"You can start now." Zyon stood before the punching bag and gathered his concentration.
The hall had fallen quiet once again, the instructors paying special attention to him. Most of the players could tell they were interested in him but not what was so interesting about him.
They continued looking at the young man, wondering what he would show them or if it would turn out to be a ruse as well.
"Huuuu…" KiRA was listening to the comments of the other players with keen interest. He found most of the comments to be funny, but he didn't say anything back.
He simply continued watching as Ziggy took his position– back straight and body leaned back, his left punching hand stretched back, the center of gravity on his core.
He strengthened his shoulder, strengthened his overall pose, and after finishing his breathing cycle, he finally released the power building up on his fist.
-Bang!
The sound of his strike that was produced shook the entire room, the waves reaching players and shaking their very guts.
[201]
The punching bag did not shake violently or anything. It was strangely still in its place as the number on the screen continued increasing.
[300]
The number increase started from 200s instead of two-digit numbers or in hundreds. It also skipped any other number and jumped almost by a hundred in the next moment.
[369]
The jump in those numbers was so shocking that the people who weren't even players and had still tried their hand at this whole test were ashamed of what they were doing.
[402]
The number did not stop increasing even though it had reached 400s. They knew it wasn't going to stop anytime soon either.
[552]
They simply watched as the numbers on the screen kept increasing.
'His blessings are a great boost to his stats.'
All the blessings that Zyon possessed were enhancing his stats further. KiRA knew if it was in terms of pure stat strength, even he would lose to his brother.
He wasn't calling him the Protagonist for fun. That guy actually was the Hero that might save this world and its people.
[660]
The number stopped at a staggering 660, the highest of the day.
Many of the instructors were stunned by the number. It was crazy… they were expecting something great but this simply stunned them all.
They were now wondering what they had just witnessed and what more they were going to see…
'The punch was just the start.'
His Dexterity test results were above everyone else, and his ability to handle small things was even better than Isah's.
His stamina was also unprecedented. His skills helped him in ways his Blessings could not, the combination of them all was simply shocking.
'But that wasn't even the end…'
When they tested his energy, Aura appeared on the list for the first time ever. Some of the candidates possessed Mana as well, but none possessed Aura, sending another wave of shock among the other players.
"D-do you have any… any skills to demonstrate, Sir?" The A2P2 employee who was assessing the skills of the players was a little afraid of Zyon when he stood before him.
The presence that made them feel reassured still could not hide the powers that he possessed. And in this world, power and strength meant authority over others.
She seemed afraid that she would offend him anyway… but Zyon simply smiled warmly at her and helped her calm down.
"Take a deep breath, Miss. It's fine. You're doing your work so please don't be polite." He did not want her to be intimidated like this.
"Oh… alright." His words calmed her down. His warm smile almost made her blush as well.
The scene was strangely understandable to even the rule-following military personnel present.
If someone like him were to be so gentle with a Lady, then this kind of reaction was obvious.
Still, they could tell this was his natural humbleness. He wasn't trying to show off like many of the players before he had tried, and he wasn't acting either.
He was simply that kind of person, which made him even more desirable by the ladies, by the executives of A2P2 who were observing everything from a corner, and even those players that were from a big corporation or guild.
"You can start then." The lady said, her voice now more confident and positive.
"Yes." Zyon liked this so he nodded with a faint smile and walked forward into the open area.
The players before him had shown off their skills here. Some had strengthening skills, some had magical skills, and some even possessed supporting skills that could not be shown off.
But they still showed their skills here. And Zyon also had a few skills he wanted to reveal to them…
-Oooooooooooong!
He called out his Aura, a power stronger than natural body energy and something that represented the true weapon wielders.
If Mana was the source power of magic, then Aura powered the countless inhuman maneuvers that could be performed with this special power.
'A swordmaster…'
To obtain Aura, one needed to train with a sword for 1000 hours at the very least. They needed to learn how to hold the sword, how to feel the sword, and lastly, how to swing it properly.
Only if they do that could they achieve Aura— so for those seeing this special power for the first time, this flame-like red energy covering his wooden sword, the scene itself was a spectacle.
'He was made differently, hehehe.'
Thanks to this amazing brother, KiRA had always had the urge to surpass him in at least some areas.
He was better in academics, he was better when it came to life activities, and he was much better at most of the things that they did– perhaps that was also the reason that kept him going in the Tower of Beginning.
It was that one thing that he was better at unconditionally.
'But then again, he is still amazing.'
He showed off his {Swordarts} a skill that one can only use after they understand the basics of the sword.
It did not matter he possessed the sword, just like how it did not matter he possessed the Aura stat and {Weapon Aura} skill. Unless one innately understood how both of them worked, the skills were useless.
"Damn…"
"Is he really a player?"
"Unbelievable…"
It was pretty hard to believe he was also a player like the rest of them and was still around the same level as them.
"If he can do that already, what will he be capable of when he reaches a higher level…?"
The questions in the air falling on KiRA's ears made his smirk become even deeper.
They had no idea what level he would reach in the near future and how important he was going to become.
If he had to say so, they were seeing the very first display of a Hero that the world was soon going to praise… still, an attractive sword-wielding hero was not going to be enough for their current state government's attention.
"You can place your hand here." They needed someone much bigger.
Someone who would at least stand on par with those who knew much more about the tower than Iz or Ziggy did.
-OOOOOOOOOONG!
[300]
[600]
[900]
…
[1200]
[1290]
…
[1300]
[1400]
[1503]
…
[1722]
Perhaps, a [Rank-8] was enough for now. Surely one with Aura at least, was enough for the attention of the state government and the officials of the A2P2 that knew about the ongoing inner workings.
'As long as Ziggy makes a connection with them…'
KiRA plotted something new as he watched his brother being escorted by the very instructor who was watching over the exam.
'This is enough.'
If it was just a test, there was no need to reveal everything he had to the world. It would only make things inconvenient for him and restrict his freedom of movement.
'As long as I can get inside the tower, it should be enough.'
Saving the people around them wasn't his goal and clearing the tower was not something he needed to be concerned about right now.
His goal was simple— to get rich and save the world.
The means did not matter.
He wasn't a hero, and he wasn't a protector either.
He simply had powers and he was the only one that would decide how he was supposed to use all those powers…