My Scumbag System - Chapter 143

Chapter 143: The Great Wall of Teenagers
The luxury car pulled up to Ferry Terminal Seven, and I was struck by a wall of noise the moment the doors opened. The sleek, climate-controlled silence of our ride was instantly shattered by the cacophony of thousands of voices bouncing off concrete and steel.

“Holy shit,” I muttered, stepping onto the curb and staring at the scene before me.

Ferry Terminal Seven wasn’t a terminal—it was a holding pen. A massive, sprawling line of black-uniformed teenagers snaked around the pier, doubling back on itself multiple times like an enormous human accordion. The air hung heavy with salt spray and anxious sweat, punctuated by the occasional seagull cry overhead.

“This can’t be right,” Emi said, her blue hair whipping around her face in the ocean breeze. “Are all these people here for the exam?”

Natalia’s face remained impassive, but I caught the slight tightening around her eyes. “Of course they are. NVA is the most prestigious Hunter academy in Valoria. Everyone wants in.”

I did the mental math as we joined the back of the seemingly endless line. Each colored ferry pass indicated a different city of origin—red for Central, blue for East District, yellow for North. The prospects around us were a sea of black uniforms with splashes of personal flair—hair dyed in vibrant colors, custom pins, unique jewelry. Everyone trying to stand out while wearing the same damn clothes.

“Five student guilds,” I thought, scanning the crowd. “Fifteen members per guild, minus recommendation students who’ve already secured slots. That’s maybe seventy open positions.”

I looked down the pier.

“And I’m staring at two thousand kids, minimum.”

We shuffled forward with the line, gaining maybe three feet in ten minutes. The morning sun climbed higher, beating down on the exposed concrete of the pier. A girl nearby was excitedly listing the abilities of every A-Rank Hunter to her friend, who nodded with glazed eyes. A boy with elaborate facial piercings was creating tiny flames on his fingertips, extinguishing them, then creating them again—a nervous tic made manifest through his Aspect.

I glanced at my companions, curious how they were holding up.

Natalia stood with her chin lifted slightly, her posture perfect and regal. To the casual observer, she appeared bored, even disdainful of the proceedings. But I noticed the rhythmic tapping of her fingers against her thigh, a subtle staccato of anxiety. Her violet eyes, which she probably thought were fixed on the distant horizon, had a glassy, unfocused quality.

Then there was Emi. At first glance, she seemed her usual sunny self—bouncing lightly on the balls of her feet, a bright smile plastered across her face as she pointed out interesting ships in the harbor. But her knuckles were pale where she strangled the strap of her backpack, the worn fabric groaning under the pressure.

Without saying a word, I reached out, my left hand finding Natalia’s, my right finding Emi’s.

Natalia flinched in surprise, her head snapping toward me. I kept my gaze forward, not acknowledging the gesture. After a moment, her fingers relaxed, intertwining with mine.

On my other side, Emi let out a small, shaky sigh she probably didn’t even realize she was holding.

“This isn’t a school exam,” I said quietly, just loud enough for the two of them to hear. “It’s a culling. They’re separating those who think they want to be Hunters from those who need to be. The first test is making you wait in this line for hours under the sun.”

“I hate lines,” Natalia muttered.

“Really? You strike me as the patient type,” I teased.

That earned me a light punch in the arm from her free hand. “I waited eighteen years for someone interesting to show up in my life. My patience has been used up.”

Emi laughed. “So what happens when we make it through?”

I liked that she said “when,” not “if.”

“Then the real work begins,” I said. “But we’ll be ready.”

“Seriously? Look at that guy,” the voice whined behind us.

I didn’t turn, but I felt Emi tense beside me. Natalia’s grip tightened fractionally.

“He’s not even doing anything and he’s got two girls on his arms. What, is his dad an S-Rank? Some of us have to actually work for that kind of attention, you know?”

Emi’s face flushed crimson. She tried to pull her hand away, but I held firm, giving her a reassuring squeeze.

Natalia, meanwhile, turned her head slowly, looking over her shoulder. I couldn’t see her expression, but the sudden silence from our whiny commentator suggested it was effective.

“Reggie James,” she said when she turned back. “He was in my college prep course last semester. Failed the final because he tried to cheat off my paper.”

“Sounds like we’ve made our first enemy,” I said, allowing a small, private smile to curl my lips. “I’m heartbroken.”

“You’re collecting rivals like trading cards,” Emi said with a nervous laugh. “At this rate, you’ll have a complete set by graduation.”

After another hour of slow progress, we finally reached the boarding ramp. A bored-looking attendant scanned our IDs and waved us onto the ferry—a massive, high-speed catamaran humming with Core power. We found a spot on the upper deck, leaning against the railing. The sea spray felt cool against my face as the ferry pulled away from the city.

The nervous energy on the boat was a tangible thing. Some prospects were boastfully comparing Aspects, others staring at the horizon. A few were already crying, overwhelmed by the pressure. Emi, Natalia, and I stood in our own quiet bubble.

“They do this on purpose,” I said, watching New Vein City shrink behind us. “The hour-long journey. It’s a psychological tool. A ritual of separation. They’re making sure you understand that you’re leaving the normal world behind.”

“I never belonged in the normal world anyway,” Natalia said, her voice soft.

“Me neither,” I agreed.

After what felt like an eternity, a shape materialized out of the morning mist. At first, it was just a dark smudge on the horizon, but as we drew closer, it resolved into something far more imposing.

It wasn’t just an island; it was a fortress.

The NVA Atoll, nicknamed “The Forge,” rose from the ocean like something out of a fever dream. The volcanic island had been tamed and augmented with brutalist, high-tech architecture that seemed to grow organically from the black rock.

At its center stood The Spire—a needle of black glass and steel that pierced the clouds. It wasn’t just a building; it was a statement of intent, a constant, intimidating symbol of the heights we were expected to reach.

Surrounding The Spire were a series of ten massive, shimmering biodomes—The Gauntlet—clinging to the side of the mountain. Even from here, I could see that each dome contained a different environment, from what looked like a scorched desert to a frozen tundra.

And at the top, built into the caldera of the dormant volcano, was The Crucible—a massive, open-air colosseum whose entrance looked like the gaping maw of a great beast. This was where the most important tests would happen, where the strongest would be separated from the merely adequate.

“It’s beautiful,” Emi whispered, her eyes wide.

“It’s a torture chamber disguised as a school,” Natalia countered, but I could hear the awe in her voice too.

The ferry’s engines whined down as we approached the dock. A loud, amplified voice, weathered and calm, echoed across the water from the island’s PA system.

“Welcome to the New Vein Academy Atoll, prospects,” it announced. “For the one percent of you who make it… this will be your home. For the rest… try not to fall in the water on your way back. Now, disembark and find your assigned assembly point. The culling begins in thirty minutes.”

Emi and Natalia’s hands tightened around mine with renewed, anxious force. I gave them both a reassuring squeeze.

“Ready?” I asked.

“No,” Emi admitted with a nervous laugh.

“Yes,” Natalia said.

I looked up at the imposing fortress before us, mentally mapping the challenges ahead. This was it—the first real test of my new power, the first step toward building the kingdom I’d been planning since the moment I woke up in this world.

It’s time to make a name for myself.