Leo Skyfang felt like his memory was an information bank. He could recall many things any time he wanted. Another benefit of the Yin-Yang Lake.
Sequencing. Undefined.
These two traits fell under a broad archetype known as ***Unbound***.
Each trait was further divided by active vs passive. According to the images in his brain, passive traits stacked unlimitedly and modified properties while active traits changed behavior in real time. These augmented the methods of the Nano-Suit, therefore making feats performed by Warriors, Magicians, and Rogues extraordinary.
When he was in deep thought, the head instructor had already assessed hundreds of recruits. All of them, without fail, became operators. It was like some divine force intervened because there was an even ratio of Warriors, Magicians, and Rogues. Maybe 10 or less had potential in developing a signature with enough time and nurturing.
There was this portal constructed from vines just in front of the Yin-Yang Lake. The portal seemed to be sustained by the veins feeding off of it. Each recruit stuck their hand inside the portal. A strange black goo would then crawl along their arm, covering it entirely before receding. It was almost like an invisible force or barrier stopped it from going any further, despite how much it desired to.
The skin, cells, and muscles on the arm would then begin to bubble and reach out. They then quickly jumped into one of dozens of generic looking Nano-Suits and let the machine do the rest of the work. There was a soft glow that was either red, blue or green, with varying intensity as well.
"Listen up. If you slack, I'm immediately revoking your membership to this academy. The color and intensity of the glow tells you your specific affinity. Work hard, find a specialty, and take it on your journey to become one of this nation's top elites"
Most of the men and women laughed at the instructor's deluded words. There was a reason why so many jobs for Specialists and Elites stayed opened or incomplete.
"This sort of attitude is why you'll always be weak"
"Instructor. You think we don't know about the millions some rich heirs have spent on finding their own signature method?"
"Alright. Enough. No amount of money will solve anything. Just work hard and that's it. However"
Leo begin walking away the moment he heard the last word. Unfortunately, the instructor's words came out faster and spread further.
"Leo Skyfang, a new recruit, jumped into the Yin-Yang Lake with 4 others and immediately became a Double-Archetype Operator. He even showed me a demonstration. He's a Magician-Rogue Double-Archetype Operator. Needless to say, I've already assigned him into our Heaven-Tier classes"
Earth, Sky, and Heaven. This head instructor was basically the president of the academy. Taking a bit of inspiration from eastern culture, many things were culturally named in such a way which reflected his own personal views on life.
There was an uproar the moment the instructor finished the sentence. The other 4 students were ridiculed and mocked before intense stares locked Leo down so much that he found it difficult to move. One particularly brave man stepped up and immediately smiled.
"Leo Skyfang? According to the Operator's Guidebook, Double-Archetype Operators possess enough traits to be considered either or among two of the three different archetypes"
The Operator's Guidebook was the internal version of the public guidebook.
"I want to see how much stronger a Double-Archetype Operator is over a regular Operator"
With the head instructor smiling at him so proudly, he might be mocked or roughed up even more if he refused so he just agreed. The brave man was tall but neither big or skinny. He had a medium build and wore a custom-tailored uniform.
"I'm an Operator with most of my traits classifying me as a Warrior. I'm very curious as to the advantage or disadvantage Magicians and Rogues have over me"
To be honest, he had a thorough understanding of Warriors, Magicians, and Rogues from the imagines in his head. It was not much of a surprise to him who would win. Neither class had an advantage over the other. The most important part was outclassing your opponent.
The brave man was named Jerry and the first move was a charge using a shoulder tackle. It felt like a semi charging at him at 150 mph. A normal person would collapse out of fear in a second. Neither of them were. He put out a hand, palm facing forward and walked. Space was pushed forward but there was no wind. Only an invisible pressure that halted the tackle and pushed Jerry back over and over again.
The man tried to push harder but the pressure was like an immovable wall. Then punches flew. Each one looked like a missile impacting the wall but nothing. The force just disappeared into the wall with little fanfare.
"A Magician-Rogue Double-Archetype Operator who can employ the concept of space! My fuck— god!"
Super special now, but not unique yet. Unique would be Elites who were able to do the same. This was not in the public guidebook but the images in his mind. The standards would be different across eras so he was gambling on toeing the line.
The instructor was too numb with shock to think properly. Kept opening his mouth and closing it.
"You. Come with me"
After a while, the instructor grabbed Leo and ran off in front of the equally shocked crowd.
"Wait here"
The instructor slammed the door on Leo Skyfang after leaving him instructions. He looked around and discovered that he was in a hall. It reminded him of imperial halls modernized with technology. Imperial meaning a bloodline higher then royalty. There were headshots of various figures, probably important. Upon a closer look, they were high-profile guests who came to visit. Probably less famous then the ex-general who funded the entire place but more famous then the head instructor who ran the academy.
Maids, servants, cooks, and gardeners could be seen inside and through the windows, tending to the place and maintaining its prestigious look. The garden actually grew food that was harvested. Most that he had seen were all for aesthetics.
The door opened again 10 minutes later as the instructor grabbed and pulled Leo into the room. In the middle was a LCD screen with an old man on the other side.
"Greetings Leo Skyfang, Space Genius. Jonathan has already told me about the situation. The Yin-Yang Lake has no relation whatsoever with Operators, much less Space, yet somehow you became a Triple-Archetype Operator after jumping into it"
"Huh???"
"I understand you're confused, Jonathan. In fact, even Leo doesn't know it's poorly concealed in front of my eyes. Don't worry though. If I had intentions of exposing you, I wouldn't have asked my brother to bring you in. I would've just made him make up some excuse while keeping you in the dark. I suspect you have some relation with the artifacts that the Lake was built over"
"You mean the ancient royal and imperial families??"
"Yes. They had armies of Triple-Archetype Operators and even a few ACE's. I'm sure you received some information about that"
Leo was so stunned that he couldn't speak. He only opened his mouth and breathed very inconsistently.
"Relax. Let the world know you're a Double-Archetype Operator. Keep the final third a secret in your mind forever, until the time is right. My brother kept my own secret until I had the strength to stand up for myself so he'll keep yours"
He immediately looked at the instructor who nodded furiously.
"The concept of Space is similarly a trivial issue. If you also knew the concept of Time or how to dual-wield them, that'd be a different story. You'd be hunted and killed and researched"
There was only silence in the room as Leo Skyfang digested everything he had heard.
"Listen. I have a goal for you. Every 3 months, we hold a competition in the academy. Anybody can join and people usually hold back for the annual graduation exhibition but I need you to go all out every time. Show me how explosive your growth can be instead of how much potential you have"
It was like they were in lockstep. His brother started exactly when he had finished.
"I won't give you special treatment. If my brother didn't say anything, I would. He wants to see what you can do given the same starting point as everyone else. If you insist, I'll of course give in"
The response that Leo provided was instead a punch that distorted the space around them. It crashed down on Jonathan who raised his eyes and quickly responded. Grabbing at the space, the instructor pushed it back with sheer force, ripping it to shreds with ease before picking him up along the neck of his shirt.
"Not bad. Did you think that Space was invincible? Your application of it is too shallow. That can be improved by studying it. So many different things employ Space to varying degrees. For example, this LCD screen isn't being supported by wires or a glass stand. It's literally held up in place by inversing gravity. Lay your hands underneath it. Absorb it. Feel it. Find out why it works. Learn how it can be that way. That's your first lesson. I won't give you any other advice besides that"
Leo Skyfang sat down and began studying the concept of Space. Meanwhile, Jonathan headed back out towards the recruits to continue his assessment.