Back inside the Command Room of Zephyr Academy, there was relative silence as the last few seconds of Albedo's battle replayed across the main stream.
The room of professors and staff was transfixed on that sight, analyzing every frame in their minds.
"Did you see that slide under the boar? Flawless timing," muttered a Battle Tactics instructor, and more murmurs began, everyone praising his skill.
Headmistress Raphaeline didn't comment at first. She stood with arms crossed, her expression impassive, crimson eyes reflecting the pulsing glow of the leaderboard.
After a few seconds, she spoke.
"Send Albedo Neverwinter's file to my personal archive," she said calmly. "Along with the other top performers. Include his partner's, Elara Vance."
A few instructors raised brows.
"Yes, ma'am," said the green-haired elf steward, already tapping into his holographic interface.
"You're not going to keep watching?" asked one of the professors, surprised, "They're headed to confront another Silver Beast, perhaps stronger. The other examinees will begin clashing with them soon. It might be, "
"Pointless," Raphaeline cut in, her voice quiet but absolute.
The professor blinked, confused, "Pardon?"
Raphaeline's crimson eyes turned toward the screen for one last glance, then slowly swept over the room.
"He's already defeated the strongest thing in that quadrant three tiers above him. He's conserving energy, adapting to a Support user he met hours ago, and still maintaining near-perfect efficiency. If the others attack, they'll lose. It's a waste of my time to watch that unfold."
She turned, black heels clicking softly against the stone as she made her way to the exit, wings faintly outlined beneath her coat.
"He'll win," she said, just before the doors opened, "It's not even a question."
And with that, the Headmistress of Zephyr Academy left.
Silence lingered for a moment longer, then another instructor chuckled dryly.
"Well then," she muttered, "I guess we've got our prodigy this year."
"Prodigy?" said the armored battle instructor, folding his arms, "No. That boy's not a prodigy…"
He looked back at the screen as it now displayed Albedo and Elara moving north toward their next hunt, the crimson of his coat cutting a bold contrast through the white expanse of snow.
"…He's a predator."
And everyone else? Prey.
***
Inside the Examination Space, Albedo and Elara were walking through the dense forest in relative silence.
Steam was still lingering in the air after Albedo just just defeated a Silver-Ranked beast. Then a faint chime echoed in the air.
A massive screen appeared in the sky, and with it brought a notification for them to read out.
{ PvP mode initiated. Examinees may now engage in sanctioned combat. Point theft is permitted. }
Elara slowed at the sound, one hand instinctively resting on a spare mana crystal at her belt, "Two hours already…" she muttered, then looked over at Albedo, "So what now? We've got, what, 650 points? Isn't that more than enough to qualify?"
Albedo didn't answer immediately. His blue eyes remained focused ahead, scanning the thickets of trees and the faint mana ripples in the distance. Then he spoke, calm and cold.
"It's enough," he said, "But why settle?"
Elara tilted her head, "You really planning to get even more."
He turned and looked at her for a moment, "It's more about sending a message. I want to prove I'm the best there is."
A quiet pause followed before she smirked, "Alright then. Let's go send it."
The two ran forward, and the next hour was a blur of violence and traveling. They had come across three examinee pairs, though none of them were any trouble.
The first duo was mid-Bronze, hiding in the snowbanks. They launched an ambush with a smoke spell and poorly aimed ice lances.
Albedo didn't even fire a bullet. Albedo didn't even need to use Havoc and Ruin. Instead, Elara had used her binding to restrain their movements while he closed the distance, using the blunt ends of his Soul Pistols to knock them unconscious.
+80 Points.
The second team was the complete opposite than the previous one, being a pair of hot-headed fire mages who tried to collapse nearby trees to create a flaming barricade.
It would've been a smart plan....if Albedo couldn't control all the flames they created. Albedo simply reroute the flames towards them, creating a circle of fire that locked them in.
Then, he fired off a single Graviton round that dragged them in the middle, finally collapsing the ring of fire and eliminating them.
+150 Points.
The third team was a bit more balanced than the ones Albedo had faced before, being a support and a bruiser. Thankfully, not only were Elara's buffs stronger, but Albedo was the much stronger carry.
He pierced through all the barriers like tissue paper and manhandled the bruiser, putting eliminating him and his teammate for another duo wipe.
+200 Points.
"Okay, okay," Elara huffed, leaning on a tree and sipping water from her flask, "We're at 1080. You've made your point. Now lemme take a break before I die of exhaustion."
Albedo nodded and decided it was a good time to rest, taking a seat and taking a sip of water himself.
"You know I can't believe I'm so lucky? I've been training for this moment even before I awakened, studying hard to prepare for the Entrance Exam, and after I awakened, it was tough, making sure to keep up with my practice and worrying about it all going to naught. Thankfully, I met you, you were kinda the perfect partner for my skillset."
"Well I'm happy it's all worked out, and you aren't bad yourself, most of the support focused fighters here haven't impressed me when we ran into them." Albedo responded.
"Yeah, thankfully it's a team based event. I never cared for individual rankings or duels," She lowered the crystal into her lap, fingers curling around it as she continued speaking.
"I just wanted access to the labs. The research archives. The alchemy towers. That's why I've spent the last three years learning every buff, every enchantment, every scouting trick I could. Support magic isn't flashy, but I figured if I could make someone else look good, maybe they'd bring me with them."
Albedo said nothing, but his eyes lingered on her. She kept going.
"My dad was an Alchemist and taught me everything," she said, softer now, "He and my mom ran a potion shop so he'd always be testing out new things to make new products."
She smiled faintly, remembering, "He used to call alchemy the 'art of patience.' Said the world rewards the ones who can sit still long enough to listen to it."
A breeze swept through the trees, but she didn't stop.
"He got sick last year. Real sick. My mom tried everything, potions, spell-tech infusions, even paid a cleric to take a look. Nothing worked."
There was a pause, and when she spoke again, her voice was quieter.
"He died before I could show him the acceptance letter, so it's just me, my mom and my little brother now." Elara said.
Albedo looked away, staring out into the trees, Havoc and Ruin resting across his thighs.
"I made him a promise," she said, eyes fixed on the snow, "That I'd make something of myself. That I'd finish the formulas he never could and make what he left behind better than ever."
She let the crystal drop gently into her pouch and stood, brushing snow off her gloves.
"I didn't come here to fight," she said, voice steady, "But I will fight. I'll do whatever it takes to reach my goal."
Albedo looked at her, and after a long pause, gave a single, quiet nod.
"You will, if I had to guess." he said.
She raised a brow, "Just like that? No long lecture about perseverance or power?"
He stood and holstered his weapons, eyes narrowing as he looked to the horizon where he sensed something.
"You're stubborn," he said, "You prepare. You're smart. You don't hesitate when it matters. You've already made it further than most of the people out here."
Then, finally, he looked at her.
"You're not trying to win for yourself. That kind of reason doesn't break under pressure."
Elara blinked, then smiled. "Huh. For someone who talks like an assassin, you make a damn good cheerleader."
"I'm not cheering you on," Albedo replied dryly. "I'm stating facts."
She laughed and stretched her arms over her head. "Yeah, yeah. Come on then, facts-boy. Let's go score another hundred points."
Albedo cracked his neck and stepped forward, coat fluttering in the breeze.
"Then you're just in time." Albedo said, his grip on Havoc and Ruin tightening, "They're coming."
Elara blinked as she stood up herself, "Beasts?"
"No."
He raised a hand, and she went quiet. She closed her eyes and activated Battle Map.
Two blips. No, four. Moving as one through the forest. They tried to hide and circle around them.
"They're working together," she said. "Two separate teams. Flanking us."
"Collusion." Albedo's voice was as cold as the frost beneath his boots.
A moment later, they made their appearance.
Two teams stepped from the treeline. Four students in total. All Mid-Bronze ranked, armed to the teeth and brimming with arrogance.
"Well, well," one of them drawled. A tall boy with lightsteel gauntlets and a hyena's grin, "Looks like we found some slackers lazing around."
The other team's girl,a redhead with a wand and a flame aura, snorted, "Tired yet? Thought we'd do you a favor and end the trial for you."
The gauntlet-wearer nodded toward Albedo. "Hand over the points. Walk away. No broken bones. We'll even let your little support girl keep her crystals."
Elara's brow twitched.
Albedo sighed, "I was hoping for a decent fight, but it seems all that found me was a clown-show."
As he finished speaking, Albedo stepped forward, his speed so fast the attackers could barely register his movement.
~BANG~BANG!~
Two Graviton rounds slammed into the ground between the four of them, imploding space instantly and dragging all of them into a tangled heap.
"What the..!"
"GET OFF ME!"
"I couldn't react you dimwit."
"I thought you told me they were exhausted."
They immediately begun arguing while trying to recover their stances, but Albedo didn't allow them.
Havoc was already in Infernal Mode, glowing as Albedo took aim and fired off three shots.
~BANG~BANG~BANG!~
The three bullets hit them and the flames erupted on contact, immediately threatening to swallow them whole. One of the boys screamed as the fire licked at his shoulder,
Flames erupted in a cascading arc, swallowing the confused enemies. One boy screamed as fire licked his shoulder, while the redhead shrieked and cast a hasty shield, but it was too late.
Albedo was already in motion again, appearing behind her like a shadow given form. He flipped Havoc into his off-hand and pressed Ruin to her shoulder.
~BANG!~
The power of a point blank Graviton Slug was intense, sending the girl crashing back ten meters, rolling through the snow and slamming her head into a tree root, knocking her unconscious.
The remaining boy lunged forward with a mana-forged spear, "You bastard!"
Albedo sidestepped, grabbed the spear shaft, and drove a fist into the boy's ribs, then kneed him in the face as he doubled over. The final one, the gauntlet-wearer, raised both arms, igniting his gloves with reinforced earth magic.
He charged, only for a glowing mark to appear on his chest.
"Voltis Tag," Elara said coolly, from behind a tree, "Enjoy the feedback."
Albedo smirked.
~BANG!~
A single Infernal shot struck the rune. The spell detonated violently, sending the boy flipping backwards, coat on fire, body unmoving.
With that, Albedo walked forward, shooting one Infernal Bullet at each of them that triggered the watch's defensive protocol, eliminating all of them from the event.
+820 Points
Albedo slowly holstered his pistols, "That was disappointing."
Elara walked up behind him, brushing snow off her gloves, "Remind me not to let you get bored."
"…I thought this part of the exam was meant to be challenging," Albedo muttered.
Elara stretched, "Guess we're just built different."
"Let's go and have some fun. Let's see just how many points we can rack up."