Chapter 22 – Special Entrance Exam

The moment the poor girl cast her spell, I noticed another magic activating, one that erased mana from somewhere in the room.

There wasn’t anyone nearby, meaning there had to be a magic circle hidden somewhere.

While the basilisk closed the distance with every second, my eyes scanned the room rapidly.

It didn’t take long to find it—it was carved into the entire floor.

A massive magic circle stretched across the entire space, large enough to envelop the whole room.

This kind of trap would definitely be overwhelming for new students.

Any weapon—whether a sword, magic, or mana-infused arrows—would become useless here.

And just a glance to my side confirmed it.

“Oh no, oh no… what do we do? M-my magic… hic… let’s just run. We need to come up with a new plan…”

The poor girl, trembling, clung to my sleeve in panic.

But there’s always a way to break through.

Since her magic vanished upon casting, it meant the circle could only nullify mana up to the 3rd circle level.

In other words, if the output was higher than that, it would be able to bypass the restriction.

Asking 17-year-old students to overcome something like this might be unreasonable, but considering it’s a special exam with many benefits at stake, it made sense.

The Empire’s Six Pillars are said to have passed conditions like these when they were only 17.

I couldn’t help but feel a bit excited to meet them someday—just how strong would they be?

“Hey! Hey! Hurry up, we’re going to die! We’re seriously going to die! I… I can’t do anything!”

The poor girl was now halfway to collapsing, clinging onto me for dear life.

Her eyes brimmed with tears, on the verge of falling. Yet despite her fear, she didn’t abandon me and kept trying to drag me along.

She seemed harsh but was kind.

She acted like she’d experienced the worst in life, but there was a surprising innocence to her.

Even as a mage, she didn’t prioritize practicality.

The more I looked at her, the more old memories resurfaced—annoying ones, sure, but she had qualities that made them bearable.

Watching her, I chuckled.

“It’s fine.”

“Are you crazy?! It’s not fine!!”

I placed a macaron on her trembling hand.

“For someone so young, you sure lack spirit. Back in my day, they would’ve spanked you for that.”

Her face twisted in frustration, and she plopped down helplessly, too exhausted even to scream.

Still, she didn’t let go of my sleeve.

“Fine, fine, we’ll spank or whatever later. Just… please, let’s run… I’ll try to buy us some time…”

“No need. Just sit tight and watch.”

Gently, I pried her fingers off my sleeve.

“I’ll finish this before you finish that macaron.”

I turned to face the basilisk approaching us.

It emitted a low, predatory growl, accompanied by a sinister rumble.

Its enormous body loomed, with fangs the size of my head. Flames flickered in its open maw, the vertical slits of its pupils radiating primal terror.

But not to me.

This basilisk wasn’t nearly enough to intimidate me.

Compared to the ones I’d fought before, this was nothing—weak and unimpressive.

Of course, it must have been toned down for the sake of the students.

Either way, I wouldn’t lose.

I never lose.

Mana surged within me. A soft pink aura, like cherry blossoms in bloom, unfurled in the dim labyrinth. Yet it disappeared just as quickly—not because of the magic circle, but because I absorbed it all into my body.

I clenched my fist and advanced.

Each step felt light, without hesitation. A thrill coursed through me, urging me forward.

My grin widened as countless scenarios played out in my mind.

The basilisk’s jaws opened, ready to unleash fire—

But then—

Snap—

They shut abruptly.

The basilisk’s eyes reflected pure confusion.

“Huh?”

The poor girl, too, stared in disbelief at the tiny footprint left on the beast’s jaw.

“There’s no need to replicate the stench of a monster’s breath so accurately. Ugh.”

Wrinkling my nose at the foul odor, I lowered my leg and lunged forward.

The basilisk reacted instantly, raising its head to strike, but I was faster.

I leapt onto its head, slamming it down with a powerful blow.

Thud—!

The beast’s skull crashed into the ground, and I felt my body lift into the air, carried by the momentum.

As I arched forward, I gathered pink mana into my fist.

Like petals scattering in the wind, the energy followed my descending punch, driving straight into the basilisk’s skull.

A satisfying crunch traveled up my arm. My knuckles bled, but I couldn’t help but grin at the sensation.

“Hah.”

The basilisk writhed, and I grabbed its horns with both hands.

With my left foot firmly planted, I twisted my body, aligning my right knee for the perfect strike.

Crack—!

The impact fractured the horn, spreading countless cracks along its surface.

As the beast howled in agony, I raised its horn high and smashed it into its head.

[KKKKKKAAAAAARRRGH―!]

The basilisk shrieked, fueling my strength. The cracks widened until the horn shattered in my grip.

Before the beast could react, I drove the broken horn deep into its skull.

Rip—

The horn tore through scales, skin, and bone, sinking into its brain.

Blood and drool dripped from its mouth as it convulsed, but I kept my focus.

Seeing the deadly glow of its evil eye, I quickly flipped off its head, landing on my hands like a handstand.

With a sharp kick, I struck the basilisk’s jaw upward, forcing its gaze away from the poor girl.

The petrifying beam shot off in a random direction, missing her entirely.

She dropped her macaron in shock, and as it hit the ground, I was already back on the basilisk’s body.

The monster thrashed, trying to shake me off, but its efforts were pointless.

Its scales became footholds, and the small horns along its back served as handholds. Without limbs to swat me away, it was defenseless.

Running along its body, I reached its head.

Grabbing hold of a sharp scale, I drove the broken horn even deeper into its skull.

Boom—!

Cherry blossom mana scattered like petals in the wind as the horn embedded itself further.

[KKKKKKrrr…]

The basilisk let out a weak whimper, its head sinking to the ground. Yet even as it lay there, it continued to thrash.

Its tail whipped up, aiming to crush me—but I leapt off just in time.

Thud—!

The tail slammed into its own head with a heavy crash.

“Heh…”

I gathered mana into my fist once more and aimed for its terrified yellow eyes.

With a satisfying squelch, my fist plunged into the eye socket, the sensation unpleasantly reminiscent of jelly.

I opened my hand, tearing apart the soft tissue within. The beast screamed and flailed, but I silenced it with more strikes.

By the time I withdrew my arm, its left jawbone was shattered beyond recognition.

Yet the basilisk still clung to life.

I considered how to end it.

While it would die on its own, I needed to make sure my skill was undeniable.

My fists were still too weak.

So, I would finish it with a kick.

“Phew…”

After taking a deep breath, I shifted my weight onto my left foot.

“Hey, amateur.”

“H-Huh…?”

“Watch closely. This is my spear.”

The poor girl, tears streaming down her face, whispered in awe.

“You’re… insane…”

Ignoring her, I gathered every last drop of mana into my leg.

The cherry blossom-colored energy swirled around me, fragrant and vibrant, as if heralding the arrival of spring.

Once I felt it reach its peak, I twisted my body, drawing a full moon with my elbows.

Then, I unleashed a powerful kick.

The basilisk’s head exploded.

***

I teased the poor girl for a while, feeding her the shattered macaron as she lay on the ground, too stunned to speak.

Finally, after calming down, she sniffled and looked at me.

“Hey…”

Her nose was red, and her swollen eyes shimmered with tears.

“Do you think this place… was really just a fake labyrinth?”

“What kind of question is that? It’s either real or fake—pick one.”

“I mean… was it fake?”

“Can’t you tell? If it were real, we wouldn’t have taken it down so easily.”

“So… even if it were real, we still could’ve won, right?”

“Maybe.”

We would’ve won for sure, I thought to myself.

She stared at me for a moment before taking a deep breath.

“Hoo… haa…!”

Then, on the third breath, she sprang to her feet.

“…Thanks.”

Knowing her, I didn’t bother responding and got up from where I was sitting.

And, as expected, the next words out of her mouth were as rude as ever.

“But, seriously, you reek. Stay away from me.”

“You little—”

“Ugh… Fix that awful habit of yours!”

“And you should fix that dirty mouth of yours, brat. You’ve got the perfect attitude to get yourself killed somewhere.”

“What am I supposed to say? That you don’t smell bad? And, for the record, your language is way worse than mine.”

“You know what? Come here. I swear, I’ll shove your face right into the basilisk’s head. Get over here.”

“Ugh…”

The poor girl gagged as if imagining the scene in vivid detail.

I wasn’t bluffing—I really was about to do it.

So I reached out and grabbed her arm.

Just then—

Whoosh—!

A refreshing breeze swept through the room, whisking away the grime and sweat covering my body.

Even the wounds on my knuckles closed as they were magically healed.

“Oh? Cleanse and Heal?”

“Yup. Perfect magic for smelly, sweaty chimpanzees—or martial artists like you.”

This room was supposed to disrupt magic, and yet, she managed to cast a spell.

Which meant…

She had found a flaw in the magic circle and increased her mana output enough to override it—all in under two minutes.

I couldn’t help but laugh in disbelief.

She really was a genius.

But, of course, I didn’t say that aloud.

“And here I thought someone as incompetent as you wouldn’t be able to pull off magic like that.”

“Hey! I told you, I’m not incompetent!”

With a smug little snort, she strutted over to the basilisk’s corpse, her footsteps echoing confidently.

“The monsters in this special exam are made with artificial magic stones inside them. We need to collect one as proof of our success.”

“I know.”

Honestly, I had almost forgotten.

She rummaged through the basilisk’s remains until she found the artificial magic stone and held it up triumphantly.

“Eliaernes Eustetia.”

“What?”

The poor girl, now holding the magic stone in her hand, turned toward me with a bright smile.

“My name is Stella.”

With that smile, she declared her name:

“I’m not some amateur—my name is Stella Verheigen. Remember it. If you call me incompetent again, I won’t let it slide.”

Hearing that name, I couldn’t help but laugh softly.

“Heh…”

I laughed, not out of amusement, but because it was so absurd.

“Ronan, my name is not ‘magic brat.’ Please, remember it well.”

“The name of the greatest mage in history…

…is Kaloso.”

“Kaloso Verheigen.”