When Januar opened his eyes, he found that he was surrounded by all kinds of fauna and flora. The cries of birds and other animals echoed around him.

The virtual reality felt extremely real, the atmosphere was humid and held an earthy scent.

This degree of realism made it possible for the participants to use their surroundings to their advantage if possible.

As long as you knew what to look for, you could acquire poison, antidotes, hiding spots and other kinds of information like the position of your opponent.

Only one exception left the awe-inspiring virtual reality imperfect, and that was: there would be no monsters interfering with the fight, only normal animals existed in this space.

Of course, even among the regular animals you still had to be careful, venomous snakes and big predators could appear at any time.

Standing there, among the towering trees and bushes, Januar was a bit lost on what to do, but soon decided to climb on the nearest tree.

Being high up was always a good choice for scouting, especially with the kind of weapon he was currently using.

After he hung the bow on his back, he started his climb.

If it was him from before he met Kay, this would have been neigh impossible. But now it barely caused him any trouble at all.

He swiftly reached a thick branch that was higher up and looked around.

"Now, Kay, which way should I go?"

Kay stepped next to Januar examining their surroundings.

"Hmm, depends on your choice."

He looked at Januar with a serious expression.

"Do you want to use the safe but harder path or the risky and quick way? I'm confident you can pull off either, but are you?"

Januar thought silently for a moment.

Clenching his fist, he answered: "I'll take the risk."

A smile appeared on Kay's face, like a proud mother hen.

"Then you just have to jump from one branch to the other."

He gave Januar a light slap on the back and gave him a grin.

"You can do it, I'll tell you which branches to jump to."

Kay looked around and suddenly appeared on one of the nearby branches (which was still 3 meters away), expectantly waiting for Januar to give it his best shot.

Januar stood on the branch, mentally preparing to cross this distance with one jump, same as during training. Except that his starting point stood 15-20m high in the air.

He took a short step back, sucking in one last breath, and jumped.

As he flew over the 20m deep nothingness beneath him, time seemed to slow down and Januar watched his foot gradually reach the next branch.

Relief washed through his body as he realized that he succeeded in his first jump and would safely land, but this was not the end.

Now that he leaped, there was no way for him to simply stop.

He looked around and saw Kay already standing on the next branch.

As soon as his foot hit the wood, Januar propelled his body forward again.

This way he jumped from branch to branch without hesitating even for one second.

He savored the feeling of adrenaline rushing through his veins that made him feel alive for a change. This was probably his favorite exercise with Kay, using the things around him as obstacles to overcome.

That way he didn't only train one aspect of himself, instead he switched between jumping, running, climbing,...

It helped him improve his strength and agility at the same time, while also enjoying the training.

Although he had never done this 20m above the ground.

***

Frederic was cursing in his mind, this environment was really annoying.

But... at least he had Elise with him and she kept any pesky animals away or alerted him the moment she smelt something unusual.

He gently stroked her fur.

Elise raised her head with an attentive look, while discretely squinting her eyes in happiness.

Seeing this, Frederic could not help patting her head as well. This caused her tail to wag excitedly.

A light smile appeared on Frederic's lips and they continued on their way.

Fred also occasionally looked around for any herbs that could help him in case of an emergency.

***

The group, watching the duel at the moment, was dumbfounded.

Even the teachers had dumbfounded expressions on their faces.

Frederic's journey had progressed as expected, nothing in the jungle posed much of a threat to him. It was more of a flower-picking stroll on his side, with occasional heart-warming moments between him and the summoned wolf.

There were even a few students, expectantly hoping for more of that kind of content.

What shocked the spectators was Januar's footage.

After he had climbed on a tree, they were still ridiculing him for wasting time.

And it got even worse after he talked to himself. There were even some students who copied the way he had said 'I'll take the risk.' just to make fun of him.

The laughing got even louder when they saw Januar preparing to jump to a nearby branch.

What was that guy thinking? Jumping from one branch to the next, was he a monkey?

Either way, they were eagerly looking forward to seeing Januar fail miserably at this stunt.

But then, their nasty jokes got stuck in their throat.

They watched in stunned silence as Januar jumped from one tree to the next, while gradually climbing even higher.

Something he didn't seem to mind himself at all.

...It was uncertain if they could have done the same thing in this situation.

The teachers were speechless as well.

...Since when was Januar athletic?

They accusingly glared at Professor Bellator.

But the latter was also surprised.

Although he had seen a slight improvement in Januar's capabilities, he had never realized it was to this extent!

Professor Bellator's mood turned grave.

Did he perhaps stunt Januar's growth with his inattention?

Januar's first contact with actual combat was just yesterday. It meant that his fighting experience was next to nothing despite being eligible to receive lessons.

This was a serious oversight, and regardless the outcome of this duel, Professor Bellator swore that he would try his best to correct his mistake as soon as possible.

Professor Sotra glanced at his grim-faced colleague.

So, the other had also not expected this development.

Professor Sotra narrowed his eyes.

Did Januar conceal his strength deliberately?

Everything pointed in that direction, whether his exceedingly good exam result or his seemingly rapid improvement in strength.

But what did he think that he would gain doing this?

Concealing your strength and deceiving authorities in charge of you, was never appreciated and generally discouraged.

Also, if he had been truthful from the start, a lot of the bullying and suffering he experienced could have been avoided.

Ultimately, Professor Sotra still felt that Januar was a naive fool, that he would have to give a stern scolding after this duel.

 

39km. 3:21:36.