Asher Princeton stood in the observation room while several instructors and officials sat and documented everything they saw, scoring and making observations. Projected in front of them was a massive floating display split into several smaller ones.
The display focused on applicants with higher activity and switched from time to time. Across the wilderness were several tens of enchanted cameras floating about. They were invisible to the senses of those below a certain realm, as were the hidden instructors.
Asher had stayed glued to the massive display since the very beginning. And for the past few hours, he had watched the applicants battle beasts, run from them, or avoid them entirely. Others focused on forming smaller groups for safety, while some ran around scavenging.
He had purposely given so few rations to the applicants because he didn’t want to see them fighting amongst themselves. That was an ugly sight for someone like him. Even so, a few had turned to stealing and fighting.
Whenever he spotted such a sight, he directed the instructors to deduct from their accumulated points. Some students caught his eye with their performance, putting a small smile on his face.
’As expected from the heirs of the elite and powerful families. Their scions never fail to impress.’
Naturally, some did not come from such privileged backgrounds but were still impressive. After all, the academy was a place where the best of the Federation gathered.
As night drew closer, the hidden cameras picked up something strange. One of the applicants was actually approaching a zone most other applicants had avoided. Even the prodigies did not bother when they could avoid it.
"Who’s that moron?" Asher Princeton asked curiously.
"Sir?"
"Focus on the boy about to face the silverback."
"Yes, sir." The instructor replied, quickly bringing up Adam’s panel to the forefront. "Applicant ID: 1003. Tag: Blue. Name: Adam Highstein."
"Highstein?" The vice-principal repeated, not familiar with the name. "Any information on him?" For him to choose the highest tier of the second class type, the boy had to be something special.
"Not much, sir. He got here through a recommendation." The reply didn’t come as a surprise.
"What was his score in the written test?"
"..."
The reply was delayed, prompting the vice-principal to turn to the official. "What is it?"
"Eh, well. The applicant scored 496 out of 500 points. He had the highest score overall."
’Highest score, huh. And he’s not from an elite background.’ Asher thought to himself, mildly surprised. ’Heh... Those people aren’t going to be happy.’
"His affinity?"
"His data states he awakened a dual affinity, sir. A physical one and a multi-elemental one."
"Multi-elemental?"
Asher finally raised a brow. Dual affinity wielders were already rare, but one whose second affinity itself was multi-elemental? Now that was very interesting.
’So that’s where his confidence is coming from.’ The vice-principal revealed a small smile. ’Let’s see how you fare against that beast.’
On the display, Adam, who had been brought to the forefront, had taken a stance as he effortlessly caught the silverback’s descending blows, triggering a wave of shock across the observation room.
’Ooh... looks like we have a budding battle maniac.’ The vice-principal, on the other hand, saw something else. ’Perfect.’
***
Back in the wilderness, Adam grinned as he locked the silverback’s arms in his iron grip. ’A bit of fun wouldn’t hurt anyone, right?’
As this thought flashed through his head, Adam made his move. With a soft grunt, he flung the silverback’s arms to the side and jumped, delivering a flying double front kick that sent the silverback scurrying backwards.
The moment Adam’s back touched the ground, he executed a flawless kip-up, firmly replanting his feet into the ground. The silverback grunted as it got pushed back several meters. Behind it, the other gorillas growled at the intruder, some even intending to join the fight. But they held back.
Further enraged by the kick it had received, the alpha silverback roared as it charged forward once more. With a powerful jump, it rose into the air and descended with another strike.
"So predictable."
Adam smirked as he sidestepped the strike with minimal effort. The ground cracked on impact, soil and foliage exploding outward. In that same moment, Adam appeared at the silverback’s side and struck it in the ribs.
RAOR...!
The silverback roared as ribs gave way to Adam’s powerful punch. Adam realised he had used far more strength than he intended. Moreover, that blow had barely stung his fist.
The silverback swept its left arm at him, intending to slap him away. Sadly for the beast, that too was seen through.
Adam evaded and smoothly shifted his position, his feet sliding through the soil like a wet floor. He reappeared at the silverback’s front and delivered another blow at the beast’s stomach.
The punch echoed like a muffled boom, lifting the nine-foot-tall silverback off its feet. It flew a few meters back before skidding through the soft ground and foliage. The silverback grunted as it staggered to its feet.
It looked at Adam once more, this time with caution in its gaze. The intruder was a lot stronger than the silverback had expected. Even so, it was not willing to stand down. With another roar expressing its frustration, it rushed forward again, ignoring its injuries.
’Maybe I expected too much.’
Adam’s excitement had mellowed down after the first silverback’s strike. When he stopped those massive arms before, he had felt a bit of strain. But the silverback’s attacks were too predictable, stripping away the fun element he had thought he could derive from the fight.
He watched as the silverback leapt at him with its maws wide open and its arms aimed at grappling him. Since blows could not work, the beast had decided to bite the intruder’s head off with its huge fangs.
With a disappointed sigh, Adam closed in on the silverback in a flash. As he jumped to close the height difference, he saw the shock in the beast’s eyes as he delivered a bone-shattering uppercut, teeth and spittle splattering everywhere.
The power behind the blow flung the massive silverback backwards. With a heavy thud, it landed on its back, completely knocked out.
Adam looked at the defeated silverback and then at the growling and restless troop. With the alpha defeated, there was nothing to expect from the rest. He turned around, making his way back to his backpack.
"The hell?" Adam helplessly blurted out. "Wasn’t my backpack just here?"
Unfortunately for him, his backpack was gone. A wandering student had stumbled on his fight with the silverback, spotted the backpack and decided to take it for himself.
"Fuck..."
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!
Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter