Previously... 

While the cadets were suffering, training and now resting Kaiyn went into the tavern and drunk his heart out the whole day. It was a different tavern, it wasn't the tavern where Lorenzo's goons hung out and the barkeep was a slave master.

"AND SO I SAID... I'M KAIYN JÖTUNNSON, YOU KILLED MY FATHER PREPARE TO DIE!"

"tHEN I wENt VOSSHOOOO, AND CHING, BALABING, THEN I SAID SOMETHING IN MY NATIVE TONGUE GOING ECKE ECKE PIM TENG ZUM BOING! AND THEN OH NO, HE KNOCKS ME DOWN AND LEAVES ME ON THE GROUND LIKE A CLASSIC HENTAI AND REPLIES BACK IN SPANISH SAYING HATA PUTA HAPA HAHA HATA HATA HUPA SCOOBY-DOO!"

The whole while, Kaiyn was merely talking to himself while the barkeep was shivering not because of the cold, but because of fear.

...

Benedict and Renji's ways of dealing with conflict were very different. While Benedict, who was known to easily have panic attacks at the sight of trouble and prefers avoiding it altogether rather than avoiding it, now he faces danger head-on with a sturdy posture and unyielding shield.

"GARGH! YOU.. HOW DARE YOU INTERRUPT MY MEAL!? I'LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU!"

"Psalm chapter three verse four. Ye, though I walk through the valley of shadow of death I fear no evil."

"YOU THINK YOUR WORDS MEAN A THING TO ME!? I'M GOING TO GOUGE OUT THAT TONGUE OF YOURS AND EAT YOUR MARROW!"

".. For thou art with me."

The Demicorpses lunges at Benedict. He remains calm and sturdy as he let the side of the shield hit the Demicorpse's palm, bending and injuring the arm severely causing an upward arc shape on the bone. The Demicorpse screams in pain as Benedict bashes his shield, knocking the Demicorpse off balance as he lies down on the ground.

"How many humans have you devoured, vile creature?"

"I-I'M SORRY! I WON'T DO IT AGAIN! PLEASE FORGIVE ME!"

"How many humans.. have you devoured?"

"THREE, NO WAIT.. FIFTEEN! I JUST WANTED TO SURVIVE! I'M SCARED OF DYING! PLEASE! I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY!"

"You have devoured those humans mercilessly. They have asked for your mercy and you have given them nothing but suffering. You have eaten more humans that you could, despite already having a satisfied appetite. Thus, the gods give their judgement.."

"Third circle, Gluttony."

Benedict ignores the cries of the Demicorpses and walks on the back of him. Pushing the edge of his sword onto the Demicorpse's spine, slowly but surely enough to kill the creature."Tace cor tuum."(Your heart is silent.)

Renji kept fighting defensively as he was curious about what the mournful demicorpse had to say. It kept begging to be killed, but its also still trying to kill and devour Renji. It seemed that they had no control over themselves, Renji got distracted by the fact that Kaiyn might go out of control as well and this caused him to let his guard down and get hit by a punch from the demicorpse.

"I admit I've killed and eaten too many people already. I'm trying to survive and yet I also wish for death... I'm afraid but at the same time I just can't control myself..", Compared to the demicorpse Benedict fought earlier which was cocky and proud of his kill count, this one was full of regret. Renji focuses and closes his eyes. Suddenly, when he opened his eyes he was already on top of the demicorpse, stepping on him on the ground while his blade pointed at the throat.

"Don't worry. Tell me, what was your life like when you were still a human?"

"I was a high-class salaryman... I've abused and threatened people just so I can squeeze every last penny. Before I was infected, my wife cheated on me with another man that had less cash than me but I could tell that she was happier with him yet I ignored that fact and blindly let out my anger. When I was alone I realized all the mistakes I've made and that's when I became infected after drinking in a bar.."

"So how many people have you killed and eaten?" Benedict appeared out of nowhere asking that question.

"Only enough to get my hunger sated.. that makes around five or six....", the whimpering demicorpse replied. Benedict lifts his sword onto the middle front part of his face and closes his eyes.

"Give your servant an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil..."After a short while, Benedict performs the sign of the cross and opens his eyes.

"Very well. We shall make this quick, redeem thyself."

"T-Thank you so much.."

"If you plan to give this man a second chance o lord, let him have a good and peaceful life. .." Benedict quickly stabs the man's heart and proceeds to wipe the blood off of his blade. Renji notices Benedict's eye color change from purple back to the normal light blue after he finishes his prayer to the demicorpse.

"Wait.. what happened? We were going to do the final test right? I just finished landing on this swamp and then..."

Benedict notices the dead demicorpse he just killed with his own blade. Chills were sent down his spine as he sees blood still spilling out of the chest of the decomposing carcass.

"GYAAAAAAAAAHHHHH! MMMPH- BLAAARRGGHHH!" Chills were sent down Benedict's spine as he started shivering and even threw up. Renji remembered that Benedict was very, very squimeash and the sight of blood gives him a panic attack most of the time.

"Goddamit, Renji eases up on the brutality, will you!?"

"Dude.. you were the one who did this.""BULLSHIT! WHY YOU GOTTA LIE TO MY FACE LIKE THAT HOMIE!? BUT THANKS FOR SAVING ME!"

"Uhmm... sure I guess? Let's just get going yeah?"A confused yet curious Renji and the drowsy looking Benedict wandered through the foggy swamps. Luckily the demicorpses they came across were mere small fry compared to the first two ones that engaged them when they first landed.

"I've always wondered.. if there were no signs of the death of my parents then why haven't I seen them here yet?", Benedict suddenly had a change of mood from scared to gloomy.

"I hate being blunt here but.. when we walked in and noticed how the officers prevented talking about families.. dammit, you know what I mean already I'm bad at sugarcoating things like these."

"You mean.. no, that's just not possible. I know that they're still out there. We can't just give up that easily, right?"

"Sometimes when you believe in one thing too much you're just gonna end up hurting yourself even more once you've figured out the truth."

"Don't gimme that crap! Why are you so melodramatic!? Don't you know how it feels for me!?", Benedict suddenly grabs Renji by the collar angrily. Renji simply stares at Benedict with a cold gaze. Now he faces a man who last lost everything and had almost given up but has but a single dying reason to be strong.

".. I'm sorry I shouldn't have said that to you."

"No, I understand how you feel. For now, let's just focus on the task at hand."

Eventually, they reach the end of the swamp where there was no longer fog and was barricaded by spiked walls. The proctor congratulated all the remaining cadets. This time however there were only four of them. The same person that Benedict saved earlier was nowhere to be found. According to the officer, at this point, it was their choice on what do to next in the regime. There were several choices like simply be a guard with minimum wage but is the safest one. The Regime has branches of subgroups divided specifically depending on their goals and objectives. However, they still work together and function altogether.

Order of the Lotus, probably the most high-risk high reward job. Officers under this branch will be tasked with missions beyond the walls and will exterminate high-level threats. They serve as the city and Regime's scouts.

Night Blade, they are responsible for extracting vital information about economy and technology along with spies to help predict future attacks from the future.

The Royal Guard, where the standards are set to the highest. These officers must be trusted and sometimes even handpicked by the king himself. These officers are responsible for guarding the castle and serving as the king's bodyguards without question.

"You there, with the rosary. Come with me, we have something to show you."

Benedict slowly approached the officer with a confused look on his face.

"You're..."

"Oh my god..!"

There was a young girl guided by officers. As soon as she sees Benedict, she runs to him and embraces him.

"Val! I'm so glad you're okay! I.. I thought I lost you!"

Valentina Sephtis is a hardworking fifteen-year-old girl. Being the youngest, she used to help bake cake, bread, and much other pastry in the family bakery back in the day. Now, she is scared and confused with his big brother the only family left for her.

"Ben... I missed you....", says Val as she cries tears of joy and relief. Benedict pats her head and embraces her.

The officers said that they prepared a house for him and Val. They took pity so they managed to save up money to pay for the first month of rent to the family. Benedict smiles and thanks to the officers.

On the other side, however, things wouldn't seem to fix at all. Kaiyn receives his reward which is a one on one fight against Lorenzo for revenge on his parents. Unfortunately, Lorenzo wasn't even taking the battle seriously and barely broke a sweat. He was quicker and smarter than Kaiyn who was blinded by his own hatred and thirst for revenge.

"No matter what.. I'll never forgive you!"

Lorenzo shrugs at his men and finishes off Kaiyn by suddenly running straight at him and sweeping his legs, knocking him off balance and made him lie down on the dirty ground. Lorenzo didn't finish Kaiyn off, however.

"Better luck next time, kiddo.", he says followed up with a hearty laugh. Kaiyn scoffs at him and pics himself off the ground, wiping off the dirt at his clothes.

It was midnight already. The moon was bright and the wind was just right. Seeing the peaceful fields getting shined upon by the moonlight somewhat made Kaiyn nostalgic. They were similar fields where he used to play with Renji and other children. Now it's a mere wasteland filled with the infected and other desperate survivors.

"I figured I'd find an angry Lil feller like you in here."

Kaiyn quickly draws his hatchets and was about to attack the stranger behind him, but the stranger immediately grabbed his gun from his pocket and shot the hatchet off of Kaiyn's grasp as a warning shot.

"Honestly, are all youngsters like you this stupid? I'm not here to fight. If I was I could've killed you by now."

The voice definitely seemed familiar. The appearance of a dusty old man wearing a cowboy outfit. He had plenty of scars around his arms and was smoking a thick cigar all throughout. It was the same person who gave Kaiyn his food when he needed it the most.

"What the hell do you want? I hate interacting with people around here."

"I guess I should start with this... I'm Neo O'Connor. Just gonna give you a heads up about Lorenzo. I'm sure you already know that.", Neo says as he places his pistol back on his pockets.

"Can people stop talking about Lorenzo for once? I'm getting sick of seeing and hearing about him. I'm already having enough stress just by seeing his smug look whenever he stares at me."

"You still don't get it, don'tcha? You're as blind as a little kid getting lost in a playground looking for his mommy and daddy."

".. what do you mean? Just cut the crap already and tell me!"

After a long sigh, Neo tells the whole story about Lorenzo. Born and raised brutally, Lorenzo barely lived a peaceful life. His father was also an assassin that was wanted globally. When he found a concubine, he raised a son and this son is Lorenzo. Unfortunately, Lorenzo's mother immediately went ill after giving birth to him and his father kept training him every day, pushing him to his limits but treating it casually like it was nothing. What was he training him for? To follow his footsteps and become an assassin as well.

Years later, Lorenzo had enough and fought back to his father. Doing this, his father beat him up more than he needed too. That day, he has spoken words that forever changed Lorenzo's, cold heart.

"I am going to remove all your body parts that consider weak, and you will know what it is like to be strong in this unforgiving world of ours."

Lorenzo's father grabbed his army knife and slowly sliced off his own son's arm off. He cut them off slowly on purpose so that Lorenzo could feel the excruciating pain. After all, pain is the best teacher according to their beliefs. He then later replaced these arms with robotic ones straight from the black market and dark web from fellow assassins.

Ever since then, Lorenzo has been checking on his mother more and more in secret. While he was getting more powerful and growing colder on emotions, his mother grew weaker and always took a step closer to her own death. Lorenzo grew tired of the charade and decided to fight his own father to death.

"I am tired of playing this sick game of yours! If you're not treating your wife as your wife and you're not treating your child as your child THEN I'M SURE AS HELL NOT TREATING YOU AS MY FATHER!"

Lorenzo released all the hate and disdain he has bottled up all these years. A ten-year-old child mercilessly charging on his father with the clear intent to kill. He didn't want to kill him in his sleep because he still had the decency and he wanted to see his father's emotions before he dies by his own son's hand.

After a long battle, Lorenzo uses the same army knife his father used to cut off his arms, this time stabbing it into his father's heart. He cries and weeps but at the same time was bleeding out of anger as the person he has despised the most for some reason, dies with a gentle smile on his face. This smile is one that you want to see from someone you look up to, someone who is not a cold-blooded killer. This was the smile of a proud father congratulating his son.

"You.. have done well. Congratulations, you passed the test... you... are.... ready."

Before completely letting go from life, he manages to kiss Lorenzo's forehead and pat his head, at the same time embracing him in from the cold weather outside. Lorenzo has finally figured it out. For generations, his ancestors were a history of crime families. This was a rite of passage for every male firstborn child. Their fathers will always serve as the teacher and the final exam to complete everything was to kill their master. Lorenzo's father went through the same training as a teenager but this time, Lorenzo was just a ten-year-old boy.

Lorenzo buries his father before carrying his mother far away to seek help. The city he was in barely had any functioning government-controlled buildings and during this time, he learned how to pickpocket, hide and properly survive. He stole clothes, food, and water everywhere just to keep himself and his mother alive. Despite all that hellish training, he still has his human emotions in check.

He comes across a bar filled with criminals in disguise be it from simple thieves to rapists to literal drug lords from all around the country. When he asked people for help there, a punk proudly approaches him with an irritating look on his face.

"You know kids aren't supposed in this kinda place, right? Does this look like a hospital to you!? Say, why won't you just leave that woman here and we'll guide you back home, yeah? She looks.. heh.. useful to us anyway-"

Lorenzo grabs his father's army knife and throws it into the punk's throat while carrying his mother with one hand.

"Watch your tone with me. I am Lorenzo Fernandez, son of Alvaro Fernandez. I need help with taking care of my mother as well as a crew of trustworthy criminals around. I will give you all the protection you need from the cops."

"He's the son of Alvaro? No fuckin' way.."

"Wait if he's already here then that means.."

".. he passed the test already?"

"At that age? You really know how to plant your seeds, Alvaro.."

Luck was finally getting on his side as the criminals in the bar bow at his presence and apologizes for the inconvenience. Starting from this, they rob bank after bank, train after train and using part of the money they stole to help the condition of his mother. With each heist, they gain more fame as this eventually leads to more members being inspired and joining the group. They grew worldwide and decided to name the criminal organization "Hive" because they protect each other like a family of bees, serving Lorenzo and to fulfill the purpose of his mother which was the queen metaphorically.

As usual, death catches up to everyone no matter who they are and Lorenzo's mother was no exception. She died a peaceful and natural death. Starting from here, more and more people hired Lorenzo as an assassin to kill this person and that person. He reaps, he harvests, he forgets. This was unfortunate enough to lead to Kaiyn and Renji's parents.

Now Kaiyn's eyes have been opened by Neo. Lorenzo was just the puppet being controlled by another person. The big question has been changed from "Why did you kill my parents?", to "Who assigned you to kill my parents?"

Kaiyn ran to Lorenzo to ask that question immediately. Unfortunately, Lorenzo stated that he has already forgotten the client who gave him that request.

"How do I know that you're not lying like always?"

"Hey, why would I even protect the client's identity? Doing that will just make you stay around for longer and of course, I don't want that! You're dirty and loud, that's already two things I hate! And besides, we only contacted each other through messages. Not messages on email or phone or social media but like literal, physical paper messages."

"And where are those messages? I need to see them!"

"Y-Yeah about that err.. the client also told me to burn the messages right after reading them sooo uhhhhh yup. Sorry kid, I'm trying to help you too but there's only that much I can do for ya."

"That's.. fine I guess. Ugh.. too much thinking... I'm gonna have myself a drink."

On the other hand, the regime gave Renji and Benedict a few days on their final decision of what position they wanted to be in. Valentina, as usual, does the chores like raising livestock and washing the clothes while Renji gathered ingredients for cooking. Benedict decides to have a stroll around the town to familiarize himself with the surroundings. There were markets selling fruits, church ringing the bells, and other medieval-ish stuff going on. Later, he comes across a young man older than him by a few years running with a panicked face. This man reaches to Benedict and grabs his shoulders.

"Oh my god just in time, a regime guard! Quick, lemme hide somewhere! Tell them I'm not here or we're both fucked!"

"Wha- guard!? I'm not even on duty today and who are you!? Tell THEM? Who's the-"

"Guys look, a regime guard! Maybe he knows where that perv run off to!"

"Perv.. oh.. it's this type of situation.."

"E-Excuse me! Have you seen a young adolescent guy about this high with curly hair?"

"Hmm. no not really sorry."

"Dammit, we lost him.."

The girls eventually ran off back and went far enough for the man to reveal himself again.

"Phew, my ass is safe! Oh ho, thank heavens you're such a bro and not a snake!"

"Uhh mind telling me who you are first?"

"Oh, shit of course. I'm Fhin Cooper, knight-captain from the Order of the Lotus!"

Benedict's eyes showed a clear state of shock. A guy like this being a knight-captain? More importantly, the Order of the Lotus? The literal scout suicide unit that goes outside the walls?

"No, no, no there has to be some kinda mistake. You're not fooling me with your deceiving deception! Nuh-uh, sugar!"

"Then how's this for the beautiful truth you yearn for so badly~?"

Fhin reaches into his chest pockets and shows an official ranking badge from the regime itself. It served as a pass and an ID for officers on high ranks.

"U-Umm.. sir, good afternoon, sir!"

".. you say that now? You know what, nevermind. I just wanna umm.. thank you for this life-saving and selfless act you just pulled off. You're a new recruit, right? Every knight-captain needs their squire. What say you?"

"You mean.."

"Yep."

"I, Benedict Sephtis proudly and humbly accept your offer~!"