Inside the white space,
A single sheet of paper lay on a desk that felt utterly out of place.
A space with an indescribable sense of incongruity, impossible to capture even with images from the game.
It was the space heralding the start of the Frontier Academy entrance exam.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙{Frontier Academy Entrance Written Exam}
I took only a moment to marvel at the bizarre space before sitting at the desk and unfolding the exam paper on it.
1. Describe the habits and habitat of the mana beast {Black Fang}, and explain its weaknesses and efficient strategies to defeat it.
"..."
Question 1.
The easiest question in most written exams.
My mind went blank the moment I saw it.
'No idea...'
I'd devoted my life to this game, or so I thought, confident that I knew pretty much everything about it.
That's why I hadn't worried about the written exam.
But I didn't know a single thing.
It was only natural, in a way.
There was no reason I'd know the habits and habitat of a monster like this—something close to a trash mob, not a quest boss, hidden opportunity, or raid monster.
'This is bad...'
I never imagined I'd get stuck right from the written exam.
I'd been too complacent.
Thinking about it, there was no way the academy entrance exam would cover disaster-class beasts or terrorist groups...
This was serious.
If I couldn't solve even one question on the written exam, no matter how well I did in the practical, I wouldn't place in the top 10, let alone top the rankings.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Ding!] [{Piercing Eyes} discerns the problem.] [{Black Fang} is a wolf-type monster that forms packs. It preys on humanoid mana beasts like orcs and goblins. It is most active in spring and summer, primarily sighted at night in dense jungles and swamps. Like wolves, prioritize taking out the leader first. The leader can be easily identified by two scars over its eyes. The {Black Fang}'s hide is weakest from the underside of the jaw to the chest, making the throat and eyes its vulnerabilities. The most effective approach is to target the underside of the jaw with a bladed weapon when it rears up on its forelegs to charge.]
I stared blankly at the translucent window floating in the air.
'Whoa...'
The relief of an easy solution faded quickly as I hurriedly copied the information from the window onto my paper.
'Piercing Eyes is a god, and I'm invincible.'
Who dared to badmouth Piercing Eyes?
Possession perks are invincible.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Inside the academy,
In a room filled with screens numbering over ten thousand, about twenty people gathered, watching them intently.
The heavy atmosphere hung thick in the air when one woman spoke up.
"We've got a ton of talent this year too. But isn't this a bit too intense? I hate stuffy vibes like this."
"Focus on the judging, Lena."
"You're so stiff. They're all still taking the written exam, aren't they?"
A man responded curtly to the woman's complaint about the stifling mood.
These were the professors and chairman gathered to judge the academy entrance exam.
Every one of them was a superhuman renowned across the world.
They had assembled here for the practical evaluation that would follow the written exam.
The one called Lena continued.
"It's only been about twenty minutes since the written exam started. No way anyone's finished already. Even if someone has, it's one of two things: a fool who gave up and submitted, or—"
The academy written exam grew brutally difficult toward the end.
60 minutes for 30 questions.
Among over ten thousand examinees, fewer than 10% would score 60% or higher.
Not to mention finishing and submitting in just twenty minutes.
Given the difficulty, anyone who did was most likely a fool who'd come this far only to abandon their enrollment hopes.
Beep—
"—an absurd genius..."
The sound cut her off mid-sentence, drawing every professor's gaze.
Someone had finished the written exam and submitted their paper.
"Hah... Already giving up?"
"No perseverance."
"Dropouts like that pop up everywhere."
After a brief shock, most professors sized up the situation.
One student's exam abandonment.
They all thought so, condemning the lack of grit.
Creak—
Then, a woman who had been quietly observing from the center stood up.
All the professors fell silent, their eyes turning to the woman at the table's center.
Chairman Eris.
She, who exuded an otherworldly pressure simply by existing, spoke.
"Raon, bring that student's exam paper and info."
"Yes, understood."
The man called Raon complied, drawing a magic formula on the machine recording exam data.
In an instant, he retrieved the student's information and paper, handing them to the chairman.
The chairman began examining the paper slowly.
A strange tension filled the room.
The chairman rarely reacted to anything.
For her to personally request the info and paper...
Everyone held their breath, watching her.
Question 1... 2... Once her eyes had scanned every answer,
"Ha...!"
An incredulous exclamation escaped her lips.
"A monster's snuck in."
Before they knew it, her pupils had slit vertically,
and her eyes gleamed with interest and faint greed.
"100 points... Even the ones meant to trip people up, all perfect."
The professors couldn't hide their shock at her words.
Shock, intrigue, faint suspicion—
Various emotions flickered, but she ignored them.
"Aden... We'll have to keep an eye on him."
For now, this sudden spark of her interest took precedence.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
"The core of the leyline thus holds infinite potential... And done! All 30 questions. Time to submit."
I'd blazed through all 30 with Piercing Eyes and submitted without hesitation.
'Man, the game glossed over it, but this academy exam is no joke...'
From question 27, the difficulty spiked insanely—knowledge on disaster-class mana beasts,
the structure and runes of the grand magic {Purgatory Flames},
the potential of leyline cores and why they held it. Bizarrely tough stuff that left me reeling.
Problems that felt deliberately unsolvable,
'Earth had those too... Those evil killer questions.'
Questions 27 to 30 were classic killer problems, just like back on Earth.
After a short wait, the white space shifted.
Sparse trees dotted the area, with a few large boulders embedded in the grassy plain.
'Here we go...'
The first practical exam: a test of real combat ability against sequentially appearing mana beasts.
The moment the terrain changed, three grotesque green monsters popped up in front of me.
'Goblins.'
Trash mobs in any fantasy world.
No different here.
A single one could be subdued by an average adult man without mana or skills,
so while packs were threatening, three wasn't much.
I gripped the sword that had somehow appeared in my hand.
A sword I'd never wielded before felt strangely familiar.
As if I'd been swinging it for years.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Title {Pioneer} assists your actions.]
I couldn't handle Heaven Defying Sword yet. I'd decided when to use Defying Heaven, and Life and Death Resolve wasn't for casual use.
My only available combat skill right now was {Basic Swordsmanship}.
Simple moves: horizontal slash, vertical slash, diagonal slash, thrust.
The basics of basics.
But it felt like more than enough.
"Kieeeek—!"
I swung at the first goblin charging me.
Horizontal slash.
That simple motion cleaved it in half instantly.
The bisected goblin vanished like a mirage.
I didn't stop.
The remaining two hesitated at their fallen comrade.
I seized the opening.
Kicking off the ground, I leaped right in front of them.
Thrust.
Another simple motion pierced the goblin clean through.
One left.
I spun and swung at the last one.
Vertical slash.
It died without even tracking my movement, let alone seeing the blade.
Three goblins down in a flash.
Stage 1 cleared.
Stage 2: five goblins and two goblin archers.
No real difficulty jump from stage 1.
I leaped straight for the archers, slashed them down, then cleared the rest just like before.
Up to here was the tutorial.
In the game, failing by stage 2 meant instant exam failure.
No time to regroup—the next monsters appeared immediately.
Stage 3: three werewolves.
Now we were into mana beasts.
Strength beyond what an ordinary person could handle.
My spirits lifted.
The tension from the first fight vanished in an instant.
They didn't charge first, just eyed me warily.
Weak point: throat. Everywhere else was tough; too hard to sever in one go.
Had to aim for the throat and take them out cleanly.
Sword raised, I rushed the werewolves.
They reacted, leaping back,
but too late.
Horizontal slash—sheared off the first one's throat.
Then, switching seamlessly to a thrust, I pierced the second's neck.
For the last, charging from behind, I yanked my sword free and swung.
Diagonal slash.
The final werewolf fell cleanly.
In the game, clearing up to stage 5 got you top 3.
Stage 5 monsters were random with base stats—the game's intended final clear stage.
To claim top spot, even factoring in crisis response evaluation, I needed stage 5.
Stage 4: one orc.
Its 3-meter frame looked intimidating, but its sluggish movements made it easier than stage 3.
Stage 5.
It happened abruptly.
The surroundings darkened, the environment shifting.
Tall trees sprouted, their dense canopy blotting out the sky.
Shadows deepened,
and a chill prickled from behind.
I whipped around sword ready, scanning.
A short distance away,
atop a newly formed hill, a black wolf with two scars over its glaring red eyes stared me down.
"Awooooooo—!"
{Black Fang}
The black wolf fixed its fierce gaze on me.