.
.
Evening, inside the walkway of Z Stadium.
"The Fielders category?" Medea looked on towards Irvine with an amused look on her face.
"Yea."
"But why not pick the Solvers?" She asked.
Both of them were currently walking together inside the hallway. Irvine had just told Medea that he'd chosen the Fielders category for the Practical Exam tomorrow instead of his actual Solver position.
"You know my plays. They were far closer to that of a Fielder rather than a Solver... The exam's point was to test your overall skills in relation to your playing style, not the position that you eventually want to play."
"...That makes sense."
"Tomorrow is our chance. Though I can't say that the disadvantages in our physiques don't exist anymore, at least they won't be as clear as today's Practical Exam." Irvine pointed out the importance of the final exam to Medea,
"They also won't affect our final scores much, in this aspect we can go toe-to-toe even with the rest of the college freshmen."
"Right." She nodded her head in agreement, her eyes were as sharp as the time when she was competing.
But if one looked closely at both Irvine and Medea's figures, the tension that they'd had ever since the start of the License Exam had loosened up by quite a bit.
The both of them had just finished the examinees' scoring report at the end of Day 1's exams.
The reporting for their scores had been coupled together with a large scale elimination round right after. Where at the end of it, a total of 122 participants out of more than 300 were cut off from tomorrow's exam.
Some of those number had failed in their Written Exam, while most of them couldn't make it past the 60 points requirement for their Physicals.
But fortunately,
Both Irvine and Medea had managed to slid themselves into the passing category for both the first and second exam. And it was within an acceptable range of scores no less.
#038 : 88 points (Written) + 72 points (Physical) = 160 points
...
#127 : 82 points (Written) + 70 points (Physical) = 152 points
...
It was especially true for Medea when she'd seen that her Written score was way above her initial estimation.
For tomorrow, the both of them simply needed at least 60 points and 68 points respectively for them to officially pass the Practical Exam and become the next Starseeds.
.
"Hrrmm..."
"What is it?"
"I failed to beat you in both Written and Physical... You look very irritating right now." Medea answered truthfully.
"..."
"Nothing much I can do for the Written Exam, but our Physical scores are pretty much the same anyhow." Irvine shrugged off her comment without minding it.
"Pretty much the same is not the same."
"That I agree." He replied with the same level of bluntness.
Just like that, the two of them continued their chats and were just about to turn a corner into the public area, when suddenly,
"Ah, there he is."
""Mister Lang!""
*hustle* *bustle*
Several people could be seen standing behind a velvet rope at the mouth of the hallway.
When they finally spotted the figure of Irvine coming out the corner, all of them swiftly shifted their attentions towards him.
All of the scouts had also seen Medea Dormer who's coming out together with him, prompting many of them to give a courteous nod as a greeting before moving on.
"Mister Lang, what are your current plans for higher education?" One of them suddenly got to the point and asked.
An action that perked the ears of many others.
They had known after seeing Irvine's final score that him going to a less than Tier-1 school would be a very long shot.
But unlike Medea who had already received several invitations, Irvine on the other hand was someone who had risen so suddenly from a no-name high school.
Which was why it was at least worth their shots in asking.
.
*clears throat*
"Hi everyone." Irvine handled the sudden attentions directed towards him with a cool head as he answered,
"I have decided to go into one of the Tier-1 colleges after graduation. Preferably one in Zeta City to save some travel costs during holiday seasons."
He didn't hesitate in giving his honest reply and addressing the question from the scout to its root.
"Do you think you will have a chance in getting an invitation from them given your lack of records prior to today? Or do you plan on going even without an invitation and become a walk-in player?"
One scout, who had clearly shown that he was not representing a Tier-1 college also piled on his own inquiries after listening.
"No, I'm not planning on becoming a walk-in. As for my chances of getting an invitation..." Irvine's words trailed of for a bit at the end.
"After tomorrow, it shouldn't be a problem." He replied casually, causing a split second of silence around the room.
"..."
His words had sounded like a declaration to the rest of the people present.
*CLAP*
"Great confidence!"
Suddenly, a loud clap resounded from behind the scouts crowding the front of the hallway.
John slowly came up to the front as the crowd parted to his sides following his approaching figure.
'Ravenville's scout...' Some of them had recognized him in passing.
"Good evening Mister Lang, Miss Dormer. It is true what they say about birds of a feather flocking together I see." He greeted the two of them with a compliment.
"...Thank you?"
"Haha, oh, and where are my manners. My name is John Lambert, and I'm from--"
"Ravenville University." Medea who hadn't spoken ever since the scouts had appeared suddenly interrupted.
She had remembered the name from one of the invitation letters she had received earlier this year.
"Oh... The renowned school that's always on the top 16 of the college Tier-1 league?" Even Irvine had heard of the university back in his previous future.
Each year, at least one of the players from their first-string roster made it into the OPL through the draft.
"I'm flattered that the two of you have at least heard of us." John smiled kindly at each of their responses,
"Of course, I would be more than flattered if you two could become one of the future pillars that contributed in taking that achievement to the next level."
"Ho, is that an invitation, Mister Lambert? But you don't even know what position I play?" Irvine was clearly intrigued, Ravenville would certainly fit the bill for the the types of colleges he was aiming for.
"A Front Guard, right? I must say that finding any footage for Greenwood High matches has proven to be impossible, but this much information is no problem for us."
"I've since changed my path though."
"I know. Your registration data have shown that you're taking the Fielders category for tomorrow's Practicals. Is that the main reason to your sudden rise in ability I wonder?"
"..." Irvine widened his eyes in amazement.
Truth be told, he was pleasantly surprised at how much attention had been given to him from one of the Tier-1 powerhouses even before he achieved the Starseed title.
'Is it because of the full-minute dodge test...?'
What he didn't know was that most of it could be attributed to Althea's revelation of his Muscle Strength combined with his own performance in the Physical Exam.
'Oh, right. Come to think of it,'
"Excuse me a moment... Hey, have you made up your mind on college?" Irvine halted his conversation with John for a bit and shifted the subject to Medea.
A subject she quickly replied with a shaken head,
"Not yet. Ravenville is certainly one of my top options though. Along with the likes of Verdante College and Eastern Zeta University."
"But you're fixed to the one in Zeta City?"
*nod*
"I see, well it's an important decision... You should pick one that fit your playstyle." Irvine concluded.
He was just curious because he couldn't seem to remember where Medea Dormer had went to college back in the future.
Irvine was just about to continue his discussion with John when another set of voice came rather abruptly from the side.
"An astute observation. I'd expect nothing less from the most outstanding high school participant this year, beating even the Medea Dormer."
Rory Smith had arrived on the scene with one other person behind him.
The person was a middle-aged man that had the stereotypical looks of a high-class butler, complete with even a monocle on his face.
"Ugh, he's here... And speak of the devil." John identified the two people with a scrunched-up face.
.
.
5 people, consisting of 2 players and 3 scouts had convened in front of the leading hallway with various other people of similar professions surrounding them.
"Let me introduce ourselves. I'm Rory Smith, a representative for Verdante College. And this is--"
"Just call me Rex." The middle-aged man had a gentle expression as he followed up with his own introduction, "I'm the assistant head coach for the Eastern Zeta Silverbacks."
'What a coincidence...' Irvine thought to himself. The 3 schools that Medea had mentioned had all suddenly arrived in front of them.
"Mister Lang, I want to take this chance to extend to you a formal invitation from our Verdante college. For you to join us under a full-ride scholarship." Rory started speaking eloquently,
"Of course, I don't have the proper documentations right now, but it's already gone through the procedure. You can expect a letter from us within this next couple days whether you pass this exam or not. Think of it as a sign of good faith." He smiled,
"!" Irvine was thrilled to have actually gotten an offer before the exam even ended.
"I think that you'd fit quite well with our Windrider."
"Hey, I was just about to tell him the same thing, where's your usual manner gone to Smith?" John felt rather displeased at the turn of events.
"You don't look like you'll get there anytime soon." Rory retorted before turning his head to another side, "Of course, we're also awaiting your good news Miss Dormer."
"...Yeah, thanks."
*tsk* "Well anyway."
"As I was saying, you can also expect the same letter from us at Ravenville. With or without tomorrow's satisfactory results of course."
"...Thank you very much, to all of you." Irvine gave a light bow to show his appreciation to their offers.
With this, he at least had one less thing to worry about on tomorrow's exam.
'Verdante and Ravenville. What a luxury...' He truly couldn't imagine getting this far before going back in time.
"Hoho, the youngsters sure are as restless as ever..." The assistant head coach Rex also began to interject.
"I'm afraid since I'm just an assistant coach, even if I were to quickly arrange for the same offer right now, it would only get properly processed well after the License Exam is over." He shook his head with pity.
"But Mister Lang, if you haven't made your decision by then, you can be sure that we'll also send you our invitation as well. The same one that we've given to Miss Dormer here."
"And plus, I happen to overhear you saying that you'd rather prefer going to college here in Zeta City. Maybe it would do you good to tour around different campuses first before deciding between just these two schools, don't you agree?"
Irvine nodded while listening to the middle-aged man.
What he'd said made sense. Even though two of the top Tier-1 schools had shown their good faith by approaching him early, if he were to actually pass the exam and become a Starseed, there would be many more colleges approaching him like this.
It would be better for him to take his time and decide properly, just like what he'd advice Medea minutes before.
"Our college will welcome you whenever you require a tour of our facilities."
"Us as well."
.
.
After a few more pleasantries, In the end the three of them had left together with the rest of the scouts. Leaving the scene with just the two of them in front of the hallway.
"You're popular now." Medea commented.
"Not as popular as you yet though."
"You will be after tomorrow."
"Ha, thanks for the vote of confidence. After tomorrow, we'd also receive offers from colleges in Central and Southern Sectors I think?"
"My choices are limited to Zeta City anyway, so it doesn't matter."
"Really, then what about when you go pro after college?" Irvine asked curiously, 'The Delta Royale is the Delta City's team after all...'
"Haven't thought that far ahead."
"You should. Anyway, I'm going to fetch my sister and go home for the day. See you tomorrow."
"Yeah, I'll go on ahead. Bye."
.
"..."
Irvine looked at the departing figure as he got lost in his own thought.
'Playing in the Tier-1 league... It'll be a very different experience.'
His first college was part of the Tier-2 league that didn't have the chance to play against the best players in his generation.
With their structural format, the Tier-2 colleges wouldn't have any matches against any Tier-1 colleges because of the difference in leagues.
This was arranged not only to balance the playing field, but also to separate the hundreds of schools in Olympus into several different schedules and followings.
Of course, it's not to say that Tier-2 college players couldn't enter the OPL draft, because Irvine himself had been a living proof of that.
It was just that the majority of OPL teams took-in their players from the Tier-1 pool more than any other places.
'Well, baby steps... First of all, my Gene Modification and then my second Gene Enhancement!'
All these should be done before the new academic year started so that he could actually play and compete in his first year of college.