The Rank Games.
Back on Earth Art had noticed every academy novel or games had a specific arc where it's student would be teleported, usually into a virtual space to fight without restraint and at the end the surviving or those with the highest points will be ranked top on the student list.
The Rank games were no exception and even if Abyssal Chronicles wasn't a full novel it still had that arc.
In their particular arc, all the first years including those of the magic course will be stuff into an isolated battlefield divided into four districts.
Each of the district had a special zone called the retirement zone one and the main objective of the games was for students to gained a point and enter said retirement zone.
To gained a point, one had to eliminate a student which each student costing one point each.
Entering the retirement zone without having a point would count as rankless just like ending the games with one.
In essence the game sort to allow students faced real combat scenarios. Where those whom fought and won will be rewarded and does whom failed no only suffered a crashing defeat but gained a low rank or become rankless.
As for those whom management to reach the retirement zone, they will came across a gatekeeper, usually one of the teachers.
As a gatekeeper, they had to test students to see if the can bypass them. This could be than through certain conditions.
For instance during last year rank games which Art had observed from the Internet, Professor Levi had chosen combat, restraining himself and giving his opponent two options, to either defeat him or manage to bypass him using trickery.
Many had managed to out maneuvered him but a few chasing after the bonus of successfully defeating a gatekeeper failed.
There was also Professor Grim, whom gave the condition that any student that manages to gain more than three points could bypass her without any problem.
Frankly speaking the rank games shouldn't have been of much importance to Art with the exception of Valarie and Trish's duel which he was sure would happened.
So yeah he was getting ready to sit that one out and prepare his refreshment for said cinematic battle until he was called to the Principal office, one friday afternoon.
He was nervous and full of anxiety after all this was going to be his first official meeting with the head mistress. He always saw her on the sidelines but never interacted with her but that all was about to change as he took a step forward and knocked on her door.
Knock! Knock!
"Came in."
The voice on the other side of the door was causal as if inviting a friend in, leaving Art the more anxious.
He knew the Principal had been keeping an eye on him through the various teacher and camera around the school and because of that he was a bit scared of her.
A single mess up had gotten Grim to mistrust him a while back and if that was anything to go by, it wouldn't be wrong to say the principal would also be suspicious of him, after all he came out of nowhere and was already making waves in the academy.
"Man up Art! You got this."
Whispering some motivational words to build his confidence, he twisted the door knob slightly so it wouldn't break from his ever growing strength, then one's the door was opened, pushed it back to make a way for him to enter.
"Welcome."
As the interior of the humble office came to view, he saw a beautiful auburn haired woman sitted on the desk ahead.
Seeing him she crossed her beautiful long legs adorned in jet black tight jean elegantly then using her hands gripping the edges of the desk as support bent foward, her deep red lips curving into a smile while her dark green eyes sparkled with curiosity like a child being handed a new toy.
She was beautiful, so beautiful Art couldn't help but feel his heart pound while his cheeks heat up.
"It's our first time meeting face to face. Why not came closer?"
Leaning back, she gesture for him to came closer as Art gulped but nod neitherless.
His thoughts were undoubtedly impure causing his face to grow red by the second but he had to move forward so he didn't disappointed.
"Came closer, I won't bite."
Originally he only took two steps forward but the principal not satisfied gesture for him to came even closer and soon he found himself subjected to her warm breath as she ranned her hands through his cheek.
"Hmm... you're human all right."
Her eyes glowed momentarily as she added her other hand and began cupping hair face.
"You seem older than you look but you are definitely human, strange."
For a moment Art heart skipped a beat but he was already flustered so the principal didn't pay him but attention just streching his cheek playfully with a child like laughter.
"You definitely are different but I can't pinpoint how?"
Her eyes gleamed with uncertainty, as if observing a complicated puzzle, one which she lacked the understand to solve.
"...but you're not dangerous!"
Shifting from uncertainty to relief she let go of Art's cheeks, the flustered young man rubbing the area of contact in pain.
Now somewhat back to his senses, Art tried to mask his emotions, stepping back a bit and placing his hands behind him.
"Is there anything I can do for you Head mistress?"
She knew he was weird, he took knew he was weird so continuing the matter will just make things complicated especially since every second he spent with her was crashing.
This was his first time standing before a true powerhouse, someone so strong he felt he had the weight of a star on his shoulder.
If Villier presences was akin to an ocean then the principal's presence was that of something greater... something more horrifying, something so enomorours just describing will cause him to shiver.
"Ofcourse why I called."
Pursuing her lips, she clasped both her hands together, her bangs cracking with intense golden lightning.
"I want you to be a Gatekeeper!"