Team Karen!

Simple words, a clear stance. Karen knew that this sleepy girl, Philomena, was exceptionally strong. In the York City Region selection, she was probably tied with him as the strongest candidate. After all, at the final moment, she had been the only person capable of conversing fluently with him, even if one of them had ranked fourth and the other fifth. Yet Karen was unwilling to team up with her. From the very beginning, she had shown not the slightest inclination to band together, nor had she lowered her posture even an inch. Of course, it was completely normal—one could even say expected—for someone of her strength to display arrogance. Individual prowess was capital that allowed one to reject so-called "ineffective" and "meaningless" socializing, and the confidence to live willfully and frankly. However, under normal circumstances, the proportion of people willing to forcibly push social interactions was actually very low. Bart, a scion of a knight order, had lowered his head. Aisli's parents had even come in person to build ties. The pastries Ventura brought were very fresh, clearly made by his grandmother late into the early morning hours so that Ventura could bring them for his companions to taste. Had Philomena earlier taken a single bite of the cake Ventura offered, or declined by simply saying she disliked sweets, or voluntarily taken a sip from the waterskin Bart had borrowed, Karen would have accepted her right now. Those blessed with great strength were indeed entitled to special treatment, but the prerequisite was that you had to offer a step down first. Aloofness and arrogance—everyone knew how comfortable they felt. But you had to bear the cost of that comfort. What Karen considered was not just this final selection. Although Commander Punk had stated that the risk factor was very high, the Church wouldn't stand by and watch a massive number of candidates turn mad, committing the folly of digging out its own future foundation. Yet once they entered the Gate of Samsara, everything would be different. The danger there was tangible. What was more, there was their future development after emerging safely from the Gate of Samsara. Therefore, what Karen considered was not just the problem of the final selection before them; he was laying the groundwork for his future team and network. Why pull in an arrogant troublemaker? Although the Captain now had a growing tendency to let himself run completely wild, it was undeniable that Karen had learned a great deal from him. There was one sentence the Captain had once made a point of telling Karen: "Remember, when you become a captain in the future, treating all your subordinates equally will always be the stupidest thing you can do." This was not a criticism of absolute fairness, but a consideration from the perspective of a leader of a small group: absolute equality would cause a small group to lose cohesion. As a leader, you had to make your subordinates feel that their efforts earned differential treatment, whether as immediate rewards or promises of future prospects. Ventura, Bart, and Aisli had all invested effort and sincerity, so as soon as Punk finished announcing the rules, they immediately received Karen's commitment to team up. If Karen were to pull Philomena into the team now, it would be a disregard of what the three of them had put in. In social interactions, the greatest awkwardness often came from realizing one was superfluous. Philomena was experiencing that very sensation now. She seemed genuinely surprised that Karen would be so decisive. However, her temperament was not one to make her beg at this moment, nor would she try to persuade Ventura or the others. She closed her eyes again, straightened her body, and walked in another direction. She would succeed in finding a team in the end, because Punk had said there were 120 candidates. At six people per squad, everyone would have a team; no one would be left out. Right now, Karen's squad still had two vacancies. These vacancies had to be filled quickly right now. They couldn't wait until after passing security and getting their badges, or else the fine paste separated out would fall into other squads' jars. Karen looked at his three "subordinates" and instructed, "I'll sit down, and you three stand in a line and call for recruits. That way, we display our squad's unity. The sooner we attract people over, the sooner we can even screen them." This was an extra explanation Karen gave. He believed Bart and Aisli could grasp his meaning, while as for Ventura, it didn't matter whether he understood or not. Just like that, Karen remained seated. Behind him, Ventura, Bart, and Aisli lined up and began calling out. Their chant was simple: "Four looking for two! Four looking for two! Four looking for two!" As it turned out, Karen's judgment was correct. Surely it wasn't only Aisli's and Bart's parents who had anticipated the test format. The problem was that each region's selection process and results differed; even if they had anticipated it, the candidates within a given region could hardly form a cohesive embryonic squad right away like the York City Region had. Although pre-established cliques certainly existed, once Punk finished his announcements, a large number of people still began moving from their original spots, looking for new teams to join. One hundred and twenty people was only the size of two classrooms in an ordinary school, so Karen's actions were more than enough to draw everyone's attention on the scene. Before long, nearly ten people came up before Karen, intending to apply to join his squad. This was the advantage of making decisions early and swiftly seizing the initiative. First, their recruitment was fast; while candidates from other regions were still discussing, Karen had already eliminated unstable factors and begun "enrolling." The other and most important reason was that Karen sat there while three people stood neatly behind him, calling out to recruit on his behalf. At a single glance, it was obvious that this squad had already established its organizational framework. A captain had already been chosen and held great authority, while the members were content to be members, following orders and carrying out tasks. This squad instantly possessed immense appeal. Even though applicants knew that joining this squad meant they would inevitably be ordinary members and implicitly accept the existing captain, everyone's goal was simple and utilitarian: find a sufficiently competent group to help them pass this final selection. Therefore, only fools would choose the kind of squad that touted "liberty, equality, fraternity, and respect for individuality." Clearly, none of those who stood out from their respective regions were fools. Everyone understood that only a squad with a clear, complete hierarchy could maximize everyone's strength when no one knew each other well. Karen began the interviews. He had each of them state their specialties. As for whether they could humble themselves to cooperate, Karen's professional background allowed him to infer their general temperament from subtle details. Through calculations with the Key to the Rubik's Cube and observations of the surroundings, Karen guessed that although this final selection was still primarily aimed at the soul, it would no longer involve entering as pure soul consciousness. Hence, the squad's overall balance had to be considered. Ventura was the "tank," Bart was the "DPS," Aisli was the "summoner," and himself... he tentatively defined himself as an all-rounder. So what was the squad lacking? Support! The organization of the Order Knight Order on campaigns included not only various combat branches but also auxiliary units. Squad combat was the same. The problem was that on the square, candidates skilled in support were an absolute rarity. Because of the nature of the first-round regional selections, people who specialized in support had a hard time breaking through on individual strength alone. They were vital, but they required teamwork to be fully effective. Fortunately, Karen had reacted quickly, and his clearly structured squad held even greater appeal for those who needed a system to maximize their utility. In contrast, someone like Philomena, who considered herself powerful, would likely frown upon seeing such a squad rather than show enthusiasm. In the end, Karen accepted two new members through interviews, a man and a woman. The man was named Mars, a reserve array master of the Seventh Knights. The woman was named Blanche, an intern at the Church Hospital and a reserve priest of the Ninth Knights. Both could be called "supports," and both had knight order backgrounds. It wasn't that Karen had a special fondness for knight order backgrounds; it was simply that having one bolstered their overall capabilities and prevented glaring weaknesses, allowing them to break through their regional selections. Moreover, people from the knight orders understood obedience better and were more willing to cooperate. Karen was delighted, feeling he had struck gold. He was certain support talents were scarce on the square, and having snapped up two at once meant his squad would likely be the most well-rounded. While the others were still forming teams, Karen led his five teammates through security in turn, received their badges, and then went to the reporting station to register their six badges together, forming their squad with the designation "Number 3." There was a minor hiccup during security: Aisli's inspection took too long because her arms were covered in totems of various monster beasts, resembling cartoon stickers, only far too densely packed. The security inspectors suspected she might be cheating, so they stimulated and triggered the totems on her arms, but produced no reaction whatsoever. Aisli insisted she was simply a tattoo enthusiast. In the end, under the principle that undetected cheating didn't count as cheating, Aisli passed security. In truth, Aisli really had cheated. The totems on her arms had all been applied yesterday, bearing the sensory imprints of various monster beasts. Aisli's parents worked on breeding rare monster beasts, which involved helping creatures with difficult breeding cycles raise the next generation—somewhat like kindergarten teachers for monster beasts. Relying on this goodwill, the Santoses had taken their daughter to the large monster beasts kept at the research institute to call in favors, having them stamp sensory imprints onto Aisli so she could draw upon their power when needed. This was neither a contractual bond nor possession, and the effect it could trigger was quite limited, but there was strength in sheer numbers—and it evaded security. In Aisli's own words, it worked on the same principle as dogs peeing on utility poles to leave scent marks. Her arms were scent marks left by those monster beasts; whether they responded when sensed depended entirely on their mood, with no strict binding constraint. Of course, it also depended on her parents' rapport with them. Aisli was just that sort of person, not minding in the least that she compared her arms to utility poles. Indirectly, this showed just how deeply the Santoses doted on their daughter. Having collected their team number, Team Karen walked into another area of the square, where flagpoles stood with numbers marked on them. Karen and the others sat down around Flagpole No. 3. As soon as he sat, Karen gripped the flagpole with his right hand while using the Key to the Rubik's Cube inside his sleeve with his left to run specific deductions. Mars did likewise, crouching low and pressing both hands against the floor tiles beneath the flagpole. After a moment, Karen released the flagpole first. Though his left hand continued working the cube, a calm expression settled onto his face. It was a while longer before Mars sat up straight. Karen said, "Speak." Mars said, "This flagpole is a specific coordinate point. During the selection, the ground under our feet might detach from here and fly into the sky. Based on the surrounding environment, I suspect that once the final selection begins, the twenty squads will be divided into twenty such separate testing grounds floating in the air." Karen said, "Continue." Mars nodded and continued, "So the final selection probably won't involve confrontation between squads. We should be facing trials as a unit. Captain, that's all." Karen said, "You only noticed the details, not the big picture. The island we're on is actually a fortress. There are no civilians here, only garrison troops. The entire island is essentially one massive formation. So what you said about our area flying into the air isn't strictly accurate. We won't fly up; rather, the space will expand outward." Mars showed a look of astonishment. "Expand? The square will extend?" "Yes. Right now, the distance between flags appears to be only about ten meters. But once the formation activates, that distance should instantly extend to hundreds of meters, or even a kilometer. "This island can expand and stretch outward. With enough distance, combined with barriers around each squad's area, every team can be provided with a sufficiently large testing ground. "There's another advantage to doing it this way..." Karen pointed toward the eyes of the statue of Augurev. "I believe that once the final selection begins, it will make it much easier for the Church's higher-ups to observe each squad's situation." Mars said with admiration, "Captain, impressive." He knew Karen wasn't an array master; if he were, he wouldn't have recruited Mars. But that meant that even without being an array master, Karen's understanding of and familiarity with arrays exceeded his own. What Mars didn't know, however, was that Karen had simply calculated much faster than him. After all, Karen hadn't yet had time for a fully systematic study of arrays; he was still laying the foundations. Formations were a vast, interlocking system, unlike individual spells, and couldn't be mastered just by casually flipping through pages over meals. Blanche looked curiously at Karen and asked, "Captain, do you really have no prominent background? Oh no, sorry, that came out wrong. I didn't mean it like that." Earlier, everyone had done a brief round of introductions. Karen's introduction had remained as simple as ever: "Karen Silva, orphan." Yet Blanche found this hard to believe; studying formations demanded significant pedigree and heritage. Ventura said firmly, "Our Captain is a true genius." Bart and Aisli exchanged a glance and chimed in, "Yes, absolutely." Hearing this, Blanche rephrased her words: "Captain, you're truly amazing." At this time, Karen noticed more and more squads sitting down beneath nearby flagpoles, while few candidates remained in the teaming-up area in the distance. Philomena was still trying to form a team there. She was very strong, that was true, but her sleepy appearance made it hard to win others over. Everyone here was an outstanding youth from their respective regions; no one would think highly of someone just because of "performance art." Bart warned, "Troop movements have started over there again." Farther away, at the edge of the fortress, squads of soldiers were being deployed. Mars said, "Array masters too." Since half the squad had knight order backgrounds, they quickly reached a conclusion: "They're adjusting the fortress's operating mode." Blanche spoke up: "My teacher once came here to help treat the wounded. She said there is a cage here." Hearing this, Aisli piped up immediately, "I think I remember my parents' institute has illusionary beasts from the Void." Alright, Karen now understood why Captain Neo had pulled Richard into his team. When your squad had plenty of scions with high-ranking connections, you never lacked for information. Karen said, "So this is not just a fortress and outpost, but also a hunting ground. Factoring in that the squads will be spaced apart, we'll very likely face direct attacks from illusionary beasts in the upcoming test. They'll release the illusionary beasts from cages, like a colosseum, and watch us perform." Blanche gasped, "That direct?" Karen cautioned, "And that might only be the first wave. Since the goal is to whittle us down to just two squads, as long as three or more squads remain standing, the difficulty will keep ramping up." Bart said, "Right. That's why we need to formulate a battle plan even more. Ah—the Captain already realized this." Though a bit slow on the uptake, Bart finally understood Karen's purpose in recruiting these two newcomers. Karen clapped his hands twice in imitation of Neo, and said: "Then I will announce my plan now. Remember, my plan isn't set in stone. If I don't have time to issue orders when the moment comes, you may react based on your own judgment. The sole premise is that your reaction must serve the overall interest of our squad. "Ventura, you will always stand at the very front of the squad. I need you to hold the line there and intercept all danger coming from ahead." Ventura nodded. "Understood, Captain." "Bart, you will always stand right behind Ventura. Remember, you will always initiate the first wave of attacks." "Yes, Captain." "Aisli, categorize the list of totems on your arms and report back to me. Your position is this flag—you will always stand beneath the flag." "All right, Captain." "Mars, between the official start of the selection and the appearance of the first target, there will certainly be an interval to acclimate to the environment. You will immediately begin setting up arrays. Remember, set up no offensive arrays—only defensive arrays. You must ensure that when teammates need it, they can step inside your array to catch their breath." "Understood, Captain." "Blanche, I need you to use spells to buff and heal the squad members. Ventura and Bart will need physical vitality and blood replenishment, Aisli needs soul power buffing and restoration, and Mars needs mental energy buffing and replenishment." Blanche immediately asked, "Captain, what about you?" "I don't need any."