The test proctor from earlier approached me hurriedly and cast two circles to scan the materials on the ground. When he was satisfied he nodded at another proctor who had rushed over with him. That person then ran off, probably to verify any magic I cast.
"Princess Marisilea Arkesh, will you please demonstrate the circles you used without casting them."
I complied as any hesitation here could lead to suspicions. The Professors would know the truth but any student that already had doubts would believe what they wanted. My smallest behaviors could be taken as an acknowledgement of their bias.
I formed the circles without releasing the cast, allowing them to float in front of me so the proctor could analyze them.
"This is an enhancement to your… muscles, bones, and joints? Why all three? And is the final grouping a healing circle targeted at these specific areas as well?"
"The stress of enhanced muscles on the joints and bones can be severe, possibly leading to small fractures on the bones or a joint being pulled from the socket. The healing circle is also designed to heal any internal injuries as the sudden release of pressure beyond a body's capabilities could affect them."
The professor nodded with a thoughtful look.
"When the other proctor returns with the verification that you did not cheat you will complete your actions again."
The other proctor was already making their way up to us as he was speaking. After their exchange I was handed a real rapier with what appeared to be circles for preventing the flow of magic into the blade. A couple of people also brought up another dummy with magical detection circles embedded into it.
"Approach your new target and perform your strike."
The weight of this new rapier was just right and it was more of what I was used to ever since I had started training with the knights. Having to swing around a practice blade had me a little off balance though so I had to adjust to it for a moment. When I was ready I approached the new dummy and took my stance for a thrust. Because of the weight and strength of this new blade I decided to strike at center mass. This might lessen the impact at least.
Meditating, forming the circles, and then striking I felt much better using this sword. And after completing the strike I didn't feel the vibrations indicative of breaking my blade.
The sound and following pressure from the strike, however, managed to create a bigger mess than I had anticipated. I apparently strengthened my body enough to create pressure from my forward momentum. This resulted in more than just my blade piercing the dummy in center mass. The center had a hole in it, and the foundation that was holding it in place was bent away from me. Debris from this had flown outwards and towards some of the people watching behind the practice area.
A proctor nearby had erected a barricade in enough time to prevent anyone from being hurt but a few of the examinees had covered their ears from the noise.
Clapping was then heard from the woman who had led this test.
"I can proudly say that the Princess of Arkesh has exceeded any expectations and did not cheat. I will repeat again; if you wish to challenge her because you believe that this is a fluke or some underhanded method you may attempt it in the afternoon. As for now I will ask that anyone that hasn't finished please do so."
I walked out to the whispers of my incredulous audience.
_________________________
I returned to my family in the stands to await the final event. Since the testing was finished and the next part wasn't important for admittance I was a lot more relaxed. Noah had arrived at some point during the morning so he kept me quite busy.
"Your performance was enough here to place you highest in this portion of the exam."
"I believe so father. I don't think anyone in the groupings will be able to compete with my abilities. Though a few people might do better with the first portion."
"Strength wise probably, but your accuracy and form were nearly perfect and the target you chose was a difficult one. It's not just power they're testing here. I saw maybe one or two people that might be able to get close to your skill but not match or exceed it."
"Your appraisal of my abilities is too high father."
"And your appraisal is too humble Marisilea."
"I don't know what appraisal means sister but I think you're awesome! When your sword went 'BOOM!' and the dummy flew to pieces it was amazing!"
"Thank you Noah. I'm happy you think so much of me."
The rest of our wait was in silence as I watched the final moments of the test tick by. The remainder of the examinees weren't bad but I didn't see anyone that stood out.
When everything had settled a number of staff came to retrieve the dummies and clean up the area around the ten outlined fields. Then the lady from earlier came out wheeling a large board that had names written down and the respective scores. My father motioned for me to check my results so I descended the stairs and approached the crowd gathered around.
There were about four hundred names total with our scores for each portion and the class we would be in after each one. I scanned the list and found my name at the top. I was first with the highest score in all three brackets. The person in second only scored close to me in the written portion. As a matter of fact no one's score in the second and third portion of the tests was even close to mine.
The crowd began to thin out as the ones that couldn't find their name on the list dejectedly left. Some people tried to protest, especially a few nobles, but most just left silently.
When only the people who passed remained the woman began to address us again.
"I am the headmistress of the Academy; you may call me Mrs. Lomaunt unless we are close. As I said before, if you are dissatisfied with the results you may challenge anyone above you in the rankings. There are a few rules that must be abided by. The first is that a person may only be challenged ten times before their position becomes permanently fixed and no one may challenge them again. This means you should talk amongst yourselves to determine who will step forward. You will also only be allowed to challenge anyone three times, so choose who you challenge carefully."
She has to be aware that everyone is going to disagree about this, especially for coveted positions in the higher classes. I'm sure this is on purpose.
"The second rule is that there will be no fighting outside of the arenas or you will incur a penalty. What that is will be left a mystery until someone is brave enough to want to know."
At this point she gave everyone a look of challenge that brooked no arguments on the matter.
"The third rule is that you may challenge the individual in only two ways. A duel with weapons and no circles, or a duel with both weapons and circles. Both participants will follow the standard rules for a duel. Three strikes and you win. You may be disarmed only once and be given the opportunity to pick up your weapon to continue. Any disarmament after that will be counted as an automatic loss no matter how many times you've been hit. If you win a duel with no circles you will move up but your opponent will not move down. If you win a duel with everything then both parties will move in rankings.
"The fourth rule is what I stated earlier. Each duel will be carried out fairly and no argument about cheating directed towards the Academy will be tolerated. You will be given one chance to recount any statement saying so before you are tossed out and banned. Are there any questions on this?"
No one spoke up at this point. I'm sure a few people felt this rule was ridiculous but nobody wanted to argue with the Headmistress.
Unsurprisingly things devolved into chaos as groups began to form around the students that were ranked higher. The largest group had formed in front of me and their discussions were becoming heated. I could hear shouting about who was stronger or how it didn't matter because I probably cheated. I glanced at my father and saw him actually expressing anger. I think a few of the families of the nobles who were more vocal were going to face some problems later.
Eventually someone walked arrogantly up to me. It was the boy who had demonstrated the most complex circle from the second test that I saw and who had scored fifth overall. I believe he was scored second in the circle segment but his scores in the first and third portions brought his results down a bit.
"I challenge the Young Princess of Arkesh to a duel for your position of first place. It will be with both weapons and circles if you accept."
The way he said Princess with disdain made it clear that he didn't see my position in my family as important. I guess he was an idiot when it came to social cues or he would have recognized the way my family treated me. Well, the way they treated me now.
"Normally when one wants to initiate a duel they start by introducing themselves. I guess your family lacked a qualified etiquette teacher to impress upon you the basics. If the Young Master would like to introduce himself I will kindly accept your duel."
I took a very shallow curtsy to indicate my status and allowed him time to respond. My insult should be veiled enough to not be impolite but obvious enough that the boy could catch it. Judging by his expression and the red color in his cheeks I'm guessing I succeeded.
"I am the Young Master of Count Graften, Erik Graften. You will do well to remember my name once I take your place."
He gave a bow that was too shallow for my rank and then headed toward a proctor to request a field for our duel. I approached my father to retrieve my gloves and speak to him briefly about things.
"That was Count Graften's first son correct?"
"Yes father."
"I will remember his name even if it's not important that you do."
I departed when my name was called to start my first duel.
I took my place at the center after I had picked out a rapier and a parrying dagger. We were all still wearing our training clothes from earlier so all I had to do was stand at the ready.
Erik approached me and did the same rude bow he did before, and then took a ready stance with a longsword.
At the start of the match he tested my strength by simply attacking with his sword. His movements were incredibly sloppy and his form constantly showed gaps in his attacks and defense. I easily maneuvered around him while responding in kind by not using any circles yet.
When he had gotten frustrated at his inability to win with just his blade he started activating a few circles to boost his strength and attack with a few elements. Well, he attempted to. About half of his circles simply fizzled out before he could activate them and his attempt at strengthening himself was miserable. I cast a few simple circles of my own to counter his successful attacking circles and then boosted my own strength and speed to charge in. The circles I used this time were much simpler and only gave me a smaller advantage. There was still a massive gap between us though.
My strength and speed was enough to prevent him from being seriously injured but he couldn't react in time. Instead of a piercing attack, which would probably cripple or kill him, I decided to swing with the flat of my blade into his side. I heard the blade crack as his cuirass absorbed a good portion of the blow. He was still thrown to the side and bounced a few times before landing outside our defined arena.
"Winner, Princess Arkesh."
I could see him breathing and I heard a groan coming from where he landed so I decided to just ignore him. My hope was that less people would challenge me if I showed enough force with my first match. I'd apologize to Erik for letting him be a sacrifice but I really didn't care for him.
My first instinct proved to be the correct one as most of the crowd that had initially crowded around me dispersed. The few that remained were mostly the commoners that showed promise during the final portion of the exam. There was still a few nobles though.
I did manage to win all ten fights despite being exhausted by the end. The first fights after Erik were simply done with weapons only. I expect that some of them thought that any disparity in our skills could be overcome with their strength as they were all men. One of the nobles after that was a girl who had some skill with the blade but her circles were lacking. I went easy on her and simply disarmed her twice. The last challenger proved they were sly by trying to take advantage of my exhaustion and only challenged me to a weapons duel. They were easily embarrassed as I struck them quickly in succession, wanting to end these duels and rest.
The results for me were final now and I only had to wait for a month to receive my admission letter.
My father stayed behind for a bit to speak to the Headmistress. I also saw some of our knights approaching a few people left in the crowd. Count Graften's son had a pale face as two knights approached him. They handed him a letter and then walked back to where we were getting ready to leave.
"You'll be sixteen in less than a week Mari, is there anything you'd like?"
"No mother, I think I'll be fine."
"Is sister going to be an adult now?"
"I'll technically be an adult Noah but I still have to stay at home when I'm not in the Academy."
"How long will you be gone? Will you come home sometimes?"
"I have to stay for three years but there will be plenty of breaks and I can come see you then or you can come up to our estate here."
"I'll visit every chance I get!"
He leaned into whisper to me in a not so quiet manner.
"Can sister ask for me to come sometimes so I can get out of lessons?"
"Noah you will still have to attend your lessons as we'll have your tutor join us."
"Mom! You're not supposed to listen to secrets!"
I'll have to make sure I make the most of the next month with Noah.