On the way back, Nikolai finally noticed his roommates. While Lan was in the wind class, Nar was in the fire class, and Ro Za was in the water class. He didn’t notice them before because things were messy, but they were bound to see him.

Mr. Heartwrath gathered them in front of the Rohan Academy’s Forest gates, giving them one final speech before going back to the academy.

“The Earth Class has emerged victorious this time. I can’t say I expected that. There are a lot of things no one expected.” He glanced at Nikolai as he said that. “Scores shall be rewarded according to performance. The academy will double The Earth Class’s scores because they won. For the Wind and Water Class, who managed to last until the end, we will increase their scores by 30%. As for the Lightning and Fire Class, they got nothing!”

Hearing this, the students of the Fire and Lightning Class groaned. The Lightning Class glared at Nikolai, who has stolen their first-place position.

“Sir!” Julian stood up from the crowd. “Some students used outside aid; isn’t that cheating?” He was referring to Nikolai and the Falcon, hoping to disqualify him.

“The Guardian of Rohan is no outsider.” Mr. Heartwrath replied sternly. “If he decided to intervene, then it must be within the limit.” He waved Julian off, who gritted his teeth in anger.

Nikolai didn’t say anything and endured the hateful gazes of the students. All he cared about was his performance scores. He was the one who captured both monoliths, giving him a very high score.

“The individual exam will be held in the academy’s virtual chambers.” Mr. Heartwrath said as the buses arrived. “There, you can prove yourselves.”

Even though his score doubled, so did the scores of the other students in his class. This reward included Julian, who did nothing but obstructing them.

Nikolai boarded the bus as he thought about the possibility of them punishing Julian. However, he couldn’t see it. The academy wouldn’t offend the Mackay family over this.

The students deserted the row of chairs he sat in, either out of fear or hate. He looked out of the window as he thought about the curse on his body. He needs to lift it today after the exam.

This way, he would have an easy mind as he makes his way into Hyde’s inner circle. The materials were there, and Sergio researched what Nikolai asked of him, so it should be okay.

[Fate Points: 24.]

He looked at the panel in front of him with a smile. The system has rewarded him with 20 Fate Points for dominating the exam. This way, he’ll have an easy time going through his following plans.

“For someone who made so many enemies, you seem relaxed.” Sira walked over and sat beside him. “Aren’t you afraid that your wings will burn if you get too close to the sun?”

“By the sun, I don’t know if you mean glory or Miss Valkyrie Helnes.” Nikolai squinted his eyes. “Are you saying I should back down?”

“Who am I to tell you what to do?” Sira shook her head. “I’m just saying that you should expect some retaliation.”

“From who?”

“From everyone that you will outrank.” Sira smiled. “We’re the sons and daughters of heaven, untouched by the mortal world. Everyone carries this mindset; what would happen if the mortal world reached out and proved stronger than them?”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Nikolai said dismissively. “You can leave.”

“Make friends, not enemies,” Sira said before standing up and leaving. Nikolai remained silent as her words remained in his mind.

‘If I care about your feelings, I’ll never advance.’ Nikolai clenched his fist. ‘The Lost Garden, Bloodline Crystal, hiring a flying ship, and finally, trial of God of Lost Souls. You try to hold me down, but I shall break through everything and obtain what revenge.’

Nikolai’s eyes were terrifyingly cold. The world has betrayed him time and time again, breaking something within him. He didn’t care about anything but obtaining the power that would make him invincible.

The buses arrived at the academy, where Mr. Heartwrath to go to the Virtual Reality facility. For the individual exam, they will be taking it using a game called Ascension of Immortals.

If the students hated him before, they loathed him now. As he was walking into the academy, he received more gazes than usual. From now on, there will be people other than Julian.

As he arrived at the virtual reality facility, Nikolai found Miss Jena waiting for them. She gave him an encouraging wink as he walked toward the cabinet. Nikolai shook his head with a smile as the scenery changed in front of him.

Ascension of Immortals.

A large majority of adventurers below the F-rank played this game. It was a series of challenges that they needed to tackle and climb the tower. It helped sharpen their observation skills and instincts.

In front of Nikolai was a giant gate. He walked through the gate, and the game asked him to enter his name. After he wrote it, the gate exploded and pulled him into the tower.

“Your scores will be based on how well you do here.” Miss Jena’s voice arrived to inform them. “The more progressive you are in the tower, the higher your scores. I wish you luck.”

As her voice faded, the first floor appeared in front of Nikolai. He was in a brick room filled with ancient vines. The vegetation grew from between the wall’s spaces and gave the room an abandoned ambiance.

A single orb glowed in front of him with words floating above it. Nikolai read them and smiled. This exam was going to be his playground.

[Lucky Orb: This orb appears at the end of every floor, rewarding adventurers with random items. The gods took pity on humans and spared one Lucky Orb at the beginning of every adventure.]

[Items: Tools, weapons, or artifacts that would help you on your quest. Their ranking is Low, Average, High, and Perfect.]

‘If it’s luck, then I have tones of it.’ He had forgotten about this from his past life. Nikolai opened his system and checked the odds of getting a perfect item.

[The chosen event: Obtaining a Perfect-rank item.]

[Probability: 10%]

[Fate Points invested: 0.]

[New Probability: -]

[Fate Points: 24.]

[The system has detected a Virtual Reality Realm. The points required to change probability differ from the real world. One Point guarantees a single outcome.]

‘Ah,’ Nikolai grinned as he read the last note. ‘It’s because the program runs this Virtual Reality, not a real-life event.’ He used his system, and the orb glowed a golden color. ‘It is all coming together.’ He pulled the item from the Lucky Orb.