My System: An Evolved Computer I Made With My Unique Ability—

Inspired by a certain classic television series, the Badge Fight is a competition that a lot of game shows had incorporated in the past. However, this was the first time the inter-high tournament would put up such a thing in the first round. While it is not as violent and as rambunctious as a free-for-all which was held every year, it is certainly an interesting competition that is fair for all the schools. Moreover, it is an effective way to reduce the number of schools in the first round.

The Badge Fight is directly inspired by that certain classic television series about a hunter exam of some sort. But since they didn't want it to replicate the rules on that series, the higher-ups decided to change it up a bit.

Every inter-high candidate is given a badge with a corresponding number on it. Just like a free-for-all, all candidates will spawn at a random area in a stage. Everyone's goal is to regroup with their teammates and try to collect badges from other candidates. While doing that, they had to protect their own badges because points will be deducted if another school gets them.

Every candidate also has what they called the 'target'. The 'target' is a random candidate in a random school holding a specific number. If one candidate managed to get the badge of his 'target', he will receive a lot of bonus points which will add up to the school's final point count. A loss of a badge means deducted points, getting a badge adds up to your point, and hunting down a 'target' grants you even more points.

After these rules were flashed on the television,  the live stream then shifted to the waiting rooms where candidates were planning their next move. Some planned to regroup first, while the majority of the confident ones decided to hunt alone because that would be an efficient way to get badges from weaker candidates. Some wanted to focus on the targets while the others went for quantity...

... then there's the USA candidates who just woke up.

"We haven't received any paper yet? What happened? Was there a shift in the schedule?" Hiroshi asked, rubbing his eyes as a yawn left his mouth.

"No, there were no announcements. And even the site still has the same exact schedule. I wonder what happened." Midori said, hastily booting up the computer by the corner of the common area.

"Was there a mix-up?" Fuuka asked in mild panic.

"Hopefully not. Maybe we'll be briefed as soon as we get to the stage." Satoshi continued. "The best thing we can do for now is to prepare. We'll hear the instructions later so there's no point mulling over this situation right now."

"Satoshi is right. Right now, we should head to the stage and worry about those things later. If we're five minutes late on the stage, we're immediately disqualified." Kurogami said, getting up, and donning on his superhero suit.

Everyone followed suit and ten minutes later, Satoshi and his party headed out with increasing anxiousness.

As they walked through the hallway, other candidates— school representatives— started exiting their waiting room as well. To everyone's surprise, the other schools had at least one candidate who held a paper in hand. They were even discussing something about a Badge Fight which was the first round of the inter-high tournament.

"Just what is going on?" Satoshi muttered underneath his breath but he didn't ask the other schools about it. It was obvious that all of them received a heads up about the first round beforehand while they didn't. Either the organizers of the inter-high tournament made a mistake or it was all premeditated.

"Don't worry about this, Satoshi. I did my research and this happens sometimes. At least the handicap was given to us early on. There was one time the entire USA team only wore tracksuits since someone swiped their superhero suits before the second round started. The Principal doesn't complain about this so there's nothing we can do about it. I guess it's amusing for people when they see someone being given a hard time. Those suckers." Midori was as talkative as usual but Satoshi didn't mind. Right now, he was seething with anger, not because they were given a handicap, but because everyone was looking down on them as first-years.

He wasn't even the least bit furious about the papers on the other candidates' hands, what he was infuriated about were their condescending looks and smirks as they passed by.

"Don't worry, we'll show them," Hiroshi said, grabbing Satoshi by the shoulder. He wasn't the type to console someone but even he was enraged about their gazes. If it weren't for Satoshi holding back, Hiroshi would've acted out right then and there. Quite frankly, the reason why he grabbed Satoshi by the shoulder was to hold himself back, not Satoshi.

Compared to the sight of the Inter-High Stadium from the outside, the interior of it was actually much bigger than everyone had expected. Of course, some of them had already done their research and watched a few inter-high tournaments in the past— but seeing the stage in person was actually much more overwhelming.

"It's big."

"Yeah, you bet."

"I think I'll get lost in there."

"I heard they could even change the terrain depending on what the competition will be."

"Wow, that's crazy. How much do you think this place is?"

"Look! Isn't that Terror?! IN THE FLESH?!"

A series of ooh's and aah's erupted from the students as they stared at the top of the stage. On it was a floating platform where a single person stood— the third in rank in SAO rankings, Terror.

Terror was known for his superpower called 'Fear Infliction'. Aside from his enhanced physical capabilities, he could also inflict fear upon minds whose weaker than his. It may not seem like a pretty good superpower against formidable villains but he has brought down hundreds of villains. His capture rate is also at a whopping ninety seven percent, which is why he managed to rise through the SAO ranks even with just a simple superpower.

Survivors who had come in contact with Terror had to go through therapy for months, and some of them even changed altogether upon seeing the one thing they fear the most. Of course, because of that, he was also nicknamed the 'Scarecrow' after a famous villain from a classic superhero franchise. He never liked the name though, so he stuck to Terror.

Rumors claimed that if one were to see Terror, one would hear his parents behind him, calling him a failure. Of course, that was just a rumor but if one's greatest fear was exactly that, then it's plausible that it could happen to one of Terror's targets.

"Inter-high candidates! I personally welcome you to the Inter-High Tournament." He spoke, bowing towards the students that craned their necks just to get a good glimpse of him. With his black hair and panther-like eyes, he was actually as handsome as the media portrayed him to be.

Suddenly, a few pillars shot up from the floor right in front of the students. Since Satoshi and the others were at the back, they weren't surprised by the sudden arising of the pillars. However, those in front certainly felt the force that pushed the pillars up, causing some of them to fall on their rear ends before dusting themselves.

"The pillars in front of you are each labeled for every school. If you've read the paper, you know what those pillars contain."

In the middle of the pillar was a hollow space where the badges were located. There were a total of eight badges on every pillar.

​ As if on cue, every candidate stood on the pillar where their school name was etched. Up until now, Satoshi and the others still didn't know what to do so they just followed what the others did. Satoshi then distributed the badges to each of them.

"Now, to summarize the rules of this badge fight, all of you are given a badge with a number on it. At the back of the badge is the number of your target. If you managed to get the badge of your target, then you get bonus points. You can get anyone's badge as long as it's not your teammate's and that will net you more points. If your school loses a badge, then you get deductions from your overall point count."

"All of you will be transported to a random location in this Stage. As soon as you hear the signal, the first round will commence." Terror continued. "Now, without further ado, let the inter-high tournament BEGIN!"

"And may the odds be ever in your favor!"

In haste, Satoshi started giving everyone instructions before they were transported to their locations. "It's a badge fight. Protect your badge at all costs and if your target is manageable, then try to get their badge. Our plan is to regroup as soon as possible. Don't be hasty, and always observe your surroundi— "

One moment, Satoshi was right in front of his team. The next moment, he found himself under a tree, sitting down. "Where am I?" He asked.

"What luck, I found a badge." Someone muttered right in front of him.