I’m Sorry! (2)

The Imperial Milano Academy. A massive educational facility actively created by the imperial family to face the coming threats to the empire.

As it’s directly managed by the imperial family, the facilities are top-notch, the teaching staff is excellent, there’s a teleportation magic circle nearby, and even a city has been built primarily for those associated with the Academy. Graduating from here alone is proof of being one of the empire’s top talents, making it a place where numerous young people eagerly apply.

Naturally, the competition for admission is not just intense, but fierce. It’s a given that children from well-known families enter, and among commoners, those who will make a name for themselves in the future get in.

You know, children from this or that count’s family, marquis’s family, duke’s family… even royalty enters this place.

And the protagonist who will enter this place is a commoner but a so-called unscratched lottery ticket who will rise in the future with innate talent. Considering that talent, she’ll surely get in. Then the problem is me.

“It’s incredibly big, Young Miss!”

“Y-Yes, it is.”

The entrance exam venue is not inside the Academy but in a completely different location. However, like all of the Academy’s facilities, this place too has been invested in excessively to the point of being unnecessary, so it’s extremely spacious and sturdy enough not to get scratched by ordinary incidents.

It’s sturdy. Incredibly sturdy. Of course, there’s a reason why it needs to be.

First, the entrance exam is largely divided into two parts: theory and practice. The theory exam is based on what you’ve studied so far, and it’s just a normal test, yeah. That’s it.

The problem is the practical. For the practical, the content varies slightly depending on the department each person has applied for. For the Swordsmanship Department, you spar with a waiting instructor, for the Magic Department, you demonstrate magic in front of them, for the Holy Department, they check your holy magic or test your doctrine knowledge, or something like that. I don’t know the details either.

Anyway, what’s important for me is that. The content of the Magic Department’s exam. The content of the Magic Department’s exam is generally a demonstration of magic. They look at various things like attack power for offensive magic, defensive power for defensive magic, usefulness for supportive magic, and so on.

“Then, Young Miss, do well on your exam!”

“Yes.”

Needless to say, servants can’t accompany you inside the exam venue. So I gave Muriel a communication magic tool in advance and told her to rest somewhere. Her expression was strange before we parted, but I shouldn’t worry about it.

“Phew…”

Alright, now it’s for real. From here on, I have to become the villainess Ariel Walpurgis, not Ariel. Let’s take a deep breath slowly. One, two, three, four… Okay. Done!

Having found peace of mind, I entered the exam venue with unwavering steps.

Every year, the applicants to Milano Academy overflow to the point of forming a sea of people. As such, not just anyone could take the entrance exam; they had to apply to the Academy in advance and prove minimum qualifications, talent, or ability. Those selected would then be further filtered through the entrance exam.

This content befits the Academy’s policy of selecting only the cream of the crop. As a result, the number of applicants decreased towards the end, and the number of people at the exam venue had decreased to a somewhat manageable level.

Elaine, the entrance examiner for the Magic Department, was skimming through the scoring sheet with an indifferent expression while watching the flood of applicants today. The practical exam for the Magic Department involves showing your most confident magic in front of her and then being scored, but there weren’t as many applicants compared to swordsmanship. This is because magic is much more influenced by innate talent compared to swordsmanship, but this batch had quite a few applicants.

Even so, the results were more or less the same.

‘Number 3 passes. The rest fail.’

The pen moves without rest, causing some to admire and others to feel anxious. The entrance exam of Milano Academy varies slightly in its standards depending on the examiner in charge, and in Elaine’s case, she was notorious even among current students for her usually strict standards.

This is the empire’s top educational institution and a place to nurture talents who will be active in the future. Riffraff shouldn’t even set foot here. That was the policy Elaine usually advocated, and she had firmly set her passing standards accordingly. The shortened exam time due to this was an advantage that didn’t seem like an advantage.

“Next applicants, come in.”

After dividing the passing and failing score sheets with an emotionless gaze, Elaine immediately called for the next applicants. Four applicants entered with confident strides. As Elaine scanned each of their appearances, she flinched at the sight of the girl standing third.

‘Walpurgis?’

Long silver hair and blue eyes. No doubt about it. It’s Ariel Walpurgis, the only daughter of Duke Walpurgis. Certainly, she had applied for this exam too. In her case, she was already famous for her genius-level magical power, taking after her father, so her passing was practically guaranteed.

‘But rumors are often exaggerated…’

Even so, Elaine had no intention of being careless. Duke Walpurgis is a great magician whom she greatly respects. Even if she’s his daughter, or rather, precisely because she’s his daughter, Elaine intends to judge her more strictly.

“Starting from the person on the left, please demonstrate your magic in order.”

Any magic is fine, but offensive magic is preferable if possible. After adding that explanation, Elaine summoned a test dummy with her magic. It’s not a simple dummy, but one covered in her special protective formulas, essentially a fortress-like dummy.

Needless to say, she doesn’t tell these newbie chicks taking the entrance exam to destroy this dummy. However, the more protective formulas on the dummy they break, the more additional points they get.

“I am Gilbert Radein.”

“You may skip the self-introduction.”

At this abnormally efficient behavior, two applicants, including Gilbert who seemed to be of noble origin, openly frowned, but Elaine paid no attention. She doesn’t care whether they’re nobles or not. The only thing that matters here is ability.

“Begin.”

Elaine, holding the score sheet, stepped back to an appropriate distance and declared in a dry voice.

‘So that’s how you want to play it, huh?’

Gilbert began his incantation with a heated expression. What he’s preparing is his most confident fire magic. With skills acknowledged even by his family’s magician, he’ll put this examiner in her place.

“Hup!”

The size of the blazing flames was extraordinary at a glance.

“Wow!”

The cheers from behind made Gilbert’s nose rise even higher. This is his masterpiece, a super-large fireball. No matter how great the Academy is, there’s no way it can withstand this.

“Haah!”

Boom boom boom!

The fireball that flew with his shout caused a tremendous explosion as soon as it touched the dummy.

“Hehe…”

He did it. This doesn’t even need to be seen. The power of the fireball that he could proudly showcase since childhood has always boosted his pride. If this survives, it’s clearly at the level of a graduation exam, not an entrance exam.

But, as always, reality was cruel.

“W-What?!”

As the smoke cleared, the revealed dummy didn’t have a single scratch. Only the ground around where the dummy stood proved that something had happened just moments ago.

“Impossible! It’s completely fine?”

“Next.”

After quickly drawing a line on the score sheet, Elaine immediately called for the next person.

“Damn it! This is unacceptable! If I try one more time, just one more…”

“Your turn is over.”

“What? Even after hearing my name, you dare to- kkuk!”

Gilbert, who was about to throw a fit, unable to accept it, suddenly choked on his words. Elaine, who had frowned as if he was pathetic, had immediately subdued him.

The entrance exam of Milano Academy had stricter regulations than one might think. In particular, there was a truly radical clause stating that in case of non-compliance with the examiner’s instructions without a valid reason, the examiner could impose sanctions on the spot at their discretion.

“Applicant. I said your turn is over.”

With a flick of her hand, as if disposing of trash, Gilbert’s body, still choking and unable to speak, flew towards the entrance. As if careful not to hurt him in the process, he stopped right in front of the door. Perhaps this was the last consideration.

“You may leave first. You’ve failed anyway.”

Gilbert’s score sheet fluttered towards him as he stood there dazed. Receiving it with a blank face, Gilbert saw the large ‘FAIL’ written on it and collapsed on the spot.

“There was a disturbance. Next.”

At Elaine’s voice calling for the next applicant as if nothing had happened, there was an illusion that the air in the room had grown colder.