Chapter 7
Chapter 7 - The Returner’s Entrance Exam (6)
Translator notes:
[1] Wow this guy’s a dickhead .
The possibility that Ajest had also returned to the past—that the spellsword
was facing a similar situation to his—had crossed Desir’s mind .
If that had happened, hypothetically, the Ajest he knew would have shrewdly
hidden that fact from others and played along as the 'present' her . Desir sought
to find out the truth through their battle .
And now, he had confirmed that this Ajest had not come from the future .
This Ajest was very young . Her prowess in magical warfare, her ability to form
counterattacks—she was strong, but her abilities and experience were
incomparable to the Ajest he knew .
Desir hijacked the Magic Arrow in front of Ajest’s massive assault . “Trajectory
adjustment!”
Desir turned his arrow around to collide with the next one in line—and each
one of Ajest’s lethal arrows rammed into each other, exploding on impact .
'Tsk . ’ Ajest went to draw her sword when she realized what was happening . . .
but she reacted too slowly .
By the time she unsheathed her sword halfway, Desir had already passed her—
and now he stood, looking at her with amusement, from the finish line .
The clear-objectives of the Shadow World have been met .
The Shadow World will be terminated .
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Please wait while the entrance exam results are calculated .
"As expected, the same thing happened again . "
An icy aura rose from below the stone-paved floor of Hebrion Academy .
Somewhere deep within the recesses of the school, a group of people had
gathered . Most were professors of Hebrion Academy—some hailed from the
Western Kingdom .
Hebrion's Dean, Justin, stood at the head of the table—he grasped a gavel in his
hand and started at the parchment in front of him .
"So far, no commoners have been selected to enter the Alpha Class . " The
Swordsmanship professor, Kellivan, briefly summarised the outcome of the
entrance exam up until that point .
A decent number of the present individuals demonstrated their enthusiastic
approval—in particular, Head Professor Pugman vigorously nodded his head .
"Of course that’s the case . The Alpha Class only has places for the glorious
nobility . It is not for the likes of commoners that are incapable of receiving a
proper education . " [1]
Professor Pugman, intoxicated by the pleasure of his own words, was unaware
of Professor Brigette’s face stiffening across from him . "Those commoners
should thank us for even being admitted to Hebrion Academy in the first
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place . "
Justin pounded his gavel . "All quiet . This is the final student for consideration . "
The dean read aloud the document before him . "1st circle mage, Desir Arman"
The members of the audience murmured between themselves . "Ah, this is that
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student . . . . "
"The one that bested the Spellsword . . . "
Justin interrupted their musings with a question . "From what I hear, this
student is a 'recommended commoner . ' Who recommended this student’s entry
into Hebrion?"
A hand rose from among the professors: Magical Science Professor Brigitte . "I
gave the recommendation for that child . "
"On what grounds?"
"He has studied magic theory for a long time and his willingness to study has
remained strong . As such, I wholeheartedly recommend him . I very nearly took
him in as my personal assistant instead of admitting him as a normal student . "
"How did you come to know this child?"
"I met him by accident in an orphanage from the ruined country of Eolleta . "
"Eolleta . . that is . . . "
"Yes, Dean, it is indeed the place that you are thinking of . "
"Ahem . " Justin cleared his throat .
He turned to the supervisor . "What were the results of his pre-test?"
"Magic aptitude, D-rank . Though we gave him the rank of 1st circle mage, it
seems that was only a tentative rank, to meet the bare minimum requirements .
His mana is very unstable and impure . By all accounts, he seems like a
completely talentless student . "
"Is that how you see it? Please take a look at this . Assistant, if you could play
the video . " At Justin's request, his attending assistant placed a crystal ball on
the center table .
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As the attendant injected the crystal ball with magic energy, the ball emitted a
short fizzle, and a video began playing in the air .
It was a recording of Group D’s entrance exam—everyone concentrated on the
video as it played from start to finish .
The clear-objectives of the Shadow World have been met .
The Shadow World will be terminated .
When the video ended, everyone in the room wore expressions of surprise .
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Even some of the Magical Science Professors stood with their mouths agape,
while others were cleaning their glasses multiple times as if they had seen
something wrong .
Even professors who didn’t specialize in magic could tell that Desir’s display
was exceptional .
Justin broke the silence . "Now . What are your thoughts?"
A professor in the crowd raised his hand and queried . "This is amazing and all . . .
but is something like this even possible?"
A 2nd-year Magical Sciences Professor answered: "No . That should have been
impossible for even a 3rd circle mage . That grease magic can only be utilized
across a flat plane, so you can’t apply it to a three-dimensional object . Perhaps
he is modifying the magic algorithm . . . . but if he did that, then that child must
possess incredible analytical skills . "
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The Tacticians Professor spoke with his hands on his head . "His battle sense
and use of psychological warfare were excellent . He conserved his own
strength to surprise his opponent at the end—his strategic prowess was
exceptional . "
"I agree, it’s as if he were a veteran who had spent his whole life on the
battlefield . I’m no expert on magical combat, but his tactics were impeccable .
It’s like he had complete control of the flow of battle . "
"To think that there was someone among the commoners with this level of
training . . . I don’t know what to say . "
"Of course he’ll be admitted to Hebrion . But why did you ask us to discuss it,
instead of just declaring the decision, Dean-nim?"
"That is because after seeing the video, Professor Brigitte advocated for this
student to be placed into the Alpha Class . "
" . . . . . . !" It was like someone had just thrown cold water had been thrown on the
group . The electric atmosphere had been replaced by a chilly silence .
After what seemed like hours, one professor raised their hand to speak .
"Esteemed Dean-nim . "
It was Head Professor Pugman .
"As you know, there are regulations in place for this sort of thing . Rules dictate
that class placement is based on skill . Here, we place the best students in the
Alpha Class, and the less experienced in the Beta Class . By differentiating these
students, we allow them to receive an education best suited to their skill . "
Justin leered at Professor Pugman . "What are you trying to say . "
"To enter the Alpha Class, a student must demonstrate exceptional skill .
Objectively, only 2nd circle mages and above have a shot at it . As a 1st circle
mage, Desir does not possess the requisite magical repertoire . I think it is still
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too early for him to be admitted to the Alpha Class . "
"Hmm . . . . . "
"That’s a good point . "
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Here and there, different voices spoke up in agreement .
But none of those affirming voices belonged to Brigitte . "How funny, Professor
Pugman . "
All eyes in the room zeroed in on Brigitte . "Even after defeating the 3rd circle
spellsword, Ajest Kingscrown, you assert this child is inferior just because he’s
a 1st circle mage . That stinks of a repulsive personal bias . "
"A 1st circle mage has their limits! No matter how much good their calculative
skills are there is a limit to their development in magic!" Pugman protested .
"Quit looking for excuses . You have a different motivation . "
A different motivation .
Brigette knew that different motivation all too well .
"You're only against this because he is a commoner . Isn't that right? Professor
Pugman Pasehl Napoleka . "
Pugman shook his head . "You’re mistaken . I solemnly swear that when
considering this case, unrelated factors such as identity did not unduly
influence my opinion . "
"My oh my, is that so? Just a moment ago, you were bragging that the Alpha
Class has no place for the likes of commoners—and now you claim to make a
fair and unbiased decision without consideration to identity?"
Pugman and Brigette’s confrontation had presented a quandary before the
committee .
25
Professor Brigitte was one of less than 10 people on the continent to have—as a
commoner—risen to the level of a 5th circle mage .
Pugman Pasehl Napoleka was the heir to the title Duke of Napoleka, a family
second only to the Royal family itself .
Their arguments represented a fundamental clash of values .
The sound of Justin's gavel brought the argument to pause .
The Dean spoke with a grave tone . "There will be silence . Time is wasted on
arguments . Let us decide on the matter . We will now judge whether student
Desir is to be admitted to the Alpha Class or not . "
It was the final judgement—everything was to be decided here .
Brigette cast her vote in support while Pugman casually cast his for the
opposition, as though there was nothing more to see .
Justin tallied and announced the results . 18 votes in support, 22 against .
"1st circle mage, Desir Arman . By rights, he should be admitted to the Alpha
Class . However, because Professor Pugman believes his circle is too low, he is
to be admitted to the Beta Class . "
Justin inserted Desir's application into the box labeled 'Accepted' .
"Of course, for a commoner . . . . . "
"No matter how impressive his skills are, being admitted to the Alpha Class
straight out of the entrance exam is . . . . absurd . ”
Brigitte protested the outcome . "Dean-nim! If you were aware of what goes on
in the Beta Class, you would never make that decision!"
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"The decision was made by a majority vote . I cannot overturn it . " Justin rose
from his seat, indicating that he would entertain no more arguments .
"If he is as exceptional as you have said he is, he will prove himself during the
Promotion Exam . If he really possesses those skills—as you claim he does—that
should be a simple matter, no?"
"H-however . . . " Brigitte stuttered .
"Enough, let's see ourselves out . "
At a wave of the Dean's hand, the room’s torchlights extinguished themselves .
As though the darkness itself had closed her mouth, Brigitte fell silent .
And like that, the meeting adjourned .
March had arrived, heralding the spring season . The willow trees had turned
green, and the blooming forsythias gave off a warm glow .
The results of Hebrion’s entrance exams were to be released today .
In the middle of a corridor in the academy stood a bulletin board . Upon that
bulletin board were the names of all the prospects who were admitted to the
academy, as well as the classes to which they had been assigned .
The first half listed the students admitted to the Alpha Class, the second half
listed those in the Beta Class . Desir found his own name exactly where he had
expected to find it . "Just as I thought . "
The academy had assigned him to the Beta Class, despite the fact that he had
beaten Ajest and secured 1st place . Though he knew it was bound to happen,
confirming it with his own eyes left him with a bit of a heavy heart .
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"As expected—they didn’t disappoint me . "
Beta and Alpha .
Hebrion's split its students into these two halves . The system was intended to
allow students to receive the education best suited to their skill level .
With each student being assigned to the class most appropriate for them, this
individualized method of admission resulted in the best-possible learning
outcomes for all the students .
No . . . ‘should have’ resulted . . .
Desir grit his teeth . ‘But now, that honorable intention is nowhere to be seen . ’
In the beginning, Hebrion had successfully implemented that system . But now,
so long after its inception, things were different .
Technically, Hebrion Academy still placed the most skilled students in the
Alpha class . But most of those students were nobles who had been
systematically trained from the beginning of their education .
That’s why the Alpha Class had an aristocratic, superiority-obsessed air to it .
And in that sort of atmosphere, a commoner with the appropriate skills would
sometimes rightly qualify for the Alpha Class—but they would always be
pushed back into the Beta Class .
Just like they had done to Desir .