[Ken's POV]
The silence that followed the fight was suffocating. My breath came in short bursts, my katana still trembling in my grip. The corpse of the Paladin—if you could even call it that anymore—had dissolved into a glistening pool of mercury, steaming faintly as it sank into the arena floor. I stood over it, my body aching, my mind pulsing.
Ten minutes and six seconds. No—less.
I killed him.
I turned slowly. The blood roaring in my ears finally began to settle, and with it came the crushing weight of every stare in the arena. Recruits. Instructors. Observers. Their gazes pressed against my skin like blades. Awe. Disbelief. And something else—fear.
But I didn't care about them. Their expressions were just noise in the distance.
My eyes found one man.
The examiner.
He stood frozen for a second, then stepped forward, his voice sharp, slicing through the silence.
"Ten minutes. Paladin eliminated. Victory... goes to Ken Reign."
Even he sounded like he didn't believe it.
A storm of whispers broke loose.
"He killed it—!"
"That was just a test, right?!"
"Without enhancement?! That's—"
Let them speak. Let them doubt me. Their voices couldn't touch me. I sheathed my katana with a click that echoed like a gavel. Justice had been served, even if the one who died wasn't the same monster who slaughtered my parents. He represented them all.
I walked away, boots leaving silver trails behind me. They could keep their awe. Their horror. I only cared about one thing—passing.
As I returned to the row of recruits, I felt their eyes clinging to me. Some flinched. Others stared in quiet terror. I didn't flinch. I didn't blink. I just stood there, like I belonged.
More names were called. More recruits stepped into the arena. Some were brave. Some were foolish. Most bled. Some screamed. Some were dragged out, missing limbs. A few passed.
I watched with a cold, indifferent stare. Where others vomited or looked away, I didn't. I watched everything.
That's the only way to survive.
---
After several grueling hours, Veyne, our lead examiner, gathered all recruits who had passed into the grand hall. I stood among them, arms crossed, scanning the room. Bloodied, bandaged, exhausted—but standing. Survivors.
Veyne walked in, flanked by two instructors—cold-faced, armored, eyes like razors.
"You all," Veyne began, his voice sharp and resolute, "have proven you deserve the title of Inquisitor."
He let the words hang heavy in the air.
"You are now soldiers of the Empire. You do not serve yourselves. From this day forward, your life belongs to the Emperor. You live for him. You die for him. And in death, you are eternal."
The hall echoed with silence. No one dared to speak.
Then, with a flick of his wrist, a holographic screen lit up behind him, casting blue light over our faces.
"This," Veyne continued, pointing to the screen, "is the ranking of the top ten recruits from all divisions. When I call your name, step forward."
He started reading.
"Rank 10 – Darius Helm, commoner."
A tall boy with short black hair stepped forward, proud but tense.
"Rank 9 – Mira Velhart, noble."
A silver-haired girl followed, her cloak still singed from battle.
"Rank 8 – Theo Lang, commoner."
"Rank 7 – Calder Stravros, noble."
"Rank 6 – Nyra Casterwin, noble."
"Rank 5 – Juno Kael, commoner."
"Rank 4 – Vaelis Dorne, noble."
"Rank 3 – Helena Graves, noble."
"Rank 2 – Astrid Virellian."
That name sent a ripple through the crowd. Not because she placed—but because she didn't place first. She stepped forward with poise, but her jaw was clenched. The daughter of a Supreme Lord Inquisitor, knocked to second place? That meant...
"And finally... Rank 1 – Ken Reign."
Silence. The kind that chills your spine.
I stepped forward.
Their stares weren't just on me this time. They were inside me—questions, disbelief, maybe even hatred.
I didn't care.
I stood beside the other top recruits like I belonged there. Because I did.
Veyne looked at me, his expression unreadable. Then he spoke.
"You are the first in decades to eliminate a Paladin during the recruitment trials," he said. "Even without enhancements, you displayed overwhelming psychic output and lethal precision. Either you're gifted... or dangerously unstable."
He paused, then added with a half-smile, "Let's see which one it is."
Then he turned back to the room.
"Tomorrow, all of you will be transported to Inquisitor Headquarters on Planet Vorkarth-7. That is where your official indoctrination will begin. There, you will receive your psychic energy and nano-implantation procedures."
He glanced over the crowd. "Be here at dawn. Miss it... and you're out."
He raised his voice. "You're dismissed!"
The hall emptied slowly. I turned to go, but Veyne called out.
"Reign. Stay."
I halted, turning back. He approached and handed me a data tab.
"This is for you. You've earned a personal enhancement and a nano-implant of your choosing. Most pick muscles, reflexes, limbs. But you... you strike me as different."
He raised a brow. "So. What'll it be?"
I answered without pause. "My brain."
He blinked. "Your brain? That's... rare. Why?"
"I want to process more information," I said. "To think faster. Smarter. React quicker. A blade is only as good as the mind behind it."
He stared at me for a moment, then chuckled softly.
"Dangerously unstable, indeed."
He turned and walked away.
I looked down at the tab.
Tomorrow, everything would change.
Tomorrow... the real war would begin.