The moment Landen appeared on stage, a wave of gasps rippled through the crowd. The sudden interruption shattered the rhythm of the presentation, drawing every eye toward him.
Landen stepped forward, eyeing the entire crowd. His anger fumed with rage, seeing their nonchalant faces as if his life was meaningless to them.
Doe left Landen's side to speak with Headmaster Vanderbilt.
Vanderbilt had close ties with the police force. Over the years, he had assisted them countless times—analyzing anomalous cases, containing awakened individuals, even advising on Essence-related incidents. When the police found Landen, they didn't know what to do with him, so they brought him here, hoping he might qualify for the academy. If anyone could determine the boy's potential, it would be Vanderbilt.
Vanderbilt adjusted his glasses as he observed Landen.
"If he shows potential with the tests we have prepared on stage," Vanderbilt said to Doe, "he may be eligible to enroll."
Doe nodded. "He's… unusual."
"That much is obvious," Vanderbilt replied.
Meanwhile, Landen stared out at the crowd with the most villainous glare. His eyes were narrow, looking intimidating and dangerous.
But as he scanned the crowd, he spotted a beautiful girl near the front row, and his frown slightly twitched.
Then, at the corner of his eye, another cute girl caught his attention, which caused his frown to twitch again.
But behind her stood an even more attractive girl, and now his frown was twitching uncontrollably.
His eyes bounced from girl to girl. There were so many pretty girls in this crowd that he couldn't take it anymore. His frown had turned into a strange, cheesy smile while his eyes remained tense and angry.
The crowd stared at him in fear.
"What is wrong with his face?"
"He looks like a serial killer."
"His creepy smile is going to give me nightmares."
While the comments continued, Vanderbilt had relayed the information to Celestine.
"It looks like we have our volunteer to help demonstrate the Essence Reader," Celestine said.
All eyes turned back to Landen.
But as Doe and Ray went to grab Landen, he twisted sharply and slipped between them with surprising speed. His palm slammed into Ray's chest, sending him stumbling backward straight into Doe. The two collided with a grunt, momentarily tangled.
That was all the opening Landen needed.
He bolted toward the edge of the stage as murmurs spread through the crowd, quickly turning into confused shouts. He ran like a madman, eyes wide, driven by a single thought—freedom. Panic broke out behind him, screams rising as if a dangerous animal had just been set loose.
"Stop him!" Doe yelled.
As he jumped off the stage, something from below sprouted upwards, picking him off right out of the air. He dangled loosely, twenty feet off the ground, as he came face-to-face with a massive tree creature. Two glowing eyes stared into his, and the thing let out a low, rumbling grunt before slowly opening a jagged, hollow mouth.
"Aww, shit—"
Landen's eyes went wide, but not from fear. From awe.
He craned his neck, taking it all in.
This is impossible, he thought.
Creatures like this belonged in stories, or video games—not real life. And yet, here it was. Holding him. Staring right at him.
First, a language he'd never heard before…structures, the buildings, and even the sky were unlike anything he had ever seen before. And now this… a magical creature, appearing as if it had been summoned out of thin air.
This couldn't be Earth anymore.
"…Yeah, okay," he muttered under his breath, a slow grin starting to creep onto his face despite the situation. "Either I finally lost it…"
He glanced around once more, eyes sharp, taking in every detail.
"…or I just got isekai'd."
As Landen dangled helplessly, the large tree creature carried him back to Vanderbilt.
"Thank you, my friend," the chief said. "You may go." And with a quick wave of the hand, the tree disappeared.
Landen and Vanderbilt locked eyes.
So it was him, Landen thought. The old man summoned that thing. I knew there was something off about him.
As the two continued to stare at each other, Celestine stepped in to scan Landen's ID tag on his arm and then took him to the front of the machine.
"Now stand still while I turn on the device," she said.
Landen turned to face the crowd, his back now pressed toward the Essence Reader. He was breathing hard…his heart racing…his eyes bouncing to every person in the crowd.
His mind raced, searching for an option—any option.
But no matter how fast he thought, he kept arriving at the same answer.
Nothing.
"Okay, here we go," Celestine said and pressed the button.
The display on the side of the device lit up, and a series of numbers and letters flickered about. Everyone in the crowd stood on the edge of their toes. Excited and fearful in anticipation of what it will read.
"He has to be at the Master's grade," someone said.
"Probably higher, his stare alone is at least a Grand Master."
As Landen heard the machine whining up, seeing the faces of all the spectators angered him to the core.
"YOU ALL ARE DISGUSTING!" he yelled. "MY DEATH IS ON EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU! I PROMISE I WILL COME BACK, EVEN IN DEATH TO HAUNT YOU ALL!"
The crowd was stunned by his theatrical display. Even though they couldn't understand a word he was saying, they could tell it was some kind of threat. Unsure if they should be closing their eyes or running, all of them fell into complete silence, waiting for the results.
A sharp whine burst from the machine, low at first—barely noticeable.
Then it climbed.
Higher. Louder.
The pitch kept rising, drilling into the air like a needle. Landen's body stiffened as the sound pressed against him.
The anticipation of his death was already unbearable, and now this piercing sound drove him past his limit.
His jaw clenched. His hands curled into fists.
The noise didn't stop.
It only got worse.
"Stop—" he tried, but the word barely formed.
Then he snapped.
"AWWWWWW—!!!"
The scream tore out of him loud, echoing across the arena as the machine continued its relentless climb.
After a few seconds, the numbers had slowed, and then a loud beeping sound could be heard.
BEEB BEEB BEEB
The whine finally stopped, and the results appeared. For a brief moment, the arena fell completely silent—then the entire audience gasped at what they saw.