"Kill her... during the examination?" The words were hitting harder than he expected them to.

A chill crawled up Marty’s spine. "I get that you hate her, but this..."

His voice wavers slightly. "If you make even the slightest mistake, you could be branded a criminal and thrown behind bars. Think carefully, Zac," Marty said with concern.

For a moment, Zac just sat there with empty eyes.

"After that day, I understood something." His fingers tightened against his palm. "Being good and expecting good things in return... that’s just foolish."

He stands up and stands right in front of Marty.

"You used to tell me not to trust people so easily. But back then, I was a clueless fool. I ignored you... and paid the price."

"Now, as a friend, let me tell you something similar." A faint, humorless smile touches his lips. "This world doesn’t reward kindness, Marty. You either kill... or wait to be killed."

He paused for a moment and placed his hand on Marty’s shoulder before saying. "The sooner you accept it, the better your chances of surviving."

With that, Zac turned and walked toward the hotel.

Marty stood there, lost in thought, before suddenly calling out, "Zac!"

"Lily is one thing... but what about Peter?"

"I don’t have any plans for him," Zac replied. "But if he gets in my way...he’ll meet the same end."

Marty stared at his back, unease settling deep in his gut. "When did you change this much?"

Zac didn’t answer.

Marty exhaled sharply and continued. "Lily doesn’t have much support. If you handle it carefully, you might get away with it. But Peter is different."

Zac remained still.

"His family is powerful, rich, and influential."

"Both his parents and relatives are variants. His brother studies at one of the top academies, and they have ties with the Variant Association... and I’ve heard things about them being involved in illegal activities too."

"If anything happens to him," Marty added, "it won’t end quietly and surely come back to bite you."

"I’ll keep that in mind."

Zac walked away without another word. Marty watched him disappear with a strange feeling settling in his chest.

***

The next morning, the campus ones again roared back to life. Students flooded the grounds with restless buzz and excitement.

Marty and Zac moved through the crowd and stood at a corner waiting for further instruction.

A man with broad shoulders and straight posture stepped onto the podium. "My name is Joseph Milroy, a variant assigned to conduct your second examination."

"The first exam tested your knowledge." His gaze swept across the crowd. "This one will test your strength, your strategic thinking, and how well you perform under pressure."

"Behind this campus, we have prepared a portal." He gestured casually, as if speaking of something ordinary.

"It is a D-rank portal, inhabited by various monsters. The weakest are ’E-rank’ and the strongest... reach ’C-rank.’"

A ripple passed through the students.

"What C-rank? Are they trying to kill us?"

"Didn’t monsters at that rank have a level over 50?"

"Don’t worry. There are only one or two ’C-rank’ monsters. Most of them are ’E-rank and D-rank.’ Besides, your main task isn’t to kill monsters."

He raised a hand, drawing their focus tighter. "The portal is divided into three zones. The outer zone, the inner zone, and the core zone."

"The outer zone contains E-rank monsters known as Golden Chickens." A few confused glances spread through the crowd. "They’re harmless to humans and won’t attack unless provoked."

"The eggs they produce are valuable supplements for variants. We have collected those eggs... and scattered them across the inner zone."

"Your objective is to locate the eggs and return them to the Golden Chickens. Each egg returned will earn you five points."

He let that sink in before continuing.

"As for combat, eliminating monsters in the inner zone will also grant points."

"E-rank monsters: three points."

"D-rank monsters: ten points."

A faint smirk touched his lips. "And if, by some miracle, you manage to kill a C-rank monster..." He shook his head slightly. "You will receive one hundred points."

"There is only one rule: under no circumstances should the Golden Chickens be harmed."

"If an egg is destroyed while in your possession, it won’t count as a point. Instead, you will lose five points for each egg you break."

"As for the core zone..."

For the first time, his expression grew serious. "The boss monster has already been eliminated. But its aura still lingers around the place."

A subtle unease spread among the students. "We have not placed any eggs there, so you have no reason to enter the core zone."

With a small motion of his hand, a simple-looking VSB appeared on his hand. "This is a custom VSB, designed specifically for this examination."

He held it up for all to see. "It does not have the full features of a standard model and has only two functions."

"First, it records everything you do inside the portal, which will be used to analyze your abilities and assign points."

"Second, if your life is in danger, it will teleport you back to the real world, which will make you automatically fail the exam."

"And as for the cold zone, I warned you because the lingering aura there interferes with the VSB, making it completely nonfunctional."

"So let me make this clear," he said, his voice steady and absolute. "Do not enter the core zone."

Joseph scanned the crowd one last time. "Any questions?"

A hand rose from the crowd. "Is fighting between students allowed?"

"Yes. You are free to fight... and steal eggs from others."

A murmur spread instantly. Another student stepped forward. "What about forming groups?"

"Allowed, but any points earned will be divided among your group members."

A third voice cut in, sharper than the rest. "What about our weapons and artifacts?"

Joseph’s answer came like a hammer. "Not allowed. You will not bring any personal weapons, artifacts, potions, or runes. We will provide you with a basic weapon of your choice before the exam."

Several faces of rich kids darkened hearing it. The advantage they carried had just been stripped away.

Joseph clasped his hands behind his back. "If there are no more questions... proceed to collect your VSB and weapon."

Lines formed quickly. One by one, students stepped forward, receiving their devices, each configured to their exam number.

Simple, unranked weapons with no attributes are handed out next.

Marty adjusted his grip on a broad shield strapped to his arm and a sword resting at his side. Zac, in contrast, held a single-handed longsword similar to the one he used in the test at the association.

Marty glanced at him. "Hope we end up in the same spot."

Zac gave a small shake of his head. "Not likely."

"I know," Marty exhaled. "Still... no harm in wishing, right?"

Before Zac could respond, Joseph’s voice thundered across the campus once more. "Now that you have received your VSB and weapon, line up and enter the portal one at a time. You will have twelve hours to complete the examination."

"Make them count."

The line began to move; one student after another stepped forward... and vanished into the portal.

When their turn came, Marty’s usual composure cracked. "Good luck," Zac said.

"You too." Marty’s voice lowered slightly. "And... don’t push yourself too far. Your life matters more than whatever you’re trying to do."

Zac held his gaze for a second, then gave a quiet nod. Without another word, they stepped forward and disappeared into the portal.

***

When Zac opened his eyes, he felt a soft warmth against his feet. The ground beneath him doesn’t feel like soil.

He looked around and saw golden feathers glinting all around him.

In front of him stood a large hen, its body shimmering faintly under the light. Its sharp eyes locked onto him, curious and yet edged with warning.

Dozens of chickens gathered around him with tilted heads.

Zac slowly looks around, taking in the strange sight of a chained nest, a circle of golden chickens, and a huge golden hen watching them with curiosity.

He let out a quiet breath.

"What the hell did I just walk into..."