Instructor Sormon gave them a few advice and tips on how to climb the cliff, then he told everyone to take their positions in front of the cliff.
To Simon’s right was Sunless with her plain white mask, and to his left was an Initiate with the mask of a cheetah.
Simon glanced at Sunny with a raised brow behind his mask.
He had chosen a random location at the cliff wall, and Sunny had either deliberately followed him or she also chose a location close to him.
Simon had several thoughts about this, but he didn’t dwell on them.
Ptui
"Disgusting slave."
The Initiate with the mask of a cheetah spat on the ground while looking at Simon with disdain.
This drew Simon’s attention, and he glanced at the Initiate.
’A Superior Fiend... Not bad.’
Simon indifferently shifted his gaze after discovering the Initiate’s heart rank.
Why would he be bothered about a child who would either suffer by his hands very soon or in the future.
The Initiate scowled at him, fury and hatred burning in his eyes.
Simon’s attention was on Instructor Sormon who stood horizontally on the cliff wall.
"Alright boys and girls. You may climb."
The moment Instructor Sormon gave the permission for everybody to begin climbing, some jumped some meters into the air in order to get a headstart.
While some took their time as the fear of reaching so high up above ground by climbing gripped their hearts.
Simon exhaled softly, then he looked for where to grip.
It didn’t take him time to find where to grip, the he started climbing.
’This takes me back to that time where I had to escape from some demon worshippers on earth. I was weak back then and I had no ability to fly. My only option was to climb about hundred meters of a mountain so that I could hide from those bastards back then.’
’That was my first and I think... last time climbing a mountain, and I almost died back then. I was a really lucky bastard on earth honestly.’
A light smile appeared on Simon’s lips as he recalled the past.
Unlike many of his peers, he had a little bit of experience climbing a mountain, but his experience could be said to be very little.
’At least there are lots of places to grip. The cliff is rough, so it shouldn’t be too bad.’
The moment Simon said these words, he gripped a loose stone with his right hand and his eyes widened slightly in surprise.
However, his reflexes were very fast, and he quickly stabilized himself, making it seem like he had not almost fallen from a ten feet height.
’I guess I spoke too soon.’ His lips twitched, but he did not stop climbing.
What Simon and the others did not know was that the cliff wall was actually not as simple as this.
Instructor Sormon told them that they were meant to climb up to five hundred feet, and that for every hundred feet, there was a place where they could rest.
But what the Instructor did not tell them was that after every hundred feet, there would be changes in the cliff wall.
The first hundred feet of the cliff wall was different from the second hundred feet of the cliff.
The first hundred feet could be called the starting section of the training, and the only difficulty the class had to face were loose stones and weak stones.
It was meant to make the entire class to be familiar with basic climbing, and it was also meant to weed out those who were terrible at climbing.
There were large uneven stone blocks, cracks and protruding rocks, and many places to grip in the first hundred meters of the cliff wall.
It was an easy wall for beginners to learn how to climb and it was a walk in the park for professionals to climb.
Because of how easy it was and the fact that Simon could hear some of his classmates screaming as they fell from the wall, he honestly believed that it would be a walk in the park for him to reach five hundred feet as long as he was careful.
Five hundred feet was extremely high, but they were not normal humans and majority of them were Fiends.
Even the strongest man on Earth before the arrival of demons, gods, and the heralds were weaker than a Minor Fiend.
Five hundred feet might be an impossible task for 99.999% of humans before the arrival of the Heralds, but it was just an extremely difficult task for Simon and his classmates.
Well, for Simon...
’I can be compared to a Supreme Archfiend in terms of physical strength, so reaching five hundred feet in two hours should be possible.’
Minutes went by, and nearly ten of his classmates had fallen from the cliff wall.
To be exact, nine had fallen, leaving only sixty four (64) of them left.
Some tried to look at the state of their classmates who fell. They wondered if they were dead or if their Instructor saved them, but some just did not have the courage, while some lost their grip and footing and tumbled down the cliff.
However, those who could look down without losing their balance, saw that Instructor Sormon saved those who fell.
This eased the worries in the hearts of those who found out, but it did not ease the fear in some.
Instructor Sormon would nonchalantly walk across the wall with his hands behind his back, and would only observe each of them without saying a word.
Sometimes, he’d nod.
Sometimes, he’d shake his head.
Sometimes, he’d click his tongue.
And sometimes, he’d just walk away, almost like he was disinterested.
But he never said a word.
Even for Simon, Instructor Sormon just observed him for three seconds before walking past him with his hands behind his back.
But did Simon care about this?
Not all.
If the Instructor had nothing to say, then he had nothing to say.
But for some, the reaction of the Instructor bothered them or made them feel proud.
An example, was the classmates with the cheetah mask who was at Simon’s left.
Instructor Sormon nodded with what he perceived to be ’approval’, and he felt proud, sometimes gloating and mocking Simon, wanting to rub it in his face since Simon got no reaction from the Instructor.
But once again, did Simon care about this?
Absolutely not.
He was just an annoying mosquito buzzing far away from Simon.
Why would he care about a child who makes the noise of a mosquito?
After nearly twenty minutes, Simon reached the hundred feet mark, and he was surprised to see a floating platform at the hundred feet mark.
The floating platform was easy to get to, and he climbed on it, securing his platform for rest.
Out of curiosity, he looked at the cliff wall, and his pupils instantly constricted.
’The hell?’
In front of him, was not a rough and uneven wall, but a smooth wall.