Chapter 43. Sudden Test (2)
Magic of Amnesia (Chair Shot).
The sound of skull meeting folding metal chair echoed loudly around.
The other participants, hearing the loud magic-like sound, stared this way with dumbfounded expressions.
“H-How dare you…!”
Seeing Adonic collapsed with eyes rolled back, his companions were the first to grit their teeth and raise their respective magic gears.
But Enoch had already taken something out from his pocket and thrown it before their eyes.
-Thud, Chiiik!
With the sound of something spraying from the small object Enoch threw, white smoke began to rapidly pour out.
Smoke screen.
In the smoke screen spraying enough to fill the entire field of vision, everyone stepped back slightly, seemingly bewildered.
“Cough! What is this…”
But unlike the others, Enoch smiled faintly and slowly backed away, melting into the white smoke.
When he raided the Vendetta branch’s storage last time.
One artifact that had been gathering dust there.
-
「Mage’s Mist Pouch」
Pulling the string tying the opening causes the processed magic stone inside to react with the air, emitting dense white mist.
Consistent demand exists due to its simplicity, requiring no separate mana for operation, and the duration of the smoke.
Duration: 10 minutes
-
In other words, an item no different from a smoke bomb.
There was a reason he brought this along.
Its power naturally couldn't match本格的な (full-fledged) artifacts used by mages with magic, but…
Rarely, it was an artifact that even he, a non-mage, could use effectively depending on the situation.
Just like right now.
Chiiik-
Dense white smoke spread, staining the surroundings.
The smoke screen quickly filled the entire examination hall.
Pure white smoke that swallowed even the surrounding mages whole. Inside it, Enoch looked around.
Before long, deafening roars were erupting from various places around, along with debris.
-Kwaaaaang!
Already, a fierce magical battle was unfolding among some of the mages quick to grasp the situation, even before their vision was obscured by the smoke bomb.
Fitting for a clash of powerful mages, the indoor battle instantly descended into pandemonium.
Kwaggagagak!
Amidst the hazy smoke.
Sharp rock fragments scattered, and glowing mana arrows tore through the air.
A dangerous battlefield where one could easily get caught in the crossfire.
However, Enoch walked calmly through it.
The reason he could be so detached was simple.
‘I can see everything.’
Just then, seeing a line of mana drawn before his eyes, Enoch paused his steps briefly.
Immediately after. From the direction he was walking, a mana bullet zipped past right before his nose.
-Swaek!
Such a chaotic battle, with smoke screens laid everywhere, was the perfect environment to get hit by stray magic. And this applied to most participants.
Except for Enoch.
「Sense of Mana」, learned from the Empire's Last Sword Saint.
His vision was detecting the mana wielded by the surrounding mages without issue.
‘As expected, even if vision is blocked, focusing on the flow of mana allows rough identification of casters’ locations.’
Even for those Rank 10 or higher, sensitive to mana, seeing the opponent’s mana so clearly like this was impossible unless they manifested related Unique Magic.
At best, only mages proficient in detection magic could roughly grasp the opponent's position.
Therefore, it was very difficult for other mages within the smoke screen to grasp the situation as clearly as Enoch.
“Damn it, clear this fog!”
“Can’t. The room is sealed, can’t clear it…!”
Just then, the sounds of several mages nearby, trying to dispel the fog using Wind (Anemo) type magic, grunting in frustration were heard.
It was actually a natural consequence.
‘Before the selection test begins, the examination hall is completely sealed.’
That's why it turned into an environment where even magic couldn't completely clear the smoke screen.
Besides, the amount of smoke emitted by the artifact was large, and its duration was quite long, so average wind-type magic couldn't even secure proper visibility.
Enoch walked through the chaotic battle as if strolling.
‘Going well.’
Setting off a smoke bomb like this was one of the tricks he had tested beforehand when playing the original work.
As long as he had a way to secure his own vision, it was a shortcut whose success was sufficiently guaranteed.
Now, he just needed to do what needed to be done during the remaining time.
And that task was…
‘Absolutely cannot resist farming!’
Enoch picked up the magic gear Adonic had been holding.
“I’ll make good use of this.”
A sleek metal magic gear in the shape of a staff.
This had caught his eye from the very beginning. Enoch swung it lightly in the air.
Perhaps the guy cherished it quite a bit; it was a magic gear well-maintained and polished in many ways.
‘Well, originally, magic gear is like a mage’s own life.’
Above all, in the Magic Empire, the value of ‘magic gear’ was originally exceptional, regardless of the field of magic.
Someone’s magic gear often became the symbol or even the epithet (異名) of that mage itself.
The magic stone forming the core of the magic gear, various mana circuits, etc. It was commonplace for numerous elements to be delicately adjusted and tailored to individual mages.
Of course, his perspective on evaluating equipment was slightly different from that of mages.
“Hooo.”
Enoch took a breath, then the next moment, abruptly swung the staff in his hand down onto the floor.
Thump, a dull impact sound echoed, and a blunt sensation transmitted through his fingertips.
But Enoch didn’t stop there and continued smashing it onto the floor repeatedly.
Thump, Thump!
Smashing magic gear—which should be cherished like life itself in the Magic Empire—onto the bare ground was an act that would make numerous mages instantly foam at the mouth and collapse.
But he, being a non-mage, only needed to consider one aspect regarding the magic gear's specs.
“Oh, sturdy?”
Enoch nodded with a satisfied expression, looking at the heavily scratched staff.
Anyway, throughout this examination, he had to assume he could hardly use his sword.
A direct descendant of Elsyde, a Main House no less, using sword skills? That was just perfect fodder for gossip, and…
‘Because full strength must always be hidden as much as possible until the critical moment.’
So, he happened to need a staff like this.
Carrying a magic tool like this would roughly make him look somewhat like a mage at first glance.
Even though he couldn't actually use magic.
Anyway, after testing it roughly, this seemed sufficient for temporary use in the examination.
‘Might get a chance to use it at least once.’
But since it wasn't a sword, he needed an actual opponent to adapt to the unfamiliar weight and balance.
Just then. From beyond the smoke screen at close range, someone emerged abruptly, wand held forward.
“Finally found you! Here you were, Enoch!”
Come to think of it, wasn't he one of Dionil’s other followers who was beside Adonic earlier?
Seeing him manage to run into him amidst the chaotic battle, he might have been searching quite persistently.
“This bastard, die…!”
Instead of answering, Enoch immediately swung the staff full force towards the guy’s head.
Crack, a dull sound echoed along with spurting blood.
‘Adaptation complete.’
Of course, since it wasn't a sword, it was somewhat frustrating in many ways, including being unable to project mana.
But this much was bearable.
It was much better than extensively advertising his sword talent in an examination hall like this.
Above all…
Enoch glanced somewhere beyond the smoke screen.
‘Beyond this fog, Teano and the other Nemesis examiners must be watching me.’
The selection test, though seemingly utter chaos, was ultimately part of the ‘entrance examination’.
Even at this very moment, the knights acting as examiners must be watching this test from unseen places.
-Woong
As if proving Enoch’s guess the next moment.
Beneath the body of the Dionil follower mage who had collapsed, foaming at the mouth, a spatial transition magic circle suddenly formed with mana.
Shwoop!
Soon, with a small magic activation sound, the figure of the knocked-out guy vanished instantly.
Not only that, but even amidst the ongoing chaotic battle, transition magic circles were rapidly appearing beneath mages falling into combat-incapable states everywhere.
Those magic circles swiftly transported the injured and disqualified participants out of bounds to where healer-mages were waiting.
‘…As expected, this is also the same as the original work.’
Although he dramatically said kill each other earlier for impact, in reality, thinking about it calmly revealed how absurd that statement was.
The Magic Empire valued competent mages above all else.
They wouldn't simply discard the lives of talents capable enough to apply for the Nemesis Knight Order over something like a selection test.
It would be no different from just throwing the Empire's most important human resources into the trash bin.
That's why those judged combat-incapable were sent to the location where healer-mages were on standby.
Anyway, seeing it in reality was even more surprising.
‘In this chaos, to be able to catch and send out all those individuals without fail.’
Honestly, he hadn't thought much of it in-game, but seeing it happen before his eyes in reality, even with a smoke screen deployed, accurately transporting disqualified participants via spatial transition.
Nemesis examiner Teleos.
It could only be called the true power of a Rank 10 mage.
***
“Time’s up. The selection test ends here.”
Around the time the examination period was over.
Teleos, along with the signal announcing the end of time, staggered up from the stage where he sat.
The duration of the smoke bomb Enoch had set off had also ended, and visibility was gradually recovering.
The interior of the selection examination hall was already devastated.
Clack.
As the end of the examination was declared, figures of participants retrieving their respective magic gears and taking steps back could be seen through the dissipating smoke.
Watching them, Teleos opened his mouth with satisfaction beneath the shadow of his black formal cap.
“…Surprisingly, many survived.”
The survivors raised their eyes, each with its unique color, and looked up at him.
Teleos on the stage looked back down at those who passed and continued speaking, seemingly amused.
“I heard the quality of participants in this examination was quite high. It wasn't just a rumor.”
Of course, it was still hard to say that only participants worthy of Nemesis’s reputation remained.
This was merely a selection test.
But for so many to survive even among the selected personnel was quite exceptional, even in the history of Nemesis entrance examinations.
“In any case, congratulations on passing.”
Teleos’s voice echoed.
“From now on, I will provide guidance on the 1st examination you will undergo. I will explain only once, so listen carefully.”
The participants held their breath.
Now, the real examination begins.
Teleos declared in a low voice.
“The content of the 1st examination is… <Magical Beast Hunt>.”
Magical Beast.
The atmosphere in the room tensed further at that word.
Because it was an existence that any citizen of the great Atlas Magic Empire couldn't help but know.
Magical Beasts were ferocious monsters often appearing in sparsely populated areas within the Empire.
Due to their endless aggression and power, the places they appeared were officially designated as <Danger Zones> by the Empire and avoided.
Therefore, even Imperial citizens, most of whom were mages, tried not to even approach such ferocious Magical Beasts.
Hunting such dangerous creatures was the main content of this 1st examination.
“Then, from now on, I will tell you the most important part of the 1st examination.”
The attention of the examination hall focused again on the examiner.
Teleos too looked over the audience one by one, then his gaze stopped, finding someone.
“The most fundamental quality Nemesis knights must possess is ‘cooperation’.”
He continued the guidance while observing intently a certain boy he found.
- The black-haired boy mixed among the participants.
Teleos’s eyes quickly scanned Enoch.
With just his handsome appearance and jet-black hair, he could tell at a glance that this was Enoch, the participant who became the biggest topic of this examination.
He seemed to have survived the selection test for now.
“More than any powerful magic, cooperation between mages becomes the strongest weapon.”
Teleos continued.
“We at Nemesis also mostly do not act alone for major missions. We always undertake operations together based on strong trust with fellow knights. This examination selects precisely such talents.”
The participants’ demeanor became fully tinged with tension.
Meanwhile, Enoch casually wiped the bloodstains off the magic gear he picked up earlier using the robe hem of the mage standing absentmindedly before him, engrossed in the examination guidance.
Teleos’s eyes narrowed slightly, watching Enoch’s nonchalant action.
“…Therefore, in the 1st examination, you must temporarily form teams and prove your ability for cooperation.”
Enoch, after neatly wiping the magic gear, nonchalantly returned the robe hem of the mage in front, which he had used like a towel, as if nothing happened, and thought.
‘The theme of the 1st examination happens to be proving teamwork.’
In many ways, there couldn't have been a better stage for the family.
It was an appropriate stage to prove Enoch possessed the minimum capability to nominally command the ‘Allied Mission’ set to take place in the Beast-kin village.
Moreover, with the cooperation of Nemesis, an official neutral institution conducting an examination verified by everyone.
Where else could there be better examination conditions than this?
“Then, from now on, we will begin forming the teams for the 1st examination.”
‘It finally begins.’
Enoch waited for Teleos’s next words.
Team members were crucial in this examination.
The capabilities of the team members undertaking the examination together were a critical factor that could even determine success or failure.
There was no time to waste in the team selection phase.
Enoch looked around once.
‘Now is the time to form teams autonomously.’
He needed to start picking and recruiting team members soon.
Most participants had little information about this examination. Therefore, it was natural they wouldn't know which mages to team up with to gain an advantage.
However, Enoch knew the content and clearing method of the 1st examination.
In that case, picking advantageous team members wouldn't be difficult.
But the next moment.
A single sentence Enoch had never anticipated popped out of Teleos’s mouth.
“Team formation for this examination will proceed by ‘drawing lots’!”
Halt.
Enoch momentarily stopped, unknowingly. Then he quickly turned towards Teleos.
Wait a minute.
Did I hear that wrong?
‘……Drawing lots?’