Chapter 29
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: Proof of the Tool (1)
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"This is Baramil Stadium."
We'd left through Endex's main gate and walked for about fifteen minutes to reach the stadium located in the capital.
Pointing at the round dome reflecting the sunlight, Chadrec continued.
"This stadium is divided into a No-Mana Zone and a regular Mana Zone."
Sure enough, there were two entrances to the stadium.
[Mana Zone] and [No-Mana Zone].
The No-Mana Zone was exactly as the name implied—a sector where mana was almost nonexistent. The Mana Zone, on the other hand, had a higher-than-average mana density.
"Today, we'll be holding a 'Mini-Combine' here."
Combine.
It was a method typically used by knight orders to evaluate groups of knight academy students. They'd gather cadets from the magic university and test their physical abilities, mana, swordsmanship, and so on—a sort of evaluation stage.
"In the Combine, they'll assess mana agility and non-mana agility separately—that is, magic power and physical ability—then use those scores to conduct drafts."
Draft was literally 'picking players.'
"The top ten from the first College Board assignment, Prism Dismantling, will become team captains and draft their teammates, starting from first place. Each captain picks five members, forming ten teams of sixty people total."
Sixty people in ten teams.
Total headcount: ninety.
That left thirty.
"Conduct the Combine from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Team candidates, show your worth. Captains, build the best team you can. But not getting picked doesn't mean an automatic fail."
Sighs of relief rippled through the crowd.
"If you don't get picked, form your own team. Teams without a captain can have any number of members."
I glanced around.
The best outcome would probably be the leftover thirty forming one team to compete against the others.
"You'll do group assignments with those teams. The details will be announced later."
No way that'd happen. The hardest thing to handle on the continent was people. Might as well raise thirty cheetahs or leopards instead.
"I'll call the captains. First place, Gerkken. Second, Soliet. Third, Elise..."
...Fourth, Rae. Fifth, Kain. Sixth, Esher. Seventh, Delrec. Eighth, Benhur. Ninth, London. Tenth, Calbutton.
"The mini-Combine will be handled and run autonomously by these ten."
With those words—'handle it yourselves'—Chadrec left for somewhere.
The remaining ninety at the entrance eyed each other cautiously before slowly starting to move. They naturally gravitated toward the ten captains.
"Everyone, hold up! The captains are gonna meet first!"
Kain pushed them back and gathered just the captains. Probably at Elise's command.
—...Okay. Then.
They huddled in a circle, whispering. Only Kain's loud voice leaked through faintly.
—Yeah. Just like Elise said. Yeah. Elise is right. Yeah. So, like Elise said?
Are you her dog or what?
—Okay.
Anyway, it wrapped up quickly, and Kain stepped forward.
"Each captain will pick eight people to evaluate first! Gerkken starts—line up!"
Acting like the lord of the manor.
"Hurry!"
The non-captain seniors formed ten lines of eight each.
I was at the very back.
"Hey, Gerkken. You pick first."
"..."
At Kain's words, Gerkken scanned the seniors and pointed one by one.
"You. You. You..."
He picked ten that way, and then it was Soliet's turn.
I wasn't expecting much. I just glanced at her face briefly.
That's when our eyes met.
Soliet's clear red eyes. Her small lips moving like she was chewing. A flat, jade-toned voice slipping through.
"Sion Askal. Step forward."
She'd probably been watching me the whole time.
Soliet picked me first. I had a rough idea why. Probably because I'd brought up 'Nightmare' in the mines.
"Let's go in."
Our group—Soliet's team—entered the Mana Zone first. Various evaluation stations were already set up inside.
First: Mana control.
Second: Mana coordination.
Third: Mana agility.
Fourth: Mana adaptability, and so on...
"This one first."
Soliet led us to the 'Mana Control' area.
"It's a top."
The mana control test was simple. Control a specially made top with mana.
The method: Inject mana appropriately into the bottom and top surfaces to make it spin. Grasp that 'gut feeling,' maintain the subtle mana dynamics and balance, and keep the top rolling.
Evaluation criteria: Spin speed, duration, and destructive power.
"Sion Askal."
Soliet called my name first. Her eyes held a strange mix—hostility, murderous intent, and expectation all tangled up. Like a grudge.
"Yeah."
I responded and took the top in hand. A string was attached to it.
Normally it'd be stringless, but since we were still high schoolers, they made this concession.
In that case.
"Go ahead."
Soliet stared straight through me. Like she was dying to see what I'd do.
To meet her expectations, I channeled mana into the top's string and...
Twaaaang———!
The top shot upward.
Fell back down.
Thud,
Thud,
Thud,
Crack—
It bounced a few times on the ground before cleaving into four pieces.
"..."
Soliet stared at the top. Her eyes a bit dazed. I probably wore a similar expression.
Pfft— Heh— A few students' snickers mixed in like background noise.
I shrugged, breaking into a cold sweat.
"...Uh, this isn't my specialty."
"Ha."
Soliet nodded with a look of utter disbelief.
"Next. Coordination."
She hurriedly pointed to the next station. The remaining seven students grabbed at her in confusion.
"Soliet! What about us?"
"What about you?"
"We have to do it too. This is the evaluation."
"...Oh, right. Yeah. Everyone, go ahead."
Soliet resumed the evaluations. A handsome guy smiled and asked.
"Who first?"
"Anyone. Hurry up."
A bit snappish. The guy looked flustered but stepped forward.
"...Uh. Okay, me then."
"Name?"
"Kielli Berkunta. Doing it now."
Kielli went up.
Whirrr—!
His top spun beautifully. Graceful and perfectly balanced. Soliet nodded curtly, arms crossed.
"...Good. Next."
"Me! I'm Rohal."
"Step up."
It wasn't just Kielli.
In the mana control test, all nine others outperformed me—except me, obviously.
...Next, mana coordination.
"Simple. Release mana at this glass wall and draw a shape. Sion Askal first. Draw a circle."
Soliet picked me again, and I fired mana at the glass wall. Slowly traced a shape.
"..."
Soliet's mouth fell open in shock. Her eyes went all glassy like a dead fish.
I hurriedly explained.
"This shape's kinda like an ultrasound wave."
"I said draw a circle."
"Oh."
"Are you an idiot?"
The easiest one—a circle—and I botched it. It just sparked like electromagnetic waves on the glass: Crackle-crackle-
Soliet pinched her temple.
"Next."
...Third, mana agility.
"Simple. Mana pellets will fire at you—defend with mana. Sion... Askal first."
Soliet called me again. But her voice dripped with anger, pity, and contempt.
"Uh, yeah."
I stood at the mark. A gun barrel ten meters ahead.
Bang—!
The mana pellet fired. I tried to release mana in defense, but—
"Ow!"
It smacked my forehead first, leaving a mark.
Soliet's narrowed eyes screamed it:
'Useless fucking bastard.'
...Fourth, mana adaptability.
"That's it. Mana Zone evaluations over. Head out."
Soliet, looking fed up, ended it abruptly. She jotted something in her notebook and left alone. The others chimed in.
"Dude, what are you? You're trash."
"What'd you do to piss off Soliet? She bombed you on purpose?"
"Right? That's it? Hilarious..."
They laughed uproariously, and after that, my name never came up again.
"Fucking hell."
I'm lying dazed, staring up at the ceiling of Graem Hall.
"...My shit mana talent's still as garbage as ever."
Mana talent. For magic high schoolers aiming for magic university and mana industry jobs, it was the most crucial gift.
I didn't have it.
Well, I had some, but not Endex level.
Just enough for a low-tier knight like my dad.
"..."
I lifted my head slightly.
For reference, this is the [No-Mana Zone].
Where mana in the air is 0.001% or less. They evaluate pure physical ability here. In other words, 'physical performance without even a trickle of mana flowing through the body.'
Pure athletic ability is tough to train, giving guys an edge over girls. Though the average gap is only 10-30%, still less than versus normals.
Can't use Mana Body, but bodies tempered by steady mana absorption—the 'Hardened Body'—still hold up.
The No-Mana Zone basically evaluates just that Hardened Body.
"...They won't call me, huh."
But I'm squatting blankly in the corner of the mat.
Honestly, waiting to be called. I'm pretty confident in physical stuff.
Lots of events too.
[50m Dash] for speed and agility. [Bench Press] for upper body strength. [Long Jump] for lower body explosiveness. [High Jump] to test bodily elasticity and power itself.
Ones I've trained hard at before and now, but no one's calling me.
They're all doing their own thing.
—Kuhahaha. Dude! What was that? So slow!
Kain's shouting on purpose, probably.
—Try again! One more shot. Ready, go!
The others are exercising, watching evals, stretching—everyone but me.
Only one who'd called me, Soliet, wrote me off ages ago.
"Whatever, screw it."
I flopped onto the mat. No point after bombing Mana Zone. Let it go like an adult.
"...Yawn."
Lying down makes me sleepy.
"This damn cancer."
Narcolepsy's one symptom of dantian cancer. It sucks energy for forced growth, so of course you're drowsy...