A few moments later, the attendant returned, walking briskly up to the front of the room. He gave a quick glance at the remaining students who were still actively scribbling or anxiously staring at their tablets.

"Time's up," the attendant's voice rang out, sharp and final.

The crystal flashed once more, its sweep ceasing, as if it had finished its task. The students, who had been so focused just moments before, now seemed to relax visibly. Well, those who had completed their test relaxed. Most seemed disappointed, even frustrated. Some let out defeated sighs while a few shot teary glances at the ceiling.

The attendant stepped forward once more. He gestured to the crystal, and it began moving again. This time in a side-to-side motion. It scanned the tablets, Aston's included, until it finished scanning the last row.

Then, a moment of stillness before the attendant spoke. "Thank you, participants. The result will be posted shortly. And before you go out, I want you to make a spiritual oath. You shall not disclose the contents of the exam to anyone apart from those who had taken it, or the Scouting Arts Division for three years. Are we clear?"

Silence followed the attendant's words. Not a whisper, nor a breath of protest. Even those who had fidgeted or whispered throughout the test now stood still as stone.

A spiritual oath.

Aston felt his pulse slow, thudding heavy in his ears. He knew what that meant. Everyone here did. This wasn't just a rule or a warning. It was a binding promise, etched into the spirit. Breaking it meant real consequences - a backlash that could damage one's potential, stagnancy in their ranks, or worse…

He nodded like the rest, but inwardly, his mind raced.

That explains it.

Back at the hotel, when he was preparing for the assessment, he had searched through Nova about the types of test that the academy would dish out to evaluate scout aspirants.

He found nothing detailed about the assessment, only phrases like, "Trust your instincts,", "If you have to ask, you'll never know…"

He thought it was just mystique. A way to make the test seem more important than it really was. But now he understood. It was protection.

If everyone knew what the test truly was, a simulation of espionage, pressure, surveillance, and counterintelligence, then the real point would vanish. It would no longer be a trap.

He remembered the moment Mirage had taken flight, the collective gasp, the split-second decisions, the weight of uncertainty. The tension that made every movement feel like it might tip the balance. None of that would exist if people already knew.

The attendant gave each participant a tiny purple crystal. It looked dull, like a stone, but still multifaceted like a crystal. "This is a basic oath crystal," he said. It can hold a spiritual oath for approximately three years. Once that time passes, the crystal will automatically shatter, releasing you from the oath."

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He paused, then added with emphasis, "Now, channel a spirit thread into your fingertips and recite the following oath exactly: 'I will not disclose the contents of the exam to anyone outside of those who already knew, for three years.' I will personally inspect each crystal to ensure the oath stored within matches the one I've given."

Aston took the crystal in his hand, feeling its cool surface press against his palm. He pinched his fingers together and drew a faint thread of spirit energy.

He took a quiet breath and said, "I will not disclose the contents of the exam to anyone outside of those who already knew, for three years."

Surrounding him, different voices chanted the similar script to their crystals.

Then, like a pulse, the crystal responded. A thin thread surged back into his fingertips. It was faint, but Aston felt it sink deeper than his skin. It burrowed somewhere, as if anchoring to vow to his core.

He instinctively shivered. It was a feeling of being bound.

The crystal didn't glow or shimmer. It simply stayed silent and dull, as if it had swallowed the oath whole and now waited for the time to pass.

The tension in the air dissipated, but the unease still lingered. Aston took one look at the other youths, his gaze settling on the four who had come in late. Their expressions remained calm, unreadable, as though nothing unusual had just occurred.

The attendant led everyone out of the tent, in preparation for the next batch of examinees. When the last student was led out, the attendant looked back at the empty room. He looked up to a corner of the tent, smiled, and walked out.

Aston stepped outside the tent together with the other test takers. The atmosphere in the air became so thick one can cut it with a knife, in contrast to the exciting and curious mood before entering the tent.

He exhaled slowly, the phantom weight of the test still clinging to his shoulders, apart from Gray and Mirage.

He went to one side of the area to let the experience sink in. Rowan approached Aston, who was mulling over what happened.

"That… wasn't a written exam. That was warfare." Rowan shook his head and gave Aston a sideway glance. "I don't know how you figured it out that fast, but damn. I would've flunked that test if you didn't move first."

Aston gave a quiet chuckle, though his eyes remained on the other examinees.

Then, footsteps approached.

A girl with short, yellow, bobcut hair stepped forward from the slowly dispersing group. Her golden eyes flickered between Aston and Rowan before settling on Aston with a soft smile.

"Hey, that owl stunt? That took guts."

Aston turned toward her.

"You were in 3E, right?"

"Yeah." She tilted her head toward Rowan. "Saw your lemur climb the tree. That's when it clicked for me. I quickly tossed my Rolled Ball Cicada to quickly scout for answers. I copied the answers to one of those suspicious guys. They were from the Scouting Arts Division, weren't they?"

Aston smirked, "They can be anything but test takers, that's for sure."

"My name is Seria. And honestly? Thank you. I might not have passed without your bravery."

Aston shook her extended hand and replied curtly, "Aston".

Rowan grinned and playfully said, "Rowan. Also brave. Slightly panicked. Definitely smarter when I copied Aston."

Seria snorted. "Fair. But if this is what the scouting division considers normal, I'm not sure if we're the brave ones or the foolish ones."

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