The Final Days in the Facility

Everyone cheered once they noticed that someone actually defeated a dummy.

"HOLY SHIT!"

"HE DID IT!"

After all these days of getting beaten up, people were really happy to see one of these wooden things finally go down.

[Someone has defeated a dummy, unlocking highlight replay for credit purposes!]

And so on all the screens of the facility appeared the fight between Leon and the dummy, visible from all angles as there seemed to be dozens of invisible cameras set up in the zone.

But this wasn't what interested Leon the most…

~DING~

[You have completed the Side-Quest "Dummy Slayer"!]

[You have obtained the 'Pass Card'!]

"…"

Without saying anything, Leon left his zone, and without being interrupted even once, he also left the [Training] section, heading toward his room and jumping on his bed even though he had woken up only two hours ago.

"Stamina is weird…" Leon sighed, because no matter how much you slept, if your stamina depleted, then you would be tired.

[Well, at least you managed to control your aura.]

That was true.

Anyone who manages to defeat a dummy has basically mastered the basic usage of their talent and aura, which was quite literally the hardest thing someone could do at the start.

Leon and many others probably expected for it to take them months to finally do that as even their teachers, and videos they saw on the internet, told them that as a new awakener, this was the hardest challenge they would face.

And yet… Leon did it in four days.

[I think they set up everything on purpose as to allow people to grow stronger fast]

'I think so too,' the fight against the dummy was difficult, but the more you tried, the better you felt about your odds of winning.

[But now that you have the basics, our growth will be much better, just note that you are around five times as strong as you were in the first trial!] EGO positioned himself in front of Leon's face as he looked at the ceiling.

Yet before he could even say anything else… Leon closed his eyes and fell asleep.

[Huh, well, it is to be expected] EGO looked down at Leon with aura around him before seeping into the boy's body.

***

(Yet another three days later, final day)

Leon had spent the remainder of his time doing nothing much, since he had already completed the quest.

Of course, he kept hanging around the [Training] section, and actively attempted to defeat more dummies, which he actually succeeded in doing now.

The video of him fighting the dummy spread around, and now everyone knew about him.

But on the fifth day since they entered this facility… another announcement rang in the morning, at around 8 am.

[Anyone who defeats their dummy will be showcased too!]

All these additions made it so that the amount of people who attempted to complete the 'Training Section' challenge grew.

Meaning that more and more people were managing to defeat their own dummies as time went on.

Of course, the great majority obviously tried once or twice, but the sheer difference in level between the dummy and them made them lose hope.

"We can improve during the 'Ascension Challenge'," they said, "So why even bother?"

Leon even observed as Dan, Alice, and Noah finally managed to defeat their own opponents, all feeling proud of themselves.

And so time passed quickly, reaching the final day before they even realized it.

[It's time, Host,] EGO informed Leon as he woke him up at exactly 7:53 am, [They will probably announce that it's over soon.]

Leon opened his eyes and looked at the time on the clock of his room as it passed.

And the moment it hit 8 am…

~DING, DING, DING, DONG~

[It has officially been a week since you arrived here, please meet at the lobby, the 'elites' will tell you what to do next!]

[Next up: the 'Ascension Challenge'!]

"It's time…" Leon sighed as he got up from his bed, grabbed the small backpack that had his two other academy uniforms, then headed to the lobby.

The hallways were all crowded now, as everyone had seemingly woken up knowing they would call for them at this time.

[It's funny, because most of these people aren't even participating in the final challenge,] EGO smiled mischievously.

"…Right," Leon answered.

After around ten minutes, he finally reached the lobby, where all 18000 students were.

There were dozens of soldiers in front of the entrance (which had reappeared), all carrying a piece of paper in their hands, and a weird device that looked like a scanner.

"Please look at the screens above," Toji was actually the one who was leading again, and he didn't even bother introducing himself or saying anything, he just pointed above him, and three massive screens that could be seen from anywhere in the lobby were there.

And suddenly… the same video started playing on all three.

[Good morning to all students that have had the chance to arrive in this facility!]

[I'm sure many of you are confused, and are getting impatient to finally attempt to defeat the 'Ascension' challenge, which is known all throughout the world!]

Leon couldn't find his three companions, so he looked at the screens, ignoring the surrounding chatter.

[But I have sad news to tell you all!]

"…"

[Here we go,] EGO, who was lying on Leon's head, spoke.

[The truth is… not everyone here is going to participate, actually, let us not hide the details, MOST of you all won't be participating!]

"What?"

"The fuck?"

Many were confused, but all those that had successfully defeated a dummy already knew where all of this was going.

[Remember the 'Training' room that had been specially set for you all to fight dummies that had the exact amount of aura as you all?] the screen switched to several images of the room in question, as well as displaying some fights that had occurred there.

[Well, let me cut it short, but all those that haven't completed the "Dummy Slayer" quest will not be eligible to participate in the 'Ascension' trial.]

The lobby erupted into chaos. Students shouted in disbelief, their voices mingling into a cacophony of confusion and anger.

"No way! We trained for this!" A girl with short, dark hair slammed her fist into her palm. 

"Why didn't they tell us sooner?" another voice cried, trembling with frustration.

[Oh, but you all received that quest didn't you? You saw all those people training against the dummies over and over, and the only announcements we ever sent were about the 'Training Section', yet… you're saying you didn't know?]

"THERE WAS NO WAY WE COULD KNOW."

[It doesn't matter, people who are worthy of participating in the trial need to have the ambition and strength to do what most don't, and plus…] there was a dramatic pause, which kept everyone on edge, [I'm sorry to inform you all, but anyone who didn't defeat their own dummy wouldn't be strong enough to last even thirty minutes in the trial.]

It made sense for Leon: if you defeated your dummy, it meant you had mastered the basics of your aura and skill, but what about those who didn't do it? Then they would surely be much weaker.

[Anyway, in total, the amount of people who completed the quest is…]

[1327!]

[Congratulations to all of them!]

[Oh, and by the way, see those devices in the hands of the soldiers?] red arrows appeared on the screens, pointing at the men below, [They are scanners that will scan your 'Pass Card', meaning that trying to steal it from someone else is futile as it is connected to the person that completed the quest.]

And so…

[Please stay in line, everyone will be checked.]