The siren that signaled the start of the exam was a low and vibrating frequency that seemed to hum inside the students' teeth.
In an instant the atmosphere of the orientation hall transformed.
The grey uniforms of the cadets shifted from fabric to a semi-solid light.
Small and blue holographic icons appeared on their shoulders.
[HEALTH: 100%]
[STAMINA: 100%]
Ren stood perfectly still while the chaos erupted around him.
The rule was simple but devastating.
No physical contact.
If a student touched another their own health bar would drop to zero and they would be disqualified.
Anya gripped her data slate with her knuckles turning white.
"Ren, look at the others!" she whispered.
"They're using their Slates to project light fields!"
To the left a group of cadets from the upper ranks were already coordinating.
They weren't punching or kicking.
They were using their handheld devices to emit high-frequency strobe lights and ultrasonic sounds.
Two students near the wall collapsed and clutched their ears.
Their health bars dropped to 40% in seconds.
[SYSTEM MESSAGE]
Two Students Neutralized.
Sector: Bronze Hall.
Silas was standing at the far end of the hall near the exit.
He didn't look back at the carnage.
He simply walked with a calm and predatory grace.
Every time a student got close to him they suddenly tripped or turned in the wrong direction.
It was as if an invisible wall was pushing them away.
Ren's golden eyes scanned the environment.
He didn't look at the students.
He looked at the Metadata.
"Strategy 2," Ren whispered to himself.
"If the system forbids touch... you attack the Perception."
Ren pulled the obsidian pen from his pocket.
He didn't write in the air.
He tapped the screen of his own data slate three times.
[SOVEREIGN SKILL: DATA OVERLAY]
Target: Local Network.
Action: Injecting Visual Lag.
Suddenly the three cadets closest to Ren stopped moving.
They weren't frozen in reality.
They were frozen in their own Sensory Feed.
In their eyes the world was ten seconds behind what was actually happening.
One of the cadets reached out to grab a railing that was no longer there.
He stumbled and slammed into a pillar.
[HEALTH: 0%]
[STUDENT NEUTRALIZED]
The second cadet tried to fire a sonic pulse at Ren.
But because of the lag he aimed at his own teammate.
The third cadet was hit by the pulse and fell into a state of disorientation.
He rolled into the legs of another passing student.
Zap.
The "No Physical Contact" rule triggered.
Both students were immediately disqualified.
[SYSTEM MESSAGE]
Neutralizations: 3 / 3.
Objective: COMPLETED.
"Ren... what did you do?" Anya asked.
She was staring at the pile of disqualified students on the floor.
"They just... they just fell apart on their own."
"Physics is a consensus, Anya," Ren said.
His voice was a cold and steady line.
"If you break the consensus the body doesn't know how to move."
Ren began to walk toward the exit.
He didn't run. He didn't hide.
He moved through the chaos like a ghost passing through a dream.
His rank on the wall screen began to tick upward.
[CURRENT RANK: 450 / 1000]
He reached the exit doors where Silas was waiting.
The sponsored protagonist leaned against the doorframe with a look of genuine curiosity.
He didn't have a gold icon over his head in this world's physical view.
But Ren could still see the Syndicate's mark in his internal audit.
"You're faster than you look, Rank-F," Silas said.
His voice was smooth and carried the arrogance of a hundred iterations.
"Most of the dregs are still screaming in the center of the room."
Ren didn't stop.
"The exit is open, Silas," Ren said.
"Are you waiting for a script or are you going to walk through?"
Silas's eyes narrowed.
For a split second the matte black depth of Subject 001 flickered in his pupils.
"I'm waiting for the Audience Choice," Silas replied.
Suddenly a massive holographic window appeared in the sky above the hall.
It wasn't a system message.
It was a Live Poll.
[SYNDICATE POLL: THE FIRST DUEL]
Who should lead the class?
A: Silas (The Golden Boy).
B: Ren (The Silent Anomaly).
C: Chaos (Unlock Free-For-All Mode).
Ren looked at the poll.
The numbers were moving at a terrifying speed.
[Silas: 48%]
[Ren: 2%]
[Chaos: 50%]
"The Audience is bored, Ren," Silas said with a dark smile.
"They don't want a leader."
"They want a Bloodthirsty Tutorial."
The exit doors suddenly slammed shut and turned into solid steel.
The "No Physical Contact" rule on the screens flickered and turned red.
[SYSTEM MESSAGE]
Poll Result: OPTION C.
New Rule: PHYSICAL CONTACT ENCOURAGED.
Event: THE LAST ONE STANDING.
The one thousand students in the hall let out a collective gasp.
The blue health bars turned into aggressive crimson spikes.
The "Professional League" had just decided that the orientation was over.
The Harvest had begun.
Silas reached into his coat and pulled out a golden rapier made of solid light.
"The Syndicate pays for performance, Ren," Silas said.
"And I'm a very expensive actor."
Ren didn't draw a weapon.
He looked at his hand and saw a new notification from the Sovereign Shop.
[LIMITED OFFER: THE DIRECTOR'S REVENGE]
Cost: 500 Mana Credits.
Item: A single bullet that cannot be edited.
Ren looked at Silas and then at the sky.
"Strategy 3," Ren whispered.
"If they want a show... give them a Horror Movie."