Two weeks after the festival, the exam period began.
At the Aios Academy, there are a total of four exams each year.
Each exam consists of both practical and written tests, and while it’s common to have additional practical exams, this time there wouldn’t be any since vacation starts right after the exams.
Ugh.
The written exam.
I was struggling, scratching my head as I dealt with the theories of magic and calculations, letting out groans involuntarily.
I could handle mana, albeit at a very basic level. But it was more of an instinctive sense from experience, not something I calculated or wrote out.
Why is this so hard?
Looking at the other students at Aios Academy, I wondered if they were really the top-level students in the kingdom.
Scratch scratch
Scratch scratch
Watching the students diligently working away with their pens, I felt like I was becoming dumber by the second.
Maybe it was all that exercising I did.
But I have a mission to save the world!
Trying to convince myself with that completely unconvincing excuse, I wracked my brain to solve the exam.
Damn, I nearly burst my brain!
Letting out a sigh after finishing the test, I slumped over.
Eve chuckled next to me as she watched me, completely spent.
“You seemed fine with history and the second foreign language, but you struggled a bit with the mana-related stuff.”
“Yeah, I totally suck at that.”
I only knew how to kill the ones who used mana, but I had little interest in understanding how magic was actually formed through mana.
“Hmmm, should I teach you some later?”
Eve asked with a slight smile, but I shook my head after a moment of thought.
“Nah, it’s pointless to learn, plus I’ll score big in the practical anyway.”
“Hey! You have to learn! Every time Daniel talks to me about sports, I’ll counter with mana talk!”
So that’s what she was up to?
Crossing my arms, I replied, “No way.”
Eve puffed out her cheeks, looking sulky, but I wasn’t budging.
Having finished the written exams for the morning, it was now time for the practical in the afternoon.
It was time for me to shine.
Ouch, my shoulder’s itchy!
After lunch, I headed to the dueling arena for the one-on-one practical exam, where many students were simply grabbing a quick meal and stretching.
“Here he comes.”
“Isn’t that him, the one who won against Ares and Hayun 2 to 1 last exam?”
“But wasn’t that because of the King’s Game?”
“Regardless, he’s a dark horse.”
And then, tons of eyes were fixed on me.
I wasn’t surprised.
A lot of people didn’t see when I killed Apviel since it happened after everyone else had fled, and I hadn’t shared it with anyone.
But since I hadn’t really been hiding my power before that, I had become a target for many students.
“Whoa, can you see everyone’s eyes on you?”
“Villain alert! It’s like in the movies.”
“Why worry about those little kids?”
I joked, and the two others chuckled as they started to warm up. While waiting, Hayun approached us.
“How many rounds are you aiming for? Just avoid that number.”
“Isn’t it up to the professor’s draw?”
“I was just asking.”
Hayun, who used to have a cold expression, now looked coldly cute with a hint of warmth.
Even though the latter half of the festival had bombed, she had made quite a bit of money on the first and second days, so her wallet was fat, and it showed in her relaxed demeanor.
Especially since she had gained a lot of regular customers during this festival, she was living pretty well these days.
Thanks to that, though, she had less time to teach me swordsmanship.
“Make some time for me. I signed up to learn swordsmanship, and I still haven’t!”
Hayun nodded, looking a bit worried. “You’re right; once the exams are over and vacation starts, I’ll have some spare time. By the way, are you going back to your hometown?”
“No, I don’t plan on it.”
After all, there’s no one there.
And I need to visit Yggdrasil anyway.
Vacation lasted for two months.
That was plenty of time to visit Yggdrasil, and I planned to travel around like it was a vacation.
As we chatted about various things, the professors entered.
They divided us by class and stood in the center of the arena to conduct the dueling draw.
The exams were held in a tournament format.
Thus, the first and second places would be appointed as the top and second students, and afterward, the professors would assign grades according to placement.
It was a simple yet somewhat stupid method, but it was the tradition at Aios Academy to train strong students for the real world.
This time starting from class E since the last exam had begun with class A.
Of course, it was a gender-neutral duel.
Eve and Tana were set to duel against a male student from class D, and when Professor Amanda called my name for the draw.
The arena fell silent.
Everyone was focused on the tips of Professor Amanda’s fingers and her lips.
She calmly announced the name she had drawn.
“Class A, Arni Duratan.”
My first opponent was Arni Duratan, who had played my assistant during the play.
We locked eyes briefly, but Arni gave me a bold smile and nodded in satisfaction.
It was a stark contrast to the last festival when she had been begging for my help with her acting.
After about 30 minutes, the massive arena was bustling with simultaneous duels.
With a time limit of 5 minutes.
Since we had exams scheduled till dinner, the students could be both restless and excited amidst the stress.
“Arni Duratan, Daniel McLean. Begin!”
All eyes were on the match.
It was a showdown between Arni Duratan, who had held the title of practical top student until Ares arrived, and me, the dark horse.
Arni charged at me with a practice sword shaped like a great sword resting on her shoulder without a word.
The Swordsmanship Family of Dragon Slayers, known for slaying dragons and bathing in their blood.
But sorry to say.
She was just like Apviel, a girl specialized in close combat, so our duel ended up being somewhat anticlimactic.
Ugh!
Arni gazed at me, bewildered, having lost her sword. I shrugged my shoulders, and I could hear the professor announce my victory.
No words were necessary.
In the play, we had some relationship, but we weren’t close; it was purely business.
“Wow, that was a clean knockout.”
“Now that’s a bit pitiful.”
Tana and Eve exclaimed, shocked to see my performance.
As we were sitting with our class, May and Rin had remained with their own class.
Rin had naturally won her duel, and May, who was originally better with magic, surprisingly adapted well due to her tough upbringing in the alleys.
Then came the highly anticipated duel between Eve and Tana.
I cheered for them like a coach would for athletes, reminding them not to forget their training.
“Head! Head! Head!”
Tana brilliantly executed the ‘Daniel Style, Vital Target Attack’ and emerged victorious from her duel.
Huff! Huff!
Eve faced a strong opponent who was tough compared to her level.
“Take that!”
A lucky punch landed squarely, and ultimately, she knocked out the male student to secure her victory.
“Woah! Eve! You did it!”
“I… I won! I crushed the enemy!”
“That’s a stretch…”
Despite my correction, watching Eve bounce around excitedly filled me with a proud smile.
She did it!
Thus, the practical exams went smoothly.
Eve lost her next duel immediately, but Tana pulled off another win, achieving quite a respectable score.
Both of them earned a round of applause compared to their last exam.
While I always said that effort might betray you, exercise never does, and today they both nodded enthusiastically with big smiles on their faces.
Rin encountered Ares and lost, while Hayun fought Sen in a direct confrontation that was unimpeded by ambushes, resulting in Hayun’s victory.
I thought the finals would be a breeze with Ares and me meeting.
But when I arrived at the final stage, an unexpected girl stood before me.
A girl that looks like a high-class doll, someone you wouldn’t want to mess with.
She’s said to be versatile, but if you scrutinize, her swordsmanship is weaker compared to Arni and Hayun, and her magic also falls short when compared to Adriana and Rin.
She’s good at everything, but there’s a prevailing opinion that she doesn’t excel at anything, and that’s Elise.
She had just defeated Ares in the semifinals and stood before me.
“Nice to meet you.”
She smiled with a playful yet ominous cat-like grin.
