149 – Practical Exam, Day Two

The second day of the Orion Academy’s practical exam dawned.

An hour before the start, Rohan downed the supplement Clara had prepared and the candies Sion had packed, beginning to loosen his muscles.

‘The atmosphere’s different from yesterday.’

Looking around, the change was undeniable.

Fewer students were stretching, more were meditating or simply standing, focusing their minds.

Likely preparing for Instructor Marcel’s exam, the one they said more than half would fail.

─ *The Orion Academy practical exam, day two, is now underway.*

The same announcement as yesterday echoed at nine o’clock.

Today, students dispersed, each with their own plans.

The area near Juyeon was empty, a stark contrast to the first day. The majority flocked toward Instructor Marcel.

‘Our instructor must be bored.’

Regretful as he was, Rohan wouldn’t be going to Juyeon today either.

He’d decided his route yesterday.

First, he planned to head to Instructor Falkenhain, the one specializing in defensive techniques.

Instructor Falkenhain possessed a hundred azure orbs in total.

The community boards said around thirty had been claimed on the first day.

Even if that were true, there was likely some minor discrepancy. Depending on the fervor, they could all be gone today, making this the opportune moment.

‘Let’s go.’

Rohan wasn’t the only one with this plan.

Many students walked in the same direction.

How long had it been? A male instructor stood, arms crossed, in the distance.

Short hair, a tightly set jaw. A large build. A significant scar on his face.

In short, he was a man with a sturdy, resolute presence.

He possessed the appearance and aura that would make anyone believe he was a Western special forces soldier.

Thud. Thud.

The students halted at a line drawn on the ground.

The instructor surveyed the gathered students, channeling his mana as he began his explanation.

“The method of obtaining an orb is simple. Break the barrier I erect. The student who shatters the barrier will receive an orb.”

Instructor Falkenhain channeled his mana, creating a translucent membrane.

The divide between cadet and instructor cleaved physically.

“Any cadet wishing to challenge, step over the line.”

Rohan, having secured a spot with a clear view, decided to observe for a bit.

Almost immediately, a cadet came forward.

“You may attack at any time. Given the number of you, the time limit will be one minute, starting now.”

“Sir, yes sir!”

The cadet stepped up and reached out, touching the barrier erected by Instructor Falkenhain.

Ripples spread from the point of contact with his palm.

Watching the scene unfold, Rohan stroked his chin, returning to the line of thought that had been nagging at him since yesterday.

‘Will skills work on that barrier? What’s the ruling on that? If they do, this is practically a test tailor-made for me.’

With so many cadets, Instructor Falkenhain would surely be estimating the density of his mana with a rough hand.

As Rohan continued pondering, the cadet taking the test drew his blade.

Impressive mana levels, as expected of an Orion Academy cadet.

“Haaap!”

The sharpened edge, accompanied by a shout, began to strike the barrier relentlessly.

Clang! Claang!

The strikes continued non-stop for the full minute. But the barrier remained unbroken.

It only suffered scratches, nothing more.

“Time.”

“Hhehk…! Hhehk…!”

The barrier instantly repaired itself, erasing the scratches.

Had he focused his attacks on the same spot for the entire minute, he might have achieved a better result. But minimizing errors while maximizing power was no easy feat for a cadet.

“It’s not a lack of mana. It’s possible if you concentrate your power. When you challenge again, try a cleaner compression of your energies.”

The breathless cadet bowed deeply and retreated.

After him, several more cadets took their turns.

While Rohan watched, two cadets managed to take a bell.

‘Might as well give it a try.’

As soon as one cadet stepped back, Rohan crossed the line.

The instructor’s gaze turned toward him.

“The time limit is one minute. You may attack at any time.”

“Understood.”

Rohan drew Nagin, his sidearm slumbering in its holster.

He verified the chamber was empty, then extracted the magazine, replacing the topmost round with a specialized bullet.

After swapping it for a magic-resistant, high-hardness projectile, he racked the slide.

*Click!*

He aimed Nagin’s muzzle at the barrier.

Seeing the cadet employ his own weapon, rather than the standard-issue, Instructor Falkenhain increased the barrier’s fortitude by one level.

“Hooo…”

Focusing his mana, he carefully imbued the bullet with a point of vulnerability. Magic surged into the projectile.

Here, expensive specialty rounds are not the only weapon.

Rohan’s personal armament, Nagin, possessed a unique effect.

‘Upon internal insertion: Projectile enters Fire Brand state, increasing mana capacity and resistance.’

The synergy between the special bullet and the weapon’s effect was excellent.

‘This should do it.’

The instant the magic, accompanied by his skill, reached full capacity within the bullet…

Rohan unhesitatingly pulled the trigger.

*Taang!*

A gunshot echoed.

A circular hole appeared in the barrier.

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Rohan retrieved the bell he received from Instructor Falkenhain and left the area.

‘That took quite a bit of mana.’

His plan was to rest and focus on recovery until the afternoon. He had no intention of rushing in unprepared.

Rohan headed towards Instructor Ed’s position, keeping a distance as he watched the other tests.

Instructor Ed’s appearance hadn’t changed since the placement exam.

Eyes that betrayed a barely suppressed boredom, a scruffy beard, and unkempt hair.

Rarely did one’s personality manifest so clearly in their appearance.

“Hmm.”

Despite that facade, Rohan sensed a true expert.

He kept a close watch on the instructor’s movements, but no discernible habits or weaknesses presented themselves.

Perhaps any that existed were beyond the students’ current abilities to exploit.

‘Ichinose and Noah made it through, huh?’

Instructor Ed, like Instructor Carrot, ran a seemingly simple test, but…

Throughout the morning that Rohan observed, Ed hadn’t yielded a single bell to anyone.

‘…’

And there was something else, a development that gave Rohan a touch of unease.

Word of his actions from yesterday must have spread; a few students were now attempting to use explosives.

But it didn’t amount to much of a change.

Mastering a new weapon, using it cleanly and at the right moment, couldn’t be done overnight.

More often than not, it just ended up interfering with their original weapon of choice.

There was a benefit to this situation, at least for Rohan.

The radius that students kept between themselves and him had noticeably increased.

‘Anyone hiding a little surprise buried in the ground…?’

It wouldn’t be easy to conceal.

Even sneaking into the Academy before dawn, the work had to be done alone.

‘Alright. Time to prepare, I suppose.’

Rohan rose and headed towards the Academy cafeteria.

He ate an early lunch and took a nap.

Four in the afternoon.

With an hour left in the exam, Rohan sought out Instructor Ed.

The student numbers had dwindled, leaving the area quiet.

Rohan stepped boldly across the line and dropped his bag on the ground.

Instructor Ed, who had been staring blankly at the sky, hands in his pockets, lowered his head.

“It’s been a while, sir.”

“Ah, Student Rohan. Feels like the first proper meeting since the placement exam.”

“Am I able to take the test?”

“Of course. And I’ve heard enough about you to fill a book. Impressive, really.”

“Thank you. I’d like the exam instructions, please.”

“Nothing special, just the bells hung here…”

Instructor Ed began explaining the test.

The content was similar to Instructor Carrot’s, and Rohan already knew the entirety of it anyway.

But this was a cadet’s right.

A fool he’d be, not to use a legitimate request, and the gaps within it.

‘He who strikes first, wins.’

Rohan watched as Instructor Ed drawled on with the explanation.

And pressed the detonator button he had been concealing.

KWA-BoooM──!!!

The ground heaved, and black smoke billowed.

Unlike Instructor Carrot, Instructor Ed was positioned slightly outside the blast radius, but that wasn’t reason enough to forgo the planted bomb.

“Huh, so Cadet Rohan was the one making all that noise from Carrot’s side yesterday.”

Instructor Ed emerged through the inky smoke.

Rohan, by now, was wearing a gas mask.

“A flashy firework is necessary to start things off, wouldn’t you agree?”

His voice was small, muffled by the mask.

Still, the instructor heard him clearly.

“Between those two yesterday and you, these kids are getting terrifying.”

“Please continue the test explanation. I didn’t catch the end.”

Ed let out a dry chuckle, watching Rohan, who had detonated a bomb and was now asserting his rights as a cadet.

“I wonder. I don’t really feel like it.”

The moment Instructor Ed spoke those words.

Three can-like objects Rohan flung spun across the ground.

Ed tried to discern what they were, but Rohan had already painted over any writing on the exterior.

He’d even changed their appearance by affixing biohazard stickers.

HISSSSS──!!!

The unknown objects spewed green smoke, rotating in place.

Colored smoke filled the area.

The gas mask Rohan was wearing. It naturally led one to guess what this smoke might be.

Ominous assumptions escalated.

“Poison gas? Judging by the lack of consideration… could it be Samhwa’s Dispersing Skill Poison?”

But, contrary to Ed’s expectations, it wasn’t such a refined gas.

Just a simple colored smoke grenade.

Before the instructor could even fully register it, Rohan had pierced through the smoke and closed the distance.