With the now somewhat-carefree environment at the school, Head Dean McDowell felt a bit of relief.
Sitting at his desk in his private office at Trix Hall, the older gentleman stretched for a bit before looking over the pile of documents.
Since the pile was only reports on academic work conducted over the break, it was less than half of what he usually handled. It was great that his workload had decreased, but the fact that he was in a position where he had to work even though it was a break was quite disappointing.
Being a figure of authority to such a degree, he rarely complained about the workload itself. But still, at the very least McDowell often wished that he could maintain at least some quality of life.
"Today is the day of the freshman class assignment examination…"
The professors in charge of handling the class assignment for the Combat Department, Magic Department, and Alchemy Department had all submitted their reports.
The location and contents of the examination were all different, but they had all come up with their own acceptable grading standards and content.
Among them, the magic department's test seemed to be the most interesting.
The magic department's class assignment examination had always been supervised by Professor Glast. The school had full confidence in his judgment, so they had left everything entirely to his discernment.
But now that Professor Glast, who had been in charge of selecting individuals within the freshman class, was gone… How would the magic department judge and assess the student's abilities?
He contemplated that question with much interest.
The new professor in charge of the class assignment examination was Glast's top pupil, Cleoh Elpin. He often heard rumors about her amongst the veteran professors.
It sounded like she was someone that had saved a country in her previous life. Otherwise, how else could she have such luck when it came to the people around her? Or so the rumors said.
The people she met with were always of the utmost talent, whether it was teachers or students. As if she were truly born with the luck of attracting great people, there really were no subpar people around her.
He had often heard, from a teacher's standpoint, just how enviable a fortune it was that she had.
"Hmm…"
Dean McDowell wondered if she really was such a lucky person.
When he grabbed ahold and looked through the directory of members in her lab, he started to feel unsure if that really was a so-called list of elites that didn't have a single subpar person.
Thinking that there must be a reason for everything, he convinced himself of that fact. Dean McDowell then signed the papers before handing them off.
Laboratory Directory Report – Assistant Professor Cleoh Elpin
Head of Laboratory: Cleoh Elpin
Senior Assistant: Anise Haylan
School's Scholarship Staff:
Onyx Pelomier
Ed Rothstaylor
Clevius Nortondale
***
"This is not good… Hahaha…"
Assistant Professor Cleoh sat at the summit of Right Mountain as she breathed out a sigh of concern.
In front of the altar were about five or six broken magically engineered items.
"The circuit itself must have been twisted by an external impact. It's not even working if I infuse it with magic power. I'll have to ask the professor of Magic Engineering to repair this separately. But there's no time for that right now…"
Apparition Disk.
It was a rare grade magically engineered item. A tool that made opponents fall into confusion with the apparition of a variety of wild beasts and monsters.
The point was to use dozens of them as traps to spread out along the path to the summit. There were still a lot of other disk's left, so having only five or six of them broken might seem like it wouldn't affect the bigger picture.
"I can't believe it was the most important disks that broke… We're in trouble."
The purple disks that Anise was carrying were a different kind from the others.
They were made with much more delicate circuits and a decent amount of magic power… They were the ones that would serve as the final hurdle for the class assignment examination.
While the regular disks would show apparitions of wolves and kobolds, the purple disks would instead show full-blown monsters and wild beasts.
As far as I knew, most of the first-year students were defeated by the grizzly bears, red-blooded gargoyles, the eternal banshees, and the like that came from the purple disks.
They were all enemies that couldn't be dealt with at a freshman's level. Later, when the school questioned Assistant Professor Cleoh, there was a frightening anecdote where she naively responded 'Eh? Didn't they need to be at least of this level to enter Class A?'
An old eagle is better than a young crow. She really was Professor Glast's disciple.
Even though she might appear innocent to the world, she was cold-blooded when it came to things of importance. You really couldn't hastily judge a person based on impression alone.
"There's nothing that can be done. There are still a few purple disks left… We'll just have to continue the exam using them. We will just have to try and set them up in overlapping sections to cover it up."
Even though she said such words of comfort, Assistant Professor Cleoh knew well that it wasn't good.
The smaller the number of purple disks that were set up, the easier the exam itself became, and all the more luck-based to pass.
Students that had good luck and didn't come across a purple disk would easily pass. However, those that might have even put in more effort… If they came across a purple disk, that meant they would definitely be eliminated.
"We barely managed to transport all of these over here, and now you're saying that we can't use them?"
The dreary-looking Clevius looked particularly upset as he pulled his hair.
"Wow, seriously! We went through so fucking much! How can this…!"
As he was going to say something, he quickly held his breath as he saw Anise crouching down in a corner of the altar.
The culprit behind the situation was Anise.
She was the one that thought we would handle the important magically engineered items roughly, so just in case something bad happened, she wanted to personally carry them herself. But ultimately, on the way up she ended up dropping them on the ground.
On the surface, if you didn't have much knowledge of magic engineering, they might look rather durable. However, inside there were various sensitive circuitries, so it had to be handled with the utmost care.
The other issue came from the carefree attitude of Assistant Professor Cleoh, in which she forgot to warn us in advance about them. Anise was usually so good at taking care of her work that she had just gotten complacent and assumed that she would once again take care of everything.
"…I'm sorry. I should have been paying more attention."
"No, it's…"
Clevius broke into a cold sweat as he quickly bowed his head. He then fidgeted around as he played with his fingertips, muttering to himself.
"How can I get angry when you look so apologetic like that?!"
The atmosphere suddenly became solemn.
Assistant Professor Cleoh, Onyx, and Clevius all kept their mouths shut… I was the first to say something.
"Well, just sitting around like this isn't going to fix these broken magically engineered items or the situation itself."
What was certain was that it was now a critical situation.
As for what I knew about
Since the freshmen class assignment exam was an incident that took place far away from the main story and didn't hold much importance, I didn't know the exact details of how the exam went.
However, it was hard to believe that such an event took place in the storyline.
An event where Anise dropped the important magically engineered items because she was surprised to see me following right behind her…
With that being the case… The flow of the story of what was to come was not hard to imagine.
If, by chance, because of the greatly reduced level of difficulty students that were accepted into Class A started to appear and then…
It would even affect the next 'Joint Combat Practice' event.
The first years ran at Taylee with the desire to become the first student accepted into Class A. Then, Taylee was someone that was supposed to grab his sword and defeat all of those first years as if it were nothing. Clarice was supposed to start gaining interest in him then.
That meant that the entire story's structure would be ruined.
Not only that, but with the first-year class assignment itself being changed, all of the events and relationships that took place between the students would also become unknown.
Of course, not everything could be perfect. If it's something minor, that would be fine, but… It was too big of a twist.
It was something that would be too destructive for me to leave it alone.
***
What was the biggest moment, the moment when you realized you were in Silvenia, a land of learning.
If you were to ask Tanya such a question, her answer would be when she greeted her fellow noble and most honorable classmates.
Specifically speaking, Saint Clarice.
The school's policy that the virtue of learning took precedence over one's noble status made even the person closest to the voice of the god Telos, whom the world looked up to, walk through the education district as a regular human being.
There weren't many people that had seen Saint Clarice in person, and if you were to see her, you would barely be able to get a decent view from the large crowd she drew.
She was a spiritual pillar of support for the millions of followers of the god Telos.
Clarice was used to standing in front of the public. She was someone that always shone brightly, wearing white holy clothes. Regardless of where she went, everyone around her would naturally kneel.
Seeing that same Clarice send her knights of the cathedral back while wearing the same Silvenia uniform was a surreal, out-of-this-world feeling for Tanya.
She wondered if it was okay for such a person to attend the school like a regular person.
Even though she was in a different outfit from her usual one, her elegance didn't fade.
Her hair was closer to a nice gray than silver and flowed down to her waist. Her red eyes, which sent a chill down Tanya's spine, didn't move one bit.
Aside from that, she had a red butterfly hairpin that took up a large spot on the side of her hair. Even though it didn't seem like she was wearing many other accessories, she still looked gorgeous.
At the entrance to Right Mountain, the new students in the magic department that had gathered together to wait for the start of the exam were frozen stiff.
Students that were believers of the Telos Religion had already knelt down. On quite a large scale, the members of House Rothstaylor, including the head of the house, were previously baptized by the Telos Religious Group. Because of that, Tanya also quickly bowed her head out of courtesy.
"Thank you, but there is no need to be so polite."
A small but clear voice washed over the incoming students.
"If you continuously express your utmost courtesy, school life itself may become difficult. So, please, simplify your courtesy for me."
Despite Clarice saying so, the students were still reluctant to raise their heads.
The first person to raise their head was Tanya Rothstaylor.
In terms of nobility in status, she was someone that could at least rub shoulders with Clarice.
"I am most honored to meet you, Saint Clarice. I am Tanya Rothstaylor, the heir to House Rothstaylor."
"Oh my, House Rothstaylor. I believe the head of house, Krepin, has been baptized before. Though, it happened I was still quite young, so I don't remember it well."
"It was the most honorable day."
Every move Tanya made was full of confidence, all while remaining courteous and respectful, which was a refreshing shock to the other classmates.
As an esteemed daughter, Tanya made sure that her elegance and grace was always as sharp as a knife. But at the same time, she rarely showed a persona that bowed or yielded in front of anyone.
But no matter how strong her personality might be, when the other person was a saint, the story changed.
"I heard about what happened to the eldest daughter Arnen a few years ago. Even though it's a bit late, I would like to offer you my uttermost condolences."
It was Arwen, not Arnen. But Tanya didn't bother to correct her. If she had tried to correct her, the atmosphere would have become rather awkward.
Given the status of a saint who lived a life meeting many aristocrats all over the country, it was hard to expect her to remember everyone and memorize the names of their children.
The fact that she was close to remembering her family was something Tanya considered an honor.
In the first place, there was no one else at Silvenia Academy besides Princess Penia that could face her and Clarice at the same level.
"It's an honor that you remembered and gave your condolences. Once I become an adult, I will also come to get baptized."
"I'll be looking forward to it, Miss Tanya."
After saying that and exchanging laughter, the once rigid atmosphere now seemed to have relaxed. The students around them that were hesitant had begun to slowly relax a bit.
Meeting with the saint was a really memorable event, but the most important thing was the class assignment examination that was being held.
The Combat Department was at the student square. The Magic Department was at the entrance of Right Mountain. The Alchemy Department was underground in Obel Hall.
Depending on your department, the place you gathered and the contents of the test differed, but the goal stayed the same.
To be assigned to Class A.
For years, the status of Class A had been ridiculously elevated, with Professor Glast being in charge of the class assignment exam.
Even just looking at the current Class A students in the second year, you could clearly see that. Lucy, Lortel, Ziggs, Ayla, and Adele… More than half of the students were already considered and treated as aces.
In addition to its status, there were also additional benefits for students in Class A.
The tuition fee was free of charge, the privilege to enter Ophelis Hall—a highly praised dormitory that everyone looked up to—and even most of the student welfare facilities were also free of charge.
Whether you wanted the high honor or the practical benefits, Class A was bound to be coveted as an incoming first year.
The same was true for all of the students gathered at the entrance of Right Mountain. Most of the students wanted to enter Class A for their own reasons.
"They said the flash of light that comes from the top of Right Mountain would be the signal…"
Tanya muttered that to herself as she looked up from the crowd at the top of Right Mountain.
With a flash of light as the signal, all kinds of magic power began to in imbued into the magic power stones hidden across the mountain.
Using your own Magic Resonance to find the magic power stones, then presenting them to the altar at the summit of the mountain. That was how you passed the exam.
The type of Magic Power stone you found, the time it took, and the method used to break through to the summit was used as the scoring criteria. They had to hurry.
One way or another, everyone was an incoming first year student of Silveria.
It wasn't simply a place where those with high and noble status had gathered. There were also many individuals given permission to attend thanks to their ridiculous talent and skills in various fields. Of course, even though they might already be talented… That just increased how much they wanted to learn.
Even if you limited it to the students in the Magic Department, just how many students were there?
The saint of Telos, Clarice. The heir to House Rothstaylor, Tanya. The heir to the Loken mercenaries, Eigg. The youngest researcher in Togg's magic power society, Joseph… Other than them, there were too many to say.
Everyone looked up at the summit of the mountain.
The tip of the vaguely visible altar was higher than they had thought.
***
Within House Nortondale, the GhostBlade lived. That was an old rumor.
Losing its sense of identity, it couldn't tell the difference between friend and foe. With a dagger, it would stab your eyes, pull your chin off with its bare hands, rip off human flesh, and break your bones.
No matter what it might be, if it had a sharp object in its hand, it would rip apart any flesh it could see and be in complete ecstasy as it covered itself in blood.
Even for House Nortondale, who were the greatest swordsmen on the continent, it proved to be too difficult to bring back the boy that was born with such an inner devil.
No matter how much he pretended to be a person, the moment he lost his rationality there was blood around him. A monster with blood red eyes that went around ferociously killing those around him. To such a creature, traditional morals didn't apply.
Even though he was never taught to use a sword, he still knew how. Only two days after he opened his eyes to magic power, he began to wrap mana around his sword.
His talent as a swordsman was outstanding, but his fundamentals as a human being were the opposite.
Even Evian Nortondale, the head of the Nortondale House, eventually gave up on him.
The members of the Nortondale House were all well aware.
Clevius Nortondale couldn't do anything about the demonic nature he was born with, which fought against his will.
In order to rein in something demonic that is within you, ultimately you needed to keep yourself away from your innate power.
Rumors of a blood crazy GhostBlade, accusations of being shamed by his family, and the constant pressure of being a monster made it difficult for those around him. Clevius lived his childhood years with that burden. The label of being a monster followed him his entire life.
His lack of self-esteem made him a gloomy person, but at the very least his life as a blood crazy monster had ended.
He was no longer happy holding a sword. He was terrified of his power, which might end up killing someone. He would rather run away than fight.
The fear that he had become accustomed to ate away at his inner self. It was inevitable that he would one day no longer have any self-esteem left.
"You should grab a sword."
The words came from Ed Rothstaylor.
At the 'Substitute Altar' at the summit of Right Mountain, all of the members of Cleoh's lab had gathered together to voice their opinions. Among them, an alternative was proposed by Ed Rothstaylor, who looked like he was lost in his thought by himself.
"Let's change the content of the exam."
"The last hurdle they have to face can be to get past us. If they can make it to the altar by breaking through their upperclassmen, then that means they should be more than qualified for Class A. That's a good enough reasoning. Generally speaking, students of Class A should be stronger or more skilled than their upperclassmen, who are only a year or two older than them."
"You want us to personally fight the freshmen that come up…? Then, who will supervise everything?"
"There's no need to. The point of supervising is to make sure there isn't any cheating, but if we become the test itself, then there won't be any reason to supervise. And I'm sure that Onyx will be able to handle supervising the students' safety on his own."
Right Mountain was difficult to cover all by yourself. But with Onyx, who was an expert at fight magic, he should at least be able to cover to the extent of any safety accidents, if not cheating as well.
"But… In the first place, we already submitted the report regarding the exam to the school. If we were to change the content of the test now…!"
"We can just report it again later, Anise. If we just revise the report a bit later and submit it, then there will be no problem."
"So, we are going to conduct the exam first and then revise the report after? Isn't that against school regulations?"
"If we run over to submit the report now, it'll work. The person in charge of the report… Assistant Professor Cleoh can take care of that."
After saying that, they all looked at Assistant Professor Cleoh.
Ed Rothstaylor might have made the point, but it was Assistant Professor Cleoh that had the power to make the decision.
"Hm…Hmm…? You want me to write up the report right now and submit it again…? What?! You're telling me I have to do even more paperwork?!"
"Isn't it possible?"
"Running like crazy all the way to the lab, then making copies right away… I guess it's possible to barely finish right before the exam results come out…?"
As Cleoh thought hard by herself, humming, she began to ask Ed a question.
"If this continues as is, the difficulty of the exam will be too easy, so there will ultimately be too many students succeeding in getting into Class A… There will be a lot to talk and explaining I would need to do if that happened… but, on the contrary, if we do as you say and you guys take on the role of defending the altar, will you be able to face all of the students?"
"Technically speaking, we won't have to face off against all of them. Just those that have found a magic power stone and gotten past the apparition-type magically engineered items."
"If they went through all of that, won't they be pretty strong?"
"Most of them will be exhausted by the time they get to us anyway. I think Ed's idea will be better than I had originally thought."
Even though there weren't any purple disks, breaking through the ordinary disks as well was quite challenging.
At the center of the group, Ed once again rubbed his face. He pushed his bangs back as he took a deep breath before speaking honestly.
"To sum it up, this is what we'll do. While Assistant Professor Cleoh goes to quickly write up the report, Onyx will supervise the students' safety, Clevius will block the south entrance to the altar, and Anise will block the north entrance."
"Then, what about you Ed?"
When Anise said so, Ed tapped on the altar.
"I'll protect the altar. I have something in mind, so I think it'll be better to do as I planned. As for going into detail… I don't think there is time for that."
After saying as much, there was silence among the group again.
Ed's alternative was plausible in its own way.
Anise was a model student in Elemental Studies and Clevius was the top student in the combat department.
Of course, it might be difficult for the two of them to stop all of the students that had gotten through the magically engineered items. But the freshmen would still be exhausted from it all, so about nine students should have been manageable for the two of them.
But still, there was no guarantee that everything would go perfectly. Ed, who was by himself at the altar, felt that deeply.
"Since it's my fault things have come like this… I won't voice any complaints."
Anise answered with a straightforward response.
Assistant Professor Cleoh also seemed to think hard about it, but she gradually came to accept Ed's opinion. Onyx as well seemed to have no complaints.
All that was left was Clevius.
All eyes turned towards him.
"Ahh… Ehhh… Ahhhhhh….!!!! Seriously….!"
Clevius didn't trust Ed Rothstaylor. But with all the opinions converging to one place, it was hard to act stubborn even if you were Clevius.
"I got it…! I said I got it…!"
***
Assistant Professor Cleoh quickly climbed down the mountain.
Onyx Pelomier gathered magic power into his body little by little, starting to float.
Anise Haylan gathered the power of elemental magic and checked her body, then went to block the northern entrance.
Clevius Nortondale took out his sword as he reluctantly went to guard the southern entrance.
After everyone left to do their respective tasks, all that was left was pure silence at the altar.
There were no other noises except for the occasional passing wind.
I remained alone as I looked up at the altar for a moment. How high was the headstone that the top letters written on it couldn't even be seen properly?
Looking around, I could see a full view of Acken Island from the top of the mountain.
From the south-east education district, the south-west commercial district, the northern forest, the north-east cliffside, all the way to the shore off in the east.
After inhaling the air from the high altitude, I inspected the magically engineered item that had fallen on the floor once more.
[ Magically Engineered Item – Apparition Disk (Purple)
A disk-shaped device that reveals the illusion of a powerful enemy through the magic power of the manufacturer.
It has a higher grade than that of a regular apparition disk. It can show a stronger enemy.
Grade: Very Rare
Production Difficulty Level: ●●◐○○
It is a damaged magic engineered item. It cannot perform properly. ]
There were six of them.
Of course, it was still hard for me to fully repair them with my current magic engineering skill.
However, if I collected the internal components and tried to roughly remake them… Even if it wouldn't produce the original output, they might produce at least a similar output.
As for time, Clevius and Anise would buy me some.
I put down the disks as I went back towards the altar.
'Substitute Altar'.
If you presented an object that contained magic power to the alter, it will extract the magic power from it as it was then assimilated into the air and one's body.
I took out a small leather bag from the bottom of the altar.
Assistant Professor Cleoh had brought it over. There were objects that looked like the magic power stones hidden across the mountain. It seemed that they were the leftovers after she had spread them out everywhere.
Magic power stones with that much magic power inside of them were quite expensive. But since they could easily be retrieved with collecting magic, we were supplied with a lot of them.
I took out one of the magic stones as I gave it to the altar. A faint feeling of magic power lingered on my fingertips. It had been a while since I'd felt that.
I concentrated on testing it out.
I could see something similar to a flame in the shape of a bat by focusing and giving power to my eyes.
I was still lacking in magic power like before, but the bat spirit seemed to be saying something, even though I couldn't hear him.
The amount of magic power imbued in it given the price was not very satisfactory.
I checked the amount of magic power stones left in the leather bag as I sat on the altar.
From underneath the shining altar, Acken Island looked quite vast.
With my back slightly bent, I placed my elbows on my knees. I sat still in that comfortable position as I organized my thoughts once more.
The freshmen class assignment exam, a sudden crisis situation out of our hands, maintaining fair judgment, making sure the appropriate number of students were accepted into Class A… I'd come up with all sorts of excuses, but… sadly none of them mattered to me.
In the first place, I wasn't willing to let a single freshman pass the exam.
I felt bad, but… It couldn't be helped.
I used the 'halo generator', a magically engineered item that I was given by Assistant Professor Cleoh, as I shot a flash of light up into the sky. The signal for the start of the exam.
At the summit of Right Mountain in front the Substitute Altar.
Sitting there… I quietly looked down.
The wind from on top of the altar… No matter what, it didn't seem to be a natural wind.
-x-X-x-
Saint Clarice had two dreams.
One with her eyes open, and another with them closed.
One dream was planted by Archbishop Verdio, and the other by Romantic Adele.
"You must become a person that is pure, like a white piece of paper."
"Imagine a sea beyond the horizon that is completely still, Ms. Clarice. Pursue a vast, wide-open sea that is completely silent, without even the sound of water."
"Everything is equal under our God Telos, and no one can be taken lightly. The reason we live is for the realization of that goal."
"I believe that sublimeness comes from strong beliefs that never falter throughout one's life. I have no doubt that within sublimeness, there are irreplaceable values."
That was what she was always taught during the day by Verdio.
The successful reign of Saint Karpea. Following the person of power within the religious group was Verdio… A person that had lived his entire life turning to the god, a perfect model for believers.
Even the Telos lamb Saint Clarice, who had lived her life without committing a sinful action, was ashamed of her own faults after witnessing his devout beliefs.
He was a man worthy of respect and worthy of god more than anyone else.
He had a strong, stubborn heart, yet he wasn't conceited. No matter how weak someone was, he did his utmost to listen to their voice fairly.
So, Clarice had a dream. A life in which she lived for the will of Telos, remaining a pure girl without any flaws, just like the ever-bright Verdio.
A life as a flawlessly clean saint that the believers went to for salvation. There was surely a sublimeness in such a life that an ordinary person could never achieve.
"I'd rather die in the wastewater than live a life as a clean sheet of white paper."
"Living a life only looking at pure white walls and ceilings, one's vision will also weaken. The romance of a world full of magnificent colors will never be known unless one personally experiences it."
At night, she listened to Adele's mandolin performance, sitting by the window. On starry nights, Adele would always come.
Adele the prophet, and the self-proclaimed romantic Adele.
The dead-eyed girl that was managing the church's torch left one day without anyone knowing the reason.
The girl had braided her hair and decorated it full of beautiful flowers as she played a musical instrument, running off into the world. Then, one day, that girl had become a minstrel that sang of romance.
Going to the land of historians to learn archeology, traveling across the continent with an instrument on her back… Eventually, she even entered Silvenia to learn magic. Once break had come, she was once again out exploring the world.
She really was a girl as free as the ocean's breeze.
"Even our most majestic man-made structure, the Holy Father Building, is just a sandcastle in front of the strangely shaped rocks in the Lamelin Mountain Range. ♪ So will you live a life satisfied, looking up at the sky in a well? Or will you climb the walls to see the vast sea of stars. ♪"
"Did you know there can be a sublimeness in a life where you normally take classes, normally hang out with friends, and live a normal life of love? Did you know, a hug from one you love can be more valuable than the prayers of millions of believers that look up to you?"
She had no idea just how that girl went around playing through buildings, but when the world would fall asleep at night, the girl would sing by Clarice's window. It was the top floor of the Holy Father Building, which boasted of its magnificent scale.
Regardless of Telos' will, angels were said to freely fly throughout the world, wrapping their splendid wings around it.
Despite never actually seeing the apostle of Telos, she could imagine it spreading its glorious wings and just how holy and noble it would be.
However, before she went to sleep, Clarice was walking step by step closer to Adele's back, which she saw from the window.
Perhaps only Clarice had seen it. A beautiful pair of wings that spread out into that starry night sky.
After that, Clarice had closed her eyes and dreamed while asleep.
Lamelin Mountain Range, Denkin wetlands, the empire's capital Kroelon, the land of farming Pulan, the land of alchemy Krett, the commercial city of Oldek, the land of learning Silvenia, the great desert Dresstaya, the lawless region of Kohelton…
Traveling through various lands across the world, ones that she had only seen in books. Then, finally meeting someone in the end.
She couldn't figure out their face. She didn't know their figure or voice. Someone completely unknown to Clarice.
At the end of it, Clarice shared a great hug with that person as the two of them left on that once-solo journey together.
It was a journey full of magnificent colors that was in stark contrast to her life of pure white.
She shoved her face into her blanket as she wriggled her body around… It was the most indecent imagination that she could have.
***
"Hffff phew… I'm starting to get out of breath… I need to control my speed…"
The examination was progressing quickly. In the first place, the contents of the exam weren't all that difficult.
Find various types of magic power stones that were scattered all over Right Mountain and then present them to the altar at the summit.
The magic power stone that was presented to the 'Substitute Altar' would then transform into magic power, seeping into the owner's body. Then, the magic power seeped into the student became proof of a student's success and completion of the exam.
Compared to magic power that was formed naturally in one's body, magic power that was extracted from a natural object had a unique energy to it. It was harder to handle than one might think, as it was not one's own innate magic power… But that wasn't important. After absorbing the magic power, all they had to do was show proof of it.
Tanya caught her breath as she walked through the grass. Focusing on the middle of her forehead, in an instant she could feel the remnants of magic power permeating around her.
It had been well over half an hour since the exam began.
The students that thought it might have been a first-come first-serve basis and ran out right from the start were most likely halfway up the mountain already.
They had found the magic power stones in an instant as they sprinted to the top, so they wouldn't fall even a little behind.
Leading the way were the two most famous freshmen of the Magic Department, Eigg and Joseph. The two seemed strangely competitive with each other.
"There are too many."
As Tanya slowly passed through the trees, before she knew it Tanya held a magic stone of her own in her hand.
"It can't be as simple as presenting the magic power stone to the altar. I'm sure there's something else they prepared to distinguish between the students."
Careful to not lose any stamina, Tanya looked around carefully, slowly climbing the mountain at her own pace.
Mountains in the winter can be slippery. If I fall down in a hurry and get hurt, I will only be hurting myself.
There was a high possibility that something else was set up on the way to the summit of the mountain. There was no reason to go up as the guinea pig to test it out.
While properly maintaining a distance in the middle of the pack, she could carefully take a look at what they had prepared, step-by-step.
"My uniform is kind of tight… Heuuuk…"
Tanya stopped hiking up and rested with her hand on her knees.
It had been more than a few months since she had started looking forward to finally entering Silvenia. As a duke's esteemed daughter, she was always in her best behavior, but there was no end to a human's greed.
Tanya was always taking care of her body, but it was still pure bravado to go out and order a school uniform one size smaller. She felt that she had just been unnecessarily greedy, as there wasn't any weight left to lose.
Tanya took a breather, sitting by on a nearby rock. She didn't have any confidence in her vitality.
Right Mountain didn't have a very high altitude, but thanks to all of the forks in the road, it had the perfect structure to easily lose your way.
Still, since it was a mountain, you couldn't be confused by which direction to go to get to the summit. All you had to do was keep going up the incline.
She wondered if everyone else had found their way by figuring out their own paths, given the fact that it was as complicated as a spider web. Occasionally, she could hear screams coming from the middle of the mountain.
As expected, it was clear that something was prepared halfway up the mountain.
"I'll go towards where the sound came from… Hearing a scream means they have been caught up in something, so I should check it out and see what that is in advance…"
At the moment Tanya was organizing her complicated thoughts…
Suddenly, she looked up and found a girl as small as herself sitting on the edge of an old tree, far off in the distance.
Her dark brown hair, which fell loose down her back, and red eyes didn't harmonize well. The two colors mixed like oil and water, appearing unnatural.
Her socks were rolled up as she looked over her smooth leg, as if she were hurt somewhere.
Thinking she might be injured, Tanya quickly rose from her seat approaching her.
"By chance, are you hurt?"
Her Silvenia uniform was neat and worn properly, just like any of the other freshmen students. However, if she were to name one distinct characteristic she had, the thing that caught her attention the most was her brown hair. It went down to her waist, curling back.
Looking at the glossiness and flow of it, she could clearly tell that it was well kept. Considering that Silvenia was filled with students from wealthy families, that wasn't anything to be surprised about.
All of a sudden, Tanya began talking to her as the girl kept staring blankly right back at her.
Since she was worried about something for the first time in a while, she had ended up saying something. But the girl's reaction was rather cold. In the first place, it seemed like she was missing her soul or something. She seemed strangely dull.
"If you are hurt, I will go and call on one of the teaching staff members."
"Oh, uhm. Me?"
"Yes. I saw you rolling your sock up and looking at your leg… Did you sprain it?"
"No, it's not that… I was just going to step on the snow with my bare feet."
"Pardon?"
In an instant Tanya had a hunch. That girl, she was not a normal human being.
How should she say it? The atmosphere around the girl seemed to be spacey. It was like if you were to blow on her, she would fly apart like cotton candy.
"There is so much snow here. I thought it would be nice to step on it with my bare feet."
"A-All of a sudden? Right here?"
"Oh, is that bad? Perhaps, is this not something that's normal?"
Of course that wouldn't be normal. But Tanya stayed completely still, given that explaining such a thing was a bit…
The girl didn't seem to care as she took off her loafers and put her pale bare feet into the snow.
She then shivered as she let out a noise from excitement, as if she were in a good mood. It was as if she had never touched snow before.
"I-It's cold…"
"That's because it's snow…"
"Here, look at this. My feet got wet…!"
"That is because you buried your feet in the snow…"
Tanya was completely dumbfounded, and she could only respond as it was. The girl nodded her head as if she were saying, 'I see…'
The first thing Tanya couldn't help but think was, Does she have a mental problem?
However, at the very least the Silvenia uniform she wore was proof that she had skill.
Tanya stood still, dumbfounded as the girl quickly put her arms up, waving them as if to say, 'That's not it.'
"Ah, this… it was one of the things on my wish list. Walking around in the snow barefoot."
"A wish list…?"
"Yes… Since I wasn't in a position to do such things… I always looked out the window, imagining what it was like. It's softer than I had thought."
The smile in her eyes looked so holy. It was a smile that wasn't appropriate, given her age. One full of benevolence and purity.
Then, when she was brushing off her snow-covered feet, the bottom of her feet had become as white as the snow.
Tanya cleared her throat as she straightened her back. She then gently closed her eyes as she quietly spoke with a pristine voice.
"I wonder if during the middle of the exam is a good time to be exchanging greetings, but… I am the second daughter from House Rothstaylor, Tanya. It looks like we are classmates."
Usually, when she gave that much of an introduction, the other person would have already lowered their head.
Silvenia, the land of learning. You couldn't ask to be treated courteously and with respect, but at the very least you would try to avoid any mistake that could offend the other person.
Tanya smiled rather elegantly at the girl. She definitely looked rather simple. Tanya was secretly looking forward to her recognizing the Rothstaylor name and changing her attitude to be more polite.
But instead, the girl was rather excited as she started clapping.
"House Rothstaylor!"
She was so excited that she raised her voice. Suddenly, as if she realized that her voice was too loud, she quickly covered her mouth with her hands.
"Uhm, I see… House Rothstaylor… Since I come from the border… I should show my respect, right…? So, I mean…"
"It's fine. Here in Silvenia, where there are so many people who come from respectable houses, if you were to only show your respect to me, I would look rather fussy."
"Is that so…? I guess that makes sense…! Right, this is Silvenia!"
Watching her hold her hands together and nod her head, she looked so innocent. Tanya stared at the girl from a moment before nodding her head.
She had finished figuring things out, somewhat. The girl had said that she came from the borders, so the one that has to take the initiative in the relationship was Tanya.
"My name is Kylie Eckner. I am from a small city-state in the east under the Duchy of Terene. I don't know much about the world, since I have been raised rather sheltered. So, in case I do anything wrong, I apologize in advance. I'm not really used to places like this…"
Tanya then stuck her chest out as she flauntingly and proudly responded.
"Don't worry. I've also just arrived at Silvenia not too long ago, but since I arrived first, I've pretty much already got the hang of this place."
"Really…? I really don't know anything… I know I need to figure things out, but I also have a limit when it comes to that…"
"That's not good…!"
Tanya spoke in a determined tone.
As if she were lecturing her, she had her arms crossed tightly.
"You said your name was Kylie, right? Hmm… Since we are classmates, should I speak casually with you…?"
"Of course!"
"..."
As if speaking casually was such an amazing thing, the girl looked at her with a brightly lit face.
Tanya wondered just what was with that girl, but she continued on.
"Not only is this place full of talented young individuals, but there are also students of the most honorable status that you shouldn't treat carelessly. If you don't check beforehand and aren't careful, you can end up in big trouble."
"Ah, I see. I guess that could be the case?"
"Saying 'I guess' isn't the right attitude!"
Tanya didn't like the fact that Kylie looked like she didn't have an ounce of nervousness in her.
"Will it take you accidentally acting close to the Princess or the Saint and facing the consequences for you to come to your senses?!"
"Is… Is that so…?"
"Technically speaking, even with me… Actually, no forget it…"
Even in front of Tanya, she shouldn't have been acting so light-heartedly or casually, but Tanya didn't want to bring it up and make her feel like she was pressing her status.
Anyway, there was a high chance that they would see each other often.
Seeing her attentively listen to Tanya, who had ended up standing up straight and lecturing her, she didn't seem that bad.
However, there was no sense of crisis within her that she might end up meeting a person of an even higher status than her. If she continued her school life while acting like that, one day she might commit a major mistake.
"Keep this in mind. Even if Silvenia claims that the virtue of learning comes before anything else, there are people that are so honorable and respected that they can even break that unwritten rule… So don't stay so relaxed! The one that will end up getting hurt is you. You!"
"I see… I will keep that in mind. I guess you were greatly worried for me."
"I… I guess I was worried, but…"
Tanya was frustrated seeing Kylie still act so strangely mushy, despite the fact she had just spoken so bluntly to her.
"Miss Tanya, you're a good person. Even though we met for the first time, thank you for worrying about me… You even gave me some sincere advice…"
"Hearing you say it like that is embarrassing… Anyway, we shouldn't be doing this. We have to head up the mountain quickly! We are in the middle of the exam!"
"That's right… We are in the middle of the exam right now…"
She had met all sorts of nice people, but she had never met anyone that carefree before.
Tanya tied her hair up for a moment as she then let out a heavy sigh.
"But I'm not greedy about my grades… If I get into Class A, I will only stand out unnecessarily…"
"Does it matter if you stand out…? If you don't have any desire to learn, then why did you come to Silvenia?"
"Certainly… I do have the desire to learn, but… I think it'll be better for me if I slowly go up from the bottom, right?"
"If that's what you think, I can't tell you otherwise…"
It felt like if she let out another sigh, she would pass out on the floor.
Tanya then thought that she should hurry and take her leave to finish the exam.
"Since I don't think the same… I need to hurry on and head up to the summit."
"I see…"
Kylie nodded her head as she suddenly clasped Tanya's hand.
"Then I'll go with you."
"…Huh? But you said you weren't interested in the exam."
"Well, that's true, but…"
Kyle hesitated for a bit before continuing to talk. She gulped before confessing everything, as if she were throwing up.
"It's the first time I've ever had a friend of the same age."
"..."
Certainly, seeing the things the girl did… Of course she wouldn't have any friends!
Tanya forced herself to hold back such harsh words.
"I'm not that interested in the exam, but… I'll help Miss Tanya with her exam!"
"..."
"Then our relationship will become even more special and close, right…?"
Just how many social skills was that girl lacking for her to try and make a friend like that?
Since the thought itself sounded tiring, Tanya shuddered. For a while, Tanya stared a hole straight through Kylie.
Just how could she continue to act so friendly and carefree, knowing that the person in front of her was the esteemed daughter of the Rothstaylor Family?
She thought about reminding her the difference in their status, but… the strangely mushy atmosphere prevented her from doing such a thing.
She started to think that the girl was rather pitiful in various aspects, so she should at least be kind to her.
Anyway, she was indeed a strange person.
***
Given that the class assignment exam contents were so straightforward, the time limit was also clear.
The big reason was because Assistant Professor Cleoh wanted to finish everything quickly. However, the students wouldn't ever know about that.
It had been almost an hour since the exam had started, and there was still no sign of a student stepping foot anywhere near the altar at the summit.
Clevius gulped.
At this rate, I think I'll be able to just stand here for a bit, then I can go back…
That was what he'd hoped for, but…
"Keughk, aghhk. I-I thought I was going to die."
"WAAAHK! They're finally here!"
The first-year student that had gotten through the many magically engineered items that were set up halfway up the mountain was now the first to reach the entrance to the altar.
A boy with short, reddish hair, smaller than the average male, was wearing small glasses on the tip of his nose.
Eigg, the successor to the Locken Mercenaries. He was a boy that could be considered a top-ranking magician within the first-year magic department students…
"J-Just die….!!!"
"Kyeeeeeeeeeeeeghk!"
The terrified Clevius grabbed his sheath as he ran at the boy, who started screaming horrific noises before fainting as is.
He just escaped the apparitions but had already fainted.
"Haah… Haah… Haah…"
Of course, Clevius didn't attack any of his vitals or strike a fatal blow, but still—for the first year that was exhausted having to deal with the apparitions, it was a rather heavy blow.
With the unconscious Eigg in front of him… Clevius trembled, breathing heavily.
"Ahhh… Shit… Fucking scary… Why did he suddenly…? I just jumped out and… Seriously… Haaah… Haah… Haah…"
Although it was sad, Eigg wasn't guilty of any significant crime, but he had been struck down so abruptly.
It was just a sin to have been there at that moment.
"Th-This is quite surprising…?"
He started to think that maybe it wasn't right to suddenly defeat the students that came up with an ambush like that.
From the student's standpoint it was extremely unfair, but… he then started to think that maybe putting them in such a sudden situation would test their ability to adapt quickly.
In fact, it was also a fact that the title of being a member of Silveria's Class A wasn't something that should be obtained so easily. When he thought of the current second year students in Class A, regardless of who it was, they would be able to handle that much easily.
With such a mental triumph, Clevius clenched his fist.
It's a bit mean but…! It's cowardly, unseemly, and pathetic but…! What can anyone do about it…! Let's just keep doing this…!
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!
However, despite what Clevius was expecting, a loud roar came from the northern entrance of the altar.
The northern entrance guarded by Anise… It was open.
-x-X-x-
The youngest researcher at Togg's Magic Power Society, which was backed by the imperial family, Joseph Whitefeld.
He was a talented individual that didn't have the need to come to Silvenia to simply learn beginner magic. Instead, by going all the way there just to receive a diploma, one could see how practical a person he truly was.
Being a researcher at a Magic Power Society, he already had a good income. However, he still didn't have any sort of academic sublime.
Joseph was the younger brother of Dorothy Whitefeld, who was the top alchemy student amongst the soon to be fourth years.
Unlike his miserable-looking sister, he was rather quiet and had a well-mannered personality, but… the magic that he researched was all over the place.
Even though he was a freshman, he was already able to use intermediate magic. Three of them.
The intermediate fire magic Point Explosion, the intermediate ice magic Ice Spear, and the intermediate earth magic Ground Smash…. He was a magician that couldn't be seen as a mere freshman student.
The reason he could take the lead in passing through the apparition trial was because he was a man of great talent.
Becoming a top student in the magic department was something within his reach. And if he was able to defeat Wade Callamore from the combat department, becoming the top student of his grade was also possible.
His hair was rather unkempt since he was too lazy to cut it. With a thin headband, he kept his bangs slicked back to keep them from getting in the way. But all of the hair in the back was a complete mess.
"All right, go on ahead."
Traces of explosions were scattered all around the entrance to the altar. Anise quietly lowered her head.
The match between two magicians was decided quickly.
In the first place, a magician of Joseph's level would be able to quickly gauge an opponent's skill level. The combat between them wasn't something you could call a match to begin with.
Anise was a senior assistant that could be considered a specialist when it came to office work or school duties… but in terms of combat-related magic, she was only slightly better than her soon-to-be third year peers.
Of course, she wasn't at a level that an ordinary freshman would be able to hold their ground against her. It was just the fact that Joseph was special.
"…There is no need for you to be so upset. What… is your name…?"
"Anise Haylan."
"I see, Anise."
Talking with a gentle voice, Joseph held a magic power stone. Behind Anise, he could see the altar's large headstone. Once he went over there and presented the magic power stone, his exam would be over.
Joseph felt a little underwhelmed. He had spent more time climbing up the mountain than the actual exam itself.
"Miss Anise, I'm sure that you have your own specialized field. If it didn't come down to combat, but rather another field that you specialized in, I'm sure I wouldn't have been able to defeat you…"
"You're exaggerating."
Anise cut Joseph off as her head hung low.
"I am upset, but it's not because of what you think. Like you said Joseph, I have my own specialized field that I'm good at."
"Then…"
"Don't be so nosy. If you're going to go ahead, can you hurry up and move on…? I still have to deal with the other students that are behind you, so I want to save as much energy as I can."
Anise slightly raised her head as Joseph looked at her expression. Indeed, it didn't look as if she was depressed due to their difference in skill.
Certainly, the upperclassmen were definitely strong-minded. Joseph shook his head as he passed Anise, who had her head down.
Once Joseph had gone past her, Anise sat down on a nearby rock.
She then wiped her teary eyes.
She was upset. However, it was different from what Joseph had pointed out.
The basis for Anise bearing with her student life, which was like a long winter, was because 'she is perfect at taking care of her work.'
There was no such thing as a trivial mistake to her.
Completing everything neatly and with perfection,
she was able to constantly justify her difficult
school life.
The reason Anise was upset was because of her own incompetence.
She broke the magically engineered items, she became so shaken by her rare mistake that she couldn't say a word, she couldn't come up with an alternative plan, and in the end, she couldn't even block the north entrance to the altar.
After all of that, Anise's perfectionism had become a double-edged sword—one that was like a dagger stuck in her heart.
She was someone that always talked big and acted like a perfectionist, but when it finally came to an important moment, she was the one who acted pathetic.
She was upset with the fact that she was still far from perfect, despite struggling to constantly do her best.
Anise sat on a rock as she sniffled, looking up at the altar on the summit.
The boy with blonde hair would be the last one to guard the altar. Anise, who normally rarely made mistakes, had ended up causing all sorts of accidents. And that boy was the one that was always trying to act according to the circumstances to fix them all.
He never got angry or acted annoyed. Rather, he was always trying to talk about things in a constructive manner.
Suddenly his face came to mind.
Her heart was beating quickly.
Anise sat at the entrance to the altar as she quietly calmed her heart.
***
"You're the first guest."
Joseph let out a deep sigh as he approached the altar. As expected, the exam wasn't over yet.
There was still a boy sitting on the altar.
The boy, who had dazzling blond hair, had his bangs partly pushed back. He was most certainly an aristocrat. His sharp eyes glared straight at Joseph, but the way he sat on the altar looked rather relaxed.
"And it would be great if you are the last one, too."
"It's nice that the exam's format is easy to understand."
Joseph quickly looked around at his surroundings.
There were five or six magically engineered items that had fallen on the floor around the altar. It seemed to be an upgraded version of the apparition disks he saw on the way up.
However, the components of them were all over the place, as if someone were rummaging through them in a hurry. Those advanced magically engineered items weren't something that could be easily fixed. It wasn't a mere object that required a simplistic modification skill. It was something that you would need considerable knowledge in magic engineering to fix.
Near the altar, there were traces of wood and branches that were cut here and there. There was also a fairly large leather bag placed on top of the altar.
Wondering what the contents of the bag were, given the energy that he felt it seemed to be magic power stones. Since they were pretty expensive products, he didn't expect them to be gathered together like that.
One of his conclusions was that the entire battlefield had already been orchestrated by that boy.
He couldn't let his guard down.
"Then you already know the contents of the test, right? All that's left is for you to present your magic power stone to the altar. However, I'm not going to simply let you do that."
"As expected, the method of this exam is quite unique…"
Joseph held his chin, thinking things over before spitting out his next words.
"If I happen to succeed in defeating you and presenting the magic power stone… Then for the students who come after me, who will take the test with them?"
"Who can say? That's not something you have to worry about."
"That's true. I'm sure there are alternatives in place."
As Joseph spoke, he began to concentrate on his eyes.
He didn't know the name of the boy with blonde hair. However, looking at the color of his name tag and outfit, he could infer that he was a magic department student like Anise.
When a magician fought another magician, they could instantly measure each other's levels. While it wasn't 100% perfect, it was good enough as an estimate.
In Joseph's eyes, there wasn't anything particularly powerful about Ed. Rather, it seemed that Ed was borrowing the power of the magic power stones that he presented to the altar.
If you could just borrow the power from Magic Power Stone to defeat a strong magician, then who would work hard to study magic in the first place?
Magic power was nothing more than fuel, after all. No matter how much magic power he might have in his hands, being born with a low amount of magic power also meant that the magic he could use must be of a very low level.
As long as one diligently trained in magic, eventually their innate amount of magic power would also grow over time.
Given all of that, that must mean… That he has barely trained his magic power at all.
Even though he was a student from the magic department.
All of a sudden, he was starting to look rather pathetic… Joseph sighed deeply. Still, he couldn't underestimate him. He was an upperclassman. He thought it would be better to use intermediate magic to finish it quickly.
Pretty soon I'll start to get hungry. Let's finish this quickly so I can get a sandwich.
Thinking that, Joseph lifted his palms into the air.
And after a moment of concentrating, he stared straight at the blond-haired boy, clutching his fist.
Intermediate Fire Magic, Point Explosion.
Among the many combat magics, it was known as a brutal magic to 'deal with someone you don't know.'
The casting time itself wasn't fast, and you had to concentrate quite a bit, but… Once you successfully cast it, it was nearly impossible to deal with.
Since it instantaneously produced an explosion at any desired point, in accordance with the amount of magic power the user could handle, one would have to move in 'advance' to deal with a single cast.
A series of evasive maneuvers to dodge the targeted point by reading your opponent's intentions from their small hand gestures and the flow of magic power.
Once the point of explosion was set, it couldn't be changed easily. So, once you could figure out where it had been set, you could deal with it easily. The issue was that it wasn't easy to read.
It was difficult without having a fair bit of experience in magic combat, but Ed Rothstaylor quickly lowered his posture as he rolled.
Boom!!
The explosion was not as large as he thought, since it was activated quickly.
Point Explosion had good versatility, but the magic power efficiency itself was awful. It was a level of firepower that could defeat his enemy, but it would be difficult to land a fatal blow.
Perhaps if one were capable of advanced magic, they could really use Point Explosion to bring down entire buildings. However, that wasn't possible at Joseph's level.
Ed, who rolled out of the way quickly to dodge the Point Explosion, drew magic power into his hand. Joseph quickly looked at the energy of the magic power he was gathering and inferred one of the attributes Ed used.
Fire Magic…!
In a showdown between elemental magic and elemental magic, the key was to figure out what element your opponent would use.
Joseph instantly started to gather magic power to cast defensive magic as he thought out all of the possibilities.
As for what he can use with that level of magic power… Ignite or Scorch…!
If it was Ignite, then the fire would spread along the floor. If it was Scorch, then he'd shoot it instead.
Whatever it might be, it wouldn't be able to break through Joseph's defensive magic. Joseph immediately took his position as he casted the spell.
Ed's Ignite spread across the floor as it attacked Joseph. But the burning flames only enveloped Joseph's surroundings without actually reaching him.
The flames are bigger than I thought. It seems that he trained diligently in a beginner magic. Then that means he can even use intermediate magic…!
Joseph immediately changed his perception of his opponent.
Having studied at Togg's Society for a long time, he could gauge an opponent's overall skill in magic just by looking at the level of their beginner magic.
He didn't know why his amount of innate magic power was so small, but it wasn't the time to contemplate over something so trivial.
Still… He probably doesn't have much experience with magic combat…!
Ed's Ignite continued burning at Joseph's defensive magic.
However, it was too difficult to close the gap in proficiency. Ed's flames couldn't break through Joseph's defense. If he kept on going, it would only waste his magic power.
An experienced magician would find another way, rather than continue wasting their magic power like that.
No matter how many magic power stones he used, casting Ignite on that scale would consume a lot. Even before he ran out of magic power, he might faint from exhaustion.
It wouldn't be long before the flames died.
The moment he thought that, a voice came from beyond the barrier.
"Joseph Whitefeld."
How did he know his name? His opponent called out Joseph's name with accuracy.
The flames disappeared as Ed Rothstaylor appeared right in front of him.
The flames weren't meant as a means of attacking. It was a smokescreen to block his view. By the time he realized it, Ed Rothstaylor's right foot was already squeezing through his defensive spell.
The defense magic was meant to block magic power from coming through, so if someone were to physically push themselves through it, they would be able to break through. To prevent a physical attack, he would have had to cast another spell along with it.
Ed then kicked Joseph's stomach as he fell with a bang. The magic power stone that was in Joseph's hand fell to the floor.
"Do you think that just because you're a magician you will always face off against magicians?"
As Ed tried to pick up the magic power stone, Joseph quickly cast telekinesis magic, pulling the stone into his hand.
Fwoosh!
Joseph, who barely managed to grab the magic power stone, stood up clutching his stomach. The shock lasted quite a while, as Joseph had barely trained his body physically.
"Huff… Heuck…"
Joseph panted heavily as he barely managed to pull himself together.
And he was finally able to figure out the situation.
He was at Silvenia Academy. The best education institution on the continent. Joseph shook his head a few times as he finally understood the aim of all of it.
A magician basically trained in combat on the assumption of fighting a battle of magic. That was because a magic battle between magicians was considered the most profound and difficult.
However, in a real-life situation, it wouldn't always be a battle of magic.
In reality, combat was a battle in the dirty mud. Battles that were fought with purely with magic power rarely occurred just as the textbooks said.
Joseph ruminated on his greatest weakness. Real practical experience.
"I won't let my guard down."
Joseph coldly looked down. He was kicked so hard that he couldn't breathe properly for a while, but that wasn't enough to interfere with the battle.
What he was certain about was that, even though he was a magician, he wasn't fighting like one.
He was completely different from Anise, who had accepted her defeat in a standard procedure after realizing the difference in their skill as magicians.
Was the reason they placed Anise right before to have us drop our guard?
Ed gathered magic power in his hands again. Of course, Joseph wouldn't just stay still.
It's fire magic again…!
Joseph used as many as three different elements. Fire, Ice, and Earth.
He had planned to use a low-rank ice magic to set up an Ice Wall. It would still block his view, but with a physical wall being built instead it wouldn't be as easily broken through.
No….! Even this could be intentional!
Thinking that far ahead, he quickly changed his mind. When fire touched ice, the ice would melt, causing steam to rise. Then, in the end, his goal for blocking his view would have been achieved.
In terms of magic ability, Joseph was ahead. But still, there wasn't a reason to give his opponent an unnecessarily favorable variable.
Since the range of Ignite was vast, it would be difficult to cover it with Earth magic. If that was the case, he would just have to cover it with an even stronger fire of his own.
No matter how fast Ed Rothstaylor moved, he wouldn't be able to simply break through the fire.
With an even stronger power, if you had higher abilities than your opponent, it was advantageous to make the fight clean and simple!
In an instant, a flame of ridiculous scale rose from Joseph's hand as he cast Scorch. The flame that shot forward went beyond simply blocking the view, but also covering half of the vacant space in front of the altar.
It wasn't at a level that could be avoided. The moment Joseph felt convinced of his victory, Ed Rothstaylor popped out 'right from the fire.'
Breaking through quickly, his clothes were burning. However, did that even make sense?
It was crazy to break through the burning fire headfirst like that. He might even have ended up facing a major burn.
However, other than his clothes burning in places, not a single part of Ed's body—let alone a strand of hair—was burnt.
Flame Tolerance…?
FWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!
Soon after, the wind blew by as it extinguished all the flames that Joseph had set up. Ed Rothstaylor was already right in front of him.
A close-combat battle.
He was confident in the speed of his magic casting.
Block a physical attack? Block a magic attack? Between the two, Joseph barely managed to pick the correct choice.
Clang!
In an instant, he cast physical defense magic. It blocked the dagger that came from the leather sheath wrapped around Ed's thigh.
Joseph's eyes trembled as he saw the blade.
Ffff-Fucken crazy…! Where did he even take something like that out from…?!
Even though he didn't really get stabbed, he was getting goosebumps.
That was the horror that came from the ferocity of a 'real battle.' Joseph swallowed harshly.
But with his physical attack being blocked, from that moment it was as if Joseph's victory had been decided.
Since any further physical attack would be blocked, it was now a battle of who was first to cast a spell.
There's no way that Joseph's speed at magic casting would fall behind.
As he was thinking those words, a huge explosion engulfed Joseph's surroundings.
BOOM!
"Keugh, Huff."
With vigor matching a superhuman, Joseph didn't let go of the magic power stone in his left hand. Holding onto it, he then walked over to an empty space.
As long as he hadn't lost his magic power stone, it was still okay.
"Huff, haah…"
Standing in the middle of an open space, wearing those tattered clothes, Ed stared at Joseph's magic power stone in a terrifying manner. Gripping it in his trembling right hand, Joseph barely managed to pull himself together.
Real Battle.
Shutting himself in a laboratory at the magic power society, he had only learned combat magic from textbooks and practiced it.
To him, the weight of those two words weighed heavily on his chest.
There was no such thing as a safety device. There is no judge to decide the winner and loser by scoring points. It was not a friendly spar.
It was clearly a 'real battle' that he was having with Ed.
And his opponent was not a person that would fight with formalities and purely magic.
He was a man that would use both ingenious and dirty tricks to take down his opponent.
Don't lose your mind…! Keep thinking…!
He couldn't predict what his opponent would do next. In the first place, foul play didn't exist on that battlefield, so no one could say anything regardless of what he decided to do.
In order to achieve the title of a Class A Student, you had to be able to adapt at least to that extent. Remembering that fact, Joseph calmed his breathing.
No matter what, he can't cast beginner magic faster than me. Did he set up a magic circle in advance… or imbue magic into an object beforehand…?! He might have compressed the magic casting process itself!
Joseph quickly began to wrack his brain. And his extraordinary talent for knowledge wasn't in vain.
Thinking it over, it was strange that he had just ran through the flames with his bare body. It didn't even look as if he was wearing flame-resistant equipment.
And that vast amount of magic knowledge Joseph had all led to one place…
Elementalism…!
Joseph went back into a defensive stance. Ed didn't move right away.
A brief lull on the battlefield.
Contracted spirits often granted 'Regularly Activated Magic' to the owner. In general, it was something that people call a 'blessing.'
Low-Rank fire spirits often give the 'Blessing of Fire Fortune', a constant magic that temporarily increased flame resistance. That was likely what had happened.
In addition, it also explained how he managed to activate the explosive magic faster than Joseph.
It's not magic casting… It's elementalism…!
Whether it was the magic, equipment, or strategy… It was all prepared to catch the opponent off guard and defeat them.
That blonde-haired aristocrat, who was wearing clothes that were half burnt, looked down at Joseph with a cold stare. He was someone that couldn't be categorized as a magician. He was just someone that used magic.
A person who was used to combat itself. His knowledge of how to make up the difference in specs… he was a person that was thoroughly practical.
Joseph wasn't great with Spiritual Resonance. But if he concentrated, he could just barely see the outline of a low-ranking spirit.
Gathering magic power in his forehead and looking around, he finally saw the figure of a bat made of flames floating around behind Ed.
Did he hide the fact he is an elementalist by cleverly mixing in fire magic with his attacks…?!
Thinking about it, that wasn't the only chess piece he was hiding.
The surrounding environment.
The tree branches that were cut off. The magically engineered items that were rolling on the floor that had caught Joseph's eyes. Besides that, he's also probably hiding another type of skill or something.
Can I manage to deal with all of that…?
Joseph has a realistic personality. He quickly shook his head as he revised his strategy.
"I lost. I will return the magic power stone."
Saying that, Joseph slid the magic power stone across the floor.
Ed's gaze was momentarily directed at the magic power stone. It was a hunch that Joseph had quickly come up with.
No matter what, Ed couldn't help but turn his attention over there. After all, Ed's goal was to take away the magic power stone.
Then, while his gaze was focused elsewhere, he cast Ice Spear faster than anyone else.
A magic that was cast quickly also meant less power. But that didn't matter. Moving Ed's attention away was just bait. Ed was subconsciously convinced that everything Joseph did was predictable. Up until that point.
But if you wanted to win in a real battle, there's no choice but to catch your opponent off guard.
All the way down to his core, Joseph was a magician that always studied in a secluded room in the magic power society. That same Joseph kicked off the ground as he went flying with the ice spear.
"HYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
His trembling voice cut through the air as it went towards Ed's chin. Wary of the Ice Spear, Ed lowered his head as Joseph's fist hit Ed's right cheek.
Ed's head swung around.
However, it was just his head.
Of course he didn't fall down on his face or go flying. That was a difference in weight class.
Joseph, who had researched magic all his life, had been pushed all the way to this corner and let out a punch… Even Ed didn't expect it.
With his fist still there, Ed's head went back to normal. The cold glare he had remained the same.
The distance between them was zero. If he made a fist, he could hit him right away.
Joseph swallowed his breath. His last bit of pride forced him to hold back his tears.
But the moment Ed raised his hand and tried to grab Joseph's arm, a wind with an unknown origin blew.
Woosh!
It wasn't magic that Ed had cast. However, it was the 'regularly activated magic' that was always protecting Ed. In other words, a spirit's blessing.
There was no way that he would have only made a contract with one spirit. That much was obvious. Joseph was then thrown into a secluded space out in the open by the unexplainable wind.
"Gasp! Gulp!"
He barely managed to calm his body, holding onto his breath. His eyes were already enlarged to their limit.
Since it was being activated outside of Ed's direct will, that was certainly the blessing of a spirit.
Joseph knew everything about Spirit Blessings.
A magic in which once every set amount of time, when an unexpected attack came, the enemy was blown away by a strong wind. Storm's Blessing.
Maybe because it hadn't been long since he made the contract, but the activation speed was slow.
But still, it had certainly been activated.
The spirit that provided this blessing. At the very least, Joseph knew of one entity that did so.
Joseph looked up at the top of the altar's headstone with trembling eyes.
Thinking of it, the wind that extinguished all of Joseph's flame magic was also something that Ed didn't cast himself.
So, the source of this wind must be… From the top of the tall headstone.
Something that Joseph couldn't see with his resonance level. Surely it was sitting around on top of that massive headstone. If Joseph's prediction was correct, then…
Just how much more did he have hidden?
Did that mean that everything thus far had just been him measuring things out? Because there were a lot more freshmen that he would have to deal with?
"If I happen to succeed in defeating you and presenting the magic power stone… Then for the students who come after me, who will take the test with them?"
Just how arrogant was that thoughtless remark of his?
Shink!
Ed took out his dagger, holding it in hand as he once again took his stance. Seeing his trembling eyes, it seemed as if he was staring at Joseph with ill intent.
Joseph yelled out in surprise.
"R-Really, I mean it. I lost!"
Then, in an instant, Joseph cast Point Explosion, which destroyed his own magic power stone on the floor.
That was the easiest way to admit his defeat.
"..."
Watching the magic power stone be smashed into fragments, Ed waited a bit before relaxing his shoulders.
A moment of silence.
"Okay, good work."
Ed then spoke about the battle as he cleaned up and put away the dagger. Joseph was the only one left dumbfounded.
"You were great in the end. In your own way, you showed an extraordinary determination. You had even got that punch in. Well, you can get going now."
He then sat back down on the altar as he cleaned up his burnt school uniform.
"..."
Joseph slowly rose from his seat as he quietly spoke.
"What is your name?"
"Ed Rothstaylor."
Ed brushed his sleeves off as he sat still on the altar, waiting for his next opponent.
Seeing Ed sit on the altar, looking exactly the same as when he came in, Joseph was dumbfounded.
There was one thing he was sure of.
That person, he still hadn't used half of the methods he had prepared.