Chapter 7
It's the morning of the test day. The sun is still down as the sky starts to clear from the rain. Bumi puts on his windbreaker as he prepares to leave for the exam hall. Opening his bag, he goes through all the items he thinks he'll need for the day before leaving. He grabs his everyday carry.
His mom waits by the door. Seeing how much her son has changed, she comments, "Your shirt seems small now. Does it feel restricting?"
"Yeah… it's kind of tight, but it doesn't restrict my movement," Bumi replies with a small smile, grateful for his mother's concern. "Thank you, I'll be heading out now."
"Good luck. Mommy's proud of you. You'll do great."
Bumi steps out of his house, inhaling the humid, cold air. Three months have passed since the incident at the mall. That day in the mall was eye-opening; he learned how weak, how underprepared, and how useless he was.
"Never again…" He clenches his fist.
"I've grown; I'm not the me from six months ago… right, Dad?" he says, looking up at the gloomy sky.
He reaches into his bag and takes out his notebook. "Combat Note" is scribbled on its cover. "Ok, let's get going," he says as he starts jogging, skimming through the book while running toward the examination hall.
At the same time… at the Ling family house.
Aurora sits up straight, wiping her tears away. She looks around, letting out a sigh before getting up and standing in front of her desk.
"It's today," she mutters while picking up a family photo. "Wish me luck, Mama and Papa."
The past three months have been an eye-opener for her; no amount of practice can truly prepare you for real combat, and that mall incident showed her how weak she really was. Fortunately, there were no fatalities, only a handful of people injured. The praise she received that day reinforced her thoughts; she was ready.
Later, on an automated air taxi to the examination hall, she looks down and notices Bumi running. Seeing him heading to the same examination and running to the hall, tiring himself out before the start of the event, she can only think of one thing: "That idiot…"
At the examination hall.
Bumi has just arrived at the large building with Synarc Suppression and Subjugation written in bold. His run has energized him as he begins to stretch. A slight smile creeps onto his face; to him, his improvement is noticeable. Long gone are the days when his legs would give out on a ten-kilometer jog. However, that short moment of satisfaction is cut off when he notices the people he is competing against for a spot in the academy.
"Examinees, report to the multipurpose hall," an announcement echoes through the speakers. "Please present your application email upon entry. Our SSS agents will assist you."
"I'm really here, huh…" Reality sets in for Bumi. A person with no synapse implant and no Synarc resonance is about to take part in an examination that even talented synapse users can't pass. The pressure suddenly comes crashing down. The past six months of constant training had distracted him from the true gravity of his situation, but now that he's here, he finally begins to internalize it. "…Bring it on."
"Listen up. I'll only be repeating this once," the chief examiner's voice roars through the multipurpose hall. "I have about a thousand of you, but only space for two hundred."
"As you should already know, we will be having our physical examinations first, followed by the written papers. You are required to pass both, and yes, the written exam does have a bell curve. For the physical test, you will have to pass at least two of the three components," he continues. "I'm going to brief you here so I don't need to repeat myself later."
"We will now head to the Synarc measuring room. Over there, release 4.99% and channel as many Synarc particles as possible into the orb. Your score will be shown on the screen in front of you. The highest score possible is 520. We will then split you into two groups based on your score."
This is the first test point; to most, it is as easy as breathing. For Bumi, this is a guaranteed failure.
"Testers, there are eight measuring orbs. Split yourselves up, form your lines, and state your name and test ID before starting," an SSS agent adds. "Once done, go back to the start of the line and wait for the last person to finish."
Bumi is not in a rush to find his queue. Wanting to see everyone else's scores first, he joins the queue last. With that, the first test begins as each candidate announces their name and ID.
"Long Zhuo, ID 201925, 4.99% release."
"Derrick Zheng, ID20—"
"Jun La—"
One after another, scores begin appearing on the screen: 156, 312, 307, and 62.
It is inevitable that people start comparing scores; some get praised while others get ridiculed. Bumi, however, pays no mind. These scores mean nothing to someone without Synarc; rather, it would be best to use whatever time possible now to study for the theory test later that day as he continues reading about Synbeast.
Until everyone suddenly goes quiet.
Bumi wonders what the fuss, or rather what the lack of fuss, is about. He looks around to see what has captured everyone's attention.
"That's the highest score so far…" whispers spread. "Second place is only at 390…"
Bumi looks up at the screen to see a massive 494 displayed. The person responsible is Aurora.
Aurora tries to remain humble as she hears the praises. She knows she would do well, but not this well. She turns to see everyone's shocked expressions; it brings her some guilty pleasure knowing she is at the top right off the bat. However, the moment she locks eyes with Bumi, she is brought back to reality. They both know what score Bumi is going to get.
Eventually, it is Bumi's turn. He places his hands on the orb.
"Bumi Tiang, ID201811…" He pauses, saying words he never thought he would say. The agent behind him gestures for him to continue. "4.99% release…"
Nothing happens.
A puzzled expression falls on the agent as he tells him to try again. Same result. Thinking it is faulty, the agent tests the orb himself—no issue. He tells Bumi to switch orbs. Same thing; a null result. The agent let out a sigh and began typing on a tablet, and not long after, a big, fat zero appeared on the screen.
Once again, the room falls into pin-drop silence. This time, however, it is for the complete opposite reason. Ridicule and remarks begin to spread.
"Pfft, what 0%?"
"A thirteen-year-old who can only release 0.01 would still score higher!"
"He shouldn't be here…"
"He's wasting our time…"
Bit by bit, the laughter grows. Bumi is used to this. He silently thanks the three thugs from six months ago; they used to bully him far worse in secondary school, so these comments don't cut deep. Now that he thinks about it, just when it's about to get physical, the student council would end up intervening.
Aurora, on the other hand, was turning red; although she wanted Bumi to quit, her sense of justice could not let this slide. She never liked that Bumi was stuck up and in denial, but she also cannot stand being a bystander knowing that bullying was taking place while she was capable of making an impact. When she was in the student council, the moment she heard that there was a possible chance of bullying such as with Bumi, she would rush over with other members. Hence, she couldn't let this continue. "Hey! That's enou—"
"Ding!" Just as Aurora was about to intervene, everyone's phone buzzed in unison as the grouping results were released.
"Examinees, please head to your respective simulated arenas based on your grouping details for your second test," the chief examiner instructs.
Coincidentally, both Aurora and Bumi are placed in the same group. They make their way to Simulated Arena B. From the outside, it looks like an ordinary black building with the letter "B" on its side. Inside, however, is a circular stadium, almost like a colosseum.
"Welcome to Simulated Arena B. Beside us are Arena A and C," an agent explains. "This is where you will fight in simulated battles, either against Synbeasts or your peers. Arena A and B are identical in function, while Arena C is larger and designed for Synarc user combat and team battles."
"For your second test, you will be placed in a random environment and pitted against an F-rank Synbeast. The environment and Synbeast, although simulated, can be interacted with. If you get hit, you will feel it. Medical staff are stationed at the entrance. Take the lift down to enter. Those not participating may watch from above. Reminder: no stimulants, Synarc tools, or assistance from others is allowed."
"Any questions? No? Then we will begin. We'll start with the highest scorer and end with the lowest. First—Aurora. Please proceed."
Aurora walks confidently to the lift. A short moment later, she enters the arena as the stadium hums to life. A desert environment materializes around her as a serpent-beast bursts out of the sand.
"4.99% release… Cast—Barrier." A white barrier with circuit-like patterns forms in front of her, stopping the serpent's charge instantly.
"Cast—Lightning." The barrier dissolves, and a bolt of lightning strikes the serpent mid-motion.
"Cast—Icebreaker." Icicles form around the stunned serpent, then shoot forward with a flick of her wrist, piercing its body and sending sand into the air.
By the time the dust settles, the simulation fades.
"Aurora Ling, pass," the conducting agent announces. She finished it in under a minute.
One by one, candidates take their turns. At first, many pass easily. However, as time goes on, the pass rate drops along with the Synarc scores. By the time it reaches the final few, failures become common. The candidate before Bumi is defeated in under a minute and carried out by medics.
"Last—Bumi. Please proceed, and try not to get yourself too injured…" the examiner adds, clearly losing patience.
Bumi grabs his army knife and steps forward as whispers follow him.
"Hey, look, it's 0%."
"How long do you think he'll last?"
"Maybe half a minute?"
"You're too generous."
The comments don't help his nerves, but he knows better than to let them affect him.
The elevator doors close as he descends. When he steps out into the corridor leading to the arena, he notices medics preparing their equipment. Not exactly reassuring.
He walks into the arena. The gate behind him disappears. Above, candidates watch, pointing and laughing.
He lets out a nervous chuckle as the simulation activates. The ceiling shifts into a blue sky. The noise of the crowd fades, replaced by rustling leaves, chirping birds, and the sound of a crashing waterfall. His arena was a forest.
In front of him stands a wolf-syn beast. Its eyes are filled with killing intent, drool dripping from its jaws.
Bumi quickly removes his windbreaker and wraps it around his arm before readying his knife. At least now, he can afford to take a bite or two.
They stare at each other, anticipating the other's move.
The wolf breaks the stalemate and lunges.
Bumi ducks, angling his blade upward as the wolf passes over him. The cut is too shallow; its hide is too tough for that to matter.
Knowing this, Bumi immediately starts running as the wolf gives chase. The arena is circular, and eventually he is cornered against a tree.
He steadies himself, watching the wolf. It approaches more cautiously now, aware of his movements.
The moment it lunges again, Bumi rolls forward, slipping past it and getting behind it. He quickly turns and mounts its back, stabbing repeatedly with both hands.
The wolf thrashes violently, trying to shake him off. Eventually, Bumi loses his grip on the knife and is thrown off, while the knife remains lodged in the wolf.
He was sent flying, hitting his spine against the tree. He let out a cough from the pain, on the verge of passing out. He gritted his teeth, trying to fight the pain, Adrenaline pumping, pushing him through his pain. He looks up at the wolf; it looks even angrier now.
Now weaponless, Bumi starts running again, weaving between trees, trying to create distance and buying time. He needs to figure something out as he spots a rock and picks it up. He kept running, but eventually he ran into a dead end, trees too close to each other for him to safely squeeze through. Reluctantly, he turns around and confronts the beast once more.
This time, the wolf approaches slowly, more cautious than before.
At that moment, Bumi's eye lit up; it was a gamble; if it failed, he would lose any other opportunity to win. If his plans worked out, it was victory. It was a risk he was willing to take, removing the windbreaker from his arm.
He throws the rock as hard as he can toward the wolf. For that short moment, the wolf loses focus on Bumi and reacts to dodge the incoming projectile.
In that instant, Bumi throws his windbreaker, covering the wolf's face.
It panics, shaking its head violently, trying to get it off. One paw trying to swipe off the jacket.
That was the opening Bumi needed. Without hesitation, he rushes forward, leaping over the beast and mounting it again, grabbing his still lodged blade and this time driving it deeper into the wolf's neck.
He pulls out the blade once more and thrusts it deeper and deeper; he did it again and again and again. Bumi was completely zoned in, his eyes devoid of emotions. He was like a completely different person. Even when the wolf let out a final howl, collapsing, Bumi still hadn't stopped his repeated attacks.
Outside the battle field, both groups watch in shock. While Bumi was fighting and running, they had been mocking him. However, now there was a sense of fear, discomfort, and unease witnessing how Bumi slaughtered the wolf in its final moment.
"He's crazy…"
"He probably got lucky."
"I got a bear; he only got a wolf. The wolf was probably the weakest synbeast."
"Yeah, he got lucky!"
"Definitely dumb luck; his terrain helped him."
The audience chipped in, attributing his success to the terrain.
Bumi, finally stopping noticing the simulated beast fading away, turns around, and the forest disappears to revert from ceiling down.
Bumi looks up at the gathered audience, body beaten, kneeling where the wolf once was, slouched back with the knife still in hand as the simulated blood fades from him. He locks eyes with the examiner as the examiner exclaims:
"Bumi Tiang, pass."