Kevin's swordsmanship focused on speed above power.
After all, so long as the opponent couldn't react to the attack, how were they supposed to defend against it?
But sadly for Kevin, my stats were high, and my mastery of kendo was even higher.
He kicked off the ground once again, shifting his body.
I would recognize that stance from anywhere.
A low pose, he was holding his breath, and his muscles were all tensed up.
One of the most basic attacks.
A thrust.
I wasn't really sure just what Kevin was expecting though.
An attack so slow and predictable...
It was only right I responded in kind.
Before he could even pull back his sword to start the thrust, my wooden blade shot through his guard, knocking Kevin's weapon from his hands.
Startled, he tried to catch it. However, I smacked it away before he could.
It all happened in the blink of an eye, and once his sword dropped down to the ground, there was nothing but silence.
Kevin stared wide eyed at what had just happened.
As for me, I let out a sigh and put my wooden sword back onto the weapon stand.
Turning back toward him, I gave him a nod.
"Good fight. You can keep the gold coin. Welcome to Aldraazan."
As I began to walk away, Kevin suddenly approached me, a serious look on his face.
"What's your name?"
"You'll find out tomorrow," I answered.
"Who was your master?" he continued to pester. "No... have you met my master before? Your swordsmans—"
"You talk too much."
I didn't have anything against him, but I already had a massive headache because I hadn't slept in close to three days.
So hearing this blessed protagonist who was probably going to walk down the street later and win the lottery was kind of pissing me off.
I gave him one last look and walked away. This time, he didn't try to stop me.
I roamed through the streets, covering myself in a mini forcefield from the snowballs and whatever these people threw at me.
When I reached my home, I didn't even undress as I fell into my bed.
I closed my eyes and tried to get some sleep in silence.
Silence...
It was too silent.
I couldn't fall asleep, since I was reminded of that time I was trapped in darkness and silence.
Feeling a little pathetic, I rose from my bed and went into the living room. After a bit of searching, I found a record player as well as a few vinyl records.
I did a few tests, and after making sure it played music, I took it inside my room, placed it right by the bed and then finally turned it on.
As the soothing melody began to play, I closed my eyes.
Unlike before, I didn't feel that uncomfortable, and so I finally gave in to my tiredness and fell asleep.
After a good sleep, I was now once again back in front of the academy.
There weren't as many people as yesterday, and so getting through the guard was fairly simple.
The same instructor from yesterday led our group through the academy, and eventually, into the courtyard filled with hundreds of people.
As I stared at the courtyard that was at least several kilometers big, I couldn't help but get a sense of deja vu.
This was the one place where, in every single route, I had been once.
The same exams, the same teams, and even the same outcomes.
Even the main burly instructor from before was there.
I stood silently and waited for the rest of the applicants to arrive.
After an hour or two, the courtyard was at least twice as full.
And since everyone was now gathered, the burly instructor in charge rose up to the podium and introduced himself.
"Welcome, future cadets. My name's Fitzgerald. I am a Grade 9, and my Gift is Herculean Strength."
His hand suddenly grew larger.
"In short, don't cross me, or I will squash your heads. Are we on the same page so far, dear future cadets?"
I laughed inwardly at this guy's antics. Fitzgerald was the softest instructor of them all.
He was basically a panda.
"Good. Since there are so many of you, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt."
He pointed to the right of the courtyard.
"Those of you who have combat Gifts, go over there."
Then the left.
"Utility and any Gifts not related to fighting someone, over there."
And then he finally pointed at the center.
"Those of you who have Gifts that can fit in both the Combat and Utility categories, stay where you are."
Bit by bit, the 'future cadets' began to scatter.
I remained standing in the center though, alongside a few others.
Telekinesis could be used for everything.
Fighting, cleaning up trash, cooking food. It would be harder to find what I couldn't use it for.
"Alright, now that everyone's in their place, I'll send you Utility types to another instructor. Have fun~"
As the orientation of all the groups began, I zoned out.
I only snapped out of it when my name was called.
"Amon Everness?" Fitzgerald said. "It's not very proper for a future cadet to not be paying attention to their instructors. Do that again and I'll throw you out."
I nodded, and then glanced around.
There were fewer people on the Combat Gift side. Behind me, most of the all rounder Gifts were also gone.
Right...
I had missed the part where cadets went up to show off their Gifts to instructor Fitzgerald.
In the game, Amon would fail this part. After all, he couldn't activate his Gift until much later in the exam.
But since he was a noble, the academy couldn't turn him away without letting him through all the exams first.
Shaking my head, I took it as my turn, and so I approached Fitzgerald.
For the cherry on top, instead of taking the mini steps onto the podium, I flew up, landing beside him.
"Oho? You already know how to fly with that Gift?" Fitzgerald mused, excited.
"A little bit," I replied. "So what now? Do you want me to attack you?"
Hearing my words, a massive grin appeared on Fitzgerald's face.
"Your test will be in three parts, but if you want to start with the Combat Gift test, then give me everything you've got."