[Yuzuki’s POV]
The huge hall was filled with rows of seats going down toward the large stage below. Pale lights shone from the high ceiling, lighting up the many students gathered inside.
At the very front stood a massive platform surrounded by floating screens of light. Every pair of eyes in the hall occasionally drifted toward that stage, filled with anticipation, anxiety, or excitent.
Except for one person.
Near the middle rows, a young man with soft brown hair and bright blue eyes sat lazily against his seat, one leg slightly stretched forward as the glow of his phone reflected faintly across his face.
While everyone else waited nervously for the evaluation to start, he calmly kept scrolling through the pages of his like he did not care at all whatever was going on in his surroundings.
His thumb moved steadily across the screen.
The noisy chattering atmosphere around him barely seed to exist in his mind.
Then he stopped scrolling.
’Ah, I already reached the end of the story.’
’Seriously... is this the last Chapter?’
Yuzuki stared quietly at the screen for a few seconds. The novel app displayed the familiar sentence every reader hated seeing.
[Ascension of Beasts: Infinite Summons]
[End of series]
He let out a soft sigh before imdiately opening the recomndation section beneath it.
’Now, what should I read next?’
His eyes scanned through countless titles with far more interest than the massive hall around him. Fantasy, regression, academy, dungeon survival, romance.
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’Huh? Well, that first rank looks very interesting... But what’s with the long na? Is that a new trend or sothing?’
His finger paused over several of them before continuing downward again.
At that mont, a voice suddenly ca from the seat beside him.
"Hey, Yuzuki," the young man next to him leaned closer, lowering his voice slightly. "Are you not scared or sothing? You still have the nerve to be casually reading a during this ti?"
"Hm?"
Yuzuki finally turned his head toward him for a brief second before casually looking back at his phone again.
"Well, it’s not a big deal to ," he answered calmly. "I don’t care whatever the result I will get here."
The other student stared at him in disbelief.
"You really... sure?" he asked. "This is like sothing everyone has been looking towards. You could change your life if you get an exceptional evaluation."
For the first ti, Yuzuki’s finger stopped moving.
The light from the screen reflected quietly in his eyes as his gaze slowly drifted sowhere far beyond the hall itself.
"Whatever I will get..." he murmured softly. "It won’t matter."
Then, as though the conversation had already ended in his mind, he resud scrolling through the recomndation list again, carefully searching for another novel to binge read.
Beside him, the other student could only scratch his head awkwardly before leaning back into his seat.
"Alright," he muttered with a helpless sigh. "Your life, your choice, man."
A few monts later, the lights around the massive stage slowly brightened.
The restless murmurs filling the hall gradually quieted down as everyone’s attention shifted toward the front.
From behind the large platform, a woman calmly stepped onto the stage.
She looked to be in her late twenties, wearing a neat white uniform with silver patterns on the sleeves and collar. A small national badge rested near her chest.
Her long dark hair fell neatly behind her shoulders, and the gentle smile on her face made the tense atmosphere in the hall feel a little lighter.
She walked toward a tall silver stand positioned at the center of the stage, its upper section holding a floating crystal sphere that functioned like a microphone.
The mont she stopped before it, the floating screens around the hall lit up softly.
"Good morning, everyone."
Her voice spread clearly throughout the enormous hall.
"First of all, allow to congratulate every one of you for reaching this day safely. Today marks an important turning point in your lives, and also the beginning of a path that may shape your future from this mont onward. My na is Asuka Hishiko from the Awakened Oversight Division, and I will be overseeing the First Potential Evaluation for Hall 2."
A faint smile appeared on her lips.
"I understand many of you are nervous right now. And so may be afraid of what result awaits you today. That is perfectly normal...."
Soft whispers quietly spread among the seats again before fading once more.
"....After all, this evaluation has always been regarded as one of the most significant ceremonies for every student across the nation. However, please rember that the result you receive today does not define your entire worth as a person."
"Now then, I will briefly explain today’s evaluation procedure. The first stage of the evaluation will involve synchronization with the Potential Assessnt Device."
The image rotated slowly above the stage.
"Once your na is called, you will co forward and place your hand upon the device. The device will then analyze your energy wavelength and several other internal factors."
"After your initial evaluation is complete, staff mbers will guide you toward a private assessnt room. There, specialists will conduct a secondary analysis regarding your talents, abilities, and possible skill."
"Since your school year’s students have been divided between two halls, we ask everyone to cooperate so the evaluation may proceed smoothly and efficiently."
"Please remain seated until your na is called, and avoid causing unnecessary disturbances during another student’s assessnt."
She bowed her head slightly.
"Thank you once again for your patience."
Then she smiled warmly toward the students below.
"And lastly... good luck to all of you."
A wave of applause gradually echoed throughout the enormous hall. Even the tense atmosphere from before seed lighter now.
Soon afterward, the evaluation finally began.
The atmosphere grew increasingly lively with each passing evaluation. Yet amid all the excitent surrounding him, Yuzuki remained completely detached from it all.
His attention never left the screen in his hand.
At so point, he had already started another .
The faint light from his phone reflected quietly across his eyes as he continued scrolling through Chapters while the evaluations proceeded one after another in the background.
Until eventually...
It was his na being called.
"Yuzuki Nozomi, B-12-077."
Asuka lifted her gaze toward the middle rows.
"Please co to the stage for evaluation."
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[Chapter 173: A Glimpse Into Yuzuki Nozomi’s World, Who Is He? (1)]
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