Chapter 66: Support-Classified Does Not Mean Useless
Chapter 66: Support-Classified Does Not Mean Useless
At five fifty-eight, the Astor family discovered that their apartment contained no professional camera angles.
"Not that wall," Elsa said, turning the propped phone. "That shows the crack. Not that way either—that shows the laundry. Mom, can we move the laundry?"
"Where," Elena asked, already lifting the drying rack, "would you like me to move an entire family’s washing in the next ninety seconds?"
"Anywhere off camera!"
The room was too small for a good answer. Arthur sat at the table with a handwritten list of questions, somehow calm amid the chaos. Elena forced the rack into the only corner the phone could not see, while Elsa framed the shot around the least-damaged patch of wall.
Glitch decided all the preparation meant someone important was coming to admire him. He climbed onto the table and planted himself directly in front of the camera, chest raised.
"That’s my beast," Jin said, lifting him away from the lens. "Not the entire interview. Sit."
Glitch sat, radiating the wounded dignity of a star denied his close-up.
Jin looked calmer than he felt. The practical-placement petition sat in his stomach like a swallowed stone. He had spent the last hour deciding exactly where the line was between impressive and suspicious.
He could reveal Glitch’s real 2-Star strength, his intelligence, his command response, and Harden. Jin could also credit his C-Rank Data Appraisal for Glitch’s training and recovery.
Everything else remained hidden: the Engine, the digital dungeons, the respawning avatar, the accumulated growth waiting to be synchronized, Corrosion Resistance, and Glitch’s unknown bloodline. Lesser Regeneration would stay hidden unless the interview was certain to fail without it.
The clock reached 18:00.
The call opened.
Two people appeared on the screen, seated in a clean, well-lit office that made the Astor apartment look exactly like what it was.
"Jin Astor. Good evening." The woman had a composed, professional air. "I’m Renata Vos, an admissions officer responsible for scholarship terms. This is Instructor Kade Marrow from our combat program. He joined us because you submitted a practical-placement petition."
Marrow nodded once. He had the build and flat stare of someone who had spent years outside shelter walls, and he was not smiling.
"Before we begin, I’ll be direct," Vos continued. "Meridian is interested in you. Your survival, command, and adaptability assessments were excellent, particularly for a first-time contractor. However, we are not desperate for you. This is an evaluation, not a recruitment pitch."
"That’s fair," Jin said.
The honesty steadied him. A school willing to discuss its limits was less likely to bury a trap behind generous wording.
"Good. Your father submitted several questions. We can begin with those."
Arthur went through his list point by point.
Tuition was fully waived. Dormitory accommodation and three standard meals each day were included. The monthly beast allowance provided standard Iron-quality feed and could not be converted into Credits. Basic treatment for one registered contracted beast was covered. Required training equipment could be borrowed. Meridian would also cover Jin’s initial transport from Shelter 7.
There was no mandatory service contract after graduation.
"And if he fails the combat-placement assessment?" Arthur asked. "Does that affect the scholarship?"
"No," Vos said. "The scholarship and program placement are separate. If he fails, he transfers to the Standard Mixed Curriculum. His tuition, housing, meals, and beast allowance remain unchanged."
"And after the first academic year?"
"The scholarship renews annually under the same conditions. Serious misconduct or repeated academic failure are the only grounds for cancellation."
Arthur made another note. "’Included’ is a generous word. Where are the compulsory fees you haven’t mentioned?"
Vos did not take offense. If anything, she looked mildly approving.
"Students may choose to purchase superior feed, private training time, advanced resources, or upgraded equipment. None of those purchases are required for enrollment, scholarship renewal, or graduation."
"Then I want these terms written into the final enrollment document exactly as you have stated them."
"That’s reasonable. I’ll ensure they are included." Vos made a note of her own. "You read the entire contract, Mr. Astor. Most families don’t."
"I’ve seen what happens to the ones who don’t," Arthur said.
Then Marrow spoke, and the atmosphere changed.
"Your file lists a Grey Rock Lizard of Iron quality. During the entrance examination two weeks ago, he was a 1-Star beast with an injured leg. His current registration says 2-Star." Marrow’s gaze settled on Jin. "Explain that."
There it was. The most dangerous part of the interview, arriving exactly when expected.
Jin used the explanation he had already tested against Elsa and Arthur’s questions.
"The examination pushed him close to a breakthrough," he said. "Four days of fighting, difficult terrain, and constant pressure. Then his injury forced him into complete rest. I used Data Appraisal to adjust his feeding, sleep, and recovery schedule so his leg healed without him losing condition. Once he recovered, the development he accumulated during the examination settled in, and he broke through."
Marrow did not immediately accept the answer. He sat with it, measuring the explanation against what he knew about Grey Rock Lizards.
"That is fast for the species," he said at last. "Very fast."
"It is," Jin agreed. "But young beasts can break through after extreme exertion followed by proper recovery. It’s unusual, not impossible."
"Correct." Marrow watched him for another moment. "His rank and physical condition will be independently verified when you arrive."
"That’s fine."
Glitch’s 2-Star strength was real, and the Engine existed within Jin’s soul rather than Glitch’s body. An ordinary physical assessment should have nothing unusual to detect beyond his rapid development.
"I cannot grant permanent combat placement through a remote interview," Marrow said. "That requires an on-campus assessment. What I can decide is whether you deserve a provisional place in the Regular Combat Program instead of beginning in the Standard Mixed Curriculum."
He sent a private sequence of targets to Jin’s phone.
"Command test first. No speaking, pointing, or visible gestures. Use only your contract."
Elsa placed several harmless objects around the room: a cup, a folded rag, a wooden spoon, and a cracked ceramic bowl.
Glitch looked at Jin with profound reluctance. Apparently, touching household objects was beneath a dungeon veteran.
This decides whether we enter combat provisionally or spend months earning our way out of the mixed curriculum, Jin sent through their link.
Glitch became intensely serious.