Chapter 70
Chapter 70
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: The Heiress's Trapezoid
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The exam for Group A, which could be called the vanguard, had ended.
Even though more than ten minutes had passed since it finished, the arena was still abuzz with the lingering echoes of the magic displayed by Group A's cadets.
Not to mention the great magic houses and the Eight Great Academies, the students from the Sixteen Minor Schools and the lady of the Fenton family had also shown remarkable skill.
“Hmm, the genius young master really gets more entertaining the more I watch.”
Was it because she had overexerted herself after so long? The beauty with chestnut curly hair smiled faintly as she gazed at Rain, who was sorting his writing tools with his back soaked in sweat.
The desk she was lounging on belonged to Weiber. He, who had been sighing with a hand to his forehead in dejection from his preliminary elimination, shot her a fierce glare.
“Get lost before I rip that mouth of yours, Nora.”
The woman grinning playfully was Nora Reden.
Though she had no prior connection to Rain, she was someone who had consistently vied for the top spot in the upper ranks.
At Weiber's threat, Nora licked her upper lip with feigned innocence, and the smile on her face turned icy cold.
“With the skills that got you shut out of even the finals after losing all your examiners to the genius young master, do you really think you could?”
Weiber's eyes narrowed.
The mana of the two upper-year students clashed in the air, sending sparks of magical current scattering here and there.
“. . . You bitch. Fine, just go.”
Weiber withdrew his mana first. He was too exhausted right now to waste emotions on anyone.
And it was best to avoid entanglement with Mellev Academy, the only one among the Eight Great Academies that made slaughter its goal in magic, unless absolutely necessary.
Just like that, Nora flashed her cheeky grin again as if nothing had happened. She hopped off the desk with a playful wave and turned away.
“Don't be too downhearted, Weiber. I'll give the genius young master a proper thrashing in the finals♬”
While the disciples of the Eight Great and Sixteen Minor Schools exchanged such sharp words, Rain was surrounded by his friends, chatting away.
“Pulling out that insane spell in the scroll exam? Are you really right in the head?”
Christa grilled him with a look of utter disbelief. Rain just shrugged.
“I'll be more careful next time.”
“You need to grasp the severity of this! You got lucky and passed, that's all! Messing around with a girl like some private tutor during exam period is why you made a mistake like that!”
She grumbled on, but perhaps because Rain Ludwig had made it to the finals, her expression was remarkably bright.
“Ah! Shut up, seriously. I said I'll watch it next time.”
On the other hand, Gertrude, who could be called part of the loser's bracket, let out a cynical sigh.
‘If only she weren't in the same year as these people, she would've made the finals easily.’
Final exam rankings for those outside the top 30 advancing to the finals were determined by the number of scrolls sold.
Gertrude Fenton's sales totaled 66 scrolls, enough to secure 31st place barring any upsets.
Logan, with all of 18, would be lucky to scrape into the middle ranks. . . .
“Does the world still not appreciate the beauty of muscles? Or was my magic lacking?”
Logan muttered, utterly baffled by his own misstep. Ilin from the same Chaihak Academy had sold 58.
“Hey, Logan! Aren't you totally screwed? The vice-chancellor won't let this slide. . . .”
Meanwhile, from a distance, Kasena Page watched the scene with envious eyes.
‘Will I ever fit in there someday?’
As if reading her daughter's thoughts from that expression, Madelia smirked and placed a hand on her head.
“No need to rush, Kasena.”
“I, I'm not rushing or anything! What kinda nonsense is that, hmph!”
By then, the proctors were scurrying about, ordering Group A cadets to exit the Dragon Hole Field. They had to start the exams for Groups B, C, D, E, and F right away.
“It's just, like, a tiny bit worrying! Whether I can really do well.”
After witnessing the top cadets' skills, her hands trembled as she gripped her crutches and struggled to stand.
“What this exam demands from cadets isn't just creativity in choosing what magic to put on the scrolls.”
From the spectator stands, watching the scene below, Lunen of the Special Task Force—a mustachioed man—summed up his impressions. Having taken the same exam here himself in the past, the nostalgia hit differently.
“Indeed. No matter how perfectly suited a spell is for the exam, variables always crop up.”
Variables in daily life were the lifelong conundrum for mages. It was the mages' job to resolve them.
‘That's why one of the most crucial qualities for a mage is the ability to cope with such variables.’
Real combat isn't like math problems with a single answer and solution.
Rain Ludwig had proven it with overwhelming performance. That he was born with that quality.
Perhaps because of it, amid this brilliant golden generation, Rain Ludwig drew the most attention.
“Director, we need to recruit Rain Ludwig! He used multiple calculations! He'll be a beacon of hope for our Magic Engine Research Division!”
“With that momentum, he'll surely reach archmage level and beyond.”
“Send something extravagant to Kevn Ludwig. He's a student, so currying favor with the family head is key. Heirs of noble houses mostly follow their patriarchs' decisions.”
That sent a slight chill down his spine. Everyone here had recognized Rain's value from that display.
But Doran Slade?
How had that man spotted Rain's talent even before this, and before midterms at that?
“Unfortunately, not all the attention is good. The privilege of the peak, I suppose.”
Lunen nodded toward the southeast stands. A hulking figure in a suspicious hood was glaring at Rain Ludwig.
Any ordinary mage would dismiss it as some weirdo, but the Special Task Force mages were different.
Their instincts, honed sharp from constant black mage hunts, told them otherwise.
“Tell me about it.”
Tyrintid, who had been eyeing the brute even before his junior Lunen, yawned irritably and stretched.
“Damn, thought I'd get a break, but work time already.”
* * *
“It's really Page. . . .”
“The rumors were true. . . .”
“What's she been doing for the past ten years?”
Unlike Group A, the later groups were packed with cadets of low social prominence, so most attention focused on Kasena Page.
“Heard she transferred in mid-semester from Delaiten.”
“So just how good is she?”
Surprisingly, there was little resentment.
Who was the Page family? Descendants left by the progenitor of magic on this land.
An elite lineage that had never once failed to produce exceptional mages throughout the empire's long history.
Beyond skill, their influence on the magic world was unmatched by any academy or house.
“The direct daughter of current Magic Alliance Chair Madelia Page. . . Obvious. Gotta be a powerhouse. Like that Rain Ludwig pretending to be useless.”
But the cadets who had watched Kasena for the past two weeks felt differently. Resentment was starting to brew, one by one.
‘Not a shred of magic talent. . . .’
‘Special admission pulling strings with her family name. . . .’
‘Hmph, lucky her. . . .’
Christa Warden had entered as top regular admit, no need to mention her. Even the famous genius young master Rain Ludwig had aced the extra exam for admission—what was this?
“Hmm, her reputation isn't great, as expected.”
In the cadet spectator section, Gertrude Fenton—expert at reading the mood—shook her head pityingly.
“I thought it was just bad blood with Miss Christa over guy troubles. Just how many girls has the flirtatious young master charmed? To draw that much jealousy.”
“What?”
“G-guy troubles?! What are you talking about?”
Rain and Christa both raised eyebrows. Christa looked especially flustered.
“Oh? Did I say something wrong? It is about Young Master Rain, isn't it?”
“W-well, technically not wrong, but! Don't say things people can misunderstand!”
Only after Gertrude was shooed away by Christa did things quiet down. Logan sidled up and stood next to Rain.
“Plenty of talk going around, for sure.”
“No choice but to endure it. They think you're here without qualifications.”
Just like Lin back then. . . . In that era, there were plenty of Glados-rank (4-star) mages with rich combat experience besides him.
‘Like Ulan Page, one of that era's top mages.’
With no career or fame—just attaining 4-star at a young age—Lin joining the hero party made him a target of endless resentment.
Lin's early actions were proof of his worth. That he was fit to be the hero party's archmage.
‘Rista told me not to mind, but how could I not?’
Those guys with some fame in the magic world would glare like they wanted to devour him.
The most dangerous rival, Ulan Page, turned out to be a total gentleman and acknowledged Lin without fuss.
Come to think of it, he owed the Page family back then. . . . After Ulan's nod, the number of detractors dropped sharply.
“Well, how about I scare 'em off so they don't gossip behind her back?”
“Forget it. It'll just backfire.”
Here, she had to prove it herself, Kasena. That she belonged here. That she was qualified.
[Exam time is 90 minutes! Begin calculations now!]
At Vice Professor Kyle's command, the cadets at their assigned desks frantically scribbled on their parchments.
“Oh, Berni of Ermong Academy is drawing a 3-star magic formation!”
“Hoo, looks like Crutis is going for a 2-star spell too.”
Amid the spectators' cheers, cadets from the Sixteen Minor Schools sketched flashy magic formations.
“So, the Page heiress. . . Hmm?”
Through Professor Kyle's Far Sight, the overhead screen magnified Kasena's desk. Those watching with vague expectations saw expressions split.
“Hm?”
“One magic formation?”
“A house heir with just 1-star?”
Laymen and magic novices tilted their heads in confusion or sneered in disdain, but those with knowledge blinked in shock.
“No, it's not just any 1-star. Look at that formation's shape! It's a trapezoid!”