Midterm Exams (2)
So she's finally showing us what she can really do.
Chloe stood there in her haughty, unshaken posture, not a single drop of blood on her, surrounded by the mangled carcasses of monsters carved to pieces. Her draw and single finishing strike, followed by a sheathing motion so smooth it flowed like water, drew every eye in the arena.
"Incredible! Did everyone see that?"
"I can't believe it! What on earth did I just watch?"
The arena buzzed with commotion. She had delivered a result that surpassed all expectations, and the crowd murmured in awe.
"The match barely started, and it's already over?"
"No way. Is that even possible?"
The spectators in the stands stared out at the field with their souls half-drained from their bodies. The other students who had been just about ready to fight were just as dumbfounded.
Dozens of students had been sent into the arena, along with the monsters prepared specifically to test them. They'd barely squared off, weapons drawn—only for one girl to wipe out every single enemy.
"What do you think? I'm not the same girl who used to lose to you helplessly, am I?"
She strode back leisurely after finishing off the monsters, her breathing so perfectly even that she showed no trace of fatigue whatsoever.
"I'll admit it. You've gotten way stronger since the dungeon practicum."
A technique passed down from the Opal family—one she had reinterpreted in her own way and refined into something even more complete. I'd figured that even at her fastest, she'd reach that level only after obtaining her Divine Artifact.
So she managed to reproduce it, even if it's still incomplete.
Showing off Marin's strength at the dungeon practicum and then deliberately provoking her by bragging about my own achievements—that had paid off. I hadn't expected her to climb this high, though.
"The next head of the Opal family really is on another level, huh?"
"Well then, looks like the Equality Academy students had better watch out."
The jeering and indifference were long gone. People were riveted to the matches, visibly dying to see the next one as soon as possible. Just how far could the students of Purity Academy go? How thrilling would the battles on this arena floor become? Anticipation set the crowd ablaze.
"Could everyone please bear with us for a moment? The organizers have just received an update."
"It will take some time before the next batch of monsters can be deployed, so we ask for your patience."
"Ah, it seems even the organizers didn't anticipate a situation like this."
This was the Grand Colosseum. The difficulty had been tuned for the Purity Academy students taking their midterm here, but tuned did not mean easy. If this were a standardized test, it would be a killer exam—there wasn't a superlative in the language that could do this midterm justice.
Even veteran Guardians couldn't dispatch these monsters without a struggle. In the original story, too, the narrative had centered on the protagonist's party struggling against the very monsters that appeared in this midterm, with Eva rallying herself amid the crowd's jeers, standing back up, and finally proving herself to close out the exam.
She had failed to live up to the reputation of Purity Academy, but she left the arena as a new star who'd carved a deep impression into the world far beyond the Max Republic.
The same had been true for Chloe. From that point on, she'd felt her own weakness down to the bone and thrown herself into training.
But I had already given Chloe the vaccination she needed to overcome this situation in advance—and as you could see, the results were outstanding. As a consequence, the future hadn't merely shifted; it had been twisted entirely out of shape.
For the better, that is.
"Solis, what do you think my score will be?"
"A hundred out of a hundred. If you can't get a perfect score here, none of the other kids will ever even get to look at a hundred again."
"That's not what I mean. I'm curious how it looked to you."
"Your evaluation, huh?"
It would naturally match whatever score the instructors wrote on the grading sheet. She had delivered a performance beyond expectations and turned in a flawless answer that no one present could dispute.
It wasn't as if Chloe didn't know that, either.
"Fifty. If I'm feeling generous, maybe sixty."
Just as she'd asked, I scored her with my own personal bias poured in thick.
"You grade awfully stingy."
"You told me to judge however I wanted. I'd say this was a pretty reasonable inference on my part?"
"...And what's your basis for that?"
Goal. That single word was more than enough to prod Chloe. She had exactly one aspiration—to surpass her father, the Sword Saint.
"You're telling me you've caught up to half of your father?"
"I can't swear to it, but I've watched Yupi up close, so I can at least guarantee an estimate."
"Half of my father, huh..."
By mastering a new technique, she had finally taken one more step toward her father. Whether she was secretly delighted by that fact, she didn't let it show—but she couldn't hide the smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your patience. We've just received word that the next batch of monsters is ready for deployment."
"And we've been informed that student Chloe Opal is to return to the waiting room for the time being..."
Guards entered the arena floor. They approached Chloe and explained the situation to her.
"Our apologies, but would you come with us for a moment?"
"Score measurement for Miss Chloe has concluded. To keep things running smoothly, we've been asked to have you step away..."
"Understood."
She was a person who no longer needed scoring. Having already shown the crowd the greatest show of the day, Chloe left the arena behind a thunderous impression on everyone watching.
"I'll head out then. Do your time and come back in one piece~"
Chloe marched out under the guards' escort, and her footsteps looked extraordinarily proud. Was she happy about scoring high and leaving me in the dust? Or had the words you're closing in on the Sword Saint sent her mood skyrocketing? She was lively to the point of excess.
But I read the discomfort hidden beneath that smile—her shadow. Unnoticeable at a glance, yet on closer inspection her gait was ever so slightly uneven, her hindquarters favoring one side.
The stronger the technique, the greater the recoil it demands. All the more so for a girl with one bad leg.
"Honestly, pushing yourself like that."
Separate from her rapid growth, her leg simply couldn't keep up with what she was asking of it. Not that I could blame her—the wound never healed even by the end of the novel.
"Alright then, we'll proceed immediately to the next test. Everyone, please get ready..."
In any case, she had wrapped up her part of the job splendidly. Now I just had to earn a score high enough that nobody could look down on me either. I rolled my wrists through some warm-up stretches and readied myself to face the monsters.
Swish!
"Rustle-rustle!"
The monsters deployed this time were Metal Hoppers—the very same creatures Chloe had crushed with overwhelming skill. Their numbers were fewer than before, but more than enough to grade the remaining students.
"Alright, let's go!"
Can't let anyone else poach my prey. The moment the gate opened, I threw myself at them.
The order of turns came around and around. The matches resumed one after another, and the students faced the monsters bravely on the arena floor.
"Look over there, everyone! That valiant charge against a Kill Raptor! Even seasoned Guardians struggle against that beast, and this student is handling it magnificently!"
Thanks to the exhilarating start Chloe had given them, the students' morale was at its peak. The jeers from the stands had, before anyone noticed, turned into heartfelt cheers.
As the matches went on, the students gave everything they had against the monsters, proving the worth of the Purity Academy name. It meant they were all performing beyond anyone's expectations.
"Uuuu... I don't want to."
But not everyone welcomed the atmosphere. In the waiting room, Eva cowered with her whole body curled up tight. The crowd's roars, the clashing of mana, the shrieks of dying monsters pierced her ears, and she folded in on herself as if terrified of that chaotic din.
"I-I-I could never go out there..."
"It's all right, Eva. I'll be going out with you, remember? I'll stay right by your side."
"Th-thank you."
Arlan gently gathered the trembling Eva into her arms. Snuggled against Arlan, Eva smiled a sheepish little smile, looking for all the world like a child tucked against her mother's chest.
A hug...
Marin watched the two of them. She was bored. Even staring at her phone as usual couldn't fill the hollow emptiness inside her, and she knew exactly why.
I want to be held too.
Solis. The man's face drifted through her mind. It had only been a short while since they'd parted, and yet the longing came flooding in. That had never happened before. Marin placed a hand on her chest and felt the heartbeat within her.
A heart pounding wildly, on the verge of bursting, every time she pictured him. The instant she became aware of that tremor, she shot to her feet.
"Oh, Marin? Where are you going?"
"Buying a drink."
Marin left the waiting room and headed down the corridor that led to the arena floor. There was a vending machine along the way, so no one would suspect a thing. Her footsteps quickened with the single-minded desire to see Solis's face as soon as possible, and she was halfway down the deserted corridor when—
"So here you are, O Fragment of the Star, bestowed by our great Mother."
Marin came face to face with someone standing in the middle of the corridor. Someone who could perceive her existence and speak to her.
But it was an unwelcome face—the face of a person she could never forget, no matter how many years passed.
"Diana."
"Yes. The rightful heir of Life stands before the Star."