The Talentless Boy Who Challenged the Devil

CHAPTER SIX: THE UNEXPECTED SELECTION

The academy bells rang three times before sunrise.

Kael had barely finished fastening the straps of his uniform when the announcement spread through the dormitories.

All classified students were to report to the eastern grounds for a practical assessment. Attendance was compulsory for every student with a recognized talent.

Every student except him.

He discovered that last part when he reached the grounds and found his name missing from the registration board.

Students gathered beneath the towering stone arches, their uniforms marked with different insignias that reflected their talent classifications.

 Some carried enchanted weapons. Others wore protective gloves, their fingers glowing with faint traces of magic.

A few had small creatures perched on their shoulders, their companions watching the crowd with bright, curious eyes.

Kael stood before the board for several seconds, searching for his name even though he already knew what he would find.

Nothing.

"Looking for something that isn't there?"

Kael turned.

A boy with silver embroidery on his collar stood behind him, wearing the easy smile of someone who had never needed to fight for his place in the world.

Kael recognized him as one of the students who had laughed when he failed his combat assessment.

"Your name isn't on the list," the boy continued. "Perhaps the academy finally remembered that talentless people are supposed to stay out of the way."

A few students laughed.

Kael returned his attention to the board.

He had learned that answering every insult only gave people another reason to enjoy humiliating him.

Unfortunately, silence did not always satisfy them.

"Are you deaf?" The boy stepped closer. "I'm talking to you."

"And I heard you."

"Then why aren't you answering?"

"Because you haven't asked me anything worth answering."

The laughter died.

The boy's smile disappeared.

For a moment, Kael thought he might be foolish enough to start a fight in front of the instructors. 

His fingers had already begun glowing with a faint golden light when a voice interrupted them.

"Is there a problem here?"

Instructor Riven approached with a group of academy officials behind him. His dark uniform bore the silver crest of the academy, and the staff in his hand hummed with restrained magical energy.

The silver-collared boy immediately stepped back.

"No problem, Instructor."

"Then stop gathering around the registration board and prepare for departure."

The students began moving.

Only Kael remained where he stood.

"Sir," he called.

Riven stopped.

"My name isn't on the list."

"I know."

"Then why was I instructed to report here?"

The instructor studied him with an expression Kael could not read.

"Because the director has ordered your inclusion in today's assessment."

A murmur spread through the assembly grounds.

Kael stared at him.

The director had already intervened once to keep him at the academy. 

Now he was interfering again, forcing him into an assessment designed for students who possessed abilities he could not even identify.

Why?

What did the man expect to find?

And why was everyone determined to keep him in a place that had made it painfully clear he did not belong?

"Does the director have a reason?" Kael found himself asking.

"If he wishes you to know, he will tell you himself."

Riven turned away before Kael could respond.

The silver-collared boy was not so willing to let the matter rest.

"How convenient," he muttered as Kael joined the line. "A talentless nobody receives special treatment from the director himself."

Kael ignored him.

"Perhaps you should ask him to carry you through the assessment too," the boy continued. "Unless your mysterious connections only work when you are about to embarrass yourself."

Kael stopped.

The boy looked pleased, apparently expecting an angry response.

Instead, Kael met his eyes.

"If I had connections powerful enough to control the director, do you honestly think I would still be standing here listening to you?"

The boy's expression tightened.

Kael walked away.

His family had paid for his failure, and he had nothing to show for the bruises he had earned trying to defend them. 

Whatever the director wanted from him, Kael needed to discover it before the academy found another reason to punish the people he loved.

He could not afford to remain ignorant forever.

The instructors led the students toward the eastern gates.

Beyond them lay the academy's controlled training zone, a vast stretch of land enclosed by towering stone walls and reinforced magical barriers. 

The place had been designed to simulate the dangers beyond human settlements without exposing students to unnecessary risk.

At least, that was what the academy claimed.

As they approached the entrance, Kael felt the familiar pressure of magic against his skin.

The barriers shimmered in the morning light. Runes carved into the pillars pulsed with blue energy, each one connected to the next by thin, luminous threads. 

Beyond the gates, the terrain changed from carefully maintained pathways to uneven ground covered in strange vegetation.

Something roared in the distance, and several students straightened.

The silver-collared boy smiled again.

"Try not to embarrass yourself too badly. It would be a shame if the academy had to carry your body back."

Kael glanced at him.

"Try not to scream first."

The boy's face darkened, but Instructor Riven ordered everyone inside before he could reply.

The gates opened.

And the academy swallowed them whole.

The training zone was larger than Kael had imagined.

Forested slopes stretched toward distant cliffs, while streams of glowing water cut through patches of dark grass. 

Crystal formations rose from the earth like enormous teeth, their surfaces reflecting colours that did not exist in ordinary sunlight.

Magical creatures occupied separate enclosures scattered across the grounds. 

Some resembled animals Kael knew, although their bodies carried features that made them unmistakably unnatural. 

Others were so strange that he could not decide where their heads ended and their limbs began.

A creature with translucent wings clung upside down to a branch. Beneath it, a horned reptile slept beside a pool of steaming water.

Farther away, something enormous moved behind a reinforced barrier.

The ground trembled beneath its steps.

Kael swallowed.

For all the cruelty he had experienced at the academy, he had never forgotten why people trained here. 

Beyond the protected settlements, magical creatures could destroy entire villages. 

The academy existed because ordinary people needed someone strong enough to protect them.

He wanted to return home without finding his mother injured or his younger brother struggling beneath a load meant for someone twice his age.

He wanted to stop being the reason his family suffered.

"Listen carefully," Instructor Riven announced.

His voice carried across the training grounds.

"You will be divided into groups. Each group will observe a designated creature and complete the tasks assigned to you. You are not to approach the barriers without permission, and you are not to attempt to provoke a creature for the sake of demonstrating your abilities."

His gaze settled briefly on Kael.

"Your objective is to observe, identify changes in behaviour, and respond according to your training. This is an assessment, not a competition. Recklessness will be punished." He said the last statement loudly, enough for everyone to hear.

And, immediately, the students were divided into groups.

Kael was assigned to the outer observation area, where he would record changes in the behaviour of a low-ranked creature under the supervision of an assistant instructor.

It was hardly an exciting assignment, but he accepted the recording slate without complaint.

The creature inside the enclosure resembled a small, six-legged fox. Its fur was dark green, and a pair of curved horns emerged from its forehead. 

It paced along the barrier, occasionally stopping to sniff the air.

Kael watched it closely.

At first, nothing seemed unusual.

The creature moved, paused, and moved again. When another student activated a small magical lamp, it retreated to the far side of the enclosure.

Kael recorded the reaction.

Then the creature stopped moving.

Its ears flattened.

Its body lowered until its belly nearly touched the ground.

Kael frowned.

The change was subtle, but he noticed it.

The creature was no longer watching the students.

It was staring at something beyond the enclosure.

A low sound escaped its throat.

And the assistant instructor glanced at it.

"Record the response. It may have detected another creature nearby."

Kael lowered his slate, watching the animal's trembling legs.

Something was wrong.

He did not know how he knew. He could not even identify a spell, a fluctuation in magical energy, or any visible threat. 

Yet the uneasiness in his chest grew stronger with every passing second.

The creature was afraid.

Kael stepped closer to the observation railing.

"Sir, shouldn't we check the barrier?"

The assistant instructor barely glanced at him.

"The barrier is functioning."

"But the creature..."

Suddenly, a sharp metallic crack split the air.

And every head turned.