Luke was terrified.

'What is this? Why did he push me towards the opponent? He's supposed to be protecting me, dammit!'

The two girls readied their fists to attack Luke.

'I'm so done for...'

Luke covered his face and prepared for impact. He looked like he was about to cry.

Just as the girls were about to hit him, their fists were suddenly halted in midair just before reaching Luke's face. As their fists collided with the barrier, a powerful shock of electricity was sent through their bodies. The hair on the heads was standing straight up as their bodies went stiff. They had been knocked unconscious.

Luke realized that he didn't feel any pain and opened his eyes. He saw the two girls lying on the ground unconscious.

"What the hell just happened!"

He turned his head and saw Julian smirked with his eyes closed.

"I told you I would protect you, didn't I?"

Luke was stunned. He didn't understand what happened at all.

"How did you do it?"

"All I did was place a barrier talisman and electric shock talisman onto your back before the exam began."

Julian scratched his nose feeling impressed with himself.

Luke thought back and remembered Julain slapping his back while they were discussing strategy.

'He planned for a situation like this ahead of time. Just how far will he go in this life?'

Julian walked ahead of Luke and turned to look at him.

"Let's catch up to the others and snatch a flag."

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Luke gave a smile.

"Sure!"

They ran towards the area where the girls were fighting the remaining two people. Luna and Shio were attacking a tall, muscular boy with brown hair while Iris was chasing a short boy with black hair.

Luna saw Julian and Luke approaching from behind.

"Ju-ju! The boy with the black hair has the flag."

"Gotcha! Luke, you sit tight. This will only take a minute."

Julian left Luke standing under a tall tree and ran off after the black-haired boy.

He eventually caught up with Iris and got right up next to her.

"Listen up. I've got a plan. Do you think you could use your ability for me?"

Iris nodded in response.

"It's not as powerful as my creator's, but I can travel a maximum of 24 hours to the past or future. The longer I travel, the less I can use my ability for extended periods of time."

Julian smiled with excitement.

"Can you bring other people with you?"

"I can as long as I can touch them."

"Perfect! I'm going to give you a speed boost. When you touch that guy, bring both of you back 30 seconds into the past and I'll deal with him."

"Just 30 seconds?"

"Trust me. That's plenty of time."

Iris nodded in agreement. Julian stuck a talisman to Iris's back and activated it. Her speed increased triple what it previously was.

"Hurry. The more of a boost it gives, the faster the aura runs out."

"Alright. Here I go!"

She dashed forward at a frightening speed. She caught up to the boy in no time and placed her hand on his back. Both she and the boy disappeared.

Julian stopped running and turned around in the opposite direction. About 25 seconds later, the boy appeared in his sight running at full speed. Julian hid behind a tree in wait for the boy to get close.

When the boy was about to pass by the tree, Julian jumped out in front of him. The boy didn't have any time to react as Julian slapped a paralyzing talisman onto his chest. The boy lost all control of his body as he became stiff. Julian bent over and took the flag from his hand.

"Looks like you're out."

"Team 12 has been eliminated."

The students heard the loudspeaker and were motivated to keep going. The more teams that were eliminated, the fewer flags they could steal.

Julian's team regrouped and continued to eliminate other teams. By the time their hour was up, they managed to steal 9 out of the 20 flags that were given to each team.

The student all gathered around Albus to hear the results of the exam.

"I hope I get D Class!"

"Please! You'd be lucky to get E Class."

Albus had stood up and was ready to announce the results.

"Now that the exam is over, I will be announcing what rank each of you has been assigned. Don't feel discouraged by a low rank. You can always raise it in the future."

He went on to announce what rank each person had received. Most people were getting F Class with a few E Classes. There were even a couple of D Classes.

Getting a high rank on the exam meant that you would get a higher ranking position within the Imperium. The test is only administered to the first years at the academy. The second years mainly did internships within the Imperium and its subsidiaries, so if you did badly on the exam, you would be stuck with it until the graduation exam at the end of your second year.

"Luke Benning, F Class."

Luke didn't even react.

"Well, that's to be expected."

He gave a wry smile as he scratched his head.

"Luna Rousselle, D Class."

Luna jumped in excitement.

"Alright! Ju-ju did ya hear that!"

Julian gave you a smile.

"Congrats!"

Luna getting D Class was very beneficial to her future. For a first-year to get D Class, meant that the Imperium would watch her progress very closely and nurture her to become a top-ranking official.

"Shioka Tansho, E Class."

Shio looked disappointed at her ranking. She shook her head while folding her arms over her chest.

"Tch. These judges don't have eyes to see."

"Iris Lafrenz, D Class."

Iris gave a light smile and a sigh of relief.

"Honestly, I was a little worried there."

Albus cleared his throat before saying the final ranking.

"Finally, Julian Valera, C Class."

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