After Shanna's, several candidates emerged with promising results, boasting one or more A grades under their belt, but none of them managed to reach the prestigious S level.
Rin, soon ready for his turn and deeply bored, began to think: "Old Ryu must have trained me physically because he knew I needed it... Even if his methods are more than questionable, I have to thank him." His face wrinkled at the thought, then his mind found an alternative solution: "I'm going to save him from that thing that runs the bar, from that filth that must be as old as the bastion... Very good idea... Very good idea ahahahaha."
Watching Rin laugh at himself for no apparent reason, Alliong couldn't help but make a connection with the information her grandfather, the director of the Chamber of Commerce, had given him about Ryu: "How someone so unstable, that even the strongest Bastion forces dare not offend because of his madness, to raise such a joyful person?' A shiver ran down Alliong's spine at the thought of the madness Ryu had unleashed simply for one misplaced word.
A question from Rin brought Alliong out of his reverie: "Along, what do you think your test score
will be?"
"Rin, before I answer you, know that there are 6 types of individuals on Earth during the Awakening Ceremony. The first is the most common, unfortunately, it's the one who has neither
physical nor spiritual talent," Alliong began. Rin nodded, finding it logical.
"Then, there are the two classic types, those who are specialized either in physical or spiritual," Alliong continued.
Rin hesitated for a moment, "Hey, are you mistaken, right? What else is there?"
Alliong smiled and replied, "There are two other types of people, rare ones, called extreme physical talent and extreme spiritual talent!"
Rin didn't grasp the significance of these types.
Seeing his friend lost, Alliong laughed and explained, "Shanna belongs to the extreme spiritual type, hence her physical scores. She's highly specialized in spirituality, but the downside of this nature is that her physical abilities are limited."
Rin understood, but after a quick calculation, one was missing.
Before Rin could even ask the question, Alliong continued, "There's one last type left, much rarer, destined to become someone great if they don't die too early... The complete talent, excelling in both." Shen Yi is arguably the closest to this type of talent, but his physical strength outweighs his spiritual if I were to guess correctly."
Alliong was smiling, but unlike his usual smiles, this one was filled with ego, pride, and above all, disdain.
The soldier called out the next candidate, "Number 895 - Alliong."
"And to answer your question, I belong to the extreme physical type. It's time to show others that this part of the ceremony is my playground," he declared confidently.
As Rin remained stunned, Along began to walk calmly towards the machine.
Once inside, he waited a few moments before the soldier checked the results. The soldier double-checked before finally declaring:
"Number 895 - Physical Test - Grade: ..... SS."
A murmur of disbelief spread through the crowd. Along's score was monstrous, so monstrous that the four prodigies in the waiting room along with all the candidates inside fell silent.
As he headed towards the second test, his aura now exuded a dominant presence, and gradually, faint glowing veins appeared on his skin.
"It's Alliong's semi-Stigma!!!"
"What luck to have a semi-stigma before the awakening."
When the soldier of the second stage gave the signal, Alliong shot forward like a bullet and effortlessly dodged all the obstacles.
"Number 895 - Reactivity Test - Grade: SS."
A complete silence filled the room. The prodigies weren't affected as much, but those with multiple "A"s and who felt confident instantly lost their assurance.
Standing before Lieutenant Jin, Along assumed position.
"Come on, strike quickly. I know you're exhausted. It's not easy to activate a half-formed physical stigma," Lieutenant Jin said respectfully.
Ahhhhhhhh
A cry, a muffled noise, then nothing... In the center of his chest, the shirt was burned, revealing impeccable abs without a single scratch.
Lieutenant Jin looked at the young man before him with complicated eyes and declared,
"Number 895 - Strength Test - Grade: SS."
Rin, bursting with joy, leaped exuberantly, breaking the initially silent atmosphere due to Alliong's impressive performance: "Ahahaha, that's my brother, show them!!!"
His enthusiasm was so contagious that even Alliong, though exasperated by his behavior, couldn't help but let out a slight chuckle.
However, the others in the waiting room didn't share the same enthusiasm.
"Come on, hurry up, panda, we want to move on to the next test!"
"Never underestimate a panda, it's always a bear ahahah."
Meanwhile, the four prodigies, except Alliong, paid close attention to Rin.
Shanna: "Let's see what the Monster's protege is capable of."
Yuuki: "Hump! I doubt he's worth anything if he can't even get at least one S."
Shin: "He might be on the spiritual side, don't jump to conclusions too quickly, Little Yuuki."
Shen Yi: "Just watch, there's no point in giving an opinion without prior knowledge."
Amidst glances and smiles, they then focused their attention on Rin's test.
Rin, rising with overflowing energy, walked towards the machine with renewed determination.
Her face radiated confidence as she prepared to take on the challenge of the test... But Rin stopped halfway.
Rin sometimes felt powerless: "Why now..."