Affinity Test

Merlin stepped forward, his eyes locking onto the unmoving training dummy ahead. Unlike other affinities, Space wasn't about brute force.

It wasn't fire's destruction, lightning's volatility, or water's suffocating grip. No, it was something far more… refined.

'Nathan used it like this in the novel later on…Let's see if I can do better.'

Taking a deep breath, Merlin raised his hand. The air around him trembled, the space itself distorting as if reality were being wrung out like a wet towel.

A flicker of silver light shimmered.

'First, compression.'

He clenched his fist. Instantly, space contracted around the dummy, pressing inward like an invisible vice. The air groaned.

The surface creaked, resisting—until a sharp crack split the silence.

He shifted his stance. Compression pulled inward. Expansion was the reverse—a violent outward snap.

With a flick of his wrist, space rippled. For a moment, the world twisted. Then—

Snap.

A shockwave blasted outward. The compressed force rebounded, hammering into the dummy like an invisible fist.

A deep dent caved into its chest, despite Merlin never laying a hand on it.

A hush fell over the training field.

Merlin exhaled, feeling the strain coil in his core. His fingers twitched.

'That… took more out of me than I expected.'

He glanced up. His classmates were frozen. Wide eyes. Stiff postures. Even Vivienne, their instructor, was staring like he'd just rewritten the laws of magic in front of her.

'How did he just use Space Affinity like that?! Who the hell is this kid?'

Vivienne's thoughts were practically painted across her face. She took a moment, gathering herself, before speaking.

"Merlin Everhart. 10/10 points."

Her voice rang out, clear and authoritative.

"You executed both compression and expansion flawlessly. And you never even had to get close to the target. Congratulations."

Her hands came together—clap, clap, clap.

Silence. Then, hesitantly, the other students followed, though most still looked like they had just witnessed a crime.

Merlin suppressed the urge to laugh.

'I did it.'

His gaze drifted toward Nathan, the supposed prodigy of their year. The Main Character.

Nathan, who was currently staring at him like he'd been hit by a wagon.

Merlin met his gaze. And then—he smirked.

Nathan blinked. Then again.

'What… what the hell was that?!'

Merlin strolled forward, casually resting a hand on his shoulder. "I'm better."

He gave Nathan a light pat before walking off, leaving the so-called genius and protagonist standing there, mouth half-open, brain still buffering.

…

Vivienne's voice carried across the courtyard as she addressed the students.

"Congratulations to everyone for completing the test. This marks the official start of your first year."

"Tomorrow, you'll find out your rankings from the test. These rankings will determine your standing for the year."

A murmur rippled through the students present, tension hanging in the air.

Vivienne continued, her gaze sweeping over them.

"However, your ranking isn't set in stone. You can improve it throughout the year by taking on challenges, dueling others, completing missions, or even excelling in written exams. The higher your rank, the better the rewards—and for those in need, superior accommodations as well."

Some students straightened at that, eyes gleaming with anticipation, while others exchanged nervous glances.

Vivienne smiled, wrapping up her speech.

"For today, take the time to explore the academy. Get familiar with your surroundings. Tomorrow, your real journey begins."

With that, she turned on her heel and strode away, leaving the square buzzing with conversation.

The moment she was out of sight, a collective sigh of relief swept through the students.

Merlin barely paid attention, his eyes flicking to the floating screen in front of him.

[Mission Complete!]

[Mission: I'm Better!]

Rewards:

• New Affinity Choice

• One Skill Choice

• Training Grounds Unlocked

• +2 Strength

• +2 Free Stat Points

Merlin hummed.

'Affinity first.'

[Please choose an affinity!]

•Fire

•Water

•Lightning

•Wind

'Wind's the obvious choice.'

[Wind Affinity unlocked!]

Next.

[Please choose a skill!]

•Swift Step (Increases movement speed. Passive growth.)

•Messenger's Reach (Short-distance telepathic communication.)

•Trickster's Reflex (Brief burst of enhanced reflexes. Short cooldown.)

•Wings of the Wind (Short-distance wind propulsion for mobility.)

Merlin frowned.

'These skills… they're too good. Nathan didn't get anything like this until way later. The system isn't supposed to be this generous. Is someone watching me?'

According to the later parts of the novel, gods and other entities can intervene with skills and such. These skills were way too related to each other.

However that was a problem for another time.

'Trickster's Reflex.'

[Trickster's Reflex unlocked. Training Grounds now available.]

Merlin shut the screen.

And immediately felt a nudge at his side.

Nathan and Adrien stood there.

"Do you want to come with us? To explore the school?" Nathan asked stiffly.

Adrien elbowed him, clearly annoyed. "Dude. Read the room."

Merlin stared at them. Then blinked.

"No."

He turned and walked away without another word.

Behind him, Nathan looked lost. "…What did we do wrong?"

Adrien patted his shoulder like one would comfort a lost child. "Maybe he's just having a bad day, man."

Merlin didn't care.

He had better things to do.

…

He was strolling through the academy's halls, minding his own business, when—

Someone stepped in front of him.

He stopped.

Pointed ears. Razor-sharp gaze. Arms crossed.

Elara.

'Oh no.'

Merlin barely held back a sigh.

"Merlin, right?"

'Calm. Stay calm, Merlin. Don't be a dumbass.'

"Nope. You've got the wrong guy."

'What the fuck am I saying?? I need to move on.'

He tried to brush past her.

She moved to block him.

'Great. I just cannot escape this embarrassment can I.'

Elara's eyes narrowed.

"If you already know who I am, why ask?"

Her face twitched at Merlin's words.

Nobody talked to her like that.

Nobody.

For a split second, she looked like she might explode.

Merlin stared at her, unimpressed.

"So?"

A hush fell over the hallway. Students watched from the sidelines, some already holding their breath.

"Don't think that just because you got a high rank, you're—"

Before she could finish, Merlin was already gone.

Elara blinked.

'…Huh?'

She turned to find him already halfway down the hallway.

"I don't have time for this," Merlin called over his shoulder, voice bored. "Sorry."

The watching students snickered.

Elara's eye twitched.

'Merlin Everhart… we're not done here you bastard!'

She stormed off, practically crackling with frustration.

Meanwhile, Merlin?

'Why was I such an ass just now?'

He rubbed his temples, exhaling.

'That was Elara. In my past life, I was a fan. And now I just… ignored her?'

He caught sight of his reflection in a nearby window.

His face was slightly red.

Merlin turned away, scowling.

'Great. I just made things even more awkward.'

Ignoring the stares of students whispering about him, he kept walking.

Merlin strode toward the training facility, navigating the academy halls with single-minded determination.

No sightseeing. No pointless wandering.

He had a plan, and he was going to see it through.

'I need to be stronger than Nathan. A lot stronger.'

After what felt like a ridiculous amount of walking, he finally found the facility.

The moment he stepped inside, he noticed something.

It was empty.

No students. No instructors.

Nothing but dead silence, like a forgotten graveyard.

'Huh. Guess no one else is in a hurry to get stronger and save the world.'

Not his problem.

Merlin made his way to one of the private training rooms, scanning the sleek interior before grabbing a tablet from the control panel.

'Alright… let's see how this works.'

A few taps. Nothing happened.

More taps. Still nothing.

A minute later, he was just aggressively pressing random buttons.

'This is some next-level bullshit—oh.'

His eyes landed on a Help button.

With a sigh, he pressed it, skimming through the instructions.

After some light reading (and totally not skimming until he found what he needed), he finally managed to summon a training dummy.

It materialized in the center of the room—tall, humanoid, with a reinforced core.

According to the manual, these dummies had near-infinite durability. They could counterattack, defend, and adapt like a real opponent.

Merlin set the tablet down, stepping toward it.

The moment he got close, the dummy's head snapped up, and it shifted into a combat stance.

A faint chill ran down his spine.

'Why do I feel like this is going to hurt?'

"Begin," he said, following the manual's instructions.

—And immediately regretted it.

The dummy exploded forward.

Before he could even react, a solid kick slammed into his gut.

All the air left his lungs.

His vision blurred as he was launched backward, crashing onto the floor like a discarded ragdoll.

"End," he wheezed.

The dummy froze.

Merlin just lay there, staring at the ceiling.

'That's Level 1?!'

A violent cough rattled his chest as he sucked in a desperate breath.

'This thing kicked my soul out of my body.'

Shakily, he pushed himself up, wincing at the dull ache spreading through his torso.

This was fine.

Everything was fine.

'Round two.'

"Begin."

The dummy charged again.

But this time—he was ready.

The Wind Affinity kicked in. Mana surged through his veins, accelerating his movements.

Merlin twisted his body, barely dodging the incoming strike.

The moment the dummy's fist sailed past him, he unleashed a pulse of his spatial affinity—a crushing force that froze it mid-motion, locking it in place.

His head throbbed. A sharp metallic taste filled his mouth.

Blood. His nose was bleeding from the strain.

Didn't matter.

He clenched his fist, wind gathering around it, reinforcing his strike.

Then using the wind to speed up his strike he slammed his fist into the dummy's head with everything he had.

A loud boom echoed through the room as the dummy staggered.

Merlin didn't let up.

With a second burst of spatial force, he drove it into the ground, pressing it down like an insect underfoot.

A chime rang out.

"Level 1 – Complete."

A mechanical voice followed.

"Time: 15 seconds."

Merlin wiped the blood from his nose.

'Fifteen seconds… Not bad.'