Chapter Five: Cassel Academy

"Bang—"

With a kick, Lu Chen pushed open the door of the cinema, only to find it already locked. It seemed that even if an ordinary person wanted to escape, it wouldn't be that simple.

The cinema in this small town was run-down, usually with only one screening room open. Walking up to the front desk, he noticed the person lying there motionless, and he knew what had happened.

Stepping out of the theater, the late summer night breeze blew on his face. In the distance, the occasional hoot of an owl could be heard, and the sky was sparsely dotted with stars, creating an atmosphere of loneliness.

It was quite remote indeed, no wonder it was chosen as a murder scene.

He wanted to reach into his coat pocket, but then remembered that his clothes had also been changed by that Origin Space thing.

It seemed to have rained before nightfall, the air carrying a slight humidity and the fragrance of earth. Lu Chen bent down by a puddle and looked at his reflection in the moonlight.

Short black hair, with scattered bangs, giving him a somewhat wild look. The yellow practice suit on his body made him look like a kung fu teenager from an old-era film.

His face was still his face, just haven't seen it in a long time.

The tranquility was short-lived, as the light above swept over, accompanied by the roaring sound of a helicopter landing in the empty space outside the cinema.

Seven or eight men in black trench coats, with cold and stern expressions, jumped out and quickly surrounded the small rundown cinema.

Their movements were swift, their actions disciplined and efficient, almost like a solemn military force.

The leader gave a signal, and a young man with black hair and black clothes walked towards Lu Chen, catching his attention.

Before Lu Chen could ask anything, he looked up again and saw two more helicopters arriving, landing not far away. The wind from the rotor blades tousled his hair, and then another group of people came out.

"Isolate unrelated civilians," commanded the middle-aged man known as the commander, glancing at Lu Chen before continuing, "Team B, set up defenses outside. Team A, follow me in. Team C, standby."

The black-clad individuals in the scene saluted silently, acknowledging the orders.

"Our target this time is a B-class hybrid, who has committed five consecutive crimes. After his fall, he is estimated to have A-class strength. Stay sharp, especially you young ones from the war practice class."

The commander reminded them before entering the cinema, fearing that the elite students from the academy might become complacent.

Lu Chen watched silently, showing no other movements on the surface, but he was already preparing himself, ready to act at any moment, because he had just seen a glint of gold in the commander's eyes.

Hybrid!

Just entering this world, Lu Chen still didn't fully understand the various meanings of the terms mentioned in the worldview. However, he had just encountered a hybrid, and that hybrid had killed five civilians!

Although the mission prompt said it was a "lost hybrid," he wouldn't take these unidentified individuals lightly, especially since they were armed with the hot weapons he hated.

"Xinlỗi, cảnhsát." (Sorry, police business.)

The black-haired youth standing in front of Lu Chen had an official demeanor, and even took out his badge and identification.

"What did you say?"

Lu Chen was a bit confused. He had learned English for war-related reasons, but he had never learned Vietnamese.

"Chinese? Sorry, police business." 

The young man was also taken aback for a moment, then put on a stern face and repeated himself.

Lu Chen didn't speak, but glanced at the three helicopters parked on the roadside, as well as the heavily armed individuals who looked like advanced agents, one by one. He wondered when the Vietnamese police had become so powerful. Moreover, among them, there were people of various ethnicities—white, yellow, and black. Vietnamese police? Did they take him for a child?

But seeing that they didn't resort to violence and seemed only to be driving him away, he guessed that these hybrids in front of him were probably still considered "normal" people.

However, he pondered, it's midsummer now, aren't you guys feeling hot dressed like this?

The young man, seeing that the teenager in the practice suit hadn't made any move, became a bit impatient. He wondered if the teenager had seen something today that had scared him senseless?

If that were the case, he might need to undergo some psychological counseling when taken back. This was the specialty of his mentor, Fuyama Masashi.

Just as he was about to inquire, he heard the footsteps of many people, and the commander came out of the cinema with the specialists.

So soon? And there wasn't even any gunfire. When he heard that it was suspected to be an A-level threat, he thought the cinema would be blown up and the situation ended. Such incidents were common in their enforcement department. Instead, the extremely quick entry and exit left him puzzled.

"Commander?" asked the leader of Team B outside.

The commander's expression was unpredictable, and he said, "They're all dead."

"Civilians have been killed!?"

"No, they're all dead, including our target for this mission."

The commander shook his head, then quickly ordered, "It shouldn't have been long. Search the surroundings immediately. Have Norma check nearby surveillance cameras to see if we can find the person who killed the target..."

At this point, he suddenly thought of something and looked at the teenager in the practice suit who was being stopped by the specialist.

"Have you been to this cinema today?"

The questioning tone was always unpleasant.

But after years in the military, Lu Chen knew that these people didn't actually mean any harm; it was just their habit. They simply liked things straightforward and pursued efficiency.

"Saw a movie."

Lu Chen replied honestly.

Because he had just noticed that his mainline task had been updated.

[Mainline Task (Second Tier): The Gates of Cassel]

Task Content: Join Cassel Academy and pass the exam.

Difficulty: Moderate to Difficult

Success Reward: Depending on task completion, extension of world stay time by 6-24 natural months, unlocking subsequent tasks.

Hidden Reward: Obtainable by perfect completion, reward unknown.

Failure Penalty: Forced return

[Current Remaining Stay Time: 29 natural days]

Seeing this task, he was slightly surprised.

Cassel Academy?

These elites trained by what looks like a special agency, and you're telling me they're from an academy?

I've seen military academies before, but they only go to the battlefield after they graduate. You guys are like private armies raised by the academy.

Looking closely, there were indeed seven or eight of them who looked quite young, and a few were even similar in age to himself. But they all had a cold and stern demeanor, like old-time agents.

It was as if when the commander opened his mouth and said, "Let's go assassinate President XX," these young people would salute, then set out, shooting anyone blocking their path on the way.

Oh, he just heard something about a war practice class. Since it had the word "class" in it, was this considered teaching?

So it does look like a college... assuming they're just on a field trip. These people clearly came here to fight the killer.

Ah, this is quite different from the academy life I imagined before. I wonder if the academies in Western countries are all taught like this?

No wonder they couldn't beat the opponent; it's not unfair to lose.

Thinking of this, he recalled where he was now, and what the black-haired youth had just said. It seemed that the world here was not much different from his original world, and the language was also common.

It's just that history seemed to have developed slightly differently here, and his country had long become a modern military power, on par with Western powers.

Parallel worlds?