Guess what? Turns out one day really did matter.

  Bad habits die hard, yeah, I always thought that was just a saying. But now? I’d lived it. Maybe it’s because in my previous life I was a lazy bum

  Remember when I said I had a whole year.

  Well too bad, I blinked, wasted it and now I’ve got just one measly month to prepare. Great job. You smart ass.

  “ARGH!..AAAH…ARGH! ARGH!..AAAH…ARGH! ARGH!..AAAH…ARGH!”

  I thrashed on the bed like some dying animal. The study material hadn’t shrunk an inch, but my time had evaporated into nothing. HOW STUPID COULD I BE? I blew my one chance, the chance to get into a good institution, the chance to actually follow my plan, the chance to save Kiara.

  WHAT DO I DO? WHAT DO I DO? WHAT DO I DO?

  In the first place, why the hell does an advanced civilization still have things like exams? For a world that figured out how to separate consciousness from the body, you would think they could invent direct data transfer to the brain. That would solve education overnight and make soldiers ready in a blink. Problem solved. But, nah. Apparently not.

  I don’t think the author brought up this in the novel. I guess it’s one of those suspensions of disbelief scenarios, fine. But oh god, I hate this so much.

  Damn it…breathe. Relax. If I fail this exam, forget saving Kiyara. First thing, my mom will beat me to a pulp.

  THINK RENARD. THINK…

  I get it. I guess there’s no other way. There is no miracle hack. No secret computer pencil. So, yea, we do it the old way. FULL ON, LAST-MINUTE CRAMMING.

  No glory, just grind.

  Ten days. One day is twenty-four hours. That’s roughly two hundred forty hours. If I pour everything into it. Maybe I can get a decent rank this way, It’s not over until it’s over. Okay, now I’m actually feeling something like confidence.

  I can do this. I just have to believe in the me that believes in me.

  Yea that’s right…

  Or so I thought.

  …

  My name is Renard Kurozawa, son of Victor Kurozawa and Sayuri Kurozawa. I’ve a little sister, Claire, who’s endlessly cheerful in ways I’ll never understand. I am thirteen years old, though in my past life I was a biology teacher in Japan. By some sheer bad luck, a truck ran me over and I was reborn in this world - the world of a light novel called Kōrō no Grairu.

  And just now, I’ve finished a ten-day, non-stop cramming session for the intermediate All-zonal exam. Ten days of sleepless nights, data files piled on data files and enough energy supplements to kill a horse. Honestly? I feel like I’m dying, again.

  Still, the torture paid off. Somewhat. I think I'm prepared enough to scrape a decent rank and land a spot in some respectable institution. At least, that's what I keep praying for. If this exam covers even half of what I’ve studied, I might survive. If not…well, I might as well do seppuku.

  Though, when I say ‘All-zonal exam,’ I mean the zones governed by Atmatek systems. There were 105 of them in total. The numbers aren't just serial numbers but also represent threat significance. The lower the number, the closer you are to deviant territory. Like, Zone 01 was basically hell, and suffered from continuous deviant attacks and infiltration.

  Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  Meanwhile, Triple digit zones were the safest, where the elites lived in luxury. Talk about class divide. The only good thing about this social hierarchy was social mobility was there. So, if you’re a genius or have some ridiculous talent, you can climb the ladder and become part of the same elites that have created and maintained this divide.

  Btw, the hero of the original novel lived in zone 02. The second most dangerous place on the map, where deviant’s infiltrations were practically daily news. Hard life, well he is the hero for a reason.

  For the record, Atmatek controlled only ten zones, with a population of around fifty million people. And that means, I had a chance and tomorrow it’s my turn to prove I can climb the ladder to an elite life of my own.

  The exam site was just a few kilometers from our place. It was decided that Mom was going to escort me there. Now, all I needed was everything going my way. No hiccups. No mistakes. And maybe a little luck on my side, too.

  …

  Morning came. The time for the exam was finally here.

  I got myself ready and off we went. My little sister, three years younger than me, tagged along, since no one was at home to watch her.

  It felt strange stepping outside after being holed up in my room for ten straight days. Strangely freeing, but not difficult. The world outside was dim, almost melancholic. Because of humanity’s prolonged conflict with the deviants, nuclear weapons had been used more than once. The result was a lingering nuclear winter.

  Though, through advanced technology, humanity managed to keep the worst effects at bay, but even so, thick clouds smothered the sky. Sunlight barely reached the ground and so artificial lamp lights lighted the place, even in the middle of the day.

  The novel had described this well, I realized. At that time, I had thought of the description as part of worldbuilding; the mood and tone of the story. But now that I was part of this world, I could feel it. This oppressive darkness pressed down on you, forced you to confront the fragility of humanity's survival.

  The streets were almost too quiet for morning hours. People move about, but without any emotion, their footsteps heavy, as if life itself was an obligation rather than a gift.

  Towering buildings looked overhead, their shadows stretching across the sidewalks as we walked. And the other glaring detail was that there were no cars.

  I remembered the explanation from the novel. Automobiles were deemed impractical, high cost, low benefit transportation. Not only did they eat up precious energy resources, but they also needed space where they could operate which was already scarce in this world. So, they were hard to come by in lower zones.

  They also didn't have flying cars which would have been cool but whatever. For what I can remember, teleportation did exist in this world but was reserved for official purposes and elites. The unspoken message was clear: you’re peasants, so use your legs.

  Or the train. Which, naturally, we did.

  I always wondered why the author decided to phase out cars but kept the trains. Then again, these weren't ordinary trains. They ran on a new advanced renewable energy source.

  Still, interzonal travel was rare. Other than official purposes or collaborations. People rarely moved out of zones especially if it was between two zones governed by different corporations. And if you actually wanted to move between zones, especially ones governed by another corporation, you needed a special permit.

  Kind of ironic, isn’t it? From early ages, we are taught that primitive concepts like borders had been abolished, yet here we were, still bound by invisible walls.

  That aside, we arrived at our site.

  A massive building loomed ahead, its sign etched with bold letters: Zonal test agency (ZTA).

  The entry and registration system was fully automated, the gates sliding open under the unblinking watch of an AI system. Inside, the hall buzzed with nervous energy, thousands of children lined up with their parents. Their faces were a mix of tension, and silence. Some glanced my way for a moment before turning back to their own worries.

  Did they just measure me with one single look?

  My mother placed her hand gently on my head. “Off you go. Do your best. Mamma knows you can ace the exam” she said softly.

  “Yeah…” I muttered back, trying to sound confident.

  Mom could be handful sometimes but at the end of the day she was also worried about me

  …

  Alright. This was it. The moment of truth. As the saying goes, cometh the house, cometh the man. And the man? Obviously, me. I was ready to give everything I had. Top rank? Already mine. With my past life knowledge, I'm gonna go all out.

  I mean, really, how bad could it go?

  …

  Spoiler alert: it could go really bad