“Your second test is a physical test.” Professor Robert started speaking.

All the candidates were focused in his words.

“The passing condition for each individual is to cross the forest behind the academy and touch the seal paper in two hours and twenty-eight minutes.

On the opposite side of the forest, there will be ten similar buildings for ten teams, where one can find the seal paper.

There will many dangerous beasts wandering inside the forest.

It's your choice to fight it or run from it.

Since it is a test to prove your physical strength, using magic inside the forest is prohibited.”

Some professors wearing white uniforms came from the academy building, holding three cases.

Inside the cases were many white bands.

They distributed the white bands to the candidates.

“These bands will glow and create a barrier around you, if any one uses magic.

You can also use it if you have no other way to escape from a beast.

But the user and his/her whole team will be disqualified.”

Candidates showed both happy and terrible face depending upon the teammates they have.

The two nobles of Relghert and Haven families, the members of Alice’s team were beaming with happiness.

“The last rule is that; one member from each team will be locked inside a cage in front of the academy.

The lock can only be opened by someone from outside.

A person can only pass if he touches the seal paper and only a maximum of four can touch each paper.

And the passing of all members of a team is not necessary for the passing of the individual members.” he ended the speech with a grin.

Hearing the last line worried many faces amid the candidates.

“I will be locked. You guys can leave me alone and win.

I will be no use inside the forest.

I only came here because my parents asked.

I don’t deserve to study in Xaven’s”

Said Drake Velvert, who was the fourth member of the team and a sadist.

Drake was Vain’s family friend and also know him since he was a child.

Their families were partner business partners.

“Just shut up Drake. You will do as we order. If not, I will strip your band and throw you into the forest.” Maye raged.

Drake bowed his head and remained silent.

“I will get locked. Maye will stay behind and unlock the cage.

Vain will take Drake with him and cross the forest.” Even said.

“Will that be, ok? I mean, I can’t guarantee that Maye won’t leave you behind.” Vain said.

“Hey, what do you think I am? I will never do that.”

Maye folded her hands and looked away.

“No. All four of us will have to cross the forest.

This test is about team work. So, only a team should be able to win.” Even said.

“Now that you say, the Professor Robert’s speech seemed weird.

It was like, he was telling us to leave our teammates behind.” Vain stated.

“I knew it. The entrance exam is just a trap.

The professors are trying to kill us. This band should also be a fake one.

We all will be sacrificed inside the forest for the revival the devil God, Rana.” Drake commented.

“Can you just shut your bloody mouth or I will feed you all the grass around this ground.” Maye ordered Drake.

Drake again silenced himself.

The gate of all the ten cages opened itself.

All the teams went beside their respective cages.

A member from each team entered the cage.

The gates closed itself as soon as one stepped inside.

Vain was standing near the cage.

Maye was yelling at Drake’s sadistic comment.

“Don’t die.” Vain said to Even.

Even nodded in response.

“And also, please protect Maye.

She may be a short-tempered girl but her instincts are sharp.

She will never betray anyone who trusts her.

She will never use the band and disqualify the team even if she in danger.

So, please look after her.” Vain bowed his head.

“Leave it to me.

It may be hard to get along with her, but I will prot-”

Even’s expression changed into terror.

Fear in his eyes were clearly visible to Vain.

Thoughts and memories from the past flooded in his mind. His mind went entirely blank.

Vain shook Even’s shoulder, helping him to gain his senses.

“Are you all, right?” Vain asked with a concerned face.

“Yeah. I am fine.

No matter what, I will protect her.” Those words of him were filled with determination.

“Then I will leave her in you care.”

“The test will start in one minute.

Candidates, please take your position.” Professor Robert announced.

Maye came near the lock and readied herself to break the lock since no key was given to them.

The test started.

Vain and Drake ran towards the forest.

Many other teams followed the same plan as Even’s team.

The team left to Even’s cage, all the three outer members were wearing the same dress, a long red shirt and black pants.

The three were working together in opening the cage

But inside their cage was a different guy, who had a weak body compared to his teammates.

Every team were using different tricks and magic to destroy the lock, but it hadn’t worked.

Some even used magic of the cage bars, only to fail in it.

The cages were almost indestructible.

While searching a way to open the cage, Even noticed a small design on the lock which was only visible from inside.

He took a close look to see a moving clock, which was set at fifty-five minutes prior to twelve o clock.

Even made a foolish smile and sat down.

“That old man got us.”

Saying, Even lay on the ground.

Maye and others around him were surprised to see his action.

“Attention candidates, I forgot to tell you about a small rule.” professor Robert spoke with a smiling face.

“You can’t open or destroy the cage with magic.

The cage will open itself, an hour later from the start of the test.

One can wait until the cage opens and cross with your teammate or cross without an extra baggage.

It's your decision to make.

Thank you.”

The ground became hushed.

Teammates were looking at each other.

For some, the decision was simple as leaving the other behind.

Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

“What now?” Maye asked.

“We wait till the cage opens and cross together.”

Maye was worried.

“Don’t worry. We will make this test.

So that you can marry Vain.” Even said.

Maye’s face was red as beetroot.

“Wha- What are you saying, Even? It's not like that.

He is just a good fr- friend.”

She was stammering.

“You want to cancel your engagement because you like Vain.” Even stated without any hesitation.

“I said it’s not like that.” Maye responded, looking away from him.

“Come on. Anyone can understand your feeling.

Early you looked so irritated when Vain was staring at Alice.”

“But that fool can’t understand my feelings.” she murmured.

“I think, he also like you.”

“Really.”

“But as a little sister.”

“I knew it. That block head. All dense men should die.” She cursed.

“We are not exactly cousins. He is a distant relative and also our neighbor.

His mom knows about me and also supports me, but that good for nothing boy just treat me like his sister.

He wanted to study in Xavens and become a knight in army.

I also want to study with and make progression.”

She was blushing as she spoke those words.

Even looked to his left to see that weak guy sitting inside his cage, alone.

The red dressed guys left him behind.

“Three teams have left their members behind and ran away.” Maye said.

Even looked around and saw Alice inside the last cage in the row.

Arthur was beside her cage and both of them were resting their heads on the cage bars.

“Leaving behind them is the most logical way to pass the test.” Even said.

Maye was surprised.

“Think about it. The ones who are inside the cage were most probably the weakest member.

It will be more efficient to cross without them.

This bands are designed to detect mana use, not to suppress it.

If anyone foolishly use magic, the whole team will fail.

If the rest members cross the forest within an hour and touch the paper, they will pass.

So, it doesn't matter if after one hour the released member use magic or not.” Even stated.

“But seven teams decided to stay. Are you saying that those who chose to wait are fools?”

“If my guess is right, this test is to analyze our choosing skill.

If you decide to wait, then you are not ready to leave your comrade behind.

At the same time if you wait here, both you and your comrade have a high probability to lose.

Deciding to stay is right and wrong at the same time.

This test is not about choosing between what is right or what is wrong.

The decision was already made. Our job is to find what decision they made and choose it”

“You are saying we have to choose the same decision that the professor wants us to choose even if it is ethically wrong.”

Even nodded.

Both became quiet and started to think about the decision.

“Maye, do you know Sheena Walker from your family?” Even asked her.

“Sheena...

Yeah. I know. She is currently a third year in this academy.

What about her?”

“I was just curious. Any comments on her personality?”

She raised her eyebrows, but still spoke.

“I had never talked to her.

Branch families hardly interacts to other branches.

But she is surprisingly famous for a branch family member.

She lives in the main family mansion and other main families are dying to accept her as their bride.”

Hearing that, Even went into deep thought.

“Don’t tell me you have crush on her.

Just forget her. It's impossible.”

“No. I don’t. I also only have heard about her in rumors.”

“If that’s all, then good.”

One hour passed.

All the gates opened.

Candidates ran towards the forest as fast as possible.

Even followed Maye’s lead.

They entered the forest.

Any other teams were not visible to them.

The teams voluntarily separated from each other to avoid unwanted collisions.

After running for a while, Maye stopped.

“Something is coming.” She spoke.

Even followed her action.

From distance, they could see the grasses moving.

It was a beast.

The beast was running towards them.

Even grabbed her hand and ran to his left.

They hid behind a large bush and remained motionless.

The beast jumped above the bush and landed in front of them.

It was the human sized beast, Redtor.

Redtor was a beast with four legs and red fur covering its whole body.

Its teeth were so hard and sharp that it could easily break a steel sword in one bite.

It turned its gaze towards Maye and dashed against her.

Just before it reached her, Even kicked the beast’s head shooting it to the ground.

The beast stood up and changed its target to Even.

“Go, hide behind the tree.” he ordered Maye.

“But you-”

“Just hide. I can take care of him.”

After a moment of hesitation, Maye did as he said.

Even took his two draggers out positioned it against the beast.

“Grrr...”

The beast ran towards him with a roaring sound.

Even climbed the tree near him but the beast followed him above the tree.

After reaching the top, Even looked down to see the beast climbing the tree with its sharp claws.

Even jumped from the top, holding his dragger against the beast.

The draggers pierced through the beast’s head and both of them had a hard landing.

Maye came out and saw Even and the dead beast lying on the ground.

She was sadly surprised.

One dragger was held by Even and the other was stuck inside the beast’s head.

He stood up and took out his dragger form the beast.

“Is that a Stein?” Maye asked looking at his draggers.

“Yes, but I didn’t pour mana into it. So, no violation of rules.” Even said while wiping his blades.

Steins are magical items which use mana of the user to operate.

Stein weapons uses mana to increase its power and toughness, which could make it better than any normal steel weapons.

Without mana, Steins were just like any normal weapon.

Even put his blades back and dusted his clothes.

“Shall we continue.” he asked.

Maye nodded and lead Even to the into the forest.

On his way, Even sensed many magic usages around the forest.

He ignored them all and followed Maye’s lead.

Maye had some good instinct when it came to enemy detection.

So, following her was the best option.

“Have you ever killed a beast before?” Maye asked while they were running.

“Yeah. My grandmother is an adventurer.

She would take me with her sometimes.” Even replied.

She didn’t respond.

“Is that you first time seeing a hunt?” He asked.

Maye’s pace decreased. Even caught up with her.

“Yes." she looked gloomy and helpless.

“Then make a habit of it. Being a mage means doing some cold-hearted works.

One of them is killing the one that tries to kill you.

In this academy only the strongest will survive.

Strongest both physically and mentally.

If you don’t change you way of thinking, you will definitely not pass the final test.”

“You know what the final test will be?” she asked.

“Not sure what is it.

My grandpa always told me the requirements for being an ideal mage.

The first two tests covered most of them.

The remaining qualities should be tested on the last one.”

“I will try my best.” Maye determined herself.

Both crossed the forest.

In front of them were ten identical stone buildings.

Candidates were running between the buildings.

Even looked around but couldn’t find Vain and Drake.

“Maybe they are inside one of the building, waiting for us.

We can start looking from the last building.” Maye said.

They entered the first building and saw a steel bared door blocking the entrance.

Inside the building, three red shirted guys were standing near three spheres located at the corners of that triangular room.

They noticed Even and one them walked towards the door.

“We will allow one of you to touch the paper with us, but you should help us in getting the seal paper.” he said.

Even and Maye were confused.

“I will help you. Can you explain me the situation?” Even asked them.

“What? Are you betraying us Even?” Maye raged.

“I told you, for passing this exam one should be cold-hearted. Sympathy is the last thing you should expect from me”

Even stated coldly. Maye was surprised from Even’s words.

She had anger fuming her inside, but controlled it.

Somewhere deep, she felt that Even was doing the most appropriate thing for him and she has no right to blame Even.

The three brothers took a look at each other’s face and started explaining.

“As you can see, the seal paper is inside glass locker.”

They pointed at the glass wall opposite to the door.

There was a piece of paper floating deep behind the glass wall.

“The glass will be only opened if three of us pour mana into this sphere, simultaneously.”

A wicked smile appeared in Even’s face, but he managed to hide it from them.

“You have three members inside, right. Then why you ask for one of us?” Maye asked.

“We need three members to make the glass disappear. But if one of us stop pouring mana, the glass will soon reappear.

We need one more to take out the paper while we keep the glass disappear.”

Maye understood everything.

She chose the right decision back then by staying near the cage.

But now the problem was Even.

She looked at him to see his laughing face.

“Thank you for your information.”

Even took her hand and left that place.

Maye was confused.

“Why?” She asked.

Even eyed at her.

“Why didn’t you stay with them?”

Even stopped and took a deep breath.

“Do you really thought I will betray Vain?

I promised him that I will protect you.

And also, I don’t want to make an enemy out of Vain.”

Hearing that, embarrassed her.

Maye giggled and spoke “You really are a cold-hearted guy.”

They both ran to the next building to see Vain and Drake waiting inside.

“Vain. Open the door.” Maye yelled, while hitting on the door.

Vain soon noticed them and opened the door from inside.

All of the smiled and took deep sigh.

“Maye will catch the paper. The rest will pour their mana into the sphere.” Vain ordered.

Every one obeyed as he said and took their position.

They started pouring mana and the glass wall slowly disappeared.

Maye took out the seal paper.

As soon as she touched it, her name appeared on the seal paper.

Then Drake touched it, Vain and lastly Even.

All four name were written on the paper.

Two hours and twenty-eight minutes passed.

Second test ended.

Only fifteen candidates passed.

Thirty-two were disqualified.

Three died.

“Any other evidences, sir?” asked professor Lanent.

“No.” professor Robert replied.

In front of them were bodies of three candidates who were killed during the test.

Only the academy principal and officer from the mage association were informed about this incident.

“The three were killed by the same mage.

The culprit can use high-class magic and also can hide it.

I didn’t even sense any high-class magic usage from the forest.”

Robert took a closer look at the body.

“How are we going to inform it to their parents sir?

The girl was from the Malsh main family.”

Lanent was worried about the current situation.

“We should wait for the miss Alina’s order.

We were the only officials present during these murders.

If the worst comes, the blame will be on our heads.

Write down every abnormal behavior you observe around the forest.”

Robert said folding his hand on back.

“Who do you think the culprit is, sir?”

“The culprit is not a normal person. He was able to break the mana barrier produced by the band.

For a mage at his level, using magic without activating the band will be normal.”

Lanent became scared from his words.

‘There is possibility for the culprit present amongst the final candidates.

It is also possible that the culprit was already disqualified.

The chance of culprit to be a non-participant was also possible.’ Lenant thought.

“How can we find the culprit sir?”

“We are still keeping the disqualified candidates.

You will check on them to find any evidences.

For the finalist, I will personally treat them.”