Vernon, the bald instructor, aka "Takoyaki".
He found himself in a rather embarrassing situation.
The reason: a boy with bushy white hair and lavender eyes. It was the boy in front of him.
A boy who somehow struck a chord in men's hearts,
and set women's hearts on fire.
But it wasn't just his rugged good looks that had him flustered.
Vernon crossed his arms and looked at the boy in front of him.
'It's strange... the Dean said you'd have to wait at least two hours after you fell before you could move normally… so why is this bastard up already?'
For some reason the word 'bastard' was added, but it was one of Vernon's habits.
He had a deeply ingrained complex about his appearance, so he had a habit of looking down on handsome people, especially those with fuller heads of hair.
…which was pathetic in many ways.
Anyway.
To Vernon, the current situation was clearly embarrassing.
The magic that Noah had performed in the auditorium earlier was [Forced Transference]. It was an intermediate magic.
His magic had not yet blossomed. Especially for those who had no talent in magic, it was a magic that could easily kill them.
However, the gray-haired boy had not only woken up quickly, but had even gotten up from his feet.
How did he do it?
'The dean couldn't have lied. No matter how childlike she may be, she's one of the four sages. They are mythical beings, unrivaled among wizards.'
Noah von Trinity.
She was, to say the least, a force to be reckoned with.
Few wizards in the world could match her.
Despite the innocence of her eyes, Noah's freezing magic freezes everything in existence.
A living legend of incredible power.
"A witch of freezing." That's the phrase that describes Noah.
'That's not all.'
A living myth with a reputation as a demon hunter. Noah von Trinity is a figure that every prospective student here looks up to.
Even if her appearance and mannerisms are more than a little odd.
'By the way, even with the Dean present, it is still dangerous to move cadets around like this. I would advise caution in future trials.'
Vernon patted his chest and thought to himself.
For now, the prospective students were all still breathing, but it was dangerous to suddenly expose them to magic like this.
Few, if any, of the instructors could withstand Noah's power, even if it was contained to a trickle.
And to ask a cadet who hasn't even been enrolled to endure it.
No matter how you look at it, it was an unreasonable test for them.
Other families might have said, "This is unacceptable! "We will not tolerate such a test!"
Even so, I doubt anyone would argue with Noah, the Four Wise Men.
'Well, she's the dean, she can do whatever she wants.'
Indeed.
In retrospect, Dean Noah had a good reason for sending them this way.
To weed out the cadets from the very beginning.
Is the being in front of you a cadet worthy of entering Eldain?
To find out, it was necessary to pre-screen their talents.
Talent?
That would only end up making life hell for the individual cadet.
The further you go, the more this talent becomes a barrier and....
and ultimately destroys the person who attempts to break it.
That's why Noah chose this method, albeit a rather violent one.
The sooner you weather a storm of magic and wake up, the higher your mana sensitivity will be.
Mana is a key element for both knights and wizards.
At the very least, I wanted to see the talent with my own eyes before accepting a student.
-If they can't handle this, they don't deserve to be my students, they're going to die anyway, so there's no point in teaching them!
-But if they're really talented, they'll probably wake up within ten minutes… So don't stare at people with such cold blooded eyes, it's rude!
Noah had been telling himself that as he organized the test.
Ten minutes, even if he miraculously excelled in this test.
It would take him ten minutes to get back on his feet.
'But what about this… I never thought I'd see a cadet stand up without falling down... Is this called talent?'
No, I mean, can it be described as a talent?
To withstand the power of that Noah Von Trinity, and then to stand there with such an innocent expression on his face?
Vernon stared into Nox's anger-inducing face.
He asked in a casual voice, as if it were a matter of course.
"Please explain the second test."
Vernon said, feeling the veins in his forehead rise at Nox's snarky tone.
"Explain the content of the exam… Okay. Very well. But before you do, look at those guys down beside you. They need to get up so we can have a fair test."
"They can't get up because they're incapacitated. Is that any of my business?"
The gray-haired boy had said so confidently.
What?
For some reason, I felt an unexplainable sense of authority coming from the boy.
The confidence of a man who had spent his life looking down on others from the top down, even if he was an underdog who was a long way from being an instructor.
In addition to his full head of hair, the boy had the air of a great being.
Vernon was silent for a moment.
Then, understanding his every word, he asked deliberately.
"What do you mean?"
"Do you think I don't know that the Dean used [forced transference] magic to test us?"
At Nox's words, Vernon's expression stiffened.
Come to think of it, he'd said 'second test' earlier. There must be a reason, I thought.
As if reading my mind, Nox continued.
"A test to discern a cadet's innate mana sensitivity. I'm sure the Dean would have you check with your instructors to see who wakes up here first, no?"
"…Interesting."
Vernon said, looking at Nox.
His eyes were still full of power.
There was a hint of interest in his expression, as if he was trying to analyze this man.
"What's your name?"
"Nox."
Nox.
Vernon considers the name for a moment.
He's sure he's heard it before.
"Wait a minute… Nox… What, you're the stupid youngest member of the Rinehafwr family?
Once again, Vernon's expression changed strangely.
Nox von Reinharber.
Yes, he had heard of the Reinhafer family's spawn being admitted to Eldain.
But of course, he wasn't expecting it.
Most of the children here knew what a scoundrel Nox was, even the ones who had collapsed. Assaulting the family's maids and butlers, shouting insults at people.
It might not seem like a big deal, but the rumors about him in social circles were already bad enough.
The Reinhafer family scoundrel.
That was the label attached to the man known as Nox von Reinhafer.
Vernon suddenly understood the man's swagger.
It came from his own family.
'What a… handsome little fellow, with a good family name…!'
Vernon looked at Nox with an angry, selfish expression.
But for now, he had a bigger question to answer.
Why was Nox the first to wake up in a sea of magic?
The answer was there, in fact.
'Even if you're a disgraced member of the family, you're still a natural dragon, right?'
An innate and overwhelming talent.
Of course, it was a bit puzzling that the scion of the Reinhafer family was gifted with magic instead of swords, but it didn't really matter.
Talent is often given unknowingly like that.
But one thing must be made clear.
Vernon nodded, a fierce gleam in his eye. He asked.
"You've already mastered magic."
"I learned it as an adult and on my own. Does that matter?"
Nox's waiting answer fell flat.
Vernon persisted.
"It doesn't really matter, but for you to have accomplished this much, you must have mastered at least [Type Change]… Where is the proof that you didn't learn magic before you came of age?"
This was an important issue.
Learning magic before reaching adulthood?
It was only granted to the Huang family, the losers of this continent.
So it was necessary to make this clear.
A matter that could be considered a rebellion.
However, Nox smirked, completely unfazed.
"Do you have any evidence of my early learning of magic? This is not a pleasant way to be interrogated, can you handle it?"
"How dare you try to intimidate an instructor?"
"Of course not."
"Then, gray hair. You're going to have to explain what you meant."
Vernon's question brought a thin smile to Nox's face.
He eyed Vernon with a cold stare.
"Words have consequences, and if you can take responsibility for what you've said, I'll accept whatever it is.
You're welcome to examine my body all you want. Do whatever you want. But if you suspect something without reason… you'll have to take responsibility, won't you?"
Nox's eyes were full of confidence as he said it.
Vernon thought.
'What a filthy good-looking, miserable little bastard, and he's well-spoken, too! This is… my defeat!' {1}
Vernon gritted his teeth and resigned himself to it.
"...Good. I see you have the eloquence of a Reinhafer, but my story is not wrong. You're only going to hear about the test once."
Noah had only told him to organize a list of the first few cadets to wake up anyway.
Also, while I was talking to Nox, a few more people had already woken up.
Maybe a few more minutes and they'd have the list of ten that Noah had mentioned.
Vernon nodded as he tabulated.
He set the list aside for a moment, then looked up.
"Then...."
Boom!
(kwaaaang!)
As he spoke, Vernon clapped his hands together loudly, making a lot of noise.
The cadets who had been slumped over like ghosts slowly began to rise to their feet.
-Aah!
-What the hell!
-What kind of son of a bitch did this…!
"I am the son of a bitch."
Vernon threw a fist at the cadet who woke up with a scream. Aiming precisely for the crown of the head, he seems to have a persistent streak.
It's like he has a target in mind....
Meanwhile, Knox took a moment to reflect on what Vernon had done.
'He used the power of his clap to forcefully shock the cadets' bodies. If you didn't feel the pain, that's even weirder.'
In martial arts terms, it was a shock to the tenuous yin vein. {2}
It was Vernon's way of waking the cadets up.
He's an instructor after all. His skills are quite good.
It's just that there are so many other monstrous units that it doesn't really stand out.
-Uhh....
-Sorry, I didn't realize you were an instructor…!
-I wasn't told there was an entrance exam!
It wasn't long before the cadets woke up, rubbing their eyes.
They looked around in bewilderment.
They all had bags under their eyes, and it was easy to tell who had mastered their magic and who hadn't.
Those who recovered relatively quickly had high basic stats in magic.
The others took a long time to recover.
Also, the higher the willpower, the faster they woke up.
Nox watched them awaken with interest. He used his [Insight] to study their faces and their changing states.
-Whoa… what is this....
-What?! Where am I… on an island?
-Is there a forest nearby?
-Crazy… what's going on?
-A moment ago we were in the auditorium….
-What's with the bald guy?
Vernon tried his best to ignore the last voice.
Finally, he began to explain the actual test.
"Nice to meet you, you shitty worms! I'm Vernon. I'm the instructor in charge of this year's entrance exams for Eldain."
You are about to take your entrance exams, and let me be the first to tell you that anything can happen here, which is to say… I will not be held responsible if you die here!"
At that moment, the cadets' faces stiffened.
They had never heard anything like this before.
This school is crazy.
The thought stuck in the cadets' minds like a rusty spearhead.
* * *
'They're evil. For a subject they have no intention of letting die.'
Vernon.
I smirked at him as he casually spouted the lie.
The truth is, Vernon is just trying to scare us.
Even though more than nine percent of the people here are adults, there's no way they're capable of rational thought when their lives are threatened.
This is how they will separate the wheat from the chaff.{3}
Resistance to fear is one of the most important qualities of a knight.
No matter how talented you are, if you're not willing to face the enemy, you'll be overrun and killed.
I've seen units like that many times.
And now I must take them into my own hands.
The ones that don't make a difference in the grand scheme of things.
I must devour them, raise them to power, and then have them help me.
'Of course, it won't be easy to weed out the talented ones… but I have no choice. If I don't, I'm bound to get screwed.'
Then there's the player..., the main character.
The first main story.
The entrance exam is the first time the main character is active.
So, I continued my train of thought and looked at the stats of the prospective students.
Before I knew it, Vernon's explanation was over.
"...So, from now on, you're going to attack this field and bring me the gems that are hidden all around!
The gems are graded according to their color, and the less powerful gems you bring me, the better."
The gems were ranked in the following order: white < green < blue < purple < black.
Black has the highest score, and vice versa for white.
But… black gems are usually unavailable.
'Of course, I'm the only one who knows how to get the black gems here.'
Of course, there's a reason Vernon asks you to bring him gems with weak energies.
To test your ability to detect magic.
In short, the more talented you are, the more you can detect trace amounts of magic.
Not just the amount, but the ability to detect it.
This is very important to them.
'The test is new, but it's well structured.'
First, they look to see how well you can resist [forced transference] magic.
Then, naturally, the magic stat, or aptitude, is weighed lightly.
Next, we have them find a gem that has a small amount of magic in it.
In the process, they'll be able to test their strength by battling demons, and the more they can get their hands on gems with minor energies, the more they can explore their innate sensitivity.
Despite her youthful appearance, Noah is an undeniable genius. As a teacher, she was quite the unit.
…except for the way she talks.
Vernon continued with his final explanation.
"There is one caveat, however. You are free to team up."
I'll give you the same amount of points whether you attack as a team or as an individual to retrieve the gems, so team up and get moving if you want. The time limit is ten hours. Maximum team size is eight."
Ten hours. You might think that's a lot of time, but not when you consider the demons that lurk within.
Of course, I've already mapped it all out.
After Vernon's final explanation and instructions.
The prospective students around me slowly began to gather, glancing at each other.
Familiar faces, sometimes older ones.
Then commoners, then nobles.
They huddled together.
I smiled quietly and began to walk away, disappearing into the woods.
Why?
Because I intend to attack this forest alone.
Only then will I be able to catch the eye of the Chairman, Noah, and get my hands on the [Scroll of Skill Enhancement].
It's also something I need right now.
Genius Hour.
It's an artifact that can extend the duration of my core skills.
'I'll get it somehow.
With that, I quickly disappeared into the forest.
Hoping no one saw me.