The Styrtan settlement is a village that houses the family of scouts and guards pertaining to the southern forest. It is also where explorers rest before and after their expeditions. This is also the reason why it houses one of the largest schools of the humanoid kingdom.

The Styrtan Institute of Fundamentals. This school mainly focuses on history, biology, geography and basic combat which includes magic.

"Are you really planning to enroll in that school?" Ortix was walking limply beside Cyziel.

"Probably! Why? Don't you want to meet new people?" Cyziel smiled at Ortix, seemingly mocking him.

"Ughh! I always skip school you know! And what more can someone like us learn here." Ortix, feeling a sense of defeat, complained.

"You see. I was born here but in just a few days of being back, I already have lots of questions. I think a school for fundamentals would be a great source of information." Cyziel was greatly motivated to learn again.

Ortix sighed and shrugged. "Okay! If you said so!"

The three friends are currently on the way to check out the Styrtan Institute. Following them are the Dielif twins Mina and Misa. Cyziel was currently wearing the mask that he got and his eyes was in its black appearance. Ortix was wearing a sleeveless brown and blue assassin like clothes but without a hood. Volus got a new black hooded robe. The twins are still wearing dresses that are similar with their skin color.

"Based on my information! That should be it!" Volus pointed on the not so near but already visible red gate.

As they reached the gates. It could be seen that it is a massive double gate. In front of it was a young man with a pointed ear, wearing a noble like green outfit with long leather boots. He can be seen walking back and forth and he seemingly looked like in trouble.

Once the pointed ear youth saw them, he immediately stopped and straightened his back.

The youth placed his two hands behind his back but it was obvious that he was shaking. "Are you guys also students here?"

"No. We actually came here to enroll." The three friends only looked at each other. It was Mina who stepped out and actually gave a reply with her cute voice.

"At this time?" The youth surprisingly asked.

"Yeah! Is there a problem?" Mina smiled as she bended her head to the side.

"No no..." The youth blushed for a bit. "It is just it is almost halfway of the school year. Wait! You guys are from the new races aren't you?"

"Yep!" Mina continued with her cute reply.

"Anyway, can I... Nevermind." The youth seemed to want to ask a question but he immediately stopped and lowered his head.

Mina looked at Volus then Volus looked at Cyziel.

"Can you show us the way for enrollment?" Cyziel suddenly asked. He didn't really care much about the guy but the guy doesn't seem to be bad. If he helped them, then he could think about helping back.

"Ah! Yes of course! By the way, I am Talas!" Talas enthusiastically accepted.

"Nice to meet you Talas. We will just follow after you. I am Cyziel!"

"Ortix here!" "Volus." "Mina!!" "Misa~" The rest have also introduced themselves.

The group followed Talas, a guard stopped them for a bit due to not having any identifications marks but Talas explained that they were new enrollees and he let them go.

In front of the group was a wide red bricked road which is connected to the large entrance gate. On the left and right side of the road were grass filled soil with trees and shrubs. There are long wooden chairs that are placed in them. On the far right and left, past the green area, were open fields in which a lot of people are currently training. In the far end of the road was a large mansion like building.

"0 degrees, three at 60 degrees. 270 degrees. Should I?" Ortix casually spoke. Talas, Mina and Misa looked at him with confusion but decided to ignore it.

"Nah! Just ignore them!" Cyziel also gave a casual reply.

*They should be after Talas. I think they are the reason that he was having trouble.* Volus mentally sent to Cyziel and Ortix.

The group continued to follow Talas but they could observe that Talas was walking slower and he was restlessly observing his surroundings. As they were nearing the building in front, three people blocked their way.

"They finally lost patience!" Ortix uttered with a smile. He was seemingly waiting for trouble to appear.

"My friend Talas! How have you been? Didn't know that you have new friends." A pale colored man blocked the group's path. Beside him are two other people. One was a tall brownish guy and the other has a grayish blue skin.

"Jaza! They are new enrollees. Let us pass!" Talas angrily said. He thought that Jaza would be afraid to confront him today due to the people with him but he was badly mistaken.

"You know me. I am easy to talk with. You still owe me 1000 mels and add the one for today which makes it 2000. Since I am kind. 1500 mels then you may pass. Your friends could also pay up for you." Jaza started to walk towards Talas.

"Oh Talas! How did you owe him 1000 mels? Did you play a game and lose? Let me join that game! Maybe I will win a 1000!" Ortix sarcastically interjected as he stood beside Talas.

"HAHAHA! You guys heard that! The new guy wants to join!" Jaza started laughing together with the two other people beside him. He was thinking that there was another ignorant kid playing hero.

"What are you guys doing here being noisy? Go back to your class!" A tall, sky blue colored skin, middle aged man appeared. He has a scar on his face which goes from the right side of his eye to the bottom right of his chin.

"Sir Nathan! I am accompanying these people for enrollment. " Talas pointed at the people behind him. He felt relieved, seeing that their handler was actually here.

"I see. Then go! Don't stop here!" Nathan slightly rotated his body and pointed at the main building in front before looking at the other 3. "What about you three? What are you waiting here. Did I not give you enough tasks? Go Scram!"

"We will remember you new student!" Jaza smiled as he brought the other two away.

The group continued to enter the main building. The building was quite spacious. There was a middle path and two corridors in the left and the right. The group went to the left corridor and started chatting.

"You made a new enemy for your first day Ortix! or maybe a friend?" Cyziel laughed.

"Hmph! You think some randoms are worthy enemies for me? And the only worthy friends for me are the 4 of you." Ortix made his point clear with a sharp tone.

"You! You!" Talas was scared. He thought that these new enrollees are being too overconfident. "Jaza is a top student here."

"Doesn't look anywhere strong to me!" Ortix chuckled.

"You don't understand! He is one of the strongest in our current batch. Moreover, he is part of a group that includes higher students. Those students includes maximas who are already graduating that have been training here for more than 2 years!" Talas added.

"I heard that normally, it would only take 1 to 2 years for people to graduate here." Volus said inquisitively.

"One year graduates are special! They are outliers! They are not the norm!" Talas protested. "Two years is for top students. Three years is the usual."

"Then doesn't that mean that they are just stupid people?" Ortix mockingly said. Volus smiled and Cyziel laughed. Talas wanted to retort but he shut himself up in the end since arguing with these new students seems impossible.

They finally arrived in what seemed to be a large room. The room was encased by the metal rubbeel. A circular area in the middle of the room was also a little bit elevated and it was painted in white like an arena of some sort. There was one door in the back but most of the place was empty except for a corner near the entrance. There were some long sofas with a glass table in the middle. A counter close to the sofas can also be seen. Currently, A few people were sitting in the sofas.

"This is the room." Talas uttered.

The group continued to the corner with the people sitting in the sofas. As the group got near, all the people sitting looked at them.

"Can we help you?" A woman with pale skin and pink hair asked.

"Excuse me Instructors. These people would like to enroll." Talas stepped forward and bowed his head for a little.

"Huh? Are you guys sure about that? You are already 5 months late. You already missed so many lessons. If you fail in the final test then you would again need to retake the whole year." A man, who seems to be very tall even while seated, commented.

"Oh I know now who they are! They are from those new races." A man who was holding a book remarked, scrutinizing the new arrivals.

"I see. I see! Then they are an exception. Just go give your names in the counter and pay for the enrollment fees. It would cost you 10,000 mels each." The woman with a pink hair pointed at the counter.

The three friends looked at each other.

"Wait give us a minute!" Cyziel pulled the other two into a corner. Mina and Misa still remained behind Talas.

"You guys got money?" Cyziel asked.

"Of course not!" Ortix answered.

"I do. I was given 10,000 early this morning. Mina and Misa was given 5,000 each. I could ask them to give it to you." Volus showed his watch hidden in his robe.

"What about me???" Ortix asked with a displeased face.

"Aren't you the best thief? Maybe you could steal from someone here!" Volus sarcastically said.

"I told you I am not a thief anymore! You want me to steal? I'll steal from you right now!" Ortix fiercely looked at Volus.

"You can try!" Volus replied without a hint of fear.

The man holding a book went up to them. "Okay kids! You seem to have some problems. My name is Echo. There are currently many senior instructors here which would allow you to apply for a scholarship right now! That is if you are up for a challenge."

The three looked again at each other. They then smiled and nodded simultaneously.

"Mina. Misa. Do you want to try the exam too?" Volus asked with a neutral tone.

"Yes senior. We would like to try." Mina and Misa respectfully replied.

"Alright! Let's do this!" Ortix was excited. He could finally have some action.

"Fellow Instructors! It seems that they want to take the scholarship tests." Echo relayed the news to the other instructors.

"You think they are good enough for it?" A short woman seated in the corner of the sofa asked.

"Let them try! This is gonna be fun!" The woman with pink hair commented.

The tall man stood up and it can be seen that he is more than 8 feet tall. "Great. I am starting to get bored."

"What should we test first? Should we go for the strength test? What do you think Bruno?" Echo asked.

"Yeah sure! I'll bring out the punching machine!" The tall instructor named Bruno went to the back room and when he arrived, He was pulling a large machine. The machine was like a large horizontal cylindrical drum. At the front was like a red foam and by its side is a large screen. He pulled it up through the slanted incline surrounding the elevated middle floor of the room.

Everyone except for Talas was asked to go to the middle of the room where the machine was placed. Bruno stood inside the elevated circle while the rest of the teachers and the enrollees just stood outside it. Talas was allowed to watch but he could only watch from the corner where the sofas are located.

"Are you guys ready? This one is pretty simple. Just punch anywhere from the front of this machine. Its cylindrical body would absorb the impact and the screen here would show you your score. You could enhance yourself with magic or anything you want but you would also need a greater score to pass. For pure physical punch, you need at least 100 points. For augmented, you would need 200 pts."

"Lek would love this! Want to bet who gets higher Vol?" Ortix looked at Volus.

"You mean Lek would laugh at this. Don't compete with me. Go ask Cy instead." Volus declined as he pointed as Cyziel instead.

"I am not sure how much strength do we need to pass this but don't force yourselves too much." Cyziel smiled. He was thinking that the three of them haven't particularly recovered so it would be dangerous to overexert themselves.

"Hey Hey! Are you not taking this seriously? We could hear you. You know? I suggest you give it your all!" Bruno annoyingly uttered. Only a few people underestimate the exams and those who did would usually not pass so their casual talking already gave them a bad outlook.

"Misa! You go first!" Volus ignoring what Bruno said commanded Misa.

"Alright!" Misa joyfully replied.

Misa entered the middle circle and postured herself in front of the machine. She gave her all as she punched it.

"35! Told you guys it won't be easy! Do you want to try with augmentation?" Bruno was disappointed with the result but seeing the three young men not having any reactions, he was now anticipating for their results so he could poke at them.

"No." Misa shook her head as she declined Bruno's proposal. "Your turn Mina!"

Mina exactly did the same as Misa. Even their scores are no different.

"35! What! how come you two have the same score? Are you playing with me?"

"No sir! That is really my best!" Mina answered respectively. "I also don't want to take the augmentation test."

"You start Vol. Weakest first!" Ortix jested.

"Hmmph! Its just physical strength!" Volus walked towards the machine.

Volus didn't prepare that much but he gave a bit of strength to his punch on the machine.

"867!" Bruno's mouth remained wide open for a minute. The casual punch resulting to a high score shocked him. "What the hell? How are you that strong?

Does that mean that the other two are just as strong as him? No! The other guy said that he was the weakest! Bruno was perspiring as the thought that the other 2 were even stronger than the first guy. The score that he got were already as high as the top graduating students.

"Strong? Hmm.. It depends on who you compare me with." Volus walked back to his friends location.

Bruno, on the other hand, went to the side were the other instructors were standing. The other instructors were also surprised as much as him and they tried to talk quietly between them.

"Liko! What is your highest score in the punching machine?" The pink haired woman asked the blue skinned instructor beside her.

"My highest is 1342 without any enhancements. What about you Sara?"

"Mine is 1256. How about you Lyka?" The pinked hair woman answered.

"Hmpp! You know that I am physically weak. My highest is only 987 but if I enhance myself then its a different matter." The short teacher answered.

"Bruno what about you?" Sara continued her questioning.

"Mine is 2838 but I am from Coryn so we are physically strong. I'll be continuing the test." Bruno answered as he walked back to the testing area.

*Coryn?* The instructors thought that they cannot be heard but the three friends actually heard them and one of the words was something familiar to them.

"Lek!" The trio blurted out the same word.

"What Lek? Anyway, you two continue. Your friend was not bad. Don't disappoint me!" Bruno said as he arrived just in time with the three mentioning a name.

"I'll go first Ort! I'm pretty injured so don't judge me right now!" Cyziel jested.

Bruno, who was near the three, was starting to scratch his head from the relaxed condition of the three but he can't deny that the first one actually did great.

Cyziel stood before the punching machine. He then started to rotate his left shoulder as if stretching to prepare but then he gave a fast punch with his right hand.

This kid! Is he mocking--- Before Bruno could get angry, he was surprised by the score.

"999!" He literally got the highest score on this punching machine! I should have brought a bigger one! Okay let's just finish this. I won't be surprised anymore. These kids are abnormal. Bruno's eyes momentarily opened wide. He then gave a quick exhale, trying to keep himself calm.

"You're next!" Bruno pointed at Ortix. He wanted finish this as fast as possible as he was having a hard time trying to digest what is happening. He was making an expressionless face so that the three won't think that their score was abnormal.

Ortix now walked in front of the machine and he has a smiling face. Cyziel saw the look of Ortix and shook his head. He knew that he was about to do something.

"My turn! Since the instructor want me to be serious then I'll be serious."

Ortix' face has now become resolute. The smile on his face disappeared as he postured to punch. He then made a deep breath. Thump! Thump! A soft heartbeat was then heard by everyone in the room. Afterwards, it was followed by a straight punch.

"Wait!!" Bruno shouted as the other teachers moved. They are planning to stop Ortix but it was too late.

*Boom*

The number in the screen went to 999 momentarily before the machine was sent flying and got broken down into pieces.

"You! You actually destroyed it!" Bruno was fuming with anger. His two hands were now making a fist.

"I'm sorry sir! I was just following your order! I didn't know that the machine was that fragile!" Ortix feigned ignorance. His face was showing a fake surprised look as he opened his mouth and palms. It was as if he didn't know that that would happen.

"Enough Bruno! These three have passed." Instructor Liko stepped in front of Bruno with a serious look. He was also annoyed at Ortix but his curiousness of the three triumphed. He wanted to start the next exam immediately. "The deductions to your tuition fee depends on the number of tests you passed. The next test would be on the strength of your souls."