Arknights: I'm Pretty Strong With Minecraft — Chapter 21

Chapter 21: Onboarding Test

“Is this Rhodes Island? It’s magnificent!”

Ivan tilted his head back, taking in the sheer scale of the colossal landship. Like a moving steel fortress, it stood majestically upon the barren wasteland, its massive treads and towering superstructure projecting an overwhelming sense of solidity and safety.

Following the reception staff through the heavy, reinforced gates, Ivan stepped out of the harsh wasteland and into the ship’s interior. Bright overhead lights illuminated pristine corridors. Staff members hurried past in a busy yet highly organized flow. The sterile, high-tech environment formed a jarring contrast to the burning, apocalyptic ruins of Chernobog they had just left behind.

Before he could wander off to explore, a figure stepped into his path, politely but firmly bringing him to a halt.

It was a Feline woman with pale green hair and an aura of absolute zero. Her sharp, steady gaze locked onto him, analyzing him in a fraction of a second.

“You must be Ivan,” she began, her voice cool, measured, and completely unruffled. “Amiya has mentioned you. You rendered outstanding service in assisting the Doctor’s evacuation from Chernobog.”

She paused slightly, her posture impeccably straight. “I also learned from Amiya that you intend to join Rhodes Island. However, before that can happen, we need to conduct a complete physical fitness test to properly evaluate your capabilities. I am Kal’tsit, head of the Medical Department.”

Kal’tsit looked directly into Ivan’s eyes. “So, after understanding our philosophy and the grim challenges this organization faces on a daily basis, are you still willing to officially join Rhodes Island?”

“I am willing,” Ivan replied, not a trace of hesitation in his voice.

“Very well.” Kal’tsit gave a curt nod and turned to the woman standing beside her. “Warfarin, take him for his entry physical fitness test.”

“Understood~ Please follow me, Mr. Ivan.” Warfarin flashed a playful, slightly predatory smile, gesturing for him to walk with her.

The two handled the corridors until they arrived at a cavernous training room equipped with rows of heavy-duty, advanced instruments.

Warfarin stopped in front of a massive machine. It looked incredibly sturdy, bolted to the floor with thick steel plates, flanked by industrial shock absorbers, and wired to a complex digital reading screen.

“This is an impact resistance testing machine,” Warfarin explained, patting the thick metal plating. “It’s usually used to measure the maximum kinetic output of our combat Operators. Please, attack the center pad with all your might.”

No sooner had the words left her mouth than Ivan moved. He didn’t bother with a fighting stance. He didn’t take a deep breath or wind up. He simply planted his feet, twisted his waist, drove the momentum through his shoulder, and threw a casual punch.

BANG!!!!

A deafening explosion of displaced air erupted through the room. The heavy steel bolts securing the machine’s base instantly sheared off. The entire multi-ton testing apparatus lifted straight off the ground.

It launched backward, drawing a terrifyingly fast parabola through the air, before slamming into the distant reinforced wall of the training room with a catastrophic BOOM. The machine violently embedded itself deep into the metal bulkhead, stuck fast in a web of sunken cracks, sputtering sparks and emitting a thin wisp of black smoke.

The previously noisy training room plunged into a dead, suffocating silence.

Every single Operator in the facility stopped what they were doing. Weights were dropped. Sparring matches halted mid-swing. Dozens of dumbfounded eyes stared at the smoking wreckage fused into the wall, and then slowly, collectively, turned to look at Ivan, who was calmly retracting his fist.

No way… is this guy really that strong?

The rest of the evaluation proceeded under the silent, unnerved gaze of the entire training room. Ivan’s performance in every subsequent category was nothing short of inhuman.

A short while later, Warfarin practically kicked the door to Kal’tsit’s office open. She clutched a thick stack of printed test reports to her chest, her pale face flushed with the manic excitement of a scientist who had just discovered a walking goldmine.

“Doctor Kal’tsit! We’ve really struck gold this time! You have to see this guy’s test results!”

She slammed the reports onto the desk, spreading them out to reveal a long column of metrics, all followed by the same astonishing grade: Excellent.

“Strength, Excellent. Stamina, Excellent. Speed, Excellent. Environmental Adaptability, Excellent.” Warfarin’s finger traced frantically across the exaggerated data points.

Kal’tsit’s gaze swept calmly over the scattered papers, her expression entirely unchanged, until her eyes settled on a single glaring outlier at the bottom of the page.

“Hmm? There is a ‘Defect’ listed here,” Kal’tsit noted. “Tactical Planning?”

“Oh, that,” Warfarin waved a hand dismissively. “The system judged that based on his combat records from Chernobog up to now. The conclusion is simple: he possesses extremely strong solo combat and problem-solving abilities, but in terms of large-scale coordinated operations and complex tactical layouts… his score is practically zero. Simply put, he’s used to solving every problem by himself, usually by hitting it.”

Kal’tsit pondered this for a moment, tapping a pen against her desk before making her decision. “Overall assessment: classify him as a Senior Specialist Operator. Set his archive permissions to Senior. Take him to his assigned dormitory to settle in.”

She pinched the bridge of her nose, rubbing her temples as if already anticipating the massive headache she would get from trying to command this walking natural disaster.

“As for his specific tactical integration and command adaptation issues… let the Doctor worry about it.”

Meanwhile, far away in the neon-lit streets of Lungmen.

“A—choo!”

The Doctor suddenly sneezed violently, rubbing his nose in confusion beneath his heavy hood.

“Strange,” he muttered to himself. “Why do I suddenly feel a surge of inexplicable excitement… followed by a slight palpitation?”

He fell into deep contemplation for exactly three seconds, then shrugged and dismissed it entirely.

“This is your dormitory. It’s a standard single room with complete facilities,” Warfarin said, handing Ivan a sleek plastic key card.

“Okay, thank you.” Ivan took the card, inspecting the room number.

Just as Warfarin turned to leave, she suddenly stopped. She glanced back over her shoulder, a highly curious, almost hungry light flickering in her crimson eyes.

“By the way, Mr. Ivan… how about we make a little deal?”

Her tone shifted, becoming soft and dangerously seductive. “I’m actually… very, very interested in your body~”

Ivan instantly went on high alert. He crossed his arms defensively over his chest and took half a step back. “…What exactly do you want to do?”

“Don’t misunderstand! Not that kind of interest!” Warfarin quickly waved her hands, though her face still bore that overly eager smile that made Ivan’s skin crawl.

“I mean your blood! I just want a tiny little blood sample for research!” She leaned in closer, lowering her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “How about it? As long as you agree to come down to the Medical Department twice a month to donate blood regularly, anything you want can be discussed~”

Ivan looked at the eccentric vampire, thought for a moment, and asked, “Can you really get me anything?”

“Provided it’s reasonable and doesn’t endanger Rhodes Island’s safety, yes.”

“That kind of… small but highly concentrated Originium crystal. Can you get that?” Ivan asked tentatively.

“Highly concentrated Originium?” Warfarin blinked, her smile vanishing as she frowned in professional concern. “It’s possible, yes. The lab has a small amount of high-purity samples in secure storage. But what on earth do you want that for? It’s extremely dangerous. Direct physical contact can easily cause immediate infection!”

“It’s nothing,” Ivan lied smoothly, scratching the back of his head with a guilty chuckle. “I just… want to study it myself. I definitely won’t mess around with it.”

Warfarin stared at him suspiciously for a few long seconds. Ultimately, her burning scientific curiosity regarding his inhuman biology won out. “…Alright. I’ll keep an eye out and secure some for you.”

She turned to leave again, then paused, tapping her earpiece. “Oh, by the way. Doctor Kal’tsit just sent a message through the internal network. She wants you to come to her office immediately.”

Returning to the Medical Department head’s office, Ivan found Kal’tsit waiting for him. She pulled open a drawer, retrieved a brand-new, sleek black device, and slid it across the desk.

“This is the dedicated terminal Rhodes Island provides to every Operator,” Kal’tsit explained. “It displays the real-time location of the landship, updates mission parameters, and, within your permission limits, allows you to view the locations of other online Operators.”

She tapped her own screen a few times, pulling up a mission brief. A second later, the interface synchronized directly to Ivan’s new terminal with a soft chime.

“There is an urgent situation. Operator Ivan, you need to depart immediately. Head to Lungmen and rendezvous with the team led by the Doctor and Amiya. Your mission is to assist them in executing their current objective and to ensure their absolute safety.”

“Huh?” Ivan stared at the screen, utterly dumbfounded. “I just started working here less than half a day ago! I haven’t even sat on my bed yet! Isn’t this just straight-up slave labor?”

Kal’tsit looked at him expressionlessly. She folded her hands on the desk, her lips parting slightly as she drew a breath. “On this vast land of Terra—”

“Stop! Hold it! I’ll go! I’ll go!”

The moment he heard the dreaded opening words of what was guaranteed to be a two-hour philosophical lecture, Ivan threw his hands up in immediate surrender.

“Very good,” Kal’tsit nodded, looking mildly satisfied as she closed her mouth. “The aircraft is already fueled and waiting on the deck. Depart immediately.”

Ivan stared at her deadpan face as he backed out of the room.

No way… you had the plane ready before I even walked in. You planned this from the start, didn’t you?