"…And that concludes the explanation of the Artificer Exam rules. Any questions?"
Floating lazily beside the teleportation circle, Latina chewed bubblegum as her magically-enhanced voice echoed throughout the plaza.
The gathered students exchanged uneasy glances.
Each year's Artificer Exam was famously unpredictable, often allowing open competition among students—but rarely had it ever been this explicitly ruthless.
The goal was simple: Artifact Retrieval.
Numerous marked artifacts would be scattered throughout the exam area—a remote mountain region. Candidates merely needed to retrieve any marked artifact and deliver it safely to the examiners.
Simple enough—but the real twist was Latina's casual, almost afterthought announcement:
"By any means necessary."
That one phrase hung ominously over everyone's heads.
There were no restrictions on methods, meaning anything was permitted—finding them in the wild, picking them up after battles… or simply stealing from other candidates.
Although the exam traditionally emphasized artifact craftsmanship and ingenuity, this blatant encouragement of sabotage and theft was unprecedented.
The atmosphere quickly turned hostile, wary glances darting among students. Some quickly grouped up, silently forming alliances—teaming up was, after all, another valid method.
In stark contrast, three students who'd clearly come together from the start stood out sharply—mostly because only one carried the candidate's teleportation marker.
Linen glanced sideways at Elena, whose small hands trembled nervously, and seized the opportunity to deliver some biting encouragement.
"Pathetic. If you're already this scared before it even begins, you might as well drop out now. You're not going to pass like that."
Elena's eyes widened briefly before determination flickered across her face. She clenched her fists, head lowered thoughtfully.
Linen's right. If I let fear defeat me now, I've already lost. I need to stay focused.
Thank you, Linen.
Hysteria, hearing this harsh remark, glared furiously at Linen and quickly wrapped an arm protectively around Elena's shoulder, shouting defiantly, "Don't listen to him, Elena! If anyone dares bully you inside, just remember their face. I'll beat them senseless afterward!"
Her loud, aggressive proclamation instantly attracted numerous stares. Many students marked Elena as an easy target, immediately dismissing her as weak and overly dependent on her seemingly reckless friend.
If her backup is just a loudmouth [First-Ring] nobody, she can't be much herself. Eliminate her first!
"I… think I might've made it worse," Hysteria muttered sheepishly, scratching her head.
"You truly are a genius," Linen whispered admiringly, genuinely regretting not coming up with such an effective method to sabotage Elena himself.
Elena smiled helplessly, gently pushing them apart as the teleportation gate began to open.
"Alright, you two, settle down. Don't worry, have some faith in me. The exam's about to start, so you should both wait over there."
"Why are you lecturing me and not him?" Hysteria protested indignantly.
"Why would I scold Linen? I should thank him—" Elena replied softly, making both Linen and Hysteria grimace simultaneously for very different reasons.
"I'd rather not stay near Princess Hysteria anymore. I'd prefer not attracting unnecessary hatred," Linen sighed exaggeratedly. "Your bold threats afterward will be meaningless anyway."
"W-what was that? Who wants to stick with you, anyway!"
But then, something clicked in Hysteria's mind.
Threats after the exam might be meaningless—but threats during the exam…!
With newfound determination, she suddenly stuck out her tongue and turned sharply away from Linen, striding decisively in the opposite direction.
Elena gave a faint smile before stepping through the teleportation gate, disappearing alongside the other candidates.
A few minutes later, most candidates had already teleported. Up in the examiner's platform, Latina quietly returned to her seat, noticing Tarn anxiously staring into a magical water mirror depicting the plaza.
"Prince Linen?" Latina blurted out in surprise.
Indeed, moments after Elena vanished, Linen—standing casually at the plaza's edge—suddenly produced a candidate's teleportation marker from his pocket, hanging it around his neck, and calmly joined the remaining students lining up for the teleportation circle.
Linen wasn't gambling everything on his deal with the Tower. He intended to personally ensure Elena's elimination—precisely why he'd separated from Hysteria earlier.
Yet, just before stepping through the gate, a vivid flash of fiery-red twintails ahead caught his attention.
"No way," Linen muttered, squinting to identify her. Before he could confirm further, she vanished into the teleportation circle, leaving him no choice but to hurry after her.
With a bright flash, Hysteria emerged excitedly from the teleportation circle, her laughter echoing loudly.
"Hahaha! This exam's a joke. Who'd have thought the mighty Princess Hysteria would find such an easy loophole?"
She'd realized something brilliant while arguing with Linen earlier.
While threatening students afterward might be useless, threats during the exam were fair game. Registration was so lax, anyone could pay five empire coins and join—more casual than the city's red-light district. Taking advantage of her temporary separation from Linen, she'd swiftly registered, snatched her teleportation stone, and entered the exam herself.
Not because she wanted the Artificer qualification—but because a perfect idea struck her.
If retrieving artifacts had no restrictions, why couldn't she personally be Elena's method of victory?
She just needed to—
"Hey, look. A lone [First-Ring] weakling!"
Hysteria spun around sharply at the mocking voice, facing three richly dressed noble students. Two were [First-Ring] mages, the leader slightly stronger—[Second-Ring], at most.
"Stop wasting time. Let's quickly eliminate—"
Boom!
A [Fireball] abruptly streaked through the air, instantly hitting the mocking female mage, teleporting her from the battlefield.
"W-what?! She's… eliminated already?!" the [Second-Ring] mage stammered incredulously, staring at his teammate's vanished form. Of course, the girl wasn't truly vaporized—the teleportation stone automatically transported severely wounded candidates out of the exam area, marking their elimination.
But most Artificer candidates, specialized in artifact crafting and usage, had limited battle skills, making it rare for a mere [First-Ring] mage to easily dispatch another. Seeing such overwhelming power was genuinely frightening.
This had to be cheating!
"Run!" the leader screamed, leaving his slower companion behind. He crushed a silver box, summoning three illusions that sprinted away.
The abandoned student trembled as Hysteria approached menacingly.
"W-wait—"
Another [Fireball] flashed, and his figure vanished.
Hysteria stood triumphantly, fists on hips, feeling incredibly clever.
"If there's no restriction, I'll just eliminate all other competitors. Elena will naturally win!"
And once Elena succeeds thanks to me, she'll obviously side with me whenever Linen and I argue!
The more she interacted with Linen, the more terrifyingly cunning he seemed. Everything he said, no matter how infuriating, Elena always treated as invaluable wisdom. Even worse, Hysteria caught herself wondering how certain maid outfits might look on herself after Linen's teasing—obviously entirely his fault!
Was his goal always to win over Elena and turn me into his obedient maid-servant?!
Hysteria vowed to change that outcome. Clearly, Elena was already biased towards Linen. She needed to drastically boost her standing with Elena.
What better way than personally guaranteeing Elena's exam victory?
Grinning confidently, Hysteria charged deeper into the forest, flames blazing brilliantly behind her.
Up in the examiner's stand, Gust remained impassive, while his colleagues exploded in outrage over their telepathic network.
"That crazy student! She eliminated seven candidates—and at least three were guaranteed to pass!"
"That girl is from Linen Norton's study group!"
Tarn glared angrily toward Latina.
"Master Latina, Linen must have ordered her to sabotage us!"
"You sure Linen's behind this?" Latina asked calmly.
"It can only be him!"
"Then look at what Prince Linen's doing now."
Tarn's words caught abruptly in his throat as he stared at the water mirror, stunned.
On screen, Linen lunged from the trees, tackling Hysteria mid-rampage and pinning her firmly to the ground beneath him.
"You bastard! Let go! Why are you stopping me from helping Elena?"
Pinned beneath Linen, Hysteria's fury burned hotly, but recognizing Linen's face stopped her from casting magic. She still glared furiously, though her cheeks were flushed bright red from his weight and proximity, sending odd tingles through her body.
Nearby, Elena calmly approached, carefully consulting a small map in her hands.
"Think for once, Your Highness. I'm saving you from yourself," Linen whispered irritably. Five seconds after entering the forest, he'd guessed her idiotic intentions. "You think Elena's personality would accept this kind of help?"
"Why wouldn't she—"
Hysteria's voice faltered. Elena, mild-mannered yet fiercely principled, would never accept help amounting to cheating.
If she finds out I joined the exam secretly… at best, she'll drive me away; at worst, I'll forever be seen as a troublesome child in her eyes!
He's actually helping me…?
Cheeks flaming hotter, Hysteria turned awkwardly away, about to mutter something when Linen leaned even closer, whispering softly into her ear.
"If you don't want Elena to see us like this…don't move."
A violent shiver ran through Hysteria's body, her entire face flushed crimson.
Initially furious and embarrassed at Linen's closeness, a strange new sensation surged as Elena drew nearer without noticing them.
If Elena sees us now, what on earth will she think?!
Whether from shame or some deeper instinct, she couldn't allow herself to imagine further. Biting her lip, she grasped the hilt of Linen's sword at his waist tightly.
"Shut up. Don't you dare move or whisper again, or I'll stab you with your own sword!"
Linen immediately quieted.
Firstly, because Elena was dangerously close; and secondly, because Hysteria had mistaken one important detail.
It's not just a sword. It's a longsword. And rather than stabbing…it's much better suited for thrusting.