The restaurant in the hotel was bustling with people. “So how did you guys do on the exam?” said Haru as she took a sip from her drink.

  “Well I hate to brag, but I finished second,” Shiki boasted.

  Ari looked at Shiki. “And I got fourth, behind this loser.”

  Shiki smirked, “Doesn’t that make you worse than a loser.”

  “Why you-”

  “Then you guys definitely got in.” Kazuki interrupted.

  “The way the exam is scored is based on how fast you finished. We were done in about an hour,” said Ari.

  “Well I think it’s also based on how you placed,” said Shiki as he took a bite from his food. “Think about it. If thirty people finished under two hours, they couldn’t let them all in.”

  “I don’t know,” said Kazuki. “They were pretty serious about there only being two rules so I don’t think they wouldn’t let someone in who met those requirements.”

  “You could be right, but we would’ve finished a lot faster if someone didn’t get into a fight with Fujio,” said Ari.

  “Who’s Fujio?” asked Haru.

  “He’s someone we met during the exams,” explained Ari. “We can introduce you to him later. If he makes it in that is.”

  Shiki shrugged. “You never know when you’ll need allies. The problem is that Katsuo guy. He made the race a lot harder than it should’ve been.”

  Ari took a bite of her food, “Sure.”

  Kazuki looked at Shiki, “Sorry, I don’t think I heard you correctly. What was that boy’s name again?”

  Shiki glared at Kazuki. “Yeah, it was this guy named Katsuo. He was a real brute that’s for sure.”

  Kazuki buried his face into his hands and groaned.

  Shiki raised an eyebrow, “What?”

  “He was a kid who went to middle school with me. He’s a huge jerk but no one could do anything about him because he was the strongest in our-” Kazuki stopped, remembering what happened during the attack. Wait, how did he survive?

  “Strongest in our?” Shiki queried.

  “Huh? Oh, sorry, strongest in my village.”

  “He definitely wasn’t weak,” said Ari, “He was throwing Shiki around like a rag doll and didn’t even use magic.”

  “Damn muscle for brains. I can’t believe I let him toss me around.”

  “That’s the thing. He isn’t an idiot. Remember, he was the first one to start and he found out you only had to follow the two rules.”

  Shiki slumped into his chair and grumbled.

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  “Just keep in mind, he is dangerous,” said Kazuki. “He’s going to become even stronger if he makes it in.”

  “Which he probably will because he was the first finish,” Ari stated.

  Shiki sat up from his seat. “On the other hand, how did the race go for the two of you?”

  Kazuki and Haru looked at each other. “I’d say we killed it, but we weren’t the first to finish. We got fourth and fifth,” said Kazuki.

  “But we finished in about an hour,” said Haru. “So we should be fine.”

  Ari crossed her legs. “You know what, I think we might all get in. All we have to do is wait for the results tomorrow.”

  “Well in that case,” Kazuki got up from his seat, “I’m gonna get some sleep for tomorrow, I’ll see you guys later.”

  “Wait for me,” said Shiki as he shoved the rest of his food in his mouth and chased after Kazuki.

  “We should probably leave as well,” said Ari.

  “Sure,” said Haru as she stood up with her.

  “I’m so excited, I don’t even know if I can sleep!” Shiki exclaimed.

  Kazuki smiled, “I’m just happy we don’t have to pay for food since we’re examinees.”

  O O O

  “Good morning,” said Kazuki as he put his bag down. The hotel lobby was empty, save for the four of them.

  “Morning, Kazuki,” said Haru as she yawned.

  Shiki stared at Haru, “You have a serious case of bed head.”

  “I know.” Haru sighed, “This always happens to me.”

  “Where were you two? We were supposed to meet half an hour ago,” Ari said.

  “Shiki takes long showers,” Kazuki explained while rubbing his eyes.

  “Anyway, why did you want to meet up so early, Ari?” questioned Shiki.

  “It’s best we get there early since the opening ceremony is in an hour in a half,” Ari responded.

  “Well we’d better start heading there now.” Shiki exclaimed while leaving.

  O O O

  Everyone from the exam met up in the cafeteria. It was the fanciest dining area Kazuki had ever seen. There were waiters handing out everything from drinks to snacks, and there was even an upstairs area with roof access. It was so big it could hold well over a thousand people with plenty of room to   move around. After a few minutes, the intercom echoed throughout the area.

  “Attention all race participants, please meet in the auditorium in ten minutes,” said Akari over the speaker.

  Kazuki signaled the others to follow him. When they came to the hallway there was an officer waiting at two separate doors. “Name,” he said, looking at Kazuki.

  “Kazuki,” he replied.

  The officer started flipping through the pages on the notebook. “Take the door on the right.”

  Kazuki smiled and looked back at the others. “I’ll see you guys in a bit.” The room was filled with kids from the race, everyone on edge, waiting for the results. Kazuki found a row of empty seats and sat down. A little while later, the rest of the group walked in. “Guys, over here,” yelled Kazuki.

  After a short while, the lights in the room dimmed and Akari appeared on stage. “Good morning everyone, and welcome back,” she said into the microphone. “Now that everyone has filed in, I am happy to announce that everyone has passed!”

  “Hold on,” said a voice in the back. “We all passed?”

  “That’s right! One hundred and fifty people passed this year. That’s fifty more that usual. It just goes to show how much talent we saw throughout all of the races,” Akari announced.

  The room erupted in excitement.

  “We did it,” Kazuki smirked.

  “I told you we’d get in,” Shiki said nonchalantly.

  “Now then,” said Akari flipping to the next page on her clipboard, “everyone will be moving into their dorms tomorrow so make sure you bring everything you need. It is also required that you choose your roommate or they will be selected randomly. Make sure you choose the right person because you will be stuck with them for your entire time here.”

  “Hold on,” yelled a boy from the back of the room. “What happened to all the other kids.”

  She sighed, “They’ve already been informed that they didn’t make it.” She handed the clipboard to an assistant standing next to her. “That concludes the entrance ceremony. I’ll see you all tomorrow.” Akari then walked off the stage and the lights flickered back on.

  Kazuki couldn’t stop smiling. I can’t believe I finally made it. This is where my journey begins, at Noryoku High!