Accepted.
The word echoed in Max's skull long before he understood it. He stared at his wrist at nothing at all yet something unseen pulsed beneath his skin.
"Hello?" he muttered, tapping at his arm. His voice sounded small in the stillness of his room. The response wasn't heard through his ears, but directly in his mind cold, mechanical, and distant.
Through this device, you will be transported from your ordinary life into a world of magic, monsters, gods, and advanced technology. Your survival is uncertain. However, we have identified your desire for change. It is strong much stronger than most.
Only the exceptional are chosen. Gather what you need and prepare… or decline and remain as you are. You have twenty-four hours.
Max swallowed. His skin tingled where the phantom bracelet rested, though when he touched it, he felt only flesh—no metal, no seams.
"Okay" he whispered, "that's… definitely not normal."
A faint hum filled the air, and a translucent screen shimmered into existence before him floating inches from his face.
Max blinked, stunned.
"Well." He muttered, "if it's going to talk to me, it should at least have a name."
Naming your only support system may be your first mistake. The academy may want to reconsider accepting you.
Max stiffened. "Okay no need to be rude."
I am not rude. I am efficient. I am a super machine designed by the Headmaster. Every student has one. We evolve as you do. Access my interface by thinking of your personal details.
Max stared at the floating display.
It shifted as if reacting to his thoughts.
[Name: Max]
[Gender: Male]
[Title: Intelligent Human]
[Age: 19]
[Health: 5/5]
[Strength: 10]
[Speed: 8]
[Mana: 10]
[Magic Points: 0]
Magic points? Stats? The numbers felt insulting as if someone had taken one look at him and labeled him barely adequate.
Correct. You are inadequate.
"Stop reading my mind!"
I cannot. You are unshielded it's to easy.
Max groaned, grabbing a backpack and stuffing in whatever seemed useful pens, notebooks, clothes, a flashlight. He hesitated, then zipped it closed.
And then everything changed.
When he opened his bedroom door, his hallway was gone.
Instead, a colossal structure stretched endlessly into the horizon. The sky was darker, colder, and unfamiliar.
He walked through the door.
He shut the door.
Opened it again.
Now there were towering trees, their leaves black veined and rustling as if breathing on the other side.
"No way back," he murmured just as another door opened beside his.
A stranger stepped out—a tall guy with wild excitement in his eyes.
"NEW LIFE, HERE I COME!" the stranger bellowed then froze when he saw Max. He strode over, lifted Max clean off the ground with effortless strength, then laughed.
"Your stats must suck. I'm Alex. Nice to meet you."
He set Max down and patted his head like one might a confused puppy.
Before Max could respond, something vast spoke not aloud, but inside every skull present.
WELCOME, STUDENTS. YOUR FIRST LESSON IS TO SURVIVE.
TURN BACK NOW IF YOU WISH TO RETURN TO YOUR OLD LIVES.
IN FIVE MINUTES, THE WHITE DOOR BEHIND YOU WILL LEAD HOME. AFTER THAT THE TRIAL BEGINS.
A pale door materialized behind them, glowing faintly.
No one moved.
Wind stirred the forest. Leaves brushed Max's face soft, delicate. He noticed black spots on them, writhing slightly.
Not spots.
Insects.
The forest changed.
Silence fractured.
Millions of spiders poured from the trees eyes burning like embers legs scraping against bark like whispers made of bone. Above, thousands of black crows spiraled through the sky, blotting out the light.
Students screamed. Some ran. None got far.
Vines slithered from the soil, coiling around ankles tightening and rooting them in place.
Alex flexed, muscles hardening, veins glowing faint blue. The peak of human muscle heads.
Max's heart pounded as the first spider crossed the clearing towering, glistening, hungry.
This is the true entrance exam. Run, fight, or break.
Max couldn't breathe. The world had accepted him. Now it would decide whether he deserved to stay.
The ground vibrated. It wasn't the kind of vibration you felt when a truck rolled by or when someone slammed a door.
It was deeper like the earth itself was breathing, preparing for something ancient and terrible.
The first spider reached the tree line.
Its eyes glowed like burning coals, and its body was the size of a wolf. The smaller ones poured out behind it, moving in a wave—chittering, clicking, hungry.
Oh yeah, I thought. Totally normal school orientation. Very casual. Ten out of ten. No panic at all.
"Max," the bracelet whispered suddenly, tone colder and calmer than i heard "I suggest you stop screaming internally and focus."
"I AM NOT SCREAMING!" I snapped out loud just in time to watch one of the giant crows divebomb a girl to my left, talons shredding the air inches from her face.
She shrieked and stumbled back, vines tightening around her ankles like shackles.
Alex stepped forward, eyes glowing faintly. His muscles tensed—then a shimmering blue aura ignited around his body.
Strength: 40
Mana: 15
Skill unlocked.
Skill: Titan Body – Level 1 Activated
His status screen flickered in my vision even though I didn't ask to see it.
He cracked his knuckles.
"Alright!" he yelled, grinning like an idiot who enjoyed this. "First quest! LET'S GO!"
He launched himself forward with a thunderous step, fist smashing into the skull of one of the giant spiders. The thing burst like rotten fruit.
Blood splattered across the leaves—and across my shirt.
I gagged.
Then the blood disappeared.
"Max," the bracelet hissed in his head, "MOVE."
"But the vines…"
You have unlocked a passive skill:
[Adrenaline Surge — Rank F]
When in life-threatening danger, reaction speed increases.
The vines around my feet loosened.
Just enough.
I stumbled free heart hammering, lungs burning and turned toward Alex, who was already punching his way through the swarm.
"HEY!" I yelled over the chaos. "WHAT'S THE PLAN?"
Alex didn't turn.
He just shouted. "Survive!"
Not helpful.
Crows swooped low overhead, students screamed, and the forest turned into a battlefield raw terror.
Then suddenly another message flashed in front of my eyes.
New Quest: BEGIN THE TRIALS
Objective: Reach the Academy gates.
Distance: 7 miles.
Time Limit: 1 hour.
Failure: Death?
Reward
+1 Magic Point
Academy Entry (Conditional)
My throat went dry. "Yep" I muttered. "Definitely should've stayed home."
The forest roared around me—and the first spider lunged.