Seven days had finally passed.
Somehow...
I was still alive.
The Final Selection was over.
We slowly made our way down the mountain, exhausted from everything we had gone through.
No one spoke much.
The silence felt... heavy.
Every step reminded me of the people who had entered this mountain with us.
Most of them weren't coming back.
I looked at my hands.
During the selection, I had defeated three demons by myself.
Including the Fake Ranker, my total had reached four.
But somehow...
It didn't feel like a victory.
The faces of the people who had died kept replaying in my mind.
Abeer.
The Water Breathing users.
The others whose names I never even got to learn.
Marie noticed I had gone quiet.
"You okay?"
I forced a smile.
"...Yeah."
She knew I was lying, but she didn't say anything.
After several more minutes of walking, we reached the foot of the mountain.
The enormous veil surrounding it shimmered for a moment before slowly disappearing into the air.
The Final Selection had officially ended.
One by one, the survivors stepped outside.
I turned around and counted.
"...Ten."
Tobisa looked around in disbelief.
"There are only ten people left."
Marie lowered her head.
"So many lives were lost..."
No one celebrated.
There wasn't much to celebrate.
We had survived...
But many others hadn't.
A few minutes later, a young troll—who looked no older than twelve—walked onto a wooden platform.
He carried a clipboard that looked far too big for him.
He cleared his throat.
"Congratulations."
"You are now officially the survivors of this year's Final Selection."
A few people clapped weakly.
The young troll smiled.
"Now comes the best part."
"You'll receive your own weapons."
That immediately caught everyone's attention.
We followed him to a long row of tables.
The first table was covered with different kinds of glowing ores.
Some were bright red.
Others were silver.
A few had strange blue streaks running through them.
The young troll pointed toward them.
"These are the materials used to forge your personal Nichirin Katanas."
"You may each choose three ores."
"The blacksmiths will forge your weapon here, in front of you."
One by one, everyone stepped forward.
All of the people chose combinations of Scarlet Ore, Iron, and Eradium.
Because those were the ores needed.
The master blacksmiths immediately got to work.
The sound of hammers echoed through the valley.
CLANG!
CLANG!
CLANG!
Molten metal glowed bright orange as sparks flew through the air.
Watching them work was incredible.
Their hands moved so quickly that I could barely follow them.
"They're amazing..." I whispered.
Meanwhile...
Marie, Tobisa, and the other gun users were called to another table.
Instead of swords...
Several identical bullet cases had been placed before them.
One of the instructors spoke.
"Only one of these is real."
"Choose wisely."
Marie studied them carefully.
"So that's the test..."
After a few moments, everyone made their choice.
The instructor smiled.
"Correct."
He handed each of them a weapon.
Finger Guns.
Handguns.
Sniper Rifles.
As soon as they grabbed them—
"AAH!"
All four immediately pulled their hands back.
Smoke rose from their palms.
"The guns rejected them..." one of the survivors whispered.
The instructor remained calm.
"Hold on."
"Endure it."
Marie gritted her teeth.
Tobisa clenched his fists.
Despite the burning pain...
Neither of them let go.
Several long seconds passed.
Then...
The burning stopped.
The weapons had accepted their owners.
"Congratulations," the instructor said.
"These are now your personal firearms."
He then handed each of them a fresh black uniform.
On the chest was a neatly stitched name tag.
Across the back was a single Japanese character.
銃
"The symbol for 'Gun,'" Marie read aloud.
She smiled proudly as she put on the uniform.
"It actually fits."
Tobisa laughed.
"Looks good on you."
Finally...
The sound of hammering stopped.
The blacksmiths stepped back.
One after another...
The newly forged swords were placed onto the table.
Their polished blades gleamed beneath the sunlight.
The young troll smiled proudly.
"Now..."
"That's some incredible craftsmanship."
"And they forged them so quickly."
Even I couldn't help but be impressed.
The blacksmiths hadn't just made weapons.
They had created partners that would stay with us for the rest of our lives.