We stand there watching each other, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Hopper with his briefcase of personal items, and I with an unfolded paper map. Any second now, he will strike and I’ll have him right-

  “Um, are you okay?” Hopper asks as he starts to unpack.

  This man intruded into my domain. My sanctuary. It was supposed to be the start of my life of luxury. A room all to myself. My first room, and it’s all his fault. It has to be.

  “Yes, everything is fine. I’m Carlos Juárez, but you can call me CJ,” I say as I contemplate revenge.

  Hopper gives a small chuckle as he continues unpacking. “Yeah, I know who you are. You’re The Chosen One. I saw you at the auditorium, like everybody else did.”

  “Oh, yeah. I’m still getting used to the attention, but I hope we can get along,” I [Lie].

  There has to be a way to get rid of him. I could do what smelly Doug used to do whenever anyone got too close to him. No, as The Chosen One, I probably shouldn’t bite him.

  “Listen, I’m happy to be rooming with you, but I’m kind of getting this vibe that you're not happy I’m here,” he says as he adjusts his glasses.

  “What? No, of course not. I’m just so happy to be sharing this room with you,” I [Lie] as I also start to unpack.

  “I guess it’s a good thing they loosened the requirements for enrollment this year. More admissions equals more shared rooms.”

  No wonder there were so many people at the auditorium. I had always heard that they only accepted the cream of the crop. Guess that’s changing, which is good for the common folk, but couldn’t they have waited until after I graduated? Ah. I bet that Penelope gets her own room. Speaking of her.

  “Hey, Hopper. Do you know why Penelope did all that?” I ask, hoping for a clear-cut answer.

  “Well, I don’t really know. We don’t really get much gossip from over the mountains. Other than the really good stuff, and considering I’ve been in the capital for about a day or so, I don’t think I’m going to be much help,” he says, providing absolutely nothing of use.

  Great. I have a roommate, and he’s not even useful. That’s it. I’m going to bed. I wonder what it feels like. As I lie on what can only be described as heaven, I feel myself slowly drift to sleep.

  “Uh, CJ?” the intruder says, interrupting my blissful sleep.

  “Yes?” I say, letting slip some of the venom in my voice.

  “I don’t want to interrupt, but we have Rank Placement in a couple of minutes,” he says.

  What in the hells is Rank Placement?

  “So, for those that were not aware, Rank Placement is a series of tests meant to determine what rank and, subsequently, what class you will be placed in for the first quarter. Now, don’t feel too much pressure. Your ranking is not permanent and will fluctuate throughout the year based on a wide variety of criteria. Rankings are made public at the end of every quarter. So, since we have a lot of you to go through, let’s get started,” the instructor says as he cleans his thick glasses.

  Guess that answers that. The crowd of first years ebbs and swells as they are split off into more manageable groups. My group contains a bunch of people I don’t know, and two I would rather not be in a group with. Penelope and Hopper. At the moment, these are my archenemies. The Chosen One needs at least one archenemy after all. …I’m starting to believe my own lies. I need to be careful before I do something stupid.

  An Elven woman with brown skin and long golden hair walks us into a room with dark green brick walls and a blue sphere on a table. As we shuffle in, the room seems to grow in size as if it were always that size. Weird magic room. Don’t like it, maybe I can slip out. As I think that the door slams shut. Ok. No escaping, now. A shiver runs down my spine as the Elven woman gently traces the sphere with her fingernail.

  “Welcome all. I am Myria Stargazer, the magical professor for all first years, and first, we will be measuring your mana and affinities,” she says as she conjures a chalkboard out of thin air.

  “Now, you might be asking why we are doing this measurement when the [System] already provides a numerical value to our mana. The answer is simple. Although the [System] provides the amount, it does not provide the type. Fire, Light, and Earth are some examples of the type of mana you may have an affinity for. Knowing your type allows you to grow and curate your skills in an optimized manner,” she says as she draws on the chalkboard.

  I didn’t know that, but I didn’t really want to or had to. Magic is for nobles and people with [Blessings], of which I am neither. Hells, my skills don’t even use magic.

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  “For example, if you have an Ice skill but have an affinity to Fire, your development in that skill will be truncated. The opposite is also true. Now, who would like to go first?” Professor Stargazer says as she steps aside from the crystal.

  The moment she asks, a myriad of hands raise, but one is faster than the others.

  “Princess Penolope, please step forward and place your hand on the sphere,” the professor says.

  The moment Penelope places her hand on the sphere, it shines with two distinct colors. Yellow and white. Damn, that’s bright, and what’s even brighter is her stupidly smug smile.

  “95 MP and an affinity to not just one, but two types of mana. Lightning and Light. As expected from you, Princess,” she says with a warm tone, but cold eyes.

  “Thank you, Professor Stargazer,” Penelope says as she shows off a signature look of superiority.

  Time passes as more first years get their measurements. Most range in the lower end, with a smaller outlier here and there. Turns out that Penelope has the highest MP amongst this group, and based on my classmates' reactions, having two mana affinities isn’t anything to scoff at. Guess her smug smile isn’t entirely unfounded. For the rest of the group, I don’t really pay attention, but when Hopper goes up to test his, I don’t let my eyes wander. I have to know my enemy if I want to defeat them.

  Hopper places his hand on the sphere, and it alights with two distinct colors. Sky blue and light blue. As it begins to dim, the Professor shows a hint of dissatisfaction that she quickly hides.

  “25 MP and an affinity to Wind and Ice. It seems that we have two students with a bright future ahead of them.” Distracted, she jots down some notes and continues. “Now, Chosen One, it’s your turn,” she says with a mixture of glee and something else.

  The entire room turns to me with excitement dancing in their eyes. Well, everyone, but Penelope, whose eyes are filled with hate and death and what I can only assume are the hells.

  As I walk towards the blue sphere, I hear the whispers of my classmates.

  “I think he’s going to get a higher MP than the Princess,” a woman whispers, but not really.

  “What if he gets three or even four mana affinities!?” a man exclaims to his neighbor.

  This crowd is about to be sorely disappointed. With my outstretched hand, I gently touch the sphere. The moment I do, an audible crack resounds through the room. Looking down at my hand, I see the now shattered blue sphere. Odd, you would think they wouldn’t cheap out on the materials here. Do I have to pay for this? If I do, I wonder if I can get Abrigon to foot the bill. Technically falls under tuition fees.

  “Never in my three hundred years of teaching here have I ever seen something like this happen. I don’t understand,” the professor says in confusion.

  As I look around, the entire group looks as confused as her or more. A devilish smile would’ve crossed my lips if it weren’t for the crowd. This is my chance to take control.

  “I apologize, Professor Stargazer. It would seem that the power of The Chosen One is far too great to be measured by any mere device,” I [Lie] as I pick at the remains of the sphere.

  “That’s impossible! Unless…” the professor says as she pulls out a number of papers.

  Yes. Fill in the gaps. Fall for my web of deceit and trickery. … Gods, I sound like a villain. Well, considering that I’ve taken the identity of The Chosen One. Depending on how you look at it, I might be a villain.

  “Here it is!! If the user has more than four affinities, then the sphere shatters as it can’t handle that much power. This is unprecedented. None of the previous Chosen Ones have ever been documented to have more than four affinities. You may be the strongest Chosen One yet,” she says with a childlike glee in her eyes.

  Ah, fuck. That might have been a little bit too much. Why did the sphere even break? There’s no way I have more than four affinities. I’m just a Vashrin. We don’t even get [Blessings], let alone some crazy number of affinities. Well, actually, this may be a boon. My meager MP is hidden, and my cover as The Chosen One is more solid than ever. I look over to the fuming Penelope, and I get to see this beautiful scene. I can see no downsides to this, only upsides.

  “Well, class, that’s enough excitement. Let's head to the next part,” the professor says as she claps her hands.

  With a wave of her hand, the room expands. With the wave of her other hand, she conjures a table, a rack of weapons, and an armored dummy. “Now, mana isn’t everything, so we will be testing your practical skills. Starting with the Princess.”

  Penelope steps forward and, with one hand, lifts a greatsword from the weapon rack. She then traces the edge with her finger, leaving a trail of blood along it. She then whispers something under her breath, and the sword comes to life with a crackle of lightning. As she takes a step toward the armored dummy, she disappears and then reappears from behind the dummy. With one powerful slash, she cuts clean through the dummy's armor. As the lightning subsides, Penelope gives a small curtsey.

  “Impressive, Princess! Excellent use of [Imbue] and [Step]. I would expect nothing less from you,” the professor says as she reconjures the dummy.

  The rest of the group shows off a wide variety of skills, including non-combat skills, but none as impressive as Penelope's. Although the person with the [Baking] skill might need to become my friend. By the Gods, that was delicious.

  As I reminisce on the flavor, Hopper steps up to the dummy. Wonder what he’s going to do? As I watch Hopper, he seemingly disappears. It’s not like how Penelope did it; He just fades into the background.

  “Boo!” Hopper yells from behind a group of women who were chatting about their [Skills].

  The ladies jump back as they send a variety of tame expletives Hopper's way.

  “That is an excellent use of [Hide], Hopper. Now onto The Chosen One. I’m eager to see which [Skill] you’ll show us,” she says expectantly.

  So am I. I have only three [Skills]: [Throw], [Lie], and [Steal]. [Lie] is out of the question, and [Steal] doesn’t fit The Chosen One. Which leaves me with good old ordinary [Throw]. How am I going to spin this one? Don’t know until I try.

  Wasting no time, I grab a pebble from my pocket and [Throw] it at the armored dummy. With precision, the rock bounces off the armored dummy's head, making an audible clinking noise throughout the room.

  Fuck.