Robin spent the three days before the exam exploring Aethelgard. Learning the city's layout. Finding the cheapest food vendors. Locating the Academy.
The Royal Military Academy dominated the eastern district. A fortress within the city high walls, guarded gates, training fields visible from outside.
Robin observed from a distance. Watched cadets drilling in formation. Saw the hierarchy in their movements.
This is where I'll become something more.
He spent Genn's five coppers carefully. Two on bread and cheese that lasted three days.
One on access to a public bathhouse, he needed to look presentable for the exam, he saved two.
He slept in an alley the first night. Found a boarding house the second night that let him sleep in the stable for a copper. The third night, he stayed awake.
The morning of the exam arrived clear and cold.
Robin joined the crowd of applicants gathering outside the Academy gates. Hundreds of youths.
Most were well-dressed nobles or wealthy merchants' sons. A few commoners like him, distinguished by worn clothes and nervous expressions.
Leo was there, surrounded by friends. All laughing. Confident. They'd been prepared for this their entire lives.
Leo's eyes found Robin in the crowd. His expression darkened briefly. Then he turned away, dismissing Robin's existence.
The gates opened at dawn. A stern instructor in Academy uniform; dark blue with silver trim stood at the entrance.
"Welcome to the Royal Military Academy entrance examination," he announced, voice carrying across the crowd. "Today you will be tested in three areas: written knowledge, mana aptitude, and combat capability. All three must be passed to gain admission."
Murmurs through the crowd. Nervous energy.
"First phase begins now. Written examination. Follow the proctors to the testing hall."
The crowd moved. Robin let himself be swept along through the gates his first time inside the Academy grounds. Past training fields and barracks. To a massive stone building.
The testing hall.
Inside, rows of desks. Hundreds of them. Each with parchment, ink, and a sealed envelope.
"Find a seat," instructors commanded. "Do not open the envelope until instructed."
Robin found a desk near the middle. Not too close to the front and not too far back.
He sat and surveyed the room. Five hundred applicants, maybe more. All nervous. Except the nobles, who projected confidence.
Leo sat near the front with his friends. Laughing. Treating this like a formality.
It is a formality. For him. The written exam is designed so nobles with basic education can pass.
An instructor moved to the front. "You have two hours. The exam contains fifty questions covering military history, strategic theory, and ethical scenarios. Passing requires forty correct answers. Begin."
The room filled with the sound of breaking seals and pages rustling.
Robin opened his envelope. Scanned the first page.
Question 1: In what year did the First Void Incursion occur, and what kingdom bore the primary defense?
Elementary.
1187 AC. The Kingdom of Valderra, specifically the Northern Territories under House Stark's domain.
Robin wrote quickly. His handwriting was careful, a child's script, slightly messy.
Question 5: Describe the tactical advantage of the Gorgon Shield formation and identify one historical battle where it was employed.
The Gorgon Shield employs overlapping coverage with graduated depth, creating redundant defensive layers. Successfully used at the Battle of Crow's Reach in 1203 AC.
Robin had personally shattered this formation in his previous life. Had to suppress the urge to write a detailed critique of its weaknesses.
Write what they expect. Textbook answers. Show knowledge but not mastery.
Question 12: Analyze the tactical flaws of the Gorgon Shield formation.
Robin paused. This was the question from his previous life. The one he'd smiled at because he'd literally defeated this formation in battle.
Thirty years from now.
He wrote carefully: The formation's primary weakness is inflexibility. During repositioning or rotation, the graduated layers lose cohesion temporarily.
A focused strike during this transition can collapse the entire structure. Additionally, the formation requires significant space in confined terrain, the defensive advantage diminishes.*
Truth. But phrased academically. Like someone who'd read about it rather than experienced it.
Question 18: You are a junior officer. Your commander orders an attack that will likely result in massive casualties with minimal strategic gain. What do you do?
An ethics question. Testing loyalty versus pragmatism.
Robin knew the "correct" answer, the one the Academy wanted. But he wrote his truth:
I would privately counsel the commander, presenting alternative strategies that achieve the objective with fewer casualties. If the commander insists on the original plan, I would request clarification of the strategic importance to ensure I understand the full picture.
Ultimately, I would follow orders while doing everything in my power to minimize unnecessary deaths. A good soldier obeys. A great soldier finds ways to obey intelligently.
The questions continued. Some trivial. Some complex. All designed to test not just knowledge but thinking.
Question 27: Discuss the logistical challenges of a protracted siege on Fort Draconis.
Robin had led that siege. In his previous life. Knew every challenge intimately.
He wrote a condensed version. Accurate but not too detailed: Primary challenges include supply line vulnerability due to distance from friendly territory, seasonal weather affecting troop morale and equipment, and the fort's natural water access making resource depletion difficult.
The siege requires substantial commitment of forces that might be needed elsewhere.
Around the room, applicants were struggling. Some chewing their quills. Others staring at questions with confusion.
The nobles were writing confidently. They'd been tutored specifically for this.
Question 45: Define the three principles of defensive warfare according to General Markus's treatise.
Terrain advantage, supply security, and morale preservation. General Markus argued that a defender with inferior numbers could defeat a superior force by leveraging these three elements systematically.
Robin finished with thirty minutes remaining. Reviewed his answers. Made a few deliberate "mistakes" questions where he gave the second-best answer instead of the optimal one.
Can't be perfect. Perfect draws investigation. I need to be excellent but believably so.
Other applicants finished. Some looked confident. Many looked worried. A few looked devastated, clearly hadn't prepared adequately.
The two hours ended.
"Quills down," the proctor commanded. "Leave your exams on your desks. Results will be posted this evening. Dismissed."
The crowd filed out. Conversations erupted immediately.
"That question about Fort Draconis was impossible!"
"The ethics questions were trick questions!"
"I definitely failed."
Robin walked in silence. He'd written exactly what he intended, excellent answers that seemed possible for an intelligent child with limited formal education.
The examiners will see potential. Natural talent combined with desperate studying. Exactly what the Academy looks for.
Leo and his friends passed Robin in the hallway.
"That was easy," one of Leo's companions said loudly. "I could have done that in half the time."
"Probably got a perfect score," another agreed.
Leo glanced at Robin. His expression was unreadable. Then he looked away, following his friends.
Robin left the Academy grounds. Found a quiet spot in a nearby park. Bought a piece of bread with one of his remaining coppers.
The written exam was done. Results tonight. But Robin wasn't worried. He'd aced it.
Phase one complete.
He thought about phase two. The mana aptitude test. Tomorrow morning. Public. Humiliating.
His F- rank core would be displayed for everyone to see. The crystal would barely flicker. People would laugh.
Let them. Mana isn't everything.
Robin had learned that in his previous life. Had fought alongside mages with A-rank cores who died in their first real battle. Had seen F-rank soldiers survive through pure skill and determination.
The Academy knew this too. That's why they tested three areas. Because mana alone didn't make a warrior.
Tomorrow, I'll be humiliated. Then the day after, I'll prove none of it matters.
Robin finished his bread. Drank water from a public fountain. Conserved his remaining copper.
Evening came. He returned to the Academy. A crowd had gathered at the gates where results were posted.
Massive boards covered with names. Pass or fail.
Robin pushed through the crowd. Found the board for his testing group.
Scanned the list.
PASSED: 347 applicants
FAILED: 153 applicants
He found his name.
STARK, ROBIN - PASSED (Score: 47/50)
Forty-seven correct. Three mistakes. Exactly as planned.
Around him, celebration and despair mixed. Those who passed cheered. Those who failed stood in stunned silence or left quietly.
Robin felt nothing. No pride. No satisfaction. Just confirmation of expected results.
He found Leo's name on a different board.
STARK, LEO - PASSED (Score: 44/50)
Robin smiled slightly. He'd scored higher than his brother. Not by much. But enough.
*Three points.
Leo would see the results. Would know. Would have that knowledge eating at him.
Psychological warfare. Every advantage matters.
Robin left the Academy grounds. Found his stable for the night. Paid his copper. Lay down in the hay.
Tomorrow would be worse. The mana test would destroy any credibility the written exam had built.
But the day after tomorrow, the combat trial that's where everything would be decided.
One phase down. Two to go.
Robin closed his eyes. Sleep came quickly. His body had learned to rest when possible. To conserve energy for when it mattered.
Tomorrow, he'd be humiliated.
Then he'd prove that humiliation meant nothing.
That a cursed child with no mana could still be deadly.
The Academy wanted warriors. Wanted skill. Wanted determination.
Robin had all three.
And soon, everyone would know it.
Phase one complete. Forty-seven out of fifty.
Not bad for a boy who learned everything from books.
Robin smiled in the darkness.
Not bad at all.
The real test was coming.
And Robin Stark was ready.