The morning sun illuminated the imposing gates of Hoshigane Academy, making the silver metal of the star symbols shine with a light of their own. Akira Itsuki walked along the stone path that led to the main entrance, his heart pounding with a mixture of excitement and the echo of years of hidden dreams. Finally, he was about to cross the threshold into the world he had only ever admired through televised duels, a world where Manifestations were the engine of society.
Akira, at fifteen, was not especially tall or muscular. His slender frame and dark hair gave him an ordinary appearance, but a quiet determination was reflected in his eyes. His school uniform was pristine, a small act of defiance against the nerves that churned his stomach. Each step brought him closer to the academy that, according to legend, housed those who could hear the call of the stars.
As he crossed the threshold, a vast antechamber opened before him. The walls were adorned with symbols that seemed to shift gently, and a large atrium let in the sunlight, reflecting silver gleams on the polished marble floor. The air vibrated with a subtle energy, the faint hum of Manifestations in action, and the sense of grandeur and mystery was overwhelming.
He joined the other applicants in the central courtyard. The diversity was impressive: a group in deep blue vests with arrogant postures stood out; the dragon emblem on their clothes identified them as applicants from Seiryuuin, the academy of strength. Meanwhile, a boy in a black coat with gold embroidery walked like a chess master, with a calculating expression; his cunning aura could only come from the mystical Arcanis Academy. Akira, in his modest Hoshigane uniform, felt overwhelmed by the imposing presence of his rivals.
"This is my moment… I can't fail," he whispered to himself.
The path led him to an enormous hall that seemed like a mixture of a stadium and an ancient temple. Hundreds of applicants were already there, the tension thick in the air. Suddenly, an absolute silence fell over the place. A figure appeared on a raised platform: the Hoshigane director. He raised a hand, and fine threads of silver light emerged from his skin, extending throughout the hall. It was not sound, but a resonance that seemed to make everyone's heart vibrate.
"Hoshigane applicants," his voice—or rather, his thought—resonated in everyone's mind, calming the inner chaos. "Welcome to the entrance exams. It will not be easy. Here we look for the best, those who demonstrate true talent, intuition, and the ability to understand what others cannot see. Mediocrity has no place here. You are the future stars."
The speech was brief, but its impact was as powerful as the aura it emanated. When the director retreated, a receptionist announced the start of the first trial. An assistant called his name:
"Akira Itsuki and… Takumi Yamashiro. Please proceed to the test room."
Akira swallowed hard. Takumi was a tall, self-assured young man, with the stride of someone who didn't know fear.
"Good luck, kid," Takumi said without looking at him.
"You too," Akira replied.
As he crossed the threshold, a strange purple mist covered the room and a voice resonated in the air: "This is the trial of the Resonant Bell. Only those who hear the call of their star can reach the end."
Akira entered the room, a completely white space where the air felt dense, charged with the scent of ozone and the subtle vibration of an unknown energy. Takumi, by his side, snorted with a confident smile. "What nonsense! I prefer a good fight."
Takumi didn't hesitate. With a speed that surprised Akira, he ran forward. On his second step, a wall of reddish energy materialized right in front of him, invisible until the last moment. Takumi crashed into it and a burst of energy threw him backward. The applicant grimaced in pain, rubbing his head.
Akira, on the other hand, stood still. He tried to activate his Manifestation, The Last Movement, to predict the next move of the labyrinth. He focused, forcing his ability to activate, but nothing happened. The ability was linked to an opponent, not a place. Frustrated, he tried again, but the ability remained inactive.
"Don't waste time," Takumi said with an arrogant echo in his voice. "The trial is pure intuition. Being cautious won't do you any good. Look at you, you're just standing there, waiting for something to enlighten you."
Akira didn't respond. What Takumi didn't understand was that his "caution" was not a lack of confidence, but a strategy. His ability, El Último Movimiento, was linked to fate and the connections of the soul. And if his Manifestation wasn't activating, it meant he wasn't looking for the right answer.
He closed his eyes and focused on the energy around him, ignoring the murmurs of Takumi, who now moved more carefully. Akira focused on the silence, on the stillness. There were no opponents. There was no last move. But there was a promised resonance, an echo in his mind that he had to listen for. The first minute felt eternal. Akira remained motionless while other applicants around him moved frantically, stumbling into invisible walls and complaining in frustration.
And suddenly, he felt something. It wasn't a sound, a vibration or a clear thought. It was like a musical note vibrating in his chest, an echo of energy that showed him the way. The resonance of his own bell.
He opened his eyes. His mind told him the right way was to the left, but his chest urged him to go to the right. He followed the feeling. He took a step. No wall. Another step. No wall.
Akira began to walk, no longer erratically like the others. Now he would stop. He would feel. And when his chest gave him the signal, he would take a step. Sometimes he would turn sharply, sometimes he would advance straight ahead. With each step, his mind cleared and his intuition sharpened.
The sound of a nearby bell resonated in the room, marking the end of the trial for another applicant. Takumi suddenly stopped. He looked in the direction of the sound, his face contorted in a mixture of frustration and surprise.
"It's here! The exit!" he yelled, running towards it.
Akira, a few feet away, felt a different vibration. It was not the echo of his own bell, but an unknown hum, a false energy signal that the professors were sending to deceive those who distrusted themselves. Takumi fell into the trap. He ran towards the sound of the bell, but crashed into a wall of energy. The discharge was much stronger this time, and the young man fell to his knees.
Akira, for his part, felt the resonance of his own bell intensify. His Manifestation, El Último Movimiento, which always seemed useless, finally activated. But it didn't predict a punch. It predicted a step. The final step of his path.
He walked without hesitation, ignoring the false bell, ignoring Takumi's pain. The echo of his own Manifestation guided him through a constantly moving labyrinth. Finally, a faint glow appeared before him. It was a silver sphere, which pulsed with the same echo he felt in his chest. The astral bell.
"Objective reached," said the receptionist's voice. "Akira Itsuki, you have passed the first trial."
Akira felt the pressure in the air disappear. He understood that he had passed the test, not by strength or luck, but by the unique connection he had with his Manifestation. His ability was not for combat, but for fate.
A few moments later, the receptionist spoke again: "Objective not reached. Takumi Yamashiro, you have failed the first trial. Dismissed."
A cold, firm voice resonated in the room, without the need for amplification.
"Failure has no place at Hoshigane," the director said. "And anger, even less."
Before Takumi could reply, two figures in purple and silver robes, the professors, materialized on both sides. Their movements were so fast they almost seemed like a Manifestation of teleportation. Without saying a word, they extended their hands, and a faint purple mist covered Takumi, enveloping him completely. Takumi tried to fight, but the mist was more than a simple illusion. His body went rigid, his Manifestation dissolved into the air and his cries of fury faded into a sigh. It was as if his will and power had been extinguished. The professors led him out of the room; his figure disappeared into the mist, in a silence as unsettling as their arrival.
Akira was left alone, watching the door through which Takumi had been taken. A shiver ran down his spine. The director was right: mediocrity had no place there, nor did a lack of emotional control. The academy was not just a training ground; it was a filter that eliminated the weak, the insecure and the arrogant.
The receptionist's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. "Akira Itsuki, please proceed down the right hallway. The next phase of your exam is about to begin."
Akira nodded, his heart still racing from the tension of what he had just witnessed. He walked down a hallway that seemed narrower and more luxurious than the last. The floor was of brighter marble and the walls were adorned with representations of the Milky Way. It felt as if he were walking through the cosmos itself.
At the end of the hallway, he arrived at a smaller waiting room. There were about twenty people sitting there, all applicants who had passed the first trial. Most remained silent, absorbed in their thoughts. He noticed there was no trace of the applicants from Seiryuuin or Arcanis. The Resonant Bell trial had been designed exclusively for the Hoshigane philosophy.
"So this is where we are, the ones who didn't fall for the illusions," a soft voice said next to him.
It was a girl with silver hair who smiled at him with genuine kindness. Her purple eyes glowed with a Manifestation of empathy. She seemed as common as he was, but seeing her, Akira knew her ability was as deep and mysterious as his own.
"I'm Yui," the girl said. "And you are…"
"Akira."
They were silent for a moment. Akira felt that she was not only looking at him, but "reading" him, sensing his emotions and his nerves.
"Don't worry, you're not as scared as you look," Yui said with a gentle laugh. "You have something few others have: an unwavering faith in your intuition."
Akira looked at her, surprised. She had understood him perfectly.
After an hour of waiting, a metallic, emotionless voice resonated in the hall.
"Applicants. Form groups. You will be assigned a partner for the second trial, in order of arrival."
Akira's heart raced. Yui and he had arrived together, sitting next to each other. It was a coincidence. A twist of fate.
"Yui Ito and… Akira Itsuki. Please proceed to test room F."
Akira and Yui stood up in unison, with a smile of relief and nervousness on their faces. They entered a short hallway that led them to a sealed door. It opened with a hum, revealing a completely white room. The walls, ceiling, and floor were made of a polished material, without a single mark or imperfection. The light was so intense it almost hurt. There was no one else, just the two of them.
The door closed. A calm and serene voice, like that of a computer system, resonated in the air.
"Welcome to the Synchronicity trial. Here, your ability to work as a team will be your only advantage. Your goal is to defeat your opponent. You have five minutes."
Akira and Yui stood back-to-back, observing the room. There was no one.
"Our opponent? Where are they?" Yui asked.
"Your opponent is a combat simulation of The Unbeaten, the current world champion. His power level is dynamically programmed to adapt to yours, which guarantees that the only way to win is through strategy and collaboration."
A hum took over the room. In the center, light began to concentrate, forming the silhouette of a man. The image lit up, revealing a young man with an expressionless face and an indescribable aura of power. He was such an iconic figure that his mere presence was legendary. The hologram of Hayato Kusanagi. The number one.
Akira felt the air become heavy; the simple presence of the simulation was overwhelming. The voice continued, now with a tone of warning.
"The trial has begun."
The hologram of Hayato Kusanagi made a simple gesture with his hand, and the floor under Akira and Yui's feet rose, splitting in two.