The Hidden Cave. Months before the Entrance Exam.

Kaito was pacing back and forth in front of Ajal, who was sitting on his knees, staring at Kaito with a look of deep concentration. The training had started two weeks ago—and the results were already notable.

Ajal's face was red from exertion. His breathing was ragged, and sweat was dripping down his forehead in a torrent. But there wasn't a hint of fatigue in his eyes. They were filled with an unwavering determination that only became more intense as Kaito kept up his ceaseless pace.

Kaito stopped pacing and clapped his hands together. "Well, your scythe skills have improved enough to the point I can't teach you anymore on that front. I'm not a scythe user, so from here on out you're gonna be developing your own sort of fighting style with it."

"So... what do we need to focus on now?" asked Ajal.

Kaito nodded. "The main one you'll be focusing on is Divinity control."

"You mentioned Divinity before. What exactly is that?"

"A source of power, energy, life, anything you can think of. It is something that flows through all sentient beings of the Middle Domains. For Gift usage specifically, we use it to unlock special abilities that our Gifts hold. That's why you gotta start being able to control it yourself. You've got some ability to do that already, but you haven't been putting it into practice yet. And if you don't learn how to control it properly, then nothing will come out when you use your scythe."

Ajal stood up and approached Kaito. "Then let's get started."

Kaito grinned widely at Ajal. "These next few weeks will be focused on you simply channeling your Divinity. After that, we can worry about abilities."

2 months later, Ajal still struggled to grasp controlling his Divinity.

Ajal was panting heavily as he lay sprawled out on the ground.

"This sucks!" He yelled out in frustration.

Kaito was sitting on the ground next to him, his legs crossed, with his elbow resting on his knee and chin tucked into his palm. "You'll be just fine, Ajal. You gotta learn to stop taking life so seriously."

Ajal turned his head towards Kaito. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Good question! Maybe I mean you should be more like me. Cause I'm awesome."

"I'd rather die."

"That's the spirit!"

***

"Ajal. Hey. Ajal, can you hear me?" Jean whispered, grabbing Ajal's shoulder.

"Oh hey, Lawn. When did you get here?" Ajal said.

Ajal, Jean, Arc, Yumiko, and Ezekial were all sitting behind bushes that connected to more shrubbery to form a circular ring around a clearing in the forest.

"We've been here the whole time, waiting for you to get your head out of the clouds."

"Yeah, what was that about?" Ezekial interjected.

"Just remembering some things." Ajal answered. "So where are we?"

"We were following you!" Jean hissed.

Yumiko was sitting behind Ajal, holding back her laughter.

Jean calmed himself and looked at Arc. "Are you OK, Arc? you've been awfully quiet."

"Yes, Master Jean. Just watching her. She hasn't moved yet."

Arc was peeking over the Hedges, staring at a figure of a colossal stature, standing tall above any normal person. Their skin was white like chalk with scales covering them from head to toe. Defined muscles proved they were more than athletic. It was as if she was built for battle. Her tail swished too and froe behind her as she had her eyes shut, hidden behind the façade of a beast's skull surrounding her head. Their entire upper body was bare, save for the cloth wrapped tightly around their forearms and chest. They wore pants that were ripped at the ankles and legs, with black boots completing the ensemble. Around their waste were more bandages, carrying multiple Artifacts. The artifacts had different and varying letters inscribed into them.

Jean watched Ajal's reaction. He could see Ajal's mind working furiously, trying to process everything he saw.

"No way! Is that a dragon?!" Ajal exclaimed, his voice shaking with a mixture of shock and excitement.

"More specifically, she is a Drápabarn." Arc clarified. "A race born from the Dragons who live in the Upper Realms."

"Tch." Ezekial sneered. "Does it matter? She's the one who has my Artifact, Drápabarn or not. I'm getting it back."

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Ajal turned his head to Ezekial. "How did you get your Artifact taken, anyway? Couldn't you just stuff it away into the Global Pumpkin?"

"Pocket." Arc corrected. "And the Global Pocket act on a how it is perceived by the public."

"Uhhh."

Jean sighed. "Basically, dragon girl over there beat up Ezekial, right? So because the spectators saw his defeat, in their eyes his Artifact now belongs to her."

"So to get it back, we have to beat her?"

"Under normal circumstances, yes. But lucky for us, he is flaunting all of them around her waist."

"She's obviously taunting us, Master." Arc stated.

Ezekial let out a short chuckle. "That just mean she's being cocky. It's 5 on 1. Her power won't mean much with those odds."

"What is her power?" Yumiko asked. "My best guess is her Gift are those wraps around her body."

"Couldn't tell ya'." he shrugged. "All I know is my bullets seemed to just bounce off her body, and then all she did was punch me once and sent me flying."

Ajal was listening to all of them, resting his chin in his palm and tapping his finger on his cheek. "OK. I'm bored. I'm going in."

Ajal jumped up from the bushes

"Wait!" Jean shouted. "What are you doing?! We can't fight her!"

Ajal ignored him and walked out of the bushes, his eyes locked onto the gigantic Dragon.

The Drápabarn opened her eyes, revealing the ruby colored irises and glared down at Ajal.

The rest of team Z rose from the bushes behind Ajal.

The Drápabarn spoke. "Took y'long nuff'."

Her voice was surprisingly feminine, though the tone of it gave the impression it was a snide remark.

Ajal smirked and began stretching his legs. "I wouldn't call it hiding. It's more like strategic positioning."

The Drápabarn kept her stare.

"So I'm here for your Artifact, of course. Oh, and my friend's Artifact as well... I Guess," Ajal answered.

Ezekial raised his hand. "I'm not his friend. Just to clarify."

The Drápabarn didn't move an inch but held up one finger, with her sharp talon presenting itself from it. "I'll give ya' one shot."

Yumiko tilted her head. "One shot?"

"y'punch. I punch. Easy."

"Sounds like she's giving us a free hit." Jean muttered to himself. "Best if we all attack at once."

Ajal jumped up in excitement. "Me! Pick me! I wanna go!"

"Sounds good to me." Yumiko yawned while stretching her arms into the air.

"Go for it." Ezekial added.

Arc gave a thumbs up with the same blank expression.

"I'm stuck with idiots." Jean groaned.

"What do you mean?" Ajal asked. "It's simple math, really. I'm the strongest one here, and I hate cocky people. Add those two together and it's obvious I should be the one who gets picked."

Jean facepalmed. "Y'know, I would say you are being a hypocrite. But I'm not sure you know what that even means."

"Of course I know what that means. But what does an animal have to do with anything?"

***

The spectators' room was full of tension.

The whole staff and guests were now present, watching the Entrance Exams unfold.

The school's Principal, Spry Culpa, was watching the exams with a smile on her old, wrinkly face. "Why the sour look, Count Hossin? These applicants are very promising this year."

"Apologies if I look glum, principal. It's just as a person who believes in a fair system I find this test... Unfair to say the least."

Count Hossin was a slim man, wearing a black suit with a high collar. His age-wrinkled face and white hair gave him the appearance of someone who had seen and experienced much in his lifetime. He was known to be a partial owner of Reason Manor and one of the richest men in the Middle Domains. His family and home were famous for their hospitality, and even foreign dignitaries from other Domains who came to the Middle Domains often visited his estate.

The principal leaned back in her chair. "I'm not sure what you mean, Count. Every applicant is playing by the same rules as each other. That is the definition of fair, don't you agree?"

"What rules would that be? You barely explained the game to these children. How are they supposed to pass without any idea on how to?"

"With all due respect, Hossin, you've already made a mistake by calling them children. Every applicant is an adult and we treat them as such because society will treat them as such. Besides, if they can't piece together a simple test like this, then they wouldn't survive the academy."

Hossin scoffed. "If that's your opinion, then you're sadly mistaken. You must have lost touch with the world outside of your walls. There are countless events that occur around the world every day that could threaten the safety of this country. If you are entrusting our lives, our future, to students who are barely more than saplings, then you are going senile faster than we thought."

The rest of the room stared at him with contempt and anger.

Lucius jumped onto the table closest to the count and stared him down. "You may be our guest today, Count, but make no mistake, any disrespect towards our principal will not be tolerated."

Principal Spry was unmoving and calm."This test is to pick the 12 best students possible. We wanted to make sure they were mentally and physically ready for what they are to face."

Count Hossin remained silent and kept to himself.

There was a clicking noise coming from a corner of the room. The man responsible was holding a pen and clicking it in and out.

The clicking stopped and the man spoke. "The point of this exam is stupid. Pick any 12 applicants, and all I see are 12 corpses by the end of the first semester."

Spry chuckled. "Nonsense, Lucky. At least one will survive, I reckon. You've already been acquainted with him."

"You mean the Inheritor? He's one of the stronger applicants, sure, but still pathetically weak compared to last year's Inheritor."

"Well, that's where your job as a teacher comes in. If all the first years are dead at the end of the first semester, then you wouldn't have done your job correctly then, hm?" She smiled at him, her face wrinkling up further. "Besides, I won't let any of my students die in the first semester, so you needn't worry." She stood up from her chair, gesturing towards the door. "Now, please excuse me. I have to attend to some business elsewhere. Lucius, dear, I leave you in charge in my absence."

"Understood, madam principal."

***

Ajal had already transformed his scarf into the scythe and was readying himself to fight. He was surrounded by his teammates and waiting for the Drápabarn to make her move.

"I'll take this chance to remind you guys that it's 1 vs 1." Ajal shouted. "No interfering!"

Everyone nodded in response.

For nearly 10 seconds, the only thing in the area was silence. The Drápabarn hadn't moved an inch. She stared at Ajal with her ruby colored eyes, which had a faint shine to them. Her mouth was open slightly and Ajal could see her fangs protruding from her gums, her tongue licking across the sharp edges.

Ajal's breathing was heavy as he waited for the Drápabarn to strike.

Then, she did.

Ajal clutched his scythe tighter and charged to meet her head on.