"You up!?"


    As Nn wiped the water from his hair with a white towel, the voice of Norgomodev called out from behind. He tossed the towel aside without a second thought.


    He was already prepared for the morning.


    With one swift motion, he yanked up his bag, slinging it effortlessly onto his back, then turned to look at Norgomodev, who stood by the side.


    "Yes. Goodbye," Nn said simply, before stepping past him.


    "Goodbye..." Norgomodev''s whisper was barely audible as the door closed firmly behind him, shutting off the room.


    Exhaling loudly, Nn wasn''t too surprised to find others like him also stepping out of their doors.


    Compared to him, however, they carriedrge travel bags filled with their belongings.


    "Well, if it isn''t the new prodigy of the academy, Nn Gottschald," one of the students, a young alien with purple skin and bright, stony-purple eyes, called out to him, followed by the giggling of the others standing at their doorsteps.


    "How you doing?" another asked as they all walked forward, and Nn followed after them down the steps.


    "Great. And you?"


    "Who wouldn''t be doing more than great with today being the day we finally get to move to the Ascendant ss?" another student chimed in, a big smile on his face, his excitement palpable.


    One didn''t need to be told how good the mood was, and his point made sense to Nn.


    Which Neer wouldn''t be happy today after they had sessfully passed the first step?


    "I heard that we''re all supposed to meet at the Neer''s Hall. There''s still an hour left before we''re scheduled, so we''ll be fine."


    ''Hmm,'' a silent hum escaped Nn''s lips upon hearing that.


    He hadn''t been aware of that and had assumed they''d go straight to the ssroom and be led to the Ascendants'' area along with the remaining students.


    Who would have thought it would be the opposite, and everyone would gather at the Neer''s Hall instead?


    He guessed it was due to his absence the past week.


    They had probably given the announcement, and he had missed it.


    Thankfully, he knew now.


    With little chatter among the students, Nn followed them until they all reached the Neer''s Hall.


    Just as before, the staff were there, recording their names.


    Nn gave his as well. The scene was probably a way to ensure no one tried to slip in illegally.


    Any student attempting to do so would be identified and kicked out.


    Nn easily made his way inside and headed towards his usual seat.


    The number of students this time was incredibly lowpared to normal, but still, quite a few had managed to pass to the next stage.


    He hadn''t been seated for too long when he felt someone''s gaze lingering on him.


    Turning his head, he saw a figure skipping towards him.


    "Forgot your buddy, huh, Nn?" The figure asked as he copsed onto the seat beside Nn, a big smile on his face, while giving Nn a light punch on the shoulder.


    "Ow?" Nn muttered, rolling his eyes at the figure.


    "You''re not my buddy," he said to the person, who adjusted his sses beforeughing out loud.


    The person was none other than Wiro, and he seemed to be in a particrly good mood today.


    Nn didn''t need to be told the reason why.


    "Ah, Nn."


    "No need to be so headstrong. Look at me and you!" Wiro called out, and Nn directed his gaze at him.


    "We''re both Ascendants, Nn!"


    "Hmm-hmm. Technically, we''re still Neers because we haven''t reached the—"


    "Who asked you, kid?" a voice rang out from the side but was quickly shut down by Wiro.


    Nn turned to look at the poor green-haired guy who was sitting in the third seat.


    On sighting him, one word came to Nn''s mind: ''Lizard boy.''


    The guy looked exactly like a lizard, even having a tail that draped across hisp, his skin textured with scales.


    Except, he was some strange green lizard, with greenish scales covering parts of his face.


    "Sorry," the guy mumbled apologetically, turning his head away from them, and Wiro huffed before refocusing on Nn.


    "Ignore the Norse guy. We''re already Ascendants, Nn."


    "So, what do you say we put the past behind us?"


    "All the terrible things I did in the Neer''s area—I''ve decided to turn over a new leaf."


    "A good and smart move for me, isn''t it?" Wiro asked, grinning while Nn nced him over before rolling his eyes.


    ''Turn a new leaf, my ass,'' he thought.


    "Where are your goons?" Nn suddenly asked, noticing the absence of the usual trio that always followed Wiro around.


    The ones who had helped him bully Nn these past years.


    "They all failed the test."


    "Couldn''t make it through the three trials and were automatically kicked out," Wiro replied, to which Nn gave a half-hearted "oh" before turning away.


    He wasn''t too surprised at their failure.


    If anything surprised him, it would be Wiro''s ability to pass.


    Nn had expected him to fail as well.


    Not like he cared at all, he just didn''t think the jerks possessed what was necessary for them to move up the Ascendants ss.


    And they all almost proved him right, except for Wiro and that was probably because he changed somehow after hisst meeting with Nn.


    "You''ve grown bigger since thest time I saw you," Wiro suddenlymented, ncing at Nn, who raised an eyebrow and looked down at himself.


    True to Wiro''s observation, Nn had bulked up a bit more.


    "And you''ve lost a lot of weight too..."


    "Yes, I have. Even I know that," Wiro said with a triumphant expression, as if he had been waiting for Nn to mention it.


    "For thest few years, I always thought the training room was useless because my strongest ability is based on intelligence."


    But then, I decided to give it a try just once—just so I wouldn''t have the shit scared out of my ass the next time I see you."


    "Hehe"