Amber and Elric stood before Dante after receiving a notification through their academy bracelets. Both had already finished reading the message. A few minutes later, Dante finally opened his own. The message was almost identical — the only difference was the section specifically intended for Mythical-tier students.
[Read the following information carefully and ensure you understand the requirements of the Final Selection Examination for Mythical-tier students.]
[The academy requires every participant to complete the Selection Examination under the established conditions.]
[Any attempt to pass through unauthorized means will be considered a violation of academy regulations.]
[This includes, but is not limited to: bribery, interference with other participants, attempting to manipulate the examination, or defeating individuals assigned to evaluate you.]
[The rules are as follows—]
Dante's eyes immediately lost focus. The message continued — paragraph after paragraph, rule after rule, explanation after explanation. He had barely reached the second section before his interest completely disappeared.
Lexa noticed immediately.
"Master."
No response.
"Please read it."
Dante continued staring at the holographic screen with the same empty expression. Lexa slowly turned toward Vexion.
"V. Make him read it."
Dante frowned. He was about to ignore Lexa entirely. Then she added—
"You don't want Master getting hurt, do you?"
Vexion's expression immediately changed. Without saying a word, she shifted across Dante's lap. She didn't move away. Instead, she settled more comfortably against him before lightly grinding her hips against the obvious firmness beneath her.
Dante looked up. Vexion had turned toward him. Her expression was serious.
"Master... Lexa is right. This isn't the time to be lazy."
Dante raised an eyebrow.
"I doubt I could get hurt."
Vexion frowned.
"I know. But I can't help you with Mythical-tier matters."
Her voice became quieter.
"You're the only one capable of protecting yourself in a situation like that. I... I'm too weak."
Off to the side, Amber finally understood what Elric had meant.
'Lexa really is the older sibling of these two.' Vexion was prepared to ignore the message entirely, then Lexa mentioned Master's safety. That was all it took.
Amber couldn't help chuckling. The relationship between the three was strangely endearing. Vexion operated according to her own logic — her thoughts moved almost entirely around Dante, his goals, his safety, his expectations. Lexa balanced them. She understood both Dante's absurd behavior and Vexion's obsessive devotion well enough to keep everything from descending into complete chaos.
'Vexion is Master's right hand. Lexa is the person holding everything together. They're both important — just in completely different ways.'
Dante sighed. His hand moved toward Vexion's hip, and he gave one of her soft cheeks a gentle squeeze. The effect was immediate — the faint pout on Vexion's face disappeared, her serious expression softened, and then she smiled, a quiet giggle escaping her lips as she turned toward her own academy bracelet.
Elric and Amber stared.
'That actually worked...?'
Dante ignored their expressions. He looked back toward the holographic message, then spoke internally.
System.
[Yes, Master.]
'Read it. Then summarize the important parts.'
[Understood. Reading examination information...]
Only a few seconds passed. Then—
[Master.]
Dante leaned back.
'Go ahead.'
[The Final Selection Examination consists of three phases. All participants will be transported into a Temporal Realm.]
Dante raised an eyebrow.
'A Temporal Realm?'
[Correct. Time inside the realm will not progress at the same rate as it does within the outside world. The academy has not provided an exact conversion. However, based upon the information available, several months may pass within the realm while only a comparatively short period passes outside.]
Dante nodded.
'How long?'
[The estimated duration is approximately five months. Potentially less depending upon how quickly the participants complete each phase.]
Five months...
Dante frowned.
'That's a long time.'
The System continued.
[Each phase allows participants to fail once. Death will be considered a failure.]
Dante's expression became slightly more serious.
'Death counts as a failure... so dying isn't necessarily immediate disqualification.'
[That appears to be correct. The academy will evaluate every participant individually. The exact rules for each phase will be revealed through the academy bracelets on the day of the examination. However, the academy has provided a general description. Phases One and Two will evaluate an individual's ability to survive and operate independently within unfamiliar and dangerous environments. Phase Three will evaluate teamwork, cooperation, and group cohesion.]
Dante nodded.
Anything else useful?
A brief silence followed.
[Most remaining information concerns regulations that are intentionally vague. The rules appear similar to ordinary academy regulations. However, the academy has deliberately withheld several details until a day before the examination. I can retrieve and summarize the information when it becomes relevant. Considering Master's preference for receiving this type of information immediately before it becomes necessary, I believe there is little reason to explain everything now.]
Dante smiled.
'You understand me.'
[I have had considerable time to study Master.]
Dante ignored the possible insult. He closed the holographic screen before looking toward the people standing before him.
"Looks like you guys will need to operate alone."
Silence followed. Then everyone turned toward Vexion. Vexion remained seated on Dante's lap. Her expression was calm. Beautiful. Almost peaceful. Yet everyone immediately understood what the expression meant.
She was furious.
Lexa covered her mouth to hide a laugh.
'She hasn't even entered the examination yet, and she's already angry about being separated from Master.'
Dante looked toward Vexion.
"What's wrong?"
Vexion slowly turned toward him. Her crimson eyes narrowed.
"...Nothing, Master."
Dante raised an eyebrow.
"That doesn't sound like nothing."
"I said—" She forced a smile. "—nothing."
Lexa barely stopped herself from laughing. Dante shrugged.
"Once the rules are announced, I'll complete my objectives as quickly as possible."
He gave Vexion's bottom a gentle yet audible pat. Pat. Vexion immediately turned toward him. Her anger disappeared. Hope filled her eyes.
Dante chuckled.
"Then I'll look for you."
Vexion froze. Dante pointed toward Lexa.
"After V, you guys."
Vexion's eyes widened. Then—
"Really!?"
She threw her arms around Dante's neck. Dante simply hugged her back. Vexion happily buried her face against his shoulder.
"Master is the best."
"I know."
Lexa shook her head. The expression on Vexion's face had completely transformed. Only moments ago, she looked prepared to declare war against the academy itself. Now she couldn't stop smiling.