Actually, the entrance exam and graduation exam for Pentagon Academy were the same.
The skills, knowledge, and practical experience that any Awakener should possess.
When they were freshmen, lacking in all of these, the newbies would realize their own shortcomings in the entrance exam.
They thought that the world was theirs now because they had awakened, but they still had a long way to go.
That's how their pride would be crushed.
After that, the cadets who had honed their skills for four years would take on the same exam again.
They would feel their own growth and conquer each stage one by one.
Until they finally reached the 10th stage and received their graduation certificate.
It was an exam that meant to have a kind of "circularity" within the academy.
———However, Seo Yujin had a question.
"Wait. What happens if you clear all 10 stages as a freshman?"
It was an absurd level of difficulty, but what if you cleared the 10th stage as a freshman?
Isn't this like taking a PhD thesis to a university admission interview?
I wonder what will happen. I have to try it right away.
That was the reason why he delved into the tutorial called the entrance exam.
It was also the reason why he could clear the 10th stage even though he was in the early stages of his regression and reincarnation.
His skills, which had become stagnant and rotten, were once again unleashed upon the world.
-Twaaaaang!!!!
The boss monster of the entrance exam. The Executioner.
The tentacles of a formidable enemy that appeared from an A-Rank gate slashed through the air and surged forward.
It was an irregular attack that would cause PTSD for even active Awakeners.
The instructor watching shook his head.
"There's no distinct motion, and where it's going is random until the last moment. Even with that cadet, evasion is impossible..."
-Tick.
"He dodged it!?"
But Yujin dodged the attack with just a single nod of his head.
As if he knew the attack was coming, he did it with ease.
His golden eyes gleamed mischievously.
[Skill 'Complete Hypnosis' activated. Failed. With the current user's level...]
"You're getting angry because I dodged it? This time, I'll wrap the extended tentacle around its neck and break it."
[...Confirmed that the target's intention matches. Despite the difference in levels, the target is under a 'very slight' hypnotic effect!]
"If I know where it's coming from, evading is easy."
Because of the huge difference in stats, it was originally impossible for him to hypnotize.
But Yujin succeeded in hypnotizing him repeatedly.
He manipulated the tentacles that were still pondering where and how to attack.
It was a method worthy of a self-proclaimed "Hypnosis Breeding Uncle."
As a result, his extreme skill unfolded before everyone's eyes.
-Shush, shush, shush.
"This is impossible. It's like he knows exactly where it's going to attack..."
The tentacles swung. The sound of air being torn apart echoed fiercely.
It didn't reach Yujin.
Before the attack even came, he was already in a dodging position.
Tap, tap. Footsteps that even a normal person could do.
Compared to the tentacles, it felt like a standstill, if not slow.
It was just that, yet the tentacles missed him and hit the empty air.
It was a just-in-time evasion by a hair's breadth.
The enraged monster swung its tentacles again.
A thrust focused on speed aimed at its vital organs.
A swing focused on range whipped around with a whip-like sound, stirring up the middle.
It was an irregular attack that even the instructor couldn't react to, filling the space.
But it didn't reach him by a hair's breadth.
15 years of accumulated experience surpassed even the overwhelming physical difference by a hair's breadth.
-Step, step.
Yujin had already passed through the rain of tentacles and approached the main body.
His hand went to his waist.
A katana tied loosely with a rubber band.
Toward the scabbard.
Taking advantage of that gap, the pentacles surged forward.
Aiming for the heart.
A sneak attack that went behind him, just in case he dodged.
"Y, Yujin!! Behind...!!!"
"This is really the end. Even Aika can't dodge that."
Alice's scream and the instructor's sigh crossed paths at the same time.
The tentacles, which had kept missing, finally...
Touched his back for the first time.
A gruesome sound of "Kwak" echoed.
"Yujin!!!!"
"Alice, really. I've been dodging all this time, so you don't know... "
-Ding!
[Characteristic 'Indomitable' effect reduces damage by 90%. Status effect 'Penetration' is ignored.]
"I'm a bit tough, you know."
The tentacles, which were supposed to pierce through everything, instead pushed him forward.
At the same time, a brilliant purple light poured out of the scabbard.
A technique that explodes the magic concentrated in the scabbard when drawing the sword.
It was a similar principle to firing a bullet... swordsmanship.
It was the Jaha Swordsmanship, which he had saved until the last moment due to its high magic consumption.
"———Purple Invincibility."
-Swoosh.
The katana swung at a speed that couldn't even be seen.
A purple line was engraved on the body of the boss monster, the Executioner.
Before that beautiful line turned into a gruesome wound.
The illusion of the core being split in half disappeared into smoke.
-Click... Swoosh.
"One-shot kill. I have something to brag to my teacher about."
It was the moment when a freshman finished his graduation assignment.
Yujin cleared the 10th stage in a whirlwind.
Those who watched were stunned.
"Senior!! This, this is..."
"He cleared A-Rank... right after entering?"
The boss monster of the 10th stage. The Executioner.
...Actually, most graduates couldn't even defeat it.
In the first place, wasn't that a monster that only appeared in A-Rank gates?
To defeat it, you had to become an A-Rank Awakener, so why would they demand such a thing in a mere graduation exam?
Therefore, the original purpose of the 10th stage was survival.
How long could you withstand an overwhelming enemy you couldn't resist and survive?
Even if you survived for 10 minutes, it was enough to be considered an Awakener who could contribute and be passed. That was the 10th stage.
But, he didn't just survive, he actually defeated it?
To defeat a monster that only A-Rankers could defeat means that the cadet himself is also an A-Ranker.
In fact, the cadets who actually cleared the final stage of the graduation exam were immediately given A-Rank Awakener status.
He had just become a nationally recognized A-Rank Awakener.
———Not a graduate, but a freshman.
"This, as far as I know..."
"Yeah. S-Rank No. 1, Ninomiya Aika. She was the only one who did that in the entrance exam. Until now."
It wasn't an unprecedented record.
Because the current S-Rank No. 1 had already achieved that record.
But, is that a reason to downplay that achievement?
Absolutely not.
The reporters' eyes lit up.
"That means, that boy... uh, uh? Senior, where are you going!?"
"I'm going to interview the next S-Rank!!!"
The reporters swarmed like zombies, ignoring even the guards' attempts to stop them.
As a result, the training ground was thrown into chaos.
"...!!!? Over there, I understand, but please calm down!! We'll arrange a separate place..."
"Just one minute!!"
"Just give me a business card and I'll leave..."
"If you don't follow our instructions anymore, we will consider it terrorism and take action!!"
Outsiders trying to break into the test site by any means.
The instructors and academy personnel desperately trying to control them.
And,
"That's a talent that only our Cheonhwa can accommodate!"
-Swoosh.
Yoosia, a woman who had been hiding in the shadows, also took action.
The clan 'Cheonhwa', run by her father.
She was convinced that the vessel worthy of accommodating him should be Cheonhwa, the No. 1 in Korea.
-Whoosh.
"Sister, can I help?"
"Ah, Sia!"
Her appearance finally revealed after hiding for so long.
The instructor, who was also a former member of Cheonhwa, was overjoyed to see her familiar brown twin tails.
The instructor knew her abilities, as she was the third daughter of the clan leader.
"Restrain the civilians so they don't get hurt! If I use my power, I won't be able to clean up the mess!!"
"Yes."
-Clap.
The sound of clapping hands, as if she were joining her hands.
Then...
Black ropes spouted from her shadow.
-Swoosh.
"...Y, Yoosia!?"
"Why is someone from the Cheonhwa clan...!!!"
Those who were restrained by the ropes realized her identity and were shocked.
She just smiled and sneered.
"I'm not a member of Cheonhwa right now. I'm a freshman."
'I'm a freshman, just like him. Unlike you guys.'
Let the other clans watch and suck their thumbs for four years.
That kind of arrogant smile.
The headhunters' faces were filled with disappointment.
"Yoosia-nim, then maybe..."
"Ah, Kim Ha-neul, the reporter, right? If you have any questions, ask Cheonhwa. I can ask for you as a 'classmate'."
"Me, me too!!"
"Please, I beg you!!"
She even went so far as to subtly suggest that she could give scoops to journalists who were friendly with the Cheonhwa clan.
Thanks to that, the commotion was quickly settled.
The reporters became obedient dogs wagging their tails.
The headhunters envied Cheonhwa's overwhelming luck and hung their heads.
She smiled.
'I can use this as an excuse to talk to him. Now, where is he...?'
Yoosia finally turned around.
The talent of talents she was looking for.
She went to find Seo Yujin, the cadet.
———Her smile broke as soon as she saw him.
"You were amazing, Yujin! Even in Korean webtoons, they don't..."
"...Huh?"
'What is that girl doing?'
Yujin, who had escaped from the training ground amidst the chaos, was there.
Because a woman was clinging to him.
It was Alice.
"Uh, uh, yeah."
'Isn't she a bit too close?!'
Yujin, who was also panicking, was stammering.
Wow. As expected, the skin of a 20-year-old...
No, wait. It's a bit weird for a 35-year-old to be thinking like this.
Besides, why is Alice so close?
She doesn't like fighting that much, does she?
He was at a loss for words, thinking these things and having a honest physiological response typical of a 20-year-old.
And Alice...
She was feeling a strange emotion in her heart.
-Shiver, shiver.
'Everyone is envious. Hehe.'
The gazes of the women who were looking at him.
Jealousy, envy, and admiration mixed in there.
-Glare.
'Especially... that girl with the twin tails who suddenly appeared, she's looking at me like she's going to kill me.'
Yoosia's murderous gaze, which was targeting her.
She didn't know why, but it felt good.
'Envious? I even got a drink from Yujin. We're fellow Solnun comrades.'
-Hug.
'This is how we can sit with our shoulders touching.'
She moved her butt closer to him, and the gazes intensified.
Yoosia's reaction was the most intense.
'What is that vixen doing? Why is she touching what's mine?'
-Click.
"...…♡"
Alice's smile rose in proportion to that.
In the end, she couldn't help but smile.
Secretly, so that Yujin wouldn't notice. She smiled at Yoosia.
-Grin.
'Even if you stare like that. What can you do?'
"...…!!!!!!!"
'That, that vixen!!?'
"Th, there. That is. Alice. Th..."
'Alice is still in her early 20s. I can't react. I have to hold back, hold back...'
It was a war that only Yujin was unaware of.
That evening.
"My unique ability is hypnosis. Complete Hypnosis."
"...!!!!!?"
The future S-Rank candidate made a bombshell statement.
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My apologies for the incredibly long wait! To be honest, I completely forgot this novel even existed. It's been so long since the original author last updated, I guess it slipped my mind. I'm really bad at keeping track of things sometimes...