’All existing?’

Luca wondered when a beam of light fell from the sky with a sonic boom.

He stood to his feet and walked towards it unhurriedly.

’I guess some Cadets really died.’

He had expected it.

After all, in a free zone where instructions don’t forbid fighting amongst each other, people, especially egoists, would take it to the extreme.

Perhaps because of that, the Ardenthal Vassals had those intentions.

’Well, it doesn’t matter since I’ve dealt with it, but I wonder how the Institution will paint their deaths.’

He walked through the portal and diffused in its white rays as he felt the world unravel before him. His senses ceased for a second, then returned as if nothing had happened.

When he was back, the first thing he saw was Instructor Sariel, sitting behind a desk and chair similar to the one from the registers at the front. She waited at the cemented platform from before.

While he and some other Cadets walked out of the Arch.

A few had already arrived and had begun to approach the Instructor.

While a lot more were surrounded by Harmonic Instructors. Professions with the Harmonise Talent that enabled them to heal.

Luca recognised a few Cadets being treated– well, two. Orveth and Daryon.

Though he didn’t know their names, the glance they gave each other served much more as a lasting memory.

They wouldn’t be forgetting each other, anytime soon.

’I heard in the past, technology used to be so poor that a mere limb couldn’t be replicated from cells.’

He scoffed at the thought as he ignored the death glares of his attackers.

’Stupid. How could a world even exist?’

He joined the others who approached the Instructor when she suddenly raised her voice in an announcement.

"Line up, I will now be assessing your Cores."

The Cadets followed instructions immediately.

One by one they made up the line, Luca lingering behind as they did so.

’Weird. Why would they go out of their way to inspect the core?’

Luca wondered as he turned back to find one of the boys– the Sniper, snickering from ear to ear as he conversed with the other one.

Luca’s stomach churned.

’I have a bad feeling, all of a sudden.’

He turned to the Cadet in front of him– a girl with dark short hair, dark skin tone and blue eyes and tapped her.

She turned to him with a raised brow.

"What is it?" She asked with a slight annoyance.

"Um, why are they inspecting our cores? Don’t they already know we got them from killing the Spawns?"

The girl’s face shifted like she had heard something stupid.

The kind of look that irks you to the point that you realise your own lack of knowledge.

"Are you toying with me? Is this how boys ask girls out these days?"

She scoffed, flickering her short hair at his face.

"Please don’t touch or talk to me again."

Luca was stumped.

’What is she talking about?’

He shook his thoughts and turned to the back where a tall, broad boy– a commoner, just like the girl. He had a rough brown bow cut and dark eyes.

Luckily for Luca, he had heard his question.

"I hear Nobles sometimes rig the second task by bringing their own cores beforehand.

So it’s to ensure fairness."

Luca’s eyes bulged open.

’Shit.’

"Next!"

The instructor announced, her voice inching far too close for Luca’s comfort.

"Thanks." He muttered before facing the front with his gaze to the ground.

’I was tricked.’

Luca had found it odd when the Brawler had used his Inventory to release his cores while the Sniper used his ring.

It seems like the Sniper had given him cores– but not task cores.

’Can I separate them before my turn arrives?’

He counted the line and summoned his interface. ’Five more.’

A Cadet walked out of the line with his core assessed. ’Four.’

Luca’s thoughts churned.

He could decide to leave the line and carefully check the cores, but there was no way he would be able to tell the difference.

If he could, then he would have from the beginning.

’I guess I’m going to take the fall for this one.’

For what he knew, they would simply separate the fake ones from the real ones.

’Perhaps there won’t be a punishment for it?’

"WHA– WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?!"

A voice cut off his thoughts.

Two Instructors, or rather, guards, had their arms firmly around a boy, a noble no less who made a conundrum at the front of the line.

"Take him back to the first task and let Raziel know of his involvement with fraudulent practices. He should be handled as such."

"WHA– WHAT PROOF DO YOU HAVE?! HOW DARE YOU!"

The boy’s protest was adamant even as two guards dragged him from the line.

He resisted as if his life was on the line and perhaps it was. His grip on the table was firm and though the Guards didn’t use force, but caution.

And his voice continued to alert the people around.

"YOU CAN’T DO THIS TO ME!"

"I HAVE MY RIGHTS AS A CITIZEN OF THE FEDERATION!"

"THE EMPEROR WILL NOT TAKE THIS ACTION LIGHTLY!"

His voice was strained– but for some reason that Luca couldn’t understand, this boy was persistent.

"NO! M– MY FATHER WILL HEAR OF THIS!"

Those around whispered from the chaos that ensued. Some even laughed mockingly at the Noble.

And for Luca, it was a ticking bomb.

’I’m going to have to start from the beginning? No...I can’t have that. Wouldn’t it be better to fail it and go again?’

He made his decision. He would empty it all and start again.

"YOU STUPID BITCH!"

– BANG!

The heads of everyone present whipped to Instructor Sariel– eyes bulged and mouths widened as silence descended.

In her hand was a handgun. A state-of-the-art technologically structured gun that emitted a seething smoke.

Her eyes were filled with murderous intent as she stared at the fallen Noble whose clothes began to soak with blood.

The Guards said nothing.

They simply dragged off the dead body of the Noble, leaving an empty hole in the air and the minds of the Cadets.

’What?’ Luca thought.

Instructor Sariel folded her arms.

"Let this be a warning to all of you.

There are no seniors or juniors in the Institution, only Instructors.

Your Instructors are your gods. Insult them... and pay the price."

Luca’s chest thumped and his heart skipped a beat.

He had not even realized when the line started moving and he was now a single Cadet away from the very scary Instructor.

’You’re fucking kidding me.’

"Next."

Her voice was like the whip of an ice bath.

Luca stared, face-to-face with instructor Sariel, and he could swear his colour was drained by a few shades.

"Well, don’t waste my time."

Luca bit his lips hard as he brought out his Interface. He willed it to release the contents, and spilled all Cores on top of the desk.

Mumbled voices and gasps echoed from behind him. A few of them who actually observed what was going on.

While two knowing glances lingered his way.

’I swear if I make it out of here, I’m going to kill them the next chance I get.’

Murder wasn’t something Egoists were scared of. It Ifything, death was.

They would rather kill than die.

"Oh?" Instructor Sariel said with a wild grin.

She observed the cores and then Luca.

"Should I call you dumb or courageous?"

Luca gulped. "How about oblivious?"

Instructor Sariel raised a brow.

She felt a pressurised stare at his back and turned towards the cadets being treated.

’Oh, so that’s how it is.’

It wasn’t the first time Nobles tricked Commoners by purposely giving them fake ones.

Usually, they wouldn’t even be aware even after they were kicked out of the round, but from the way he responded, it was clear he did.

"Do you wish to redeem yourself?"

Luca nodded his head profusely. Forgetting for a moment, that he indeed, didn’t know which weren’t from the Task.

Instructor Sariel nudged at him and Luca immediately began his own inspection.

Firstly, he separated two distinctive cores. One that drew gasps not just by the Cadets behind, but even some Instructors who watched.

These were the Bulk Rhino core– A Severe rank which was the only uneven round core and the Vallion Tiger, the one with a shade of orange.

It was smaller than the severe, but as a moderate, it was larger than the milds.

Then came the hard part.

’How do I?’

His gaze lingered on each as he attempted to tell the difference.

’Isn’t this impossible?’

He peaked at Sariel, only to find the woman staring at him as well.

Luca instinctively shifted in place.

’Come on... There must be something to it? Wait! I stored them all in my inventory right?’

He held two cores and stared at each separately.

’Inventories are different because they’re being stored directly in your third eye. A separate space for objects of any kind.’

Because every Mind Eye was unique, Inventories too, took that case.

’I already know how my ego feels and looks.’

Pale gold.

That was the colour his Ego energy expressed itself. Therefore, a mark of some kind would be left on them.

For the ones that have stayed longer in his Inventory, the mark should be firmer– more solid.

But those that were from a different Inventory or not from one at all, there should either be a zero mark or a different mark.

’Oh, I see. Is that how they tell?’

He wondered.

’I’m not sure if this is accurate, but wouldn’t the Nobles just find a way to go around it?’’

What Luca didn’t know was that seeing the colour of Ego was near impossible.

Most express the energy as black– a universal display of Ego, but a few had deeper levels of Ego. Those expressed in shades of colour. Seeing the difference was done by a few and only those few would be able to decipher it as Luca did.

"Well, you’re keeping the line waiting?"

Instructor Sariel nudged.

Luca nodded and observed a bit more until finally, it clicked.

________

AUTHOR’S NOTE

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