The screen flashed on Erie's face, and a large sign beside his name displayed his rank.
"Erie Sunheart: No ability."
"Rank: Triple FFF."
Erie's stomach twisted. Why is my rank on the screen? He muttered. As if humiliation wasn't enough, now everyone could see his weakness.
He exhaled sharply, then froze. A presence loomed behind him, silent, unmoving. Erie stiffened.
He turned. "Oh... Jake?"
Jake stood there—blank expression, breath steady, eyes unblinking as if he weren't real.
"Hello?" Erie tried again.
Another one? Erie swallowed hard. Was Jake just another predator waiting to pounce?
Erie shifted slightly, but Jake did, too—ideally in sync. A chill traced down Erie's spine.
"LILLY! YOU'RE UP NEXT!" Private Carl barked.
The test continued. Lilly stepped forward, duet blades in hand. They weren't ordinary—far from it. Unlike modern tech, these were something new—something cutting-edge.
A breakthrough scientist created the duel swords after melding them into one perfect fusion after mastering two complementary abilities. Only those infused with a Beast Core could wield them.
The twin blades shimmered gold, faintly pulsing as they rested in her grip—alive, almost sentient.
Erie had only heard whispers of weapons like these—far beyond anything his city had access to. The glow barely registered—until he sensed it.
Jake. Standing behind him. Eyes locked onto the blades.
Erie swallowed.
As humanity evolved, so did their technology—adapting to the demands of more potent fighters and sharper minds. Powerhouse scientists emerged alongside warriors, their creations shaping to fit physical needs and mental fortitude.
Some scientists pushed beyond known limits, tapping into knowledge from… elsewhere. Another plane, another existence.
Through them, portals, teleporters, and entire cities were born.
Humans could finally travel to new planets and universes, discovering that other beasts and cores existed beyond their own. These beasts were faster, stronger, and more potent. This forced humans to redefine power itself, shaping the scale they use today.
Lilly's blades were unlike anything Erie had seen before. It was rare to see someone so young wielding duel blades—especially ones that pulsed faintly with light.
"Those blades were just invented this year. They're the first upgrade since the Beta series," Gene murmured to Erie.
Erie flinched. He hadn't even noticed Gene appear beside him.
But Erie had more significant problems. No matter where he moved, Jake remained silent, watching and following.
"Who the hell is that?" Gene muttered. "His hair's white as snow… and his eyes are green? No… emerald."
"Yeah," Erie whispered. "I know. And I don't like it."
Lilly stood at the front, eyes closed. Unlike Erie, Carl waited patiently for her to be ready. The difference in treatment was immediate. Erie noticed it, took note, and decided he'd track the bias from now on.
When the test began, it was different from Erie's.
Eight dummies appeared—moving faster, shifting unpredictably from side to side. Before Erie could blink, afterimages of Lilly flickered across the field. In an instant, she stood in front of five dummies at once. Five swords slashed. Five bodies split in half.
She threw her short swords at the remaining three dummies—then vanished. The blades disappeared and reappeared mid-air, materializing in front of their targets.
Above the last dummy, Lilly appeared out of nowhere. Her heel dropped hard against its head.
"Wow! That was amazing!" Gene praised, eyes wide with excitement. "Is she a fusion user? Because that's not teleportation! Those blades—they're made for her. The way she moves with them… it's beautiful!"
The dummies fell, one after another, all cut down instantly. Lilly finished the test faster than Erie—against twice as many targets.
Watching it, Erie realized something. A weapon and an ability made someone exponentially stronger than someone without one.The gap was massive.
Erie wasn't sure what ability he wanted. Still, he remembered his system telling him it would bring out his potential if he worked for it. The question lingered in his mind—did the system give him an ability, or was he supposed to find one himself? He had no answer, but he knew he needed something that fit his fighting style and would make him stronger.
The test score finally flashed beside Lilly's name.
"Lilly Moonshine: Strength – 12."
"Ability: To Be Determined."
Erie frowned as he noticed that her ability wasn't listed while she didn't do well in the strength department. He turned toward the screen, confused. "What gives? So what's her ability?" He wasn't expecting an answer, but when he glanced to the side, he saw Jake standing beside him, staring at the same screen. For a brief second, Jake moved, giving the slightest shrug as if that was his response. Erie's brows furrowed as he watched him. "So you do respond?" he muttered. Still, Jake didn't say a word, only turning his attention back to the trials as if the conversation never happened.
The subsequent trial began, and the setup remained the same. The dummies popped up, and Lilly had to hit as many as she could, but unlike Erie's test, the more she shot, the faster they came. She moved effortlessly, her strikes sharp and precise, lasting far longer than Erie's, and she racked a score he knew he couldn't compete with.
"Great!" Carl announced. "You are a C-rank student!" The screen beside Lilly's name flashed again, this time displaying her official ranking, a silver ribbon appearing behind her name. Erie glanced at his score from earlier, realizing he had no flashy markings or unique indicators that set him apart.
"Lilly Moonshine: Rank C."
"Ability: To Be Determined."
Lilly walked back toward them, stopping beside Erie and Jake. Erie expected some reaction from Jake, a glance, a shift in attention, but Jake didn't flinch, move, or even bat an eye at her. He stood there, still as ever, his gaze locked solely on Erie.
Erie exhaled through his nose, choosing to ignore both of them. One thing was becoming evident—Beachside Academy didn't just measure ability. It measured everything.
The following person was called "Jake...ughhh..." Carl looked over and around. "What's your last name, Jake?" he yelled. He looked around again where Erie was standing. "Where is he?" Jake was standing beside Carl. "Ahh!" he screamed. Next, he was standing by the starting point.
Carl was confused as he stared at Jake and looked at Erie again. "I could've sworn he was standing next to Lilly?" he thought. Still, Carl decided to ignore that fact, put it aside as his ability, and ignore Jake's last name, which was not showing on his device. "Probably a glitch," he thought.
The same test as Lilly appeared. Eight dummies popped up nearby, and they all vanished. Jake didn't even move or blink. Gene leaned into Eair. " Was he just standing behind you?" Eerie's jaws dropped. Ughh, yeah, what did he even do?"
Carl marked down his notes, and a score of 76 came up next to Jake's name.
"Jake: Strength: 76"
For the next test, Jake appeared in front of the dummies. He was already ready to start it, and the test started without Carl activating the machines. The dummies seemed to distort every time they popped iu[p twisting and bending in opposite directions, and then they just stopped.
Everyone starred, and the entire stadium went silent. "This guy is creepy!" Gene whispered Allowed A moment later, he was gone. Carl had to slap himself a few times to process what had happened. He looked and saw Jake standing in place again.
"Well, I don't know what happened," Carl announced, "but you are strong! You got a CC rank!"
He wrote down Jake's score, and his name popped up with a golden ribbon behind it.
"Jake: Rank CC"
"Ability: To Be determined."
Gene stepped up. "Well, Erie! It's time to show you what I got!" Carl began to announce Gene's name: "Gene Gane! You up!" Gene paused and looked at Erie. "I'll do this without showing my ability!" Eerie shook his head at Gene's remark and just waited.
The same trial that Erie has taken is shaping up for Gene. Now, the target popped up a few meters in front of Gene. He ran, but Erie noticed water following him and forming around his fist. The water was a lot darker than usual. "He just said he wasn't going to use his ability," he thought, then he hit the target. The number flew—from 20 to 50 and stopped at 64.
Erie's eyes widened at this. "Wow, I guess he is strong?"
The next test started, and Erie couldn't help but stare at Gene; the dummies popped up, and as he moved, the water trailed behind him almost like a support. The water followed and formed as he moved and hit. "Is bending water just something Gene can do since Gene is a hybrid? Or does he have the ability to control water?" he thought. And the test finally stopped. Gene ranked was formed on the board with a bronze ribbon beyond it.
"Gene Gane; Rank C"
"Ability: None:"
Gene controlled water, but the core couldn't register his ability. He was more potent than the average human without an ability."Who is this guy?" Erie thought. He looked at the ranks and the scores. He was the weakest among them.
Gene returned to Eared and flexed his eyes, turning blue to black. "See! I told you I was strong! " He looked at the scoreboard, as he was among the top five students in his class. He placed his hand around Erie and looked back. "But this guy." Jake stood close to Erie, staring at Gene. Jake stared at Ereie and Jake without saying a word.