The Royal Academy had always been a place where rankings decided everything.
Your class.
Your reputation.
The amount of attention you received.
Even the expectations people had for your future.
S-Class students walked through the academy like future legends.
A-Class students were respected.
B and C-Class students were considered promising.
D and E-Class students were considered average.
And F-Class...
F-Class was where talent was forgotten.
Where mistakes became permanent labels.
Where students were expected to remain at the bottom.
Kael Virex had understood that from the moment he entered the academy.
But he had never accepted it.
---
The morning began like any other.
Kael sat at his desk, reading through a combat theory textbook while the rest of the class slowly arrived.
His appearance had changed dramatically compared to seven months ago.
The weak-looking boy who barely survived the entrance examination was gone.
His black hair was slightly messy as usual, falling over his forehead. His steel-grey eyes moved across the pages with complete focus.
His body had become lean and athletic from constant training.
His hands rested on the desk, faint callouses visible from countless hours of fighting without a weapon.
Without a Path.
Without an advantage.
Yet despite everything that had changed...
His uniform still carried the same letter.
F.
A reminder of where the academy believed he belonged.
---
"You know, normal people actually rest sometimes."
Kael looked up.
Tovin sat beside him, his head resting against his hand.
His expression was the same as always.
Bored.
Unimpressed.
Almost as if everything around him was beneath his attention.
"You were awake for three hours before class started."
Kael closed the book.
"Training."
"I know."
Tovin looked out the window.
"You always do that."
Kael studied him briefly.
"And you don't."
"No."
Tovin answered immediately.
No hesitation.
Kael looked away.
That answer was strangely honest.
---
Before he could say anything else, the classroom doors opened.
The atmosphere changed instantly.
An instructor stood at the entrance.
Not one of the usual F-Class teachers.
A higher-ranked instructor.
The room became quiet.
"All students are to report to the central hall immediately."
The class exchanged confused looks.
"Why?"
"Did something happen?"
The instructor didn't answer.
"Move."
---
Within minutes, students from every class gathered inside the academy's largest hall.
S-Class stood at the front.
A-Class behind them.
Then B, C, D, E.
F-Class stood at the very back.
Exactly where everyone expected them to be.
Kael looked across the crowd.
Hundreds of students.
Hundreds of different abilities.
Hundreds of different futures.
At the front stood several instructors.
Among them was the academy's evaluation director.
A middle-aged man with grey hair and a calm expression.
When he spoke, his voice carried throughout the entire hall.
"Every year, the Royal Academy conducts its annual evaluation."
The room became silent.
"At the end of the first academic year, your current positions will be judged."
A murmur spread.
Everyone knew what that meant.
Class changes.
Rank changes.
Opportunities.
The instructor continued.
"The evaluation will determine your placement for the next academic year."
---
That sentence immediately changed the atmosphere.
Even the strongest students paid closer attention.
Because no matter how talented someone was...
Nothing was guaranteed.
"The evaluation will test five factors."
A magical display appeared behind him.
Combat Ability.
Physical Capability.
Adaptability.
Decision Making.
Path Application.
"Your current class will have no influence on your results."
A pause.
"An F-Class student who proves themselves will be recognized."
Some F-Class students looked up.
Hope appeared briefly.
Then disappeared.
Because everyone knew the reality.
Words were easy.
Reality was different.
---
"Does that mean class rankings can completely change?" someone asked.
The instructor nodded.
"Yes."
The hall became louder.
Students began discussing strategies.
Some looked excited.
Some looked nervous.
Some looked confident.
---
At the front of the hall, S-Class remained calm.
Auren Valcrest stood silently.
His black hair with crimson streaks flowed slightly as mana moved through the room.
One sapphire eye watched the display.
The other remained hidden beneath his hair.
The golden eye of the Valcrest family remained unseen.
Beside him stood Lady Elara Ashbourne.
Her crimson hair rested over her shoulder, her golden eyes focused on the information being displayed.
Next to her, Prince Lucien Edevane observed quietly.
His violet eyes reflected the magical screen in front of him.
Caelan Strade simply smiled slightly.
"A chance to see everyone's true ability."
---
Back at the F-Class section...
The reaction was completely different.
"So we're fighting against everyone?"
"There's no way."
"S-Class will eliminate us instantly."
Some students had already accepted defeat.
Kael noticed.
Not their fear.
Their belief.
They weren't afraid of losing.
They expected to lose.
That was different.
---
The instructor continued.
"The evaluation will begin in one week."
"Until then, preparation is allowed."
"However..."
His expression became serious.
"Do not misunderstand."
"The evaluation is not designed to reward the strongest ability."
"The academy does not need people who can only destroy."
"We need people who can survive."
The hall became silent.
"That is all."
---
As students began leaving, conversations erupted.
Every class was discussing strategies.
Every student was preparing.
Except one.
Tovin.
He walked beside Kael with the same bored expression.
"You aren't preparing?"
Kael asked.
Tovin looked at him.
"For what?"
"The evaluation."
A pause.
Then Tovin looked forward.
"It hasn't started yet."
Kael narrowed his eyes slightly.
"That doesn't answer my question."
Tovin shrugged.
"It does."
Kael studied him.
Most people would have sounded careless saying that.
Tovin didn't.
He sounded certain.
As if he wasn't worried about the evaluation because there was nothing to worry about.
---
That evening, Kael returned to his dorm.
He opened his notebook.
Not for studying.
For planning.
The evaluation wasn't an exam.
It wasn't a normal battle.
It was a measurement of everything.
Physical ability.
Combat knowledge.
Mental strength.
He wrote one sentence.
"The biggest disadvantage is not being weaker."
He paused.
Then continued.
"It is being underestimated."
---
Outside his window, the academy continued preparing.
The strongest sharpened their abilities.
The weakest searched for a chance.
And among the hundreds of students preparing for the evaluation...
Two names remained completely unnoticed.
Kael Virex.
A No-Path who refused to remain weak.
And Tovin.
A student who looked like he had nothing to prove.
One week remained.
And when the evaluation began...
The entire academy would finally be forced to look at F-Class.