"So today marks the start of the Live Examination, right? Man, all those mages and knights gathered in one place, using their abilities. I really wish I could watch," Celia exclaimed on the other side of the bathroom door. Ever since she learned what the Live Examination was about, she has been eager to see it for herself.
Magnus, stepping out of the bath and drying off before putting on his academy uniform, replied, "Oh, you'll live. The academy is just doing preliminary matches today anyway. Once the actual examination starts, you'll be able to sit with me and watch the real thing." From what Luden had explained during their meeting, Takerth Academy had over eight hundred first-year students alone.
Adding all the other years to that, the number quickly swelled to over four thousand.
Even if some of those students were already at the Adept level or higher and wouldn't be participating, there were still a hefty number qualifying for the live examination. That's why the preliminary matches would act as elimination rounds, reducing the number of participants significantly.
In the end, only the students who survive the weeding process will get to fight in front of everyone tomorrow. I can only imagine how many factions are going to be dismantled because of this.
With that thought in mind, Magnus left the bathroom, holding his mask in his hand. Spotting it, Celia said, "Oh right, you're going to be participating anonymously. Are you sure that's allowed?"
Magnus shrugged and replied, "Not sure yet. I'll have to see when I get there."
Hearing his laid-back response as he prepared to leave, Celia couldn't help but comment, "You know, I'm actually surprised at how casual you're being about this. I thought you would be at least a little nervous. You're going to be up against knights and mages from across the entire region. you know? Aren't you even a little worried?"
Pausing for a moment to consider her question, Magnus replied, "Hmm, if I'm being honest, nope, not really."
With that, he headed out the door, leaving Celia utterly confused.
Since when did Mr. Paranoia get so confident?
Magnus, on the other hand, didn't think there was anything unusual about his behavior as he made his way to the Academy Arena. Since he had left a little later than the other students, the dorm building—and most of the dorm area, for that matter—was almost entirely empty.
The only people left were those who were late, like Magnus, or those at the Adept level who had no reason to leave. As he walked past the reception desk in the dorm building's lobby, Vira, the receptionist Magnus had first met when he arrived and who had assigned him his room, waved goodbye as he left through the building entrance.
"I wish you luck during the Live Examination." Hearing that, Magnus couldn't tell if she could recognize him behind the mask or not, so he simply nodded, sticking to his persona as Cain.
When he arrived at the Academy Arena, more and more students started appearing in Magnus's view. Just like him, they were wearing either their Mage Division uniforms or Knight Division uniforms. However, unlike him, their hands weren't empty.
Some of them were carrying what looked like staffs, wands, or other magical artifices, while others were carrying actual weapons instead of the wooden replicas they used in practice.
Oh right, Luden did mention that students were free to use items as long as they weren't at the Adept level or higher.
Noting this, Magnus observed that while all the students were entering the arena through the usual four entrances, teachers were directing them through a side tunnel leading to the arena's interior.
Hmm, are the preliminary matches not being held in the main arena? I guess that makes sense; otherwise, there wouldn't be much incentive to be seen.
Following the crowd, Magnus eventually entered the tunnel himself. He noticed several branching paths, some leading to stairs for spectators to find their seats. However, the path the students were being directed toward led downward, beneath the arena itself. At the bottom of the stairs, Magnus was surprised to see a long registration desk.
The desk was built against a large stone wall that acted as a separator and created a sort of holding room, lit up brightly by the lights attached to the ceiling. Although the entire underground area was mostly stone with red carpet laid down, it still held up to the academy's standards, with not a single brick being out of place or overcut.
There were murals carved into the walls, displaying imagery of both mages and knights. Some were shown engaging in battle, wielding their blades, or casting magic against humans or giant beasts. Others appeared to be in the midst of making a discovery. Magnus could only guess that they depicted famous figures.
Refocusing on the desk, Magnus noticed ten double doors on each side, leading to the next area. Behind the desk, there were over forty different organizers, all resembling Vira and the other receptionist from the dorm building.
The only main difference was that their uniforms followed a more grey color scheme, matching the atmosphere of the area.
"Welcome to the Underground Academy Arena. If you could hold out your Sigilbrand, I'll process your information and match you with your opponent." The organizer's words greeted Magnus as he approached the desk. Despite still reeling from the realization that all the organizers looked the same, Magnus complied and held out his hand.
This definitely goes way beyond being multiplets; there must be some genetic magic crap going on or something.
Just like at the dorm building, there was a device attached to the desk that scanned Magnus's Sigilbrand before producing a small card somewhere out of view.
"Here you go. Please make your way to the designated stage as quickly as possible. Your opponent should already be waiting for you. Once you're done, you can come back here for your next match, though you're free to schedule it anytime today or tomorrow," the organizer said, handing Magnus his card. Taking it, Magnus remembered to ask the question Celia had brought up before he left.
"Will there be any issue with my mask or me hiding my identity?"
The organizer shook her head and responded, "Of course not. The staff can automatically tell which student is which through your Sigilbrands, so you're free to hide your identity if you wish." Essentially, only the academy staff needed to know the students' identities for evaluations.
Whether or not other students could tell who was who was none of their concern, and students were allowed to use false names if they wanted to.
"I see." Seeing there was no issue, Magnus left the line as the student behind him took his place and had his Sigilbrand scanned as well. Making his way through one of the double doors to the right of the desk, Magnus entered the main area of the Underground Academy Arena and was taken aback.
The main area of the Underground Academy Arena was built on an incline, despite being underground. It reminded Magnus of rice terraces in the way it was layered. Where he was standing now was the topmost platform of the incline, and on that platform, there were multiple staircases that cut downward, leading to lower platform layers.
Whoa, there must be hundreds of stages down here. It might even cover more ground than the Academy Arena on the surface.
From his vantage point, Magnus could see dozens of square stone stages on each layer. Each stage had a numbered plaque and appeared to be engraved with special runes.
As Magnus descended one of the stairs, he noticed the runes created an opaque barrier around each stage whenever two students stepped inside. After their fight, the barrier would automatically come down, allowing the students to leave.
It looks like they're preventing students from observing each other's matches and planning ahead.
Reading each plaque as he made his way down, Magnus eventually found where he was supposed to be, which was Stage #239.
Waiting by the plaque next to the stage, Magnus saw a girl who seemed to be a year or two older than him and nearly as tall. She held a wooden staff that looked almost luminescent, carrying a soft blue hue. At the top of the staff, the wood branched, wrapping around a deep blue mana catalyst that was shaped into an orb, matching its wielder's long, midnight blue hair.
"Are you the one I'll be facing off against?" she asked as Magnus approached the stage. He simply nodded, prompting her to introduce herself.
"I see. My name is Velis Mestor."
"Cain," Magnus responded, causing Velis's eyes to narrow.
Oh, so that's why his mask reminded me of something. So he's Cain? There have been rumors saying he defeated two Apprentice-level knights on his own in a sparring match. I don't really buy into that, but I should probably be on guard anyhow; he is a member of Luden Rilhawk's Faction.
As these thoughts ran through her mind, Velis said, "I've heard a lot about you, though it's hard to know what's true with all the rumors. It'll be interesting to see if you live up to the fame."
With that, Velis turned and made her way to the stage, her words causing Magnus to think to himself.
Luden really didn't hold back on spreading Cain's name around, huh?
Following Velis, they climbed the stone stairs on opposite sides of the stage and took their positions. A few moments later, the runes on the stage began to shine, and a pure white barrier, in the shape of a rectangle, cut off their vision from the rest of the world.
[The match will begin in 5… 4…]
A magically synthesized voice echoed around the stage as Velis tightened her grip on her staff. She was surprised to see her opponent wasn't preparing anything.
Is he not going to use a magical artifice? Is it because he doesn't have one, or because he doesn't think he needs to use one against me? Well, either way, it's to my advantage.
[3… 2… 1… Begin!]
As soon as the match started, Velis lifted her staff and shouted, "Apprentice Class Elementrix, Hydro Orb!"
A soft blue light gathered at the tip of her staff, turning from mana into actual water—a remarkable transformation.
The water orb, nearly the size of a human head, shot forward as soon as it formed, zooming through the air like an arrow and leaving a trail of droplets behind until it hit the ground a few meters from Magnus. On impact, it exploded into steam, spreading in all directions.
Hmm, she's using incantations. Not only that, but she tweaked the hydro orb's temperature upon impact to create a smoke screen for cover, clever.
If one were to think of mana formations as machines and mana as the electricity powering them, then incantations could be likened to an automated factory. Rather than manually constructing a mana formation in their mindscape every time they cast a spell, mages instead relied on their incantations. These phrases automated the mental process of forming a mana formation, linking specific steps of the mana formation's creation process to a set of words. This not only speeds up spellcasting but also proves pretty useful in stressful situations where a mage may not be able to fully focus or think properly.
Of course, the downside was that, by using incantations, mages essentially telegraphed their moves, which enemy mages could exploit. However, on a stage no larger than two hundred square meters, the steam created by Velis concealed not only her position but also the spells she was casting.
As the smoke screen billowed, Magnus saw six hydro orbs shoot out from Velis's steam wall, all aimed directly at him. Yet, Magnus didn't move; in fact, he hadn't moved an inch since the match began.
[Arcane Matrix]
As the name of an ability echoed in Magnus's mind, something began to take shape within his Mindscape, a space that could simulate the magic of reality. In what felt like an instant, the image of a semi-circular magical barrier appeared within that space, and like a reflection, mana in the real world materialized out of thin air, gathering to form that exact same barrier around Magnus.
All six hydro orbs slammed into the barrier with enough force to crack a small boulder before erupting into a deluge of water. Simultaneously, Velis's steam screen began to dissipate, revealing her once more. Her deep blue eyes and staff were fixed on the spot where her attacks had landed.
The runes around the stage haven't deactivated, meaning he's not out yet.
As the water explosions subsided, showering the stage, Velis caught sight of the dark shield made of mana.
"What? He blocked all six with a single barrier?" Velis exclaimed. She understood the potency of her hydro orbs and could tell at a glance that Magnus's barrier spell was at the Apprentice level, a spell even she could replicate. There was no way the barrier should have withstood all her attacks unless it had been heavily modified.
Did he simply pour more mana into it, or is his mana control just that advanced? Whatever the case, it doesn't matter! I just need to hit him with something heavier!
"Apprentice Class Elementrix!" Velis shouted, her staff spinning in her hand as the mana catalyst inside began to glow brightly.
Four tightly condensed spheres of water formed around Velis, each equidistant from the others. Each sphere was infused with mana, compressing the water even further.
"Wave Cutter!"
As soon as she finished the incantation, the pressure built up in each sphere was unleashed like a water jet. Unlike the hydro orbs, which moved as fast as arrows, each water jet sliced through the air at half the speed of sound—so fast that even an Apprentice-level knight would struggle to dodge.
But, just as before, Magnus stood still. A barrier, twice as large as the one he had created earlier, appeared four meters ahead of him, ready to intercept all four water jets.
"That won't work this time," Velis said, as all four water jets aimed at the same point, striking the barrier with enough force to crack it instantly, generating a canopy of water. It was clear that the barrier wouldn't last even a few more seconds, yet still, Magnus didn't take the chance to step out of the way.
Instead, he raised his hand and snapped his fingers, causing Velis's eyes to widen. Without any incantation, another barrier started forming behind the one she was piercing, then another, and another. Layer upon layer, she watched as what had to be twenty barriers formed between Magnus and her attack.
As the Wave Cutter Spell pierced through the first barrier he had created, it struck the second, though with slightly less power.
"But... how? How did he...?" Velis stammered. Just breaking through one of those barriers required one of her most powerful spells, yet the masked figure in front of her had created nineteen more with a snap of his fingers. Even though her attack was powerful, it depended on how much mana she poured into it and how much she compressed the four water spheres.
Could she keep her attack up long enough to break through all those barriers? Of course not. It wasn't even a question.
So she was forced to cancel the spell, dispersing the four water spheres as the jets lost their force almost instantly. The two figures simply stared at one another; one hadn't moved since the match began, while the other had launched two attacks, each of which was blocked.
At this point, Velis was completely at a loss for what to do. As the various barriers her opponent had created dissipated, she heard him speak.
"Your elementrix spells are pretty interesting to observe. Up to this point, I have only seen uncategorized mana-based spells, so this was very enlightening. Thank you." Magnus said those words with complete sincerity. Most uncategorized spells didn't require much specialization to learn; they were just solid mana constructs.
Having only learned uncategorized spells until now, he never imagined that mana itself could be directly transmuted into elements like water; the idea opened his mind to new possibilities. Still, as sincere as he was, Velis couldn't help but feel irritated as he spoke.
"Are you mocking me? Is that why you haven't attacked me yet? Do you think this is a game?" She had, of course, noticed that Magnus, or Cain, hadn't even launched a single spell in her direction. At first, she thought it was because he was simply a defensive mage, but now she took it as an insult.
In response to her reaction, Magnus just shook his head.
"No, but I do think you should surrender. You can't beat me." Stating this as a simple fact, Magnus held up a finger in front of his mask. At first, Velis was confused, but she immediately went on guard when she saw mana beginning to shift into water and condense at the tip of his finger.
"The Hydro Orb Spell?" Although surprised he could cast the same magic as her, Velis quickly prepared to cast a defensive spell. But as she continued to watch Magnus carefully, her attempt at creating a defense stopped. Slowly, her arms fell to her sides, and any attempt at preparation vanished; even her eyes, which had been fierce a moment ago, looked on blankly.
Covering the entire side of the stage where Magnus was standing, Velis watched as multiple hydro orbs formed in the air around him. Distance didn't seem to matter as they began to fill the space around her opponent.
Ten… twenty… thirty… there must be over sixty of them. How could an Apprentice-level mage cast the Hydro Orb Spell sixty times without an incantation?
Velis couldn't make sense of it, and neither would anyone else, because this was a privilege reserved for Magnus, one he had earned when he completed the Magic Simulation Space a couple of days ago. It was why he was so unconcerned about the Live Examination when Celia mentioned it and felt confident enough to take on all of Velis's spells.
In fact, the only reason he hadn't attacked Velis right away was because he wanted to observe how her elementrix spells formed. Once he had seen it enough, all he had to do was replicate them using the Magic Simulation Space and execute the visualization. As for how many times he could execute it, that was up to him.
He was not a mage; as such, he did not adhere to their system. It was like comparing a computer to a typewriter. Once properly coded or given the right accessory, the computer could do everything the typewriter could and more.
If one Apprentice-level mana shield wasn't enough, he could just make ten. If ten wasn't enough, he could make fifty or even a hundred. If pure quantity wasn't enough, he could enhance all hundred mana shields to increase their defensive capabilities. If that still wasn't enough, he could just watch a Master-level mage make a barrier and copy that a hundred times over.
His only limit was his mind, and the mind was infinite.