CHAPTER 24
"I'm sorry ma'am, but I refuse to accept this ability book. I don't want it."
"Huh?"
The female instructor stared at Van in confusion as she glanced down at her hand and then back at the teen standing before her.
"Do you know what this actually is?"
Van nodded confidently.
"Yes ma'am. It's an earth ability book. The exclusive ability reserved for the Blade family or the military, which is under the Legacy."
"And yet you refuse the ability?"
Van nodded again as he crossed his hands behind his back like a disciplined soldier.
Ray, who stood a distance away, knitted his brows.
'Humph. For the past ten years that I've known Van, he doesn't do things without logical reasoning. He must have calculated everything properly before coming to this conclusion.'
"...."
A few seconds passed in tense silence as the woman stared at Van repeatedly before finally sighing and taking a step back.
"Fine then. But you will still have to take the test."
Van nodded as he shakily walked toward the punching bag.
Since the woman had already explained the assessment earlier, he didn't need to be told again.
He cocked his lean arm back, took a breath, and then hurled it forward with all his might, smashing it into the drum.
The bag didn't even let out a sound.
Van glanced at it in confusion, only to see numbers shuffling across its surface for a few seconds.
"Strength; five."
Van cursed beneath his breath as he was guided toward the bar and the holographic spikes were fired his way.
He struggled to move forward properly.
Within ten seconds, a spike had already struck him, a stark contrast to Trisha's earlier one-minute performance.
"Agility; five."
Van was helped down from the bar with a disappointed expression as the woman tapped her tablet once. Instantly, the teen's wristwatch glowed faintly.
"Grade; 1."
Glancing down at his wrist, Van saw the number one reflecting back at him.
'... Well, what was I expecting?' he mused inwardly with a quiet sigh as he walked off to the side and stood beside Trisha.
"Next up, Chloe."
Hearing her name, Chloe inhaled deeply and closed her eyes.
Calming her wildly beating heart, she walked toward the punching bag and steadied herself.
"Ability?"
Chloe nodded at the woman's question, and the instructor pointed toward the bag, signalling for her to begin.
Shifting into a slightly clumsy stance, Chloe cocked her arm back and then hurled it forward with every ounce of strength she could muster.
Her fist raced toward the drum at an acceptable speed.
But just a split second before impact, it seemed as though her momentum suddenly increased.
The next instant, her knuckles slammed into the leather surface with force, producing a clear ringing sound.
Louder than when Van struck the bag, yet quieter than Trisha's earlier blow.
A few seconds later, numbers appeared.
"Impressive for someone like you," the female instructor commented with a small smile.
"Strength; eleven."
Chloe cursed beneath her breath as she clenched her fists tightly, frustration burning in her chest.
'... I'm still weak even after getting an ability. When will I actually matter?!'
"... Off to the next test," the instructor ordered.
Soon after, Chloe was helped onto the bar.
With a sharp exhale, the holographic spikes came shooting toward her, and she did her best to dodge them.
Ducking. Sidestepping.
But no matter how hard she tried, the spikes were relentless.
After roughly forty seconds, one finally struck her, signalling the end of her assessment.
"Agility; 10. Pretty good."
Hopping down, Chloe balled her fists tightly as she waited for her grade.
"Grade; 2."
Her wrist glowed for a brief moment, her grade being reflected back at her.
Muttering a swear under her breath, she stomped off to stand beside those who had already completed their tests.
"Next up, Kai Larson."
Hearing his name, the tall boy smirked sinisterly as he leaned toward Ray.
"Wish me luck."
With that, he began striding forward as if he owned the place, leaving Ray standing there with a confused expression.
'... Wish him luck? Who is this guy feeling like?'
Finally, Kai stood before the female instructor, swiftly replacing his smirk with a calm, confident smile.
"Ability?"
The boy nodded, and without wasting any time, he was directed toward the punching bag.
The moment he stood before it, the smile on his face vanished instantly.
An intense aura descended upon the field, causing Ray, who was a fair distance away from the testing ground, to break out in a light sweat.
Van could be seen trembling under the pressure as the entire area suddenly felt heavy for a brief moment.
Only Trisha, the female instructor, and the burly man seemed largely unaffected.
After completing her test, the ice girl had zoned out completely, ignoring everything around her.
But now, with the powerful aura spilling outward, she snapped back to reality and stared at Kai's back.
A single thought formed in her mind.
'He is strong.'
Shifting his stance, Kai cocked his arm behind his body as he glared at the punching bag.
If looks could kill, the bag would have already been destroyed from the intensity of his stare.
'Go.'
He swung his fist forward with blazing speed.
As his strike closed in on the bag, his hand, from his knuckles to a few inches beneath his elbow, was swiftly encased in a purple crystal gauntlet.
The ability resembled ice in many aspects, but it looked far more durable.
Mimicking Trisha's gauntlet style, his knuckles collided with the bag in a flash.
A deafening bang rang out, immediately followed by a clamorous boom that caused the bag to sway several inches from its position, stunning even the burly man.
'What monstrous strength!'
The numbers on the small screen shuffled rapidly at an incredible speed for several seconds, silence spreading across the field as every single soul waited for the score.
Kai casually stepped back, dismissing the crystal gauntlet before moving toward the bar.
"....."
Finally, the shuffling stopped, causing nearly everyone's jaw to drop.
If they had thought Trisha's strength score was impressive, then this was… unbelievable for a teen.
"Strength; 67."