Chapter 82: Elaris Island Exam 22
Olivia gently tossed him the paper, also giving him the pen in the process.
"Do you trust me?" Cassien asked, his gaze attached to the sheet.
"If I didn’t, then I would’ve never made you my assistant." She answered, that response bringing a calm and soothing feeling into Cassien.
"Glad to know," he smiled. "Then I’ll begin to answer."
He looked at the sheet closely.
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Class 1D Leader: ______
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Class 1C Leader: ______
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Class 1B Leader: ______
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Class 1A Leader: ______
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The instructor’s voice returned.
"For your own section, please just write down whoever your leader is. Thanks a lot."
Cassien clicked the top of the pen a couple of times, the satisfying noise easing his ears. The guards were still exploring the area where they spotted Siv alone, with no gun because Cassien had cloned it.
He took a look at the other representatives of each class, also holding their own sheets.
And then he began rethinking every action thus far.
Firstly, he wrote down their own leader, which should’ve been quite obvious.
Afterward, he wrote down Class-1D’s leader, whom he believed it most definitely was.
Class-1A was next, which Cassien also quite confidently filled in.
And then came 1B, where he remembered the clue the [Heart of Judgment] tossed out, one specific detail.
’The commanding leader has already spoken with someone from Class-1C.’ Cassien tried thinking about it, but not much came to mind.
’Siv was in talks with 1A, not 1B. And even if he spoke to them, he would most likely pick their representative, so Aiysha. But then again, Aiysha could also be the leader... not a probable scenario, but it’s definitely possible.’
He looked closely at the single-file line they made.
Continuously looking from left to right, yet no one looked out of the ordinary.
’You choose a leader from your class...’ Cassien thought it over again. ’Once you choose them, you try to keep them a secret.’
He began to process every individual he had ever spoken with from the other classes. From the very beginning, even prior to joining the academy.
But there wasn’t a single soul he could remember.
Until a small spark came back to him.
’Pick a leader... choose any.’ He rolled it over again. ’Pick any.’
His mind continued to repeat that specific term.
’Any.’
’Any.’
’Any.’
Until it finally came to a stop. His smile returned. ’Got it.’
He wrote down the final name, then gave it back to Olivia.
"Instructor!" she yelled, the teacher walking over. "We’ve finished."
"Already?" she asked, even though they were in a serious hurry. "Never mind that... you guys are Class-1C after all."
Cassien smiled. "What a way to downgrade the academy’s students." He pushed a soft hand onto Olivia’s shoulder. "We’ve won."
Olivia looked at him. "I hope..."
The entire rest of the class simply minded their own business until Audrey stepped forward.
"Guys," she continued seriously, "Where’s Siv?"
Cassien turned around slowly. "Siv?"
"Yeah," she answered. "Like... Siv Kento. The perverted one. Did he forget to come back from the camp?"
Cassien looked ahead of her, three individuals appearing from the forest. "He probably did." Then, walked away from Audrey immediately.
"What the...?" She whispered. "What happened?"
The entire group of first-years gasped immediately as they turned around, causing others to shift their gazes toward the situation.
Siv walked in between two instructors, chains wrapped around both his arms, while Cassien and the rest simply stared him down.
His eyes seemed dim, as if life itself had left him. It was almost like Siv had changed into an entirely different person.
He slowly began lifting his head up, his eyes scattering around the crowd until he spotted Cassien, who held a deep and unsettling emotionless expression.
But Siv couldn’t help but feel angry at himself... because at the end of the day, he was the one who killed those three. Siv gave Cassien what he wanted, and it was his own fault.
One instructor blocked their view, casting an oblique barrier.
"Guys! Finish writing down what we assigned you! We have to leave!"
Each student went back to chatting. The noise didn’t stop. They wanted to know what was happening.
And it went on for another twenty or so minutes, until each person finally wrote down who they believed the other classes’ leaders were.
The class representatives handed the papers in after a final discussion with their groups.
The instructors began scanning them through the system, identifying the validity of every individual character written down and whether it matched.
After doing so, they lined up in a horizontal line, right in front of the students.
The lady at the front clapped her hands twice, as the [Game-System] appeared for probably the last time during this exam.
[Results Are In]
[Any artifacts or utilities a class gained from the exam will now be taken away.]
Cassien assumed that would include the [Heart of Judgment], which it did.
[Processing...]
[Process Completed]
Each of them stared at the large interface that floated above everyone’s heads, a couple of feet in front of them.
Then, it finally began showing the results, from bottom to top.
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First: Class 1__
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Second: Class 1__
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Third: Class 1__
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Fourth: Class 1D
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The last-place result came in first. It was not a shock to anybody; that was expected.
Still, some whispers spread across the vicinity. Amelia’s expression showed visible traces of disappointment, as did the others within Class-1D, but it was expected.
They were the weakest after all.
[Next].
The system began to portray who came in [Third].
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First: Class 1__
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Second: Class 1__
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Third: Class 1B
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Fourth: Class 1D
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Shock fell across everyone’s faces.
"Third?" Aiysha shook. "Are you serious? What happened? I got everything right!" she yelled, quite the pathetic yell.
Cassien laughed on the inside. But the truth was, these other results didn’t matter.
He needed to get past Class-1A. That’s what would truly decide his future fate.
Some talks spread across the area.
"That means Class-1C got second!"
"Isn’t that insane? How?"
It was a surprise to all. Especially because on every exam, the rankings were quite linear and consistent.
With the same four always ranked in one specific format.
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First: Class 1A
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Second: Class 1B
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Third: Class 1C
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Fourth: Class 1D
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But this time it was different.
Class-1C had the chance to overtake first, and had already guaranteed a second-place finish.
Now, Cassien only awaited the finals.
Here is where he’ll learn.
To give up, or to move forward.
He smiled, Cassien’s heart pounding rapidly.
[Final Results Are In]
[We’ll Be Displaying Both Of The Final Classes At The Same Time]
[Thanks For Playing!]
...
