Chapter 55: A Person Driven by Vengeance, Xavier’s Shock
Despite being so early, the academy was already packed with students, filling the campus with noise. Zeke arrived on the seventh floor and headed to Xavier’s private office.
When he arrived in front of the door, he looked up at the sign to confirm it first. It would be awkward if he made a mistake. Just as he recalled, the office in front of him did belong to Professor Xavier, if the title above the door was anything to go by.
Zeke was unsure what was going to happen, but he was prepared to accept it and apologize, especially if it was his fault. He knocked on the door twice, then waited for a response.
The other students who saw him paused, not because of his looks or anything, but because he was about to enter Professor Xavier’s office. The dreadful rumors of the Steel Reaper’s office reached even second-years and third-years.
Sensitive to these sympathetic gazes, Zeke was unsure what to feel.
’It shouldn’t be that bad...’
A moment later, a cold voice came from the office.
"Come in."
Recognizing the voice, Zeke twisted the doorknob and pushed the door open. A clean, minimalist office greeted him. On the desk, a tall, dark-haired man with a gloomy impression sat quietly. He raised his head and glanced at Zeke, seemingly surprised.
"You’re early."
"... Should I not be?"
Zeke was unsure, but Professor Xavier merely frowned and shook his head.
"It doesn’t matter. Close the door and come sit."
Zeke did as he was told. After closing the door, he sat in front of the desk, facing Professor Xavier directly. But instead of saying anything, Professor Xavier put down his pen and looked at him quietly.
He stared at him for at least a minute, with an expression as frigid as ice.
Unable to take it anymore, Zeke took a deep breath and asked hesitantly.
"... Did I do something wrong, Professor Xavier?"
"What makes you think that?"
Xavier suddenly asked. Zeke furrowed his brows, unable to resist complaining in his heart.
’You told me to come to your office, and you’ve been staring at me for a whole minute...’
But he didn’t say that out loud, of course, he didn’t have a death wish. Zeke took a moment to answer.
"I’d like to know if I did anything wrong to be called here. As far as I remember, I haven’t done anything that warrants a punishment."
"Punishment?"
Professor Xavier furrowed his brows, seemingly confused.
"Did I say something about a punishment in my message?"
"... Is that not the case?"
Zeke was startled.
"No." Professor Xavier shook his head, looking at him quietly. Perhaps aware of the rumors surrounding him, he didn’t press the matter. "Let’s talk about why I called you here. Have you seen the update in your Personal Value?"
Zeke blinked, then he shook his head.
"No, I haven’t had the time. Is it updated now?"
"Yes, check it." Professor Xavier nodded, then added. "It always updates every exam or any completed mission. We finished reviewing and grading the recent class exam, so you should start to understand by now why I called you here."
Zeke paused for a moment, then brought it up himself.
"Is it about my performance in the class exam?"
Professor Xavier was silent, but he gave a slight nod. Zeke took a deep breath, relieved that it wasn’t something bad, but also feeling uneasy about the matter. He knew for himself just how explosive his growth had been in the past few days.
’Did I still show off too much...?’
He thought, turning up his Herta ID. While feeling uneasy, he checked his profile status and immediately realized the source of his troubles.
[Name: Zeke Crimson]
[Year: 1st Year]
[Class: D (40 class value; 5th rank)]
[Rank: 1.1 (More) (Update Required)]
[Personal Achievements: D – Rank (Enrollment), A – Rank (Top 12 in Class Exam B)...]
[Personal Value: 45]
[Merit Points: 53,000]
On his profile status, the entire rank tab shone brightly, its redness palpable. Zeke was startled and immediately looked at Professor Xavier.
"You’ve gotten stronger, haven’t you?"
Professor Xavier asked, but before Zeke could respond, he continued.
"The system prompted us with a warning when we graded you. Your personal value didn’t match the result you got in the class exam. But still, the footage we received from the dungeon can’t be faked, so the system suspects that you haven’t updated your rank."
The office was silent for a moment. Feeling Xavier’s inquisitive gaze waiting for him, Zeke took a deep breath before giving an answer.
"That’s right. I broke through Rank 1.3 a few days ago."
Although Xavier already suspected it, hearing it directly from Zeke’s mouth still threw him off guard. While it didn’t show in his expression, his heart stirred. Since when did Zeke transfer here? It was only a couple of weeks ago.
During that time, Zeke was merely a Rank 1.1 Initiate, yet in a short few weeks, he broke through two ranks without a sign. This speed wasn’t just impressive, it was terrifying to the point that it was enough for him to call Zeke a monster.
To put things into perspective, the average person with a Green-quality class starts with at least 10 echoforce, or more meaningfully, begins at Rank 1.1. It would take the person around half a month to reach Rank 1.2, and one full month to reach Rank 1.3.
In summary, the time it took the average person to reach Rank 1.3 was one and a half months, not including the use of special resources.
But Zeke accomplished all of that within a couple of weeks, not even half a month.
’If he’s telling the truth...’
Professor Xavier’s thoughts stirred. The urge to verify Zeke’s words took over him. He quickly stood up and brought out a Force Measure Device. Zeke stood up as well, knowing that actions were better than words.
"I’ll facilitate your echoforce exam this time. What happens here won’t get to anyone, except the dean and me. Feel free to show everything you have."
"... Okay."
Zeke nodded slightly. He looked at the Force Measuring Device and struck it with his fist.
Bam!
Professor Xavier’s eyes were glued to the device, seeing the number rise abruptly. When it finally stopped increasing, shock appeared in his eyes.
’1,600 kg!’
The Striking Force requirement for Rank 1.3 was at least 1,050kg, which Zeke had long surpassed. Professor Xavier didn’t delay and went straight to the speed test.
He brought out the Speed Measuring Device, which was a small gadget that looked like a gun. There were various ways to measure attributes, but the most common method was by using specific devices.
"Dodge as fast as you can."
Professor Xavier warned and quickly pressed the Speed Measuring Device.
Bang! Bang!
Startled, Zeke only saw Professor Xavier shoot him before dodging quickly. Professor Xavier’s aim was precise, as if the gun was following him wherever he appeared. But to clarify, there were no bullets shot from the gun.
After the exam, Professor Xavier looked at the results from the device.
’26 m/s!’
The Speed requirement for Rank 1.3 was at least 24 m/s, which Zeke had once more surpassed. Professor Xavier thought for a moment, then brought out a Spiritforce Measuring Device, the orb Zeke had seen last time.
Holding on to it, the orb shone quietly, giving off a small but bright nascent light.
’12 Spiritforce...’
This time, Professor Xavier was truly shocked. When Zeke first measured his Spirit Force, the orb showed nothing. This meant he had no spiritual potential, yet what he was seeing now clearly went against that idea.
12 Spiritforce was equivalent to 1,200kg of Striking Force. Zeke’s spiritual potential was only slightly below to the average person with a spiritual class.
It took Xavier a long time to calm himself down.
’With a Gray-quality class, this is impossible.’
He looked at Zeke quietly, then couldn’t help but ask in suspicion.
"Is your class really gray-quality?"
Zeke’s heart jumped, but he didn’t answer. In Red Land, asking about another person’s class was taboo. A moment later, Professor Xavier realized the insensitivity of his question and quickly apologized.
"I’m sorry. I went out of the line with that question... don’t answer it."
But from Zeke’s reaction, Professor Xavier inferred that Zeke’s class wasn’t simple in the slightest. At the very least, it wasn’t Gray-quality like the kid had said during his first echoforce exam.
After a while, Professor Xavier broke the silence.
"You can go, Crimson. I just needed to update your Rank. With your attributes, you’ve certainly reached Rank 1.3 just like you said."
"Thank you."
Zeke nodded politely, sighing in relief inwardly. He looked at Professor Xavier for a moment, then turned around. But before he could leave, Professor Xavier gave him some advice.
"The academy treasures talent above all else. Talent is reflected in a student’s personal value, and the quality of one’s class is a huge factor in the computation of personal value."
Zeke stopped by the door, then replied.
"... I will remember. Thank you, Professor."
Professor Xavier nodded and didn’t say anything more. The academy never forced talented students to act against their will. That goes against everything they stood for.
Zeke closed the door as he left, leaving Xavier alone in his office.
Xavier glanced at the measuring devices in his office and couldn’t help but fall into deep thought. While the shock brought by Zeke’s improvement was impressive, but in his mind, it still couldn’t be compared to seeing that footage the first time.
The scene of Zeke utterly destroying Franz, the 13th-ranked student in the first-year leaderboard.
Inexplicably, Xavier couldn’t help but recall Dean Pooler’s words when Zeke first arrived.
"Burning for vengeance, huh..."
