The Legendary Programming Mage

The plane that was meant to take the new cadets—or rather, applicants—of Apex Academy into the academy had been airborne for over two hours.

After another hour, the turbulence of the jet suddenly increased as it ascended higher into the clouds, as if it wanted to reach space.

In my past life, I had boarded my fair share of planes, even ones meant for escaping after stealing art pieces from a museum. However...

"Someone just kill me."

... This was hell.

The other applicants who had entered the plane with me were already ruining their laps and seats with vomit.

Only I, and one other guy with dark skin, black hair, and golden eyes, hadn't moved since.

Though, for my part, I was dying inside.

[Attention passengers! This plane will be crashing on Apex very soon!]

Crashing?

Did he just say crashing?

In the next instant after the voice sounded, a boy whose color had drained slammed against his chair and shouted:

"Crash?! Please let me go! I don't want this again! I can train with my family, so please!"

The voice through the speaker lingered for a moment before answering:

[Oh yes, your parents and guardians signed a waiver of liability, so if you make a sound, I'll kill you.]

The young man struggled to even laugh. "Bullshit."

He ran a hand through his hair, then yanked it. "Get me off this plane, you motherfucking psychos!"

"Shut it."

Watching the drama unfold, my eyes shifted to the dark-skinned man who called out the other boy.

He turned to him with a cold gaze. "Can you shut the fuck up?"

Hmmm...

Interesting.

The other boy turned to the dark-skinned young man and almost lunged at him. "Do you want to die, you commoner? Do you know who my parents are?"

The dark-skinned man looked away from the mess of a boy. "Just shut your mouth, will you? Can't you be like the princess over there?"

His finger pointed straight at me.

Huh?!

What does any of this have to do with me?

I looked away from his hand without saying a word.

Beatrice had given me advice before I entered the plane.

"Do not make friends before the exam is over. Hesitation will be the death of you."

Oh yes, and the last advice she gave?

Apex isn't just the name of the academy because it makes the best hunters, but because it literally sits at the apex of the world.

The jet, which was still ascending, suddenly stopped—something naturally impossible on Earth.

Hummm... Hummm...

In an instant, it sped off again. That was when it finally came into sight.

The academy that floated in the sky, far beyond the reach of normal planes.

SKY ISLAND. PANTHEON. VALORIA EMPIRE.

The largest institute in the world of Meltonia.

A massive floating island about the size of a city.

The island was filled with towering glass buildings, like five-star hotels.

The structures ranged from five stories to over a hundred, though the tops couldn't be seen, hidden behind thick clouds.

Around the island stood four white towers that reached into the heavens, and at its center was a spiraling spire that began at the ground and stretched upward like staircases.

It was magnificent, to say the least.

So much so that I felt my breath leave me, and even the noisy boy shut his mouth.

Immediately, our daze was broken by a sudden ripple of mana that passed through us.

It felt as though I had crossed a barrier without realizing it.

"Welcome, all, to Apex Academy!"

[Jet 502 requesting landing.]

"Request accepted."

The plane slowly descended, the sound of its wheels screeching against the track echoing in my head.

The door beside me opened gradually as smoke curled into the cabin.

"All applicants, out!"

This time, the voice didn't come from the speaker but from outside.

Undoing my seatbelt, I moved toward the door, only to be greeted by a young man with black hair and eyes.

He wore a black Victorian military uniform with a red rounded collar and a matching hat.

"How was the ride?"

The man paused for a moment, then smiled warmly. "Where are my manners?"

He raised his hand in salute. "I'm the president of the student council, Travis Lane. Nice to meet you, cadets."

"Huhuhu... So you're the council president, huh?"

The voice of a young man rang behind me, but before I could turn, a hand shoved my shoulder aside and the figure of the puking boy disembarked from the plane.

He moved with unhurried steps, and once he was almost toe-to-toe with the council president, he tilted his head slightly.

"So you're one of the bastards who made me go through this shit?"

The president's smile didn't even twitch, and for some reason, I found it very unsettling.

"What's your name?" Travis asked the young man as he summoned a tablet from his dimension ring.

The youth smirked. "Alexander, Alexander..."

The president's hand rose immediately.

"You want to know something?"

He didn't wait for the Alexander guy to finish and just snapped his fingers.

"I hate all Alexes. They always piss me off."

In an instant, Alexander's body began to turn to dust.

I could tell from his expression that it wasn't painful.

And I could also tell that it wasn't a simulation.

The president had just killed someone.

The black-eyed man stared at the dust swirling freely in the air, then turned to us with that same sickening smile.

"I hope that's enough for an introduction."

He turned his back on us, raising his hand like a conductor. "Welcome, all of you, to the world that shapes legends."

Then he turned back and gave a dramatic bow. "Welcome to Apex Academy."

At the same time as the words left his lips, twenty other planes landed, each marked with the Apex insignia.

The president glanced back. "It seems they are all here."

The doors of those planes opened just like ours, and many people stepped out.

Nine hundred and ninety-nine cadets in total.

Except for Quincy and Valentina, whom I couldn't even see, everyone else was a stranger to me.

And out of all of us, only ten percent would survive.

President Travis, who stood before us, vanished in an instant into dust and reappeared at the center of all the planes.

"From this moment on, the entrance exam of Apex will commence! I wish you all the best of luck!"

I nearly chuckled.

The turn of events was the same, yet at the same time, different from the original plot.

"Princess..." I muttered under my breath. "You said not to make friends but forgot the part where I'm meant to stay alive."

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The Academy Entrance Exam Has Officially Begun

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