“Student 77, please use your strongest magic to attack the target ahead. You have a total of three attempts. Your performance will ultimately determine the class you are assigned to.”
The instructor at the first testing station explained the rules to Shulim.
“Whenever you are ready, you may begin!”
Following the instructor's command, Shulim extended her wand and aimed at the target twenty meters away.
The previous students had all used Second-Tier magic. Although she didn't know if anyone who could cast Third-Tier magic would appear later, Shulim at least had no desire to stand out. Especially since a heavy hitter like the empire's Ninth Princess was enrolling this year, standing out too much might invite unwanted trouble.
“Using Second-Tier magic should be enough...”
However, there was no need to hold back on its power.
“【ᚷᚲᚠᛏᛗᛜᚢᚪᛖᛡᛞᚠᛟᛃᛜᛃᛏᚠᛞᚲᛜᚹᛚᛖᛗᛜᛖᛗᛃᛞᛋ】”
“Fireball—!”
The blazing fireball flew toward the target at an extreme speed, triggering a violent explosion the moment it struck.
After the explosion subsided, the target's surface was not only blackened by char but also covered in numerous cracks. Witnessing this scene, the nearby instructor froze.
How could a student's Fireball possess such power?
Not only this instructor, but many professors on the judging platform also stared blankly for a moment before bursting into a heated discussion.
However, with most people's attention currently focused on the Ninth Princess, not many noticed what was happening at this particular testing station.
“Two more times. Let's make this quick...”
“【ᚣᚠᛟᚪᛚᛜᚢᚪᛖᛡᛞᚠᛟᛃᛜᛣᛃᛗᛡᛃᚱיᚺᛜᛖᛋᚢהᛖᛜᛞᛈᛃᛡᛚᛖᛋ】”
“Flame Arrow!”
“Flame Arrow!”
She cast Flame Arrow twice in rapid succession. The first shot struck the target and blew a gaping hole right in the center, while the second shot directly blew the entire target to pieces.
“How is this possible?! That target is designed to withstand Third-Tier magic! It's already good if a normal Second-Tier spell leaves a scratch... but now, it's actually been blown to pieces?!”
The nearby instructor gaped in absolute shock.
“Instructor, may I leave now?”
“Ah—?! Oh... yes, yes, you can proceed to the next stage.”
The instructor only snapped out of it when Shulim spoke to prompt him.
Having received permission, Shulim walked toward the next testing station.
Behind her, the instructor looked with great distress at the target pieces scattered across the ground.
“These things are pretty expensive...”
The target used for testing was no ordinary object. It was a magic item capable of measuring the casting speed and precise offensive power of each spell. With this data, one could determine the current proficiency of the student's spells and, when combined with their age, assess the precise range of their talent.
Currently, the professors on the judging platform looked at the data fed back by the magic item and collectively fell silent. There were only two sets of data returned; they certainly wouldn't get a third, because the target was completely broken.
The professors exchanged glances with one another, then jointly wrote down Shulim's specific score—a score that was identical across all of them...
The second stage.
“【ᛋᚷᚺᛜᛈᚠᛞᛃᛡᚪᛚᛏᛗᚠᚺᛜᛖᛄᚠᚳᛜᛃᚾᚪ】”
“Reinforce!”
A white light flared on the surface of her body.
Sensing the trajectories of the incoming attacks flying toward her, Shulim stood her ground. Without taking a single step, she easily dodged them all.
Even when the speed of these attacks became faster and the angles grew increasingly tricky toward the end, Shulim merely accelerated her evasive maneuvers, her body still never shifting a single step from her original position.
“Beep—!”
Until the signal marking the end of the test rang, not a single attack had struck Shulim. In fact, her breathing remained perfectly steady.
“Excuse me, may I leave now?”
“Uh... o-of course you can...”
The instructor in charge of the assessment stared at Shulim's score displayed on the magic item, then looked up at Shulim, answering with a somewhat stiff smile.
It was the same for the scoring professors. Looking at the returned data, they fell into silence once again.
“【Student 77:
Times Hit: 0
Times Blocked: 0
Times Evaded: 300
Total Score: 100】”
...
After completing the assessment, Shulim did not linger and prepared to leave Practice Ground No. 1.
“Student!”
A few staff members were working near the exit. Spotting Shulim coming out, they immediately called out to her.
“Please come this way!”
Shulim walked over.
“You are Student Shulim Hayeral, correct? Please wait a moment, it will be ready shortly.”
Beep! Beep! Beep!
While the staff member was speaking, the magic item beside him was performing some process.
Soon, a student ID card engraved with Shulim's name and equipped with anti-counterfeiting measures was finished.
Handing the student ID to Shulim, the staff member smiled and said:
“Welcome, Student Shulim Hayeral! From now on, you are an official student of Manacos Academy! Please make sure to keep your ID safe. If lost, a replacement will cost ten thousand Cole.”
Due to the nature of the enrollment system, Manacos only officially registered a student's identity after they completed the entrance assessment. This was to ensure that unqualified individuals would not sneak in using false identities.
“Thank you, I understand!”
Shulim put away her student ID and expressed her gratitude.
“You're very welcome! Also, you can now move into the school dormitory. Your room has already been assigned, and the location is in this information packet.”
The staff member handed another packet of materials to Shulim.
“The dormitory administrator will provide you with the room key. The contents of this packet cover some general enrollment information about the academy. You can read through it when you get back, and try not to miss any important orientation events.”
“Thank you very much!”
Shulim put away the documents and left Practice Ground No. 1. Along the way, she checked the location of her dormitory.
It was a bit far, and her luggage was still at the inn.
“I should go back to the inn to check out first, then return to complete the move-in process.”
...
By the time Shulim checked out of her inn room and returned to Manacos with her luggage, it was already afternoon.
“Mhm, everything is in order. Student Shulim Hayeral, here is your room key.”
The dormitory administrator handed a key to Shulim.
Taking the key, Shulim felt a faint fluctuation of mana from it.
Even the dormitory keys have anti-counterfeiting measures on them...
“Our dormitories here default to double occupancy. If you wish to stay in a single room, you will need to pay an additional housing fee. This fee is quite expensive and cannot be offset by scholarships. Would you like to stay in a single room?”
The dorm administrator added at this point.
Shulim shook her head. “No, thank you. This one is fine.”
Tuition at Manacos Magic Academy was very expensive. For a regular student, tuition alone cost two hundred thousand Cole a year—and that was just the tuition. When combined with other costs like housing and miscellaneous fees, the total sum became terrifying.
Even for families in the empire with decent financial circumstances, this sum was a heavy burden to bear. Similarly, it was a massive strain on the Hayeral family, who were merely rural nobles. Furthermore, since Shulim currently still owed money to the elven shop owner, she naturally couldn't afford to waste money on a single room. Such quarters were typically reserved for nobles who cared deeply about their prestige, or for the families of wealthy merchants.
Fortunately, the scholarships offered by Manacos were also extremely generous. The top tier of students not only had their tuition fully waived, but all other expenses, including housing fees, were also completely covered. They would even receive an additional annual scholarship as a stipend.
“Well... if I perform to that extent, I should be able to get a scholarship.”
Shulim thought to herself as she walked toward the dormitory.
Rate on N.U.
