The Secret to Passing
The following day.
Mihael flipped open the menu board as usual, and his brow twitched. An utterly dumbfounded expression washed over his face as his gaze swept across the tavern common room.
It's me! Over here! I wrote that!
I sent him frantic signals with my eyes, until at long last, his gaze locked onto mine for the very first time. You got that, right? Don't go mistaking it for someone else's order and wander off to the wrong person! I widened my eyes and stared back with absolute, unyielding intent.
Whether the message actually got through or not, the corner of Mihael's mouth curled into a faint smirk. Well, look at this little one. His reaction carried that exact sentiment. Just as it had gone with the Monkey Beastman, it was undeniable proof that I had successfully hooked his curiosity.
"This is the last Rare dish covered by your meal vouchers."
"Thanks, Uncle Giselle."
"Ever since you tampered with that menu board, you've done nothing for five straight days except train and devour Rare cuisine. Is this truly going to be all right?"
"Of course it is! Today's the day we settle things."
Besides, I had polished off every last Rare meal available.
Dusk was settling in, casting a late, lazy glow across the yard. As I stretched and loosened up in the vermilion-tinted backyard, High Examiner Mihael graced the entrance with his noble presence. True to his in-game moniker, the 'Fair Nobleman,' his hair caught the sunset's fiery hue and radiated an almost breathtaking elegance. If only he weren't a guy, it would have been quite the spectacle. What a shame.
"'Night Special Menu: Sword Duel with Orknodi.' You certainly have nerve, slipping such an insolent order onto my board."
I had deliberately restricted the time to night so I wouldn't draw the attention of other guests during the day, and I felt a surge of pride at my own meticulous planning.
"And attaching a limited condition like 'Night Special Menu,' only to finish training every evening and scurry off to bed right at twilight? Utterly brazen."
"Growing kids need to sleep early to get tall, you know."
"This is the first time a menu has ever kept me waiting for five days. Since you took your sweet time building up the suspense, don't expect an easy pass. If you fail to satisfy me, you'd best prepare for elimination."
The time frame had been a crucial mechanic of this hidden walkthrough all along. Mihael had used the 'delivery time' of his cooking ingredients to hint at the difficulty of each challenge. According to his rules, a Night Special Menu that reached its fifth day carried a difficulty of Tier 5—a challenge equivalent to the 5th Layer of Mount Shinjung. It was an entire tier above the 4th Layer trial that the Monkey Beastman had attempted.
"Even that furry beastman stopped at challenging the 4th Layer. Don't you think dragging this out to the fifth day was a bit arrogant?"
Mihael raised the exact point I expected. I knew full well how a tiny kid packing monstrous strength looked to outside observers. A glass cannon waiting to shatter at the slightest tap. That was why I had been extraordinarily careful, managing my physical condition to ensure my stamina never bottomed out and left me looking frail. Thanks to that preparation, my condition was in peak form. Today, my body felt especially light—almost like a long-term convict shedding iron chains to taste absolute freedom.
"Won't we find out how good I am once we cross swords?"
At my cheeky provocation, Mihael chuckled softly.
"It's too late for regrets."
With that single parting remark, his blade flashed into motion.
From the moment High Examiner Mihael had first laid eyes on Orknodi and Butler Jona, his interest had been piqued.
Formidable skill.
Neither the young lady nor her butler was ordinary. The butler's prowess in particular was monstrous enough that even a High Examiner like Mihael could not afford to overlook it. Footsteps that produced not a whisper of sound. Motion so refined it suppressed even the rustle of fabric against fabric. It was like beholding a master assassin.
Is she the precious jewel of some renowned assassin syndicate?
Yet unlike her servant, the girl showed no sign of having drilled in professional assassination arts. That contradiction only deepened the mystery. Unless she was the daughter of high nobility or an immense tycoon, hiring a bodyguard of that caliber should have been impossible. And yet, her poised stance and sheer presence were far from those of an ordinary sheltered heiress.
She wore adventurer's garb. On a young girl, such attire ought to have looked comical, but the aura rolling off her made it impossible to treat as a joke.
Whatever her origins, she possesses genuine talent.
To achieve this level of mastery at her age was astounding. Mihael realized it the instant their blades met. Even holding a wooden practice sword, parrying his strikes was a feat few could ever hope to manage. Monstrous physical strength paired with immaculate technique. On top of that, she possessed the analytical mind to dissect the mechanics of the ticket exam, alongside the creativity to exploit them. With those qualities alone, she was qualified to challenge the entrance to the 3rd Layer at minimum.
Her fundamentals are flawless.
Watching her tight, gapless swordsmanship, his evaluation soared higher. She could easily contest the threshold of the 4th Layer. Having seen enough to reach his verdict, Mihael swept his steel blade aside with a sharp, decisive flick.
"You pass."
"Already?"
Just as Orknodi had deduced, the days required for cooking ingredients to arrive in Mihael's exchanges with the innkeeper had symbolized the trial's difficulty. By dragging the clock out for five days of her own accord, Orknodi had essentially volunteered for a 5th Layer challenge.
"I haven't even shown you what I can really do yet."
Her grand plan had been to whip out wand magic and prove she could handle 5th Layer combat, but the Fair Nobleman had cut the duel short and declared her victorious the moment she demonstrated 4th Layer competence.
"Strength, technique, analytical ability, creativity, and swordsmanship. I awarded you passing marks across all five criteria. Technique, analysis, and swordsmanship were proven in this exchange. Your creativity was demonstrated through the menu board."
"What about strength?"
"Arm wrestling. Word has spread about a little girl with monstrous power."
"Aha."
"Here is your reward. I truly never imagined I would be handing this ticket to an examinee."
He held out a shimmering, platinum-hued voucher—a Platinum Ticket. It was an honor never granted to ordinary challengers.
Whoosh.
Just as Orknodi reached out to take it, Mihael raised his arm high above her head. Amused by the sulky pout forming on her face, he spoke with a teasing lilt.
"Before I hand it over, I will give you a choice. A Platinum Ticket confers massive advantages during the entrance exam. However, if you forfeit this ticket right now, I will give you ten Gold Tickets instead."
"!"
"I cannot disclose the exact differences, but Gold Tickets carry substantial benefits of their own. You are free to dispose of the nine surplus tickets however you please. Well? What will it be?"
It was a bonus trial born of Mihael's sudden whim. The inherent worth of a Platinum Ticket was staggering—vastly exceeding that of ten Gold Tickets combined. Even so, the immediate temptation would be nearly impossible to resist.
Most vouchers circulating on the open market were Bronze Tickets, occasionally polluted with worthless Iron Tickets. Iron Tickets were duds distributed by examiners to weed out unqualified greenhorns. If an applicant realized the deception early enough and secured a replacement before submission, they might still sit the exam, but anyone sharp enough to figure that out possessed the capability to earn a legitimate ticket in the first place.
Of course, this young lady has more than enough ability. What I am testing is her desire.
Ten gold coins was the average going rate for a Bronze Ticket. A Silver Ticket commanded a hundred gold coins. Bronze Tickets left applicants vulnerable to surprise elimination or arbitrary preliminary cuts if the exam grounds overflowed. Silver was the 'safe harbor' bracket that guaranteed an exemption from immediate disqualification. Gold offered advantages that surpassed even that. Naturally, anyone who understood their value would gladly pay tenfold to acquire one.
Power brokers desperate to boast that their scions had enrolled in Gift Academy would spend fortunes without hesitation to secure Gold Tickets. Yet no amount of wealth could buy a Platinum Ticket. Those worthy of holding one would never be so foolish as to trade away their future for petty material greed.
"Obviously, I'll take the single ticket."
"Oh? Why? Those extra tickets would fetch an immense fortune."
"Do I look like someone hurting for cash?"
"Hardly. The employment fee for that butler of yours alone must easily surpass platinum coins."
Examiners, by contrast, served as unpaid volunteers. No sensible person would take on such an unprofitable, troublesome chore unless they were indebted to the academy or thoroughly eccentric. Mihael was undeniably the latter, indulging his personal hobby of putting mortals to the test. Most examinees ended up dancing to his tune and grinding their teeth in frustration, but every once in a while, someone managed to clear his absurd trials.
And for those who clear the trial, a commensurate reward is due.
Had she hesitated or wavered for even a fraction of a second, he would have handed over the voucher currently in his grip. But this child had not flinched. Therefore, she had passed the true test.
Lowering his arm, Mihael reached into his inner breast pocket, withdrew an entirely different Platinum Ticket, and offered it to her.
"Is there a difference between tickets of the same rank?"
"The one I was holding earlier was No. 143. This one is No. 15."
"!"
"Every ticket is assigned a serial number. Double-digit numbers hold far greater prestige than triple-digit numbers, and single-digit numbers outrank double-digit ones."
"Meaning this is an insanely good ticket, right?"
"Heh. You could put it that way. The date and venue for the entrance exam are inscribed on the back."
"Thank you! That was a fun test."
"Wait. What is your name?"
"Orknodi. And yours, Examiner?"
"Mihael."
With that, the audacious little girl skipped off toward her quarters, leaving only the butler behind in the twilight courtyard.
"Aren't you going to attend to your 'young lady'?"
"I have a question."
"Out of respect for the young lady, I shall grant you one answer."
"That final bonus test. For a trial awarding a top-tier double-digit ticket, it was far too lenient. What was your true reason for handing her that voucher?"
"Heh. You noticed?"
"That is not all. Rumors stemming from a mere arm-wrestling contest are hardly sufficient grounds to judge her strength as viable for the 5th Layer."
"You are certainly sharper than your mistress."
"If you harbor impure motives toward her..."
"I assure you, nothing of the sort."
The instant genuine murderous intent flared from the butler, the chorus of insects blanketing the mountain ceased in an instant. Birds took flight into the darkening sky, and the music drifting from the tavern parlor snapped into dead silence. It was a suffocating hush—the desperate stillness of prey praying not to catch the eye of a lethal predator.
"I merely applied the female quota."
"......"