*** Chapter 1: Eren ***

It is impossible to predict what skills will be important in the future. Most think that, for a mage, the answer is simple. 

Magic is the power to force the world to match one's desire. With enough power, anything is possible.

But that doesn't mean mages solve all problems with brute force. Mages have to be much more versatile than that. Take, for instance, Eren's current situation. In front of him sat twenty tunnels, one of which he had to go down to begin the Trials. Each was dangerous-that was the only guarantee. But that was all they told him.

The examiners revealed little. No two would be the same. Some would have dangerous monsters, others complicated traps, or maybe puzzles that had to be solved to continue. That was all.

Implicit in this was that choosing a tunnel that matched Eren's skill set was vital if he was to have any chance at all.

Eren only had five minutes to pick. It was first come, first served. If he waited too long, he could have the choice taken away from him and get stuck with an impossible task. Contestants could switch tunnels with each other, but attempting to force another contestant to do so was strictly against the rules. If the tunnel was unclaimed, a contestant could switch freely. If another claimed it, they both had to agree to the switch. Coercion, by any means, was grounds for disqualification.

Approaching the tunnel with a big letter "1" painted above it. Eren got as close to entering the tunnel as he could, being careful not to cross the threshold by accident, which was also prohibited. He saw nothing. The tunnel made a sharp leftward turn, making it impossible to see what challenges lay within. The air smelled damp. Dissatisfied, Eren moved on to the next tunnel, hoping to learn more.

The second tunnel's gimmick was much easier to deduce. Eren saw nothing, literally. No matter how long or hard Eren stared into its depths, his eyes refused to adjust- it was pitch black. To get through it, Eren would need some other way of navigating besides sight- not something he excelled at. Deciding that this tunnel was not worth further investigation, he moved on.

Two more tunnels revealed little more than the first. Finally, at the fifth cave, Eren heard something promising. It was the strangely deep chattering of a greenback ape, even distorted by the echoing of the cave; the sound was very hard to mistake. Greenback apes have incredibly thick hides, too thick for a normal sword to pierce, but they were also simple creatures. Incapable of intelligent thought or strategizing in a fight. If the challenge had anything to do with fighting, this would be one of the easier monsters to face. 

Eren hesitated briefly, eyeing the other tunnels he had yet to search. But time was passing, and many contestants had already selected their tunnels. If he acted too slowly, he would likely lose this opportunity. This tunnel was far from ideal, but Eren would prefer an enemy he knew. With his mind made up, Eren rushed over to the examiner. 

Knowing your enemy is half the battle.

Eren did not believe in judging a book by its cover. Usually. The examiner, Ash, just seemed so excessively unimpressive. He was scrawny, with messy, dirty blonde hair and mismatched shoes. 

He was an incredible mage. No mage could look that incompetent and still receive respect unless they were incredibly dangerous. 

"Hiya Eren, pick a tunnel yet?" Another hint at how dangerous he was. Eren had not told him his name, nor had he told anyone else involved in the examination process. Contestants had permission to use pseudonyms- or refuse to give a name altogether if they wished. Eren had done the latter when he signed up.

"Yes, I would like tunnel number five." The examiner smiled knowingly, the tunnel five stamp already in his hand. Gesturing for Eren's hand, he gave it a quick stamp, marking him as the only one allowed in tunnel five. Muttering a quick thanks, Eren moved over to his tunnel.

"I'd wish you luck, but it won't help against her," Ash said, his voice barely detectable. Eren wanted to ask what he meant by that. But before he could ask, Ash had already started helping another contestant with their selection. 

***

Eren waited in front of his tunnel. He considered looking at the other tunnels, but decided against it. If he found that someone else had a better test, it would only annoy him. He needed to be focused entirely on what was coming.

Despite himself, he was still trying to decipher Ash's words. Who was "her"? One of the other contestants?

Eren looked around surreptitiously, checking out the other contestants: his rivals on the exam. The thing about mages is there is no normal appearance. Mana's influence on the body resulted in unusual effects on a mage's appearance. Often, the weirder a mage looked, the more powerful they would be. In clans, these traits would even be visible from birth. The result of the mother's mana interacting with the unborn child.

For example, Eren was eight feet tall and noticeably muscular. This, combined with his dark hair and sharp features, made for an intimidating visage, not that the mages of the Trials seemed too concerned by his appearance. This was not his only magic- his actual powers were far scarier, in his opinion.

Of the twenty contestants, eight were women. Eren's ability to sense the mana of another mage was poor, so estimating their strength was impossible. Watching them, he tried to decipher what he could about their magic. Of course, only a fool would show off their magic at a time like this. Eren certainly would not be the only one watching.

"Hey, listen up!" Eren's head snapped to the source of the yelling, finding a short girl with red hair standing beside Ash, screaming. "My name is Kena, and I'm going to whoop all your asses. Because I am the hottest girl in the world!" 

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What? 

Ash whispered something into Kena's ear, the boisterous girl's eyes widening in shock. 

"I'm a fire mage! If that wasn't clear..." she trailed off, lighting her hand on fire in a demonstration. "So... Yeah. Prepare for a whooping..." 

Ah, so she's an idiot, Eren thought, watching as she slinked off to her tunnel. He doubted she would last very long, and -based on the laughter of the other contestants- he was not unique in his assessment of her.

Eren almost felt sorry for her. The examiners had taken precautions, but a certain amount of death was inevitable. Magic is always dangerous.

A sharp whistle pierced the air. Several contestants charged blindly into their tunnels, focusing entirely on finishing the race as fast as possible. Eren took a more cautious approach, moving at a swift march through the tunnel, scrutinising his surroundings closely as he moved. The test began as soon as he crossed the threshold; there was no guarantee there was not some sort of trap he had missed from outside of the tunnel. The sound of an agonised scream vindicated his belief. Eren searched for the origin, but soon changed his mind. The examiners were watching all the events. They did this both to prevent cheating and to prevent deaths where possible. As dangerous as the event was, they at least had some safety precautions in place. Or so he was told. Despite his best effort, Eren saw no evidence of surveillance. Either they hid them remarkably well or he they didn’t exist. 

The Trials aren't safe. I have to protect myself.

Eren began circulating mana into his skin. The effects were noticeable almost instantly. His skin and clothing took on a noticeable grey hue as the mana transformed them, forming an iron exoskeleton. Next, he moved his mana out of his body, making the shape of a sword and shield before solidifying it. Armed and armoured, he felt much better.

Fortunately, there were no traps, or at least none Eren set off, and he rounded the corner without incident. Once there, he faced his first challenge.

The room was large and airy. Tall black walls ended in a curved ceiling that was high enough that despite his great height, Eren could walk normally. The walls glowed with magic flames, lighting the way. A sign explained the first test. Defeat the monster to open the door. Nice and simple; a good first test. He was a little surprised that there was only a sign to tell him what to do. But he supposed it made sense; if he failed to defeat a greenback, he would not be worth the examiners' time.

Eren had faced greenbacks on almost a dozen occasions, once even fighting two simultaneously. He knew everything about them. How they fought, how fast they were, how big they grew. Reality disproved Eren’s belief the moment he laid eyes on his target. 

A normal greenback was about the size of a human, significantly smaller than Eren. They were almost ridiculously muscular, visible even under their thick luminous green fur. To a human, they would seem terrifying, but Eren knew they were no threat. He had beaten his first greenback at twelve, his blade carving through its "impenetrable" hide like a hot knife through butter.

This beast was something else. It looked like a normal greenback in most ways. Just bigger. Much bigger. At least ten feet tall, it towered over Eren, its biceps looking like beach balls stuffed in its arms. It was fast too. Eren barely had a moment to react before it was upon him, giant hands aloft above it, ready to smash down onto his head. Eren was very confident in his magic's ability to defend him. His natural armour was much stronger than any non-magical equivalent, whilst also much lighter and easier to move in. But he was not dumb enough to take the beast’s attack head-on. Dodging out the way, he evaded the beast's attack by a hair, its gargantuan fists leaving a deep indent in the ground where Eren had been standing. 

Dashing past it, Eren slashed its leg with his sword but only cut a few strands of green fur off, its hide too tough to cut. 

Definitely not a normal greenback.

The greenback gave Eren no time to dwell on this. Screaming furiously, it spun around with a backhand aimed at his face. Summoning his magic, Eren formed thick spikes on the outside of his shield. The beast failed to stop itself, hitting the dangerous shield with its full force. The sheer power of the blow forced Eren to his knees, but the greenback did not get off clean. Howling in pain, it drew back its hand, eyeing it tearfully. The cuts were shallow- the brute’s hide was ridiculously thick- but Eren still hurt it.

Not one to miss an opportunity, Eren leapt forward. He lashed out with his blade aimed for its exposed eye- one of the few places it was as vulnerable as any other creature. 

The ape grabbed his sword, snapping it like a twig. 

Eren leapt back, dropping his now-useless weapon. The ape threw the blade.

The hunk of metal went wide, missing him entirely, embedding the blade deep into the wall.

If that hit me, I would have died.

There was no point in trying to retrieve his broken weapon. Instead, Eren took a defensive position with his back to the wall and his shield raised. 

The greenback didn’t disappoint, charging forward with reckless abandon. Eren held his ground shield raised to repeat the spike trick. The greenback was not an intelligent creature, but it had witnessed his ability once already. It was only natural that its instinct drove it to avoid repeating its mistake.

Eren expected this. When it was upon him, it hesitated. Eren dropped low, striking hard with the spike-covered shield. He knocked its legs out from under it. The greenback's momentum carried it forward, right over his head, smashing face-first into the wall. 

The whole cavern shook as it collided with the wall, thick cracks forming up and down the wall at the point of impact. Briefly stunned, the greenback paused for a moment, but that was all the time Eren needed. Summoning his magic, he formed a two-handed war hammer. If he could not pierce its flesh, he would just have to rely on good old-fashioned brute force. I should have done this to start with.

Eren swung the hammer with all his might, aiming for the dazed behemoth's head. The greenback tried to block, but it was too slow. His hammer connected, knocking it harshly to the ground. Eren waited for a tense moment, but the greenback did not stir. 

He had won.

With the greenback's defeat, a doorway in the wall slid down, accompanied by the distinct sound of stone grinding on stone. The moment Eren stepped through, it sealed itself again.

That was more challenging than I thought. Hopefully, my next challenge is a puzzle. I could have died if I was less careful.