Dark Magus Returns
chapter-850

Both Himmy and Marcus had been part of Alter for a long time, slightly longer than Scar had. So they fully knew about the Deleters, which was why they had stopped eating their meal at that point.

"What, do you guys think I can't make it?" Scar asked, seeing the reaction as clear as day.

"It's not that," Himmy replied. "You should know what Deleters are required to do. They look for a certain type of person, and it's not something I could stomach. You're living a good life right now, right? Why can't you just continue as it is?"

"What, so you're saying that I shouldn't try to achieve more?" Scar asked. "I've completed mission after mission. I'm already a squad captain, I don't want to be behind a desk like those programmers. I want to feel like I'm actually making an impact."

"So isn't being a Deleter a big step upward? It's the pride of the Alter organization and needed for the organization to work in the first place."

Himmy looked at Marcus again; both of them were trying to be careful with their words so they didn't upset Scar. They could tell that he had gotten more involved and persuaded into Alter compared to the others.

There were people like this, and if anything, Alter liked having people like this.

"Look, I'm just saying a Deleter will be away even more from your family. You take that role, and you might lose your life in Alter," Himmy continued.

The rest of the meal went on rather silently, and despite the words of Marcus and Himmy, Scar had decided to make his choice and had put in his application forward, applying for the Deleter role.

Not everyone who applied would even get to the assessment stage. There were a number of traits that Alter seemed to look at. A track record of where one was from, their specialties, and

so on.

No one really knew what it was that stood out to those that selected the role, but either way, Scar was selected to come forward.

That day, during the regular lunch break where Himmy, Scar, and Marcus would meet up, there was one person absent at the table.

"Did Scar get sent out on another mission already, or did he head back home?" Himmy asked. Marcus seemed unbothered as he went to take another drink, but then he paused.

"Wait, I heard something. Today is the day of their assessing for a new Deleter. You don't think he..."

"He definitely did," Himmy said.

Scar was quite amazed that he had been selected as one of the Deleters, and currently, he was sitting in a chair in a hallway just outside one of the large rooms. Along with him, he could see many others that had applied to be Deleters as well, going through the same process.

They were squad leaders who had accomplished quite a bit. There was no pattern, though, to those selected. Some of them seemed quite new to the organization, which caused Scar to raise an eyebrow.

Otherwise, he could understand as they had managed to track down some of the most sought- after artifacts that Alter held to date, and others had a bad reputation in Alter. So much so that they were close to being kicked out.

It was hard for Scar to pinpoint what was the quality they had chosen when getting Alter members to this stage of the selection.

'Himmy and Marcus tried to dissuade me from this, but they don't understand. I wasn't the same as them. Everything that I have now is because I'm in Alter. I am achieving great things and making a big impact in the world of Panga.'

'Becoming a Deleter will mean I'm an even higher essential part of the organization. I can see that even they look down on me slightly because of what I was back in our world. I was a nobody, unlike them, but here, once I'm a Deleter, things will change.'

"Participant, Scar Harley, you may enter," a man said, standing by the door.

As Scar approached, the man opened the door, and Scar walked into the room. The heavy door was sealed shut behind him, and not a word of what was said inside could be heard outside. While inside, Scar was marveling at the large room, its strange blue metallic architecture that swept the area. Then, in front of him, there were two individuals, both of whom Scar recognized, and immediately he bowed down his head.

"It is an honor to meet you, Sir Heino!" Scar carefully bowed.

Heino, the leader, and the person who was currently in charge of the Alter organization. Standing by his side, there was another person of great importance. Lifting his head up again, Scar then bowed down to the person beside him.

"It is an honor to meet you as well, Deleter Garlock."

There were few Deleters in Alter, so those that had been in the organization long enough would somewhat know of them. There were also those that no one presumably knew about, but Garlock was different, for he was always by the side of Heino, and he was the only Deleter that was a mage and from Alterian.

"Thank you, in this assessment we are going to ask you a series of questions. At any point, you can refuse to answer, and if you wish to no longer continue your application as a Deleter, you may leave. Do you understand?" Heino asked.

Scar didn't know why, but just by Heino speaking, he was intimidated. Even though the man looked even younger than he was. Taking a gulp, he gave a reply.

"Yes, sir."

"Excellent, then we shall begin," Heino said as he went on to ask his series of questions.

Scar answered every one of them, and he did so honestly, the way he thought. The questions seemed odd at times, but either way, he gave his answers. He thought whatever it was that had attracted him to them in his application, then he would need to show that side to them.

"Alright, final question," Heino said. "Deleters must put Alter first above all. In doing so, it proves they truly believe in the cause of Alter. If I was to ask you to eliminate every person you know or have a connection with in order to become a Deleter... well, what's your answer to that?"