The sea did not welcome newcomers.
It tested them.
Jeather stood in the central evaluation basin of Saltwind Tidal Academy, surrounded by thousands of students watching from layered terraces carved into oceanstone. Waves crashed far below the academy cliffs, sending mist upward like breath from something enormous and ancient.
Ten thousand students.
Ten thousand rankings.
And he was not on the board yet.
A faint flicker appeared in his vision.
[System Mission Activated]
Objective: Achieve Rank 1 among 10,000 students of Saltwind Tidal Academy
Reward: Evolutionary Path Pass
Details:
You begin where all tides begin — at the bottom.
Jeather stared at the board towering above the arena.
Rank 1.
Rank 10,000.
Empty slot at the bottom.
"…Of course," he muttered.
A deep, composed voice cut through the air.
"Initiation evaluation begins."
A man descended the stone steps toward the basin.
Instructor Maelor Draine.
Silver-threaded robes. Calm eyes. Zero nonsense.
"This academy does not care what you sealed. It does not care who you defeated elsewhere," Maelor said evenly. "Here, everyone starts at the bottom."
A ripple of approval moved through the students.
Jeather exhaled slowly.
"Fair."
Maelor continued.
"New entrants may challenge upward after placement. But your initial rank will be earned through survival."
Survival?
The basin doors slammed shut.
Water flooded in.
Cold.
Dense.
Not ordinary seawater — mana-compressed seawater.
Jeather inhaled sharply.
"Ah. So we're doing this properly."
Maelor raised his hand.
Three massive gates beneath the basin floor opened.
And something rose.
First — a Bronze-tier Reefbreaker Crab, its shell plated in jagged coral spikes.
Second — a Silver-tier Tidal Fang Eel, long as a carriage, teeth glowing with paralytic venom.
Third — a Silver-tier Saltwind Harrier, a predatory manta-like beast that glided through water like a blade through silk.
The students murmured.
Three beasts.
Two Silver.
One Bronze.
Jeather blinked.
"…You're throwing three at once?"
Maelor's expression did not change.
"This academy prepares students for the sea.
The sea does not attack politely."
The water surged.
The crab lunged first.
Jeather dodged, barely avoiding a crushing pincer that shattered stone behind him.
"Shit—!"
The eel darted in from below.
Velkaria materialized instantly, forming a current barrier that deflected the eel's bite by inches.
Astrael burst into manifestation beside him, Bronze aura igniting like compressed flame beneath water.
The manta descended from above.
Jeather pivoted just in time — its wing slicing across his shoulder instead of his neck.
Blood clouded the water.
"Of course. Of course it's three at once."
He grinned despite himself.
"Fine."
The crab charged again.
Jeather rushed it head-on.
Mana surged into his fist.
Empowered Strike.
He slammed into the crab's claw.
The impact sent a shockwave through the basin — but the crab's shell barely cracked.
Jeather's knuckles split open.
"Fuck."
The eel wrapped around his leg.
Venom burned instantly through fabric.
Velkaria froze part of the water around it, slowing its coil.
Astrael drove a concentrated flame thrust into the eel's side.
The eel shrieked.
The manta returned — silent and lethal.
It clipped Astrael's flank midair.
Bronze aura flickered.
Jeather snarled.
"You want chaos? Fine."
He summoned the Basilisk.
The temperature shifted.
Its golden gaze locked onto the eel.
The eel stiffened — not fully petrified, but slowed dramatically.
Jeather tore his leg free and drove his elbow into its skull.
Crack.
The eel recoiled violently.
The crab slammed into him from the side.
He felt ribs creak.
He rolled across stone, coughing blood.
The manta dove again.
He barely blocked it with forearm reinforcement.
The impact blasted him into the basin wall.
Pain exploded through his spine.
"Mother—!"
Water swallowed the rest of the curse.
Maelor watched without moving.
No interference.
This was placement.
The crab lunged again.
Jeather forced himself up.
"Fine. One at a time."
Astrael pinned the manta temporarily with concentrated flame bursts.
Velkaria redirected water currents to slow the eel.
Jeather focused on the crab.
He darted inside its pincer range.
Stupid.
Dangerous.
He slammed his fist repeatedly into the same cracked section Astrael had weakened.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
The shell finally shattered.
The crab screeched.
He drove his hand straight into the exposed core beneath the armor and unleashed a point-blank mana burst.
The crab collapsed.
One down.
The eel broke free of petrification and charged again.
Jeather sidestepped and seized its head.
It writhed violently, teeth snapping inches from his face.
"Stay— still—!"
He slammed its skull into stone repeatedly until it stopped moving.
Two down.
The manta remained.
Now furious.
It gathered water into spiraling blades.
Jeather inhaled sharply.
His stamina was dropping fast.
Astrael stepped beside him, aura blazing brighter.
The manta dove at full speed.
Jeather waited.
Last second—
He dropped low.
Astrael leapt above him.
Flame and water collided midair.
Explosion.
Steam filled the basin.
When it cleared—
The manta crashed onto the stone, wing torn.
Jeather limped forward.
He placed his hand on its head.
"Sorry."
Mana surged.
The beast fell still.
Silence.
The water drained slowly.
Jeather stood in the cracked basin, soaked in blood and salt.
He spat to the side.
"…That was bullshit."
Some students laughed nervously.
Maelor stepped forward.
"Combat efficiency: acceptable. Damage tolerance: high. Tactical judgment: reckless but adaptable."
The ranking board flickered.
Jeather — Rank 9,998 / 10,000
The students erupted.
Laughter.
Mockery.
"Barely above bottom!"
Jeather stared at the number.
"…Nine thousand nine hundred eighty eight."
He barked a short laugh.
"You've got to be kidding me."
Maelor's tone remained calm.
"All new students begin in the bottom hundred."
The murmurs quieted.
"Even prodigies must climb."
He turned to the audience.
"In this academy, anyone in the top 10,000 has survived evaluation. That alone is qualification."
Jeather rolled his shoulders painfully.
"So I'm basically fish food with a certificate."
Maelor almost — almost — smiled.
"If you believe you deserve higher, challenge upward."
Jeather looked at the massive board again.
Rank 1 gleamed far above.
Nine thousand nine hundred ranks between him and that throne.
He wiped blood from his chin.
"Fine."
His eyes sharpened.
"I'll climb."
Saxum's voice echoed from within the Beast Realm.
"Jett start at bottom! Jett climb!"
Astrael's low voice followed.
"The deeper the sea, the greater the pressure. Adapt."
Velkaria added softly,
"You are alive. That is enough for now."
Jeather cracked his neck and looked at the students laughing at his placement.
"Laugh while you can."
He stepped out of the basin.
The bottom.
The tide had not lifted him.
It had tried to drown him.
And he had survived.
The climb would not be easy.
Good.