The winds of Frost City howled with merciless chill as the entrance test for the Kurogane-tai 鉄隊 {Iron Unit} began. A thousand hopefuls stood within the frozen colosseum of Hyōfū no Seiyaku 氷封の誓約 {Oath of the Frozen Seal}, their breaths misting in the air, eyes burning with determination.
Amaya stood silently beside Arata, arms folded. "Only fifty," she said flatly. "Most of these people are going home broken."
Haruko, gripping his staff tightly, muttered, "Or not going home at all."
Suddenly, the clouds above twisted unnaturally, and a signal bolt of Seiki thundered down to mark the beginning of the test. An amplified voice echoed from the sky—the voice of the Great Sensei himself.
"To stand among the elite, you must endure what most cannot survive. Ice. Fire. Darkness. Pain. The soul war waits for no weaklings."
Phase One: The Gauntlet of Attrition
The arena shifted. Massive shards of ice erupted from the ground, forming an ever-changing maze. Inside it, candidates had to survive three stages: Seiki Drain Zones, Illusion Assault Chambers, and Precision Trials.
Arata dashed forward, Ice Needles charged in his palms. He twisted through the frost gauntlet as his Seiki was constantly drained by the zones. Haruko stumbled beside him, nearly collapsing. Amaya, moving like a wraith, used minimal energy, deflecting attacks with calculated strikes.
Suddenly, illusion constructs formed—replicas of their worst fears. Arata faced a twisted version of Akane, eyes black and leaking smoke. It whispered:
"You failed me once, Arata. Will you fail the world next?"
He screamed and shattered it with a flurry of Kōshin.
Phase Two: Combat Evaluation
The survivors were barely fifty when they were thrown into the next phase: one-on-one duels. The goal: not to win—but to survive without killing.
Arata faced a hulking boy with blazing magma fists. Seiki clashed against frost in the most brutal match so far. Arata held his own, sliding under fire-blasts, countering with needle barrages and using every ounce of agility to outlast him. He collapsed at the edge of the ring, barely conscious—but alive.
Amaya, in contrast, won her duel in under 30 seconds.
Akari, watching from the upper balcony with the instructors, nodded with quiet approval.
The First Day: Extreme Training Begins
At dawn, the Iron Unit assembled in the sacred grounds of the Glacier Temple, a brutal training zone reserved for the elite. Sensei Nakashima Tsukiko appeared in full ceremonial robes, a sealed scroll in his hands.
"The body must break before it can be reforged."
Thus began the day of Extreme Training—endurance runs through soul-sapping blizzards, blind duels in absolute darkness, and underwater ice-holding sessions where failing meant unconsciousness.
By nightfall, ten had already dropped out.
Arata barely stood. Haruko was throwing up. Amaya's lips were blue but she didn't utter a word of complaint.
Then, a massive gong rang through the sky.
"Final Session: Benediction Awakening."
Final Benediction Attacks: Forbidden Power
Only thirty-seven candidates remained. The scroll was unsealed. A blue fire erupted from it as the air around them warped with divine energy. Sensei Tsukiko stepped forward and intoned:
"The Final Benediction is not a technique. It is a reckoning. A piece of your soul carved into divine destruction."
Each student was handed a Divine Mirror Crystal, designed to reflect the user's truest potential. They were ordered to project their own version of the Final Benediction into the crystal.
One by one, the warriors channeled their deepest Seiki. Most cracked the mirror. Some failed to summon any reaction. But then—
Arata stepped forward.
"Hyōsō: Tsukikage no Kusari!"
Chains of frozen moonlight erupted from his palms and coiled into the mirror. The crystal absorbed it—then gleamed pure silver. A sigil formed in the air behind him: a crescent moon devouring black fire.
The Sensei's eyes widened. "That… is a precursor to the Lunar Benediction."
Amaya followed. Her attack was quieter but more dangerous. A cyclone of petal-shaped daggers formed behind her and then spiraled into a silent death field.
"Shinkai Fūbun: Kurohana no Saika" {Deep Sea Wind Style: Black Blossom Firestorm}
Only nine others succeeded in stabilizing their own Benediction.
Tsukiko raised the scroll again.
"The Soul War approaches. Those who unlocked the Benediction today—are the last hope. From now, you are not students. You are the Reikan no Tate 霊感の盾—The Soulshield."
Even though Amaya, Arata and Haruko passed and got selected in the Iron Unit, Isamu failed to reach the highest level of his Final Benediction and so got rejected from the selected candidates list.