Volume 1: Enrollment at Magias Academy of Magical Arts
Chapter 4: He Wants to Make Friends With All of You Too!
To tell the truth, I wasn’t especially worried about the written exam because I’d spent what little time I had preparing with Aunt Coffey.
The problem was the practical examination coming next.
From what I’d heard, it followed a format similar to a physical fitness test in my old world.
Things resembling a hundred-meter sprint or a grip-strength test would be performed using magic instead.
In other words, achieving a high score was difficult, but the tasks themselves weren’t. The trouble was that there were many possible tests and no fixed selection, so we hadn’t been able to prepare for everything.
After leaving the written examination venue, I now stood in a training ground roughly the size of a gymnasium.
Only around eighty people remained, including me.
Several thousand people had gathered on this campus today, but everyone else had already gone home.
That’s so few.
Just how many had been eliminated during the document screening and written exam?
Aunt Coffey said an average of forty people passed. Maybe my odds weren’t so bad after all.
“Oh, it’s you.”
While I waited for the next test to begin, the girl beside me spoke. The voice sounded familiar, and when I looked, I saw the droopy-eyed girl I’d met that morning.
“You made it through.”
“Y-Yeah.”
“Huh.”
Apparently uninterested in any further conversation, she turned and stared into empty space.
Should I offer a topic myself?
As I entertained that foolish thought, a man wearing glasses entered the training ground.
“All personnel, attention.”
At the new examiner’s brief order, everyone present snapped to attention—including the girl who’d been absentmindedly staring into space. Copying the others, I assumed the same posture a few seconds late.
“We will now begin the Maximum Instantaneous Magical Coefficient Measurement Test.”
Sorry, the what?
“Numbers twenty-seven, fifty-five, sixty-one, and sixty-six. Form a line in that order.”
At the examiner’s minimal instruction, four candidates smoothly stepped forward. The first received a small device resembling a grip-strength meter from the instructor.
What is that? How do you use it?
I never saw anything like it at Grandpa’s house.
I don’t remember Aunt Coffey mentioning it either.
Could it actually be a grip-strength meter?
No. I should just ask.
I quietly addressed the droopy-eyed girl, the only person here whose face I knew.
“Sorry. How do you use that?”
“What?”
“Please tell me.”
“…Are you serious?”
Her expression didn’t change, but she couldn’t conceal her disbelief.
“You hold it and channel the mana you’ve gathered into it. It measures the theoretical power of a spell when activated.”
I see.
So it literally measured the amount of magical power someone could unleash in an instant.
“Number twenty-seven, seventy-two points. Number fifty-five, sixty-six points. Number sixty-one, seventy-five points. Number sixty-six, one hundred and two points.”
Voices of admiration rose around us.
I assumed exceeding a hundred was a good score.
“How high are those numbers?”
“The average for people our age is fifty.”
I see.
Then the level here really was high.
That was the entrance exam for Magias, I supposed.
“Thanks. Want a piece of candy?”
“No.”
I offered her some candy Aunt Coffey had given me, but she wouldn’t even entertain the idea.
“Number one hundred and eleven, Filiestra Addison. Three hundred and twenty-five points.”
An even louder cheer rose.
The girl who’d scored over three hundred had pale blond hair.
She was a young female applicant with a short bob and a refined-looking face.
Her slender, almost fragile appearance belied power six times the average. Calling that gorilla territory would hardly be an exaggeration.
Or so I thought, but several people soon proved there were always greater monsters.
“Number one hundred and twenty-two, Gary Rock. Seven hundred and eighty points.”
“Number one hundred and thirty, Luluk Lulu Lunlun. Seven hundred and eighty-five points.”
The two consecutive high scores sent a stir through the venue.
The candidates who’d scored in the double digits earlier now looked like allied characters who’d failed to keep up with the story’s power inflation. Yet most candidates scored in the upper double digits, and even among those who’d come this far, fewer than one in five exceeded a hundred.
Then, some time after the test began, she appeared.
“Number five hundred and six, Mercedes Meltzeria. Nine hundred and eighty points.”
An applicant with a name like a luxury car produced the highest score so far, drawing cheers from nearly everyone.
She was a brown-haired girl wearing her hair half-up, with a fearless smile on her face.
“Amazing.”
The droopy-eyed girl murmured beside me.
She hadn’t reacted to any previous score, but even this surprised her.
Several more candidates scored highly afterward, but not one surpassed the luxury-car girl.
Incidentally, Droopy Eyes was named Amae Vandenberg, and she scored five hundred and five points.
Ten times the average.
Ten times. Seriously.
Still, judging by what I’d seen, I had a feeling I could score quite well on this test.
By working backward from their results, I had a rough idea how much I could produce.
Maybe I should prepare myself now for everyone to shriek, “Is that guy a monster!?”
Amae would probably shriek too.
Behold… my magical coefficient…
“Number seven hundred and seven, step forward.”
Apparently, I was the odd one out, so I stood alone.
Everyone’s attention gathered on me, but I was no longer nervous.
All I had to do was give it everything I had.
“…Wait.”
“What?”
“Number seven hundred and seven, hand me the instrument.”
“O-Okay.”
I gave the bespectacled examiner the metallic device.
He frowned ever so slightly and grunted, “Hmm.”
“Equipment malfunction. Number seven hundred and seven will wait for now.”
“What?”
“Everyone else, proceed swiftly to the next venue.”
At the brief instruction, all the other candidates began moving.
Apparently, they needed a new measuring device.
Was I about to be left behind all by myself?
“See you.”
Only the droopy-eyed applicant—Amae—said anything to me before everyone quickly disappeared.
In the end, the replacement instrument didn’t arrive for about twenty minutes. During that time, the bespectacled examiner and I didn’t speak.
“Very well, Brendan. Resume the test.”
“…Y-Yes…”
I generated mana within my body and channeled every last bit of it into the instrument. I went at it with enough force to shatter the measuring device like something from a battle manga, but it didn’t actually break.
Incidentally, the examiner was tracking the numbers on a receiver and writing them all down on paper.
I’d have to ask him to learn my score.
Had I done it properly?
I would’ve preferred to display my power in front of everyone, but there was nothing I could do about that now.
“I’m finished.”
“Hmm? I see. Let’s have a look…”
The examiner stared at the receiver for several seconds, then silently wrote something on the form.
“Good. This test is complete. Proceed to the next venue.”
Tell me the score! Of course I want to know!
“The next venue is directly beside this one. I apologize for our error, but you should hurry.”
W-Well, I didn’t know what I’d scored, but it couldn’t have been too bad. There were several practical tests left. I should focus on the next one.
I jogged toward the following venue.
Only a sharp-eyed female examiner awaited me. No one else remained.
“You’re number seven hundred and seven! You’re late! What the hell have you been doing!?”
She shouted the instant I arrived.
She had a youthful face, but seemed stricter than the previous two examiners.
“Sorry. An instrument malfunction delayed me.”
“You mocking me!?”
“No, ma’am.”
“You mocking me!?”
“No, ma’am.”
This school had a lot of strange examiners.
“This is the Magical Conversion Efficiency Test! Get it done fast and catch up with the others!”
Thank goodness.
I knew this one.
The goal was simply to minimize energy loss when converting my blood into mana.
I received an instrument similar to the last one. This time, instead of releasing the mana, I simply gathered it. Grandpa had made me practice this almost to death, and I repeated the exercise every day, so it was one of my strengths.
“I’m finished.”
“Good! Hurry to the next one!”
Several more tests followed, but in the end, I never caught up with the others before the final practical.
Well, it wasn’t as though I minded.
“This is the Specialized Magic Examination.”
My final examiner was a tall, blond man wearing a monocle.
To put it plainly, he was handsome.
“Display one spell at which you excel, using an appropriate scale and level of power for this location, and prove your worth as a mage.”
In other words, show him my specialty.
This particular test took place every year, so I’d prepared for it.
“I was told I could submit the results of my research instead.”
“That is acceptable. Show me.”
I removed an unsheathed straight sword from the long, narrow bag I’d been carrying.
The delivery of the specialized wood for its scabbard hadn’t arrived in time, but that couldn’t be helped.
“A magic sword.”
The examiner took the deep-violet blade and inspected it closely.
My magical specialty was Refinement.
It referred to smithing that incorporated magical processes, primarily the creation of magic swords.
This secret Walker family art governed fire and earth, and it was the magic that represented me better than any other. I was classified as a magical blacksmith.
“Here are the detailed materials.”
“I accept them.”
“Where is everyone else?”
“They were all dismissed a short while ago.”
“O-Oh…”
So, in the end, I’d finished as though I were taking the exam alone in a separate room. I didn’t mind, but it still left me feeling strangely forlorn.
“This completes every stage of the examination, Walker. You may return home and rest for today.”
The practical exam ended without my ever gaining a clear sense of whether I’d done well.
◇
As I trudged alone toward the school gate, I found Aunt Coffey waiting in front of the campus. Apparently, she’d come to pick me up.
“Great work, Bren. How was the exam?”
“Some equipment malfunctioned, so I got to take almost the whole thing alone.”
“Huh. Think you passed?”
“Probably.”
“Probably” was the only answer I could give, but I didn’t feel that I’d made any mistakes in the practical. I’d given it everything I had.
“Did you make any acquaintances?”
“…No. Not at all.”
“W-Well, you can make friends after you enroll—wait, aren’t those the others?”
In the direction Aunt Coffey pointed, a group of more than a dozen candidates who’d remained through the practical was indeed walking together.
I couldn’t remember every member’s name, but the faces of those with the highest magical coefficients were impossible to miss. The test should’ve ended, yet they were still talking together.
“Great work today, everyone! Thanks to all of you, I managed to give it everything I had!”
A cheerful-looking applicant addressed the group.
“Let’s all meet on this campus next month!”
They’re getting really excited without me.
Getting really excited without me should be against the law.
“Bren, if you want to join them, why not ask now?”
I frowned at my aunt’s suggestion.
I wanted to, but timing mattered. Diving into that circle now was a hurdle too high for me.
“Oh, honestly. Leave this to your aunt.”
What?
Before I even had time to ask, Aunt Coffey suddenly waved toward them.
“Hey, all of you! You took the Magias entrance exam, right!?”
“A-Aunt…”
“He wants to make friends with all of you too! Can he join you!? Don’t worry! He’s a very good kid!”
“U-Uwaaaah! Stop!”
I grabbed my aunt’s hand and fled the scene at a run.
It sounded as though the celebration group responded with something, but I couldn’t possibly look back.
◇
The applicants left behind stared blankly after the pair for a while.
“…What was that?”
The one who voiced his confusion was the boy who’d just given his farewell speech to the other candidates.
A young red-haired woman and a boy with burnt-brown hair.
He silently watched the two shrinking figures.
They had shouted something from a distance, but he hadn’t been able to hear clearly.
More importantly, had an applicant like that boy even been among them?
“It seems our conversation is finished, so I believe I shall take my leave.”
The one who broke the silence was an applicant with deep chestnut hair. Wearing a smile on her still-youthful yet beautiful face, she slowly departed.
Another applicant called out to her elegant, perfectly straight back.
“Ah, Miss Meltzeria!”
“Yes?”
“We’re going out to celebrate with everyone who became friends today. Would you like to join us?”
The girl called Meltzeria chuckled and answered without losing her smile.
“Thank you. But I’ve grown tired today. If you don’t mind, perhaps you could invite me another time?”
“S-Sure! I know I’ve definitely passed! Let’s go out together after we enroll!”
“Although I don’t imagine you’ll enter the same faculty as me.”
“What?”
“No, it was nothing.”
Mercedes Meltzeria shook her head and offered a benevolent smile.
Leaving the captivated boy behind, she departed the campus alone.
“Hee-hee.”
Meltzeria couldn’t suppress a laugh at the suggestion that they celebrate before the results had even been released. She couldn’t understand how anyone could be carefree enough to propose such a thing.
She had no idea which applicant number that boy held or even who he was, but apparently he knew her name.
Not that it mattered.
More importantly, the red-haired woman from earlier had looked familiar. Meltzeria believed she’d seen that face at a royal ceremony commemorating the nation’s founding.
The name was Coffey Dreadroll.
She strongly resembled the mage known by that name around the capital.
But it was probably her imagination.
One of the nation’s supreme military assets—a Grand Mage—would never come to a place like this merely to accompany an entrance-exam candidate.
By the time Meltzeria reached her family’s secondary residence, she’d already forgotten the inconspicuous applicant who carried the air of the countryside.
◇
One week after the exam.
In Aunt Coffey’s living room, where she was letting me stay, I sat across from an envelope delivered by Magias.
The exam results had arrived by express courier just moments ago.
All I had to do was look.
The decision had been sudden, but I’d made every effort possible at the time. If I’d failed, I’d quietly return to the countryside and consider another path.
“G-Go on. Open it.”
“R-Right…”
Beside me, Aunt Coffey nudged me with her elbow.
She’d kept saying the exam would be easy, but even she seemed uncharacteristically nervous.
I carefully broke the seal and removed the documents inside.
Slowly, I lowered my gaze to the first sentence.
“Mr. Brendan Walker,
Following a rigorous selection examination, you have been recognized as qualified for admission to Magias Academy of Magical Arts.
This notice certifies that your magical aptitude, theoretical understanding, and practical combat ability exceed the standards required for acceptance.
Assignment:
Grand Magical Emperor Faculty
Fundamental Magical Arts Course
Remarks:
This faculty serves as the heart of our nation’s advanced magical technology and aims to cultivate the next generation of Grand Mages. While enrolled, you will bear the following obligations:
• Regular submission of research results
• Participation in hazardous field assignments and national defense
• Observance of confidentiality concerning state secrets
• Absolute obedience to the Code of Magical Ethics
Violations may result in expulsion, revocation of qualifications, and punishment by the State of Griefia.
Further details are provided in separate materials.
We welcome your enrollment.
Oldion Raves
Principal, Magias Academy of Magical Arts”
Only after reading the final character did I realize I’d been holding my breath the entire time.
“I-I passed…”
“Well done! That’s my nephew!”
Even my aunt’s praise sounded distant.
All the time I’d foolishly devoted to improving my magic simply because I loved it had borne fruit. This also proved that Grandpa’s education had been entirely correct.
“But what is this Grand Magical Emperor Faculty?”
“It’s a special faculty reserved for the highest-scoring students! You’ll receive every possible privilege while enrolled!”
In other words, I must have achieved a remarkably good result. I’d hardly ever compared myself with others in my life, and my self-esteem was currently soaring.
“You can study not only your own specialty, but many different fields at an advanced level! Be happier!”
“O-Oh…”
“Students in the Emperor Faculty receive private research rooms, and the school throws an absurd amount of research money at them! You can forge magic swords all day in whatever environment you like! On the school’s coin!”
“O-Oooooooooh!”
That was incredible.
All I could think was how glad I was to have followed my aunt’s advice. Could a person’s life really change so completely in a single week?
“They emphasize practical experience, so you’ll occasionally be sent on dangerous missions.”
“What?”
“No educational institution in this country surpasses it!”
“O-Oooooooooh!”
“We’re celebrating tonight, Bren! Change your clothes, and we’ll go eat a feast!”
“Thank you, Aunt Coffey! I’m so glad I listened to you!”
“You did well too, especially with almost no preparation!”
And so, I officially passed the entrance examination for Magias Academy of Magical Arts.
You could say I was simply carried away by excitement.
I’d hardly considered the words Grandpa spoke on his deathbed. I assumed that what awaited me was the ordinary school life most people would imagine.
At least, I did at the time.
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