The two roommates didn't bother with any more petty talks and immediately began preparing.
About five minutes later, they were both done with their preparation.
They looked towards each other and shared a nod before leaving the room.
Outside the room, Cole and Bryan experienced something they never thought they would.
Fellow freshmen like themselves shuffled across the hall with a dark and heavy expression.
Some were nervously muttering to themselves, while others just stared blankly.
But one thing was sure: none of them wore a casual expression.
They didn't continue checking others out, though, as they rushed out of the hostel.
The outside of the hostel was also completely different; this time, though the difference wasn't in the students but with the air itself.
The air itself felt heavier, thick with foreboding.
Cole could feel both his eyes and his innate spirit throbbing harshly.
"The codex is reacting; what could cause such a thing?" Cole asked himself while still rushing towards the Academic Hall.
In no time, they finally arrived at the Academic Hall. It had a similar architecture to the library while having a similar interior to the Combat Hall.
Cole wasn't in the mood to admire the things around him though; his mind was only completely focused on the event ahead of him.
More and more students arrived in the Academic Hall as time crept closer and closer to the limit.
Cole's heartbeat quickened as the timer approached zero.
Ding! Ding!
An alarm rang out signifying the end of the timer. As a response the door to the academic hall closed with a large bang.
The moment the door closed, an extremely old man led by other academy leaders appeared on the podium.
The old man that was tagged as the headmaster wasn't there though.
The old man maintained a calm expression while staring down at the students.
The slightly rowdy hall immediately quietened down under his eyes as all students stood as erect as possible.
Cole was slightly different, though; his familiarity with the old man provided him a little bit of confidence.
The man scanned the hall silently, his gaze stopping on Cole for a brief second longer.
"Today shall be your Freshman Placement Test." The old man announced loudly.
The previously confused students were even more confused; they tried understanding the old man's words, but nothing clicked.
Among them, though, some already anticipated this and weren't moved in the slightest.
"The freshman placement test is a test organized by the Spiriters Academy to determine student rankings," the old man continued.
"Student Ranking—why is that even important?" One student asked.
The old man listened with a steady expression before smiling.
"You don't expect the academy to take care of all of you equally, right?" The old man responded.
"The strong shall always be favored and the weak shall lay down and listen."
Those words rang across the hall, completely silencing the previous uproar.
"The Freshman Placement Test will be taking place in the Forest of Chaos."
"Forest of Chaos," a student echoed.
"Isn't that the most dangerous part of the academy?" Another one picked up.
"Since the day you entered this academy, you already signed up for this," this time a teacher responded.
"There's no one here to spoon-feed you, so you better keep it quiet or leave," the man berated.
The Hall had been going from quietness to chaos again for a while, but not this time; it went completely still."
"The Academic watch is capable of tracking every student location and ID; you guys are to go into the Forest of Chaos for a week."
"In the Forest of Chaos, you must meet and defeat as many students as you can and scan their Academy watch with yours to gain their points."
The face of the students in the hall slightly brightened, everyone very confident in their abilities.
"Note that the Forest of Chaos is teeming with beasts, so you must be careful of fellow students and beasts."
"You will be spending a week in the forest, and at the end of it all, you must return to the entrance," the old man poured out.
Cole felt slightly relieved by the information that he just received, as he expected something more dangerous.
But the throbbing still persisted, which left him puzzled.
"If the intense danger isn't from the actual test, then what exactly is happening?" Cole questioned with a worried expression.
After the old man's speech in the hall, the freshmen were led towards the proclaimed Forest of Chaos
During their journey, both Bryan and Cole planned to stick together during the course of the week, watching each other's back.
About ten minutes later, they arrived at the entrance to the forest.
The so-called Forest of Chaos was even more domineering than its name, as Cole and the other students could hear loud roars emanating from deep within the forest.
The beasts alone aren't the scariest part of the forest; the scariest part is the dense fog that shrouded the whole forest, adding a layer of mysteries to it.
Staring at the fog for too long instantly made Cole drowsy, even to the point that he almost lost his balance.
And this didn't only apply to Cole; other students also experienced the same thing.
"The test will be beginning soon, but before that I shall pass across some information," a teacher said out loud.
"Firstly, teaming up isn't allowed; the Academic watch is usually tracked."
"Secondly, the last ten second-year students will also be participating in an attempt to redeem themselves,"
Hearing that, dread crept into Cole's heart as he remembered that second-year student.
"Thirdly, though killing is heavily frowned upon, no penalties apply," the man concluded.
"Lastly, the use of techniques aren't prohibited." The man's final statement was like a hammer straight to most students' hearts.
Cole hurriedly scanned the crowd in an attempt to spot the senior students that he previously met.
He didn't scan for too long though, as he met with someone staring straight at him with an intense murderous gaze.
He quickly recognized the person; it was that second-year student.
The student seemed to make out some words with his mouth, which Cole was attempting to make out.
"You are dead."
Cole finally succeeded in deciphering what the student was saying.
Those words, along with his expression, increased the lethality of the whole test for Cole at that moment.