Jarret’s POV

“I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead.”

The thoughts spilled from his head out of his mouth as he ran around the room like a chicken with his head cut off. Pit stains had already formed in his shirt as he bobbed and weaved through the chaos.

Jarret was not a combat type hero, he thought. Or, at the very least, he is not a standalone combat type. Even if he was smart and could recognize the proper strategy to defeat an opponent, he was just a regular nerd without any attack power. He had wanted to join a Hero Group- a group of heroes that have either banded together to rise through the ranks together or are simply together for the sponsorship money of big companies. This was the worst case scenario for a strategist like him. However, as he had done physical training in preparation for the exam, he was proficient in stamina. Like this, he continued through the crowd of ridiculous abilities being blasted with no regard for life or destination. Many of the more powerful applicants were trying to reduce the number in mass bulk. As a result, things like fire, water, electricity, wind, smoke, and screams filled the air.

After roughly five minutes of this, a loud alarm went off. Everyone stopped attacking and heard the voice of the executive.

“Okay! One hundred participants now remain. This concludes the first stage of the exam. If anyone lets loose an attack at this point, they will be immediately disqualified. Please enter the door behind the stage to reach the destination of the next stage. You will be allowed five minutes to rest and gather your bearings.”

‘No way… I made it?’ Jarret was shocked that he had made it.

“Haha! I knew I’m a prime hero candidate!” The words of joy seeped past his lips and grew into a yell by the end of his laughing. As the smoke and steam was beginning to clear, Jarret looked around in curiosity.

“I wonder if Forrest made it? I kind of started running as soon as the chaos began. I hope he doesn’t think I abandoned him.”

Suddenly, a familiar voice called out from behind him.

“Oh! Jarret! You made it too, eh?”

Forrest walked forward with a calm smile on his face. At this time, for some reason, Jarret just now noticed Forrest’s outfit. He had dark hair with a black short sleeve shirt. The shirt’s collar also was particularly high. He had black pants with white stripes going down them. And, above all, he was handsome!

This traitor! I assumed he was a nerd like me! How could I have been so buddy buddy with a cool guy!

“Ah, yeah. You made it too, huh?”

“Yup. I really didn’t do anything though. I just stood still, haha!”

What?! Why didn’t I think of that?! These people were busy fighting themselves, so maybe if I stood still I could have passed even easier than running!

“Anyway, let’s head into the next stage.”

“Right.”

The two walked into the next room which was noticeably smaller. The room was reminiscent of a college lecture room. Forrest sat down in a desk. Jarret sat in the desk beside him. The two were scouting the rest of the people in the room. Eventually, the executive walked to the patio at the front of the room and spoke.

“On each of your desks is a written test with 50 questions. These are a mix of procedures and advanced knowledge questions that all heroes should be able to solve. Any cheating will result in disqualification. You may now begin.”

The hundred people flipped open the packet and began writing diligently. Jarret thought that this would be his best scoring stage, and was motivated to get a perfect score. He flipped through the test for a few moments and sighed.

‘Aren’t these questions a bit elementary?’ Upon having this thought, Jarret looked around the room to see many disgruntled and frustrated faces. These people were clearly struggling. Jarret suddenly realized that many heroes were only accustomed to fighting and were not exactly intelligent. He looked to the man beside him to see an even writing pace. Jarret was impressed for a moment before realizing ‘This guy is handsome andsmart? That’s even more reason to hate him!’

He filled out the test quickly and turned it in to the assigned spot. After a while, a much quieter alarm went off. The executive rose from his seat and walked to the podium before he started speaking.

“Everyone, turn in your packets and move back to the other room. I will announce the rules of the third phase in five minutes.”

The group of people talked amongst themselves while leaving the room. Jarret looked and Forrest followed the flow of the crowd. Suddenly, a muscular man with deer antlers tied to a bicycle helmet spoke loudly. Even among the crowd of crappy and extreme outfits, his seemed to have the lowest budget.

“What do you think, Rhino Man? How’d you do?”

A fat man with a horned mask responded in an annoyed tone.

“I don’t understand the point of written tests. I mean, it’s not like we are taking tests as a hero!”

“Hahaha! That bad, huh? Well, I’m sure you’re not the only one to fail.”

Jarret sneered while pushing up his glasses. Obviously they aren’t the only ones to fail. After all, this was a stage to cut the people down from one hundred. If he had to guess, he would say that about half of the crowd failed. Of course, he wouldn’t know until the results came back. That would probably be after the next stage.

The group walked in front of the stage and formed a crowd below the podium that the man was standing at. He began speaking after a few moments.

“First of all, congratulations on passing the first test. As an inflexible test, you did well to pass. The written test was more flexible- we will look at a combination of the second and third test results to determine whether you pass or fail the Hero Exam.”

“These two parts have only taken a total time of two hours. This next part will probably take slightly longer.”

The crowd of people looked at each other in anticipation while waiting for the explanation.

“We will call you up one by one onto the stage. You will then perform your ability. If you need help in displaying it, tell us what to do to help show it off. The four judges will write on their sheets their evaluation on your potential as a hero. After the final contestant is finished, we will leave the room for a few minutes to determine those that have passed and those who have failed.”