The situation was handled swiftly by the council members, upon investigating; it was found that the culprit was using an illegal drug known as “Berserk Potion”. A potion which increases your magic and physical strength, but much like its name, the one who drinks this will lose his rationality and succumb to madness.

Many of the students stood frozen in shock, Yota was also among them. His breath hitched as he took in the scene—blood pooling, dark and glistening, like something out of a nightmare. The metallic stench clung to the air, sharp and suffocating. For a moment, he couldn’t move, his mind refusing to process the chaos before him. Then, as a chill crept up his spine, his thoughts turned to Ric, he thought “Ric! Yeah, I need to check on him,” Yota thought frantically. “He used to faint before, and he couldn’t handle the nightmares either. Then there’s his problem with memories too...”

“H-Hey, Ric, are you okay—?” Yota’s voice wavered as he turned to his friend.

What he saw made his stomach churn. Ric’s face, pale and unflinching, wasn’t contorted with fear like Yota had expected. Instead, his eyes were sharp, cold, and devoid of any trace of terror. There was no trembling, no hesitation—just an eerie calm as Ric observed the scene with unsettling nonchalance, as though the chaos around them was nothing more than a trivial inconvenience.

“R-Ric…” Yota stuttered

“Hmm? Yeah?” Ric replied, his tone disturbingly casual.

“Why are you not scared?” Yota asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

“Should I be?” Ric tilted his head slightly, a hint of curiosity in his otherwise flat expression.

“Well, there is so much blood and you…” Yota hesitated, unable to finish.

“Yota,” Ric interrupted, his voice steady as he stated. “When you get cut, blood comes out. That’s normal. Why should I be scared?”

Yota felt a chill crawl up his spine at the detached simplicity of Ric’s words. “Y-Yeah…” he mumbled, unable to argue. Shaking himself free from the oppressive atmosphere, Yota stood up abruptly and exclaimed, “I will try to help others, okay?”

Ric gave a small nod, as if it were the most logical thing in the world. Yota turned away, but the image of Ric’s sharp, unflinching eyes stayed burned into his mind, leaving him with an unsettling feeling he couldn’t shake.

As Yota moved around, helping and checking on others, Ric stood still, lost in thought. “I know what Yota meant, It’s normal to be scared when you see that much blood. But for some reason, it doesn’t affect me at all. Maybe it’s because of that strange power—or whatever it is—that tries to take control of me and urges me to kill”.

His hands clenched into fists, the nails digging into his palms. “But I can’t afford to lose control of myself and go into a trance like before. If that keeps happening… I’ll probably end up killing someone.”

Ric’s gaze shifted back to the chaos around him, his face still unreadable. Inside, though, a storm brewed—a quiet battle to keep the darkness within him at bay. As Ric was contemplating his thoughts, the sun had set and the exam ended, the mages used magic to light up the area as Reinhardt came forward and exclaimed.

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“All 212 of you who have survived today possess the qualification to join the Kyrus Academy. You have completed three out of the four exams, which are designed to test your Psychology, Intelligence, and survival skills. The first exam tested your psychological resilience in adapting yourself according to different circumstances in limited amount of time.”

“W-what? Different circumstances? They knew about the drugging in the dorms?” Yota snapped, his frustration evident.

“Obviously, it would be strange if they didn’t knew about it.” Ric stated,

“Then why did no one do anything! If you didn’t wake me I would have been expelled!”

“That’s exactly the reason Yota.”

“What? How?”

“The academy needs people who are capable of handling themselves, in other words, people who in their eyes are ‘useful subjects’, that’s the reason they offer equality to everyone, including slaves, commoners and others who normally wouldn’t get a chance. Since nobles have their servants to protect them, they won’t need to be alert of their surroundings and adapt to harsh situations, so passing the exam will be a lot easier for them. But if there are people like us, who can succeed even when the odds are stacked against us­­­— that’s what makes us valuable. You get it now?”

“Y-Yeah.” Yota looked down, his voice became soft as he realized “It’s not ‘us’ Ric, its you.” He clenched his fist tightly “I need to work harder! I won’t laze around anymore!” With a resolved expression, Yota looked lifted his head, his eyes blazing with newfound determination. Ric glanced at Yota with a faint smile on his face “That face, did he understand something?” his thoughts lingered for a moment before turning his attention back to Reinhardt, who continued speaking

“The second exam tested your intelligence—your knowledge of monsters, the strategies you would use in different circumstances, and more. And now, the results of the second exam is here!” Reinhardt announced.

As soon as he spoke, Silvia stepped forward, holding a stack of papers. With a wave of her hand, she used magic to send the papers flying toward their respective students. The room buzzed with emotion as the papers found their owners. Some students beamed with joy, clutching their results triumphantly. Others just stared at their papers in disbelief as their failures weighed heavy on them. A few stayed calm and collected, neither celebrating nor in despair. And then there was Melvin, who could care less, he didn’t even glance at his paper, and slept indifferently as the paper lied beside him.

“Yes! Haha, I passed!” Yota shouted in joy, waving his result around. He rushed to show it to Fray, Jim, Desos, and others who also passed. But amidst the celebration, there were two who didn’t make it, Jeff and Ren, they failed miserably.

“I got 40 out of 100! How much did you get?” Yota asked proudly, teasing them with a cheeky grin on his face.

“Get lost! These papers won’t help you in battle anyway!” Ren yelled in an annoying manner, and Jeff agreed with a nod.

“Oh~ you guys finally agree on something, haha” Yota exclaimed, laughing.

“Shut up!” Both Jeff and Ren shouted in unison, their anger visible on their face.

Meanwhile, Ric stood off to the side, his expression dark and brooding. “Tch.”

The sound caught Yota’s attention, and his laughter faded as he noticed Ric’s discontent. His friends exchanged glances and gestured for Yota to check on him. Yota nodded and walked over.

“Hey, Ric. Did the test not go well?” Yota asked cautiously.

“Yeah, I’m not satisfied,” Ric admitted, his voice low.

“Hey, don’t worry—it happens!” Yota said, trying to cheer him up. “How many did you get, though?”

“Ninety-nine.”

“Hey~ Ninety-nine isn’t ba— Wait, what? Ninety-nine?!”

“Yeah,” Ric replied somewhat frustratingly “I missed a mark. It was cut because of my bad handwriting.”

“B-Bad handwriting?” Yota repeated, his mind reeling. Realization hit him, and it hit deeper as his shoulders slumped and he sank to the ground, looking like a frowning little kid. “If your handwriting is bad, then what should I call mine?” he mumbled, burying his face in his hands as Desos patted his shoulder in a vain attempt to comfort him. Then, suddenly Reinhardt’s voice boomed in the air, snapping everyone to attention.

“Those of you who have failed, tomorrow’s exam will be your last chance to enter the academy! As for those who have passed, tomorrow’s exam will determine your rank. Rest in your dorms until then. Dismissed!”