Chapter 51: Stage One Complete

Location: Astralis Arcanum – Exam Hall, Room C

The air in Room C thrummed with barely-contained tension. Magic crackled faintly in the atmosphere, a result of nervous candidates accidentally leaking mana under pressure. The walls, adorned with arcane sigils, pulsed softly—an ambient reminder that this was no ordinary examination hall. This was Astralis Arcanum, and today was their chance to earn a place inside it.

Lia stood quietly near the back, arms loosely crossed as she observed the test procedures. Her mind, however, wasn’t fully on the scene before her.

“I wonder how Ron’s doing right now…”

She’d caught a glimpse of him earlier across the courtyard before they parted ways to their respective rooms. That hint of concern lingered in her chest. Still, she knew he’d be fine. He always was.

The instructor at the front, wearing the official robes of the academy and a crest pinned proudly to their chest, barked out instructions with unwavering authority.

“As you’ve seen,” the instructor said, gesturing toward the artifact-laced testing equipment, “the mana quality test will reveal any signs of temporary enhancement. If black globules are detected within your mana stream—you will be disqualified.”

A murmur of unease spread through the examinees. More than a few backed away nervously. Lia watched as hands rose and names were struck from the list. A quarter of the room had already withdrawn.

“Seriously? Did they really think the world’s most prestigious academy wouldn’t notice a cheat like that?” she thought, unimpressed.

The tests continued. One boy stepped forward.

His attack on the training dummy registered 223. His mana capacity scored 433, and his quality test produced a murky red, but with sufficient brightness to qualify. The instructor nodded. “You pass.”

The boy grinned, clearly relieved, and stepped aside. The line shortened.

Lia exhaled and thought to herself, “When’s my turn coming?”

Then the instructor’s voice rang out once more:

“Next! Arin Blake.”

A boy stepped forward.

About Lia’s age—sixteen, maybe seventeen—he had a slim, wiry build still growing into itself, the kind that hinted at speed over strength. His tawny brown hair, tousled and sun-tipped, fell slightly over his brow, giving him a windswept look. Leaf-green eyes, speckled with hazel, flicked across the room—curious and intense.

He made his way straight to the weapons rack, and without hesitation, selected a spear.

Lia’s interest was piqued immediately.

“Oh? Another spear-user… like Ron.”

Arin took his stance in front of the dummy, his posture clean and practiced. As he began channeling mana, the air shimmered subtly, the static crackle of electricity becoming tangible. His eyes sparked—literally. Golden sparks flickered through the green as his mana surged.

Then—

Arclance Tempestra – First Spark: Boltpiercer Drive

With a crackling snap, Arin lunged. His spear blurred, elongated mid-thrust, guided by lightning that danced along the shaft. A sharp thunderclap exploded behind the strike, leaving a scorched streak of energy slicing the air.

The dummy shuddered, then stilled.

The artifact flared.

655.

Gasps filled the hall. A few students stepped back involuntarily. Even the instructors blinked.

Lia narrowed her eyes, interested.

“That’s higher than the instructor’s own demo… 655?”

Arin didn’t revel in the surprise around him. Calmly, he moved to the mana capacity station, placed his hand on the imprint, and waited.

1076.

Another round of stunned silence. Even the instructor hesitated for a moment.

“W-What?”

Still unsmiling, Arin stepped to the final test—the glass orb that measured mana quality. His hand pressed against the smooth surface. A few seconds passed.

The orb glowed yellow, vibrant and charged with sparks. Only a faint haze rimmed the inside. No black globules. No signs of enhancement.

The hall was silent.

“Y-You pass,” the instructor said finally, his voice breaking the tension.

Arin gave a small, proud smile—not arrogant, but assured. He turned and stepped aside, back into the group of stunned candidates.

Lia blinked, her interest sharpening.

“Strong… almost as strong as me or Ron.”

She crossed her arms, feeling her competitive spirit stir slightly.

“This exam just got more interesting.”

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After a long wait, Lia’s name was finally called.

“Candidate Lia!” the instructor shouted.

Still in her disguise, Lia stepped forward calmly. She walked up to the weapon rack, her eyes scanning over the choices before picking a slender sword resembling a katana. Despite having her own trusted weapon in her magic pouch, she chose not to draw attention to it.

Standing before the dummy, she took her battle stance. She wasn’t powering up to her peak—not yet. A sharp green aura began to swirl around her, the air tightening with a whistling tension as she activated her spell.

“Wind Butterfly – Second Technique: Butterfly Slash!”

She slashed the air with precision from a distance, and in an instant, a crescent-shaped light green wind slash zipped forward. The dummy was cleaved diagonally with a clean cut, the wind dissipating just after impact.

The number shown in artifact :

698.

Gasps filled the training grounds.

“She’s stronger than Candidate Arin Blake?!”

Whispers broke out across the crowd as eyes widened in disbelief. Yet Lia remained silent, expression unreadable, as she proceeded to the mana capacity test.

Her hand pressed against the crystal.

1105.

More murmurs followed. She moved to the final test—the mana quality sphere.

As her hand touched the glowing orb, it radiated a vibrant green light, laced with a faint shimmering haze. But then… something strange happened.

The green started to tinge pink.

Noticing the change, Lia quietly pulled her hand back before the shift could complete.

“Y-You passed!!” the instructor stammered, his voice shaken. “This… This is the second time today a candidate stronger than me has appeared!”

The crowd was stunned into silence once again.

As Lia returned to her place and closed her eyes, letting her breath settle, she suddenly felt someone approaching.

Opening her eyes halfway, she saw Arin Blake walking toward her, his usual confident smile in place.

“Wow, that was really strong,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “You might actually be stronger than me.”

He chuckled lightly and extended his hand. “Well, nice to meet you. As you probably know, I’m Arin.”

Lia glanced at his hand for a moment, then gave a soft nod. “Hmm. Nice to meet you too.”

Without taking the hand, she turned and calmly walked a few steps away, choosing to stand by herself.

Arin stood there, hand still half-raised. After a pause, he let out a dry chuckle and mumbled to himself,

“Maybe she doesn’t want to talk.”

Location: Room G

Ron stood before the training dummy, his expression calm but focused. Gripping his spear, he took a deep breath and muttered under it—

“Inferno Spear—First Technique: Flaming Stab.”

The tip of his spear ignited in searing red-orange flames as he lunged forward. The moment it struck the dummy, the intense heat caused the point of impact to melt, leaving behind a charred, half-melted hole.

The artifact beside the dummy glowed, displaying the number:

710.

A murmur rippled through the room.

Ron exhaled and moved toward the mana capacity artifact. He placed his palm on it, and after a moment, the number lit up:

1110.

The room fell silent.

Next came the mana quality test. Ron placed his hand on the orb, and the magic ball radiated a bright red-orange hue, tinged with flickering flame patterns. A faint haze shimmered around it, barely visible. Then—subtly, slowly—the red began to shift toward blue.

Noticing it, Ron quickly pulled his hand away, frowning slightly.

“I still lack control over Mr. Zane’s blessing,” he thought to himself.

Even the instructor, clearly startled, blinked a few times before announcing, “Y-you pass!”

Gasps and whispers filled the room. None of the other candidates in Room G had come close to his performance.

Ron looked down at his hand, then turned his gaze slightly distant.

“I wonder if anyone else showed promise… aside from Lia. I’m sure she did well.”

Time passed, and the Preliminary Test finally reached its end. Throughout the day, countless monsters and strong candidates had appeared, unleashing their strength and trying to prove their worth. The competition was fierce—merciless, even—but the numbers spoke for themselves.

Out of the initial 5000 candidates, only 1000 made it through. The rest had been weeded out, their dreams halted at the very first hurdle.

As the crowd began to disperse, Ron and Lia met up near the exit of the testing grounds.

Ron stretched his arms with a grin. “So… how was it?”

Lia, still in her disguise, crossed her arms and smirked. “Aced it.”

Ron chuckled. “Same here.”

They shared a glance, silently proud of each other. Then Ron looked ahead and said, “Now it’s time for the written test.”

“Let’s go,” Lia replied, and together, the duo made their way toward the next location.

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Location: A Quiet Restaurant in the City

Steam curled up from a large bowl of noodles as Zane leaned back in his chair, casually slurping up another bite. The bustling noise of the city outside was nothing but a distant hum here. Calm, peaceful… and boring.

He glanced up mid-bite, eyes narrowing slightly—not at anyone around, but in certain direction.

“…What?” he muttered, mouth half-full. “You were expecting me to show up and say something again?”

He gave a lazy smirk, letting his chopsticks clink gently against the bowl.

“Not this Chapter, guys. Let the others cook for once.”

Then, with a shrug, he went back to enjoying his noodles—completely unbothered.

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