Elite Serenity
Acer observed as the number of students dropped dramatically around him.
The sun's rays now touched each student's clean clothes and the bright green grass flared under the light.
Normally, students would be wandering around at this hour, but the unusual emptiness suggested the school was under curfew. After all, most of the teachers stood behind the principal.
"The Elite Serenity will be here in a moment," The principal announced amidst a lace of other words.
Acer spent his time monitoring the other students around him as the principal spoke. It would have been an ordinary event, yet two students caught his attention. They were both from the Tech-bot faculty, looking absolutely stunning in their glossy metallic outfits.
The girl, curvy and striking in her pose, was certainly the tallest female among the students. She wore a black catsuit that glowed with a purple hue in the sunlight. The attire of both the girl and the boy wasn't the usual design everyone knew about.
They looked mechanical, outstanding in that feature.
The boy, with tamed side-part hair that shone under the light, wore more metal compared to the girl and was adorned with a backpack – if you could call it that – glossy and as stiff as a shell.
"Tech bots, eh?" Acer shook his head, almost saddened by the sight. "Probably, I could join that class?"
Then the principal's voice breezed past his ears, "Good luck!"
Acer gazed at the principal with a stiff expression. He wasn't particularly smiling or frowning, but for some reason, he felt as if the principal directed those words at him as their eyes locked.
Suddenly, a distortion encompassed the principal's position, and he, along with his teachers, disappeared out of sight.
Followed after, the atmosphere suddenly oozed with the tension of shivering feet and pounding hearts.
The students bit their fingers, fidgeting like four-year-olds left in the middle of chaos.
Acer was even more stunned to realize that the elegant Tech-bot students were also shivering, which definitely deducted from their charisma.
He turned to Adam, lost in the tanned appearance of the guy who blended into the camaraderie of students - albeit bolder than the rest.
Acer would have felt his usual fit of rage if this were the past, but now, his mind was almost like a blank page.
Not long after, a mild drift in space formed in front of the field, making room for the appearance of four individuals, each standing beside the other.
All twelve students, including Acer, cowered at the mere appearance of the four mighty figures – the esteemed Elite Serenity.
The Elite Serenity comprised four pros - three males and a female - skilled in their respective fields of Magic, Soul Artistry, Martial artistry, and mechanics, each exuding a distinctive look and aura.
The first man wore a fitting attire almost similar to that of the principal. He had short black hair, tousled and curly, complementing the shadowed look of his narrowed eyes and defined chin.
The lady beside him, dressed in the most distinct costume among the four, closely resembled the Tech-bot students and exuded a sophisticated demeanor.
Her bottle-green eyes peered particularly at the Tech-bot students, hinting at her complete disregard for the others.
Next was a man with an awfully starry gaze, leaving the students barely able to discern what or where he was staring at. His long spiky hair, sparkling like a rare gem with its platinum blonde tint, was topped with a dark blue scarf and a heavily draped shirt. His boots, unlike the others, were made of thick cotton, adding a midnight appearance atop leather trousers.
The last man simply eyed the students, observing each of them and their mannerisms.
He looked the most threatening, though least dressed, radiating an aura of might and dominance.
His only items were a great sword strapped to his back and a pair of fiery red gauntlets that looked as if they were made from dragon scales.
"Before we go into further detail of what you know, it is important for you to have this," One of the Elite Serenity members said.
Simultaneously, the twelve students felt an item strap itself to their wrists, pulling their gaze at the pale black watches, only bearing the color of a blue circle that rolled at the center of the watch screen.
"It's a counter, meant to calculate and inform you of how much Mana, Qi, or Soul energy you can expend."
Every student on the field gasped, stunned by the item they hadn't known existed until now.
Compared to tracking one's mana limit through intuition, they now had a more reliable tool.
Acer stared at the watch on his wrist, watching the blue circle whirl, 'Damnation!'
Only those words rang in his head. Without a mana-core, one couldn't garner any mana, leading to an obvious mana count. "0."
The watch displayed its number after a while leaving a stiffened smile on his cheeks.
Only because of the crowd of students did he not burst into an echo of laughter, finding it especially funny how the great Acer had fallen.
"The teachers gave us a rank on each of you. Adam Coe topped it… followed by Acer Pierce. Both from the mage class." The female amongst the Elite Serenity echoed at the student.
Her gaze remained fixed on the two Tech-bots students in the field, yet, she managed to carry the others along.
When Acer returned his gaze to the Elite Serenity, hiding the ever-glowing number on his watch with his palm, he realized they gathered around a wide tablet device.
"So Adam! Show us what you can do. Acer Pierce, you'll be next."
This time, the man with spiky hair spoke, his cold glare sending chills down Acer's spine - how could he make a performance on something he didn't have.
But still, he found himself taking the dire situation somewhat calmly.
Perhaps he'd made peace with his fate. 'A bundle of embarrassment... I guess.'
Meanwhile, Adam stepped forward, a gentle smile obscuring the arrogant kind he always wore.
For a second, he stood before the Elite Serenity and bowed, before backing away to a spot further in the field.
His gaze shifted to Acer, who stared back with blank eyes. "Let the show begin."