The training hall had never been this quiet.
Hundreds of candidates stood inside, yet the air felt empty—tightened by expectation, compressed by authority. System panels hovered above the arena floor, glowing with sterile white light.
At the center, a new emblem rotated slowly.
ADMINISTRATOR-OBSERVED EVALUATION
Not a test.A judgment.
The Predator System reacted instantly.
[WARNING: OBSERVATION LEVEL INCREASED][MARK INTERACTION: ACTIVE][STEALTH PROTOCOLS — LIMITED EFFECTIVENESS]
Limited.
I stepped forward when my name was called.
Eliasz Kierski.
The whispers followed me like static.
"That's him.""The Broadwood survivor.""Wasn't he an F-rank?"
I ignored them.
Three figures waited at the evaluation platform.
Two were human—Academy evaluators, masked behind professional calm.The third wasn't.
It stood slightly apart, cloaked in shifting system-light, its features deliberately blurred. A presence rather than a person.
An Administrator proxy.
The mark tightened behind my ribs.
The proxy spoke.
"Candidate Eliasz Kierski. You have been flagged due to abnormal survival probability and dungeon-state deviation."
Not accusation.Statement.
"State your current condition."
"Stable," I answered.
The Predator System approved.
[RESPONSE OPTIMAL]
The proxy tilted its head.
"Your recorded rank is F."
"Yes."
"And yet the Broadwood Forest registered you as a variable influence."
Murmurs spread.
I felt the weight of attention settle fully on me.
"That classification is reserved for entities capable of altering system-governed environments," the proxy continued. "Do you deny this designation?"
Denying would be useless.
"I don't know what that means," I said instead.
Truth. Carefully shaped.
The proxy studied me.
"Acceptable."
The evaluators activated the arena.
"Reevaluation will proceed in three stages," one announced."Combat. Control. Response."
The Predator System flared—then restrained itself.
[MARK ENFORCEMENT ACTIVE][WARNING: OVEREXTENSION WILL TRIGGER CORRECTION]
Understood.
⸻
The first opponent emerged.
A summoned construct—rank D, enhanced reflex package, no emotional variance. Clean. Predictable.
In my previous life, this would have overwhelmed me.
Now?
I stepped into the arena.
The construct lunged.
I moved.
Not fast.Not flashy.Efficient.
Every step was measured. Every strike minimized. I didn't devour. I didn't escalate.
I ended it with a precise blow to the core.
Silence.
[COMBAT RESULT: SUCCESS][EFFICIENCY RATING: ABNORMALLY HIGH]
The proxy's head tilted again.
"You refrained from system exploitation," it noted.
"I did what was necessary," I replied.
The mark cooled slightly.
Good.
⸻
Stage two: Control.
They flooded the arena with stimuli—noise, fear projections, hostile intent signatures. Emotional pressure designed to break candidates into reckless behavior.
I felt it immediately.
Hunger surged.
The Predator System whispered—tempting, precise.
Take.Grow.Feed.
The mark tightened.
Balance.
I breathed.
Let the hunger exist.Did not obey it.
Minutes passed.
The evaluators exchanged glances.
[MENTAL STABILITY: ABOVE EXPECTATION][HUNGER REGULATION: ANOMALOUS]
The proxy spoke quietly.
"Interesting."
⸻
Stage three: Response.
The proxy stepped forward.
"Candidate Eliasz Kierski," it said. "If presented with an opportunity to permanently increase your power at the cost of destabilizing your environment… what would you choose?"
A trap.
I answered without pause.
"I would control the environment first."
A pause.
"Then increase power?"
"No," I said. "Then decide if power is still required."
The proxy was silent.
For the first time since entering the hall, the Predator System didn't react.
The mark pulsed once.
Approval.
The proxy turned to the evaluators.
"Reevaluation complete."
A panel lit up above me.
UPDATED CLASSIFICATION:— ACTIVE VARIABLE— OBSERVATION CONTINUES— RANK: UNCHANGED (F)
Laughter rippled through the hall.
F-rank.
Again.
But the proxy raised its hand.
"Clarification," it added. "Rank suppression has been authorized."
The hall went dead silent.
"Candidate Eliasz Kierski is not permitted to advance in visible rank until further notice."
Whispers turned to shock.
I understood instantly.
They weren't underestimating me.
They were containing me.
The mark burned faintly.
The proxy's final words followed me as I left the arena.
"You are no longer prey," it said."But you are not a predator we trust."
Outside, the sky looked the same.
But the world had shifted.
The hunt had moved to a higher level.
And I was officially on the board.