Aize had never once worried about whether he could pass the compatibility assessment for a Pure Star Radiant Armament.
As the one who held ultimate authority over the armaments, no matter which Pure Star Radiant Armament he was about to choose, Aize had absolute confidence in passing the compatibility test. The only question was which one he would select as his first exclusive weapon.
This was precisely where Aize found himself hesitating.
Staring at the display projections of one Pure Star Radiant Armament after another in front of him, Aize still couldn't make a decision.
"If I'm going to choose, I might as well choose the best."
Every Pure Star Radiant Armament was, without exception, far superior to a standard Radiant Armament—but even among the Pure Star Radiant Armaments, there were disparities.
Leaving aside factors like output power and attack strength, each Pure Star Radiant Armament also had unique special abilities.
Some had seemingly unimpressive powers, like granting flight or altering the wielder's weight. It wouldn't be fair to say those abilities were useless—but it was equally hard to call them overwhelmingly powerful.
Others, however, possessed truly formidable powers: some could control sandstorms, others could manipulate the flow of water, and some could even affect gravity or the minds of others. Abilities like those were undeniably tempting.
Among the twenty-two Pure Star Radiant Armaments currently held by the Starlight Pavilion Academy, seven had already been lent out. Of the remaining fifteen, some were strong and some were weak—some exceptionally strong, others distinctly underwhelming.
Given that, of course Aize wanted to choose the strongest one.
After all, he didn't need to worry about compatibility, or whether the weapon's abilities would suit him. Naturally, he was free to go for the most powerful choice.
However…
"Looking through all of them, this one really does seem to be the strongest…"
Aize's gaze remained fixed on one of the many projection windows displayed before him.
The image shown was of a sword.
A sword with a black hilt, inlaid with a red universal crystal, and a blade that rippled as though waves of flame were surging across it.
The sword was massive—practically the height of a person.
But in the display window, this great sword's output, attack power, and special abilities all had overwhelmingly high stats—so high that not only did it surpass standard Radiant Armaments by a wide margin, it even left most Pure Star Radiant Armaments in the dust.
Among the fifteen Pure Star Radiant Armaments that had not yet been lent out, this sword had the highest performance stats of them all.
Which was only natural.
"This is one of the Four-Colored Demon Swords—the most elite class of Pure Star Radiant Armaments."
To be honest, Aize really wanted to choose this one.
"But isn't this the Pure Star Radiant Armament that the original protagonist uses?"
That was exactly what Aize was conflicted about.
Right now, the original protagonist hadn't yet arrived at the Starlight Pavilion Academy.
He was a transfer student, scheduled to enroll a month or two before this season's Star Martial Festival began—and he would be entering as a special scholarship student.
At that time, he would be granted the opportunity to freely choose one of the Pure Star Radiant Armaments.
And the demon sword currently in front of Aize—this was the very weapon the protagonist chose in the original story.
That thought alone gave Aize some hesitation.
But almost immediately after, he made up his mind.
"Since I'm the one who arrived first, I have no reason to hesitate over something that hasn't even happened yet."
Honestly, if there were another Pure Star Radiant Armament of the same caliber available today, Aize would have given more consideration to that one.
But as things stood, this weapon's abilities were in a league of their own. Even if some of the others were hyped up in their descriptions to seem just as powerful, Aize could tell—they simply didn't measure up.
This Pure Star Radiant Armament was incredibly strong, incredibly unique, and it drew Aize in like no other.
And right now, Aize was just getting started—he had no room to hold back or make concessions.
The strength of his first exclusive weapon would directly determine the outcome of his very first life experience in this world.
Would he lay down a solid foundation for a richer journey ahead? Or would he step aside for the sake of something that hadn't even happened yet…?
There was no real need to think it over.
"Sorry, buddy. I'll help you find a girlfriend later to make up for it."
With that muttered remark, Aize no longer hesitated. He reached out and tapped on the window displaying the pitch-black demon sword.
Ding!
With the chime of a confirmation tone, all of the surrounding display windows vanished.
And when Claudia, who had been watching from behind, saw the choice Aize had made, she was visibly stunned.
"He actually chose that one?"
Her expression was more shaken than at any point earlier.
"Why… why did it have to be that one?"
Without realizing it, Claudia placed a hand over the holster at her waist, her expression darkening and shifting unpredictably.
But Aize's decision was already made—the moment had passed, and there was no taking it back.
Shhhh!
With a mechanical sliding sound, a cylindrical storage unit descended from a panel in the ceiling above Aize's head.
The storage unit descended directly in front of Aize, then automatically opened. Two mechanical arms extended from within, grasping a Drive Core through the air and delivering it to Aize.
Aize reached out and took the Drive Core into his hand.
It was a black sword-hilt-shaped Drive Core, inlaid with a red Universal Crystal at its center—just like what he had seen in the projection display.
For standard Radiant Armaments, the core—crafted from Universal Ore—was always green. Only the cores of Pure Star Radiant Armaments, made from Universal Crystals, came in colors other than green.
The red Universal Crystal embedded in the hilt was a clear indicator: this was not a typical Radiant Armament, but a Pure Star Radiant Armament.
"Compatibility calibration ready. Please activate the Pure Star Radiant Armament in your hand."
A voice came from the lab's speaker system, prompting Aize to nod in acknowledgment and activate the black sword-hilt Drive Core in his grip.
Zheng!
The red Universal Crystal on the Drive Core suddenly flared to life with a dazzling crimson light. It stirred the Universal Particles in the surrounding space, drawing them toward the hilt.
The Universal Particles began to materialize—forming and assembling in front of the crystal like digital blocks appearing out of thin air. They took shape into a massive, heavy cross-guard.
Then, like a machine operating on its own, the guard opened, and from it extended a blade of pure light.
The blade was a radiant, translucent white—massive, and single-edged, like a great energy sword.
Holding the overwhelmingly large sword, Aize's eyes gleamed. He couldn't help but speak its name aloud.
"——Black Furnace Demon Sword."
Around him—or more precisely, behind the glass of the observation room—white-coated researchers began to stir with visible agitation.
"He actually chose the Black Furnace Demon Sword?"
"One of the Four-Colored Demon Swords—the legendary blade that can't be blocked, that burns through everything it touches, melts anything it comes into contact with, and turns the ground it pierces into a blazing furnace..."
"This is one of the most powerful demon swords among all the Pure Star Radiant Armaments—and he picked that?"
"Probably just chose it for the fame."
"That's unbelievably naive . No one's been able to wield that demon sword for years. And he's just a regular student—not even listed in the official festival registry. He thinks just because he got lucky and passed the lending approval, he can actually control something like that?"
"Alright, that's enough. Whatever kind of Pure Star Radiant Armament someone chooses is their own business. Our job is just to complete the compatibility assessment."
"You're right."
"Let's begin the calibration."
The calibration staff immediately got busy again.
At the back of the lab, Claudia stood still, silently watching Aize, her thoughts unreadable.
In the midst of this, Aize closed his eyes.
No one realized that, in that very moment, he was listening—listening to the subtle resonance emanating from the Pure Star Radiant Armament in his hand.
It was a sound imperceptible to others.
Pure Star Radiant Armaments each possessed their own consciousness, and right now, Aize could clearly sense the presence of that will.
He could feel it—this presence was observing him, scrutinizing him, as if trying to judge his worth, casting a critical, discerning gaze upon him.
Then, perhaps having perceived Aize's rather unremarkable abilities, the presence quickly lost interest and withdrew its attention.
"Current compatibility rate: 8%."
The staff member's voice came clearly through the loudspeaker and entered Aize's ears.
"So, you're unimpressed with the current me, huh?"
Aize opened his eyes—and suddenly, he smiled.
"Then let's... get started for real."