"To those of you who have decided to participate in the assessment, congratulations on passing the test of courage. You've been awarded a hundred contribution points for your bravery. As for the rest of the temporary students that chose not to participate in the test, you have failed the military academy entrance examination. You've lost your status as a temporary student of the military academy. You may leave through the doors after returning your temporary student ID card to the droids or the faculty members," Theodore said with a cheeky smile once the time to make a decision was up.

At the same time, the student ID cards of Vincent, Leila, and around a hundred students vibrated as one could see that they received a notification about obtaining 100 contribution points.

"Looks like you were right, big brother," Leila said as she

Vincent teasing smile and said, "At a time like this, shouldn't you reward me?"

As soon as he said those words, she arched forward and kissed him on the cheeks. Immediately after, her face turned red like a riped tomato as this display of love was done in public.

"Good enough," Vincent said as he pulled her into his embrace and returned the favor by kissing her cheeks.

Looking at their display of love, Peter thought that his ship has finally come true, Nevis thought that the result of his hard work is really fruitful, the faculty members, droids, and examiners thought that it's good to be young and that Vincent and Leila are two youngsters madly in love.

The students that failed had an unsightly expression on their faces, and they just couldn't believe that they failed for no reason, as if refusing to partake in the assessment wasn't a choice but a compulsory decision, as well as if they forgot that they failed because of cowardice and weak mental fortitude.

"Eh? Why is that?! How come you passed all of them without having them fight beasts while you failed the rest of us? Isn't this fair?? You should have been clear about the situation and tell us that we won't be fighting the terrifying beasts. Isn't this just you playing with us? Do you even know how hard I worked every day and night just for this day, and now you're failing me after playing a mental game with all of us? How could you even do such a thing?"

"Yeah, how is this fair?

"All that shit about facing beasts was false. From the very start of the assessment, you were trying to scare us!"

"Some of us can't put our lives in danger. I am just a commoner. My father is at the age of retirement. After he stops working, it becomes my duty to support my family of four. Tell me, how could I ever put myself near death doors hoping to survive when the well-being of my family will soon depend on me?"

A student snapped as he felt that injustice have been done to him. His words were enough to start a rally in the room, and a lot of students that failed started to complain.

As soon as they started spewing words without thinking at all, a deep frown could be seen emerging on the instructor's face.

"You still have the guts to doubt his judgment when your character is worse than trash? Your actions in this test signifies whether or not you are a coward that will run away once there's a situation that becomes risky, and your failure proved that you are the type of scum who will abandon their comrades once the time comes. You cowards! In a beast's invasion, have you ever thought about what will happen to the people you leave behind? The city will get overrun by beasts and the citizens there will be eaten alive. We need soldiers that fight for the people by placing their lives on the line, not stupid cowards that turn tail at the mere sight of death and danger. We need men who are willing to put the lives of the citizens above their own. We need women who look at death directly in the eye and wink at it, not the lot of you! Not The Lot Of You!" Alex shouted as he looked at the failure with an ice-cold glare.

In the past, once he met these kinds of scum, he used to take satisfaction in cutting them into two perfect halves, killing them without a single word. Now, however, ever since he was released from jail under Theodore's guarantee, he has become milder. That's why the students still have a neck on their bodies.

After hearing his words, the students couldn't come with a single sentence to refute and they reflexively lowered their heads. It felt as if an elder of their family was berating them and they couldn't do anything but silently endure the elder's scolding.

"In practical life, time isn't going to wait for you. A single moment of hesitation can lead to the death of your comrade. Similarly, you won't be given a choice between staying in a city about to be overrun by terrifying invaders and running away. If you choose the latter, you'll be branded as a coward and a traitor. The punishment for such an act is typically death. This test that I held judged your characters and some of you proved yourselves worthy while the others ended up disgracing themselves. Honestly, you don't have a right to complain," Theodore explained in a calm tone. Yet, it could be discerned from his words that he was angered.

The student's complexion immediately paled after hearing his word, and they began to realize the gravity of their actions. If they were soldiers and choose to abandon a city in danger, who will save the thousands of families left behind? Will their families be able to live peacefully in society when their children are branded as the traitors of federation?

The students lowered their heads even further once his stare landed on them. One could see redness suffusing with their face as if someone has slapped them hard on the cheeks. They felt so ashamed that they wanted to hide in the bottom of the ocean, if possible, and never meet the instructors ever again.

"Those who failed to pass this test, if you still have some shame left in you then return your cards and get the hell out of here."

As soon as she said those words, the students felt as if salt has been sprinkled on their freshly opened mental wounds, their pride deflated like an air balloon pricked with a needle.

They turned around, stepping out of the cloud tower as fast as they could and then returning to their homes

A few moments later, only the students with the status of the temporary students were left in the room, and it was at this moment when the instructors stood up and walked to the front of the raised platform.

Alex's lips widened into a wide smile and Kayle's eyes squinted into a smile as they stared at the remaining students with a friendly gaze. After all, these students were truly exceptional as they proved themselves to be worthy enough to be nurtured by the military academy.