Today was the final day of the entrance ceremony.
The students would be tested in the Combat Complex, and four instructors would evaluate them physically and in combat ability.
After that, the students would be divided into five categories S, A, B, C, and F.
Once the academic year began, each rank would operate under an internal ranking system, where students were ranked from best to worst within their category.
At the end of every three-month semester, rankings would be updated based on each student's achievements and performance.
The decision to divide students into different ranks served two main purposes.
The first reason was that teaching methods differed depending on the student's rank. Students in higher ranks received advanced-level training specially designed for their abilities.
Meanwhile, lower-ranked students received more stable, foundational directions designed to steadily build their strength.
The second reason was the feeling of competition. By placing students in rankings, they were naturally motivated to train harder in order to rise higher.
Also, at the end of the five academic years, the top ten students were awarded a medal of honor and a personal weapon. They were also granted the right to form their own private Awakened squad.
The first category was Class S. Only 1% of students were placed in this category annually.
Although most students of royal lineage were placed directly in this category, this was not only due to their royal ancestry.
Most royal families trained their children from a young age, making them like beasts before they even began the semesters.
They were naturally trained well enough to be in this category. On top of that, they had a lot of money, weapons, and support behind them, making them very strong already.
Also, the students who showed really exceptional and powerful abilities got placed in this category.
The second category was Class A. This category typically comprised 9% of all students.
Students with slightly less ability than those in Class S were placed in this category. Some came from noble families, while others came from humble backgrounds.
These students possessed high abilities, but not to the same extent as those from royal families.
The third category was Category B. Its students were classified as average with normal abilities.
It was pretty rare for a student in this category to move up to a higher one. Most students ended up here every year, with Category B alone making up about 60% of all students.
The fourth category was Category C. Students with the lowest abilities and weakest performance were classified in this category.
This category was basically a nightmare for anyone with big ambitions, because being placed here meant the student didn't have the skills or ability needed to succeed.
20% of students annually were classified in this category, and they all ended up as ordinary officers or soldiers on the battlefield.
The final classification was Category F. About 10% of students each year ended up in this category.
Anyone placed here was expelled from the academy right away. It basically meant they had no chance of ever awakening and were considered completely unfit for combat.
This basically was a badge of shame for any student. There was no bright future waiting for someone in this category, and most of them ended up living ordinary lives as merchants or farmers...
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All the students were in the combat hall that day.
The air was filled with excitement, yet everyone was nervous, as no one wanted to get a low rank.
As for Jin, he was lost in his thoughts. He really had no idea how he was supposed to show his abilities to the instructors.
If he just used his blood powers like last time, he'd embarrass himself since he still didn't know how to control them properly, and he also still had some doubts that if he used them they would figure out that he murdered the three students on that day.
And if he swung the sword like he did with Morgan, his performance would be terrible since he never had any real sword training. All he knew was just how to lunge, dodge, and stab.
"Hafff, this is going to be such a long, boring day." Jin leaned against a tree outside the combat hall, staring at the number on his necklace,
"981." That meant his turn would come after 980 other students.
Then it hit 9:00 AM exactly it was time for the tests to begin.
Most of the students were already inside, watching the fights and judging each other.
Within the first hour, Jin saw many students leaving and some were happy, others disappointed, a few were even crying.
Everything seemed normal until he heard a loud bang inside the hall… it sounded like some kind of explosion?
Then he heard screams and shouting from inside, their screams were so high that he could hear them from outside.
Jin was genuinely glad that he wasn't inside with them. He didn't care about the other students' performances and didn't want to deal with all that noise.
After two minutes of that crazy shouting from inside, he saw a girl getting out of the hall, followed by several people congratulating and flattering her.
She was gorgeous, with long white hair that went down to her back and green eyes. Her silver armor hugged every curve of her body perfectly tight over her chest, showing off her slim waist, and flattering the smooth lines of her legs.
The armor was both alluring and powerful, and the way she held the slender silver sword added to her attractive presence.
The people surrounding her were congratulating her and showering her with greetings and compliments.
"Yumi, you were truly amazing!"
"Congratulations on your dedication and incredible performance! It really inspired me!"
"Lady Yumi, please sign my clothes I'm a huge fan!"
"You deserve the first spot without a doubt! You're honestly the best here!"
This girl's name was Yumi Artavelia, and from what Jin heard from the students, she was already awakened.
Awakening at such a young age was extremely rare. Even though there were ways to predict if someone might awaken in the future, it was uncommon for anyone to awaken before the age of 20.
Yumi topped the S-rank, making her the number one student.
"Heeh, what if they knew I was already awakened? How would they react?" Jin felt happy that he had awakened already.
Her ranking didn't interest him much. What really interested him was that she was the first girl he had seen with white hair like his.
White hair was extremely rare, and very few people had it.
Then he saw her leave, and the crowd that had followed her went back inside the hall.
"I wish I could control the blood powers," Jin sighed in frustration.
Minutes later, Jonathan Malekith was confirmed as second place in the ranks.
Everyone had expected him to win first rank, but it seemed Yumi had the upper hand this time.
He left with a look of mixed satisfaction and disappointment, and everyone greeted him with the same cheers they had given Yumi.
It wasn't long before third rank was decided. This time, Jin guessed correctly that Alucard Shanzu would take third.
He was the most popular and cheerful of them, which naturally drew everyone's attention to him. But that wasn't the only reason Jin was right.
His strong physique gave Jin the impression that he would be a powerful guy.
He was the only one Jin saw clearly on the first day of the entrance ceremony, and his physique impressed him, making him envious of his own lack of muscle in comparison.
"Well, that was expected," Jin said, feeling somewhat satisfied.
Somehow, he didn't hate Alucard despite him also being from a royal family, he seemed genuinely friendly and kind in his interactions with those around him.
Students continued to come and go for several hours until it was the turn of the ordinary students to test their skills.
At this point, the nobles and wealthy individuals didn't pay them attention, so they left the hall and went to their rooms.
Jin spotted Henry leaving the hall, so he went over to greet him.
"Oh, Henry, how's it going? Tell me, what was your rank?"
Henry averted his gaze, clearly trying to avoid Jin, but Jin followed him and repeated his question.
Annoyed, Henry snapped, "I was at the lowest rank in Category B. And please, don't ever talk to me again!"
Then he hurried off, leaving Jin stunned.
"Did I upset him somehow?" Jin sighed and decided to enter the hall anyway, since there weren't too many students left inside.
The hall was massive. Students stood along the edges, while others sat on the bleacher chairs, watching the tests taking place in the center.
In the middle of the hall, four instructors sat on chairs, each holding a notebook to note the students' results.
Students stepped forward one by one to show their combat skills and show off their powers. The center arena had been used so much that the floor was soaked with sweat and the ground was damaged from previous students.
When Jin sat down, he noticed some people staring at him with hatred, others with disgust.
Because of the first day of the ceremony, he had gotten a lot of attention and become the most hated person in the academy.
Everyone hoped he would fail...
Jin didn't really understand why all this hatred was directed at him, so he just ignored their stares and looked at a student who was performing some spear technique moves in front of the teachers, after that that student ran and did some physical exercises for 5 minutes as it was part of the physique test.
That student ended up in Category B as well, bowed to the instructors, then left.
Several more students went after him, and then finally, it was Jin's turn.
The instructor called out, "Student number 981, step forward and tell us about your abilities."
"I'm Jin Yoshta, and I use a sword," Jin said.
"Alright. I am Aiden, and your abilities will be evaluated by me, Instructor Paul, Xiao, and Chris. Show us what you're capable of, and don't hold back."
Some of the students were already watching him, and a few were laughing, clearly hoping he would fail.
"Can I use one of these swords since I don't have my own?" Jin asked, pointing to the weapons rack that was in the arena.
Aiden replied, "Use whatever you want."
Jin stepped forward, picked up a wooden sword, and swung it a little. "Not bad," he thought to himself.
When he stood in front of them and said, "So… who is going to spar with me?"
The instructors looked at him, surprised. "What do you mean by that? You're just here to show your skills!"
Jin scratched his head, confused. "How am I supposed to show what I can do if there's no one to spar with?"
The instructors seemed a bit annoyed until Chris spoke up. "No problem, student Jin, would you allow me to spar with you?"
"Instructor Chris? What are you doing?" Xiao asked Chris in surprise.
Chris laughed. "Don't go too hard on the boy—maybe he has another way to show us his abilities."
Then Chris grabbed a wooden sword. "I'll face you with this, but I won't actually hit you."
Jin sighed and raised his sword. "Alright."
He breathed hard then ran quickly, aiming his sword at Chris's head. Chris easily blocked it and pushed him back with his own sword.
Jin came at him again, trying to stab, but Chris simply deflected his sword to the side.
In that moment, Jin tried to circle around him to land a strike, but Chris laughed and stuck the tip of his foot in Jin's path, making him tumble to the ground in an embarrassing roll.
Jin could hear the students watching him laughing, while the other instructors seemed completely indifferent…
"Damn it, this is embarrassing," Jin muttered, getting back on his feet and staring at Instructor Chris again.
He continued his attack strongly, hoping to at least scratch Chris.
"Clang... Clang... Clang..."
Chris effortlessly deflected every swing as if he was playing with a child, his movements smooth and easy.
Jin's frustration grew with each failed attempt, his attacks becoming more desperate and uncontrolled.
The other instructors watched, their faces a mix of frustration, and one of them said, "Chris, that's enough—he's bad!"
But Chris remained calm as he smiled. "Is that all you've got? If so then I feel so disappointed that I stood up here to face you…"
Jin could hear the students laughing and mocking him. Even the instructors looked at him with disgust and mockery.
He felt suffocated. He was painfully bad...
At that moment, his thoughts turned dark. He realized just how pathetic he was.
He wasn't fit to join the academy or to have such high dreams.
He started to feel hopeless and just wanted to give up and go home.
But just as he was about to drop his weapon, the paper suddenly appeared in front of him.
"What the hell? I didn't summon the paper!"
Jin was stunned as he stared at it, and the instructors probably thought he had lost his mind by staring into the air. It seemed no one else could see that paper!
On it was written
"Do you want to enter Combat Mode? [Yes/No]"
Jin didn't fully understand what it meant, but his despair pushed him to say, "Yes."
Suddenly, he lost control of his body. He couldn't feel his limbs or move at all.
But he didn't lose his sight he could still see everything around him.
Chris and the other instructors were watching him closely.
Something about him had clearly changed.
His gaze turned cold and hollow, lifeless even, unlike before, he was calm and balanced.
Suddenly, his body adjusted itself, standing in a strange position, then he placed his sword by his side and started moving toward Chris.
It seemed strange to Chris too, as Jin walked toward him with such indifference and a lack of concern. His body moved slowly, his eyes fixed on Chris with a blank stare.
Then, at that moment... his body moved with terrifying speed, leaping into the air with a fluid, graceful motion, as if he were dancing in mid-air.
The way he moved while jumping made the sword drop down while his twisted body went up, and then the sword slammed hard toward Chris's head.
"Whoosh!"
Chris quickly moved his sword up to block the strike, but...
Suddenly, without warning, Jin's knee hurtled fast toward his face.
Chris's expression changed instantly, and he moved backward, dodging the kick. With a swift movement, Jin landed calmly on the ground and raised his sword again, moving toward Chris.
Chris was staring at him, his eyes wide with shock. There was no doubt that Jin's sword strike was meant to kill him!
Jin's body surged forward fast again, pushing Chris to take the fight seriously for the first time since it began.
"Clang… clang… clang!"
The sound of clashing wooden swords echoed throughout the hall. The students' expressions turned to shock. Jin's strikes were strong enough to actually push Chris back several times!
As the battle continued, Jin suddenly threw his sword toward Chris.
He managed to deflect it, but he didn't expect Jin to be that fast. Jin reached his side and kicked him hard in his ribs.
Chris's expression changed drastically in shock mixed with denial.
He clutched his ribs and moved several meters backward to create distance.
But Jin didn't give him a chance. He ran toward him again, keeping striking with his sword.
"Clack... Clack... Clack!"
Chris parried all the attacks and began to take the fight seriously. For the first time since the fight began, he pointed the wooden weapon at Jin's face.
Jin bent his upper body backward to avoid the strike, then leapt with one leg, attempting to kick his chin. But Chris was quick and dodged the kick.
Then he moved forward with incredible speed to deliver a powerful punch to Jin's head.
At that moment, the paper appeared again in front of Jin's face
"Combat Mode time has ended. Returning to normal state."
"Oh shit…"
Because of the paper's sudden appearance, Jin regained the ability to move and began to feel his body again.
But he couldn't dodge the punch, so he took a powerful blow to his face, which sent his body crashing violently to the ground with a loud sound "Pffft."
"Ugh!"
The punch knocked him unconscious. He lay there, arms at his sides, completely looking like a dead body.
The hall fell silent. The only sound was the wind blowing through the windows. Everyone was shocked... not just by Jin's performance, but also by Chris, who had just punched a student.
Chris broke the silence, looking stunned. "What the hell… was that!"
Paul looked at Jin's unconscious body, a mix of shock and confusion on his face.
Then he turned to Chris. "Why are you suddenly serious? What the fuck is wrong with you!"
Chris, still in shock, replied, "I don't know what happened to the boy… but I swear I felt like I was fighting a chaotic creature, not a human!"
"Huh? Have you lost your mind?"
Chris returned to his seat, clearly unsettled.
Then he turned to Xiao, who had stayed calm the entire time.
"Instructor Xiao, there's something about this boy… I don't know what it is, but I want you to watch him from now on."
Xiao replied calmly, "Do you suspect he's corrupted?"
"I don't know, but there's something completely different about him!"
Aiden looked at Jin's body then said, "Let's put him in the top ranked of Class B and keep a close eye on him in the coming days..."