Gathering Eccentrics (7)
The broadcast echoed across the plaza, but Ligret only half-listened as she reached for the food storage unit tucked in the corner of the room. The moment she opened the door, a rush of cold air spilled out—the unmistakable sign that this was a magic tool powered by Magic Stones and engraved with specialized spells. Its official name was something like “Ambient Temperature Magic Preservation Device,” but ever since Chrome had dubbed it a “refrigerator,” everyone in the Midas household had happily adopted the term.
“Wow, they put one of these in every single temporary lodging room? As expected of the empire. In the Spero Kingdom, even most upper-middle-class families consider it a luxury to have one at home.”
“You mean a refrigerator?”
“Refrigerator? Ah—now that’s an easy name to remember. Did you come up with it, Miss Ligret?”
“My brother did.”
“Sounds just like him,” Fiore said with a laugh. Her ever-changing expressions and skin as white as fresh snow were beautiful enough to impress even Ligret, who usually paid little attention to appearances. Compared to Chrome’s smile—which always looked like he was having the time of his life tormenting someone—hers was like night and day. It was honestly hard to believe they shared the same blood.
“What do you think the second test will be?”
At Ligret’s question, Fiore rested a hand on her cheek and thought for a moment.
“Hmm… it’ll depend on how many students the academy actually plans to accept. Looking at the difficulty of both the preliminaries and the first round of the main event, it feels less like they’re teaching everything from scratch and more like they’re filtering for students who already have a certain level of skill.”
“Chrome said they’re probably aiming for around a hundred.”
“My brother did? Hmm.”
Fiore closed her eyes briefly, then opened them again.
“In that case, it’s probably a game of musical chairs. In other words, a battle royale. Only a set number can survive, or you have to eliminate others to pass—that kind of thing. It’s the most efficient way to reduce the numbers.”
Ligret blinked, looking slightly dumbfounded.
“Aren’t the people who pass supposed to study together at the same institution? Starting off with that kind of atmosphere sounds awful.”
“If they cared about that, they wouldn’t have made the first round so brutal to begin with. The person in charge of the exam might just have a rather eccentric personality.”
“Eccentric? Can’t be any worse than your father or brother.”
Both of them laughed.
— Attention, applicants. The designated time has ended. As of this moment, the first round of the main exam is officially over. Any applicants who have not yet reached the destination will be automatically disqualified.
The total number of applicants who passed the first round is 872. Congratulations to all who succeeded.
The second round will begin promptly at 07:00 tomorrow morning. All who passed the first round are required to gather at the central plaza before the exam begins.
Additionally, those who have not yet been assigned temporary lodging may speak to any guide wearing imperial armor for assistance.
Food, medicine, and other supplies provided in your assigned rooms may be used freely.
The morning of the second round arrived.
On the platform, a young woman held a microphone and unleashed a barrage of venom. Both Ligret and Fiore wore complicated expressions as they listened.
“…This is going to be hard to call a fair fight, isn’t it?”
“…Yeah.”
— Yes, applicants! Welcome to the second round of the main exam! By the way, any lazy trash who still hasn’t gathered at the central plaza at this very moment will be immediately disqualified! Congratulations! Let’s give a round of applause to those who willingly became stepping stones for others!
The reactions from the people who had just been declared eliminated were far more intense than those who could still treat it as someone else’s problem.
“Y-you’ve got to be kidding!”
“How can we get eliminated over something like this?!”
“You never said anything like that before!”
About twenty people who hadn’t even gotten the chance to take the second exam stormed toward the woman on the platform, shouting in protest. They were the ones who had overslept after pushing through the forest for a week, or had been spacing out and only rushed outside after hearing the disqualification announcement.
It might seem strange that anyone could be late for such an important test, but even in my previous life—where clocks were everywhere—there were always habitual latecomers. In this world, where even a wristwatch was considered a luxury and time management was lax, the fact that only this many people out of over eight hundred were late was actually impressive.
Even Loto had almost been disqualified. He kept checking his bags over and over to make sure he hadn’t forgotten anything, and I’d practically dragged him out by force.
Hmm, so you’re saying you have objections to my ruling? I’m quite certain the broadcast yesterday clearly stated the exam would begin at exactly 07:00. Did I mishear?
The latecomers glared with murderous intent, as if ready to grab her by the collar. The woman on the platform tilted her head and turned to the armored soldier standing behind her.
The soldier answered firmly.
“We announced multiple times that everyone must gather at the central plaza before the designated time. However, we did not explicitly state that being late would result in disqualification, Lady Istal.”
“I see.” The woman called Istal nodded.
The atmosphere among the disqualified applicants loosened slightly, sensing the situation might resolve in their favor. But her next words froze them solid.
Then let’s decide it now. Being late means disqualification. After all, I’m the one managing the second round.
She clapped her hands together with a bright “Problem solved!” and the latecomers finally exploded.
“What the hell is wrong with this crazy bitch?! Hey, soldier! Stop spouting nonsense and bring us a proper administrator—!”
The man’s furious shout, veins bulging on his forehead, was cut short. The woman who had been standing on the platform only moments ago had somehow appeared right in front of him and slapped him across the face with her palm.
What looked like a simple, clean motion produced anything but an ordinary result.
CRACK!
A horrifying sound of something being crushed rang out. The woman’s palm had slammed into the iron helmet the man was wearing, leaving a clear dent. The force sent him spinning like a windmill before he crashed into the ground, bouncing several times before finally coming to a stop.
“…………”
The earlier commotion vanished like a lie. A silence so complete that even breathing could barely be heard fell over the plaza. Those lacking in skill froze, their brains unable to process what had just happened. Those with real ability swallowed reflexively or let their eyes gleam at the glimpse of power the woman had displayed.
The soldier who had been speaking with her earlier let out a sigh-like tone.
“Lady Istal, His Excellency specifically told you not to kill the applicants recklessly.”
“I didn’t kill him. His language was simply foul, so I gave him a warning.”
At those words, every applicant in the plaza turned to look at the man sprawled on the ground. His neck was bent at a grotesque angle, and he wasn’t moving at all.
‘Yeah… that looks pretty dead.’
The soldiers who gathered around the fallen applicant checked his condition, twisted his neck back into place, poured a potion down his throat, then loaded him onto a stretcher and carried him away. It was clearly not their first time doing this.
Haah, fine, fine. Then we’ll cancel the disqualification and treat it as a warning. There won’t be a next time, understood?
The latecomers, having just witnessed a man turn into a half-corpse right before their eyes, nodded stiffly like wooden puppets. Even if she had kept the disqualification, they probably wouldn’t have dared to argue. Passing was important, but first they had to stay alive.
I watched the woman climb back onto the platform and grab the microphone again.
Her asymmetrical leather outfit clung tightly to her body, accentuating every curve. Her long, blood-red hair reached down to her thighs and reminded me of flowing blood, yet it somehow complemented her striking beauty and created a strangely unbalanced charm.
Istal von Lebenstein.
She was one of the most important figures in Planetarium. Thanks to her high status and exceptional skill, she had risen to become the youngest general in the Barhart Empire. However, her eccentric personality was so unbearable that other military officers complained to their superiors, who essentially exiled her to the academy as a professor.
Still, her loyalty to the late emperor was unwavering, and her abilities were genuinely outstanding. In that sense, she was an excellent professor. Besides, all three of the academy’s star professors were known for their unique personalities, so she wasn’t exactly an outlier.
‘She’s also one of the top martial artists on the continent and one of the best at handling Red Light among the three major magic colors. She’s the perfect master for Ligret. Well… Ligret’s probably going to get roughed up pretty badly in the process, though.’
Feeling my gaze, Ligret gave me a puzzled look. I turned away and stared up at the platform instead.
Anyway, it’s not my problem. Good luck, Ligret.