"Oh? Not bad… 10th-class Reiryoku." (T/N: Reiryoku means Spiritual Power.)
After withdrawing his hand from the orb, Kyoya felt a surge of joy upon hearing the examiner's evaluation.
In the Bleach World, Reiryoku was divided into twenty classes.
The lowest, 20th-class, was possessed by those who barely had any Reiryoku at all. The higher the Reiryoku class, the greater the gap in spiritual pressure intensity.
Even among the captains of the Gotei 13, which are the pinnacle of the Soul Society, most only possessed 3rd-class Reiryoku.
Meanwhile, the average Reiryoku of ordinary Gotei 13's members hovered around 10th-lass.
This meant that, as things stood, Kyoya only needed to learn how to manipulate Reiatsu and master the four fundamental Shinigami combat arts: Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Hoho, and Kido, to reach a level comparable to that of an average Shinigami. (T/N: Reiatsu means Spiritual Pressure.)
'Though the gap between me and those prodigies is still enormous-'
'At the very least, I have the potential to awaken a Zanpakuto.'
Beyond the fundamental Shinigami skills, the greatest boost to a Shinigami's strength came from their Zanpakuto's abilities.
The difference in power between seated officers who had achieved Shikai and those who hadn't was like night and day.
Even disregarding the unique abilities granted by a Zanpakuto, releasing one could amplify a Shinigami's Reiatsu by three to five times. This alone created an insurmountable gap.
In battles against Hollows, ordinary Shinigami could, at best, handle small or medium-sized Hollows. Only those who had achieved Shikai stood a chance of harming Menos Grande-class Hollows.
The disparity in Reiatsu was so vast that Shinigami who hadn't released their Zanpakuto couldn't even pierce the Hierro, the steel-like skin, of a Menos.
"Go wait over there for now. Once the examination is over, I'll take all of you to the Shin'o Academy together."
"Understood. Thank you."
After thanking the examiner, Kyoya stood behind him under the envious gazes of the other examinees, lining up alongside the dozen or so others who had passed.
[Ding-]
Just as Kyoya settled into place, a chime echoed in the depths of his soul.
"This is…"
Kyoya's heart skipped a beat. After a quick glance around to confirm no one was paying attention to him, he closed his eyes and focused his mind inward.
[Ding-]
[Host has successfully enlisted in the Marine Training Base.]
[Congratulations on unlocking the Marine Faction Achievement—Joining the Marines.]
[Congratulations on receiving a faction starter pack.]
[Congratulations on receiving an initial achievement reward.]
'Huh?'
'Joining the Marines?'
When Kyoya learned the information given to him by this unreliable system, he was completely stunned.
'Wait, I'm in the Bleach world… what Marines?!'
'Did my unreliable system finally glitch out?'
'No, that couldn't be it.'
A realization quickly dawned on Kyoya's mind.
Perhaps, for once, his unreliable system was actually 'working' as intended.
In the One Piece World, the Marines were the world's dominant military force.
In the Bleach World, the Shinigami fulfilled the same role.
Now that he had been accepted into the Shin'o Academy and become a Shinigami-in-training, he had effectively joined the ruling armed force of this world.
Therefore, from the system's perspective, he had enlisted in a Marine Training Base.
To Kyoya, the Bleach and One Piece Worlds were completely different.
But to the system, there was no distinction.
It extracted information directly from the world's framework.
Since Kyoya had joined the dominant organization of the Bleach World, the system interpreted it as him choosing the Marine Route… becoming a Marine cadet.
'In that case, in the Bleach World, are the Hollows, who are the enemies of the Shinigami, equivalent to the pirates of the One Piece World?'
'And are the Quincies, who seek to overthrow the Seireitei, like the Revolutionary Army?'
'Could the Seven Warlords of the Sea be the future Visored?'
'Dragon = Yhwach?'
'Celestial Dragons = Nobles?'
'Five Elders = Zero Division?'
'Imu = Soul King?'
The more Kyoya thought about it, the more it made a strange kind of sense.
'Could it be that this unreliable system of mine is finally starting to work properly?'
At that moment, Kyoya stared at the two glowing points in his mind, his heart swelling with excitement.
One large, one small. One gold, one white.
Just from their size and color, he could tell their relative importance.
The large, golden one was undoubtedly high-tier… maybe even top-tier.
That was the faction starter pack.
The small, white one was the most basic achievement reward.
After a brief surge of excitement, Kyoya focused his consciousness and lightly tapped the white point.
[Ding-]
[Congratulations, host, for unlocking the beginner achievement reward, [Marine Cadet]. Reward: One month of training results.]
[Please select a training focus-]
[1. Physical Combat.]
[2. Swordsmanship.]
[3. Devil Fruit Ability.]
[4. Haki.]
The four options corresponded to the core power systems of the One Piece World.
This is the power system in the pirate world.
However, since Kyoya currently possessed neither a Devil Fruit nor Haki, the third and fourth options were grayed out.
His only choices were Physical Combat or Swordsmanship.
'While top-tier physical combat in One Piece World can rival even the strongest swordsmanship-'
'But for a beginner like me, a month of swordsmanship training would give a much bigger immediate boost in strength than physical combat.'
"So, I choose… Swordsmanship!"
Kyoya didn't hesitate. Right now, the most important thing was to strengthen himself.
He didn't need to become overpowered directly… just strong enough to avoid being bullied in the academy.
From what he knew, schools with the so-called elites (nobility) had a notorious culture of bullying.
If he didn't show some capability early on, he'd just become an easy target.
The moment his consciousness confirmed the selection, the white light surged into the Swordsmanship option, merging into his soul.
Instantly, Kyoya's mind flooded with memories… a full month's worth of intensive swordsmanship training at a Marine Training Base.
No more, no less, exactly one month!
Moreover, twenty-four hours a day, relentless practice.
He could practically feel it… if he had a sword right now, he could effortlessly take down four or five versions of his former self.
His gaze shifted to the golden glow in his mind… the faction starter pack.
After a moment of hesitation, Kyoya decided against opening it now.
Becoming a 'Marine Cadet' is considered the most basic achievement, and the reward for the achievement is only a month's training.
But the faction starter pack could contain top-tier treasures from the One Piece World-
A Devil Fruit ability, Haki, or even a legendary combat technique.
If he ended up with something like a Logia Fruit or Conqueror's Haki, the awakening process might cause noticeable disturbances.
So it's better to wait until he's alone before opening this.
For now, he'd keep this golden opportunity in reserve!