"Enter the circle when you are ready to begin." Tokimichi says as he exudes a deadly battle-ready energy. His killing intent causes Jin's legs to shake and quiver. His cowardly instincts take over. Every single muscle in his body tells him to run as fast as he can. Jin falls to his butt in fear. His teeth clenched.
After a moment of hesitation, he closes his eyes and fights against every urge in his body to get back to his feet. Tokimichi's eyes sharpen like a hawk's. Jin hesitates before he lifts his foot and steps into the circle, slowly and steady. After he has fully entered the circle, Tokimichi drops the intense pressure completely.
"I apologize. As proctors, we are required to test your skills. And to me, courage is one of the strongest skills you could have." Tokimichi says as he smiles at Jin. Jin looks up at him dumbfounded, as if his entire struggle meant nothing. Tokimichi reaches down and draws his sword, revealing a wooden counterpart.
"Wh-When did you get a wooden sword?" Jin questions in shock while looking at the wooden replica in Tokimichi's hands. Tokimichi grins and rubs his finger under his nose.
"I swapped it out in the middle of our walk here. I moved faster than you could see, and it looked as if nothing happened." Tokimichi explains with a wide grin. Jin reaches back and draws his own sword. The hefty blade coming out of the scabbard with a short, strained breath.
"I don't have a wooden sword, what if I hurt you?" Jin asks. Tokimichi snorts.
"Hurt me? Boy you would have to be wielding The Blade Of The Sun to wound me at your level of skill with a blade. Do not hesitate. Attack with everything you've got." Tokimichi commands with a sweep of his hand. Jin nods and gets ready.
Jin jumps in to attack him, swinging his blade wide. But Tokimichi blocks it with ease, the wooden sword not even scratched.
"H-How?" Jin asks. Tokimichi gives him no time to think before he makes a quick slash at Jin in return. Jin only barely manages to hold his blade up to block it.
Sparks fly as Jin's blade takes a heavy blow from the wooden sword of Tokimichi. Tokimichi takes the offensive and strikes at high speeds. Jin only manages to block most of them, with the occasional attack getting through and hitting his skin.
"The blade does not make the man, boy. Focus." Tokimichi says. Jin clenches his teeth and manages to parry off Tokimichi's blade. The sound rings out as Jin realizes he had successfully stopped Tokimichi's attack. He uses the momentum to raise his blade high, but by the time he's ready to slam it down, Tokimichi presses the wooden tip of his blade against Jin's chest and pushes him back.
Dust flies up and Jin loses grip of his sword.
###
Marim paces back and forth in thought. She gnaws on her nails. Lileen sighs and looks at the clock on the wall.
"It's taking quite long. I hope he's doing okay." Lileen says, worriedly. Marim's pulled from her thoughts with a flinch.
"Oh yeah. I'm not worried. I taught him. He's probably in there kicking ass!" Marim says while fidgeting and shifting nervously. Lileen does not seem convinced by Marim's display of confidence.
"I am worried as well, Mar. Come sit and breathe with me." Lileen pats the seat beside her. Marim quickly plops down beside her, then runs her hand through her hair.
"Why is it taking so long? He couldn't have failed the test, right? They wouldn't have kept him in so long if that was the case." Marim asks as Lileen takes her own deep breath.
"Yes. They probably are still testing him. I doubt he's failed yet. But that doesn't mean he couldn't still fail." Lileen says, seemingly calm and unfazed. The receptionist looks at them with a professional smile that masks her pity.
Suddenly, the door to the back areas opens up and Tokimichi steps out with Jin thrown over his shoulder. Marim looks at the two with shock then gets up to run over only for Lileen to bolt past her and grab Jin with dramatic cries.
"Ah! Jin! Are you okay?!" She yelps; her calm facade broken. Marim smiles warmly and walks up.
"What happened to the brat?" She asks Tokimichi. Tokimichi looks down at the black-haired girl in front of him.
"He dropped his sword on himself." Tokimichi says casually. Both Marim and Lileen sigh at the thought, nodding that it was very likely the truth.
"And did he pass?" Marim asks. Tokimichi remains silent for a moment, his expression unreadable. Lileen, though applying healing spells, still listens intently.
Tokimichi speaks aloud to both of them. Marim and Lileen's eyes go wide. Lileen sheds a tear and wipes some dirt from Jin's cheek.
###
When Jin comes to, he's in the familiar bed of the inn that he stays at with Marim and Lileen. He sits up but a headache strikes him. He remembers the training session he had with Tokimichi, but the ending gets blurry for him.
He looks around the dark room, the curtains drawn shut. Over by the table, Lileen pours over a scroll by candlelight. Marim was nowhere to be seen.
"Lileen?" Jin calls out weakly as he gets out of the bed dizzily. Lileen peers over at him then turns back to her scroll.
"Good evening, Jin. How did you sleep?" She asks fondly. Jin sits in the seat beside her with a hand on his head.
"Uhm, it was okay. But wasn't I taking the adventurer's test? What happened?" Jin looks up at her for answers, her face focused on her scroll. She hesitates to look at Jin, fearful she might reveal too much if she saw his eyes.
Suddenly, Marim bursts out of the door leading to the bathroom, stark naked. She laughs and walks up to Lileen and Jin.
"Hey Jin! Lileen, what do you think we should do for-" she says casually until she realizes Jin was awake and present. She flinches then continues on, pretending it was intentional.
"What should we do for my birthday coming up soon? You know, the third of Gryfol. In a couple of weeks." She says, a redness growing in her cheeks. Lileen looks at her for a moment then sighs and covers Jin's eyes.
"Go put on clothes, you barbarian. Then we can talk." Lileen states. Marim flushes a deep red, having reached her limit, and covers herself as best as she can as she heads back towards the bathroom.
Lileen leaves her hands over Jin's eyes. Jin reaches up to remove them, but she whispers in his ear, causing him to flinch.
"Keep them closed. Me and Mar have something to show you." Lileen giggles.