"Is this really a place to learn how to pilot Exo-Knights?" I muttered.

I mean... Looking at the map, it’s basically a small station that was located in a forsaken star system where the only thing of note was a gas giant orbiting a White Dwarf star with a scattered asteroid field.

"It’s because it’s a place like this that makes it the best place to set up an academy like this, Mistress. Lots of space with no eyes looking so you can screw up all you want without anyone else noticing," Yumiko answered.

"Really... I thought you were going to say something like lots of space so you could have all of that to fly around and destroy stuff."

The former Pirate Lord chuckled, "Ahaha~ If new pilots could even shoot straight to begin with, then there wouldn’t be a need for people to require pilot licenses in order to pilot one."

I would like to point out the fact that it’s already been revealed that the academies in the Outer Colonies are basically handing them out to unqualified pilots but... What do I know?

"So are we in time for the new season of students?" I asked.

"Right now they are still gathering students for their new season so we’re just in time, Mistress."

That’s good.

The station wasn’t hard to find since it was the only station in this system and there were several ships that were heading there ahead of us so we could just follow them and we would reach the station.

Seems like this place was more popular than I thought.

Our request to dock with the station was quickly approved and we approached one of the docking arms to secure our ship in place.

Around us, there were also various other ships though the biggest ones were also C Class like us. So I’m guessing that there’s some notable Mercs that were also here to get their pilot’s licenses which I suppose is a good thing as it shows the academy is reputable.

"Seems like there’s a lot more people trying to get their license..." I muttered, initiating the shut down procedures of the ship.

Ries popped out from beside me, "Oh! Does Captain not know about it? A new generation of Exo-Knights have been released recently! And some people say that these new Exo-Knights might revolutionise the entire Exo-Knight universe!"

"I have never heard of that..." I admitted.

"Well... It’s really recent and I guess only people who really paid attention to the Exo-Knight industry would know about this. Since every few years they always claim that the new generation would revolutionalise the Exo-Knight and replace fighters completely but that hasn’t happened in decades."

"Why hasn’t it, actually? I thought that with how powerful it is, people would be lining up to use Exo-Knights instead of using fighters and bombers? It’s versatile and much more mobile than fighters, right?"

Ries made a face at me, "Well... Fighters are way cheaper than Exo-Knights, Boss, that’s the first reason. The second reason is that they’re not as fast and way harder to control than fighters. Most of the time in the hands of an unskilled pilot, which Mara has already said before... They’re just glorified clunky Power Armours in space..."

Right... I guess I have to discard all the previous bias I have about these armoured suits in space... Since they clearly don’t work like how I think they do.

Guess I’ll have to pilot one for myself to know for sure.

"So what’s the new generation of Exo-Knights supposed to bring?"

Ries’s ears perked up, "It’s supposed to be better in every way! Faster, stronger, more durable and even cheaper!"

"How can it be all that but still be cheaper?"

"They recently found a new power source from a new group of systems! Apparently that place has an abundance of crystals called Stallium that, if properly used, give off a specific energy that can be used to power Exo-Knights which is several times more effective than the ones that have been used before."

"I’m surprised that they aren’t being used on ships then..."

"Oh they are! But apparently they have some kind of limitation that makes it less effective on larger sized objects and it doesn’t work as well on fighters so it’s the perfect replacement for Exo-Knights. They have been experimenting on it for the past few years and carrying out secret testing. Now they’re finally releasing it to the market!"

In other words, most likely they already used it and tested them in the military and they either had enough fun with them or have improved the current batch by leaps and bounds so they are comfortable with releasing an inferior version to the public for more Credits...

Well, I’m not going to complain about getting new weapons so I’ll take what I can get.

With our ship completing its docking procedures, all of us moved towards the cargo bay in preparation to disembark.

However, Mara stopped me on the way there and scanned me with some handheld scanner of hers which shone a light from my head to my feet before it gave out a reading to her.

She made a face at the results and I was worried that she was going to tell me that I had to be stuck on the ship.

She let out a sigh, "Seems like it’s stable. As long as Renata is still eating up your excess Psionic energy, you should be able to fully adapt to it in the next few days. Just don’t use any Psionic abilities in the meantime."

I raised an eyebrow, "It’s not like I know how to use it to begin with..."

Amber raised her hand, "Tera... Umm... I hate to tell you this now but... That weapon of yours uses your Psionic powers to function..."

"Eh? Wait what?"

Amber nodded seriously, "Your weapon... Remember how it could transform and detach itself to fly around? That’s you controlling it with your powers... I’m surprised you could handle it that perfectly without any training..."

"But... I wasn’t even trying? It just felt... Natural?"

"Then you might be a really, really talented or a really, really strong Psionic, Tera... Or maybe both. Most likely both. Ehehehe~ You are so cool~"

"And I love you too, Amber. But does this mean that I can’t use my halberd for the next few days?"

Mara nodded, "I would definitely advise against it. But of course, if you are required to use it to protect yourself, please do not hesitate to do so. I believe Renata and I should be able to deal with whatever results of that. It’s just that it would take a little longer for you to adapt to it."

"So... Basically... I was actually using telekinesis to move the axe around when I’m swinging it?"

"In a way, yes, Captain."

That... Is so cool. But I guess this also explains some things like how the axe was able to work like that.

With that, we went over to the cargo bay and stepped through the airlock and into the station.

Unexpectedly, there was someone waiting for us at the entrance of the docking arm.

It was a rather attractive woman with brunette hair tied up in a ponytail and wearing a really tight, white suit that hugged her curves. It took me a moment to realise that she was an android when I noticed the barcode at the side of her neck.

Her eyes glowed blue for a moment before a smile appeared on her face.

"Ah, Miss Tera and company. We have received your registration as an interested student of our pilot’s academy. I bid you welcome. You are just in time for our final round of testing and if you are ready, we shall proceed with your test immediately to decide if your application is accepted or rejected."

Oh right, Mara had helped us with the registration process and everything. You’ll need to pay a small sum of Credits for the registration no matter if you pass or fail, no doubt one of the ways that this place was using to earn their Credits.

"Err... What kind of test is it?" I asked, feeling a little worried.

If they were going to ask things like the history of the Exo-Knight or something, then there’s no way I was going to pass...

The android gave me an odd smile, "Do not worry, it is merely just a test to see if you are proficient enough to be accepted as a student. As you might know, our academy has limited slots so we are only interested in accepting the very best students who have applied each season."

"How many people do you have in a class?"

"For this season, we are prepared to accept twenty students."

That is a lower number than I thought... Just my group alone would already take up more than a quarter of the free slots... Renata would be the only one who wasn’t taking part.

Well, I trust my girls to be able to pass the test but myself however...

Whatever, let’s just see how things go then...