The stadium lights shifted with a low hum, bathing the arena in a silver-blue glow. The moment Ryuven's blazing score appeared on the floating crystal screen—
[Mana Output: 137/150]
[Affinity Resonance: 86/100]
[Situational Response: 72/80]
[Micro-Duel Combat: 102/120]
Total: 397 / 450]
—the crowd exploded.
"Of course Flamecrest topped again!"
"He'll definitely enter the Top 5!"
"He might even break four hundred this year."
Heat still shimmered on the tiles where his flames had danced moments earlier.
Ryuven smirked as he walked back, passing Avin deliberately close.
"Try not to embarrass yourself, rumor boy."
Avin didn't answer.
He didn't need to.
But the whispers behind him were growing sharper.
"Is he even going to score above 200?"
"He looked like he barely survived awakening."
"I bet he's the filler candidate to balance the numbers."
"Trash seed."
"Dead weight."
Kai clenched his fists.
"Bro… you tell me when to punch someone."
"Don't," Avin murmured.
Professor Lira raised her hand again, silencing the arena like cutting a thread.
"Next candidate—Avin Renn. Step forward."
A wave of murmurs rolled through the students like wind in a wheat field.
"…that's him."
"…the weird awakening kid."
"…why is Lira watching him so closely?"
"…maybe he will explode, haha."
Avin ignored all of it and walked toward the center platform.
He walked calmly, but inside, something unfamiliar stirred—something cold, deep, humming with a rhythm he could not understand.
The second voice… the second pulse… what am I really?
He shook the thought away for now.
Not here.
Not in front of everyone.
---
Mana Output Test
A crystalline pillar rose from the ground, glowing faintly.
Professor Lira's voice echoed:
"Channel your energy into the conduit. No more, no less. Accuracy matters."
Avin placed his palm on the crystal.
He knew he must hold back.
He didn't know how strong he truly was… but he knew he didn't want to find out in front of a thousand staring eyes.
He fed mana slowly, carefully—
The crystal blinked softly…
…flickered…
…then steadied.
[Mana Output: 74 / 150]
A wave of laughter immediately rose.
"That's it?"
"Is he even awake?"
"Bro, my grandma can output more mana!"
Kai screamed from the back, "SHUT UP! His grandma fought gods probably!"
The students blinked.
"…What?"
"Is that an insult or a compliment?"
"No idea."
Avin stepped back silently.
He didn't care.
He couldn't.
Showing his true power was dangerous—not for others, but for himself.
---
Affinity Resonance Test
This time a ring of floating elemental spheres surrounded him—fire, water, wind, earth, light, and shadow.
"Let your mana resonate with any element you feel affinity toward," Lira instructed.
Avin reached out.
A strange thing happened.
As soon as his mana touched the spheres, two pulses responded inside him.
One familiar…
one dark, ancient, whispering like a forgotten storm.
Not here.
Not now.
He cut the connection immediately.
Only a faint ripple shivered through the spheres.
The scoreboard flashed:
[Affinity Resonance: 49 / 100]
The crowd sighed.
"Below average."
"Maybe he's just talentless."
"Why did the academy accept him?"
But one corner of the arena remained silent—Sarene's side.
She kept watching him, eyes narrowed slightly, as if she sensed something no one else could.
---
Situational Response Test
Illusion walls lit up, showing fast-changing threats—shadow beasts, falling debris, surprise traps.
Avin dodged easily, but deliberately slowed himself.
He bumped his shoulder against a falling stone for realism…
Let a beast illusion swipe near him…
And made some moves look clumsier than he intended.
The scoreboard calculated:
[Situational Response: 52 / 80]
Kai fist-pumped.
"That's GOOD! My boy dodged like a flexible chicken!"
Students stared.
"…Flexible chicken—?"
"What kind of compliment is that?"
Avin almost smiled.
Almost.
---
Micro-Duel Combat
This was the part everyone was waiting for.
This separated prodigies from the average.
The instructor called out:
"Opponent: Training Automaton: Grade C."
A humanoid metal construct emerged, eyes glowing blue.
Students began whispering loudly:
"He's dead."
"A C-grade bot can shatter bones."
"He'll be smashed like fruit."
"He's no fighter."
Kai yelled, "BRO JUST RUN CIRCLES AROUND HIM!"
Avin stepped forward.
The automaton lunged first—fast, precise.
Avin dodged lightly, barely shifting his stance.
But he didn't counterattack.
He didn't strike back.
He just evaded.
And with each dodge… something inside him reacted,
move
dodge
avoid
hide
not yet
not here
A whisper.
A warning.
His blood felt colder.
He kept dodging, letting the automaton graze him, making mistakes on purpose.
After one full minute, the instructor shouted:
"Time!"
The bot froze.
Avin hadn't landed a single hit.
The crowd howled.
"He didn't even try!"
"What kind of trash strategy is that?"
"Coward!"
Professor Lira, however, watched him with unreadable eyes.
The score appeared:
[Micro-Duel Combat: 38 / 120]
People burst into laughter.
Kai screamed, "WHAT DO YOU KNOW?! MAYBE HE'S PRACTICING… RUNNING TECHNIQUES!"
Everyone turned.
"…Running techniques?"
"…That's not a thing."
"…Is he dumb or a genius?"
"No idea. He confuses me."
---
Total Score
The crystal rearranged Avin's scores:
[Total: 213 / 450]
Whispers exploded instantly.
"Below average!"
"He's done for this year."
"He won't reach even rank 60."
"No chance for Elite Cadet ranking."
A student from Frostvale muttered:
"I expected… something. Anything."
Another muttered:
"He looked mysterious for nothing."
But Sarene… stared at the score like it was lying.
And Professor Lira's expression didn't change at all.
---
After the Test
The crowd dispersed into chaotic groups, discussing the results.
Kai ran to Avin.
"BRO! You passed! Barely. But passed!"
Avin nodded.
Truthfully, he didn't care about the numbers.
He was thinking about something else.
That second pulse.
That second whisper.
That thing inside him.
It reacted during every test. Why? Why do I feel like there's another power waiting beneath my mana? What even awakened inside me?
His chest felt strangely heavy.
Kai waved a hand in front of his face.
"Yo? Bro? Thinking something deep?"
"…Something like that."
Kai grinned.
"That means you're good. Deep thoughts = protagonist energy."
Avin stared at him.
"…What?"
"Nothing."
Kai coughed.
"Anyway! Dorm after lunch? Teacher Lira said results tomorrow morning."
Avin nodded.
But as they walked back through the academy grounds, the whispers continued to follow him like shadows.
"…he's weak."
"…all hype."
"…maybe his awakening was a mistake."
"…what a disappointment."
Avin didn't reply.
Yet inside him…
the second pulse awakened again, faint… like a heartbeat of someone not entirely human.
And from deep within—
A whisper no one else could hear:
"…Not yet… Heir…"
Avin froze.
Kai didn't notice, already walking ahead.
But Avin felt it.
Something was coming.
Something only he could sense.