One hour passed in a flash.
Instructor Kaelen called us back to the capsule and placed his hand once again on the glowing control panel. With a few taps, a new notification echoed through the chamber.
[STAT SECTION SELECTED — PREPARE FOR THE JUMP]
"Kids," he said, glancing over his shoulder, "the next facility is a bit farther out. We'll need to jump through space to get there."
His hand remained firmly on the panel.
"Prepare for the jump."
[Starting jump in 15... 14... 13... 12...]
I took a steady breath.
I had heard that certain characters in Atlas Online were coded to react poorly to jumps like this—some even had built-in nausea traits for realism.
"Boo!"
Someone suddenly nudged me from behind, catching me completely off guard.
"Ack—what is your deal, ma—" I turned, ready to glare, only to see a mischievous grin.
"...Seo Ji-Hyun?"
"Hehe. Hey, Kylen," he said, laughing softly. "What weapon did you end up getting?"
I raised the mana gun in my hand, letting him get a good look.
"Just a mana gun. What about you?"
"Just a normal sword," he replied, casually drawing a sleek katana from his side. A Japanese blade—clean, simple, but elegant.
[3... 2... 1... Takeoff]
The capsule rumbled lightly, then smoothed out into a low hum—like a maglev train gliding across tracks.
"Phew… not as bad as I thought." I turned to Ji-Hyun.
"You doing okay?"
"SEO JI-HYUN?!"
He was crouched down next to me, pale-faced, right hand clamped tightly over his mouth, left hand clutching my pant leg like a drowning man clinging to driftwood.
"You okay?!"
He shook his head violently in reply.
A moment later, Instructor Kaelen's voice came again, calm and unbothered.
"For those experiencing nausea, hold on. We'll be arriving shortly."
Finally, the motion ceased, and the capsule doors hissed open.
Fresh air poured in.
Ji-Hyun bolted out of the capsule without a word, along with a handful of other pale-faced students who looked like they'd just lost a fight with gravity.
Only a few of us remained behind—still standing, still composed.
"It seems only seven cadets are still standing. Great job," Instructor Kaelen said, giving us a rare thumbs-up.
His eyes swept across the group, scanning each student with sharp focus. Then, his gaze landed on me—and narrowed.
"You. Who are you? State your name and rank. Now."
I snapped to attention, instinctively straightening my back.
"C-Cadet Kylen Noor, Rank 101! Sir!"
A brief pause. Then his expression eased, and he let out a short breath.
"Ah—right. My mistake. Sorry for the confusion."
Is he really forgetting his own students? That's… weird.
Kaelen Noctar isn't the type to forget anything. The man's basically a walking memory vault. With his talent, [Strong Memory], he could read an entire book once and recall every word decades later.
So, either his skill glitched… or I've managed to be that forgettable.
'That cadet… I'm pretty sure his name was Jake. Or… am I just imagining things?'
◇◇◇
A few minutes later, all the students had gathered back together.
They all looked like zombies.
Pale faces, sluggish steps—most of them were still trying to recover from the spatial jump. Even Ji-Hyun was hunched over like someone recovering from food poisoning.
Instructor Kaelen didn't seem fazed.
"Now then, cadets," he announced, arms behind his back. "Since you've all returned, we'll begin your stat evaluations."
◇◇◇
The stat facility looked even more impressive in person.
White walls gleamed under soft mana-light. Scientists in long white coats moved briskly between glowing panels and crystalline devices, adjusting graphs and inputting data into floating screens.
The air smelled like antiseptic—a sharp, clean scent just like a hospital. It was oddly comforting.
As we stepped further in, one of the scientists approached us. He carried a glowing orb in one hand, and adjusted his glasses with the other.
At first glance, he looked like every other researcher here. White coat, plain brown hair, standard issue equipment.
But then I noticed the details.
A curved horn peeked out from the side of his head. A long, scaled tail flicked slightly behind his coat.
A dragonkin. Well, that explained the confidence.
"Alright, now that you're all here," the scientist said in a flat, professional tone, "let's get straight to business."
He turned and led us toward the heart of the facility—a vast chamber filled with a hundred mana-infused panels and strange-looking machines.
"You'll each use one of the evaluation units the Academy has prepared," he continued. "If you don't know how to operate them, just ask any authorized scientist nearby. They'll guide you."
The moment he finished speaking, the students scattered like ants.
Every machine was instantly occupied.
And once again… I was left standing there.
Alone.
"I really hate being left out like this," I muttered, stuffing my hands into my pockets.
To kill time, I started wandering around the room—watching others, reading panels, pretending to look interested. Nothing special caught my eye.
After what felt like an eternity—about thirty minutes—someone finally finished their test.
I didn't wait.
I ran toward the now-vacant machine and slipped into the seat before anyone else could even blink.
"Alright," I murmured under my breath, placing my hand on the scanning crystal. "Let's see what rank I am in the academy's stat rankings."
[Scanning…]
A soft hum filled the air as a green laser swept slowly from the top of my head to the tips of my boots.
[Scan complete]
---
Name: Kylen Noor
Rank: 101
Race: Human
Class: Commander
Overall Stat Assessment:
Highest Stat: Intelligence
Lowest Stat: Dexterity
All stats of this student are slightly above average, with Intelligence being the notable exception.
---
"…Okay?" I muttered. "I guess nothing really changed."
No surprises there.
But now came the part that took the longest—and sometimes the most unpredictable: Element Evaluation.
Unlike standard stat scans, this one worked on a molecular level. The machine had to dig through every microscopic strand of mana in your body to find even a trace of elemental affinity. It could take anywhere from five to thirty minutes.
So I waited.
And thirteen minutes later…
[Element Scan Complete]
[Student Element Is…]
[LIFE]
"…What?"
Life?
Not wind. Not fire. Not lightning.
Life.
Also known as the healing element—an extremely rare affinity, almost exclusively found in elven bloodlines or priests who trained under divine contracts.
And here it was.
In me.
A student. A [Commander], of all things.
"Jake was supposed to have Wind." I muttered under my breath, staring at the glowing display.
This… wasn't supposed to happen.
Then again, when did anything in this world go according to plan?
"Whatever," I said finally, rubbing the back of my neck. "It's probably fine…"
There was something I completely overlooked.
To think that the [Life] element I gained unknowingly... would completely change the way I fight in the future.
◇◇◇
A short while later, Instructor Kaelen stood at the front of the room, arms crossed.
"With this," he declared, "I officially announce that our first class is over. You are now dismissed."
His voice echoed through the facility. "You may return to your dorm rooms and rest. Or, if you wish to leave campus, make sure you return before curfew."
"YES, SIR!" the students shouted in unison.
I stretched a little, sighing.
"Well… that was a pretty boring day overall. But what can I do?"
To be continued.