Chapter 137: One-Hit Kill!

The upperclassmen immediately sat at the couch, making themselves at home.

Clueless about the setup, the first-years followed suit, some taking seats while others stood awkwardly beside the couches.

On the right side of the room were three individual chambers partitioned by transparent glass, though they blended seamlessly with the surroundings as they were completely empty and painted entirely in black.

"Jace, you start," Revan commanded.

Jace stood up, clapping his hands together as if brushing off dust. His sparring partner stood up as well.

"First, put on your VR goggles. I’m sure you all know how to use them. Then grab the provided gun," Jace instructed before stepping into one of the glass chambers alongside his partner.

"Once you’re inside, the club president will activate the goggles, transforming your surroundings into the sparring arena."

Jace’s voice echoed through the speakers just as a holographic video projected outside the chamber, displaying Jace and his opponent facing off in an open grassy plain.

"You can utilize the terrain or anything nearby for cover or attack. As you can see, there’s nothing here, so in an open environment like this, the initial strike is decisive."

"Inside the simulation, you can run, jump, duck, and even roll. Which means your physical body will actually tire out, so keep that in mind."

"Once the beep sounds, the match begins. Before that, you can look around to scan your surroundings, but you won’t be able to move. Even if your real body moves, your virtual avatar won’t, so don’t waste your energy."

Several students watched with fascinated eyes, thinking the setup was remarkably similar to the VR games they usually played.

None of the upperclassmen chimed in. Only Revan addressed the first-years, asking, "Do you all understand how the FIT system works?"

The students nodded in unison.

"The winner is whoever lands a shot to the heart or head. However, if you get hit in the limbs, that limb becomes disabled," Revan added.

After delivering a few more instructions, Revan called up two other sparring pairs to fill the remaining empty chambers, commencing the matches.

Three holographic feeds displaying different terrains projected above each respective room. Shani focused her attention on Jace.

Her eyes flicked back and forth between Jace’s physical body inside the glass chamber and his virtual avatar on the screen. The movements mirrored each other down to the finest detail.

Jace sprinted and rolled across the floor, all executed physically, making it blatantly obvious how exhausting it was.

’He can still maintain his focus even when fatigued like that,’ Shani noted internally.

Jace took a hit to his left leg, but managed to shoot his opponent’s right hand, the hand holding the gun.

The moment his opponent reached across to grab the weapon with their off-hand, Jace seized the opening to land a headshot.

The matches in the other two chambers concluded shortly after. The upperclassmen clearly already had their combat rhythm down.

The first-years were visibly nervous, though they tried to play it cool under the assumption that another round of upperclassmen would go next, until Luca’s name was suddenly called.

Then two other first-years were named, including Hazel. As Hazel’s designated opponent, Shani stepped forward alongside her.

The upperclassmen suddenly erupted into cheers. One of them hollered, "Shani! One-Hit Kill!"

The rest quickly joined in, chanting the same phrase.

Hazel, having just picked up her goggles and gun, furrowed her brow.

The upperclassmen had been blatantly favoring Shani from the start. Were they truly that terrified of Prince Jeryon or whoever was standing behind Shani?

Hazel shook her head. Whatever they said, she refused to fake a defeat.

Shani stepped into the chamber and took her designated spot.

Not long after, the scenery transformed around her. She found herself standing on an open grassy plain, much like Jace’s match.

Across from her stood Hazel, wearing an indignant expression. Having no idea what was going through Hazel’s mind, Shani simply ignored her.

"One-Hit Kill?" Shani muttered under her breath, recalling the upperclassmen’s chants.

Hazel read her lips, her brow furrowing even deeper.

’Is she telling me to beat her with a one-hit kill so I don’t humiliate her for too long? Or is she telling me to just let myself get killed in one hit?’

Whatever Shani was thinking, Hazel wasn’t about to take orders from anyone. She shook her head to clear her thoughts and refocused.

BEEEP!

The signal marking the start of the match rang out. Hazel watched Shani point the barrel of her gun straight at her before pivoting smoothly to the side. Shani moved with lightning speed.

Reflexively, Hazel tried to sidestep as well. She raised her gun to counterattack, but to her confusion, her virtual arm didn’t move. Seconds later, the simulated environment vanished entirely.

"Did the goggles break? Or is it the room?" Hazel asked, glaring at Shani, who had already taken off her goggles.

Then she looked past the glass partition. The upperclassmen outside were cheering wildly, though Hazel couldn’t hear what they were saying through the soundproof glass.

"You lost," Shani said, walking past Hazel toward the exit.

Hazel was stunned. "What did you say—"

As Shani pushed the door open, the upperclassmen’s cheers flooded into the room, confirming without a doubt that Shani had indeed won, while also hurling jeers at Hazel.

Hazel walked out in a daze, not understanding what had actually happened.

Of all the upperclassmen’s taunts, Jace’s words cut the deepest: "If you don’t even know your own strength, don’t go judging others."

It felt as if he were telling her that all her former pride amounted to nothing. Hazel’s confidence shattered in an instant.

She still had no idea how she had lost, but she wouldn’t deny that she had. Pale-faced, she slipped out of the training center.

"She needs a reality check," Jace muttered without a trace of guilt, seemingly used to seeing junior students act like that.

Meanwhile, the remaining first-years stared at Shani as if she were a monster. After all, her match had been decided in a matter of seconds.

Shani had moved with astounding speed, unleashing a rapid burst of three shots that all landed right in Hazel’s heart region before pivoting to the side to throw off her opponent’s aim.

Shani admitted to herself that it was a cheap trick meant for a caught-off-guard opponent, one she wouldn’t be able to pull off a second time.

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