Heavenly Book of Reincarnation

After the panel scanned Nora's fingerprint, the staff member asked:

"Please wait a moment while I verify your information."

The staff member then left their sight. Seeing this, Nora remarked:

"Verifying information must take quite some time."

Alice shook her head with a smile and replied:

"Haha, don't underestimate the Hero Association. Their authority is immense. At most, it will take five minutes to confirm your identity."

Hearing that, Nora felt a bit surprised. He knew the Hero Association was powerful, but he had never understood the extent of their influence.

Of course, another reason for his surprise was that he had no memories of his past life. If he did, nothing here would seem shocking to him at all.

.....

As expected, just by the fourth minute, the staff member returned, holding a few sheets of paper.

He glanced at the documents in his hands, then at Nora, before asking:

"Your name is Nora Aeternum, correct?"

"That's right."

"Good. Please proceed inside to prepare for the weightlifting test."

Nora nodded and followed the detailed instructions given by the staff.

After reaching the central testing area, the staff member adjusted the weights to match Nora's height.

After all, 500 kg was no small number. A slight mistake could result in serious injuries, even for an F-rank hero.

Once everything was set up, the staff member said:

"Please begin the lift. As long as you can raise the weight fully, you will pass this test. We have also prepared emergency response teams just in case."

As soon as he finished speaking, several medics in rescue uniforms stood ready with medical equipment, prepared to intervene at any moment.

Though Nora was confident in passing the test, he did not underestimate the weight. This was considered the basic limit of an F-rank hero.

The 'basic limit' referred to the strength a hero could exert under normal conditions. Of course, if they pushed beyond their limits, they could surpass this baseline slightly. 

However, doing so would come at a cost—self-inflicted injuries and permanent damage to their foundation.

Nora stood beneath the barbell, gripping the bar tightly. His muscles tensed, readying for the lift.

"Arggggg!"

He took a deep breath and let out a loud shout, his entire body unleashing a terrifying force to push the weight upward.

The barbell rose steadily, inching higher and higher until it reached the maximum height his arms could extend.

Bang!

Nora released his grip, letting the barbell crash onto the ground with a loud impact. 

Surprisingly, aside from a few scratches, the floor remained intact without any significant damage.

He was slightly amazed and thought to himself:

"As expected of one of the Hero Association's main headquarters. The materials used here are definitely top-tier."

He then turned to the staff member and asked:

"So, does this count as passing the test?"

The staff member, momentarily stunned by the loud impact, took a few seconds to recover before quickly responding:

"Yes, you have successfully passed the strength test. Next is the speed test. Please follow me."

However, before Nora could respond, he turned to Alice with a grin and joked:

"So? Pretty impressive, right?"

Alice chuckled, walked over to the barbell, and casually grabbed the center of the bar with her right hand. With ease, she lifted it effortlessly and placed it back in its original position.

And just like that, the staff member was saved the trouble of cleaning up. Meanwhile, Nora suddenly felt a little awkward.

He knew that an E-rank hero was stronger than an F-rank hero, but he hadn't expected the gap to be this massive.

Information regarding hero strength was classified, so it was normal for someone like him to be unaware of the exact differences.

He cleared his throat a few times to ease his embarrassment and muttered:

"Ahem… I thought the gap between us wouldn't be that big."

Alice giggled and replied:

"Hehe, not at all~ You're really strong~ almost as strong as one of my arms."

Anyone who wasn't deaf could easily hear the teasing tone in her voice, mocking his ignorance.

Nora's face turned slightly red, but before he could retort, the staff member interrupted with a deadpan voice:

"Please stop flirting and focus on completing the test."

The medical staff standing nearby couldn't help but cheer internally for the staff member:

"Well done, buddy! We couldn't take watching these two anymore."

Nora scratched his head, feeling slightly less awkward. He chuckled and said:

"Haha, my bad. I'll follow you right away."

With that, the three of them continued toward the second test room.

.....

A short while later, they once again stood in front of a massive metal door. The staff member inserted a key, and the heavy door slowly creaked open.

Inside was a vast open space, stretching over 100 meters in length.

Just a quick glance was enough to tell that this was a sprinting test. Nora asked:

"A 100-meter dash?"

Before the staff member could respond, Alice burst into laughter and interrupted:

"Haha, are you joking? If a hero could only run 100 meters, how would they be any different from an ordinary person? Multiply that number by ten—that's the real test."

The staff member, now visibly annoyed, snapped:

"Do you even know how to respect someone else's job? If you keep interrupting me, I'm done here!"

He could tolerate their flirting in front of him, but stealing his job? Absolutely unacceptable.

Seeing how close the staff member was to exploding, Alice realized she had overstepped and quickly bowed her head in apology:

"My sincere apologies."

Since her apology was genuine, the staff member let it slide and turned back to Nora:

"As she mentioned, the test is 1000 meters. That means you'll be running back and forth across this track ten times. This test assesses both your speed and agility."

Nora nodded in understanding and asked:

"When do I start?"

"First, step up to the starting line. I'll give you the signal when it's time."

"Got it."

He nodded and swiftly moved into position.

Meanwhile, the staff member adjusted some settings before activating a switch and said:

"Look at the screen in front of you. Once the countdown ends and the signal says go you'll start running. Your feet must touch the boundary lines at both ends of the track; otherwise, the lap won't count. Ok, get ready."