Chapter 13
Jin walks through the elegant hallways, silent and confident, accompanied by Naomi, the staff member.
Staff Member:
"This way... the test room."
Jin steps toward the door calmly... his steps without hesitation.
Naomi (suddenly stops him):
"Wait."
He looks at her calmly:
"Yes?"
Naomi (smiles faintly):
"Stay safe... you idiot."
Jin ignores her words and enters the room silently.
Naomi (smiles again):
"Fool..."
---
Jin enters a white room... empty.
Before he can even think, he hears the maid's voice:
Maid:
"The test begins."
In an instant, the scenery changes before him.
He's transported to a small forest...
The same technique used in the academy's trial, but this forest is smaller.
Level 1 beasts begin charging toward him!
Jin moves without haste...
He doesn't use his swords — only his fists.
A strike.
Then another.
Within seconds, eight beasts are effortlessly taken down.
---
Staff Member:
"Second wave, starting now."
Level 2 beasts charge in...
Again, Jin uses the same approach.
Precise strikes… fast… silent.
---
Staff Member (in awe):
"This is... amazing.
How is he defeating them so easily… with just his hands?
Are we witnessing a golden-ranked hunter?!"
Inside the observation room, Naomi watches the screen, a smile forming on her face.
Naomi (with delight):
"He's... strong."
---
Staff Member:
"Third wave, initiating."
She mutters inwardly:
"This one's tough... even academy students struggle with them."
Level 3 beasts charge in!
But this time...
Jin moves swiftly!
He dances between the beasts with deadly grace,
Striking vital points in their bodies...
Suddenly —
Holes burst open...
Jin calmly stops...
Then — the beasts behind him explode into pieces!
---
Staff Member (shouting):
"This is impossible!
How powerful is he?!
Even golden-rank hunters would struggle against them!
How did he do it?!
Eight beasts... taken down just like that?!"
She speaks again, this time cautiously:
"Very well... initiating the fourth wave.
Be ready, you..."
Naomi watches the screen with shining eyes, her excitement growing.
"He's... amazing..."
Jin calmly stares into the horizon...
Then — level 4 beasts begin charging at him!
---
With deadly calm, Jin reaches to his back...
And draws two swords — one white, the other black.
Naomi stares at the screen — shocked.
Naomi (murmurs in concern):
"Those swords...
There's something strange about them...
Since the moving staircases... I felt something off...
But now... seeing them with my own eyes..."
(whispers almost inaudibly)
"They were..."
---
Jin grips the black sword.
Suddenly —
Black shadows surge in every direction, engulfing the battlefield!
The shadows morph into massive claws...
They lunge forward with ferocity,
Ripping the beasts into shreds!
---
Everyone is in shock.
Staff Member (trembling):
"Impossible...
How old is he?
Is he a student from the academy?"
She turns to Naomi, seeking an answer...
But Naomi, despite her tension, responds:
Naomi (with icy calm):
"No...
He's not."
The staff member rushes off:
"I'll be right back!
I must inform the director!"
---
Naomi watches her sprint away...
Then turns her gaze back to Jin.
She mutters to herself:
"This doesn't make sense...
How can someone be this strong?
How old is he?
What did he go through outside the capital...?"
She looks at Jin again...
He stands silently,
Not looking at the beasts' corpses, no expression on his face... just silence.
---
Suddenly, Naomi shouts at him:
Naomi:
"Jin!
Stop now!
You need to withdraw!
You're drawing too much attention!
The staff went to inform the director!
You don't want that kind of attention, right?
Then... stop now!"
---
Jin listens to her words...
He calms down,
Then quietly returns his swords to his back without a word.
---
Suddenly, a voice echoes from the field:
Voice:
"You'll have to explain everything to me later.
Everything...
About this power."
---
Naomi responds, her gaze serious:
Naomi:
"Alright...
Later."
---
Elsewhere...
The staff member bursts through a wooden door and rushes into the director's office.
---
A simple room, filled with books.
A man sits in a chair, violet hair,
Wearing a monocle over one eye.
His eyes closed… a calm smile on his face.
---
Director (softly):
"Hello... Rani,
What's the matter?"
---
Staff Member (panting):
"Director!
There's a boy...
Seventeen or maybe eighteen years old!
He's incredibly strong!
He defeated a group of beasts,
Reached the fourth level...
Without breaking a sweat...
As if he was fighting children!"
---
The director smiles, placing his hands on the desk,
Resting his chin on them.
Director:
"Oh? Truly?
That's wonderful..."
---
Director (cont'd):
"Bring him to me after he completes the next trial.
Let him face the fifth level.
But this time...
Instead of eight beasts...
Make them sixteen.
Level Five beasts."
---
Staff Member (shocked):
"Director!
That's... quite dangerous...
Yes, he's strong,
But Level Five beasts are massive,
Not simple at all... the gaps in strength are immense!"
---
The director opens one eye —
A calm smile still on his face, but with something... unsettling behind it.
Director:
"If he dies...
Then he's weak.
We'll simply say he failed the test."
"Do it.
And if he survives...
I'll meet him myself."