It was an amazing sight. As Kuro set foot on campus, all he could do was look up at the Arcale Magic Academy. The highest rated academy in the entire country–No–The entire world. It was a place where the most promising magic prodigys would go, honing their knowledge and spellcasting ability. The Arcale Magic Academy created some of the strongest mages this world had to offer.

It was four stories high, but spread out like eight shopping malls put together. This was just one of the buildings here on campus.

It was a luxury to even be standing here.

The yard was filled with the new first-years, all heading towards the gymnasium. This was where the headmaster, himself, would explain the entrance exams.

It was quite funny, the new first-years had been accepted into the academy, but still had to prove themselves through an exam. This much was understandable though, it was supposed to be an academy for prodigies. They couldn’t risk having someone who would fall short of their expectations. Especially because this academy was involved with yearly competitions and such that would benefit its currency.

Kuro’s life-long dream for revenge was closer than ever.

‘ I’ve been waiting for so long. And now, I’m finally here.’

Suddenly, the figure of a girl bumped into him while running.

Bump!

Kuro was barely moved, however, the girl was sent crashing against the floor.

“Owwww.” Long blue hair and dazzling yellow eyes, she was a beauty.

Based on her appearance and this encounter, she was clearly the clumsy type.

The girl awkwardly giggled, rubbing the back of her head, “Oops. Hehe, Sorry. This is what I get for running, I guess.”

Her face kept a wide-smiled as she continued to sit there on the grass.

“It's Fine.” Kuro grabbed her hand, pulling her back on balance, “But you should be more careful. You’ll end up hurting yourself.”

Her voice was full of energy.

“Woww. You’re so considerate!” Her gaze studied him up and down, “Hey. Are you here for the entrance exams as well??”

Kuro nodded, “I am actually.”

“That’s so cool! Maybe we’ll get put in the same class.”

“Maybe. Guess only time will tell.”

“Riiight. Anyways, we should hurry. The exams are going to start soon.” Her gaze turned to look at the Clocktower, “Really soon.”

The exams were set to start around 7:30 A.m. Right now, it was 7:25

They made their way into the gymnasium, which was crowded with the new first-years. So crowded, in fact, that Kuro could feel his shoulder rubbing against other people.

Everyone focused their gaze at the platform, where a lady with black hair stood. Her eyes were glimmering red as she looked down at all the newcomers. She leaned in and spoke into the microphone.

“Welcome new First-years. I am the headmaster’s assistant. Alicia Greys. Due to his busy schedule, the headmaster could not make it today. I will be taking his place for the time-being.”

This was unfortunate news to Kuro’s ears. He was looking forward to being able to see the headmaster in person. Looks like it would have to wait.

Alicia Greys held a paper in her hands, reading aloud.

“Today, will be the simple exams. You will be quizzed on your variety of magic knowledge. From there, we will scan your overall magic power. There will also be a few physical tests. Such as running track, and testing your grip strengths. Here at the Arcale Magic Academy, we believe that all these factors play into becoming a powerful mage.” She grew quiet, then looked at the variety of students gathered here, “Any questions?”

For the most part, everyone seemed to grasp the understanding. However, there was one guy in particular who raised his hand. He had the face of an arrogant idiot. An idiot who was way too confident in his spell casting ability.

“Why do we need to undergo physical tests? Hah, that makes no sense. Isn’t this a magic academy? You people act like a mage is going to use physical attacks. A simple firebolt would be enough to blast any opponent away.”

Alicia lowered her gaze and sighed at the sight of this idiot first-year.

He had next to no understanding of how real mages worked.

“If that’s your way of thinking, I truly wonder how you got accepted here in the first place. But, I will answer your question. Mages may rely on their magic to attack, but what about when they need to evade? Surley, magic alone can’t block every attack. If I were you, I'd work on your intelligence. Magic can’t do much for you there either.”

They’re were actually many great mages who use physical attacks. One prime example was ‘The Dark Fang’ a combat mage held in high regard by this country.

He was a man who enhanced his body to great lengths using magic. This allowed him the prowess to strike through even a tank.

Alica continued, “Not every problem can be dealt with by standing still and casting a spell. If you think that much, then I would like to see you get through tomorrow's exam.”

The first day always had the easier exams, but on the second day, there would be a great test where you would need to display your abilities. And it wasn’t anything to overlook, it was the hardest part of exams.

The arrogant student stood silent, left without any words. He had nothing else to ask, so this concluded the explanation.

Alicia went on to dismiss everyone.

“Now then, I’d like for you all to make your way to the field. That’s where we will begin.”

____________

It was a while, but the exams for today were all finished.

Though they were difficult, Kuro felt he did fairly average on them.

For his Magic Power, he got a score of 45/100 which was slightly below average.

On the test for Magic Knowledge, he received a score of 70/100. This one, he didn’t find hard, however, he grew lazy and wrote down a few random answers.

On the physical test, he had gotten a 95/100, this was on the higher end of scores.

Kuro was mainly worried about tomorrow. That was when the final entrance exam would be held. From what he heard, the exam required you to display your abilities through a battle.

But what kind of battle? This was the main question.

He could only assume it would be a battle where the students would have to face off against each other. And when considering how many students there were, it would likely be a team battle.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

Aside from this much, nothing else was really clear about the exam. Not even the general rules or details were known.

Sadly, a plan couldn’t be made beforehand without this information.

It was indeed a problem, the consequence of failing was rumored to be heavy. Apparently, your total exam scores would be brought down by 30%. If you succeeded, your score would rise by 30%.

At least, that’s what he heard from other students.

‘That’s kind of unfair. Let’s say your team does bad, they could bring you down with them, causing you to fail.’

He didn’t even want to imagine being dropped from the academy. It would be a devastating loss for him. His entire motive here would crumble.

‘I’ll just hope for the best tomorrow.’

Kuro looked down at the key laying in the center of his palm. It was the key that would allow him to get into his dorm room.

He had taken a stroll around campus, exploring a bit. Yet, the dorm was the only place he hadn’t checked out.

‘I don't have anything else to really do. I guess I could just go to my room and be lazy for today.’

That was the initial idea, but something else came along.

A hand tapped his shoulder. It was the blue-haired girl from earlier.

She clearly had something tosya, but couldn’t seem to get the words out.

“Hey. Umm….”

“What is it?” Kuro asked.

“Well, umm…I don’t really know anyone here. Do you wanna maybe be friends?”

The request came out of the blue. It wasn't like they knew each other any better than strangers. After all, they’d only met this morning.

“ What makes you wanna be friends? It’s not like you necessarily know me.”

“I know. But you seem…I dunno… chill, I guess.”

Kuro sighed deeply. He wasn’t exactly here to make friends. However, it wouldn’t hurt to make a few friends. Plus, he wasn’t going to just turn the poor girl down for no good reason.

“Sure. Why not? I guess I could use a friend.”

“Really?! Cool.” Her expression sparkled with joy. As she realized her true emotions were showing, she immediately tried to play it off . Her expression straightened and she cleared her throat with a cough.

“Koff.”

She seemed like the kind of girl who was good at making friends. Yet, her reaction said otherwise, it was like she wasn’t used to people befriending her.

“Since we’re friends, isn't it only right that we know each other's names?” Kuro asked.

“R-right! You can just call me Amy.”

“Amy, huh. That’s a beautiful name.”

“You think so? I always thought it was whatever.”

“No. I'd say it’s definitely befitting.”

“Aww. Thank you! So, What’s your name?”

“Me? Well, I’m Kuro. Kuro Kuragari.”

With the introduction out of the way, Amy had one more thing to ask.

“Um….Would you like to have lunch with me?”

It was just about noon, the time where everyone’s stomachs were rumbling.

The timing couldn't have been better. Kuro could feel the hunger set in.

The both of them sat right beside each other, underneath the fresh shade from a tree. Kuro had already finished his sandwich, meanwhile, Amy was only half-way done with hers.

“How do you eat so fast?” she asked.

“It’s just the way I am.” Kuro replied.

This was all thanks to his past job. Back then, lunchtime was extremely short. Those who didn't finish their food fast enough would lose out on a lot of nutrition.

“I see.” Amy took another bite of her sandwich, chewing until she swallowed. “You know, I’m sort of worried about tomorrow’s exam. I heard the consequences of failure will be pretty harsh.” “Harsh” was putting it lightly.

Losing 30% of your overall exam scores was just cruel. When considering that you need a 55% overall score to pass, it seemed a bit evil. The average student would probably score 70%. Meaning they’d be reduced to a failing grade if the exam didn’t go well.

Amy looked up at the soft blue sky, releasing a deep sigh.

“I put in a lot of work into my studies just to get accepted. And I traveled far from home just to get here. If I end up falling now, all of this would’ve been for nothing. I just couldn’t imagine it.”

Kuro shared this same exact fear. If he ended up failing, he’d be devastated.

“Yeah. That would be unfortunate.”

Amy turned her eyes, facing Kuro, “If you don’t mind me asking, why did you come to this academy?”

“Hmm” Kuro’s eyes stared off into the distance, his face remained expressionless.

He answered, “I guess It's because I love magic.”

“Just that???”

“Yup. Just that.”

“Well, that's lame.”

Amy continued to take bites from her sandwich, till it was all gone. Her hunger had been satisfied. Right then, she noticed a conflict happening in the middle of the field.

A fight–No–It couldn’t be called that. It was completely one-sided.

A red-haired student was curled up on the floor, shielding himself with the constant kicks directed at him.

Four separate bullies, all kicking at the same, helpless guy.

One of the bullies wore a wide grin, speaking to his victim.

“C’mon! You thought you could just stand up to me out of nowhere? Now look at you, Yuji.” He appeared to be the leader of them.

Over and over, he continued kicking at his victim without even stopping for a breath. It kept on a little too long. Even the other bullies had stopped by now.

“Isn’t this a little too much? Fudo, I think you’re overdoing it, man” said one of the bullies.

Still, their leader ‘Fudo’ just ignored them.

“Hell no. This isn’t near enough!” His foot stomped down on the back of the student.

It was a crazy thing to witness. This was supposed to be the greatest magic academy. However, it was starting to seem like that wasn’t the case.

‘Maybe the academy allows anyone in as long as they're skilled.’ Kuro thought to himself.

Bad personalities didn’t seem to matter to the criteria. But, a violent act such as this would get the bullies expelled immediately. That was only if someone reported this. Aside from Kuro and Amy, there didn’t seem to be anyone else to witness the bullying take place.

And as far as everything went, Kuro was just going to stay out of it.

‘Last thing I need is to get involved.’ He'd rather not make any enemies.

Plus, it was just extra work.

Amy, however, wasn’t going to ignore this. She stood up with her fist clenched. The look on her face was determined.

“We can’t just let this happen.”

“I think it would be better if w-”

He was going to convince her to just ignore it, but she rebuked.

“No. This isn’t right. You don’t have to come along. But I won’t just sit by.”

She stormed off, in the direction of the bullies.

‘There she goes. This is sure to stir things up.’ Kuro thought to himself.

Furiously, Amy approached the one named ‘Fudo’

She shouted while firmly shoving him back.

“That’s enough! Aren’t you ashamed??” Amy looked down at the red-haired student on the floor. He was bruised badly. “He can’t even move. Why are you still attacking him?” Amy kept a bold expression.

“You should’ve minded your business,”

The back of Fudo’s hand whacked Amy across the face, knocking her on the grass.

In utter shock, she held her cheek.

“You… hit me.”

“I did. And I'll do it again!”

“What would the academy do if they found out about all of this?” Amy asked.

“I don’t have to worry about that. They only act on actual evidence. Your claims don’t matter if there's nothing backing them up.” Fudo lifted his heel above her face. “I don’t care if you’re a girl. I’ll show you a world of pain.”

He threw a strong kick downard. Before it could connect, a firm grip caught his ankle.

Clench!

It was Kuro, he had intervened after all.

“Now, that’s just crossing the line.” He sighed, releasing his grip.

“...That’s quite the grip you got there.” Fudo took a couple steps back.

Judging by his uniform, he was a 2nd-year student.

“It’s nothing special.” Kuro replied.

“Regardless. You First-years messed with the wrong people.” Fudo glared at both Kuro and Amy, threatening them, “ I’ll make sure to make your life hell at this academy. Consider me your enemy. I have lots of connections. I know lots of people that can hurt you real bad.”

With his warning clear, Fudo left, along with his underling bullies that followed behind.

A sweat ran down the side of Kuro’s cheek. Not from stress or fear, but from disappointment. It was his first day here at the academy and he already made enemies.

‘Well, I guess that’s another issue. This will be annoying.’

Extra work, without a doubt. But, it wasn’t something that he couldn’t handle.

Kuro helped Amy get back on balance, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. But….” Amy looked over to the student on the floor, “...But I think he’s hurt pretty bad.”

Kuro’s eyes lit up in a haze, he observed the student's injuries. So far, it only seemed like he had a broken rib. Wasn’t anything a little healing magic couldn't do.

Kuro’s hand began to glow green as he touched the student side. In mere seconds, the broken rib was completely healed.

“I didn’t know you could use healing magic?” Amy exclaimed.

Of course she didn’t know, it had only been half a day since they met.

“I only know a little bit,” said Kuro. He looked down at the student, “Are you able to move?”

After a bit of effort, the student opened his eyes, “....Yeah, just a bit sore,” he managed to get up, though he staggered around, “You guys really saved me.”