The sunlight was peeking through a small gap in the curtains, highlighting my face.
My eyes twitched and slowly opened up.
Huaaam~
I got up from my bed and did my usual routine to get ready.
Today was the starting of a new school year for Bless and a new start for me.
I looked outside the window and saw that it was no longer snowing though there was still a lot of snow on the ground.
The system's robotic voice called out to me and reminded the pain I had gone through the last 2 days.
*Host, your Daily Quest has been updated.*
Pushups:175/0
Sit-ups:175/0
Squats:175/0
Run(KM):17.5/0
Reward: One random stat upgrade
Failure: One random stat downgrade
Note:Today is the last day of the Daily Quest, but its recommended you ask the system for an optimal workout or make one yourself.
"So, this is it huh? The last day of the Daily Quest."
"I guess I'll make a lighter workout for myself and continue it myself."
DONG. DONG.
The deep chime echoed through the air, signaling the official start of the year.
"Guess I'd better not be late."
I stepped outside. The cold breeze brushing past my face felt refreshing more than ever.
It was rare for me to feel excited yet I felt more alive than ever at this moment.
I arrived at the open meeting place and got into the line for Class Players.
As long as I didn't talk to anybody who came from big families, it seemed they wouldn't bother me and I was okay with that.
"Alright, listen up." A commanding voice reverbated through the air.
A woman with long, blue hair walked towards the front of the podium.
Her hair resembled a waterfall, cascading down her back unlike her eyes which seemed like a calm water, still and beautiful.
The academy's banner hung behind her proudly, as if it was showing respect to its master.
She was Scarlett, her surname still a mystery even to this day.
How do I know for sure if I haven't read the full story?
Because I am a die hard fan of her.
I could talk about how amazing she is for a day straight but that didn't matter right now.
"Welcome everyone, to my Bless academy"
***
She gave a short and simple speech about how she expects us to become stronger.
After that came the Ranking Exams, the most waited moment of the day by possibly everyone.
"All students from Class Players, please come with me."
One of the teachers instructed, taking us to the examination area.
It was a wide indoor facility adorned with various items such as VR full body sets and capsules.
"U-um what do we do now, instructor?"
A presumably shy girl asked.
Tch, the teacher clicked his tongue.
"I was just about to get to it. First of all wear these full body sets."
Suddenly everybody started taking a body set off the ground and I too got one.
"Now that you are wearing those, go inside the VR machine. The first test will be happening via an artificial world." He added.
I headed inside the capsule and got myself in a comfortable position.
The capsule started lightly shaking and my consciousness started to slip away but not at the same time.
It truly was a weird feeling as if I was half asleep.
When all of my senses returned I found myself on top of a hill, next to a wooden cabin.
This exams purpose was to determine our reaction speed.
In this virtual world everybodys stats were fixed at the same F- rank.
So, unless someone was overwhelmingly smarter than the other, their choice would be traps or direct confrontations and both of them are determined by experience, which they didn't have yet and their reaction speed.
A robotic voice, not the one I was accustomed to but another one made by the academy, resounded in my head.
Welcome, participants. Your goal is to survive for 10 minutes. Good luck.
Survive for ten minutes? Sounds simple right? But of course not, how could you expect a easy test from the Bless academy.
Every place was filled with traps and 300 participants were spread on a really small area that it was almost impossible not to find someone within a 15 meter radius.
Knowing this, I quickly got inside the cabin to avoid unnecessary fights for now.
Inside the cabin there appeared to be a crude bow and a few arrows along with a bread on top of the table.
I quickly looted whatever I can and closed the curtains so I couldn't be easily spotted from the outside but...
Click
Oh shit.
Spikes went up from the ground, I barely saved my vital organs but still a spike had pierced my shoulder.
"ARGH-"
I covered my mouth with my hand to not let any sounds.
...
Thankfully it seemed nobody heard it and I was safe for now was what I was thinking until
Creaaak
The door slowly opened and I held my breath, pulled my bow and started waiting for the intruder to come in.
A boy tried to enter and as soon as he did, he got shot in the head.
Phew
I let out a sigh of relief before carrying over the corpse of the boy inside to loot him,
The boy's body pulsed slightly before disintegrating into pixels, leaving only the loot behind. A soft, robotic voice echoed in my head:
Participant eliminated.
He only had a dagger but anything was useful at this point.
The timer in the corner of my vision read: 07:32 and my HP read 78/100. Over two minutes had passed, and I was still alive, but it felt like an eternity.
I realized the cabin was no longer safe and quietly exited through the backdoor.
There was a small forest within my sight and if I could get there I might be able camouflage myself better but before I could get inside the forest I heard two voices arguing.