The moment the teacher said the word "Warriors", the entire classroom fell silent.
Alex looked around.
Something felt strange.
Why had the entire class suddenly become so quiet just from hearing that word?
He leaned toward his friend.
"Darex… do you know what a warrior is?"
Darex shook his head.
"No idea. I've never heard that word before either."
Alex turned around and asked another student behind him.
"Hey, do you know what warriors are?"
The boy shrugged.
"No. I only know about the army. I thought the army was the one protecting our country."
"So what are these warriors?"
Alex slowly turned his head toward Iris.
She was sitting quietly with her head lowered.
She wasn't saying anything.
Her pink lips were tightly sealed, and she kept twisting a strand of her hair around her fingers.
It looked like she was remembering something.
Alex suddenly started thinking about his own life.
Until now, he had believed something very simple.
He thought one day he would live a peaceful life with Iris.
He imagined a future where he could move his family into that massive three-hundred-floor tower.
That tower had always been his biggest dream.
But now…
Everything felt uncertain.
Darex suddenly grabbed his arm.
"What are you thinking about?"
"You were asking something about warriors."
Alex raised his hand.
"Sir… we've only heard about the army."
"We've seen tanks, guns, and weapons."
"But what exactly are warriors?"
"And why are you telling us about them now?"
The teacher took a deep breath.
"Because the time has come for you to learn about another career path."
The class became curious.
"What do you mean, sir?"
The teacher spoke slowly.
"A Warrior of the Aurora Land… even a Rank One Warrior… is considered higher than the government itself."
The classroom exploded with shock.
"What?!"
"Yes."
"Even a billionaire would bow his head to a Rank One Warrior."
"If a Rank One Warrior becomes angry… and someone has offended him…"
"Even if he kills that person, the punishment may not be very severe."
Darex immediately stood up.
"But sir… that's against the law!"
The teacher shook his head.
"Law?"
"Children, the government makes laws."
"And the army protects the government."
"The law you know… the one that says everyone has equal rights… freedom of speech…"
"That law applies only to civilians."
He continued.
"You all studied Article 304, didn't you?"
"Yes, sir."
"That article clearly states that a powerless person has the right to speak freely against another powerless person."
The class nodded.
"But did you ever notice something?"
"It never mentioned speaking freely against a powerful person."
The students froze.
One student spoke slowly.
"We thought powerful people meant people with higher authority…"
The teacher shook his head.
"No."
"A powerful person means a Warrior."
"And powerless people…"
He looked at the entire class.
"…are all of you."
The classroom fell into complete silence.
"So our world really works like this?" Darex asked.
"Yes."
"More than half of the world works under this rule."
Another student asked nervously,
"Does our country follow the same system?"
"Not exactly."
"In our country, criminals are punished whether they are warriors or not."
"But the punishment for warriors is often much lighter."
"They always have a chance to escape punishment."
"But if a common person commits a crime…"
"The punishment can be extremely harsh."
Darex raised his hand again.
"Sir… can anyone become a warrior?"
"Yes."
"Everyone has the right to become a warrior."
"Right?" Darex asked.
"Yes."
"After turning eighteen, people from common society can sign a special government application."
"It is called the Warrior Plan."
"Under this program, you join a government organization."
"But even I don't know everything about what warriors actually do."
The teacher looked around the class.
"My job as a teacher is simple."
"Every year, when students turn eighteen, I must inform them about the option to apply."
"That's why the school calls you all here one last time after your exams are finished."
A student asked,
"Sir… what about that huge tower in Horizon Zone 01?"
"The three-hundred-floor building?"
The teacher nodded.
"That building belongs to an organization."
"What organization?"
"The Synchro Organization."
The class leaned forward.
"The Synchro Organization is funded by governments across the world."
"And it is responsible for creating warriors."
A student raised his hand.
"Then why doesn't everyone become a warrior?"
"Because of synchronization."
The teacher opened another holographic screen.
"Every human has a gene synchronization rate."
"If your synchronization rate is below 15%, you cannot become a warrior."
"You are automatically disqualified."
The students were shocked.
"Most common people have synchronization rates below fifteen percent."
"Then what about the injection?" someone asked.
"The SG-01 Synchronization Gene Injection is given to everyone by the government."
"But if someone fails the test…"
"Their memories of the procedure are erased."
Alex frowned.
"Then how do you remember it, sir?"
The teacher smiled faintly.
"Because every teacher here has already passed the synchronization test."
"Our synchronization rate is between 16% and 17%."
"That's why our memories weren't erased."
"But our power is still not strong enough to become warriors."
"Then how much synchronization is required to become a warrior?" Darex asked.
The teacher answered.
"Twenty percent."
"If your synchronization rate reaches 20%, you can become a warrior."
"If it's lower than that…"
"You will work in professions connected to warriors, but you will always remain below them."
Alex slowly raised his hand.
"Sir… then why were you so sad today?"
The teacher's expression darkened.
"You remember the danger alert this morning?"
"Yes, sir. That's why we were late."
The teacher looked down.
"This morning… one of the students from our own school was running to class."
"He accidentally collided with a Rank One Warrior."
The classroom froze.
"What happened?"
"The warrior was furious."
"He punched the boy."
"That single punch shattered his spine and broke several bones in his body."
"Right now…"
"We don't even know if he will survive."
Darex suddenly stood up in anger.
"Sir, that's wrong!"
The teacher looked at him calmly.
"Wrong?"
"I already told you."
"Right and wrong…"
"…exist only for common people like us."