After they heard what the young man said, everybody, including the city lord, frowned. Everyone but the person the young man was looking at, Dio.
The audience voices quietened while the ten contestants looked at the young man with different expressions, but there is one thing they had in common, and that was what they were thinking about.
"Are you crazy?" The city lord Trevor gave voice to everyone's thoughts.
Though he didn't get an answer, the city lord didn't mind, as he believed it was the case. If the young man weren't crazy, he wouldn't come and say this at the last second.
Surprisingly, contrary to everyone's expectations, Dio said, "I will allow you."
Four words made the tense and awkward situation erupt. Everyone started to discuss what just happened frantically. But, in all that, two people were staring at the young man with weird expressions.
The city lord had changed his stance after what he just heard. The young man in front of him had saved his daughter Lara's life. Opposing him despite that would make him seem ungrateful and petty. And that's not what he wanted. More so, he didn't want to offend the young man after finding out about his power.
The other person looking at the young man was Dio, who had a thoughtful expression on his face. After some time being silent, he said: "Your test will be different."
Even though he didn't specify anything, the Players around could feel the playfulness in his voice.
From the beginning till the end, Xue Mo didn't speak anything other than his first words. This made the people around him think that he was arrogant, but he wasn't the talkative type in truth. Dio had also seen this and thought, 'Let's have some fun.'
The only reason Dio had allowed the young man in was that he wanted to have fun. He didn't see anything astonishing about the ordinary man, but he thought that if he had enough courage to request something like that, he must have the confidence to back it up. And he wanted to see where this confidence come from.
After a while, people calmed down. Using the opportunity, he just got Dio said, "The first shall be seeing how good your Mana control is."
Dio's words caught everyone's attention. They knew that Mana control is the essence of all skills, Magic, and power. Without good enough Mana control, no matter what skill, Magic, or profession, they depend on Mana and Mana control.
There are different ways to test Mana control, so they were curious about what method Dio would test the Players on. There is also the extra young man they wanted to see what Dio would give him as a test.
Observing everyone and seeing their curiosity, Dio smirked and stayed silent, letting their interest build before revealing,
"The first test shall be split in two—one for mages and one for warriors. Mages will use Mana to make element-less attacks with how fast and strong your offense is, as the base of judging. On the other hand, Warriors shall be tested on how high their reflexes, strength, and other factors that determine powers. At the same time, they will also be tested on how strong their attacks become when they apply Mana." After explaining the first test, Dio looked to see the contestants' expressions.
As he expected, everyone had a dumbfounded look while the Players' expressions were distorted. Some looked relaxed, others worried, while some others were... staring at the young man who appeared at the last second?
'Interesting.' Seeing the way four of the candidates were staring at Xue Mo, he got interested. Someone his age wouldn't have much fun these days, so he would use this competition as an opportunity to enjoy himself. The young man in front of him seemed ordinary in every possible way. But, from his actions and the fours looks, he knew that he hid some secrets on him.
Not wanting to waste more time on useless stuff,
"Let the competition start, as I have previously said, the first trial will be about mana manipulation. You can all see the platform behind me." Dio's words made everyone turn their heads, and like he said, near the city lord's residence, a ring seemed to have been erected. It looked fancy like the ones used in arenas, but the materials used showed how common it is.
Looking at the stage, everyone saw steel bars in the shape of braces planted on the ground. They appeared to be too heavy to lift. Without the necessary strength stats, some of these steel bars couldn't be held. The braces were obviously for the warriors. There were also a dozen or so treestands that were the targets that mages would use for the test.
"These steel braces will be used to test the warriors. They will quantify your attacks in numbers, similar to how the system does to your stats. It will calculate the power, speed, perception, and other physical factors. Don't hold back." Dio said the last sentence in a commanding tone, making his stance clear. If he found out that someone was holding their strengths back, he would make an example.
People shuddered after hearing the last sentence. They started praying for the testers not to be foolish and do as Dio commanded.
After he finished explaining to the warriors, he turned toward the Mages and said,
"You could use whatever shape or construct that you want, but it will have to be made using Mana. The distance that you need to have before shooting will be where the red line is." After he said that, Dio looked at Xue Mo and said with a playful look.
"As for you, you will do both tests!" A simple sentence made the whole crowd start a cacophony. People began discussing if the strange man would be able to do it or not. Some mocked him for his foolishness and thought that he had offended Dio, and that's the consequence. At the same time, others were pitying him and trying to cheer him up.
Despite what was happening around him, Xue Mo looked too calm. The air seemed to be resonating with him as if isolating his area from the rest. It was as if the noises around him weren't even there.
He didn't bother responding, giving his assent to Dio, who looked at him with a curiosity someone his look or age wouldn't have. It seemed as if Xue Mo was able to see the lingering gaze on him, making him turn his head and look at Dio dead in the eye.
For no reason at all, Dio felt that the air turned colder while his back shuddered. He didn't know why, but he felt like a beast was staring at him as its prey. Another second later, Dio felt that everything seemed like an illusion as everything returned to normal.
Trying to take his mind of what he just felt, Dio continued, "the top five who score highest, will move on to the second test." After speaking, Dio gave the kids time to digest the information before continuing.
"You will go one by one after being split into your respective groups." Dio finished, "you will go last." After he finished his speech, Dio went back and sat down.
When Dio finished his explanation, the city lord got up from his seat and approached the podium, "Let the tests begin."
With the city lord's words, people started cheering while Players began preparing themselves for the tests that they were about to undergo. The only one who didn't do anything was Xue Mo, who was busy talking to Lu Yao.