Raviel woke up, feeling way better and refreshed than he had expected.

Three days had passed since the mess, he had created in the training room with his eyes.

After, walking in his room for a few seconds.

Raviel went towards his living room, and opened the mini-bar besides the big television.

'I got you...sweetie, although you are bitter'

Without thinking, he picked up the dark chocolate — tear it open and started chewing on it like it was a medicine.

"Breakfast of champions". He muttered, as he shoved the last bite in his mouth.

Then.

He went in his bathroom, and placed his toothbrush near the marble wall for support.

Ensuring that the toothbrush was still standing, he fixed its position for one last time and went near his king-sized bed.

He sat up on the bed and started doing the eye exercises, the eye lady had prescribed him.

Twenty feet. The toothbrush stood tall and towering.

Raviel watched the toothbrush standing upright from twenty feet. He narrowed his eyes and focused on it, really focused on it. The shape stayed clear, there was no blurring or pain.

"Nice, it's working". He muttered.

His eyes twitched a little bit, but that was normal.

He remembered the doc, yesterday when he went to the infirmary, he had made a bloody mess of blood on the floor there too. He remembered how the lady stared at him like she wanted to smack the eye out of him.

After, examining his eyes.

"Why is there a strain on your optical nerves?" She had asked out of simple curiosity.

And he, being him, under all that dopamine rush due to his achievement, had replied casually. "I watch too much stuff...I guess."

She had lost it. Then and there.

Straight up scolding him like he was a kid who sat too close to a seven-inch screen.

Then he'd sighed and told her the truth. About pushing lightning mana into his eyes. About trying to force perception with his affinity.

Her face had gone pale.

"Are you insane?" she had snapped. "If you poured even a little more of that mana of yours, you'd be blind for two weeks. Minimum."

She'd jabbed a finger at his forehead.

"Don't try to experiment on your own body like that again. You're not invincible."

Back in the present, Raviel finished the exercises and wiped his hands.

Recalling the blinding pain, he shuddered once more. "Lesson learnt, doc lady."

After coming back from the shower, Raviel wiped his hair with a towel and stood there for a second, water still dripping down his toned physique.

Something felt off.

Like he was forgetting something important.

He frowned, then it hit him.

"Ahh!… its today right?"

He walked over to the desk, picked up his Arctic, and the screen lit up. A notification blinked at the top — one he'd seen and forgotten, two days ago.

=========N.O.V.A=========

Practical: NeuroProxy ( Vr simulated battle royale)

Objective: 150 students, 4 virtual simulated environments. Retrieve the hidden checkpoints, or eliminate others for points.

Solo and team plays are allowed.

Precaution: This is a Virtual simulated reality but you can still feel 70% of the inflicted pain in the battle on your body. Keep your energy intake upto 400–500 calories to stay light and to prevent motion sickeness. Before entering the Vr, your body should be hydrated as the session will last upto 7 hours.

Timing: 9:00 am at Innovative dorms < 2-level>

This will determine your academic standing and evaluate your previous ranks. So be prepared.

All the best student: Raviel.

___________________

Seeing the notification, Raviel remembered that a major event was going to happen according to the novel's plot, but he knew anything could change at any given point of time.

"Kai Crafton, what are you gonna do now?",

Raviel whispered as he scrolled the screen.

But he remembered something far more important than that:

'Shit!...how much calories did that damn chocolate have'.

....

Raviel roamed in the academy corridors wearing simple, breathable clothes, just like the notification had mentioned at the last.

He was wearing — loose shirt, training pants and socks...no shoes, only socks.

He headed towards the innovative training dorm lvl- 2. Normally, students weren't allowed to access the level- 2 facility, but today was different, and the reason was obvious as many of the first years were conversing, rather excitedly about today's practical.

The moment he stepped in.

His mind was amazed by the sheer magnitude of the tech present inside the enormous facility.

Academy pods.

Big, clean, high-tech pods lined the area, humming softly. Just standing there made his and everyone's skin itch with anticipation.

"Bro, I heard these pods can simulate near-death scenarios."

"No way, I'm bringing three hydration packs. I'm not passing out today."

"If I puke, will I puke in the pod or in the simulation?"

"Man, I didn't sleep at all."

Raviel smirked slightly.

Then he noticed where most of the attention was going.

Aron Voss.

The guy was wearing a sleeveless tank top, and every time he moved — stretching his arms, rolling his shoulders — his muscles shifted clearly underneath. His body was like a display at this point. A few girls weren't even pretending not to stare. Even some guys looked mildly offended by how unfair it was.

Raviel clicked his tongue quietly.

'What an obvious way to show off.'

He looked away and spotted Cinnia standing with Isabelle, both talking softly. A second later, he noticed Ezio, who was with Kai, they seemed to have a chat about the upcoming practical.

Raviel raised an eyebrow.

"So they met already, huh."

Then—

Valerie walked in.

Raviel's heart skipped a beat before he could stop it.

'Why?... just why at this point of time, hormones are really scary?'

Her silver hair was tied into a neat ponytail, a few loose strands framing her face naturally. Her pink irises caught the light, calm and enchanting. She was dressed in a simple black casual wear, nothing else.

She looked effortless.

Many of the male students ogled at her figure.

Raviel swallowed and looked away fast.

"…Yeah. She really is the most beautiful in the main cast."

He shook his head lightly.

'Idiot. Focus. This isn't the time nor the place for romanticizing'.

As the noise slowly settled, a woman with a lab coat stepped forward.

She had a mature and confident poise, her shoulder lenght hair had a darker shade of brownish black followed by a calm smile that could make people instinctively trust her.

She clapped her hands once.

"Alright, students. My name is Aria," she said enthusiastically. "I'll be your overseer for this practical. I won't be alone, of course. Many of my trusted peers are here as well."

That immediately grabbed everyone's attention.

She continued casually, like she was explaining the rules of a game.

"As you already know, this is VR. Yes, you can feel pain in there."

A few students stiffened.

"But relax, no need to worry" she added quickly. "When you die inside the pod, your pain receptors will be shut down temporarily. You'll only feel something like a small impact. Nothing serious."

Someone in the back muttered, "That still sounds serious…"

She ignored that faint whisper and went on.

"One more thing, try not to puke. Cleaning a pod after that is a bloody mess, and trust me, you don't want to be the student remembered for that type of achievement in here".

A few nervous laughs broke out.

"Ohh!, and this should be obvious,"she said, smiling a little wider, "don't try to kill other students just because you can."

She tapped the pad in her hand.

At the same time, everyone's Arctic buzzed.

A new notification lit up on Raviel's screen.

Raviel opened his Arctic and saw a number.

[ pod no. 198 ]

He looked at the nearby pods, then saw numbers emerging on each one of them.

His pod 198, sat at the far end.

He walked across the large hall, passing rows and rows of pods. Some students were already climbing inside, some were nervously standing in front of theirs, and a few were hyping themselves up like they were about to commit war crimes.

Raviel walked to his pod.

Pod 198 opened its lid with a soft hiss.

A faint blue mist slowly leaked out of it.

Raviel stepped closer and looked inside. The pod was clean, smooth, and almost coffin-like. He exhaled once, then climbed in and lay down.

The lid slid shut above him.

A second later, a gel-like substance rushed in from the sides, filling the pod completely. Raviel tensed instinctively — but nothing that sort of thing happened which he imagined since seeing it before on a video.

He wasn't choking.

He wasn't wet.

It felt… neutral. Like the liquid wasn't really present in there.

Before he could think more, something snapped onto his hand. A sharp pinch followed, like a quick injection.

"Ahhh!! —"

His vision blurred.

Then, everything went dark

When Raviel opened his eyes again, a floating screen hovered in front of him.

When he looked at his surroundings — it was all pitch black like nothing really existed other than the glowing screen.

[ Evaluating student information…]

[ Generating terrain…]

[ Genetic identity confirmed: Male / Human ]

[ Pain receptors set to 70%...]

[ Engaging safety protocols… ]

[ Get ready participant....]

[ ...3]

[....2]

[...1]

The text flickered for a moment.

Then the screen faded away.

The void-black darkness shifted.

Raviel blinked.

He was standing upright.

Trees surrounded him on all sides — tall, dense, and dark green. The air was cool. Heavy clouds loomed above.

A wet sensation touched his skin.

He looked up.

Rain was falling.

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