Yuki rests her back on the headboard of the bed.  In each room, there are two beds separated by two drawer cabinets with each lampshade on top, and located on the wall opposite of the door. Behind the drawer cabinets is a tall window with curtains on it. The current light inside the room comes from the chandelier above. The room has a black and white interior which makes the design cool and stunning.

From a perspective of a person who just entered the room, Yuki's bed is on the right side while Shou's bed is on the left side which a big closet and a bathroom are located. All basic necessities are already provided which is quite amazing.

Surprisingly, the participants have to wear uniforms. But not the type of uniform where your clothes from heels above are restricted since the uniform is only a black short cape with  a logo on its right side. Pretty simple.

Shou sits down on his bed, with a towel on his shoulder. And called her name, she stares at him, waiting for what he is going to say. He looked really serious.

"If you're given a choice to choose in joining the mission-- will you do it?"

Wait. Hindi ko naprocess kahit na narinig ko. Masyado akong nakapokus sa mukha niya.

"Can you repeat what you just said?"

He paused for a moment. "I said... if you are given a choice in participating the mission, will you do it?"

Instead of leaning in the headboard, she faces Shou and crosses her feet for an indian sit on the bed.

She already made a decision after the fight with the giant. Regardless of Shou's intention behind of standing still when he was about to getting stepped on--- if he wants something from her or he just really trusts her, she doesn't know.

However, one thing is clear. Even if things get hopeless...

"I'll always follow you, Shou."

She smiled. Different from her usual smiles. Not the faint smiles nor the energetic ones. It also doesn't show sadness.

It feels... gentle.

Then he snaps back to reality. "Okay. Be ready tomorrow."

He is about to stand up when she called him. "Can we not turn off all the lights?"

"I can't sleep well in the dark. Kahit yung lampshade lang ang itira mo sakin." She gives him a hesitant smile.

"Fine." When she heard that, she thanks him and yawns.

"Matutulog na ko Shou." She prepares her blanket and covers herself.  "Goodnight Shou." She grabs a pillow and puts it under her blanket.  Then, she closes her eyes while probably, hugging the pillow she grabbed.

"Goodnight."

"Yuki, wake up."

She slowly opens her eyes which the light seeps into her eyes. It's too bright for her so she hides under her pillow.

"Hey... wake up."

She has to let her eyes adjust to the brightness before she can look at him. "It's so... bright..." She said with her dried throat and weak body.

"What did you say?"

With her more strength this time, she says it louder.

"Oh." She can hear the light footsteps of Shou. Probably going to turn off the light from the chandelier.

"It's fine now." When she heard that, she slowly peeks from her pillow while avoiding the sunshine from the window. She then, sees his hair, forehead until his hips. "We'll have our training."

Yuki observes her surrounding while still hugging her pillow with her blanket a bit slid off her body. There is his poker face again. His hair is messy. It seems like he just woke up.  "I'll go prepare first." She nods at him, lazy to speak.

She sits up and leans on the headboard. She stretches her arms while yawning again, Realizing...

I just woke up from heaven.

"Shou where are we?" All she can see is rows of warehouses surrounded by trees.

"Training grounds." Shou walks towards the warehouse far back on the first row. Yuki doesn't know how many warehouses they already passed by, but not only it is many. The warehouses are also large.

Beside the door, there is a red button and above it, is a round object emitting a green light. Maybe it means the warehouse is currently available. He presses the button and the door suddenly opens.

"Each lodge functions like the gym we were in before. But this is smaller." They entered and the door behind them suddenly shuts down. It is really dark inside. She can't anything but the back of Shou.

"What can I offer to you?" The voice comes from the surrounding. It sounds like a machine.

"Random location on land but a mixed of D level soul to B. One each round. Prepare a place for one spectator." He commanded. Then, slowly the surrounding transforms. The ground becomes a grass flat field. The scenery far away is just full of trees. It is day light and the temperature is getting hot. There are even shadows behind them.

But what is that creature at the front of them? It's not moving just like a statue, just like a machine on stand by.

"Listen Yuki." She instantly looks at him.

"That is your opponent-- a hologram." A hologram? This place is all just a hologram? The place feels so real.

"But it will attack, defend like a real one. You will not received any wounds however, they inflict the same pain." She never get hurt by the demons before. She always able to avoid the attack. The only pain she experience from the fights are whenever she throw herself to an object.

"Observe them Yuki and attack."

Shou enters into an invisible room. She can still see its shape until he closed the door.

"Do you wish to start now?" It's the machine. My mind went blank. But someone answers it in her stead.

"You may start now." It's Shou.

The creature in front of her suddenly moves. "AAAAAAAAHHHHHH"

It sounds like a monster that woke up from a deep sleep. The voice is so loud that the surrounding feels like vibrating. She can't help but covers her both ears. Then, that's when she realized a cold object. A metal. Her scythe. She's already holding her scythe. Due to the noise, the birds are flying away from the trees. It really feels like a real place.

The creature looks around the surrounding until its red eyes stops on her direction. It charges on her!

The monster resembles a giant gorilla with really sharp teeth. But suddenly, it's already in front of her! Despite of its body side, its movements are fast!

She jumps to the side when the monster slams her with its hand like it is killing an ant! Some soil flee off the ground.

She can't afford to stay on the ground. So she quickly stands up and charges at the creature with her both hands holding the scythe. The monster unaware of her move, is looking around for her. She bends her back lower more than normal while charging and slices off one of its arm. She quickly backs off after finishing her first move. Its arm lands on the ground but for the creature, it is nothing to lose one arm like it doesn't even hurt!

The monster smirks then charges on her again. Unconsciously, she runs away, processing the situation. Suddenly, a large shadow engulfs her. It's so fast there's almost no difference even if she ran away! She jumped off on the side again and when she looks behind her, the monster already has its arm back!

Where is the arm she cut off? It's not there anymore! Instead, it's a green liquid. It's even hardly visible because of the color.

She knows she cannot always avoid the attacks and especially, if it's always the same method. But she has to attack it before it can find her again, to discover what exactly happened when she sliced off its arm.

This time she cuts off its leg. She can't run away anymore. She have to witness what will happen.

The moment she cut the leg off, it immediately turns into a green liquid. And a leg suddenly grows out from its body!

She meets its eyes. That's where she realized she has to get away fast! She doesn't even have enough time to think!

Just like she thought, it quickly catches up with her. Without looking behind, she makes a fast turn. She must fight in a place where she can see their shadows! Or else she wouldn't be able to guess what's its next move.

She have to face it. It will soon surpass her stamina. Its flesh are not that difficult to cut. She can do this. Her focus is to restrict its movement.

She slices both its legs while its hand is approaching her from the side. Gladly, its balance is distrupt however, it didn't totally fall on the ground. It's fast to regenerate both legs! There is even no black blood dripping off within a few seconds!

From the time she spent thinking, it is enough time for the creature to catch her in its hand! Shit!  Her scythe is now sealed!

She caught the creature grinning before she automatically closes her eyes because of pain!

"GaaaaaaAHhHHHHHHHHH"

It squeezes her and throws her away! Her bones feels like breaking! She feels vomiting! And her body hits the wall of the room! That is the limitation of the hologram. Because of her hand trembling from pain, she fails to firm her grip on her weapon! Then, she slids off the wall.

She have to think fast, can't be distracted from the pain! So she tried her best to grab her scythe and run away! She just then realized, the pain is already gone.

The monster is chasing her again. Cutting both of its legs is not effective. Then what she should do?!

No. She has to try again! If not the legs, then how about cutting it in half?

The creature catches up with her again! Look at the shadow! It's going to catch her from the right! Have to avoid fast-- she ducks and faces the enemy to measure the distance to cut it in half!

Watching it from a close distance, less than a second, the lower body turns into green liquid. And because of the missing large portion, it takes longer time to regenerate but it's still fast!

So she quickly backs away. Gladly, it gives her enough time to put a distance. However, it didn't give her enough time to widen their distance any further! Its face suddenly appear in front of her and it has an angry expression.

Before it can do anything, she slips past to the gap under its arm. Safe!

She didn't waste any time to watch what the monster is going to do. But spent thinking of what she should do.

The parts she slice off are always turning into green liquid like it is supposedly not there at the first place! Like it is expected to be discarded and immediately be replaced!

The liquid leaking out should be the black blood! Blood is flowing inside their body, that's why it should be there! 

Wait, what?

She then flinches when she realized, she's in a direction where she can't see the shadows! Oh no, she looks behind and the monster is about to catch her between its hands!

Out of reflex, she jumps so high enough to be on the level of the monster's head! The sound of the monster's hands  accidentally smacking one another sounds terrible pain! If she were caught between those heavy hands, she really would not be able to move and will get beat up by the monster again! Thinking that, she desperately stabs its head rather than slicing it off.

The sensation feels harder. Her scythe goes through its face and there, she found a black blood.

The monster shouts in pain and immediately turns into ashes. Her legs land on the ground but it gave up and accidentally falls on her butt.

She stares into flown ashes and breathes heavily.

She's getting better. Her judgement was right. There is no use in attacking the body because the demon is located inside the head. It is small so it uses its power to create a bigger and stronger body.

But what the hell is she doing?

Since the second opponent, the timing whenever she got hit is strange. It started from an opponent that was like some sort of reptile with unrecognizable face. It was very agile and has sharp claws. Its tail was like a scorpion's. She defeated it but she always got slashed by the claws or stabbed by the tail. More like, she's letting herself get hit.

Her third opponent was a kind of that secretes acid. It was like the previous opponent she encountered in the human world but more aggressive and has tentacles attached to its body. When the opponent was going to spit out its acid, she didn't move-- she let herself drowned in it! It terribly feels like the skin are burning and shit. But why is she doing this?!

The moment she defeated her last opponent, Shou immediately stops the training. He goes outside the spectator's seat and approaches her.

Yuki has no wounds but keeps panting and sweats a lot. Shou can sympathize with her pain.

"It's... already fi...nished?" She is currently sitting with both of her palms on the ground, supporting her.

"Yeah. You should rest after eating your lunch."  She tries to stand up but her arm is shaking so he helps her.

"Was it too difficult?" 

"Well... those guys... are no joke..." She giggles. Instantly, Shou feels his chest getting pricked.

"Why let yourself getting hit intentionally?"

"Well..."  She paused and eventually regains her right breathing. "You said... I will only feel the pain but not receive the wounds..." Yeah, he did say that. But that's not the point!

"So I took the opportunity to feel the pain." She smiles. Huh? What?!

"Why?" She looks away like she's thinking hard of what words to say.

"Actually, even if I want to get hit intentionally-- if not for the first fight, I wouldn't be able to do it. Because I have the tendency to avoid rather than to attack."

Then she looked at him like she found the right answer. "I want to prepare myself for the actual pain because I can't run away anymore."

What she said slips out his mind when she suddenly collapses.

"Hey!" He crouches down and reaches for her. "Are you okay?!" She is kneeling on the ground helplessly.

"I'm fine..." With her still being conscious, he feels relieved.

"Just really tired." And she laughed again?

Why is she laughing so much today? Is she losing herself because of the stress-- the training I've brought upon her?!

He sighs at the back of my mind. "C'mon, I'll carry you." He prepares his back in front of her, offering a piggy back ride.

"Are you planning to do something important? Are you busy?" Her sudden question confuses him. He glances at her to try and guess what she's thinking.

But he fails to read her mind and just gives up. "I'm not planning to do anything other than training you."

"Then let's just stay here for awhile. I'll regain some of my strength." When she said that, Shou positioned himself to sit in front of her.

"Are you sure? It will be faster if I carry you to our room." He is trying to convince her. But from her smile, he already knows what her answer is going to be.

"I'm okay really." She then lies down on the floor. She looks really exhausted.

"Eva, transfer to bedroom." With this, she will be able to rest properly.

"Understood." And the scenery transforms into a luxury room. 

"Let me lie you down to a bed." He reaches her arm and helps her to get on the bed but she looked confuse.

Along the way, she speaks out one word that confuses her. "Eva?"

"What can I do for you?" Eva suddenly answered. Yuki then, lies on the bed.

"It's the machine's official name. So anywhere you are in this academy in terms of machines-- is her."

The place looked like an arena however, at the center, there are multiple areas that is surrounded by tall metal barricade. It resembles the place where UFC fights are held.

Right now, Shou and Yuki are sitting on the spectators seat. From the look of it, the battle will be held simultaneously.

Then, a group of creatures enter the place. They are walking in two lines.

"Please prepare and go to your respective area."

~'Pain doesn't kill you in heaven' ends~

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