A room filled with doubtful eyes was on Solomon Glass, who started explaining the outcome of the Battle Royale. “As you already know that the last circle shrinks towards the center. So both of them were approaching the center while being in smoke. Ton sprayed his gun at Noah which should have finished him. But as you saw in the end, Noah was carrying a Fry Pan.”

“But what’s that got to do with the ending? It is a useless item...” uttered a guest.

“You are right it is useless in most situations but then again the most useful item in this scenario. A Fry Pan is like an indestructible item in the battle royale setting. So it will stop all bullets aimed at you.”

Everyone started looking at each other. They had missed the basic use of a pan.

Solomon continued. “So Noah might have crouched and approached the zone holding a Fry Pan in front which deflected all incoming bullets. Pretty awesome one should say. You gotta think about the ingenuity of the boy.”

“But that doesn't explain why Ton lost his HP faster than Noah, as Noah had lesser HP than Ton...” replied an angry Mathias Odling.

“Ah. Calm down, my friend. Don’t be hasty. I am taking you down that road eventually.”

“Do you remember what items Noah had left?”

Everyone started looking at each other.

“Thought so. You should observe the opponent also if you put money on someone. Else you can only curse your ignorance...” smiled Solomon.

“Bonus Item - Eden’s Apple and Item card - Fireborne.” Principal Beck replied.

“Good memory for an old man.” Solomon was impressed.

“As soon as Noah covered the zone in smoke he threw the Molotovs he had left on the ground. The fire damage on top of the zone damage would chip your HP faster than usual. But if Ton was taking damage why not Noah. That’s what you are thinking right?” Solomon looked at the clueless faces in the room.

“Item card - Fireborne makes you immune to fire damage for 10 seconds. So Noah did not receive any loss of HP from the Molotov. Bonus Item - Eden’s Apple replenishes your HP to 100%, so it would take 30 seconds for the zone to chip away all his HP. Whereas the combined damage would only need 8 seconds to consume all of Ton’s HP.” Solomon smiled and gestured with his hands that his explanation was over.

“You mean that this boy had planned everything from the beginning, even calculated the minute details of HP consumption?”

“Exactly. But that's not all he did. He deliberately provoked Ton to make the mistake of firing at him, when Ton should have concentrated on healing himself. Noah made Ton nervous at the right moment. This guy has good battle awareness. Strength is not everything in situations of life and death. You need to apply your intelligence and tactics.”

“This guy will be surprising us even more in the future if he continues to grow at this pace,” concluded Solomon.

Mathias clenched his fist hearing the praise for Noah. Tobias didn’t utter a single word but his facial expression relayed his anger. Other guests were also impressed with Noah after hearing Solomon’s analysis.

“So how much did you win, old man?” Solomon asked Principal Beck.

“Well, that was just to make it more interesting. No need to be serious about it.” Principal Beck had looked at the grim faces of his guests and understood their perplexity.

“Transferred my amount. A bet is a bet. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. But you need to keep your word. Otherwise, there is no value in calling us humans.” Tobias Odling stated.

“Said like a true gentleman. One should stick by his word...” smiled Solomon.

“Well if you say so Mr. Odling”, replied Principal Beck.

“Now if you'll excuse me. I have to attend the rank declaration ceremony.“ Principal Beck left the room. Solomon looked at the Arena where someone had just come out of the capsule.

“Interesting. Your guy is quite amazing, Shiya.”

“Told ya.”

The voices faded in the shadows. These two were observing the match from the shadows.

“That damn pervert. Never ceases to amaze me.” Angelika muttered.

But the loudest of the reactions came from Melv. He had jumped at Noah the moment he came out of the capsule. “You did it, bro. You did it. I will treat you with as much fried chicken as you want. Soda too!”

“Well, there is only one thing I need from you right now. Get the hell off of me...” shouted Noah.

All the other students were giggling at them. Among them was Kaisha. She gave a stare at the two of them and left without saying a word, though she wanted to. Kaisha was also from a wealthy family and being the only child had a lot of expectations put upon. So she wanted to stick with Ton who was the strongest and avoided trash like Melv and Noah.

That was the case until today when she had realized her mistake of believing in Ton and harassing other students. Though she wanted to congratulate Noah, she had no face to do so.

The students after coming out of the capsule had been checked upon by the doctors and nurses. Everyone was fine except for someone who had almost torn apart the capsule in anger after coming out. That person is anyone’s guess, Ton.

“Mhmmm. Can you all please quiet down...” a voice sounded on the podium.

“The examination for the Freshman year of Delta Class is over. It is time to announce the results and adjust the rankings. The results have been shown on the Giant screen with their collective points. That is except for the Top 5 candidates. Now I would like Principal Beck to honor us by announcing that result...” concluded Professor Sawyer.

The students immediately looked at the Jumbo screen and checked their results.

“Thank You, Professor. Well, it was certainly an entertaining day for me. All the students have performed well and I congratulate them on their results. So without making you wait further, let me announce the Top 5 students - “

Number 5 -

Solo Battle Raid - 48

Battle Royale - Kills Points 9 + Bonus Points 5 + Rank Points 7 + Survival points 30 = 51

Total Points - 48 + 51 = 99 = 50% ~ C = Student Name - Debox

Number 4 -

Solo Battle Raid - 48

Battle Royale - Kills Points 10 + Bonus Points 5 + Rank Points 8 + Survival points 30 = 53

Total Points - 48 + 53 = 101 = 51% ~ C = Student Name - Kaisha

Number 3 -

Solo Battle Raid - 60

Battle Royale - Kills Points 18 + Bonus Points 10 + Rank Points 10 + Survival points 40 = 78

Total Points - 60 + 78 = 138 = 69% ~ B = Student Name - Melv

Number 2 -

Solo Battle Raid - 70

Battle Royale - Kills Points 26 + Bonus Points 10 + Rank Points 14 + Survival points 40 = 90

Total Points - 70 + 90 = 160 = 80% ~ A = Student Name - Ton

And Finally, The Top of Delta Class -

Number 1 -

Solo Battle Raid - 80

Battle Royale - Kills Points 31 + Bonus Points 20 + Rank Points 20 + Survival points 40 = 111

Total Points - 80 + 111 = 191 = 96% ~ S+ = Student Name - Noah

“Congratulations to all of you!!!”

Melv shouted with joy. Noah closed his eyes and spoke to himself.

“It’s just the first step. But I am one step closer to the goal. It's not over yet, it just started.”

Noah opened his eyes to find Melv dancing in happiness. Melv never thought of reaching the Top 3. But he was happier because Noah came first.

The other students also started appraising Noah’s accomplishment as they congratulated him. But then suddenly a voice arose amid the cheers.

“I object. This guy had cheated. He can never beat me in the final circle. So he must have cheated.” Shouted Ton.

It was obvious that Ton would not take his defeat lightly.

“Please talk more respectfully, Ton. You cannot shout in front of the Principal.” Professor Sawyer replied to Ton. “Also, you should be careful with your words. You are questioning the academy’s authority and accusing them of negligence in security matters. There was no tampering or cheating involved in the match. We, examiners, have reviewed everything thoroughly.”

“You may have missed something. That trash is a bit tricky. I ask you to give me a one-on-one to decide the winner...” shouted Ton.

“That won’t be necessary. The result was declared by the academy after careful examination and every student must abide by the rules...” a loud voice roared from the back of the podium where the examiners and the Principal were addressing from. As the person came on stage, Ton could see that the person was his father, Tobias Odling. A cold shiver came down his spine.

“Wh...What is he doing here..?” Ton thought to himself.

“Ah Thank You, Mr. Tobias. There were no such atrocious events like cheating involved, Ton. But still, if you insist you can submit an appeal to the Reviewing Committee later on.” Principal Beck replied.

“That won’t be necessary. This matter will end here. You have my word...” replied Mr. Odling.

“But dad...” Ton was about to say something when a stare from Tobias made him feel seeing the Grim Reaper in front of him. So he stopped talking.

“Well, that concludes the Ranking declaration of Delta Class. As the rules state, the Top 3 of Delta class are given an opportunity to face the Last 3 of Gamma class and fight it out in a singles competition. The winner gets to be in Gamma Class and the loser will be placed in Delta Class.” Professor Sawyer continued her speech.

“So that makes the Top of Delta Class Noah to match up with the Last place of Gamma Class Ribor…” Professor Sawyer could not finish her words.

“Respectfully Professor, I object.”

“I wish to invoke Section 5 of Act XIV of the Academy Rulebook...” stated Noah.

…