Chapter 25: First Test Results


    "Lab rat?!" Aire almost passed out after hearing that.


    Altina, Sera, and Kymei also gave Aire weird looks. It was just way too fast! That broke any record in existence. Not only that, but everyone was pretty sure that no one in the three schools for Risers on Earth did anything like that either.


    Altina then took a deep breath before looking at Zule and asking, "Zule, can we keep it a secret? If we let him out right now, I''m pretty sure we won''t find anyone else for our team. We can''t lose any members just when the Resource War is starting."


    Sera and Kymei nodded in agreement. They were also afraid of the same thing. After all, their team score would only count the three of them if Aire was taken away.


    Zule, of course, immediately took advantage of that situation, saying, "But of course...as long as my Altina cooks tonight."


    C-cooking? Sera, Aire, and Kymei were left speechless after hearing that. Wasn''t that way too cheap of a price? In an instant, the three of them looked at Altina, screaming with their eyes to ept Zule''s terms.


    However, Altina''s face was as pale as a ghost as she responded, "Do-Does it really have to be cooking?" It was obvious that there was a reason why Zule mentioned that.


    Zule nodded,pletely ignoring the plight in Altina''s eyes as he said, "Uh-huh. I won''t ept anything else other than seeing my Altina cook."


    Soon after that, he looked at Aire and the others, telling them, "You guys should make sure toe as well. Trust me, this is a sight to behold."


    Aire''s group became even more puzzled after that. Obviously, they became more curious as well. Just how could cooking make Altina act like that?


    Sadly, Altina didn''t have much choice, though. She gritted her teeth and nodded in the end, responding, "Fine! However, only one meal! No desserts or appetizers!"


    "Deal!" Zule immediately nodded without even thinking.


    Aire sighed in relief and then asked something else, "By the way, how did my test turn out?"


    Only then did everyone remember that they haven''t looked at Aire''s result yet. "Oh, right! The score!"


    Without dy, they all looked at Aire''s individual ranking, expecting something extraordinary. After all, he was even able to breakthrough in just one minute! How ridiculously high would his talent be to do that? However, everyone''s expression looked off as soon as they saw the result.


    -Aire Ruehnar, 125 Points, 103856th position.-


    In fact, that position only shed for less than a second, so they almost missed it. That''s because Aire''s position was plummeting so fast that they weren''t able to keep track of it.


    "What the hell?!" Naturally, they couldn''t understand what happened...except for Zule.


    "Oh! I see...hahaha!" Zuleughed out loud, catching the attention of Aire''s group. "It''s simple, really. Aire''s result was taken at the very end of the test, which was at the very moment he finished his breakthrough. No one ever thought someone would try a breakthrough during this test, so the program didn''t ount for it."


    Zule then pointed at the capsule, continuing, "When Aire finished his breakthrough, his Ster Energy Absorption calmed down so that his Riser Level could stabilize. That was the moment the score was calcted. After all, Aire wasn''t in the Ster Blood Stage anymore, but the Ster Bones Stage instead. Simply put, he only spent a second or two in that level inside the capsule. So, the capsule did a reading of what it could, which is why he ended up with this meager result. If Aire does the test again, we should be able to see his real score."


    Everyone understood that Zule wasn''t done talking, though.


    "However..." Zule shrugged his shoulders after that as he said, "It''s against the rules to take this test more than once. After all, this is an expensive test that uses too much Ster Energy. If we let everyone try it several times, the school''s reserve will definitely run out of Ster Energy. I''m sorry, everyone. But it seems like this is your final result. Even if I put him inside the capsule again and rerun the test, the system won''t ept an update to his student ID."


    Altina and the others''plexions went pale after hearing that. Didn''t that mean that their already subpar rank would be lower than before?


    Altina tried to salvage the situation, saying, "It can''t be, right? The result was wrong. It only happened because of his breakthrough. Surely there must be a way to do the test again. If we exin the situ-"


    However, she immediately noticed the problem here as she muttered, "His breakthrough..."


    Zule nodded, responding, "Exactly! If we exin why the test went wrong, that means you have to tell the truth about his breakthrough inside the capsule. In other words, that means losing him as a team member. That being said, your situation would be even worse."


    Aire scratched the back of his head in response, saying, "Sorry, guys. I thought that if I was in the Ster Bones Stage from the very start, I would be able to help the group even more." Well, it wasn''t a lie, but he was more afraid of his death instead.


    Sera and the others couldn''t help but sigh after hearing that. In any other situation, Aire''s breakthrough would indeed be a big boost to their team. But the moment he chose to do so was just too poor.


    Sera then shook her head, saying, "Well, I guess there''s nothing we can do about it. Altina, Kymei, and I are still considered above average in our results. When we include your below-average one, I guess our ranking will still start in the middle of the pack."


    Altina and Kymei were still unwilling, but they knew the school''s rules when it came to the Ster Risers'' test. There was no way they could take it back.


    Fortunately, Altina quickly recovered after that, saying, "Whatever. There is no point crying over spilled milk. Our only chance now is the next test."


    Zule agreed with Altina, telling them, "Exactly. It''s time to test your aptitudes for your side upations. Well, each one of you will have to move to your own upation faction to do it."


    "upation faction?" Aire did not know what that was, so he asked.


    Kymei then exined, "It''s very simple. Each upation has a faction dedicated to that job. In my case, it would be the Ster Rune Circuitry Researcher Faction. Altina is in the Warriors Faction, while Sera''s in the Ster Suit Designers'' Faction. As for you, the Ster Smith Faction is where you need to go for the upational test."


    Aire couldn''t help but ask, "But I''ve never tried this Ster Smith job before. Will it be okay?"


    Zule answered that question, saying, "It''s fine. Just like the Ster Energy Aptitude Test, all factions have a scoring system for new applicants. Just go there, and they''ll take care of the rest."


    He then looked at everyone before saying, "Alright, time to go. I need to send these capsules back to their ces before anyone notices I took them away. Hahaha!"


    Altina and the others didn''t know what to say about that, so they simply turned around and left the area. At the very least, they could count on their upation tests.