Up above, William Vangeance announced the next phase of the exam.
“We will now proceed through the core magical evaluations!
Second test: Magic Power Output!
Strike the target wall in front of you with your strongest spell!”
A thick stone wall rose before each examinee.
Asta stood with his arms crossed, eyes closed.
I have my physical strength and chakra, but I can’t launch a ranged magic blast at a wall.
“Third test: Magic Control!
Alter the movement of a single target sheet!”
Asta kept his arms crossed, his face darkening slightly.
I briefly considered using sheer lung capacity to blow the paper into the sky, but decided against acting like a circus act.
“Fourth test: Creation Magic!
Shape your mana into an object!”
Asta’s neck veins bulged slightly.
How many useless tests are there?!
Up on the balcony, Yami’s facial muscles twitched as he watched Asta stand completely motionless through test after test.
Where did that beast-like aura from earlier go?!
Is this kid really going to stand there like a statue until the exam ends?
“Kukuku…
I was actually expecting something,” Jack the Ripper laughed.
“Turns out he was all talk.”
“Tch…
I feel like putting a countdown on his life,” Yami muttered, pulling out another cigarette.
Finally, William Vangeance stepped forward again.
“We will now proceed to the final evaluation: Real Combat!”
Fuegoleon Vermillion stood up, his fiery aura flaring with excitement.
“Nothing reveals a mage’s true worth better than battle!
Two examinees per match!
Fight until one surrenders or is rendered unable to battle!
Our recovery mages are on standby, so hold nothing back!”
The arena immediately burst into chaotic chatter as examinees scrambled to find opponents.
Choosing the right rival was crucial—pick someone too strong, and you’d look pathetic; pick someone too weak, and the Captains wouldn’t be impressed.
Sekke, who had been watching Asta fail every single magical test, smiled like a victorious general.
He walked up to Asta, placing a hand on his shoulder in a condescending manner.
“Bah-ha!
Worried about not finding an opponent, kid?
Don’t worry, I’ll step up and fight you!”
Asta glanced at Sekke’s hand, flicking his sleeve with utter disgust.
“Get your hand off me.
You bronze-level white lotus bitch, if you want to ruin your own chances, don’t drag me down with you.”
Sekke’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“W-What did you call me?!
I’m trying to help you, bah-ha!”
“Ha!
Thanks a lot,” Asta scoffed.
“You’ve given me at least thirty-five fake smiles with that shoehorn-shaped face since we got here, and now you’re acting like a saint?
But if you’re that eager to end your remaining life early, I don’t mind breaking your ribs right here.”
“You arrogant peasant!” Sekke snarled, his polite facade shattering instantly.
“Your life is as low as a sewer rat’s!”
“As expected of a fake—provoked in a single sentence,” Asta snorted coldly.
Seeing Sekke’s eyes turn venomous, Asta narrowed his own, releasing a fraction of his pure, heavy killing intent and physical pressure.
Sekke’s hair stood on end.
A wave of ice-cold terror washed over him, choking the breath right out of his lungs.
“Y-You…” Sekke stumbled backward, his knees trembling violently.
Swallowing hard, he didn’t dare utter another word and scrambled away into the crowd as fast as his legs could carry him.
With Sekke gone, Asta looked around for a proper opponent.
To catch the Captains’ attention after skipping all the magical tests, he needed to fight someone top-tier.
But none of the arrogant nobles would risk fighting a magicless peasant—until his eyes locked onto Yuno across the arena.
At the same time, Yuno turned toward Asta, their gazes locking in silent agreement.
However, before Yuno could step forward, Salim de Hapshass—a wealthy noble youth—stepped into his path with a cocky smirk.
“Your name is Yuno, right?
I heard you’re at the top of everyone’s watch list.
You must be having trouble finding a worthy opponent.
How about I grant you the honor of fighting me?”
“Get out of the way,” Yuno said coldly, not even slowing his stride.
Salim’s face contorted in anger.
“What?!
Do you think a noble like me isn’t good enough for a peasant like you?!”
“Think whatever you want,” Yuno replied smoothly, walking right past him.
“You’re not worthy of being compared to the opponent I’ve already chosen.”
The crowd gasped in shock.
“He just rejected Salim of the Hapshass family?!”
“Is he crazy?
Who could he possibly be planning to fight?!”
The examinees parted like the Red Sea as Yuno walked straight toward the center of the arena.
Coming from the opposite side, Asta stepped forward to meet him, his hands resting casually at his sides.
The arena fell dead silent as everyone realized who Yuno was facing.
“Is it him?!”
“The guy who couldn’t even lift a broom?!”
“Is Yuno insane?!”
Standing face-to-face in the ring, Asta and Yuno locked eyes, both of their battle spirits erupting at once.
“Let me see how much you’ve grown, Yuno,” Asta said with a calm smirk.
“Don’t hold back, Asta,” Yuno replied softly, his four-leaf grimoire hovering into the air.
Up on the balcony, Fuegoleon Vermillion stroked his chin as he looked down at the ring.
“Hmm…
is the four-leaf kid covering for his friend because he has no magic?
I don’t see anything special about him other than him having no magic and his abnormal strength.”
Standing face-to-face in the center of the arena, Asta and Yuno locked eyes, the air between them thick with intense battle spirit.
Yuno was the first to make a move.
Drawing upon his vast mana reserves, he unleashed five massive tornadoes simultaneously—a devastating Wind Magic: Storm Tower Five-Hit Combo that swept across the entire ring, locking Asta in a wall of raging winds!
Faced with this overwhelming storm, Asta drew the Demon-Slayer Sword from his grimoire.
With quiet focus, he opened the first two gates of the Eight Inner Gates: the Gate of Opening and the Gate of Rest.
Crimson and pale-green aura burst forth from his body like a roaring fire.
With a single, explosive full-force swing of his heavy blade, the raw physical force and anti-magic edge shattered all five tornadoes at once, collapsing Yuno’s storm in an instant!
Before the dust could even settle, Asta leaped forward to finish the match, but Yuno was no longer in front of him.
Following his sharp combat instincts, Asta felt a sudden surge of air pressure right behind him.
He instantly whipped his massive sword around to guard his body, but the sheer force of a point-blank wind blast tore through his defenses, shredding his sleeves and blasting him backward across the floor.
Capitalizing on the distance, Yuno kicked off the ground and used wind pressure to float high into the air, establishing aerial dominance to keep Asta out of melee range.
It was a brilliant tactical maneuver, but Yuno had severely underestimated Asta’s jump height.
Without holding back, Asta exploded off the ground at full speed, clearing two stories of vertical height in a single bound.
Soaring through the air above Yuno, Asta brought the flat of the heavy Demon-Slayer Sword down in a single decisive swing, knocking Yuno straight back down to the arena floor and bringing the match to an immediate end!
Up on the balcony, the Nine Captains watched the end of the match in absolute silence before the venue erupted into shock.
“He shattered five high-tier wind spells, airborne maneuvers, and won with raw physical force?!”
“What kind of monster is this kid?!”
“This year’s rookies are truly full of surprises,” Fuegoleon laughed heartily, his blood pumping at the display.
“But he didn’t use a single spell,” Jack the Ripper pointed out, clicking his tongue.
“A mage without magic power is a contradiction.
Physical prowess has its limits in the long run.”
Yami grinned broadly, exhaling a thick ring of smoke.
If none of you want a kid who can demolish a mountain with his bare hands, that just leaves him all for me.
Down in the ring, Yuno got up with a bitter smile, his mana completely spent.
“Looks like I lost again, Asta.”
Asta sheathed his heavy blade and closed his inner gates, offering a hand to Yuno.
Around them, the examinees who had mocked him earlier hung their heads in shame.
As the sun began to set, the remaining combat matches concluded, and the proctor stepped forward to address the crowd.
“The examination is now complete!
We will now begin the final selection.
Candidates will be called forward in order of their examinee numbers.
If one or more Captains wish to recruit you, they will raise their hands.
If no hands are raised, you are disqualified and must leave immediately!”
Charlotte Roselei stepped up to the front of the balcony, her icy gaze sweeping over the crowd.
“Let the selection begin!”