading to the university where they had top of the line equipment and maybe, a really advanced gym or something. What"s the need to take us to an island?"
"I"m not sure, but by the looks of it and basing on the demeanour of the teachers and coaches, they"re probably really old fas.h.i.+oned."
After hearing Lucas say those words gave him flashbacks of his training with Arthur, and also Daiki over the past year. They too were quite old fas.h.i.+oned and had asked Novis to do everything in the real world. It was why he wasn"t allowed to play the game while training.
He had climbed up mountains, run up and down hills, and hid in the wooden trees. There were times when he felt like he was in an old martial arts film.
"Hey look, I think that"s the island. " A student pointed out as he stood at the side of the s.h.i.+p.
The students rushed over to have a look, and there was a small island that could be seen coming into view. "Looks like your guess was right?" Novis said.
The s.h.i.+p soon docked at the facade of the island, and it was time for the students to get off. Some off them was still hoping this was all a big joke. They were away from their homes, away from their families, and now it seemed like they were away from any type of human civilisation.
When they saw the boat leaving, as it headed back to where they had came from, it started to slowly sink in their minds that all of this was real.
Stationed at the port where two motorbikes. The two Teacher got on and shouted, "Just follow us along, and you"ll see where you"ll be staying for a while."
Hearing those words, the students were nervous of what to expect.
While the students were required to walk, the teachers had it easy as they were given the pleasure to slowly ride around the island.
"Hey, did you notice?" Phil asked. "There isn"t a single shop operating around here."
After walking for a good while, the teachers had finally gotten off their bikes.
"Well, here we are." Fix said. "This is where all of you students will be staying for the next six months."
They were stationed in what looked like a rundown mansion made of wood. It was hard to tell how old it was, but it was clear that it hadn"t been repaired for some years as planks were falling off, even some of the windows weren"t filled in.
"Wait, we"re meant to stay here for six months?!" A student complained.
"I thought you were one of the top universities? What type of living condition is this?"
"I"m starting to think that this whole thing is a scam!"
"Silence!" Bune shouted. "You students are free to leave whenever you wish. Just tell us and we"ll call for the boat to come pick you up. However, if you do that, of course, this will mean that you are no longer welcome in t.i.tan university. Your departure will cause your immediate expulsion."
Fix then stepped forward. "Although the living quarters aren"t the best, I a.s.sure you this island is filled with the latest equipment. Also, augmented fields are placed all over, allowing you to experience the game first hand with your actual bodies. A state of the art gym is positioned outside for those of you who wish to bulk up, and all your meals will be provided for you daily, free of charge.
"I a.s.sure this is no scam, and once you have left this island you will be an entirely new person."
While the others were feeling a little disheartened, Novis had a smile on his face which was filled with excitement.