Zero had managed to survive the exam down to the last second. Thanks to the system, he had made a great call not allowing his instincts to give in. Becky would have probably been out there for no good reason.
He turned to his left and saw the hooded figure he had punched. Fear washed over him. He hadn't intentionally hit him. He had only hit him with the impression of hitting his opponent.
"Now we have come to the end of this exam. It was a wonderful display you guys had in there. You all did your very best, but these five standing on this podium worked better than you guys," Donel Brain said and paused.
"We had 126 badly injured students, 6 near deaths and 2 actual deaths," Donel Brain said, and in that moment, everyone began to whisper to themselves.
Zero could see Becky lift her head up. A bead of sweat rolled down his face.
Had the guy died? What punishment was the military going to impose on him?
A lot of questions were rushing through his mind, but he had to keep calm so as not to be suspected.
"Now everyone keep quiet!! We know that 2 lives were taken in here, but these are part of the reasons why the school is underground. What happens if the person faced a deadly demon and was killed? Inside this Military Super University, we train you with real-life situations, and death is one of the ugly sides of life," Donel Brain said and paused.
Every student paused too.
Zero stared at him, not understanding what he was saying. Was he in support of the death of a student, or was he protecting the name of the school?
"To be frank, we aren't going to punish anyone because that was part of the test. Anyone who could die now wasn't just fit for our training. Every one of you here passed the exam, as the exam was a live-or-die situation. It wasn't necessarily about returning to the open ground. It was about training your mind on the best time to leave a battle, and each one of you showed that you are worth our training.
"As regards the five standing with me, they will be getting special treatment for only a week. After that, they are as equal as their mates," Donel Brain said and turned to look at the five students who made it.
"Genos Dan, Selph Delhi, Vask Smunth, Becky Silver and..." He paused for a while, as if the next name was a sting in his mouth. "...Zero Damien."
Then he looked back at the crowd.
"These are the prodigies to look out for," he said and walked out.
Zero and the others were guided out of the open ground and taken to a smaller room. The two officers who had accompanied Donel Brain then walked forward.
"Get into your rooms. From today, you are certified members of this institution. Welcome to Kansas Military Super University."
Everyone dashed away immediately, like they had been waiting for the moment they would hear it. It was a relief to them, judging by the fact that they had lost all hope of gaining admission into the institution.
Tessie stood in the middle of the crowd. Her head was bleeding as she clenched her fists tightly and cursed out bitterly.
"Stupid Level 1. I'll teach him a lesson of my own. Just you wait and see. I'm coming for you," she muttered before leaving.
---
Inside the small room, the five students stood before Donel Brain, who sat on a chair. On the table was a tag that read 'Year One General.'
He was obviously in charge of all the Year Ones in the school, so he was something similar to the principal of a high school or something like that.
He stared at the five of them and rested his muscular frame against his chair. The room was vivid and different objects were hanging on each wall.
Zero wondered what all those objects were.
"Last year, I had a total of ten students who emerged out of this trial, and they are all brilliantly doing good now. You five happened to clear a total of 600 students. That's amazing, and you must know that I have my respects and I expect results," Donel Brain said and paused.
"I can see that I have two people on my recommendation list here. Becky Silver and Vask Smunth," he said, referring to the guy who had used the Voice Amplification.
"As for you, see me later tomorrow," he said, referring to Zero.
Zero nodded his head, accepting the meeting.
He looked at the other two students who had made it. The girl, Selph Delhi, was a Level 7, with her HP reading [56/70].
The other guy, Genos Dan, was a Level 9 with an HP value of [81/90].
It was obvious that Genos was the strongest of everyone here.
He was shocked that he was in the midst of these great people. Also, he knew he would be a target, and eyes would be on his back as he was just a Level 1.
He was sure that even other Level 1s would decide on him.
"For this week, you all would be getting premium food and additional points to spend at your free time," Donel Brain said before dismissing them.
---
Zero was on his way to his room as his system had surprisingly healed him of all his injuries.
Becky was taken to the medics for a checkup, while the rest had gone to their own rooms.
He wondered how this school was going to treat them on its first week. He hoped there wouldn't be any bullying like in his former school, but he knew that wasn't possible.
There would always be bullies.
Just as he opened the door to his room, his eyes scanned the room. His eyes fell on two other guys who didn't look interested in him. They were busy packing their properties into the cabinet.
Then he sensed a dense presence.
He turned, and he was shocked to see Vask Smunth.
He was his roommate.
They had both slept here last night. Vask had slept directly underneath him.
Fear crept into his nerves as he realised what a dire situation he was in.