On the school athletic field, the freshmen from three classes stood in three neat lines, waiting for their strength tests. A female teacher stepped onto the platform holding a roster.
"Listen up! When I call your name, come up quickly for your test. Understood?"
"Yes!" the students replied in unison, their voices echoing across the field. Hearts pounded those who'd excelled in the Forbidden Zone brimmed with confidence, while the unlucky ones who'd performed poorly looked uneasy.
Soon, the testing began.
"Ethan Lee!"
A sturdy boy shot forward and climbed the stage steps. The tester asked, "Ethan, where did you allocate your attribute points earned in the Zone?"
"All into Strength!" Ethan answered.
The tester led him to the punch-force machine. "Alright, give it your all."
Ethan's fist slammed the sensor.
"Thud!"
The digital readout flipped rapidly, then froze at 359. Gasps erupted from the crowd.
"Three hundred fifty-nine? What did he eat dynamite?"
"That's insane that's triple the power of a normal human!"
In this world, the punch machine gauges raw strength: a full-power punch by an average person scores around 100, and a strong fighter might hit 200. Ethan's 359 places him among the true powerhouses. That's the Forbidden Zone's miracle an ordinary kid forged into a warrior in hours.
Vincent Fox watched, intrigued. I wonder what my punch score would be… I might shatter the machine.
The tester stamped Ethan's file with an E-Rank the lowest tier of "enhanced" strength. A voice called out, "Take this report to City Hall to claim your E-Rank Medal. You'll receive a monthly stipend of 500 credits!"
Ethan beamed and stepped down. Five hundred credits isn't much, but the medal is a badge of honor anywhere he goes, people will respect him.
"Next, Sophia Lewis…"
A pause as the tester read her score: 226, no rank. Sophia's head drooped as she returned to line.
"Grace Wayne, 255 no rank."
"Lucas Sunny, 403 comprehensive rating: E-Rank!"
"Emma Lee, 337 and a 100-meter dash in 8 seconds E-Rank!"
"Mason Lewis, 391 E-Rank!"
…One after another, the Wayne Academy freshmen all showed up as E-Rank none had dared to put points into Agility or Constitution, and so they leaned on Strength. In contrast, at Godslayer Academy every student had a heroic talent, giving them far more choice.
As Vincent observed, the teachers nearby shook their heads in disappointment.
"This class is awful tested dozens, and not a single D-Rank yet."
"Yeah it's a shame."
"Each cohort seems weaker than the last."
Meanwhile, upperclassmen watched from the windowsills, snickering behind their hands.
"They're all E-Rank? How'd they survive the Zone?"
"If I went in there right now, I'd wipe the floor with every monster too bad you only get one shot."
"Don't brag you were the one who pissed yourself at the first zombie. Remember? I saved your ass!"
"Ugh, stop bringing that up!"
"But seriously, this batch is terrible."
"I heard there's one who stood out. Not sure who it is."
"Wait and see…"
News of Vincent Fox and Autumn Summer hadn't spread beyond a few insiders, so most of the school didn't know yet.
"Next up Autumn Summer!"
As soon as her name rang out, heads snapped to attention. Autumn Summer stepped forward, her reputation already legendary.