There was high competition in Azure Academy, so students from the lower grades envied those who managed to get into the better classes. Light City may have been a paradise, but human nature was the same everywhere, everyone wanted the best results.
Ethan like the other S-Class students had a certain reputation. Because of his position in society, since his parents were politicians, he had always gotten more attention than others.
Now, he was the center on which all eyes were focused. Many were sure he would fail, some thought Ethan had some cunning plan, but everyone was curious to see what he would do as the last participant in the Third Trial.
What was the most disgusting thing he would do when it had already been done many times?
The red flash had already knocked the previous contestant out of the barrier and was heading towards Ethan, whose face was deadly serious.
With each step he took, he moved closer to Alisa. Her gaze was blank, almost lifeless, she was on her knees, staring into the void.
Many people faced humiliation and bullying, but in Light City, especially in A-Class, it was barely possible.
So, for Alisa who had never even been beaten or punished for anything in her life, it was a real challenge to endure three hours of humiliation. She was broken and all she wanted was for it to finally be over, the joy that had been in her eyes at the beginning was long gone.
Nitra had a particularly evil smirk on her face.
'Hah, even if you do something relatively new, it's all useless! That creepy head is already bored! Only the first 100 people could get a decent grade!' Nitra glanced at Nightmare Eater, who was practically falling asleep.
Step. Step. Step.
Time was running out Ethan had only 10 seconds like the others, but in fact, a moment would have been enough for him.
Stepping into the barrier Ethan headed for Alisa. She was ready for another slap or name-calling. However, Ethan, instead of rushing, stepped aside, bent down in front of a tree picked something off the ground, and approached Alisa.
Alisa squirmed, expecting a punch, but instead, Ethan got down on one knee in front of her like a knight in front of a princess.
"Ah...?"
Since no slap followed, after a while Alisa opened her eyes, and what she saw made her heart race.
Light currents of wind fluttered the gray hair of a young man with calm green eyes and a cold gaze. His posture radiated confidence in his intentions as his expression showed immense seriousness.
The final detail was a single lily clutched between his fingertips. The lily signified purity and innocence, the red petals represented the power of life and most importantly love.
"Alisa." Ethan said steadily, taking her palm gently, "I don't know what's gotten into everyone else. It's like everybody's gone crazy, and unfortunately, I can't stop it... The least I can do is give you support and relief at the end, you've been through too much."
"But... What about trial...?" Alisa whispered with a trembling stare.
Ethan gave her a smile shining with kindness, "How could I hurt a lovely and sweet lady like you?"
It was the moment when all the limits inside Alisa broke. She had the strength to endure the humiliation, for she did not want to give up, but now all her heart desired was to fall into Ethan's arms.
And that's exactly what she did.
"Waaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!!"
A pained cry spread through the main square of the academy, reaching the souls of everyone who had caused her suffering today. Tears poured from Alisa's eyes, an endless stream soaking into Ethan's dark shirt while she clung tightly to him, unwilling to let him go.
"Shh, shh, it's going to be okay." Ethan whispered, wrapping his arms around Alisa from behind, allowing her to lean on him completely.
Everyone was totally baffled as Ethan did not do what they expected and not at all what the terms of the trial required.
'Wait...' Magnus's eyes went wide when he looked at Nitra who was in shock, 'She got the highest score, but why? Because her act was vile and sincere or because it caused Alisa the most emotion?!'
Then, Ethan's cold face changed dramatically, as if he had taken off the mask he had put on before the start.
The corners of his mouth curved into a sly smirk, and his eyes narrowed with a predatory glint, while genuine tears of happiness and joy flowed down his shoulder from the girl no one but him had supported.
'If everyone in the world becomes insane except one person who keeps his mind clear, doesn't that make that person the insane one?' Ethan muttered inwardly, savoring the moment.
In a society that was used to living in paradise, a simple slap had been a shock, an absolute horror, but after hundreds of similar acts, horrible and vile things... things had changed. First, they stopped surprising anyone, then it became the norm, something natural.
"Impossible..." The Nightmare Eater muttered with a dazed expression, "That... that... That was beyond my expectations! That cry... It's a masterpiece!"
At the same moment, the third eye brightly flashed with golden light, showing everyone a single number yet to appear before even in a thousand attempts!
"100! Maximum score!" The Nightmare Eater exclaimed absorbing all the dark mist into himself.
Tap.
Nitra fell to the ground with a blank stare, consumed by despair and hopelessness. Ethan had only beaten her by 1 point, but as with Alisa, it was enough to separate them, into a winner and a loser.
"Very well." Angel said calmly, slowly clapping his hands together, "I didn't expect that among you pampered humans there would be someone so... yeah, capable. It made even me emotional. A real rarity."
"I take it my job is done?" The Nightmare Eater chuckled evilly with a satisfied smirk.
Angel nodded, "Sure. Third Trial is over, leave."
Without further ado, the Nightmare Eater disappeared.
Angel cast his gaze over all the participants, then he waved his hand.
In front of him appeared a bright table emitting golden light. There were a thousand lines in the table, one for each participant.
The worst fifty results were circled in red, their fate had already been decided, but there was also another color, white, for the first hundred. Especially bright was the first line, which obviously had written on it - Ethan Mercer - 100 points.