Heyoo, thanks for the kind reviews! I'm back with the third chapter! I'll actually finish the exam on the next 'cause otherwise it would be a really long chapter and I don't like that very much ^^
It may be a bit awkward, But I hope you'll enjoy it!
"So, that must be the coliseum!" Said Aurora. She was still snaking on the treat Chronovala-san gave them.
"It's gigantic!" Asta shouted, looking at the massive building, which easily dwarfed the surrounding structure. Not only that, but a ton of people gathered to cheer on the applicant.
"Do your best!"
"You are the Clover Kingdom's hope!"
"The future of the Kingdom rests with you!"
"Wah, this is impressive." Commented Aurora. Yuno was walking at her side, and Asta was just waving at the crowd, smiling.
"I'LL DO MY BEST!" he yelled. Yuno was muttering something about not knowing him, accelerating. Aurora merely laughed.
In the end, they passed the crowd and through the gate before getting in line with the other applicants. And true to form, there were a lot of applicants. The sheer number of it was probably in the hundreds. Aurora took her chance to look at different people around them. Of course, there were teenagers like them and probably many adults who had failed the exam before and therefore had far more experience than them.
She knew many people were seeking to join for prestige or the money, but still… That was something.
"Did I put the cart before the horse when I said to Chronovala-san I would pass?" Aurora mused to herself before shaking her head quickly. She couldn't really tell if they were someone strong. Everyone around them seemed - at least - inferior to Yuno. They didn't give a strong odor or a powerful feeling. But some people here could be really amazing, far more than the three of them.
But even though, they would not fail here. Yuno and Asta looked even more determined by the prospect of a potential good challenge. She couldn't fall behind. She had her own goals to accomplish!
Aurora finished her treat while waiting for her turn with her two brothers. The people doing the inscription were doing good work because, despite the sheer numbers of applicants before them, it was their turn in a matter of minutes.
"I'm Yuno, from Hage village." Yuno introduced himself to the clerk doing the inscription for their line.
"Yuno from Hage… Could I see your grimoire?" asked the man. Yuno did just that, handing him his grimoire, and the man's eyes bulged out. Behind, other examinees began to whisper amongst themselves.
"Hey, that grimoire…."
"A four-leaf clover?"
"It that the one everyone has been talking about?"
Despite his apparent awe, the clerk stayed professional and properly registered Yuno's grimoire.
"All right," he said with a friendly smile, "you're #164. All right, next!"
Asta eagerly ran toward the counter. "Also from Hage, My name's Asta! And here's my grimoire!"
The man looked at the decrepit grimoire with something akin to disbelief. He couldn't even see the clover on the front cover!
"This is pretty filthy… Are you sure this is a grimoire?" The clerk dubiously asked.
"Eh! Of course, it is! Look closely!" Asta put the grimoire just in front of the man's face." See?"
"All right, all right." The man sighed. He put his hand on the grimoire, making him glow. "You're #165. Next!"
"Hello! I'm Aurora, from Hage village too. And about my grimoire, here it is!" She said while showing him her coverless grimoire.
The man actually stopped to look at her. And the whispers restarted.
"Oh, look at her! Her grimoire… is coverless!"
"Are the pages turning by themselves?"
"Haha! It's so weird!"
"I heard about it! Apparently, she's a weirdo from a village on the border!"
"What is wrong with your village?" asked the man seriously. Aurora could only look at him sheepishly. "Hum, sir… my inscription?" she asked. Now she really wanted to show everyone what the "weirdo" was capable of.
"Is this truly a grimoire?" the man retorted, looking at her dubiously.
"Want me to show you what I can do?" Aurora asked him with a smile.
"No, keep that for the exam." The man sighed. Youth today… He simply put his hand on top of the grimoire and made him glow. "You're #166. Next!"
Aurora took her grimoire, and putting it away, joining her friends.
"Well, at least we're standing out." Stated Yuno.
"And now to stand out even more, let's ace this thing, you two!" Aurora grinned, raising her fist in the air.
Asta joined her immediately. "Let's go!" he cheered.
They made their way to the arena, the heart of the coliseum, where already hundreds of people were waiting. And it would be even more crowded as time passes today. Aurora started to look around her surrounding, glancing again at people. Some of them were somewhat nervous teens. Others were determined, middle-aged people. As she had suspected earlier. However, some others seemed downright cocky. Those ones felt more powerful; she could sense it. Perhaps were they noble?
"There are more people than I thought," Yuno stated. "I don't actually know how they are going to test us now."
"What did you think it would be?" Aurora asked curiously.
"A tournament of a sort. The last one gets first pick or something." Yuno replied seriously.
"Why did I even asked…." Aurora sweatdropped. "That would take too much time, Yuno! A free for all is what's best!" Asta interjected.
"You can't be serious. With that many people? That would be pretty stupid." the taller of the two continued.
"Because your tournament idea is a great one, maybe? Look at Aurora! She looks desperate just by hearing it!" Asta argued.
"Both of your ideas are pretty crappy, you know?" Aurora sighed. Asta's face fell. "They will probably test us on a variety of things. That would make the most sense."
"Like what?" Yuno asked curiously.
"Dunno. Control, precision? What can you do with your magic? It's probably not reserved for people who can beat up others. Magic Knights are not that kind of people."
"You're right. But power will be important anyway." Yuno nodded.
"Yes, that's true. I'm sure we're going to have some bouts at some point today." Aurora affirmed, crossing her arms. "Probably at the end, we'll have to face and beat someone. With the number of people, it would make sense."
"Yeah, but…" Yuno was interrupted as a variety of surprising shouts drew their attention. Aurora and Yuno quickly noticed the hundreds of birds that had begun to harass all the examinees around them.
"Ow! What the heck are those birds?"
"The infamous anti-birds of the exam venue."
"Really? Those things are?"
"They're so cute!" Aurora looked around. Unfortunately, none of these cute birdies were coming her way. "Hey, how do you make them come to you?" she asked the boy who had spoken earlier.
The boy turned her way, smiling. And she watched his smile drop, and he looked at her with wide eyes.
It was like a barrier of sort existed around her because not even one bird was coming near her. Even the birds flying around the boy actually pulled back.
"Hu-Hum… the lesser the magical power, the more these guys flock to you… What the hell?" the man looked at her in awe.
"Eh?" So they are going to avoid her? She came closer to the guy, making him blush. And soon enough, the birdies started to flee. She didn't give chase. She couldn't fly like them, so she wouldn't be able to caress one.
"You're right… What a shame…." Aurora backed away toward Yuno. People were whispering about him and her again.
"Hey, look at him! None of the birds are coming to this guy!
"This girl either! They're avoiding her, too!"
Aurora looked, and sure enough, no birds were around Yuno either. Not that she was surprised if they liked people without magical power. A shame; during her training in the forest, she was actually quite appreciated by animals and could nearly interact with them thanks to the mana threads…
Suddenly, a thought struck her.
Asta. He has no magic power, right? So she could totally use him to lure at least one bird, right?!
And sure enough, the man chosen by the birds arrived.
And he honestly looked like he had been literally chosen by them. An impressive number of birds flowed around him. He was getting pecked at by the birdies. Some were even nibbling his cheeks like it could be a delicious treat. One was even nested comfortably on top of his head! And, of course, the others examinees started to laugh at him.
Asta did not care, though, and stared at Yuno in what could be called an expression of challenge.
"Eh, eh, eh! One of us is going to become the Wizard King. Our legend's beginning now, you two!" I'll show you the result of my training and how much I've grown- ow, ow, ow, ow! What the heck are those pointy beaks?" he started to run around with all the birds chasing him as if he was the most comfortable place in the world.
"Asta, wait!" Aurora started to chase him. He was her ticket for catching one!
"Whoa, talk about a loser." Someone sneered.
"That's pretty bad, even for someone from the boonies."
"Get away from me, you stupid birds!" Asta shouted while running. "I'll –oof!"
Aurora stopped her chase as soon as she saw the man Asta bumped into. The birds flew away from sheer fear.
She couldn't blame them. The man was huge, and he was radiating power. It was the first time she felt something so heavy.
He was wearing a white A-shirt that made his huge muscles and thick neck stand out, which didn't help her first impression!
The mana around him was dense, and even without being in her focused mode, she could have a taste of it.
Right now, it had the taste of pure anger, literally.
"Oh, sorry for bumping into you!" cluelessly said Asta, seeing the bird flying away with relief.
"I'll kill you, you brat." And true to form, the aura that leaked from the man looked actually terrifying enough Aurora wanted to run away. And yet…
And yet, she could also feel some kind of… entertained feeling from the man? Eh? He looked ready to kill Asta!
And Asta, she watched with dread, simply put his hand on the man's shoulder.
"Man, you look old! You must've had a hard life," Asta said with a dumb face.
No one spoke for a moment. No one move or even breathe. Then, the bearded men grabbed Asta's head with one of his large hands, and the anger Aurora felt from the mana dissipated somewhat, the amused feeling coming more strongly. And yet, the aura around him looked scarier than ever.
"It appears you're ready to die." He stated. He looked definitely serious. "Now, stay put and let me kill you."
"Who is this man? I don't even know what to believe! But I can't let him hurt Asta before the exam!"
"Please, stop! He hasn't done anything wrong!" she marched towards the man and poor Asta, still lifted from the ground by the head.
"Ahhh?"
And when the man actually looked at her, she swore her life flashed before her eyes. She could feelher legs trembling. He was really terrifying when he wanted to be. But she stood her ground because she knew he was not really serious. Right?
"You had your fun, right? Plea-please, let him go!" she still looked at him right in the eyes. Even though she actually wanted to run away. This guy could probably eat her in one bite.
The man sized her up, and his eyes widened for a bit.
"You wanna took his place, brat?" he asked her roughly. Again, she could feel him getting more amused.
"What a bully! I'll show him!"
So, she summoned her grimoire and mustered her most ferocious expression, entering her focused state.
Let it be said that she tried! Just like Asta all those years ago!
"Please, let him go, or-or I'll definitely blast you away!" she proclaimed. And no, she didn't stutter.
She had little to no chance. The mana gathering around this man was so thick it wasn't even funny. The threads were also a very dark color, not helping his case.
And yet, in this state, she could feel the powerful feeling of surprise the ogr-man felt. His eyes widened as he opened his mouth.
"Wait, that grim-"
"Ah, Yami-san! You're here!" One man exclaimed. He was brown-haired and flanked by another man. "What are you doing down here?"
Aurora remarked they were wearing the same black-colored cloak as "Yami-san."
"H-Hey isn't that…."
"It's Finral Roulacase-sama! The great user of spatial magic!"
"Spatial magic?"
"Yeah, he's infamous for being so girl-crazy it actually gets in the way of his duties…"
"And the silent one… Isn't that Gordon Agrippa, the expert of incantation magic?"
"Incantation magic?"
"I heard that he is impossible to talk to… And scary."
"I was about to end this little twerp life." He looked at Asta. "But then little twerp number two tried to interfere and-"he looked at where Aurora was and was surprised to find no one.
"Uwooooo! You! You're using spatial magic? How does that work? How do you use it? Can you go to a place you've never gone to before? I've never seen that kind of magic before!" Aurora had actually rushed at Finral's side, who was trying to flirt with one of the examinees that recognized him and he was surprised to see another girl looking at him starry-eyed.
"Haha! Yes, I'll be glad to show you if you tell me your name, beautiful… Eh?" Finral saw the girl was already gone towards her colleague. Or rather, she somehow appeared here.
"And you! What's actually Incantation magic? Is this some kind of curse? Can you use it without speaking? Ohhhh! I wanna see it! Can you show me?" The starry-eyed girl turned tornado, asked Gordon, who looked at her curiously.
"-" He was probably saying something interesting. Not that she could hear him. He was speaking a bit too softly.
"Eh? What did you say?" she asked him, her hands balled into fists. "Ah! Wait, I'm supposed to take an exam today! Hahaha…" It was like the spell was broken, and she put one of her hands on the back of her head, scratching it nervously.
When she turned, she realized that everyone had been looking at the little spectacle—her in particular.
The big man, Yami Sukehiro, still holding Asta, was looking at her strangely.
The short boy took advantage of that, his determination shining through. Slamming his feet on the ground below him, he grabbed the arm holding him, and with a shout, began to try to peel off the man's hand off his head.
Surprised at the effort the twerp was making, Yami once more focused his sights on him, not forgetting the familiar sight he witnessed.
"The great beyond awaits you. Look alive, kid." He stated as if he was talking about the weather.
"You're about to kill me, though?!"
"Ah! Asta!" Aurora exclaimed. She did forget him in her magic crazy state. She was ready to face the ogre again, but before anything could happen, fireworks began exploding above their heads.
"Yami-san, come on now, the exam is about to start!" Finral urged him.
The ogre, Yami Sukehiro, tch-ed. He released Asta, who fell on his knees, let out a sigh in relief while holding his head in pain.
"Are you alright, Asta?" Aurora rushed at his side, kneeling near him.
"Guess you get to live a little longer, you brat." The voice of Yami Sukehiro made her raised her head. "Take good care of the life you just got back… Or I'll kill you." He simply stated before retreating.
Asta let out a pained hiss. Yami stopped before opening his mouth once more.
"And you, brat number two," he turned his head and looked at Aurora with an intrigued air, "I got my eyes on you. Be careful now." And with that, he disappeared.
"Well, that sucked." Asta summarized pretty well what just transpired.
"You sure you're alright? I'm sure this guy already cracked some head that way before…" Aurora stated with a slight tremble. Whether or not he was kidding, in the end, she did not know.
That was the scariest thing about him.
"But not as sturdiest as my head! I'll be fine, Aurora! Can't show any weakness here!" Asta smiled at her reassuringly.
"Hehe, you're right! Let's do our best!" she presented her fist to him, and he bumped it lightly with his own.
Trumpets suddenly started to be played. And a few moments later, several persons, each wearing a cloak with a different color, Aurora noted, made their entrance on the tribune above.
Each of them gave off a very distinct feeling through the incredible mana emanating from them.
"That's the Captain of the Silver Eagles, Nozel Silva!" "Pride and Arrogance. I can taste the faith he has in himself."
"Here, it's Jack the Ripper, Captain of the Green Praying Mantises!" "Bloodthirsty?! Thrill-seeking? Eh? This man is a captain?... Well, with a name like that…" Aurora thought, nonplussed."
"Oh! It's the Captain of the Blues Roses Knights, Charlotte Roselei! "Her mana is weird. It's like something… else emanates from her… I can sense her straight-laced and responsible nature though…"
"It's Gueldre Poizot, the Captain of the Purple Orcas!" "I can smell his cunning and pride so strongly… Also, I can feel some sort of powerful selfishness emanating from him. Why?" Aurora mused.
"Look! It's the Captain of the Coral Peacocks, Dorothea Unsworth! But… Why is she asleep?" "Her mana looks incredibly bubbly. Her threads are all pinks and wriggly; it's like they are dancing. And yet, she is asleep. Is it because she has a really good dream? Or perhaps is it a part of her magic? I can't hear anything except this bubbliness!"
"And here's Rill Boismortier, Captain of the Aqua Deer! At nineteen, he is the youngest person to ever become a captain. "I can feel many things from this man. I can hear his friendliness mainly… And a feeling of irresponsibility? Ehhh? I mean, he's a Captain, but apparently, he's also nineteen… He must be pretty incredible in many ways."
"There's the Captain of the Crimson Lion Kings, Fuegoleon Vermillion!" "Fair and just. A Leader-born. He honestly looked and feel like the more Captain-ney of all."
The two remaining people caught her eyes.
The first one was Yami Sukehiro. Aurora felt her jaw drop. "This terrifying man is a captain?! No wonder he felt so strong! But why did I felt so much darkness from him? Yet now, I can smell his seriousness and focus from here… Yet he looks like he'd like to be anywhere else…."
"This Yami Sukehiro sure is mysterious." Aurora thought before turning her head towards the last member of the Captain.
He was the one who drew the most cheers and caught the examiners' attention the most.
"The most promising candidate to the title of Wizard King… The Captain of the most powerful Squad: William Vangeance!" The man called Vangeance simply smiled. Strangely enough, he was wearing a cool mask, Aurora thought. She focused, trying to get a feel from that man as well…
And got nothing. "I can't sense anything from him!" she thought, dumbfounded.
She could see his mana threads, carefully woven. But they didn't tell her anything. Or rather, perhaps they couldn't? She tried to taste and it was totally bland.
Before she could think about it further, Vangeance started to talk.
"Candidates," he started with a powerful voice, "Sorry to keep you waiting. I will be conducting the exam." He pulled out his grimoire. "Magic Tree: descend!"
The mana around Vangeance started to move. Aurora could see his threads moving in a rhythm. She could feel the mana gathering to him, and soon enough, she just knew what would happen.
Thunderclouds formed. And from the center of the resulting vacuum, a gigantic tree actually descended. The wind picked up around the examinees as the massive tree branch was stretching towards them.
Each branch actually morphed into a broom which was carefully deposited on the hands of each examinee.
"This is a Captain magic? This was awesome! I need to ask him all about it after!" was the only thing Aurora could think about after such a grand display.
"We will now begin the Magic Knights Entrance Exam." Announced the man with the cool mask. "We will now have you all take several tests." He continued. "The nine of us will evaluate your performance, and then we will select the candidates that we would like to add to our squads. If chosen, you will join that squad. If more than one squad chooses you, you may pick the one squad you wish to join. On the other hand, those not chosen by any captain are not qualified to join the Magic Knights." Every examinee was hanging to his words, and the last bit made more than one anxious.
"For the first test, we will have you riding this broom and fly."
"Oh no…"
"But I've never…!"
"I've never done that before!"
Many people were already complaining.
"Me neither, but that can't be really difficult." Aurora calmly mused.
"Mages who can control their magic powers should be able to do that instinctively." Said the golden dawn captain matter-of-factly. "It is the most basic way for mages to travel. If you cannot fly on a broom, you shouldn't even be here. Now, begin!"
Hesitantly, the examinees started to move. Aurora took her broom and put it between her leg before hesitating. This wasn't really comfortable. She put it under her feet and simply focused on letting her mana surround herself and the broom at the same time, like an extended "mana skin."
She took fly almost immediately, whooping at the feeling. She felt so free!
She went up and up, where the air and, consequently, mana began to rarify and started to fly around. She didn't pay attention to anything, just letting herself do what was coming to her.
If she had, she would have seen the dumbfounded look on nearly all applicants who saw her fly like that or seeing another guy taking off just after.
Left, right, nosediving. Aurora used her mana to easily stick to the broom in order not to fall and go vwooom. This wasn't really hard, just like she thought.
She was about to go up again when she spotted someone at her height. They were alone for the moment. She looked down and saw many people trying and managing to levitate a bit. Some were circling around a bit. Some were better and started to come up. A lot fell off, she remarked.
Not really her problem anyway. She had an idea.
She approached the sole people riding the broom the same way as her.
"Hey, Yuno! Great people think alike, eh?"
Yuno, and all those who could hear her, turned to look at the voice.
Amongst them the Captains. They were actually watching the two with attention.
"Oh? And what are you thinking about then?" Yuno asked the girl, curious.
"How about we play the same game we played when we were with the kids? But this time, we will be flying! She said excitedly, Yuno's barb literally flying over her head.
Yuno noted she looked enthusiastic about that. The idea was indeed appealing, because standing in place was kinda dull.
"I'll give you three seconds. Start running, little one." His mouth twisted into a little smirk that widened when he heard her laugh.
At the count of three and with a terrifying speed, Yuno headed straight to her.
And so, the game of tag between the two began.
"Just by observing this, we can get a good idea of what kind of mage they are." The Captain of the Blue Roses Knights, Charlotte Roselei, mused.
"Hey, look at that girl! What is she doing?" One of the examinees levitating off the ground was pointing at the sky.
Charlotte and her colleagues turned their heads to see a young girl standing up on her broom, doing an impressive number of moves.
Surprising. This was a high-level display of control.
Another boy came up soon after, and the girl approached him. She seemed to know him, judging by the familiarity she called him. Did they start a conversation about a game?
Soon after, the blond girl took off, and the boy gave chase. Both of them displayed an innate control extremely rare.
Everyone was watching them, even the examinees, instead of focusing.
Well, this was a rare enough happenstance anyway. The spectacle Aurora and Yuno were giving were captivating enough. Her fellow captains were also watching with attention.
Suddenly, after the girl took a very sharp left turn while descending, the boy decided to circle back toward her at full speed, which surprised the girl into accelerating too.
But the boy was faster. Except the girl did something that actually made her eyes widening in surprise.
She actually jumped in a backflip over the surprised boy and started to freefall before she controlled her broom to come back to her almost instantly. The girl took her initial position of standing on it while wiggling a finger towards her opponent.
"You still have a long way to go, Yuno-kun!" She called him tauntingly. She started to lower her broom toward the ground, never leaving the boy out of her gaze.
"… I'll get you at the next." The boy looked peeved. He lowered his broom to the ground too.
"Hey! That wasn't bad at all, right?" The youngest amongst them, Rill, commented.
"Yes, it was quite something for the first test. But it's only the beginning." Vangeance answered him. But one thing was clear.
Everyone was looking at them differently.
"For better and worse, this exam will have at least something to look forward to." Charlotte thought to herself.
Aurora was pretty proud of herself on this last move. She totally one-upped Yuno! Her training paid off!
…Well, it had been a total improvisation because Yuno came to her like he was the actual wind (his threads sure were melding with the surrounding mana, but still).
"Don't get too confident, you lowly peasant." A voice said to her. When she looked from where it came, she saw a boy looking at her as if she was some sort of foul creature.
Aurora had never met a noble before. But from the looks of it, she was about to. She could feel his hostility and jealousy.
"Why are you jealous? I was just riding a broom—nothing exceptional about it. The masked Captain said it so too. Were you not listening to him?" Aurora replied simply, hoping to appease the boy.
The boy simply spluttered while others simply gawked at her. She had called one of the captains "Masked captain." Even though this was true, was she crazy?
"Do you have any idea who you're talking to? How dare you think that I, Eloi Bescherel, would be jealous of you?" replied said boy with cropped blue hair.
This time, Aurora decided to trust in her feeling. This guy was far easier to read than Yami Sukehiro.
"Because you actually are? I mean, otherwise, why would you go and talk to me like I've personally insulted your whole legacy?" Aurora countered, frowning. "You're really weird, Eloi Bascherel." She turned her back to him, waiting for the exam to continue. Some of the people around her were snickering.
"Well, shall we continue with the next test?" the golden cloaked Captain spoke up.
Perfect timing. Aurora could feel the anger of the boy reaching a new high. Whatever.
"It's Bescherel, you troglodyte!" Eloi Bescherel fumed.
She turned toward him once more, actually curious.
"What's a troglodyte, Béchamel? Aurora asked him innocently. However, the slight smirk on her face betrayed her intentions. If he wanted to pick a fight, well, she grew up learning the hard way to never let mean-spirited people get away easily. Especially when the person attacking is more bark than bite like this idiot.
People around them were definitely laughing now. The girl was obviously taunting the boy, and he was certainly not used to being talked that way. The way he struggled to come up with a spirited answer made it clear.
"Bescherel! It's Bescherel!" Argued the boy dumbly. Even Asta was more challenging on his most idiotic days…
"Who cares about that anyway?" Aurora continued unperturbed, "Not me. And you shouldn't care neither about that or little old me and focus on the exam. It's why you're here too, right? Do your worst, Bagatelle." she finished with a definitely not lovely smile.
Some of the captains looked at the same girl with renewed interest. A noble was picking a fight with her, and he was the one looking like a fool.
Even though she disliked being the center of attention like that, she loved having the upper hand when arguing even more.
"I'll get you for this, remember!" Eloi Something pointed in her direction before storming off.
Aurora looked at his retreating back, a bit dumbfounded. What kind of idiot actually picked a fight, only to leave when things aren't going his way?
Well, never mind. Aurora had an exam to focus on. Riding a broom had only been the beginning.
The second test Vangeance announced was a magical ability test.
A simple wall of stone appeared before every examinee. Aurora focused and raised a finger. It was the exact same thing she repeatedly trained for six months, after all—minimum input for maximum output. Besides, the wall was static, so that was a simple adjustment and focus of her magical power on the wall's weak point.
She cocked back her arm before swinging it forward in a line, index pointed towards the stone wall. A fine line of magic she focused on the tip flew straight toward the wall and, upon connection, literally shattered it.
Everywhere around her, she saw people destroying it. Some still couldn't muster the power to do it.
Like Asta. "But he is an exception…" Aurora thought ruefully. If the tests were all geared towards measuring your magical ability, then this was the worst possible thing for Asta, who couldn't show off anything like that.
Still, she decided to believe in him. If it's Asta, then he'll pull through this too.
She didn't realize some captains had seen her acceptable performance. Fuegoleon Vermillion looked rather pleased.
"That was some impressive control. This girl focused her power and found the wall's weak point. She appeared to have some talent for it," he commented while fixing the young girl.
"Eh. I'm looking forward to seeing what her ability is." Yami smirked, replying to the other Captain without looking at him, focused on the familiar girl. His guts told him she was had far more than some "talent." "It's the other guy who looked full of promises." He finished while looking at Yuno. His overwhelming power was easy to see. Still…
The other shrimp who dare to bump onto him was kinda funny. He didn't look like he had some powerful magic. In fact, it didn't feel like he had any magic.
Yami's smirk widened. This event is so dull usually…
Vangeance soon announced the third test: a magical control test. Targets were moving in the air at a different speed.
Aurora actually sweatdropped at that.
"Is that for real…?" She thought, disbelieving. That was far too easy?!
Some of the targets were quite fast, so she chose those the other examinees couldn't or would not try to aim, the fastest at mid-high height.
The targets were fast. Not their mana threads. Aurora focused a bit and simply followed the lazy trail of mana emanating from each of the eight she looked at.
Just by anticipating the thread movement, she'd hit them dead center without much effort. She put her right hand into position. She fisted her hand before raising her thumb above her fist and stretched her index out, aiming at the first target with it.
Such a position didn't serve at anything. It was totally useless. But Aurora thought it was awesome, and she liked doing it.
"The hell is she doing with her finger now? She looks so lame! Ke-ke-ke!" Jack laughed, looking at the small girl in amusement...
...Before she aimed and struck true at the eight targets in quick succession, dead center. For good measure, she actually blows on her finger and smiled, proud of herself. The other examinees around her looked at her like she was a weirdo.
"…The hell?" Jack murmured, dumbfounded. He actually looked surprised for once. Perhaps that finger gesture had some meaning, after all.
Yami laughed out loud. "She's so lame!" he guffawed. Charlotte looked at him critically. Sure, that performance was cringy, but the result was impressive. Yami was a fool for not noticing it. Or perhaps he did and was waiting to invite her to the Black Bulls.
"Focus, Charlotte!" she mentally scolded herself, turning her head away from the handsome idiot still snickering to refocus on the exam.
The fourth test was a test of magic creation. That was bad; Aurora had no talent in anything artistic. And she couldn't create anything with her Time Magic either.
So, she did the only thing she thought she could pull off. Mustering her magic on her finger, she willed the mana to take form in the air, like one would try to draw on the sky, except for her, some white-ish line appeared where she focused.
"Oh! That's really cool!" Rill saw her and commented. A fellow artist, maybe?
It looks like she was the only one to think about that technique, she mused while looking around. Dang, some people were outstanding. A guy made a bird out of his flame; the one near Asta made a miniature representation of himself with his magic. Yuno made a great eagle of wind. So cool! If this wasn't an exam, she'd be trying to talk magic with all those people.
But no, here she was, drawing some crude representation of Father Orsi's face in the sky. This wasn't looking much, so she decided to add some speech next to it.
Asta, you fool! She wrote. She added the wiggling index of Father.
"Why did you draw Father Orsi like that?" Yuno appeared next to him. He was smiling just a little, still holding a masterpiece made of wind. She tried and managed not to ask him the specifics or look jealous over how incredible and alive it looked. Yes, she'd take Father Orsi over his wonderful creation any day!
"Oh! You recognized him!" Aurora exclaimed. She honestly was kinda pleased he managed to.
"Well, the text next to it is the best part. Very like Father." Yuno smirked.
"Definitely!" She was all smiles now.
Far from here, a priest sneezed.
"Bless you, Father!"
"Thank you, Aruru! Was Asta speaking ill about me?" Father Orsi wondered aloud. "This fool... I hope he's alright… Not that I miss him or anything!"
"Everyone! Father is missing Asta!"
"I'm not! Get back here, you little rascal!"
The following test was a Developmental Magic Test.
"What a mouthful." Each of the candidates was handed a seed. A tiny seed that looked more dead than alive, Aurora remarked while staring at the thing in her left palm. They were told to make something of it.
Aurora smiled. Now, that was a proper test! Not bragging or anything, but the others were far too easy. Even in the creative department, she did not lose (in her opinion). This one looked amusing.
A seed was nothing more than a core of something. And no matter what the living thing is, it's made of mana. Aurora never actually tried to directly transfer her mana or the surrounding one to another living thing. She decided to use a bit of her element, time, to make things more interesting.
She focused and sensed the core of the seed, like a cup waiting to be filled. She willed the surrounding mana around her, and very carefully, she began to pour the mana into the cup, willing it not to overflow. About the two-third were filled, and already, she could feel the core drumming with life. A white trunk about two feet tall appeared in her hand.
Still focusing, she put the seed on the ground, and this time, she willed her own mana, coming deep from herself to the surface. She saw it trying to meld with the mana of the arena, but she led the controlled mana to the core, filling the last third nearly to the brim.
She feels the power overflowing. Perhaps adding an accelerated element to the mana had not been a great idea…
The tree suddenly sprouted. Short forms, such as I, II, III… started to turn quite quickly around the bluish-white tree. Aurora read in a book these were numbers written in an ancient language.
"Magic is really amazing…."
Lost again in her own world of a magic fanatic, she failed to notice Yuno completed the exam with more or less the same result as her.
Or the captains looked on with interest at her tree.
"Numbers…? Don't tell me her magic is…" Nozel wondered, looking on Aurora, who had a blissful smile on her face. A mere peasant with such powerful magic? He looked at the four-leaf clover wielder. Two of them?
"I knew it… This girl wields time magic, too…" Yami mumbled.
"That's kinda amazing," Finral commented. "These two really are on top of the curve this year."
"Yeah, but the most interesting test is coming," Yami replied. For once, he actually looked forward to it. As if on cue, Vangeance rose from his seat.
"All right. The next exam shall be the final one." He announced to the tense crowd in the arena. "You will engage in actual combat."
"What?"
"Fighting?"
"Is this for real…? How?"
Many expressed their disbelief. Aurora was looking forward to it.
"Looks like I was right, after all. Knowing them, Yuno and especially Asta, with his circumstances, must have waited all day for something like this." she thought. She was the same, but certainly for a different reason. After all, no matter the form the fight would take, it was the absolutely perfect chance to see lots of other magic!
"You will be battling!" Fuegoleon Vermilion suddenly exclaimed, rising for his seat. He was instantly garnering everyone's attention again. "You will pair off and fight with your chosen opponent. You may use your grimoire to attack. Fighting is our duty as Magic Knights!" The Captain went on to explain. "Use this opportunity to show us your real abilities!"
"Yeah, show me your magic!" Aurora thought. "No need to be shy now!" Such were her rather self-centered thoughts as people were still listening to the Captains.
"As soon as one of you yields or is incapacitated, the duel will be over," Vangeance announced. He sounded more subdued than his hot-blooded colleague. "There will be mages who can use healing magic on standby."
"So everyone here: fight to your heart's content!" encouraged the Crimson Lion Captain.
It seems it did the trick because everyone was now mingling to find a partner against whom they hoped they'd be able to demonstrate their abilities.
Aurora was left alone. No one wanted to approach her. When she tried to speak to people, they'd flee on sight.
Why? Did her breath smelled bad or something?
She noticed Asta was pairing with the guy who stuck with him during the exam. He looked fishy. She could smell his fishiness through his threads. Well, he's going to get it anyway. With his sword, Asta will definitely send him flying. Or crush him on the ground. "Go for it, Asta...! I know you can do it!" Aurora tried to send positive thoughts to her friend. He definitely needed the advertisement, so she hoped for either of these scenarios with all her might.
Not too far from Asta, a noble seemed to have a beef with Yuno, so both were out.
But in the same beat, someone called out to her.
That particular voice… And this feeling she had while hearing it… It could only be...!
Thanks for reading! The next part is coming very soon!