In the faculty office,
A beautiful female professor in her early thirties with purple hair and eyes, wearing glasses, was sitting at her desk with a pile of papers on it.
The papers were the magic department's answer sheets the prospective students had given in the exam. She was the professor of magic in charge of checking the answer sheets.
However, she had a shocked expression as she looked at a student's answer sheets.
"Unbelievable!!" she exclaimed.
The answer sheets she was looking at belonged to Gray von Ashborn.
She had been informed that Gray had mistakenly taken the magic exam, and he had answered all 20 questions. Thus, she became intrigued and wanted to check his answers, but the answers Gray had provided were beyond her imagination.
The magic exam had a total of 20 questions, and only 15 questions were answerable for most prospective students.
The remaining 5 questions were meant to gauge their imagination, as those 5 questions were about how they see the world and magic.
Out of all the magic prospective students, many had failed to answer those 5 questions, and some attempted but were not satisfactory enough. However, Gray's answers were so universal and unique that even the female professor was speechless.
He answered by questioning the existing perspectives and provided a broader perspective that would elevate the level of the current generation of mages.
Moreover, there was a section where Gray described magic as imagination itself, and this theory aligned with the female professor's research.
"Amazing." The female professor exclaimed.
It was as if the female professor were reading an article written by the greatest mage of all time.
She then looked at Gray's student information with a perplexed expression.
"Ashborn..."
The family Gray was from was a knight family. So how could Gray have such profound knowledge about magic? the female professor thought.
"First I have to meet him."
She felt she should talk with him about the questions and how he acquired such knowledge; thus, she hurriedly left the faculty building and rushed to the training ground where Gray would be giving his practical exam.
* * *
There were two training grounds holding the practical exam. One was for the mages, and the other was for the knights, while the scholar department would be holding mind exams in another building.
At the second training ground, Gray and the other knight prospective students were waiting for the practical exam to begin.
In front of them stood a huge platform, and on it were ten thick stone slabs, each with an exam overseer in charge.
Then a brown-haired professional stepped forward and addressed the students,
"I'm Professor Joseph Klash, and I'm in charge of your practical exam."
At his introduction, many students cheered, recognizing who he was.
"Silence!" Professor Joseph said with cold glances. He had a strict personality and hated unnecessary actions.
"The test is simple. Whether you use a sword or your fist, leave a one-inch-deep mark on the stone slab, and you will pass the practical exam."
At his words, everyone's expressions darkened. The test seemed simple, but the stone slabs they would need to leave a mark on were called Dange Stones. They were made by processing extremely strong metal with magic, making them able to withstand Aura. Thus, it was not easy to leave a mark on them.
After a moment of silence, the exam began, and the prospective students lined up in rows before the ten Dange Stones and took turns attempting to leave marks on them.
"Jiya, mark 0.7 inch, fail!"
"Moyal, mark 0.9 inch, fail!"
"Sohag, mark 1.2 inch, pass!"
The exam overseers of the ten stone slabs started announcing the results as the prospective students attempted.
With the announcement of the results, various emotions appeared on the prospective students faces.
Some of the failed students were disappointed, while others even wept.
There were even some who couldn't accept the results and clamored for another chance.
However, they were met with cold glances by Professor Joseph.
Then Professor Joseph came down from the platform and went to the backside, where a couple of professors were observing the exam unfold while chatting about this year's prospective students.
"This year's students aren't that good."
"I agree. Last year was better, especially because of that Ravenscroft family's heir."
"Yeah, that's true."
"Oh, look, it's the Melvinger family's heir."
One of the professors pointed at a young man with black hair and jade-green eyes. He was the heir of one of the seven great families, the Melvinger family, just like the Ashborn family.
Zeke von Melvinger.
He walked toward one of the stone slabs and raised his hands as if to attack. the crowd was confused, as he was a spearman and was not using his spear.
Woooosh
Then he infused his fist with aura and punched the stone slab.
Bam!
With his punch, cracks appeared on the stone slab, and the overseer shouted,
"Zeke von Melvinger, 7.2 inches. Pass!"
At this, the young prospective students burst into cheers. It was the highest score so far.
The professors watching from the back also showed interest in him.
"That was pretty good."
"As expected from one of the seven great families."
"I think he might be the top cadet this year."
"Yes, yes. He seems to have great potential."
At the same time, another person with a good reputation walked in to attempt.
It was the Left Guardian's disciple, Soren Valerian.
Similarly to Zeke von Melvinger, he didn't use his sword; he infused Aura into his hand and slashed at the stone slab like a sword.
Slash!
The sound was quite loud, and it caught everyone's attention.
"Soren Valerian, 7.2 inches. Pass!"
Wooah! The young prospective students gasped. His score was the same as the Melvinger family's heir.
The professors were speechless. They hadn't expected Soren Valerian to score so high.
Meanwhile, Soren Valerian turned to Gray, who was waiting for his turn, and smiled with a thumbs-up.
In response, Gray sighed as he realized Soren Valerian had matched the Melvinger heir's score to impress him.
Gray assumed he was trying to impress him on the Left Guardian's orders.