The duo led by Morgan passed through the enormous door. They walked along a huge hallway, lit by modern chandelier powered by electricity instead of torches. The hallway floor was covered in marbles, and the ceilings were too high to reach out, decorated with intricate architectural designs.
Arthur can't help but be frozen in amazement for the place, he was not able to express anything else except being awestruck.
Arthur stops every two seconds just to admire the place. Aileen that walked behind him mimicked his movements with the only exception that her head lay low. Still feeling dejected. She stays exactly 10 meters apart from Arthur, maybe she measured the distance in her head, or, some strange miracles were happening, albeit the constant stopping she always stays 10 metres apart from him. Incredible.
Morgan noticed that she walked far from the duo and said, "What's yer doing? Come on now, move that legs of yer! We're already late!"
Arthur heard what Morgan said and picked up his pace followed by Aileen 10 metres behind him. Arthur feeling sorry for Aileen checks up on her once in a while. Maybe, the constant stopping that he does earlier was just an excuse to check up on her.
----
Arthur, Aileen, and Morgan finally arrived at their intended destination. A big indoor courtyard, surrounded by pillars. Some pillars were broken, while the other was either scratched or corroded by time. From the top view, the pillars were arranged to make a big circle. A relic of distant past repurposed to be a place of trials. And in the middle of the circle, a knight statue wearing a black armor can be seen.
"Wow! there's so many people!" Arthur exclaimed.
Dejected Aileen finally lifted up his head. Seeing that there were around a hundred people lining up just to take the entrance trial. She thought, 'I just want to sleep...Why this day never ends!' and sighed.
Morgan, seeing the long line in front of her said to Arthur, "Right, this is yer test now boy. You need to defeat all of these jobby to enter, a single loss, yer out."
Morgan voice was not too loud but loud enough for everybody that gathered there to hear it. Just after the voice ended all of the applicants turn their heads and stared at Arthur. If looks can kill, he will be dead a hundred times already.
Morgan seeing the deadly looks, turned around to face Arthur, smiled and said, "What do ye say, boy? Yer up for it?"
Aileen shocked by Morgan conditions, albeit feeling disappointed at Arthur she still bound by her mission as his aide and assistant, she looked at Morgan and protested, "What? How is Mr. Arthur trial different from the other? Is this how you conduct fairness in here?"
Morgan smirked at the response and said in a mocking voice, "Fair? There's no such thing as fairness in this world, ye filthy woman. Wake up from yer dream, ye fud."
Aileen felt anger and frustration at what Morgan said, added with the humiliation from before, she just needed the right trigger to finally blow up. The pent-up emotion finally erupted and subconsciously Aileen replied with her mother tongue, "F-f-fud! What did ye say ye massive scunner! I punch the teeth out of yer diddy looking fa-"
Aileen just started to move to confront Morgan felt that someone just grabbed her arm. Aileen still consumed by her anger looked fiercely towards the direction of the one that grabbed her. It was Arthur, her looks changed its fierce appearance to a confused one.
Arthur seeing the angered Aileen, shake his head, and said, "It's okay Ms. Aileen. It's not that hard actually. The test that the old man gave was a hundred times more difficult. So just trust me and agree on the trial." He winked and smiled afterward.
Aileen seeing that wink, felt a lot better. Knowing that Arthur was a pure-hearted boy after knowing the truth from before, dismissed it as just his way of interacting with the opposite gender. Taking a deep breath, Aileen once more looked at Morgan, not with anger, but with a resolution written on her face, she said,
"Alright! We shall accept the conditions and take on the trial! Don't take your words out now!" Aileen said and looked at Arthur afterward, she continued, "And Mr. Arthur, I'm still angry at you. So if you passed this trial, I will consider that as your apology." With smile decorating her beautiful face.
Morgan clapped and smiled at the same time after seeing the two finished filming their own rom-com scene.
"Right, take the stage ye cunning boy." Said Morgan with a vicious smile plastered over her face and snapped her finger after. Suddenly Arthur and the rest were transported into a big massive colosseum-like room.
The room was exactly like the Roman Colosseum, the viewing platform, the caged entrances, with slight exceptions, which are the marbled floor and the electric lighting instead of the open roof.
Arthur and the rest were confused for a second by the sudden changes of environment.
"Now, which one of ye jobby wants to be the first challenger? Oh! And I almost forgotten, everyone of ye jobby that manage to win will be admitted directly to the Academy. So do your best jobby!" Said Morgan that was sitting on the middle the room viewing platform accompanied by Aileen.
The applicant's eyes becoming more determined to defeat Arthur, but no one want's to test the murky water. Because nobody knows what Arthur capable of, and assuming that he was the only one that was given this impossible trial, he must have some skills or two in his disposal.
Arthur standing alone in the middle of the coliseum circled by the applicants. His arm was crossed while waiting for his first challenger. Bored of waiting he yelled to Morgana, "VICE HEADMISTRESS! IM TIRED OF WAITING! CAN I BE THE ONE THAT PICKING, INSTEAD OF BEING PICKED!"
"Aye, sure! boy!" Morgana approved his suggestion.
"Wonderful! Now...Who do i pick...Hmm...???" Arthur looked inquisitively at the applicants one by one. The applicants were tense, and sweat can be seen forming on their head. When suddenly,
"I choose...You! Big bulky gentleman with the white tank-top!" Arthur pointed at the man in his twenties judging by his looks. His body was well built, he looked more like a bodybuilder than an applying student.
Morgan smiled and snapped her finger once more. The applicant's that were not chosen was transported to the viewing platform. At first, they were confused, but knowing that they've experienced it once, they didn't think about it further but instead turns their focus to view the first match.
The man moved forward towards Arthur while cracking his neck and said, "You've choosen the wrong person boy! This daddy here will make you cry back to your mama! HAHAHA."
Arthur, still standing with his arm crossed shocked at the man's size and said, "Whoa! I'm pretty sure you're a human, but with that physique are you sure you're not a beastman mister? Are you hiding your ears and tails?"
"You've just insulted me boy! Don't compare me to an animals!" The man said while rushing forward to throw a punch.
"Now you're just being a racist! Well, you're a lost cause, so, goodbye!" Arthur stomped his feet.
BOOM!
A big explosion occurred at the man's feet. The marble floor was broken to bits and pieces while some are flying everywhere by the explosion aftermath. And Arthur that was standing in front of it moved to the side to avoid the debris.
The explosion was so big, it's engulfing the man's whole body. No shadows or even a slight figure was seen in the flaming beast belly.
"RWAAAARGH!!!!"
Judging by the scream the bulky man seems enraged. Mad with anger he rushed at Arthur through the flames and smoke, his body was burnt and the white tank top he wears was nowhere to be found.
Arthur was surprised by the man tenacity, normal people would panic if their plans were a failure. But Arthur was not normal wasn't he? He was one of the five that will shoulders humanity hope, knowing the weight that he carries on his shoulders this minuscule error would not make him panic or even batted an eyelid. Instead. He smiled.
BOOM!
Another explosion at the man's feet. The same size as before, flying debris everywhere, the man once more swallowed by the flaming beast. The other applicant's that were watching from the viewing platform shuddered and confused at the same time. How did he cast flame magic so fast, at that big of a scale too.
To their knowledge, magic was an art to manipulate the aether. Either by controlling it or mutating via a magic circle, rune, or even an oral commands to achieve the desired results. In the case of traditional magic, like what Arthur just performed, they would have taken a minute, or fifty seconds if they were lucky.
But Arthur casted the spell in a matter of seconds, and that was just mind-boggling to them.
"UGH!! RWAAAGRH!!! I'LL KILL YOU, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!!!!
The man still standing, his body was charred all over the place, consumed by his rage he rushed once again towards Arthur.
SKREEEEE
Now, it was not an explosion, but a small hurricane instead. The small hurricane cutted through the man's body. Overwhelmed by his severe injuries, the man finally dropped to the floor and fainted.
"What!! As if the fire element was not enough, now he casted a wind element instead? Has he acquired his class already? What's going on here??" One of the applicants shouted his confusion.
Morgan watching the match smiled, intrigued by Arthur move and said to herself, "This boy, not only were genius at magic. He has a vile mind too."
Aileen, so focused on the match finally remembered, that Arthur was a genius. She was startled at first at how Arthur casted the spell in an instant. But with her experience working in the fields of magic, she deduced how Arthur did it and smiled with satisfaction.
"I-i get it now!! You placed traps on the fields!! That's why it looks like that you casted it instantly!!" Finally one of the applicants knew the tricks that Arthur was pulling.
"Wh-what!! That's not fair!! You can't do that, mate!!" One applicant after another shouted their discontentment at Arthur.
Arthur smiled and looked towards the applicants and shouted, "There were no rules stating I can't place a trap in the fields!! I can do whatever I want!! Isn't that right Vice Headmistress Morgan!!"
Morgan smiled at Arthur little scheme and replied, "Aye, he's right! Listen all of ye jobby wallaper, I've only said to defeat them, and nothing about the way ye defeat them."
"Bu-bu-but that's not even fair!!" The applicants still protested.
Arthur still grinning from ear to ear shouted once more, "Fair? You think this worlds fair? The worlds not fair! So do I."