Wait, System! Stop Helping The Protagonist!

"Argh... how long are we gonna wait in line?" Anastasia grumbled followed by Lovia.

They have been standing in the second line for two hours under this intense heat, yet they have not seen the instructors’ table, the place they would be getting their numbers from.

Standing in the shadows, Ashton once again coaxed them. "We will get our turn very soon. Just after we pass this corner it will be our turn."

Because royal retainers aren’t students but guards, they didn’t have to take the test but submit the papers signed by their employers which were the royals.

"Yeah, yeah. Anyone can say it hiding under the shed." Lovia scoffed, not taking Ashton’s words to heart.

It wasn’t just their cases; many were doing it. Seeking validation from their royal retainers.

Ashton didn’t say anything further, just watched them sweat and have their clothes tightly hug their clothes. ’Hmm...hmmm... this is it. This rare sight is...beautiful. Whoever came up with such a troublesome selection process, I want to raise my toast to you. You might be incompetent, but your work has soothed the hearts of many.’

While Ashton was admiring the beauty before his eyes, he was also looking at the list hanging in the middle field. He wanted to see if there were any surprises. Fortunately for him, there were none. Like the same result shown in the book.

Ashton sighed in relief before saying anything. "Now we wait for the surprise test to arrive, and if I remember correctly, that thing will pop up one and a half hours after the first test is finished. So, it will happen any moment now."

Mentioning this, Ashton became vigilant. He looked at the center of the field and waited patiently.

As Ashton anticipated, that event happened when they were just about to turn the corner.

Grrrroommmmm~

All of a sudden, a painful mourning sound vibrated in the academy air, drawing everyone’s attention. Shifting their gazes to the source, they saw a black ring the size of a king-sized bed. It hovered ten feet from the ground, quietly announcing its presence. No one tried to stop it, neither instructors nor the senior teachers watching through the window.

The next moment, black liquid connected every inch of the ring, making it look like a black disk from the sky. Black liquid began to drop down like tear drops, dying the grass to its color. Taking the black ring as the center, its influence on the ground reached twenty meters in all directions before halting. The grass began to wither, and the ground began to shatter like glass.

Revealing an abyss, beckoning its prey to enter.

"It has come. The Filth Drop." Ashton whispered solemnly and with a touch of anticipation.

Anything related to Filth can be called the lifeblood of this world. Without it, the world will stay stagnant. Filths are the fastest way to become stronger and also the most dangerous way. The ones who can claw their way out of Filths and reach the top are far and few.

As everyone’s focus was on this black ring and the abyss, an old man suddenly appeared above it, overlooking everything with a calm and serene gaze. He wore a bright orange robe with golden borders. His head full of white hair still contained a few black hairs.

Seeing this old man, many people delivered earnest gazes at him as well as Ashton.

"Everyone, do not panic." The old man shifted his focus from the black ring to the new students that would most likely enter the academy. He spoke with a warm smile on his face. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Hong Ling, the dean of Ironheart Academy. I wanted to congratulate everyone after passing the final test, but it looks like an unexpected event occurred on my grounds."

"Despite not yet joining the academy, I, as the dean, will teach everyone their first lesson."

Hearing this, everyone gasped in shock. Everyone knows the deans of any academy do not teach any students except their personal disciples. They mostly act as the highest knowledge holder, maintainer of intellectual justice, and guardian of the academy. So for them to have the chance to get a lesson, even if it was on a topic, was worth talking about to their later generations.

"I know there are many here who know about this. So, it is mostly to the people who have knowledge about this matter. But you should listen to it. It doesn’t hurt to hear it from the dean." Dean Hong Ling smiled, especially towards the descendants of the royals, as they have learned about this from birth.

He gave a deep look at Rias before continuing. "To understand this, let me teach you about the Origin Realm and Discarded Realm. Origin Realm is the place we live in, the place we call home. On the other hand, the Discarded Realm is the opposite of the Origin Realm. After death, people of the Origin Realm go to the Discarded Realm and become the Filths we know."

This information caused a few gasps, Anastasia and Rias being among them. Ashton shook his head in dismay. ’Krestic, you should stop worrying too much. At least make your daughter knowledgeable about the world so she won’t get harassed by anyone.’

"And we kill these Filths to become stronger. The Discarded Realm needs us, and we need the Discarded Realm, resulting in creating an everlasting cycle."

"What you see below me is called Filth Drop. Filth Drop is a pocket world that is separated from the Discarded Realm and the Origin Realm. When the Discarded Realm is overflowed by Filths, it will cut a small piece of itself and release it to the Origin Realm to have it cleansed."

"Filth Drops are divided into many levels. The only ones you guys need to know are the starting three—Puddle, Pool, and Lake." Dean Hong Ling pointed to the Filth Drop and said. "The one below me is Puddle, almost overflowing to become a Pool."