Chapter 37: End-of-Semester Evaluation (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 37: End-of-Semester Evaluation (1)
“It’s almost time for the end-of-semester evaluation.”
Inside the Class A classroom in Orphin Hall, the top five students were seated far apart from one another. The space was overwhelmingly large for such a small group.
Their eyes were fixed on Philip Meltron, a middle-aged professor with vibrant red hair standing behind the podium. With his hands clasped behind his back, he made the announcement in a deceptively gentle tone.
“The end-of-semester evaluation consists of two parts: a written exam and a practical exam. The written portion will span five days, nine hours each day. The practical exam will take place on the grounds of the Old Academy and will last for five hours. You are the elite of the elite, the nobles among nobles. I trust you will all achieve excellent marks.”
‘Nobles among nobles.’ Professor Philip, notorious among the student body for his blatant discrimination, frequently used that phrase to describe his Class A students.
Of course, for the five girls in Class A, the compliment held little weight.
Lisetta Lionheart, who wore a male school uniform with the top buttons of her shirt undone.
Keridna Whiteclark, who always wore a sinister, inexplicable smile.
Ciel Carnedas, who was perpetually dozing off.
Kaya Astrea, whose eyes sparkled with a disciplined, soldierly demeanor.
And finally, Luce Eltania—the pinnacle of the first-year class, indifferent to everyone and everything.
Professor Philip was immensely proud of his Class A. It was comprised of the best and brightest, and more importantly to him, it contained none of the commoners he so despised.
“Ciel Carnedas, do you intend to doze off during the evaluations as well?”
Ciel Carnedas, a beautiful girl with short, wavy blue hair, jerked her head up and struggled to keep her eyes open.
It wasn’t the first time she’d fallen asleep in class, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last. It was an insincere attitude that should have tanked her marks, but Philip—intolerant of commoners yet endlessly generous to nobles—tended to overlook her behavior as if it weren't an issue at all.
His reprimand had been half-jest.
Ciel wiped a bit of drool from her face with her sleeve, rubbed her heavy eyes, and looked up at Philip.
“Maybe…”
Excluding Luce, who remained uninterested in her surroundings, the other three students looked at Ciel with disbelief.
Philip merely offered a friendly smile.
“Well then, let’s begin the lesson.”
Professor Philip had long since grown accustomed to the eccentricities of Class A.
✦✧✦✧
“I will now explain the rules of the ‘Fell Card Competition,’ the practical portion of your end-of-semester evaluation.”
Finally, the 「Act 3, Chapter 3: End-of-Semester Evaluation」 of Magic Knight of Märchen had begun.
Up until last week, I’d been forced to endure the written exams—five grueling days, nine hours a day. Actually sitting through something I used to skip with a click in the game was pure torture.
The subjects were particularly stressful: ‘Introduction to Basic Magic,’ ‘Study of Basic Elements,’ ‘Ecology of Magic Beasts,’ ‘Study of Magic Tools,’ ‘Analysis of Magic Circles,’ and so on. Coming from a liberal arts background, I felt like I was dying while trying to solve the complex calculation problems.
I could only study so much on top of my physical training, so I hadn't been able to fully master the material before the exams. Still, I gave it my all, so I expected decent grades.
We were currently at the site of the Old Märchen Academy. It had once been a functioning campus but was now closed and abandoned.
The first-year students of the Magic Department, myself included, stood in an orderly formation. Dilapidated buildings with beautiful exteriors loomed nearby, surrounded by gardens overgrown with weeds.
On the stage before us, Professor Fernando spoke through a megaphone. Behind him stood the other professors and exam proctors.
“The rules are simple. Collect five ‘Fell Cards’ and bring them to the designated submission point to pass.”
Professor Fernando used telekinesis to levitate a card for everyone to see. It was a sophisticated card engraved with symbols representing a grimoire and a wizard.
“The Fell Cards are hidden throughout the sprawling grounds of the Old Academy. They will be difficult to find, as they emit only the faintest traces of mana.”
The exact radius of the Old Academy grounds was unknown, but it was roughly the size of Yeouido in Seoul. In short, it was massive.
“The submission location will only be revealed once you have collected five Fell Cards. The locations are assigned at random, so do not be surprised if you happen to stumble upon one early. Furthermore, stealing Fell Cards is permitted. If you incapacitate a student carrying a Fell Card, it will be transferred to you automatically via telekinesis enchantment.”
The students began to whisper nervously.
“I’m not a fighter, what am I supposed to do?” “Isn’t this just another survival match?”
The complaints were the same as they had been during the class placement evaluation.
Meanwhile, I caught sight of one of the proctors, Dorothy Heartnova, standing behind Professor Fernando. She tilted her head and waved at me, her smile as bright as the sun. The star and moon earrings on her lobes glistened in the light.
‘My favorite character is just too cute…’
I waved back, trying to suppress a doting, fatherly smile.
For some reason, the boys around me saw Dorothy’s smile and started blushing. Sorry, kids, but that greeting was for me.
“And the most significant change for this semester’s evaluation is this.”
Professor Fernando pointed his index finger toward the sky. The students followed his gesture.
“The rankings for 1st through 5th place will be disclosed in real-time.”
Massive quantities of mana particles, shimmering like sand, etched themselves into the crystal-clear sky. Two large squares appeared, each containing five empty slots.
[Fell Cards]
-
-
-
-
-
[Eliminations]
-
-
-
-
-
“The left column shows who holds the most Fell Cards. The right column shows who has eliminated the most students.”
It was a live broadcast of the top five players in terms of card count and "kills."
“Now, look at the bracelets we provided.”
Following Fernando’s instructions, the students looked down at the bracelets on their wrists. Each one had buttons labeled “Fell” and “Eliminations.”
“The bracelet cannot be removed until the evaluation is over. As long as you wear it, your location will be relayed to us in real-time.”
The bracelet was essentially a magical GPS. It would only unlock once a student passed the exam.
“You can use the bracelet to check the locations of the students ranked 1st through 5th. Whether you hunt them for their cards or run away is up to you. Every choice you make will be reflected in your evaluation, so act with caution.”
In other words, this was a game of survival, wits, and micro-management. It was designed to evaluate a wizard’s mana perception, combat prowess, tactical thinking, and problem-solving skills.
“The time limit is five hours. Collect five Fell Cards and reach your submission point within that window. Once you do, you may remove the bracelet and go home. There are no bonus points for bringing more than five cards, so do not engage in unnecessary actions.”
“Professor, what happens if we fail?” a male student asked, raising his hand.
Fernando replied with his usual icy expression. “If a student is incapacitated or fails to pass within the time limit… they will be required to attend compulsory supplementary classes starting later today.”
“Whaaaat?!”
The students were horrified, but Fernando ignored their complaints, casually waving a hand.
“Consider it a penalty. I won’t even unlock your bracelets, just in case any of you think of running away.”
The students reacted with a mix of fear and disgust.
“Finally, today marks the end of your first semester. May you reap the fruits of your labor. That is all.”
As Professor Fernando finished, the facilitators directed us toward the waiting carriages. I began to walk away, but Dorothy suddenly turned toward me. She cupped her hands around her mouth and silently mouthed, “Good luck!” before giving me a final wave.
Augh, she’s so cute. I’m going to die.
A fleet of small carriages, modified to look like minicars, waited at the edge of the site. They were set to drop students off at various starting points. I hopped into one and used the ride to organize my thoughts.
The finale of the first year’s first semester—the End-of-Semester Evaluation and the Thunderbird Subjugation. I had already planned for everything.
During the evaluation, around the time Luce passes and night begins to fall, the demon ‘Vera the Summoner’ will appear to steal Luce’s familiar. Vera is arguably one of the strongest entities in the world of Magic Knight of Märchen when it comes to familiar manipulation, possessing an absolute level of dominance over them.
That demon will forcibly summon Luce’s familiar, the Thunderbird Galia, and bring it under her control. She will then head to the exam center to kill the protagonist, Ian Fairytale, only to be thwarted by Dorothy’s intervention.
When Dorothy is forced to retreat to ensure the students' safety, the demon will unleash the Thunderbird’s barrier, enshrouding the entire Old Academy grounds.
If I don’t pass the evaluation before that happens, my plan to ‘eliminate Vera the Summoner at the perfect moment’ will go up in smoke.
‘In other words, my goal is…’
To pass the assessment as quickly as possible, get this bracelet off, and secure my freedom. I had to be ready for 「Act 3, Chapter 4: Thunderbird Subjugation」.
As a side note, skipping the exam wasn't an option. Unless it fell under the specific exemptions of the Marx Treaty, missing an exam resulted in automatic expulsion.
“Phew… haaa.”
I took a deep breath to steady my nerves. It was time to check my status.
There hadn't been any dramatic jumps in my stats since I defeated Leafa the Illusive. [Ice Sovereign], which was always active, remained unusable; I had to suppress it to the point where it provided no benefit just to stay conscious.
Still, I had grown more than I’d expected at the start of the semester, thanks to the Disaster Ant Corp and Leafa.
[Status]
Name: Isaac
Lv: 57
Gender: Male
Year: 1st
Title: Freshman
Mana: 1450/1450
– Mana Recovery Speed (C)
– Stamina (B-)
– Strength (B-)
– Intelligence (C+)
– Willpower (B+)
Potential ❰❰Details❱❱
[Combat Skills]
Elemental Series 1: Ice
– Elemental Firepower (B-)
– Elemental Efficiency (B-)
– Elemental Synergy (B-)
Elemental Series 2 (Locked)
[Owned Skills]
Active
– (★1) Ice Generation (B-)
– (★5) Black Ice (B-)
– (★2) Ice Curtain (B-)
– (★1) Cold Divergence (B-)
– (★1) Basic Protection Magic (D+)
– (★4) Frostfire (C)
– (★4) Ice Wall (C)
– (★5) Frost Explosion (C-)
– (★2) Snow Pellets (C)
Passive
– (★7) Psychological Insight
– (★5) Demon Detection
– (★9) Ice Sovereign
Skill Tree ❰❰Details❱❱
[Unique Attributes]
– Hunter
My current level was 57. I’d recently gained one more level. My growth rate was snail-like compared to the top students, but that was just the nature of the ‘Isaac’ character. I had to make do. I’d invested my two most recent stat points into [Learning Efficiency].
‘I’ve come a long way from being the weakest student at the start of the semester…’
Of course, there were still plenty of first-years I couldn't beat in a straight fight.
“We’ve arrived! Good luck, student!”
“Thank you.”
I bid the coachman farewell and stepped out. I was at Seiran Hall, a four-story stone building draped in thick green vines. It was a beautiful design, but neglect had allowed the foliage to completely overgrow the windows.
I only needed five Fell Cards.
However, the moment I secured them, my name would rocket to the top of the rankings. Every first-year student would know exactly where I was. I would become a walking target.
The real challenge wasn't finding the cards—it was surviving the journey to the submission point once I had them.
I needed to move fast. What rank should I aim for? After some quick mental math, I realized I’d likely have to pass while holding first or second place. The difficulty was insane.
‘It’s a test I’ve played countless times in the game.’
It’ll be fine. It has to be fine… Just let everything go according to plan.
To shake off the anxiety, I did some light stretching. And then—
Pang—!
A firecracker exploded over the center of the Old Academy grounds, signaling the start of the exam.
I swallowed hard and bolted forward, leaving Seiran Hall behind.