"Now then, for our first lesson," Alex began, catching the attention of all his students. "I will be testing your combat skills and use of abilities. There are a lot of things you guys need to work on."
The students remained quiet. They had no doubts about his words. If he said they had things they needed to work on, then they needed to do just that.
Everyone wanted to gain his recognition, after all.
"The only thing is that…" Alex continued. "... we will not be using the combat systems for this test. I will be taking you outside."
"Outside…?" One of the students echoed, their heart and the others racing in anticipation.
"Yes, outside." Alex nodded with a smile. "The environment will be a chaotic environment with raging cosmic storms."
Many students gulped in fear, others in excitement and the rest unsure of how to feel about his words.
"You have nothing to worry about." Alex replied to their silent questions. "Your suits are made to handle cosmic storms and mana waves without issue. You will not be displaced even if you're hit."
He wanted to shed whatever remaining fears they had. Of course, while they would be facing magical beasts, Alex had a little surprise added to the mix; void creatures.
Feeling the aura and facing the real thing that was coming at you all invoke different feelings. With this test and a few more, the students would let go of any remnant fears they had.
"Any questions." Alex said, looking at the various expressions of his students. When no one raised a hand, he continued. "Good. We can go now."
Suddenly, the classroom disappeared and the students ended up on their feet in a completely different place.
"What the…?"
"We have to start getting used to this change in surroundings."
The environment the students of each class found themselves in was a vast meadow field. As far as their eyes could see, there was vegetation of all kinds, sprawling mountains in the distance, clear blue skies and rivers running through the lands.
It looked like a beautiful and nature-filled place. However, the occasional roars and screeches of the magical beasts within said otherwise.
"Welcome to your stage, an entire planet." Alex said, maintaining his reassuring smile. "Here, you can go all out without worry of destroying the terrain."
As Class E hunters, they were powerful enough to destroy continents and the like if they went all out.
"We're out of the empire?" A student asked dazely, swallowing the lump in his throat.
"Yes, we are." Alex replied. "As I mentioned before, you will be fine. Put on your suits and we can begin. There are a few things you need to know."
Slowly the students regained their composure and followed his instructions, putting on their suits. Once they were done, Alex snapped his fingers and a holographic display pooped up before the class.
"This planet is bigger than even Jupiter." He gestured to the image of the planet. "There is a lot of room to move around, resources you can obtain and keep for yourselves."
Suddenly, many had their expressions brightened. The idea of getting rich was pleasing to hear. They got to learn through experience and get some side points as a bonus?
It was a good deal!
"Ahem.." Alex cleared his throat to get their attention. "As I was saying, this place has a lot to offer. You will be split into various smaller teams.
"Being a hunter isn't about going in solo, you should know that." The students nodded in agreement. "Each team will be sent to different areas of the planet.
"Some will end in swampy regions, desert terrains, the mountain ranges, etcetera." May didn't like the sound of swampy, especially the girls. "There will be no going off on your own. If you have a disagreement, you'll have to solve it yourselves.
"And it goes without saying, any uncalled-for behaviour will attract a penalty." His gaze shifted to their suits, making the students understand his words.
"Now for the type of magical beast lurking on this planet." The images changed, displaying a variety of magical beasts. "I won't tell you the kind of abilities they wield. That would be left to your discretion to handle. And the way you handle it will tell me how much you've learnt during your time in the academy."
"Yes, Jessica?" Alex gestured for her to go ahead.
"Are all the monsters at the E-Tier like us? Surely, not all the monsters are at the same rank." A good question.
"You don't have to worry." Alex smiled reassuringly. "All the creatures are at the E-Tier, I made sure of that."
He didn't want to say their suits were powerful enough to protect them against A-Tier monsters as it might make them careless in dealing with the monsters.
"I know some of you still have reservations about all this, and you're within your right to be." Alex added, his gaze roaming over the students. "Fear will keep you alive. And only by pushing through that fear will you become the kind of hunter you want to be."
The students exchanged glances, seeing the burning light in each other's eyes. Whatever fear they had for the unknown was slowly being replaced with a desire to prove themselves.
"Good…" Alex nodded. "I will now put you into teams." The holographic screen disappeared as Alex put his hands behind him.
"Terrance, Gwen, Vince, …"
One by one, Alex put the students into groups of five. He did his best to group the students based on their strengths and weaknesses, and for each class, the weaker ones were paired with the stronger and more skilful ones.
Aaron ended up with none of his usual friends, but that was fine. He was familiar with them since they were his classmates.
"In your storage are a few supplies you might need, just in case." Alex added, raising his left hand. "Good luck and be careful. The mark of a great hunter is in their heart. Remember that…"
He snapped his fingers, sending all the teams to different regions of the planet. Every single group out of the millions of students were spread out on a foreign planet they were unfamiliar with.