It was a little before 7:00 AM when we arrived at the port with Kaera. All the students had been told that the practical exam would begin exactly at 7, but seeing the crowd already gathered, you'd think they'd been told to come much earlier.
The entire port was swarming with first-year students. That's all there was — young faces, tense, some overly excited, others silent. It wasn't really surprising: all first-year classes from the academy were taking part in this exam.
As soon as we arrived, Kaera broke off to join her class. I made my way to where mine was gathering.
It had been nearly a month since I started sharing their daily life, but I still couldn't match names to every face. We were more than a hundred students per class, and after this exam, only about thirty would remain.
A deep rumble split the air, abruptly cutting off all conversation. The port waters stirred suddenly, as if some colossal force were rising from the depths.
Then, without warning, a glowing portal opened above the sea in a blinding flash. And through that breach, a massive ship emerged.
It was a vessel you'd only see in Eloria. As tall as a building, as wide as three streets, it moved with no sails or engine, carried instead by energy circles engraved into its hull. The mana powering it pulsed gently, almost calmly. It floated above the water, stable, majestic.
On the upper deck, silhouettes appeared. Professors. I recognized Vanessa, standing tall as always, Instructor Marcus, and other unfamiliar faces.
The ship came to a halt near the dock. A middle-aged man stepped forward and rose onto an invisible platform that gently lifted him above the crowd.
"This ship will take you to the exam island," he said in a clear voice.
A soft murmur passed through the students, but it didn't last.
"The trial will take place over a period of three days."
This time, the reactions were more intense. Several students straightened up, others exchanged surprised looks. Three days? Most had expected half a day, maybe one. Three was something else entirely.
"This duration is official. No changes will be made."
He paused, as if to give us time to digest the information.
"Board the ship. You'll receive detailed instructions once on board."
The platform slowly descended as a gangway slid from the ship to the dock.
Classes moved forward one after the other, guided by supervisors who let us on the ship in small groups.
Those who boarded first were immediately taken care of by assistants in dark uniforms.
They handed out black bracelets to the students, one by one. When one of them gave me mine, I gave it a quick look: simple, flexible, with a small mana core embedded in the metal. I put it on without asking any questions.
I joined the others in the large common room located at the center of the lower deck. Seats were arranged in circles around a mana screen hanging in the air, still inactive.
It was only once everyone had taken their seat that a professor appeared at the center of the room. He snapped his fingers, and silence fell almost instantly.
He wore the official academy uniform but had a golden pendant around his neck, glowing with an odd light. A chief examiner, no doubt.
"Welcome, everyone," he said in a calm yet firm voice.
"For three days, you'll be sent to an island specially prepared by the academy. The trial will be observed and broadcast across the continent. This is your first chance to make an impression. Don't waste it."
A murmur of excitement rippled through the room.
"Let's move on to the rules."
He raised his hand, and the mana screen lit up, displaying simple diagrams: dots, class names, colored zones.
"Each class receives three objectives to complete. Three. If you fail to complete even one, your entire class is eliminated. No matter the individual accomplishments."
Several students tensed at this announcement.
"The objectives are unique to each class. You'll receive them upon arrival on the island. Expect varied challenges."
He paused, then pointed to the bracelets we all wore.
"These bracelets are the key to everything. They ensure your safety. If you're seriously injured, knocked out, or choose to surrender, you'll be automatically teleported to a safe zone, but you'll lose all your points."
"These bracelets also allow you to check your personal score, your class's score, and the total score of other classes. But you'll never see the individual scores of other students."
The screen displayed a points chart alongside icons of various monsters.
"You earn points by killing monsters — and the stronger they are, the more they're worth."
"Eliminating a student from another class also transfers their full points to you."
"However, attacking a member of your own class is forbidden. Your bracelets are designed to prevent it."
He then showed a new symbol, shaped like an eye.
"Finally, each class has one hidden objective tied to a single student. It's individual, and you can choose whether or not to keep it secret. If completed, you'll receive a personal reward: an artifact, a temporary power, strategic intel… or just a big bundle of points. You can also choose to share it with your class if you want."
He crossed his arms.
"All details are available on your bracelets. Use the remaining time to talk, prepare mentally, or be alone, if that's your preference. Once you're on the island, there will be no room for mistakes."
I hadn't learned anything new.
I already knew all these rules. The class objectives, the points, the monsters, even how the bracelets worked — I vaguely remembered it all.
In [The Fall of the Hero], this arc spanned barely twenty chapters. Back then, I'd read it in one go, eager to see how Liam and Noah would make it through. I'd only remembered the key points.
But now that I was here, every detail mattered.
I left the common room, letting the others talk or form alliances, and took a side corridor in silence.
The ship was massive. Stairways led to upper decks, corridors sank deeper, and wide windows offered a view of the ocean below.
I walked aimlessly for a while, until I found myself alone in a narrow gallery lit by mana spheres floating in the air. A cold draft occasionally blew through the hallway, carrying a salty scent.
The exam had already officially begun.
That was the real trap. The students thought everything would start once we reached the island, but according to the information given beforehand, the trial had started the moment we boarded. It was implicit, but clear: from 7:00 AM, the practical exam had begun.
A clue had to be hidden here, somewhere on the ship.
It surely wasn't a coincidence that the ship set sail instead of just teleporting us directly to the island, like it had done for the arrival.
The examiner was waiting for students to realize that the first phase of the exam wasn't just on the island — it began the moment the journey started, in the smallest details of the ship.
A crucial hint had to be hidden somewhere on board, for those who knew how to keep their eyes open.
My fingers brushed against the bracelet on my wrist. A small mana core pulsed in the center, and a discreet interface opened at my request.
[Time: 07:18]
[Name: Noah Arryn]
[Class: Orion]
[Class Points: 0]
[Individual Points: 0]
[Class Objectives: Locked until arrival on site]
[Available Data: Rules – Point System – Rewards – Map]
I scrolled through the information, rereading every rule, every line. This wasn't the time to rely on memory. I had to be precise.
I had to hurry and find that hidden clue — because from what I remembered, Liam was probably already looking for it.