When the light faded away, everyone felt the same thing—like there was nothing beneath them. As they opened their eyes, they saw a desert-like ground far below. Screams filled the air, including from Joey and Riven.
"Riven!!" Jordan yelled, whipping a piece of paper from his pocket and crafting an ink parachute. He hurled it toward his brother.
Riven caught it, but before he pulled it, he shouted, "Joey! Grab my hand!"
They didn't really know each other well, but Riven couldn't just let someone fall to their death. Joey, snapped out of his panicked yelling, saw others using their abilities to survive and reached out toward Riven.
Damn. I didn't think they'd actually try to kill us during the entrance exam. I mean, I heard rumors, but still… Joey thought.
Suddenly, he felt himself being pulled toward Riven.
Riven was using his gravity ability—finally getting some real practice. All the training had paid off. Before, he couldn't even pull an apple.
Now, he was pulling a whole human. It was slow, but steady.
Jordan, noticing his brother hadn't pulled the chute yet because he was trying to save Joey, started to panic.
Stress.
Fear.
Anxiety.
These emotions surged through Jordan. His dark ink aura expanded slightly—not by much, but enough to notice. Then, out of his back, a black tendril of ink shot out and wrapped around Joey. In a flash, a parachute bag formed on Joey's back.
Seeing this, Riven pulled his own chute and shouted to Joey, "Now!" Joey did the same, and the two of them floated down slower, while many others hit the ground—only to phase through it.
It became clear: the desert floor was intangible.
Those who had managed to remain midair landed safely. Riven spotted the red-haired girl from The Ascension gliding down, her flames controlling her descent.
"So that's her evolved ability," Jordan muttered, walking over to his brother and Joey. Riven and Jordan clapped hands.
"Thanks for the save," Riven said.
"No problem," Jordan replied.
"Thank you so much!" Joey said with a bow.
Jordan told him it wasn't necessary, but Joey kept bowing anyway. As they talked, something caught Riven's eye:
[Jordan Harlow]
Level: 5
Ability: Ink
Class: Natural Evolver
Awakened: 1
He shot up two levels?! He was level 3 on the bus and still level 3 when we were falling. What happened? And this "Awakened 1" wasn't there before either…
Then the system spoke again:
[Awakening] is the process of reaching a new stage of your power. Both Natural and Forced Evolvers can awaken. It depends on emotional state and deepened understanding of one's ability.
No wonder, Riven thought. Jordan's always had a strong grasp of his powers. And now that he's learning to apply them in real situations—like creating medical supplies or parachutes—it makes sense.
Riven was snapped out of his thoughts by Joey whispering, "Hey, you zoned out."
"Yeah, sorry," Riven whispered back.
Then he saw him—Damian, the Dean.
"A lot more of you passed than I thought."
Only ten students had made it through.
"We've never had to do a second exam before… but hey, we're still a new academy," Damian said, laughing.
Is this guy even qualified to be a dean? everyone wondered silently.
"Okay, I've made my decision," Damian smiled, spreading out five fingers. "We'll do a 5-on-5 match. Brown-haired boy and red-haired girl—you're captains. You've got five minutes to choose your team. Everyone else, head to those rocks."
Everyone moved, except Jordan and Nico.
"Now then, introduce yourselves," Damian said.
"My name's Nico Grey. Nice to meet you all. I'll lead us to victory."
"Confidence. I like it," Damian replied.
"M-my name is Jordan Harlow. I'll do my best."
"You know what? You tried. That counts. Now pick your team."
"Can I go first?" Jordan asked.
"Go ahead," Damian nodded.
"I pick Riven."
"Of course you did," Nico muttered.
"I'll take him," Nico replied, as a green-haired boy stepped forward.
After a few minutes, the teams were formed:
Team Jordan:
• Jordan (M)
• Riven (M)
• Joey (M)
• Harkel (M)
• Wren (F)
Team Nico:
• Nico (F)
• Luka (M)
• Tessa (F)
• Skye (F)
• Jude (F)
Riven was already excited, but then a new system prompt appeared:
The stage is set. These party members—whether you like them or not—may one day save your life. Keep them close.
[Questline Updated: Make Your Party – 1/4 members recruited.]
Riven tried to add them to his party, but nothing happened. Then he realized—I need to make them Bonded Party Members.
He did so, and the system dinged:
[Party Formed]
Reward: Trait Unlocked — [Party Up]
This trait gives you and your members a 10% stat boost.
Then another notification appeared:
[New Quest Received: Your party is in its first battle. Win without losing a life.]
→ Reward: System Reward
→ Penalty: Loss of one of your own abilities and one teammate's ability
Riven was confused. That's a heavy penalty… must be because this is a party battle!
Still, he grinned. His old quest was still active, meaning if they won, he could get two system rewards.
Damian began the countdown:
3…
2…
1…
BEGIN!
The 5-on-5 match began, and the first to move was Nico. Flames burst from her hands, launching her forward with explosive speed.
She landed in front of Riven in an instant, but he barely managed to dodge the attack.
"My stats… I haven't looked at them since before the exam."
[Riven Harlow]
HP: 100/100
Strength: 15 (Party Up Active)
Speed: 31 (Party Up Active) (Weightless Active)
Durability: 29 (Party Up Active)
Energy: 75/100
Thanks to his new ability—Weightless—Riven's speed was increased. The skill used 25 energy but boosted his speed significantly, now enhanced further by the Party Up trait.
Riven dashed forward. He never thought he'd hit a girl, but she started it. He threw a punch enhanced by gravity, increasing his strength drastically.
–15 Energy
+19 Strength
With 34 strength, his punch could easily shatter ribs. But before it landed, he felt intense heat—like touching a stove—and yanked his arm back. Nico stood, fire blazing around her body and a wicked grin on her face.
She went to punch, but a lightning bolt intercepted her.
It was Wren.
Her short black hair blew in the wind, expression calm—but her mind was racing.
"My lightning… it's faster than before. Maybe I've improved."
She shot another bolt—this time it hit Nico dead in the chest with a deafening boom.
Nico was out.
Jordan rushed to Riven, but his medical ink couldn't heal burns. That's when Joey stepped in. He placed his hand on Riven's arm, and the burns began to vanish. Even Riven's energy restored itself, and his strength boost faded—resetting him to his earlier state.
"Thanks," Riven nodded, then ran straight at Luka. On the way, he passed Wren and shouted, "Appreciate the save!"
But he wasn't alone. Another figure was running beside him.
"Harkel?"
"You think you're the only one with something to prove?" said the blue-haired, golden-eyed boy, his hair spiked wildly.
They stopped. Harkel threw a punch, a gust of air exploding from his fist, tearing up the terrain. Luka responded by slamming his hands into the ground—vines and flowers sprouted from the desert.
"How is this even possible? We're in a desert!"
Riven dodged, but Harkel was captured by the plants, vines wrapping around his body.
Did he just kill him? No… I'd have gotten a system warning if he did.
Six ink wolves burst from behind Luka's wall.
They rushed at the enemy team. A lion made of ink appeared next, protecting Jordan.
Did Jordan make all this? That jump to level 5… or maybe his awakening made him this strong.
Turning Weightless back on, Riven charged forward. But Skye let out a deafening scream, pushing back the ink beasts and destroying some.
A lion raced to Riven and hoisted him on its back.
"Don't back down now," the lion said.
"How… can you talk?" Riven asked, stunned.
"It's Jordan. Somehow, I'm in this lion's body."
Riven looked back. The other lion was still guarding Joey and Jordan's unconscious body.
"Let's go, brother," Riven said, and they charged.
Skye stepped forward and screamed again.
They barely dodged. Jude—who hadn't used her power yet—stepped up. With a swipe, ice shot from her hand, creating a barrier and launching spikes. Riven leapt over it and punched Jude, knocking her out.
Energy: 25/100
"Damn… I need to get back to Joey."
He jumped back on the lion. "Can you take me to Joey, lil' lion?"
Jordan, in the lion's body, shook him off. "Go yourself. I'm helping Wren."
"C'mon, it was a joke!" Riven yelled after him.
Suddenly, the air shifted. Riven turned—Skye was absorbing air, then unleashed a massive blast. Everyone covered their ears and eyes… except Damian, who watched gleefully.
"Looks like we've got a lot of promising students. Well… except one."
Tessa, a dark-skinned girl with curly hair, was crouched and trembling.
As the scream ended, everyone looked at Riven—surprised he was okay. Ink swirled around him. One of the ink lions stood near Luka, the other protected Jordan and Joey.
Skye's passed out. That's why she vanished like Jude.
Only Luka and Tessa remained.
Riven approached Tessa. "I don't want to hurt you if I don't have to."
Before she could answer, Luka was finally defeated by Wren and Jordan. Tessa raised her hand.
"I surrender."
She, too, fell through the floor—followed by Luka. With Luka's defeat, the vines disappeared, and Harkel collapsed, exhausted.
A man in a hoodie walked up and began healing them. Riven wondered why he came to him—until he looked at his arm. He had thought it was already healed, but the hoodie man placed a hand over it, and a warm glow spread through the skin. The pain faded instantly.
Another healer was working on Harkel nearby, and Riven could hear a third voice in the distance, calling out, "Anyone else need healing?"
This confused Riven.
Shouldn't it be rare for people to have the same ability—especially a healing one?