Chapter 25
The exam hall was in complete chaos—not from noise, but from the sheer mental devastation that had settled over the participants like a heavy fog. The once-proud warriors, elite mages, and battle-hardened combatants who had survived the previous trials now sat hunched over their desks, their faces drained of all hope.
Some were convulsing, their hands trembling as they clutched their pens. Others were drenched in sweat, their clothes sticking to their bodies uncomfortably. And then… there were the few unfortunate ones who had completely lost control of their bodily functions, small puddles forming beneath their chairs. The smell of sheer desperation filled the air.
If anyone had walked in at that moment, they would have thought a battlefield massacre had taken place, not an exam trial.
The questions on the parchment before them were simply impossible.
Blaze, still gripping his pen tightly, ran his eyes over the first question again, just to make sure he hadn't hallucinated it the first time.
"If a Fourth-Tier rune master uses a Celestial Rune Circle under a Crimson Eclipse while channeling a Forbidden Arcane Flow, what percentage of energy loss will occur if the summoning catalyst is a Mythic-grade Resonance Stone? Provide a detailed explanation with calculations."
He blinked.
Then he blinked again.
Then he slowly turned to his left, where Lucas sat, gripping his hair as if he were moments away from tearing it out. The brown-haired boy's lips were moving, but no sound came out. Blaze didn't need to hear what he was saying to know that it was something along the lines of, "I should have just stayed home."
Kaito, on the other hand, had already given up. He had placed his pen down and was currently staring up at the ceiling, his face completely blank. His soul had probably already left his body.
Blaze swallowed hard. This… this is bad.
He was strong. He was capable. He had trained harder than anyone to be here.
But no amount of training had ever prepared him for this kind of torture.
Just then, a rustling sound caught his attention. He turned his head slightly and noticed that some students… were actually writing.
His brow furrowed.
How?
How were they even attempting to answer these questions?
A few desks away, a tall, dark-haired boy named Raiden Hailo smirked as he casually ran his fingers over his test paper. His eyes glowed faintly.
Raiden had the power to copy certain things from others.
By activating his innate ability, he was able to see faint traces of the answers being written by those around him, subtly replicating their strokes without making it obvious. His hand moved in a relaxed, confident rhythm, while everyone else around him still looked as if they were moments away from throwing up.
Rayden wasn't the only one who noticed.
A few desks down, a black-cloaked figure sat motionless, his face hidden beneath his hood. However, strands of white hair slipped through the darkness, revealing just enough for anyone to recognize him as Aether, one of the most mysterious students in the trial.
Without moving much, Aether muttered a spell under his breath.
"Icy Rings."
Tiny, almost invisible shards of ice formed around him, floating soundlessly through the air. They scattered, weaving between desks, gliding over students' answer sheets before seamlessly returning to their owner.
Aether remained completely calm as he absorbed the information carried by his ice. Within moments, he knew everything that his magic had passed through.
And just like that, he began to write.
More and more people started catching on.
It wasn't about intelligence. It wasn't about skill.
The only way to pass this trial…
Was to cheat.
---
Near the front row, a girl with long, brown hair smiled as she tapped her fingers against the desk. Nephis, Lucas's twin sister, had remained still for most of the trial, her black eyes sharp as she watched the room carefully.
Then, finally, she made her move.
"Wind, guide the answers to me."
A subtle breeze stirred around her as she activated one of her special wind spells. The magic was so delicate that it barely disturbed the air, yet it was strong enough to carry whispers to her ears.
Faint murmurs of hurried scribbles, quiet mutterings of students reading the question answers under their breath—all of it flowed into her hearing.
She smirked.
And then she started to write.
One by one, more people joined in, using various underhanded methods. Some conjured illusionary scripts that projected fake answers onto their parchments. Others used telepathic signals to communicate discreetly. Some even resorted to low-tech strategies, like pretending to drop their pens just to sneak a glance at someone else's paper.
It was a beautiful mess.
Yet, amidst all of this, three people remained completely motionless.
Blaze, Kaito, and Lucas.
Kaito, who had been sulking for the past ten minutes, suddenly jolted up. He pointed dramatically at a student a few seats away.
"HOW ON EARTH DOES HE KNOW THE ANSWERS?!" he yelled.
Everyone went silent.
Charlotte, who had been standing at the front of the room with her arms crossed, lifted a single eyebrow.
"Is there a problem?" she asked coolly.
Kaito immediately shrank in his seat. "Uh… no, ma'am. Just… thinking out loud."
Blaze let out a slow breath, his mind racing. This isn't normal. People who had been completely lost a moment ago were now writing confidently. There was no way they had figured it out legitimately.
That's when a voice rang in his head.
[System Message: Would you like to know the answers to the exam?]
Blaze's breath hitched.
[Yes] [No]
His eyes widened. Was this his System's doing? Could it… actually give him the answers?
He didn't hesitate.
[Yes.]
[50 CP will be deducted.]
Immediately, words flooded his vision. Each answer appeared before his eyes, glowing faintly with golden light. He could see every formula, every calculation, every rune translation needed to complete the exam.
His lips curled into a smile.
He had the answers.
Lucas and Kaito, who had been watching him closely, panicked when they saw him grin.
"Blaze… are you okay?" Lucas asked.
"Did… did you finally break?" Kaito added.
Blaze simply picked up his pen and started writing.
The two exchanged nervous glances. "He's gone crazy," Kaito muttered.
After a few minutes, both Lucas and Kaito noticed something strange. Blaze's hand was moving quickly, effortlessly filling in the answers with complete confidence.
"…Do you actually know the answers?" Lucas asked, eyes narrowing.
Blaze simply grinned. "I do."
Kaito and Lucas stared at him, then at each other.
Lucas sighed. "We're dead either way. Might as well trust him."
And so, both of them picked up their pens… and copied Blaze.
After some moment, a loud slam echoed through the hall.
"STOP."
Charlotte's voice cut through the air like a blade.
"The trial has ended," she declared. "Submit your answer sheets."
Blaze leaned back, exhaling deeply. The hardest trial had come to an end.
To be continued
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