Chapter 72: First Exam
One month passed after they held the party at Kouro's house.
One sunny morning.
Above the academy grounds of St. Freya Academy, Kouro could be seen resting on a bench after a morning jog with Ayame sitting right beside him.
They were currently discussing the Valkyrie Exam that would be held today.
"Aren't you feeling nervous about the admission test that will be held later?" Kouro asked Ayame.
"Hmph! Of course not. I'm confident that I will pass the exam easily with a high score. After all, I haven't been slacking around this past month." Ayame replied enthusiastically with a confident smile.
Kouro recalled the day after the party at his house a month ago when he went to the virtual training room in the morning.
The training ground was truly exceptional as it could simulate both the enemies he had fought in the past and the terrain.
Although he didn't gain any experience to level up, his fighting skills improved a lot.
Add to that the amount of daily quests he completed for a month, his parameters had increased until his strength, vitality, and agility reached 3 digits.
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Name: Hanagami Kouro
Level: 20
Job: None
Title: Wolf Slayer
HP: 20.000/20.000
SP: 1.216/1.216
Fatigue: 0
Strength: 78 --> 100
Agility: 75 --> 100
Vitality: 60--> 100
Senses: 75
Intelligence: 54 --> 75
Honkai: 76
Points: 25
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*Skills:
Combat:
Weapon Mastery (Advanced), Martial Arts (Advanced),
Commons:
Cooking (Intermediate), Parkour (Master), Mechanical Mastery (Advanced), Riding (Intermediate), Swimming (Advanced), Acting (Master), Singing (Advanced), Painting (Advanced),
Logistics:
Stealth (Advanced), Learning (Advanced), Survival (Intermediate), Hacking (Advanced).
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*Skills:
Passive:
Unknown Lvl Max
Iron Body lvl 4
Hokushin Itto-ryu Lvl 7
Active:
Sprint Lvl 3
Power Strike Lvl 2
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Even though his increase in strength wasn't very rapid, Kouro was still very happy.
He imagined himself being the strongest after training for 3 years, aside from going bald, though.
"By the way, Kouro, do you already have a team? You know that combat trials are used to test cooperation between students."
Ayame's words awoke him from his reverie, Kouro didn't answer Ayame's question directly and instead asked back.
"How about you? Do you have a team already?"
Ayame scratched her head and said in an embarrassed tone, "Well you know, I actually want to team up with Mei-senpai, it's just that she's already with Kiana-chan and Bronya-chan, so I currently don't have a team."
Kouro rubbed his chin and said, "Well, I don't have a team at the moment either."
Upon hearing this, Ayame gave Kouro an incredulous look.
After all, Kouro is the only male to be admitted to St. Freya Academy as of currently, so he would definitely be very popular.
She had even seen some girls confess to him, only to be rejected on the spot.
"Then, do you want to team up with me?" Ayame asked hopefully.
"Certainly." Kouro answered while nodding, before seemingly realizing something and asked.
"But doesn't it take three people to create a team?"
"Ah! In that case, you don't need to worry. I already asked another friend to fill in the spot and I guarantee that she wouldn't be a burden."
Hearing Ayame's words, Kouro nodded without thinking too much, because even if he didn't have a team, he could easily pass the exam on his own.
But Kouro is still a little curious about Ayame's friend. "Hee… I didn't expect you to be able to actively make friends on your own. Our Ayame has grown up and made your papa proud!"
Kouro acted while wiping a fake tear from his eyes with a tissue that magically appeared out of his shirt pocket.
"Hey! Don't make fun of me!" Ayame huffed in annoyance while punching Kouro lightly.
Despite her show of annoyance, Ayame was somewhat used to Kouro's joking personality as well as the strange appearance of items that he always magically took out of his pocket.
Kouro then looked at his watch and noticed that it was already 6 in the morning, "Let's go. It's already 6 A.M., the others would also start to get up."
"Well, I hope Kiana-chan is also awake at this hour." Ayame glanced at her watch as well and said.
Kouro proceeded to stand up and followed by Ayame, they walked towards their respective residences to get ready for school.
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Inside Himeko's house.
Kiana, who was sleeping in her room, felt someone hug her body and she slowly opened her eyes.
"Honey~"
Finding the voice familiar, Kiana hastily opened her eyes and looked at the person who was hugging her body, which turned out to be Himeko with a surprised look.
"Give me a kiss~"
"KYA!" Kiana screamed then pushed Himeko away and maybe due to using too much force, Kiana pushed Himeko so she fell off the bed.
*BAM!*
"Ouch!"
Himeko woke up and held her head in pain.
"Don't keep sneaking into my bed every time you get drunk!" Kiana said angrily.
Right after she finished saying that, a pillow suddenly flew into her face with a bang.
*POOF*
The person who threw the pillow turned out to be Bronya, she looked at Kiana with her usual flat eyes.
"Shut up, subject Kiana."
Kiana then stood up and looked at Bronya angrily.
Kiana put aside the pillow and stood up angrily towards Bronya. "Can't you see I'm the victim here? And don't hit me in the head with a pillow. It'll make me dumb!"
"Bronya has determined that Subject Kiana's intelligence has no room to decrease." Bronya replied with her usual straight face.
Right after saying that.
Ayame appeared from outside the door and called, "Breakfast is ready. Himeko-sensei, Kiana-chan, Bronya-chan, let's eat."
"Sure!" 3x
As if the argument just now never happened, the three of them went to the dining room.
Himeko observed today's menu, "Is this miso soup? What a fragrance…"
She first sipped her soup.
*SIP*
"Oh my goodness! "
"Ah~ with just one sip, I can feel it warming both my body and soul… This, is the flavor of mom's cooking!" Himeko held her flushed cheeks and exclaimed happily.
"This is delicious!" Kiana said while eating voraciously.
Bronya didn't say anything but she sipped her miso soup in one gulp. Ayame also ate voraciously.
Mei just smiled seeing this, she thought for a moment, then looked at Ayame and asked.
"Ayame-chan, you were with Kouro-kun earlier right? Why didn't you invite him to have breakfast together?"
Ayame, who heard Mei's question, only cast a glance towards Himeko, and following Ayame's gaze, Mie finally understood why Ayame didn't invite Kouro.
Himeko was currently only wearing a white shirt with the upper half unbuttoned and no underwear on, revealing most of her flawless white skin.
Actually the main reason Ayame didn't invite Kouro, was because she didn't want Kouro to become enamored of Mei because of her cooking, after all there was a saying 'to attract a man's heart, start with his stomach first'.
After breakfast they then change into school uniforms.
Their school uniform is a yellowish white long-sleeved vest with brown leather gloves, then a dark blue skirt, while wearing long black stockings.
A few minutes later.
After wearing uniforms, the four of them then left the house, near the door was seen Kouro who was waiting for them.
Kouro's uniform is the same as theirs except that Kouro is wearing a vest with a hood plus long black pants.
They then looked at Himeko who was leaning near the door.
"We're off to class!"
Himeko who was carrying a can of beer in her hand then said to them, "Today is the first exam you guys are facing since coming here; remember to give it your best."
Kiana confidently said to Himeko "That goes without saying!"
They then left, Himeko stared at them until they were out of sight.
A staff then suddenly appeared beside Himeko.
"Major Himeko, you should start working too."
"Oh my! I forgot to work!"
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In the St. Freya Academy.
After the written exam.
Mei said to Kiana beside her. "I didn't expect the next exam to be held so soon, I was so nervous!"
One of the students who befriended them then asked Kiana.
"Nee~, Kiana, aren't you worried at all? I mean, you have to take the exam not long after transferring here."
"Worried? " Kiana then smiled and said in a confident tone.
"I'm a genius! With my talents to pass this exam~ it would be a walk in the park!"
(A/N: For information Kouro is currently wearing a helmet that covers his entire face, which keeps the girls away from him a bit.)
(A/N:'Terlalu tampan' comic reference.)
There was the sound of footsteps behind Kiana, followed by the voice of a girl who said calmly to Kiana. "Kiana, it's good that you have confidence, but don't underestimate the Valkyrie exams."
Kiana and the others turned to look at the girl who said that, more so Kouro.
The girl had bluish-purple hair, pale skin, and blue eyes, plus her chest was as flat as a laundry board.
Kouro called the girl's name in his mind, 'Fu Hua.
"The ancient saying goes, Pride goath before a fall."
"It's is Fu Hua-Senpai!"
"Kyaa!! Still as elegant and handsome as ever today. "
"What?" Kiana said confusedly.
"Tried golf before a fall? (Does not compute)"
Fu Hua said again, "Gifted you may be, but rushing headlong into a challenge will be ill-advised. For impatience is the bane of success."
Kiana just smiled, "Hmph! Of course, I know that!"
Fu Hua then passed them all, "Apologize then, I may have spoken out of turn."
Kiana narrowed her eyes at Fu Hua who had left, she then looked at Kouro and the others and asked in confusion.
"Erm... Did she use harsh language I couldn't understand? And she spoke Chinese earlier, right?"
"I think she wants you to take the exams later seriously." Mei said.
"Stupid Kiana." Bronya said with an even expression.
Ayame looked at Kouro who was still staring at Fu Hua who was far away, feeling annoyed, she then pinched him.
"Ouch!? Why are you pinching me?" Kouro asked Ayame while rubbing the spot she had pinched earlier.
"Nothing."
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A few minutes later, in the battle exam room.
"We go first Kouro-kun, Ayame-chan."
Mei said to them, then chose a katana from the weapon holder that held various weapons beside the exam room.
Kiana chose a big chainsaw, while Bronya just waited for the two of them at the door of the exam room.
Seeing that the three of them had entered the Examination room, Kouro then looked at Ayame.
"So? Where is our third member?"
"Just wait a minute, Ah it's she."
Ayame pointed at someone while waving her hand at the person.
That person seemed to notice Ayame, she then approached them.
Kouro was surprised because the person Ayame called was Fu Hua.
"Sorry I'm late." Fu Hua said after approaching them.
"It's okay, it's not our turn anyway, oh yeah Kouro, maybe you already recognize her, but let me introduce you, her name is Fu Hua, she is our class president."
"Hello." Kouro slightly bowed his head to Fu Hua politely.
"Ah, Yes. Hello too." Seeing the very polite Kouro, Fu Hua also lowered her head slightly then looked at Kouro for a long time, somehow she felt a familiar feeling from him.
"Fu Hua-san is there something on my face?" Kouro said while touching his face.
"Ah, it's fine." Fu Hua shook her head, actually she wanted to ask why Kouro was wearing a helmet.
Ayame who saw that then pinched Kouro harder than when she had pinched Kouro before.
"Itta! Itta! Why are you pinching me again?" Ayame turned her face away while puffing her cheeks.
"Betsuni... (Nothing) " Fu Hua smiled slightly seeing the closeness of the two of them.
*DING*
[Request for students Akimitsu Ayame, Fu Hua, Hanagami Kouro, to enter the examination hall immediately]
Hearing the announcement, they then chose a weapon.
Fu Hua chose the gauntlet, Ayame chose the Whip made of Alloy, only Kouro himself didn't choose any weapon.
Seeing this Fu Hua asked Kouro, "Why don't you choose a weapon?"
Kouro only answered simply. "I am strong. "
Fu Hua was silent, she then looked at Ayame wondering if it was okay that Kouro didn't carry a weapon, but amazingly, Ayame just nodded her head when she heard Kouro's words.
Fu Hua shook her head and sighed 'It's okay I can protect him anyway. '
They then entered the examination room.
After they entered, the terrain in the room suddenly turned into a vast plain and in the center of the vast plain was a Honkai Type-Chariot shaped Robot that was over 20 meters tall.
Just as Fu Hua and Ayame were about to attack the Robot, a blurry shadow suddenly passed them towards the Robot.
'Very fast! ' Fu Hua narrowed her eyes.
'This guy, he's become stronger than before. ' Ayame was surprised.
With the power reaching 3 digits and with the [Power Strike] ability, Kouro was confident he could destroy the Robot in front of him with one hit.
*BAMM!*
Kouro's punch sent the Robot flying into the wall hundreds of meters away even destroying the wall.
the wall was metal alloy enough to fend off the full attack of 3 star weapons and was now damaged by the impact of Kouro's punch. Moreover the Robot was also in a pathetic state, a gaping hole appeared in the middle of the robot's body measuring 20 meters.
"Ah, looks like I went a little too far." Kouro scratched his head.
"Kouro!!" Ayame moved her whip towards Kouro angrily.
"Wait! Stop!" Kouro ran away from Ayame's pursuit while dodging her whip attack with ease.
Fu Hua who saw it all while raising her glasses.
'That punch... So powerful, with the speed he displayed earlier, I even needed to be very careful... I now understand why Overseer Otto told me to be careful of him. '
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Two days later.
The test results are announced.
All the students gathered to see the rankings they got including Kouro and the others, except for Fu Hua who was currently sitting in class reading a book.
"Yeay! I passed!" Said Student A .
"My practical battle results were better than what I thought they were~" Said Student B .
"Wow! Transfer students managed to rank 2 and 3." Said Student C.
[Rank 2: Bronya Zaychik]
[Rank 3: Hanagami Kouro]
[Rank 4: Raiden Mei]
[Rank 5: Akimitsu Ayame]
Kiana who saw the top five were all her friends, then said confidently while looking at the one who got the 1st rank.
"Haah! Sorry guys, that rank one is mine."
[Rank 1: Fu Hua ]
"What!? She? The girl who doesn't speak English? Where is my name?" Kiana was shocked and worried when she didn't see her name on the leaderboard.
"... Kiana Looks like I found your name here..." Kouro said on the side.
"Ah.. Thank you Kouro! My score definitely exceeds the criteria! Sorry for leaving you in rank 3!" Kiana said optimistically.
But all her optimism vanished when she saw the announcement posted.
[Failed: Kiana Kaslana]
"What!? Why did this happen?"
Kiana angrily tore the announcement paper.
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"You failed all the written exams, there's no way we'll pass you." Said the supervising teacher.
The supervising teacher was a caucasian man in his thirties with short brown eyes and hair.
It was a rare thing to have a male teacher here.
"See, your score is 0 for history." while showing Kiana's exam paper.
"Kyaa!! I can't show it to Kouro! Give it to me!" Kiana said while desperately trying to take the exam paper from the supervisor.
"I've seen it. "
"I also. "
"Your grade point average for the subjects, biology, history, chemistry, physics and geography is 21, you rank one from the back."
Kiana looks down in the corner. 'Mei and Kouro will laugh at me.'
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Evening.
At Himeko's house, in the dining room.
"Remedial exam?" Mei asked.
"Yes next week. " Himeko said before turning to look at Kiana with an incredulous expression.
"I've seen fools before, but you are a new record for me. You are living proof that cup size directly correlates with brain space."
"Remedials are next week, the time is too tight! Kiana won't become a Valkyrie if she fails again." Mei said anxiously.
"That can't be happening! We have to hold special training!" Himeko said.
"Special training?"
While Kiana is currently staring at her fairly large chest in confusion, 'cup size? '
(E/D: Sorry if the quality is a bit bad. The chapter is pretty long and I started at 7:00, I have something to do at 9:00 sharp so I hurried in editing this chapter.)
(E/D: I kinda just wing it throughout the entirety. My head is throbbing, and my eyes are sore. I also relied on the manga for the most part.)
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone