When my feet touched the ground... or was it the sky? I felt like I was going to fall, but I stood up naturally. There was someone waiting for our arrival. He spoke in a tone of complete indifference, as though he felt nothing special from us. I thought we were very different because we were students of the Limitless Academy.
"Welcome, I am Langst, a teacher and your guide for the day." A man in his late twenties, he clearly exuded strength and solidity. His features were sharp, and his gaze was vacant, calm, and devoid of any emotion. His hair was brown, leaning towards black. It fell over his forehead from the front, and was somewhat thick at the back. He was taller than us, about the same height as Yarasu.
He continued, "Please follow me."
We followed Langst in silence until he spoke again, "Since you're not in your best condition, please enter."
He opened the door for us to enter. We showered, ate, and then Langst took us to what they called the "Hall of talk."
Sai spoke while we followed Langst, curious, "Kinto, you haven't spoken to us since we arrived."
Kinto looked at him from the corner of his right eye in a superior manner, "Don't think that just because we crossed the forest together, we're friends. It's impossible for me to befriend people like you."
Sai's smile faded, and his gaze turned away. I hit Kinto on the back with the hilt of my sword forcefully, "Unfortunately, I can't kill you in a place like this, poison factory."
Kinto turned to strike back, but Langst stopped him. "We have arrived, please calm down." He then opened the door for us to enter.
Once inside, Mary, impressed by the place, said, "This is truly a beautiful place."
It was like a theater. There were elegant tables and chairs, and at the far end, a stage that resembled an execution platform. The lights were dim, and the atmosphere was tense. There were 16 other students here, or rather 17, since Kinto had gone to sit alone. We took a table and sat down, waiting for what would happen.
Finally, someone appeared on the platform and began speaking. "Welcome, you twenty students of this year. I am Karon, the official speaker of the Limitless Academy. I have been assigned today to explain the system of the academy, so let's begin."
1. "You will have lectures from 7 AM to 2 PM, and Fridays will be a holiday."
2. "The academic year will last 8 months, and after it 4 months of rest."
3. "There are three stages in the academy."
4. "The academy will provide you with food, drink, clothes, equipment, and more."
5. "There will be shared housing, with two people per room, and the assignments will be random."
6. "There will be tasks from time to time supervised by one of the task leaders in the academy."
7. "You will have a physical trainer at the school who can help you lose weight and build muscle."
"These are all the things you need to know. Now, let's move on to the classification stage."
A strange device rose from the platform beside him. He continued, "When you stand here, this device will measure your control over Shinta, and this will help us classify you. You will also need to provide the information requested by this device. Now, please step forward, one by one."
The students began to step up until it was my turn. I stood on it, and it asked for my name, age, and ability. I provided all the information, and the device began measuring my control over Shinta. I didn't feel anything, to be honest. When it finished, I stepped down, and after a few moments, the results were ready to be displayed.
"Now, we will announce your ranks," said Karon.
Mary Litari, rank 20
Sai Vitalite, rank 19
Kinto Shinga, rank 18
Leo Vitalite, rank 17
I was in rank 17? Just that? I had been training since my childhood, and in the end, I was in rank 17? And Sai was in rank 19? And Mary, who's an elf, was in rank 20? And this arrogant Kinto, in the end, was in rank 18?
My shock didn't end there, as Karon continued, "There are two classes, Class A and B.
From rank 1 to rank 10 will be in Class A.
From rank 11 to rank 20 will be in Class B.
And when you move to the second year, you will be reclassified to balance the power of the classes. You will find a board at the front of the academy displaying your room assignments. That's all. I wish you three happy years at the Limitless Academy."
I entered full of confidence and left with disappointment and questions. When we reached the board and I found my room, I immediately separated from the others. I just wanted to sleep.
"So, this is room 12."
I knocked on the door, and a voice said, "Come in."
I opened the door and entered to find that my roommate was a girl. Who thought something like this would be normal?...
I introduced myself, "I'm Leo Vitalite."
"Although we saw our names on the board, it's nice to formally meet you. I'm Beatrix Linlin," she said. She had strange hair. For the first time in my life, I saw red hair. Short red hair and almost ordinary brown eyes, with a physique that made you notice her strength at first sight.
"It's nice to meet you too." I then lay down on the bed.
Beatrix spoke, "I've never heard of anyone who controls darkness."
"It's an element of nature. You also control an element of nature, wind."
"Doesn't darkness symbolize evil?" she said jokingly.
"In children's stories, yes," I replied, and Beatrix laughed. I then covered myself and fell asleep.
6:00 AM
Beatrix woke me up so we could go to our first lecture. I met Sai there, and we entered the classroom together.
When we entered, we saw Mary sitting, clearly deep in thought. "Mary! How are you?" Sai said.
When Sai spoke, she snapped out of her thoughts. "Oh, Sai, I'm fine, how about you guys?"
"We're good," Sai replied. There was a boy sitting in the chair next to Mary. When Sai noticed him, he asked, "Is this your roommate?"
At the mention of this, Mary seemed uncomfortable. "This... yes."
I approached her roommate, but before I could speak, he said, "If you guys are friends with this elf, I don't care about people like you at all. What annoys me most is the sound of the weak." He was a boy with shiny, wavy black hair, sharp eyes, but they were also half-lidded in a peculiar way. His pupils were a strange green, and his strength was clear from his body. From his sitting position, I could tell he was as tall as Kinto, or maybe slightly taller. His face was permanently scowling, with no trace of anything but that. I would have thought he was royal if I didn't know his clan was the Winn.
Even though he wasn't in Class A, he spoke like this. Our conversation was interrupted by the entrance of Professor Langst, who asked us to sit. It didn't seem like we were going to have a "get to know you" day.
"For your first lesson, I will explain the source of Shinta," Langst said.
Beatrix asked curiously, "Source?"
Langst began explaining, "You'll understand what I mean now. Shinta is a power connected to the brain, meaning it flows from the brain. We know the brain is divided into three parts: the cerebrum, the cerebellum, and the brainstem. Each part has its own function, but when biology developed, scientists discovered a very small fourth part between the cerebellum and the brainstem during autopsies. They didn't know its function because it stops working the moment the person dies, leaving no trace of its purpose. But later, one scientist said he brought a person in and placed sensors near the fourth part to find out that only the Shinta sensor could detect something from it."
"So this means it's the source of Shinta?" I spoke up immediately.
Langst responded, "Exactly. After some experiments, the scientist confirmed that this part has only one function: to produce Shinta. It was simply named 'the Source of Shinta.'"
A student wearing glasses asked, "What would happen if this part was removed?"
Although his facial expression remained the same, I could tell Langst became more serious. "No one knows. Nothing like that has ever been done."
After the lecture ended, we left the classroom. A girl approached Sai, "Hello. I'm Brika Dolman from Class B. Nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too," Sai replied.
Of course, a girl or two would try to get closer to Sai. He's one of the most handsome in the academy. Is there a beauty contest? He should participate. He'd win first place.
By the end of the week, Sai, Mary, and I went to the training hall after the lectures. "This is the best part of the day," I said as I prepared. "Agreed..." Sai replied before teacher Langst entered.
"You guys are here, as usual," he said.
"Better than doing nothing." I said, and then Mary's roommate, Kyotai Winn, entered. He spoke to Langst and pointed at me. "Teacher, I challenge this guy to a fight."
"What kind of fight?" Langst asked.
"Whoever knocks the other down first wins."
Langst nodded, "That's allowed."
He's definitely stronger than me, but he also insulted us, especially Mary. If I aim to become a Sacred Warrior, I must do this.
I didn't refuse, nor did I speak a word. I moved towards Kyotai calmly, and he did the same. Although I'm not specialized in unarmed combat, I have enough skill thanks to Sai. When the signal was given, I charged toward Kyotai, trying to pin him by placing one hand on his neck and the other on his foot. However, Kyotai held me off with his hands and kicked my stomach with enough force to make me lose my balance for a moment. I regained my balance quickly and tried to strike his chest, but he dodged and lowered my head, striking my back. The hit was enough to knock me to the ground. Even the monsters I fought didn't have this kind of physical strength.
Kyotai looked at my condition. He didn't sweat a drop. His voice was full of disgust and mockery as he spoke, "Do you know why I challenged you? Because I was bored, but you didn't even entertain me for a moment."
Sai and Mary rushed to me, and Kyotai left the hall quietly. Sai tried to help me stand, but it was a bit difficult. Mary said, "I'm sorry," her tone full of regret and sadness.
"It's not your fault," I replied, looking toward the exit of the building. I could feel Kyotai's aura fading further away.
While I was trying to stand, a familiar aura approached us: Kinto. He began examining my body and found significant swelling on my back. He took out a vial and made me drink its contents. Then he stood up and left quietly, just as he had arrived.
Within seconds, the swelling disappeared. Is he actually a good person in the end? I don't think so.
We left the hall afterward. I noticed that Langst was watching us carefully. He didn't say anything.
We headed toward our rooms. Sai and Mary were talking and laughing. I think they were trying to cheer me up a bit. But that won't change the truth. I'm weak. Very weak.