The sparring arena was large, just like everything else in the school. This test was different from the last, though.

The first difference was that we didn’t get to choose our opponent. The secretary had us put our names down and mentioned that she took into account our previous test scores. They did this so that no one would get severely hurt.

“We will be providing each of you with leather training armor to prevent severe injuries as well. Make sure to strap them on correctly.”

All the attendees received a set of light leather armor. We sat in the bleachers, strapping it on and waiting for our names to be called.

The secretary stood in the middle of the battle arena, a paper in hand. She finally spoke, announcing the first two contenders.

The first name she called was a boy. He looked to be of noble blood by his attire. He wore a caster cloak and had a pretty expensive-looking gemmed wand.

The second name announcement was a regular-looking kid. By his clothes, you couldn't say he was poor, but you could tell he wasn't wealthy either. He was just an average joe. He didn’t have any weapons, so I assumed he was most likely a martial mage.

Both of the boys stood in the arena, waiting to start. Finally, the secretary gave the signal, and they began.

The noble boy swung his wand and mumbled a spell. Whips of water lashed out at his opponent.

The normal-looking boy could only block with gales of wind until he was utterly defeated in a matter of minutes.

Looking at this fight, it really puts perspective on how much stronger noble children who grew up with tutors and training were versus normal people. Of course, I could be wrong, and the normal-looking kid could have gone through all the training in the world. But from his demonstration, I doubt that was the case.

I knew when I made it into the school there would be a gap in power among the students. The weak were at the bottom and the strong at the top. It's the same as any other hierarchy in the world, and it was only natural for this to happen.

“That was quick. I could tell that caster kid was going to win from the start, but not this quickly.”

“Well, it's only natural,” I said.

Casters, if you look at the class of mage itself and dissect it and put it up against all the other classes, it wins in every aspect. I’m not saying that as a martial mage, I would lose against this caster boy, but put anyone who hasn’t trained enough and doesn’t have the speed or power to close the gap, the caster will win every time with ranged spells and defenses. Truly unfortunate.

I’m sure this changes as mages' mana cores get stronger, but it will always be there in the lower ranks.

The secretary stepped up and announced more names. Many battles passed, and soon it was Hanz's turn. As he walked down to the arena, the name of his opponent was called.

“Tasha Nar.”

Hanz stopped in his tracks and almost tripped in the process.

“Are you serious?” he said as he turned to her.

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“You better buckle up. I won't be holding back,” she said.

Hanz sighed and smiled. He seemed to have already accepted the situation. “I'm glad to hear that. It seems we are on the same page.

It would be an interesting match. With Hanz's martial strength and combat prowess, he was a strong opponent. But having fought with Tasha myself, I couldn't tell how he would fare, especially now that magic was involved.

The signal was given for them to go, and they began. Earthen mana surged and surrounded Tasha.

Hanz clad his fists in fire and charged. His beast-like fighting style was too unpredictable for Tasha, and she began having a hard time dodging his blows. Even though her speed was top-notch, it was hard for her to react fast enough.

She stomped, and a pillar of stone conjured beneath her feet, making Haz step back and regroup.

He charged up a lightning orb and fired.

She stomped once more, and a wall of earth appeared in front of her.

Hanz continued firing balls of fire and orbs of lightning, but the wall stayed, and Tasha didn’t move.

Hanz seemed to get tired of this and rushed to break down the wall.

But I knew something that Hanz didn’t. Tasha was hiding something.

Hanz dashed to the other side of the wall, expecting to see Tasha, but she wasn’t there. Instead, she was in the air, using the wind to propel herself. She withheld her second element throughout all the previous tests. Of course, being a wind mage myself, I could sense it, but didn’t say anything.

She shot a barrage of wind bullets, piercing Hanz’s leather armor.

He didn’t fall, though. Instead, he retaliated with an arc of lightning. The lightning collided with Tasha, bringing her falling to the ground.

She hit the ground, and so did Hanz. They fell simultaneously, and it was hard to tell who had won the bout.

Instructors quickly began helping the two to their feet, and the secretary watched, not having announced the winner yet. It took her another five minutes to talk it over with other instructors, who were watching, and she soon stepped up to speak, “After further review, we have decided to rule this match a tie. They will both be counted as winners in the logs.”

The crowd mumbled in discussion over the fight, and all had their own opinions. Hanz and Tasha, on the other hand, were back on their feet and now headed out of the arena, most likely headed to the completion area.

The talk of the previous match dissipated as more carried on. And at long last, it was finally my turn.

I stepped into the area full of excitement, not for the battle, but for the exams to be over.

My opponent was a caster. He held a large staff with carved designs on it, and I began to assume it was used more for looks than for magic. He was no doubt a noble, by his good quality garments and the large price tag that was no doubt on that staff. It wasn't hard to tell.

“You better make this fun for me, commoner,” he sneered, looking at me as if I were a dog on the street.

I didn't say a word. Who does this brat think he is?

The secretary signaled for us to begin and the kid instantly started shooting bolts of lightning from his staff.

I easily shadow-stepped and dodged each one of them, dancing around the battlefield. I was just entertained by his antics and could have taken him out at any time. He was wide open and sluggish, with no defense measures set up whatsoever. The arrogant sneer plastered on his face made me want to embarrass him.

I began shadow-stepping to his blind spot and shooting individual bullets of wind. With each bullet that pierced his armor, he turned in the direction of it and shot a meaningless bolt of lightning. From afar, I heard the crowd beginning to laugh.

It seems I'm doing well.

Using wind to propel my speed, I snatched his large staff and threw it to the sidelines. He was flabbergasted at my quickness, and his face turned pale. "H-how d-did you...?"

"You're not strong enough," I said simply, as I landed a high kick on his shoulder, sending him flat to the ground.

"The match is over. Falyn Elway wins," the secretary announced, and the other instructors began helping the boy up.

"You may exit the arena. Your letter determining whether you have been accepted or not will be mailed. We appreciate your efforts and hope to see you here this upcoming year."

I nodded my head and left, looking for Hanz and Tasha, but it had been so long since their match that I assumed they had already caught a ride home.

So, I walked alone through the giant academy and back to the entrance gates. Not even five minutes into my walk, a man appeared in front of me, seemingly out of thin air. I couldn't sense his presence or mana, and I couldn't even see his body as he was draped in multicolored robes. Only his face greeted me with a smile. "Falyn Elway, I presume? It's amazing to finally meet you."