Chapter 98

The Marquess Family's Magical Genius - Chapter 99 (98/324)

99

Trasden Manor.

The eyes of the manor's residents were filled with excitement.

This was due to the official notice that had been posted throughout the manor not long ago.

The content was simple.

It announced that the Knight Trainee Examination, originally scheduled for July, would be moved up by about a month.

If the notice had ended there, the residents probably wouldn't have paid much attention.

However.

There was an additional piece of information in this notice.

It stated that ordinary people could also be selected as Knight Trainee candidates after passing a simple examination.

The examination content was incredibly simple.

It involved hitting a straw dummy with a wooden sword.

At first, they couldn't believe it.

The process of selecting Knight Trainees usually required a sparring match.

They knew that one had to defeat a certain number of opponents to become a formal Knight Trainee!

To think that the examination would be this easy?

Wasn't this a test that anyone could pass?

As the residents, who were skeptical while reading the notice, continued to read the content below, they found detailed information about the "candidates."

Upon reading, they learned that these candidates were not formal Knight Trainees.

However, there was a very tempting statement.

It said that after undergoing a certain period of training by the Marquess Family, those with potential would be selected as formal Knight Trainees.

Moreover, it was also mentioned that some would be selected as Centurions and Decurions, even if they didn't become Knight Trainees.

"Decurions and Centurions..."

The Marquess Family of Celta.

Even if they were ignorant, they knew that the treatment of soldiers was very good. At the very least, if one became a soldier of the Marquess Family, they wouldn't go hungry.

This was why a high percentage of the residents' occupations were soldiers.

Naturally, they also knew very well what kind of treatment Decurions and Centurions received.

It was a much more promising profession than a typical farmer. Thus, in front of the posted notice, the residents were waiting one by one.

The residents, who had been examining the notice and the knights, cautiously asked a question.

"Um... Sir Knight. Is... is the content written here true?"

"It's true."

"Really, just hitting a straw dummy with a wooden sword?"

"...Yes."

With the knight's answer, the residents began to murmur.

"Is... is this really true?"

"Wow! Since the knight answered, it must be true!"

"If it's just hitting a straw dummy, we can do it too, right?"

"Even if it's not a Knight Trainee... if I can become a Decurion..."

The age and skill requirements were non-existent.

A strange excitement rose in the eyes of the residents.

On the day of the long-awaited examination.

In front of the Marquess Family's castle gate, a large number of people were already gathered.

* * * * *

Training Ground 5.

There, 50 straw dummies were lined up in a row. The examination was designed to test 50 people at a time to quickly rotate the participants.

On the platform in the training ground.

There, I was seated with three old knights.

"..."

Craft, Malon, Jacob.

The gazes of the three old knights were focused on me.

It seemed they were wondering why I was here.

Sure enough.

Malon, one of the three, looked at me and said,

"I didn't expect the Fourth Young Master to participate in the examination process..."

"The more judges, the better, right? Besides, I believe I have a good eye for talent. Please trust me once. The eldest brother has also approved of this."

With my confident words, the three old knights nodded hesitantly.

Ersiel and Seron.

I had discovered two outstanding talents, but they were only two.

So, they must have thought that their judgment was superior.

Moreover, since I was not a mage but was selecting knights, their hesitant looks were understandable.

Well, what mattered was not their gazes but the results.

"By the way, have the three of you decided how to screen the participants?"

"We have a rough idea. When 50 people come in for the examination, we plan to evaluate them quickly and compile the results. If any of us three approves, we'll consider them qualified."

Since this was a preliminary screening, they seemed to want to keep the process as simple as possible.

'This is similar to how an audition works.'

The only difference was whether or not a majority agreed.

"I see. Then, can I follow the same process as the three of you?"

In simpler terms, I was asking for a vote like the three of them.

"Hmm..."

"I understand your hesitation. I'm a mage, and my judgment hasn't been fully verified yet. But I hope you'll give me a chance to prove myself."

"A chance...?"

"It's simple. If I select someone who isn't chosen by the three of you, you can evaluate them during the training process."

"You're saying you'll take responsibility if they don't become Decurions, Centurions, or Knight Trainees?"

"Yes. If that happens, I won't suddenly participate like this again. Results speak for themselves."

"If you're that confident... I understand. We'll do it that way."

"Thank you."

Insight.

With this god-tier talent, I could catch even the talents the old knights might miss.

I intended to find as many gems as possible for the family in this examination.

I didn't just insert myself among these old knights for no reason.

After a moment, the residents started to gather at Training Ground 5.

'...How many people are there?'

Just the number I could see now was about 7,000. And that wasn't the end.

The line continued to grow.

The old knights were amazed.

"Can we finish this today?"

"Trasden Manor alone has this many... If people from the entire empire come..."

"Ugh..."

I smiled at the old knights.

"With so many people, there must be many gems among them."

The knights and soldiers guiding the residents started lining them up.

The number of residents in the training ground was approaching 10,000.

As the participants lined up, a knight approached the platform.

"Attention! We've brought some of the examination participants!"

"Some? You mean there are more?"

"...Yes. About 10,000 more are still waiting. And more participants are continuously arriving, so the number will likely increase."

"..."

The three old knights widened their eyes.

Not only were the current residents overwhelming, but another massive wave was expected!

The enthusiasm was much higher than expected.

Craft, who sighed, replied,

"We can't do it. We'll have to dismiss the remaining participants and ask them to come back tomorrow. It's impossible to evaluate 20,000 people in one day."

Craft was right.

Even though the judges were top-tier knights, they were still human and couldn't evaluate indefinitely.

It would take at least 10 hours to evaluate 10,000 people.

"Understood."

Craft then looked at me.

"Fourth Young Master."

"Yes."

"We're about to start the examination. Will the Fourth Young Master do the opening speech?"

"No, I won't."

There was no need to draw attention.

Besides, I was a sudden addition, so it was best to sit quietly and select participants.

"Understood."

Craft then climbed onto the platform and shouted loudly.

"The examination content is simple! You will be given a number and assigned to a group! Fifty people will be evaluated at a time! Be ready when called and come out quickly! With so many participants, being late means disqualification! Understand?"

"Yes!"

Wow.

The enthusiastic response from 10,000 residents was quite a sight.

Craft's voice, infused with aura, echoed throughout the training ground, reaching all 10,000 people.

"The evaluation will proceed very quickly! Come out, pick up a wooden sword, and hit the straw dummy! You'll be immediately qualified or disqualified! We will judge based on future potential, so there should be no objections to the results!"

"Understood!"

The residents responded enthusiastically to the old knight's words.

With the soldiers and knights watching, no one would dare object to the results.

"Group 1, enter now! Soldiers, prepare the next group quickly!"

Thus, 50 residents from Group 1 stood in front of the straw dummies.

They picked up the wooden swords and started hitting the dummies.

Smack!

Most of them were a mess.

Even with Insight activated, the evaluation was the same.

But there were some promising candidates.

Craft, who had been observing the residents, looked at me and the two knights.

"None."

"None."

"Same here."

I have some.

"Number 8 and 45. I want to pass these two."

"..."

These two had the talent of a late bloomer.

They currently looked like ordinary farmers, but they would stand out more as training progressed.

'At least a Centurion.'

If they perform well, they might even become Knight Trainees.

The three knights, who were skeptical at first, eventually passed the two.

"Group 2, enter!"

"Numbers 3, 8, and 10 are qualified! The rest are disqualified!"

"Group 3!"

"Number 5 is qualified! The rest are all disqualified!"

"Group 4!"

"Numbers 7 and 34 are qualified! The rest are disqualified!"

The examination proceeded at an extremely fast pace.

* * * * *

As soon as the results of one group were announced, the next group waiting in line would enter.

Evaluating one group took about 4 minutes.

Even with 50 people, the process was quick because they were immediately disqualified if they didn't meet the criteria.

The evaluation time for one group was quite short.

The pass rate was roughly 1 in 30.

Without my help, it would have been 1 in 50.

This is quite something.

I've rescued many people from hell.

The evaluation had already lasted 10 hours.

I used mental cleansing to relieve fatigue and had meals here. It was necessary to evaluate 10,000 people in one day.

After barely finishing the evaluation of 10,000 people,

"Since it's late, it's best to end here for today. What do you think, Fourth Young Master?"

"Let's do that."

I and the three old knights, looking exhausted, finished the evaluation. Even a quick glance 10,000 times was mentally draining.

My mana was almost depleted from using Insight all day.

The effort was well worth it.

Originally, the number of qualified candidates wouldn't have exceeded 300.

But thanks to my evaluation, 100 additional candidates were qualified.

They were all at least capable of becoming Decurions.

Among those I selected, two had the potential to become mid-level knights or higher. This was a very good result.

Mid-level knights and above were treated as valuable forces.

'About 30 out of 100 might become Knight Trainees.'

The total number of qualified candidates was 350.

The talents of the candidates I selected were generally similar.

Most of them had the talent of a late bloomer, so their current appearance was mostly poor.

I made sure to select them without missing any.

The old knights' expressions would slightly frown each time, but they didn't openly oppose.

They had already promised to take responsibility for the results.

'Still, no one as talented as Seron.'

Such a talent wouldn't be easily found, so I needed to wait.

With 10,000 more people to evaluate, the possibility was still high.

Thus, the first day of the evaluation ended with about 300 qualified candidates.