Chapter 150: Final Exams (2)

♠ ◆ ♥ ♣

Scratch, scratch.

In the silent lecture hall, only the sound of pens scratching across paper echoed.

The exam period, which still seemed to allow a bit of breathing room, had quickly passed, and finally the first day of finals had arrived.

The cadets sat with serious expressions, each of them working hard to solve their exam questions.

“……”

Some cadets maintained perfect posture, solving problems without a hint of distraction, while others clenched their teeth or twisted their bodies in desperation, struggling to recall hazy memories.

If one had to categorize, Laysis belonged to the former.

She kept her back straight, her posture full of elegance, and she handled the exam with ease, her pen gliding smoothly across the paper.

‘The difficulty is higher than I thought.’

This was truly worthy of being called Bayern.

Even though it was only a first-year exam, there was no mercy at all.

Each problem was sharp and merciless, as if determined to shatter any cadet who had studied halfheartedly.

‘Carl….’

It wouldn’t be too difficult for him.

Laysis shifted her gaze slightly to look at Carl, who sat diagonally ahead of her.

Even though the anti-cheating system made it hard to see clearly, she could vividly picture Carl solving the problems without hesitation.

‘I can do it too.’

She had studied thoroughly without leaving any gaps.

Though she couldn’t match Carl with the sword, when it came to studying, she could at least keep up.

Beep.

Suddenly, a notification popped up saying only ten minutes remained in the exam.

The scratching of pens grew harsher and more frantic, and the sound of teeth grinding echoed here and there.

Of course, Laysis had already written perfect answers to every question and finished her review.

Carl, too, seemed to have completed everything, as he had stopped writing with a relaxed expression.

Beep!

“The exam for History of the Empire is now over. Cadets, please leave your exam papers on your desks and exit the room.”

“……”

Bayern’s exams were merciless.

Cadets who hadn’t finished writing their answers tried desperately to scribble even one more word, but some unseen force prevented any further interference with the test papers, leaving them helpless.

All they could do was sigh in regret as they walked out of the exam hall, most of them clutching their heads in despair.

“……”

Carl’s group also gathered on one side.

Naturally, the atmosphere wasn’t very good.

The difficulty had far exceeded expectations, and countless cadets had failed to answer all the questions.

“I’m going to die.”

“If the very first exam is like this….”

Maximilian and Amy leaned against the window, looking like their souls had nearly left their bodies.

“Carl, how was the difficulty? I felt dizzy the moment I saw the paper.”

At Lien’s question, Carl thought for a moment, then nodded.

“It’s certain the difficulty has increased. It couldn’t even be compared to the midterms.”

“Right? I couldn’t solve three problems. Will my rank drop a lot?”

“…I missed five.”

“I missed six.”

At the very least, one had to attempt every problem to get partial credit.

But many couldn’t even attempt all the questions because of the lack of time.

So much time had been consumed by questions that required logical reasoning and analytical thinking.

“You don’t need to worry too much.”

“…Really?”

“Yes. With this level of difficulty, the average score will fall considerably. If you think about it that way, you all did well. We studied continuously through our study group, after all.”

“Right?”

“Yeah, if it was hard for us, it must have been hard for everyone else too.”

“But it’s dizzying if the first subject is already this tough. Doesn’t this mean the other subjects will be at a similar level?”

Other than Carl, the cadets all let out complaints.

Even Pozers, a magician, had managed to finish the exam, but he believed he would lose quite a few points in certain places.

“Ah, the provisional scores are out.”

“Please, please….”

At Bayern, grading usually began right after the exams ended.

The system was steeped in long tradition, so the chances of error were extremely low.

“Carl.”

Laysis and Yuria, who had been elsewhere, now joined the group.

“How did you do?”

“I was just about to check.”

At Laysis’s question, Carl activated his Archive and looked at his score.

[History of the Empire I]

First Semester Final Exam 105.7/100 (1st)

General Evaluation: Your interpretation of history displayed a fresh and shocking perspective. I would very much like to discuss this in depth with you after the finals or during the vacation period in my office….

Carl gave a bitter smile and turned off the score window.

It was typical of the professor, who liked him so much that he was always trying to lure him into his office.

The professor had even strongly urged him, despite being only a first-year, to become his assistant.

For an ordinary cadet, it would have been considered a great honor, but Carl simply didn’t have the time to spare for such a position.

“I’m first.”

“Ah, your score…”

“105.7 points.”

“Ugh.”

Laysis clenched her fist with a regretful expression.

“Ah, I scored over 100 too, but I’m still only 5th. Does that make sense? Laysis, what about you?”

“104.1 points. I’m 3rd….”

“Then who’s 2nd?”

“That would be me.”

At the unfamiliar voice from behind, everyone turned their heads.

Through the window, sunlight streamed in and reflected off hair the color of forget-me-nots, making it shine.

Nerian, with his usual calm expression, checked his Archive as he spoke.

“105.4 points. A difference of 0.3.”

0.3 points.

Even though he had come in second by such a small margin, Nerian’s expression wasn’t bad.

In fact, a faint curve appeared in his eyes as he looked at Carl.

“……”

Laysis, staring blankly at the scene, suddenly snapped out of it and quickly stepped forward, slipping in between Carl and Nerian.

“Second place, congratulations.”

“Laysis, are you third?”

“Yes. Unfortunately, I lost in this subject. But I will never lose in the other classes.”

“Interesting.”

Nerian gave a faint laugh, nodded, and after one last glance at Carl, turned away and left.

“…I still can’t figure out what he’s thinking.”

Maximilian, who had been holding his breath while watching the situation from behind, finally exhaled once Nerian was gone.

“Even as a fellow cadet, just standing in front of Nerian makes it hard to breathe.”

“That’s how strong his presence is.”

“Yeah, unlike a certain someone.”

“…And who might that someone be?”

When Maximilian narrowed his eyes and glared, Amy quickly feigned ignorance and turned her head toward Laysis.

“Anyway, congratulations to you too, Laysis. This time, are you aiming for first?”

“Yes. It won’t be easy. Carl will take first in theory, so I’ll have to compete in the practical exam….”

“That won’t be easy.”

When Gale, with arms crossed, spoke, everyone nodded.

Nerian was perfect in both academics and martial ability.

He was so far beyond the level of a first-year that it was more realistic to hope for him to make a mistake than to expect to surpass him.

“Well, in theory both of you are at the top, so the difference is small. It’ll be decided in the practicals.”

Yuria raised her hand and counted on her fingers.

“In Fundamentals of Administration and International Affairs, Laysis, your scores were higher than Nerian’s, right?”

“Yes, but when it comes to Understanding of Combat, I always collapse.”

It wasn’t that Laysis did poorly.

Even at midterms, Nerian had scored overwhelming marks in that subject, widening the gap significantly.

“And it’s not only Nerian—there are other cadets too.”

Nerian’s rival was Louis.

And beyond him were other frightening cadets aiming for the very top.

To fight Nerian, one had to defeat all of them and climb to the summit.

“Especially this time, Understanding of Combat is supposed to last three days.”

“They said it was siege warfare, right? Another annoying exam format.”

Maximilian let out a deep sigh.

The cadets would be randomly grouped into teams and had to defeat enemy cadets or attack their camp.

They had already done several practice runs during the semester, but this was the first time it would last three full days, so everyone was worried.

“Still, it should be better than what we faced in Erendal Forest.”

“…Well, that’s true.”

At Carl’s words, everyone furrowed their brows and shook their heads.

Unlike Bayern’s exams, Erendal Forest carried real threats to their lives.

More than ten cadets had actually died there, caught in mana outbursts.

From the 500 who had entered after the entrance ceremony, the number of cadets had already fallen to the 470s due to deaths in training or other circumstances.

“Well, in any case, let’s all do our best. We don’t know who we’ll end up teamed with.”

Tap, tap, tap.

While the finals were underway at Bayern, in the back alleys of the capital city, Polfoardel, a hooded figure was running swiftly.

“Catch her!”

“There she is!”

A dozen pursuers pounded the ground with all their strength, chasing after her.

Plop, patter.

Raindrops began to fall from the darkened sky.

As their soaked clothes grew heavier, the pursuers’ speed began to slow.

“……”

Soon the winding alleys ended in a dead end.

The hooded figure stopped and turned to face the ones chasing her.

“To think a slippery one like you still remained even after all the purges.”

A rough-looking man slowly drew his sword and approached her.

“Who sent you? Tell me that much honestly, and I’ll let you die without pain.”

They were members of Lahan’s organization.

With the help of NOX, Lahan had seized control of the Western Third Commercial District and wiped out all external spies and traitors.

If outsiders were watching, their internal movements would be exposed.

They had thought they had eliminated them all, but apparently one bold fool still dared to act openly.

“NOX is….”

The hooded figure spoke.

To the man’s surprise, it was a soft female voice, and he frowned.

“What sort of people are NOX?”

“Heh.”

The man scratched his neck roughly with the back of his sword.

Was this lunatic serious?

To throw back a question without grasping her own situation.

“You came to pry into NOX, did you? Well, I know plenty about NOX.”

The man smirked, raising his sword that glinted with a sinister light.

In truth, as a mere low-ranking member, what could he possibly know of NOX?

Other than the fact that their boss had close ties with NOX and had relied on their help to seize the Western Third Commercial District, he knew nothing.

Still, in the moment he tried to toy with the woman before him—

“Is that so? Then you alone will be enough.”

“What?”

Slash.

Blood spattered—or so the man thought.

He staggered, clutching at his neck, but found it intact.

Confused, he raised his head, only to hear the sound of bodies collapsing behind him.

“You, you all…!”

All of his subordinates who had followed him lay on the ground, their throats slit.

‘Damn it.’

He had chosen the wrong opponent.

The realization came far too late.

Just as he turned to flee—

Grab.

A hand seized the back of his neck.

The woman’s quiet voice spoke.

“Tell me everything you know about NOX. Especially who its leader is.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep