Mars
Hunters Academy
Alex and Ross had returned to the academy during the last day of the weekend, feeling refreshed and ready to go. Of course, Julia was also present. Right now, they were in their classroom waiting for Instructor Horvey to come.
There was no such thing as examinations where they had to sit and answer questions on paper about what they learnt throughout the academic year. They were hunters, not scholars. There were schools for those kinds of professions.
Alex was engaged in conversation with his friends about what they thought the competition would entail. The other students in the class were also engaged in their own talks with their peers, making plans on what to do if and when a competition they thought would come was actually brought.
Naturally, Zen Henjok was among those who already had a plan, and it mostly involved a certain someone and how to put them in their place.
Sometime later, Instructor Horvey entered the class, and it immediately went silent. The students respected their instructor a lot and by now understood his no-nonsense nature. He welcomed them back to school and instructed them to follow the usual procedure for taking attendance.
"Okay, once again, welcome back and as you all expect, the first-year competition will soon begin. However, there will be some changes from what was done in the previous years." He said as he moved around the spaces between the desks. His gaze shifted from one student to another.
He returned to the podium and continued, "As you are aware, there are millions of students and to cater for everyone, the competition will have a sieving phase. Of course, even if you don't make it, if your accumulated class points are enough, you will still remain in your current class."
His words caused a wave of murmurs among the students. Naturally, most of the students in Class A believed they had no problem passing that phase.
"The majority of you here are already above the threshold to be seeded players, so you'll be sitting that phase out." He said and his gaze moved to Alex.
When he noticed how the instructor was looking at him, Alex felt that something was wrong. 'Hopefully, I'm just thinking nonsense.' He swallowed nervously as he continued to pay attention to the instructor.
"The criteria for being a seeded player is your level." As soon as he said that Alex felt his heart sink. The expression on his face was not good to look at. He noticed Ross and Julia's attention quickly shift to him.
"Level?" A student asked, not expecting the criteria to be that low. Indeed, to the students in Class A, almost all of them had high levels. They were high-tier Class F hunters with a few being in the mid-tier range.
"Yes, while you guys may not have a problem with your levels, the other classes don't have that much luck. Some still remain at the low-tier end of their level." He answered the student's question.
Of course, the students did not forget that not all students had the same starting point. Additionally, the resources allocated to students in lower classes were less than what they enjoyed, so obviously, some students would be left behind. It was unfair, but nothing has ever been fair in life.
The competition was mostly a way to assess the students' prowess and allocate additional resources to those who stood out. It was a necessary competition they all had to join, but not entirely without some leeway.
"Most of you here are already qualified to be seeded players. However, there is one among you who is still in the lower levels of Class F in terms of mana." Once again, the students were shocked to hear what their instructor said.
How could anyone in Class A be at the lowest level even after all the resources and time they had? They were confused. They wondered if someone had been playing around all this time. They began to look at each other, trying to see if they could see the person.
"Quiet! I'm not done." Instructor Horvey bellowed, bringing the class to silence. After getting back their attention, he continued, "Now, this might come as a surprise to you all considering the person I'm about to mention.
"Alexander Gray, stand up."
Hearing the name of the student once again caused an uproar.
"What?! That can't be right. This is Alexander we're talking about." One student who couldn't believe what he heard stood up and exclaimed, and he wasn't the only one.
The instructor naturally understood why he would do that, but that was just what it was… The rules had to be followed.
"I understand your surprise but sit down!" The students quickly returned to their seats and kept their thoughts to themselves.
He then turned to the now-standing Alex, who had the whole class's attention on him. The person himself looked like he was not entirely concerned. He had a feeling once he heard what the instructor said earlier and psyched himself for what was to come.
Ross and Julia had wanted to protest but he told them to not make a fuss. There was nothing they could do. And he wasn't entirely worried either. His level may be low, but his physicals were above everyone here, and if they thought only levels mattered, then he was going to prove them wrong.
Instructor Horvey looked at the standing Alex and released a silent sigh. He more than anyone knew how strong Alex was. Heck, it would be wise if they kept him as a seeded player. He may be weaker magically, but physically….
'I told them to exclude him, but they wouldn't listen.' Of course, he understood why the rules couldn't be bent even for the miracle boy. They also knew his strength and despite that, they still made the decision to include him.
"Alexander, I hope you understand what this means?" The instructor asked and Alex nodded. There was no need for long-winded words. He just had to use his strength to shut everyone up. His class and maybe the instructors knew his strengths, but the rest of the school didn't.