I walked toward the massive dome—or more precisely, toward the small crowd gathered in front of it.
Everyone was wearing simple armor, similar to what we’d used during the entrance exam, while they gathered in groups of four, discussing the plans they had put together over the past few days.
I scanned the crowd, searching for my teammates. I needed to meet up with them before the exam began, and fortunately, I already knew what they looked like from their profile pictures.
Finally, after a bit of searching, I found a group of three—two girls and a boy. The short-haired brunette was Kaya, while Mira had long black hair. Adam stood in front of them, clearly holding their attention as he spoke with an irritated expression.
As I approached, I began to hear what he was saying.
"I told you, that bastard isn’t going to cooperate with us. Even after trying to contact him over the past few days, we got no response." His tone was filled with resentment, while the two girls listened with different expressions.
"Maybe he was busy," Kaya replied shyly, earning strange looks from the other two.
Mira pressed a hand to her face, clearly tired."I don’t get it, Kaya. Why are you defending that person? I get that he’s very handsome, but that’s not a reason to admire someone like him."
The moment those words left her mouth, Kaya’s face flushed red, and she hurried to explain herself.
"No... it’s not like that, it’s just—"Before she could finish, their eyes landed on me.
I walked toward them at an unhurried pace, each of their expressions changing in a different way.
When I reached them, I spoke,"Hello, teammates."
Adam’s expression twisted in anger."Teammates? Where were you when your teammates were looking for you?" He looked like he was about to lunge at me.
I smiled at him."Why all this anger? If I were you, I’d be thanking the heavens for being placed on this team."
It seemed he finally lost control. His hand shot out, trying to grab my collar."You bastard!"
I stepped to the side at just the right moment, his hand missing me as he nearly lost his balance.
Mira frowned."Caius Astroweild, stop causing trouble with your words."
"Don’t fight, guys," Kaya said shyly as she stepped between us.
Adam looked like he was about to charge at me again, but Mira’s glare stopped him."Adam, stop. You’re making yourself look like a child."
Adam ground his teeth and stepped aside, glaring at me with burning eyes.
Wow. What a harsh girl.
I watched their interaction with amusement, then looked at Mira."And you, Caius... I assume you want to keep first place, right?"
I smiled and replied,"Of course."
She seemed satisfied with my answer."Then let’s cooperate. We also want first place in this test, and we’ve already come up with a plan—"
I raised my hand, interrupting her before she could go on about that plan she was so proud of.
"No need to tell me anything... I have a simple plan, and I’m confident it’s better than yours."
Mira sighed."And what would that be?"
I raised a finger."Simple... just don’t get in my way, and I’ll guarantee you first place."
Their expressions changed for what felt like the millionth time, but before they could say anything, a voice echoed around us:
[Everyone, stay close to your team members... You will be transported in 10... 9... 8... 7...]
[...2... 1...]
In the next instant, space distorted around us, and the scenery changed.
We found ourselves inside what looked like a natural cave of black stone, dimly lit.
A long tunnel stretched out in front of us, about four meters wide, before splitting into several branching paths...
The test had begun.
Without delay, I activated my ability. My perception flooded outward, covering a vast area around me. I felt every detail—how essence interacted with the walls of the maze, the positions of the monsters ahead, and even the presence of other students beyond the thick stone walls.
Automatically, my mind began drawing a map of the place, along with the optimal route to take.
I smiled and spread essence through my body, ready to move—but a hand grabbed my shoulder.
I turned my head to find Adam staring at me with a deep scowl."Wait. What are you planning to do?"
I raised an eyebrow and knocked his hand off my shoulder."I don’t have time to stand around chatting with you. If you want, you can sit here, drink tea, or have sex... I don’t care."
I took a few steps forward, pulled my swords from my ring, and spoke my final words without turning back."Just make sure you don’t get eliminated."
With that, I kicked off the ground and shot forward at my maximum speed.
With my ability allowing me to sense every path within 350 meters ahead, I was confident I could clear this test in record time.
Teamwork?
What use would a group of weaklings be to me? All they’d do is slow me down.
Still, I genuinely hoped they wouldn’t get eliminated. After all, every member eliminated from the team meant losing 25% of the points we collected.
And every team needed a thousand points before they could enter the center.
Defeating Rank 1 monsters granted ten points, while taking down Rank 2 monsters awarded forty points. You could encounter other teams and fight them, but you wouldn’t gain any points from doing so.
I reached the first intersection.
Four entrances lay ahead of me. Without hesitation, I chose the tunnel farthest to the left.
I entered and kept running, until five glowing lights appeared within my perception—five Rank 1 monsters.
As I got closer, I could make out their forms.
They stood about two meters tall, with humanoid bodies, but with long arms that reached below their knees. Smooth gray skin covered their entire bodies. Where their eyes should have been was nothing but dark voids, while their mouths took up half their faces, frozen in grotesque smiles, saliva dripping between their teeth.
They seemed confused by my presence.
That confusion vanished the moment they sensed me approaching at high speed—or rather, they turned their faces toward me. I wasn’t even sure if they could actually see.
They opened their mouths and screamed—a screech like nails scraping across a chalkboard echoed through the tunnel.
Before they could even close their mouths, I was already in front of the closest one.
It raised its massive arm, trying to tear me apart with its claws—but its head fell and rolled across the ground before it could comprehend what had happened.
At the same instant, a fountain of gray fluid erupted from its neck, its body collapsing to the floor with a dull thud.
And at the same time, my watch chimed, announcing that I had gained my first ten points.