The rest of the test felt like a blur. I fought, then rested, then fought, then rested, with each fight racking up more and more injuries, and dwindling my already limited energy reserves. The dummies I fought against became progressively more challenging to beat and more dangerous. As the waves progressed, the dummies got faster, stronger, and smarter. They started using weapons, martial arts, and implementing strong teamwork. At one point, I couldn't even remember what wave I was on. All I knew was that I needed to prepare for the next wave quickly. 

      I was currently panting hard as I waited for the next wave to start. My knuckles were bruised and dripping in blood. The only reason I have been able to progress so far has been thanks to my quirk. Without it, I wouldn't have come anywhere close to where I am now. I long since reached a point where the only way to take down the dummies was to destroy its core from the outside. They were too tough for me to beat in any other way. Maybe I have been too harsh on my quirk. Perhaps it's a hidden gem.  

      Unbeknownst to me, I had completed more waves than anyone else. Everyone had their eyes on me, wondering if I could do it again, to beat another wave. Was I the strongest? No. Was I the fastest? No. But was I the grittiest? Yes. Every time I was beaten down, I got back up. I was determined to walk the distance. I was going to keep fighting until my body gave out. 

      The key to my success was my ability to conserve my energy and the combined determination of two lifetimes. All the other contestants stopped before me because they had spent all their energy. They stopped when they didn't have any gas left to continue. From the very beginning, my game plan was to spend as little energy as possible to progress through the waves, which has paid dividends. Additionally, this was my second shot at life. Although I never showed it or acknowledged it, I was frustrated in my previous life. I wanted to be something bigger, someone great. I never got that chance in my last life, but here, here is different. The path to greatness was clear and straight. I just needed to successfully trudge through it. The only thing between me and my knees buckling where I stand was the pure, concentrated will to succeed.  

      Back in my venue, I carefully observed the absolute unit of a dummy standing across from me. First, it was jacked, like, really jacked. I looked frail compared to the dummy. The dummy was also the most animated of all the dummies I have seen so far. It looked alive, not like some puppet on strings. 

      For the nth time, I got into my fighting stance and turned on my thermo-vision. My eyes turned scarlet, and the audiences watching started to pay closer attention. I was either going to make it or break it. 

      The dummy across from me bowed towards me, which took me by surprise. I simply nodded in return. The dummy then got into its fighting stance as if having confirmed that I was ready. I shuffled towards the dummy, prepared to start the fight. 

 

 

 

      Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

      "Where am I?" I growled as I found myself in an unfamiliar place. 

      I opened my heavy eyelids and discovered I was in a hospital bed. Huh? How did I end up in the hospital? Just then, the door to my hospital unit was slowly pushed open, and a nurse walked in with a billboard in hand.

      "Oh. You're finally awake," the nurse said as she saw me looking at her with a confused expression.

      "Let me go get the doctor. Please be patient, Patton," the nurse said as she left, robbing me of the opportunity of asking anything. 

      Immediately after the nurse left, I heard a piercing scream, “What were you thinking!”

      “Oh hey, Gina,” I smiled.

      “Don’t hey me! Do you know how close you came to being seriously hurt!” Gina howled in my head.

      “I know.”

      “So why didn’t you give up earlier!”

      “Didn’t feel like it.”

      “As my avatar, I command you to stop treating your wellbeing as something worthless!”

      “You’ve got it wrong. I persevered until I couldn’t maintain consciousness due to wanting to treat myself as best I can. If I didn’t want to treat myself welly, I would’ve given up very early on. Also, this was the best way to maximize my chances of successfully completing my mission.”

      “What do you mean?” Gina asked after having calmed down a lot.

      “You’ll see in a moment,” I replied mysteriously.

      Just then, the nurse returned alongside an old man wearing a doctor's uniform.

      "How are you feeling?" The doctor said to me as he sat on the stool next to the bed I was in.

      "I feel… fine?" 

      "Anything that feels strange or uncomfortable?" 

      "No. Nothing in particular."

      "That's good to hear. Looking at your vitals, you're looking pretty good. I say you'll be able to leave the hospital by the end of today."

      "May I ask how I ended up in the hospital?" 

      "Oh. You don't know?" 

      I stayed silent.

      "You were knocked out by that dummy you fought against. One blow, and you were out cold. I remember how the staff rushed you to the hospital." 

      "Oh. So that's what happened." 

      "Well, Patton, I'll take my leave now." 

      "Oh, ok."

      Just when the doctor was about to step out, he turned around and told me, "Also, do be expecting a few visitors today, Patton. Your performance has caught the eyes of a few people." 

      "Thank you, doctor." 

      With that said, the doctor left to attend to some other patient in the hospital.

      “See, Gina. My performance caught the attention of a few people. If I didn’t go all out, that might not have been the case.”

      “Even if you didn’t get their attention this time around, there will still be other opportunities to do so. So don’t be risking your life like that,” Gina pouted.

      “Ha ha ha ha,” I laughed aloud, “Just say your care about me, I know you do,” I said with a grin.

      “You? No way, keep dreaming.”

      After a moment of silence, I then said, “Don’t worry, I don’t intend on throwing this life away, believe me.”

      Knock. Knock. Knock. Someone was knocking on my door.

      "Yes, come in," I announced.

      A woman and a man wearing business attire walked into my hospital room. 

      "Hello. May I ask who you are?" I asked politely.

      "Hello, Patton. We are representatives of the North Goldberg Hero Academy. Is it ok if we have a quick talk with you?"

      "Yeah, no problem. Please. Make yourselves feel comfortable." 

      "Great. How are you feeling, Patton?"

      "I'm feeling pretty good. I didn't expect to be instantly knocked out by that last dummy." 

      "I don't think that's anything to be ashamed of. The number of contestants who have reached that wave is few and far in between. Being able to face off against that dummy is already an achievement by itself. You should feel proud of yourself. So, Patton. I wanted to ask, do you have any dreams about your future? Where do you see yourself in ten, twenty years?"

      From the presence of these two people, I knew that the North Goldberg Hero Academy was interested in me. However, just because they are interested in me doesn't mean that I'm guaranteed to get in. They're still going to interview me to assess my character. See if I'll do a good job representing the school. I understood that this little "talk" was more of a school interview than anything else. I had already rehearsed answering many of the more common questions the schools will likely ask me in these interviews. 

      "I want to become a hero that defeats evil and protects society. I see myself battling against villains in the future," I said with a proud expression as I responded with a very typical answer.

The interview-like talk between the North Goldberg Hero Academy representatives and I proceeded to drag on for another twentyish minutes before it was over. I felt confident that I answered their questions correctly, proving that I have a good character that will not shame the school's image. 

After my interview with the North Goldberg Hero Academy, representatives from other, less prestigious, hero academies also came to my hospital unit to talk to me, but more so to sell me on why I should go to their school and so on.

By the end of the day, I was glad to be finally let out of the hospital. The sun was in the process of setting, and I was enjoying myself as I slowly made my way back to my dorm. While walking back to my dorm, I noticed that a person was standing against a telephone pole. Typically, this wouldn't be a problem, and I would just move on with my life. However, seeing me, the person leaning against the telephone pole proceeded to walk towards me after noticing me. I stopped to see what this person wanted from me.

The person I later discovered was a girl around my age when she got closer, pointed towards me, and said, "You. You're Patton, right?" 

"Yes, the one and only," I replied with a slight smile.

"I was supposed to be in the spotlight," the girl suddenly seethed angrily. 

"I'm sorry?"

"Everyone would've been talking about me if you didn't cheat during the test," the girl snarled.

"Why do you think I cheated?" 

"How else would you have been able to beat so many waves with a nothing quirk? I am better than you in every aspect. You couldn't have beat more waves than me unless you were cheating."

"There's more to battle than just having a good quirk," I said while feeling slightly insulted.

"I'd like to see you prove that" the girl said sinisterly as her hair started to twirl and move around. 

Shit. Is this the girl who shredded the dummies with her hair? This isn't good. I need to get out of here. I sidestepped perfectly in time to dodge an array of hair that pierced the ground where I was just standing on. 

"Are you trying to kill me?" I asked calmly while scanning my surrounding to look for an optimal escape route. 

"Why, of course, I am." The girl said with a crazed expression.

"Aren't you trying to get into the hero academies as well? If they learn that you tried to kill me, wouldn't it kill your chance of getting in?" 

"My parents have many good connections. It wouldn't be a problem for me. Though, if I were you, I would be more worried about your life right now," she said with a venomous grin. The kind of grin only the villainess of a fictional story would have.

Damn. She looks determined to take my life. It seems like I'll have to use all the tricks in the book to get out of this. I turned on my thermo-vision and stared at the girl. 

"What are you trying to do with that shitty quirk of yours? Tell me now!" The girl hissed while feeling a bit uneasy at how calm I was. 

I proceeded to suck in as much air as my lungs could conatin before yelling as loud as I could, "Help! Someone call the police! This girl is trying to kill me!" 

"You–­­­­!" 

Before she could finish her sentence, the lights in the nearby houses started turning on, and people nearby started to gather to see what the commotion was. Meanwhile, I had already escaped through a narrow alleyway, running away from the murder happy psycho of a girl. 

The girl understood that she couldn't let her identity be revealed. Even though her parents might be wealthy and have several strong connections, it would be impossible to cover it up if this incident were to blow up. She proceeded to use her hair-manipulating quirk to cover her face with her hair, preventing anyone from recognizing her. She then ran into the alleyway I escaped through, chasing after me.

"Damnit, where is that asshole!" The girl thought to herself. "Once I get my hands on him, I'm going to make him regret ever being alive!" The girl hollered internally.

I listened as her steps grew further and further away. I finally sighed. It seems like I finally lost her. I was currently hiding under the manhole that the girl had just ran over. I decided to wait another ten minutes before slightly pushing up the cover of the manhole to check if the coast was clear. Seeing no one around, I proceeded to move the cover of the manhole aside and pulled myself out before patting the dust off my clothing. "That was a close one," I muttered to myself. 

I then resumed my path back to my dorm. By the time I had arrived, it was already dark, so I took a quick shower before going to sleep.