The mechanized puppets loomed over the fifteen students, their metallic frames casting shadows that swallowed the arena. A few flinched, breath hitching at the sheer presence of the machines. Arms folded, Asuka smirked, her voice cutting through the tense air.

“These,” she announced, “are your sparring partners for the final stage. I trust you remember the objective?”

Rikuya muttered under his breath to the two beside him, “Endure and adapt. Immobilization for more than ten seconds—or being knocked out—means elimination.” Their gazes hardened with resolve.

Aoi’s eyes darted across the machines—small, hulking, fast, towering. Two, three… seven… ten in total. Her fists clenched as the floor quaked beneath their sudden charge.

“Run!” someone shouted, and chaos erupted. Students scattered as a colossal foot slammed down, shattering the arena’s reinforced flooring.

“Oh, and one more thing!” Asuka’s voice boomed over the turmoil. “This exam runs ten minutes. The clock’s already ticking—you’ve got seven left!” Her smirk widened. “Those puppets carry points. Small ones are worth three, large ones five. Immobilize them before they do the same to you.”

“You expect us to fight those?!” a boy from the first team cried, dodging an incoming strike.

“While staying safe!” Asuka called back, cupping her mouth with one hand. “And don’t forget—you’re down to six minutes!” 

Aoi flipped back, narrowly dodging the sweep of a massive puppet’s arm. Ayane rolled sideways, landing in a crouch, while Setsuna slid to a stop beside them.

“Damn it, these things are hard to get close to!” Ayane hissed.

“We’ll have to find a way—” Setsuna started, only to break off as a boy from the first team charged recklessly at one of the machines. His roar was cut short when the puppet lifted its leg to stomp him flat. Gasping, the blond darted aside—the machine’s arc missed him and smashed into another puppet instead. Sparks flew as both powered down.

“Yes! Six points!” he shouted, pumping a fist toward his distant teammates.

“Nice one!” they hollered back.

Setsuna chuckled nervously, sweat dripping down her temple. “Guess we’d better score ours too…”

Ayane puffed her cheeks, pouting. “Hmph.” A thunderous crash drew all three girls’ eyes across the arena. Nakano stood over the wreckage of a toppled machine, brushing the dust from her hands.

“Easy as pie,” she said with a smug grin.

“At least that’s five more points,” her teammate Ken noted.

Nakano shot him a withering look. “Don’t get the wrong idea. I don’t need dead weight slowing me down.” Scoffing, she walked off, leaving Ken fuming while their third teammate stared in silence.

“Showoff,” Aoi muttered under her breath, unimpressed.

Ayane suddenly bolted forward. “We can’t just sit here!” Setsuna followed close behind.

Aoi lingered, eyes flicking from the machines to the other teams charging in. Her gaze dropped to the floor, then to Asuka watching from above. Her fists clenched tighter. So that’s how it is…

From the sidelines, Misora’s slate-blue eyes narrowed, arms folding tighter across her chest.

“I think she’s starting to understand,” she said quietly, drawing Jin’s attention.

“Huh?” he muttered, turning to her.

“The point of these exams,” she clarified, her eyes still fixed on the arena. Down below, Raito vaulted over a machine, sending it off balance. Rikuya was quick to slam a metal rod into its head, toppling it with a loud crash.

“It was already falling, you know,” Mitsuru called, smiling wryly.

“Yeah, yeah, details,” Rikuya laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. “Still counts for five points, right?”

“Sure does,” Raito replied, though his gaze was already shifting back to the chaos.

“Right side, Setsuna!” Ayane shouted. Setsuna spun away just as a puppet’s arm tore through the space she’d been standing.

“Thanks! Wait, where’s—?!” Setsuna froze as both she and Ayane spotted Aoi darting between two towering machines. Their massive arms reached for her at once, but she slipped past in a blur. The puppets’ momentum carried them into each other—an earsplitting clang echoed as their heads collided, both collapsing in showers of sparks. She landed lightly, her hair swaying with the impact’s breeze. She didn’t even glance back, continuing forward as if the destruction behind her was nothing.

“Whoa… that was insane,” Ayane breathed, eyes wide.

“Two large ones… that’s ten points right there,” Setsuna said, equally stunned.

Aoi gave a small shrug. “We need to pass, don’t we? Guess I got lucky.” Her nonchalance earned a pair of sweat-dropped looks from the other two.

That wasn’t luck, Ayane and Setsuna thought at once, exchanging nervous smiles as sweat trailed down their temples.

Then—thud. Heavy footsteps reverberated through the arena. One after another, louder, closer, shaking the ground until even the proctors glanced around in alarm.

“What the hell is that sound?” Asuka muttered, her smirk fading. The vibration rattled the platform beneath her feet.

“Uh… Asuka! We’ve got a problem!” a proctor at the monitors shouted. She strode over, eyes narrowing at the screen—then widening in disbelief.

“…No. It can’t be.” Her voice cracked into a whisper. A deafening crash tore through the room. The reinforced wall below them split apart, concrete and steel exploding outward. Dust and debris filled the air as students shielded their faces, coughing through the haze. Through the smoke, a colossal silhouette emerged—towering even higher than the five-point machines.

Shino’s breath caught. “No way…”

One of the proctors staggered back, pale. “That’s—”

“Project Xero,” Asuka finished grimly. The monstrous machine raised its massive arm, the shadow alone engulfing the students. With a roar of metal, it swung downward, forcing the first-years to scatter. Asuka’s lips pressed into a tight line, a low growl escaping her throat as she turned sharply to the proctors, Shino tense at her side.

“I thought Project Xero wasn’t even finished!” Asuka barked.

“It’s not!” Shino shot back.

“Then who the hell authorized its launch?!” Her glare snapped between the proctors.

They exchanged bewildered looks. “Wait… it wasn’t you?” Shino asked, his voice faltering.

“Me?!” Asuka’s eyes widened. “I don’t even know where the damn activation switch is!” She threw her hands up, then whipped her gaze down to the arena. Students were scattering, terror on their faces. Damn it—this isn’t a test anymore. Those kids are in real danger!

“This is bad,” Jin muttered, his hand tightening on his sword hilt, ready to jump in.

“Wait.” Misora’s voice was quiet, steady, arms still folded.

Jin shot her a sharp look. “What? We can’t just—”

“Wait a little longer,” she said firmly, tone calm as stone.

Below, panic spread like wildfire. “Is this part of the exam?!” a boy from the first team shouted, barely ducking under a smaller puppet’s strike.

Rikuya’s eyes swept the arena—proctors scattering, alarms blaring. “I’ve got a bad feeling about this…” he muttered as Mitsuru skidded in beside him.

“Ya think?” Mitsuru shot back, raising a brow.

“Everyone, this way!” a female proctor shouted, waving the first-years toward a side passage. They sprinted after her, but Project Xero’s gaze locked on them. With a thunderous charge, it drove its fist down toward the crowd.

“Look out!” someone screamed. The ground split under the impact—but at the last second, a sharp kick deflected its arm, the strike veering into the floor instead. Dust billowed. Through the haze, Aoi emerged—dodging a smaller puppet’s strike and jamming a metal rod into its path.

“Run!” she barked, bracing herself as the students scrambled past.

Nakano shoved her teammates aside, sneering. “Out of my way!” She bolted forward as the others snapped out of their daze and followed.

“That’s it! Keep moving!” the proctor urged, ushering them through.

Ayane slowed, breath hitching. She spun around. “Wait—where’s Setsuna?” Her gaze shot back across the arena. Aoi was still fighting, but a few feet away—Setsuna lay trapped, her right leg pinned beneath a slab of rubble. She clawed at it desperately, her face twisted in pain.

“Setsuna!” Ayane screamed, lunging forward—only for a pair of arms to seize her from behind.

“Stop! You can’t go back there!” a male proctor barked, holding her tight.

“She’s my teammate! I can’t just leave her!” Ayane thrashed against his grip, tears stinging her eyes. “Setsuna!!”

Ayane’s cry carried across the chaos, reaching to Aoi. Her head snapped toward Setsuna—still pinned, clawing at the rubble around her leg.

“Setsuna!” Aoi shouted—only to see the colossal machine looming above. Its massive hand clutched a boulder, which it hurled straight at the injured girl.

Damn it! I won’t make it—! Aoi’s eyes widened, time seeming to slow. Setsuna squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for the impact— But the blow never landed. Instead, a sharp crack split the air as the boulder shattered mid-flight. Dust sprayed across the arena, revealing a silver-haired girl standing protectively before Setsuna. Her stance was flawless—feet grounded, left palm extended, right fist tight at her side—a kung-fu guard as graceful as it was unyielding.

Setsuna gasped; eyes wide. The girl looked back at her with a small, reassuring smile before moving forward, slipping effortlessly into motion. In one smooth motion, she hooked Setsuna’s arm around her shoulders, lifting her up with quiet strength.

“Come on.” She leapt lightly away, carrying Setsuna until a proctor rushed to take her weight.

“Th-thank you…” Setsuna whispered, breathless. The silver-haired girl only smiled again before bounding back toward her own team.

“Setsuna! Are you okay?!” Ayane rushed to her side as the proctor eased her down. She tore open a bandage from her jacket, fumbling with trembling hands.

“Y-Yeah…” Setsuna winced, forcing a faint smile. Aoi exhaled sharply in relief. Her grip on the rod tightened, her gaze burning as she turned back to the machines. She rammed the rod into the nearest puppet, sparks flashing as it collapsed. Then she raised her eyes to the giant. Project Xero’s gaze locked on her, recognition—or targeting—glinting in its optics. It hefted another boulder and hurled it with brutal force.

Aoi sprinted forward, weaving through the barrage. Each throw crushed smaller machines in its path, sparks and debris flying until only the behemoth remained. She closed the gap—just as its fist slammed down, shattering the floor and ripping a scar through the concrete.

“Aoi!” Ayane’s voice rang with worry as the dust settled, unveiling her friend standing by the wall, away from the machine.

“Doesn’t she know she can’t win against that thing?” Someone muttered.

“What does she think she’s doing? She’s going to get herself killed for sure,” another said, their eyes still fixed on her figure.

Aoi’s face remained unreadable as her gaze swept the wreckage. She stooped to grab a broken metal pipe, then a splintered staff lying nearby. Spotting the remains of two training belts and a chunk of armor plating from a fallen machine, she muttered, “These will do,” before setting to work with swift precision.

“No way…” A female proctor muttered.

“W-What is she doing?” another asked.

“She’s using the metal pipe as a core base, wrapping the belts around the center, attaching the broken spear tip and armor shard to either end with only those few pieces of junk?” A male proctor marveled, parroting her exact actions as she stood upright, the equipment in her right hand.

“She made a bo staff within seconds?!!” They all exclaimed.

Aoi twirled the makeshift spear around her fingers before lunging forward, sliding under the machine’s crushing fist with practiced ease. She flipped up, striking its joint with a precise jab, forcing it to stagger back. The machine swung wildly, but she kept weaving in and out of its reach, darting from angle to angle, her strikes hammering into hidden gaps.

She’s dodging each attack, aiming for the weak points while running back and forth at full speed to slow it down?! They all mused, their eyes and mouths wide with shock. Is she playing Whack-a-Mole with that machine?!

Aoi backflipped away just in time, dodging another swing as she switched to the armor-blade end, using it to deflect the dummy’s hammer like a makeshift shovel parry, redirecting the force. The machine swung and swung again, but missed, causing Aoi to strike with precision. The dummy’s movements were sluggish, its systems rattling. She gripped the staff tighter in her hold, running forward with a high spin, and hurled it with pinpoint precision, straight into the dummy’s chest core. The force jolted it backward.

Seizing her chance, she dashed forward, grabbed its fist mid-swing, pivoted, and with her strength, slammed the towering machine flat on its back. In mid-air, she spun forward, reeling her left hand with the staff backward, then, with a grunt, threw it across the room. The staff went flying as it hit a red button switch, close to the door, right below the upper floor where Asuka and the others stood. The machine powered down, and everywhere became silent.

The students froze, stunned into silence as Aoi touched down without a stumble. A few traded bewildered glances, unsure if they’d really just witnessed what they thought they had.

“If a switch turned this thing on, then logic says a switch can turn it off,” Aoi declared, lifting her gaze toward the second-years watching from above.

“You’ve gotta be joking…” one of them muttered, disbelief etched across his face.

“She forged a weapon out of scraps and turned a combat machine into a practice dummy… What kind of street-schooled monster is this girl?”

“Is that even possible?” someone whispered.

Ken exhaled in awe. “Unbelievable…”

“She’s amazing,” another first-year added under his breath.

“Well, how about that?” Jin chuckled, arms folded and a smirk tugging at his lips. “That girl’s got some serious skill.”

Beside him, Misora only hummed, her eyes never leaving Aoi. She really is strong… isn’t she, Reina?

“W-Well done, everyone. Especially you, Aoi.” Asuka finally broke the silence with a relieved smile. She signaled to Shino, who pressed a button, and the doors slid open with a mechanical hiss.