Hey, Neo!" Shiro's voice echoed from afar, sharp and urgent. "Come on! The ship's leaving in three minutes, you idiot!"
"Yeah, yeah—I'm coming!" Neo shouted back, sprinting toward the dock, backpack bouncing with every step.
As they boarded the vessel, the engines hummed to life, and a tall figure in a long coat stepped forward from the crew. His posture was straight, his presence commanding.
"Welcome aboard," he said with a grin. "I am Davio Lero the Third—your test conductor and administrator. I'll be guiding you through what lies ahead."
Without another word, Davio handed out blank sheets of paper to each examinee. Confused glances passed around the room.
Neo blinked. "Uh… there's nothing on it?"
Davio's smile didn't fade. "Exactly." He stepped to the center, voice calm but echoing with gravity.
"This paper represents your core. Your essence. There's something you all must understand before this exam begins: Metro."
He paused.
"Metro is Conceptual Energy. It's the belief that fuels you—your absolute, unshakable truth. Justice. Chaos. Freedom. Vengeance. Whatever it is, your Metro becomes the root of your power."
Gasps stirred through the crowd.
"To awaken your Metro," Davio continued, "you must find balance between your inner concept and the reality you live in. The more you master it, the broader and more formidable your abilities become."
He walked slowly among them now, eyes piercing.
"But beware… if you push too far, if you drown too deep in your own belief, you risk losing control—or burning out entirely."
There are three types of Metro," he declared, his voice slicing through the sea breeze like a blade through silk.
"The first— Abstract.
Concepts of the mind.
Philosophical beliefs born from deep reflection—Truth, Freedom, Doubt, Infinity.
This Metro aligns with what you choose to believe, not what was given."
"The second— Enforced.
Concepts branded onto your soul.
These are forged by pain, by teachings, by traumas or traditions. They were given to you by the world, not chosen by you."
"The third— Existence.
Concepts that are you.
They pulse with your every breath—instinctual, raw. Like Rage, Laughter, Pride, or Survival.
They manifest from your purest personality, unfiltered."**
Neo tilted his head, curiosity bubbling past his calm.
"Davio… which type do you have?"
Davio Lero's eyes glimmered. He laughed softly, not cruelly—but with ancient mischief.
"What a curious boy," he said, grinning like the sea itself held secrets just for him.
Then he turned away, clapping once.
"You all have 100 minutes to complete the paper. Reflect deeply. Do not lie to yourselves. Your Metro knows when you do."
A murmur passed through the group—confusion, hesitation, pressure.
Then—
"I'm already done!" Shiro shouted from the back, arms folded behind his head.
Twelve other students raised their papers silently, names echoing like omens:
Ilion. Mia. Mion. Hlanya. Susan Repel. Zapedio. Hitoro. Kaelith. Reinhard. Haruki Li. Tian Yu… and Neo.
Davio turned, just once, to face them—his smile curling with something unreadable.
"Oh? So many flames sparked so soon… How delightful."
As the final second ticked down, a sharp chime rang through the air—clear, cold, and absolute.
Davio Lero III stood at the helm, coat billowing like the flag of a sovereign empire.
"Time's up," he announced.
"Out of 5,680 participants… only 92 have passed."
A wave of shock rippled through the crowd. Murmurs rose like restless ghosts.
"The pass mark was 85%," he said flatly.
One voice cracked the silence.
"This is bullshit!" a trembling student cried out. "You said everyone has their own belief! Their own concept! How the hell can you mark belief?!"
Davio's smile sharpened, a glint of steel in his eyes.
"I did say that. And yet—your 'belief' was a lie even to yourself."
Before another word could be spoken—
slash
A blur tore through the air.
In an instant, the student was diced into 81 perfect pieces, as if carved by an invisible god.
The pieces hit the floor with a sound like falling dominoes.
Laughter echoed from nowhere—and everywhere.
Silence.
Davio turned his head slowly.
"Anyone else opposing the marking?"
"No, sir!" the survivors cried in unison, stiff as statues.
The rejected—numbering in the thousands—were herded silently onto a battered vessel and cast adrift to a random island. Their fate? Unknown.
But the chosen—those 92 stars among the shadows—were named.
A screen flickered to life, hovering midair, glowing with status and supremacy.
Top Ten Results:
Tian Yu – 97%
Mia – 96%
Neo & Ilion – 95% (Tied)
Shiro – 93%
Kaelith – 88%
Hlanya – 87%
Susan Repel – 86%
Zapedio – 86%
Reinhard – 85%
As the sun dipped low and painted the sky in bleeding gold, Davio Lero III stood atop the ship's mast, arms outstretched like a prophet beneath the heavens.
"Take a break," he called out, his voice drifting like incense in the wind.
"The next test is in four days…"
He paused, eyes scanning the survivors—the believers, the wounded, the fools, the monsters in disguise.
"…That one's a crazy one."
He tilted his head toward the stars, which were beginning to pierce the twilight sky one by one.
"I tell you… stars will fall."