Chapter 175: Large and in-charge

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Cedric sighed as he sent his fellow cadets away.

If they were back in the civilization right now, it would be around midnight already. People should already be asleep by this time yet here they were, just finishing their drills and training.

The perpetual darkness and depressing atmosphere of this place really make one lose a sense of time. If it weren't for the fact that Cedric allocated one of his numerous thought chambers to solely counting each second that passed, he too wouldn't recognize what time it was.

"What a mess." He muttered softly as he returned to his room.

When the Knight Captains added the responsibility of training the rest of his batchmates to him, which happened by the end of their meeting yesterday, he was really tempted to refuse.

He didn't want to be a babysitter. Looking after his own team was already enough for him. He didn't care about the well-being of his other batchmates because he believed that they would get what was coming for them.

Cedric wasn't a hero and he didn't want to be. Besides, this will be a thankless task from what he understood. His ratings would only be affected by the performance of his team, not the entire batch.

However, he still ended up accepting it. As much as he didn't want to, leaving them be would only cause their deaths once they go out there again. Only half of them remained, and while Cedric was mostly unrelated to them, he could imagine the grief that their family would feel after receiving this news, and that made him feel bad enough to accept this responsibility.

Besides, he's not gonna do it permanently, only for the remainder of their stay here. And it shouldn't be too hard since he's good at multi-tasking.

That said, while it's not that hard, it turned out to be a headache though. His batchmates were lamer than he initially thought. His outburst earlier was a bit out of control.

He can't help it. Comparing the lives they had to his just grinds his gears. Everything was handed to them on a silver platter. They had all the time in the world and resources to become a semi-decent Superhuman at the very least.

Cedric could still clearly recall how they paraded their status and 'strength' all over the academy, feeling good about themselves and thinking that they were the best. Yet at the first sign of trouble, they fold and weep. It's beyond pathetic in his eyes, and he resents it greatly.

That's why the filters of his mouth disappeared earlier. And based on their expressions after hearing everything he had to say, it's safe to say that his point was sent across with perfect clarity.

Learning it was one thing, doing it was an entirely different subject altogether. Normally, instilling a lesson in a person's body needs time and discipline. Nobody could just expect it to happen in a single day, especially since old habits die hard.

But that's the point of sending the Hellhounds after them. Those hell puppies don't get tired and they are excessively trained to abuse their targets. The only motivation the cadets need to fix their habits, engrave the lesson to their bodies, and expedite the process is suffering from the sharp canines of the puppies.

It's difficult and vexing, especially considering that they had to do it while running, but even through their suffering, everybody could clearly tell that their improving.

Again, it started with one and the rest followed. The cadets did nothing but do this the entire day, only having short breaks in between. They lost count of how much flesh they lost and regenerated since this day started, and frankly, it doesn't matter anymore.

At the end of the day, they already learned their lesson the hard way. And since this is only the start, they will for sure not forget it anytime soon.

As for the Squad Leaders, Cedric was more methodical towards them. No, they didn't just force them to play with the Cerberus all day long. Sometimes, he would pause and review drills and protocols with them as they lay on the ground in pain.

Even the combat-nut Garrick, was spent, hurt, tired, and whiny once Cedric's done with them. Isabella actually passed out three times in total, only for Cedric to smack her awake and tell her to walk it off.

In their eyes, he was a slave driver and far scarier than the demons they'd encountered so far. However, his methods were effective. He might be forcing them to suffer from abuse, and that might be the truth, but that's also sharpening their willpower and increasing their pain tolerance.

Leaders like them were the core of the squad. Above all, they must always be alert and ready to relay orders as soon as the need arises. They are allowed to be caught off guard and hurt, but that shouldn't stop them from leading their team.

Of course, that lesson couldn't learned in just a day. But that's not a problem. Cedric essentially became the acting Captain of his entire batch, and they would be with him for the following days.

They would learn what they need to learn whether they like it or not. After all, if any of them died after this, then their deaths would partially be blamed on him. And Cedric would like to avoid that from happening if he could.

The first day of him being in charge of his batchmates...the ones that are still alive, ended on a rather bland note.

Despite his streak so far, he wasn't completely merciless. He gave them breaks in between and bought them food. He didn't cook for them, they could do that for themselves, but he did shoulder the expenses by exchanging money for merit points.

He didn't care whether they learned of this or not. All he needs them to do is to perform according to his expectations and that's enough.

"They will only have a few hours of rest." Cedric muttered to himself. "Let's see if they could truly become a decent Superhuman after this."