Let's be rational for a moment.
A three-meter-tall teddy bear, made of fluffy stuffing.
Versus
A five-meter-tall rock monster, who looked utterly imposing.
Who was going to win?!
*
*
*
'How the heck is this fair?!' Matt thought to himself as he watched both sides pull out their cards.
Violet was obviously at a disadvantage here, and he wasn't being biased. How could the examination board approve of such injustice?
Matt glanced at Rose, who was smiling, surprisingly, pointing his fingers and blaming her within him.
'What kind of mentor are you? Why would you allow this kind of stuff to happen to your protege?' Wasn't Rose being too unreasonable—both as a mentor and the proctor?
The worst part was…
'She's smiling? I knew it! This lady is a sadist!' Matt thought, glaring at her..
He realized his worst fear was becoming a reality, right before his eyes. The scene of Violet's dreadful state back in the Dungeon replayed itself in his mind, and he began to panic.
'She's in trouble! She's in—'
As Matt continued to worry and fret over the outcome of the fight, he soon realized how awfully wrong he was. He saw firsthand the reason Rose was smiling so widely, and why Violet didn't back off from the threatening Earth Elemental.
What happened was unbelievable, to say the least.
Tee suddenly jumped into the air, creating a shockwave as it ascended to the sky. As soon as it reached a certain height, it stretched out its hands as though embracing the wind. One would think it had given up halfway, and was about to free fall.
However, the moment Tee did this, Violet stretched out her hand in his direction, and the unbelievable occurred .
>VWUUUUUUSSSSHHHH<
All of a sudden, Tee multiplied in size!
First, it became six meters tall, but it didn't stop there—no, it was just getting started!
Six meters. Twelve meters. Twenty-four meters!
In mere moments, Tee was now eight times its initial size. Along with this new mass came a greater force that sped up his descent to the arena.
"N-nani?!" The boy in glasses could do nothing but widen his eyes in shock.
He had sent his Earth Elemental after Violet when Tee launched itself up, thinking his contracted being could finish up the teddy's contractor before it could do anything.
Unfortunately, Earth Elementals were slow.
Thus, before the 'Grand Marshal', or whatever name the boy called his rock pet, could get to Violet…
>BOOOOOOOOOMMMMM!!!<
Teddy stuck the landing, so to speak, flattening everything in its range including the 'oh so powerful' Elemental. In mere moments, and with a loud bang, Violet was able to secure her victory!
"M-my Marshal…" The boy in glasses whimpered, powerlessly stretching his hand to the massive teddy as he crumbled to his knees.
His glasses were dislodged from their position, and his face was the picture of despair.
It was the first time—for Matt, and for the audience—that any examinee in this match had dealt their opponent such a crushing defeat!
Her victory was a shock to everyone, though one person in particular, felt the impact more than most.
"I was wrong about her." Matt muttered in surprise.
He had always pictured Violet as weak anytime he thought of her fighting anyone. Why did he never consider how strong she could actually be—considering how she had challenged a Dungeon on her own?
All those potholes, and the destruction that he saw when he ventured into the Link, could have actually been damage caused by the fierce fight she must have put up. Back then, she was simply outclassed. But now? For a mere exam, how could he have doubted her skills?
The audience burst into congratulatory cheers, applauding Violet's victory. It seemed they were all satisfied with how things ended.
"All of Rose's proteges are scary!"
"That teddy bear… damn, overkill!"
"Man, do you think she'll let me touch her bear later?"
"M-maybe, but why would you even—"
"It's so cuteeee!"
"I want to get buried under it too!"
"TEDDY SUPREMACYYYYYY!!!"
It seemed what started out as a cheer for Violet slowly morphed into something else—adoration of the amazing teddy.
Still, that didn't stop Matt from focusing on the winner of the round and her now deflated stuffed animal.
There was no longer any doubt in his mind. If he had been skeptical about it earlier, Violet had successfully rid his mind of any doubts.
Even as he watched her pant heavily, wiping sweat from her brow as she left the stage, Matt only had one thought on his mind.
"She's strong!"
"Number 09, PASS!"
*
*
*
"That was awesome, Violet. You were amazing out there!" Matt couldn't hold it in anymore when he saw her return to the seat of the examinees.
"Haha. Thanks. I feel much better now that it's all over." She laughed, though her heavy breathing showed how tired she still was.
Matt was happy they were back on speaking terms, and he didn't waste the chance to invite her to sit beside him.
"You sure?" She had asked him, to which he desperately affirmed.
He was tired of being all alone, after all.
Fortunately, she agreed, and he happily had her seated right next to him. It brought him both relief, and a tinge of awkwardness.
"Y-you okay?" He asked, trying his hardest to glance in her direction without his cheeks turning pink.
Somehow, ever since he saw Violet win her fight, Matt couldn't stop thinking about her and how amazing she was. She looked so cool!
"Yeah. Just used up too much Magia at once, nothing a bit of rest can't fix." She smiled brightly.
Once again, his face flushed with pink.
"You were amazing too, by the way. Sorry I didn't say it sooner. I was… quite nervous." She said, laughing a little.
"I figured. But isn't this great? We both passed."
"I know, right? That's epic."
The two laughed, joyous and reveling in their victory..
'What would happen if it's just the both of us that pass? That wouldn't be too weird, right? Or would it be…?' Matt glanced in Violet's direction, and he couldn't help but feel his heart racing in anticipation.
It wasn't like he was wishing anyone badly or anything, but…
'So far, a total of seven have contested, and only Violet and I have passed.'
He didn't have much faith in the remaining examinees, but then again, anything could happen.
'I have a weird feeling about that guy' Matt glanced warily at the weird guy in the fifth row.
"Next, Number 01. Come out!"
Just as Matt was thinking about him, the white-haired boy rose to his feet and began walking toward the stage. Both his hands were in his pockets, and there was a chilly aura about him as he walked past Matt and Violet's row.
'Speak of the devil. Let's see what he can do!'