Chapter 9

9. Entrance Exam (6)

The children nodded in agreement with his opinion.

But Elester only smiled faintly.

"Well, then, are there any other students who broke the maze besides those two?"

"......"

There was no answer.

It was only natural. No one else had done it except for us.

"Why didn't you do it? The door to the second exam room is huge, so it would have been visible from about halfway through the maze. Why did you go through all the trouble of circling around the entire maze?"

"T, that's......"

"Let's be honest. You didn't think of it, did you?"

The maze is usually made of hard materials like stone or rock.

So, seeing a maze made of shrubs, it's not easy to think of breaking it.

"Rigid thinking is dangerous. It confines you to your limits."

Elester's perfect logic.

The child who asked the question bowed deeply.

"Who asked the question?"

"It's me."

"Disparaging someone's effort as brute force is not good. But asking questions courageously is very good. I hope you get admitted."

"T, thank you. I will definitely pass!"

The child's expression brightened instantly.

But there were still quite a few children who were dissatisfied.

Elester, aware of this, continued.

"The first exam has just ended. If you lack the skills, you will fail this exam and the next one. Isn't that right?"

"B, but......"

"Surely you're not so lacking in skills that you would be outdone by someone who barely passed the first exam? If so, it might be better to give up now."

"......"

Only then did all the children fall silent.

They all agreed. Or rather, they had no choice but to agree.

Elester's words were extremely logical.

'He's even more impressive in person.'

Actually, breaking through the shrubs to pass the first exam is a hidden path that is rarely used.

This is because there is no special reward for it.

If anything, Elester's dialogue is a bit longer?

But I often used this route. Why?

Because he is the teacher I liked the most in the game, and.

'Because he is the teacher I liked the most in the game.'

The reason can be seen from what just happened.

He is gentle, rational, and gives time for reflection even while scolding.

But he is merciless to arrogant children who don't know their place.

'This might sound a bit strange, but...... he's a really cool old man.'

If all the teachers in Korea, including my school teachers, were like him, it would be great.

When I was enjoying looking at Elester's face, which only has one illustration in the game.

'Hmm?'

Why did he suddenly have such a dazed expression? And why was he looking at me......

Only then did I come to my senses.

The second exam event. 'Illusion Magic.'

It had started. Or rather, it had been going on for a while.

"Ugh......!"

"Grunt!"

"Oh, oh, don't come here!"

The exam started suddenly without any signal.

Everyone, including Luna, was in pain.

Except for one person.

Me.

"......"

"......"

In other words, I was not affected by the illusion.

So, I didn't need to prepare for the second exam. Or rather, I was trying to......

'Time my acting......'

I missed the timing while admiring the game character.

But I need to do it now, even if it's a bit late.

"Grunt! My head......!"

But no one responded. Instead, their gazes became even stranger.

Not only Elester, but the instructors surrounding us looked at me the same way.

It seems they all know. This guy is.

Acting.

"......Huh."

Elester came down from the podium and approached me as if gliding.

He reached me in the blink of an eye.

"Acting is good to a certain extent. But, there's no need to."

"Uh-huh......"

The sound wasn't mine. It was Luna's.

She started to cry while lying down.

The other children were in a similar state.

In fact, Elester used a stronger magic than usual for some reason.

Given this situation......

"......Huh, you're doing such a nasty thing so casually. As expected of the empire's top academy."

A somewhat provocative line that sounds like a taunt.

As if to prove it, the instructors frowned slightly.

But it's correct.

'Elester likes confident children.'

Not only that, he likes skilled people even more.

He says they are the pillars who will lead the empire's future.

So, this line is correct.

"......You seem to have had a tough life."

"Huh, with eyes like this, I couldn't help it."

"Maybe so. But I think...... the problem is that you're grinning."

"Is that so? I'll try to correct it."

If it were possible.

What can you do with a character made like this?

I've been smiling since I was born... or rather, since I was created!

"What's your name?"

"Zero."

"Huh, a good name. I'll remember it. This batch has a lot of remarkable children."

Elester floated in the air and gently landed on the podium.

The children started to come to their senses from then on.

"What, what is this......"

"Was it illusion magic?"

"I brought a defensive artifact, but why...... No, no. Cough."

But not everyone had woken up.

After a little time, when Elester gestured, the waiting instructors carried away the unconscious children one by one.

They failed. In the second exam.

Dazed.

Luna survived. But she was still not in her right mind.

"Are you okay?"

"......Don't touch my body. I'll bite you to death."

She became even more irritable than before.

She must have experienced a terrible illusion... or rather, a terrible past.

"Huh, many of you survived. Well done. When we meet next, you will be students, not examinees. Let's meet again with a smile."

The children cheered and chanted Elester's name.

The second exam ended like that.

* * *

"Huh, I can't believe it."

Elester muttered.

The magic he cast was a high-level spell that stimulates trauma.

Since some of the children seemed to have prepared in advance, he infused more power than usual.

It was a spell that students at their level couldn't break.

For reference, the rules of the second exam are as follows:

Cancel the magic 5 minutes after casting.

Score based on the order of waking up from then on.

Fainting means disqualification.

'But that child......'

A child with closed eyes, whose pupils couldn't be seen.

He couldn't have been unaffected by the illusion magic. So......

'Did he break it and come out? My magic?'

Moreover, he was still pretending to be affected by the magic.

A long smile formed on Elester's lips.

A very interesting chick had just arrived.

"3rd... no, secret exam overseer, Sir Caron. Tell him to watch closely. He's a student to keep an eye on."

"Yes!"

A student who needs special attention, whether positively or negatively.

He knew well the portraits and legends of the beings who once dyed the continent in despair, fear, and screams.

So, he approached cautiously and used magic secretly.

When he scanned with magic, Zero didn't have any artifact that could block illusion magic.

'So, he must have seen, experienced, and felt things more terrifying than what the illusion magic could show......'

Elester knew exactly what that was.

'Reality.'

Illusion is ultimately a world of lies. It can never surpass reality.

"Does he have a past so terrible that he could immediately recognize an illusion? Or could it be......"

A more skilled person than a 9th Circle Great Mage like himself?

When he thought that far, Elester couldn't help but chuckle.

"No way."

The scan results showed that he was a boy of 15, no doubt.

At that age, he couldn't be stronger than himself.

Experience, the weight of time, is not something easily overcome.

"Sir... Elester. How should we score this student?"

There was no scoring rule for 'breaking the illusion magic on one's own.'

There couldn't have been. They didn't think such a thing would happen.

The instructor swallowed.

Elester, the Great Mage, is rational and gentle but strict about rules.

But if he adheres to the rules, he will lose a talent like Zero.

For the pillar of the empire, admitting his own mistake is not an easy task.

So, he was gauging the situation.

"Scoring... I see."

Elester decided to humbly admit his mistake.

Even a Great Mage is a human being.

He's just a 9th Circle. Compared to a dragon, he's far inferior.

'I can't fail that child because of my mistake.'

At an age closer to the earth than the sky.

Learning from a child at this age and discovering another truth.

Elester thought coming to the academy was a good decision, beyond his original duties.

How to score Zero? Of course.

"Full marks."

* * *

"Kill... kill them all..."

On the way to the third exam venue.

Our Luna is not in good shape. Quite a lot.

"Miss... Luna?"

"Do you want to die?"

"No. Please continue what you were doing."

Muttering.

It's too scary. Is she trying to summon a demon or something?

It's a terrifying thing for a pitiful and innocent person like me.

'But the other children are in bad shape too.'

The Slime Maze and the Illusion Magic exam.

The gap in difficulty was like the difference between heaven and earth.

If the second exam is this tough, how tough will the third exam be?

The children's expressions couldn't be good.

'The third exam will be tough too. Well, I plan to ride on Luna, so it doesn't matter to me.'

So, now is the time to match Luna's mood.

"Miss Luna, look over there. Isn't the sky beautiful?"

"Get lost before I send you there."

Oh, how terrifying.

I decided to just be quiet.

With this level of combat power, I should pass the third exam safely.

"Oh, look. There are the instructors. We must have arrived."

"Ugh... already at the third exam venue? It will be even harder and more difficult than the second exam, right?"

"Wait... that's...!"

A faint moan escaped the children's mouths.

They could see at a glance what the third exam was.

A square-shaped arena. This means......

'Only a duel.'

That's right. The third exam was a duel.

A free-for-all fight until the last person standing, disguised as a duel.

When the children lined up on one side following the instructor's guidance.

"Nice to meet you, I'm the third exam instructor, Caron."

He appeared.

The character I disliked the most in this game.