“That was so difficult~,” Mareike whined as she stretched her arms over her head. The exam had just ended so all of the examinees were filed out of the building. A thousand or so teenagers now stood sparsely around the mountain top, talking to their friends and acquaintances.

      It wasn’t actually that hard for her. It was just that sitting for so long would be testing one’s patience and the pressure of the Cheiss Academy bearing down on you at the same time would exhaust you as well. Therefore, many performed much better or worse than they usually would while under the piercing scrutiny of the instructors. It was their ability to cope with stress.

      Sure, some people didn’t fluctuate at all. Cordelia’s heartbeat from start to finish hadn’t fluctuated one bit. Her training specifically trained her Will and ability to stay calm at all times. If you lose yourself, you will make rash decisions. If you are calm, in what seems like an impossible situation, you can find a way out; that is Cordelia Auster’s modus operandi, though her age doesn’t allow her to always hold this to her heart.

      A written exam wouldn’t faze her though, Cheiss Academy or not. There was little at stake for her; entrance into the academy didn’t really affect Cordelia much. 

      Mareike’s problems were replicated by a certain redhead who came storming out of the building, his face in bliss.

“FREEDOM!”

Many glanced at him weirdly as he continued with his odd antics, Soleil trailing behind him at a much slower pace with exasperation in his steps. As they met up, Cordelia thought back to Chloe and the fiasco last night.

❈ ❈ ❈

29th of March, the Year 1202
22:01
Laeon Federation, Horn Mountain Range

❈

“Examinee 3391.”

Cordelia turned around to see a pair of instructors behind her, faces stalwart and taut. 

“Yes, instructors?”

“Please may you come with us and bring your friend with you? The academy has some questions for you.”

      Cordelia and Chloe were led into a secret building that was embedded into the side of a hill with neat and professional workmanship for a temporary base. All around them, men and women worked on surveillance, paperwork and all sorts of official business. 

      “Come in.”

A voice came out muffled as the instructors knocked on a door at the end of a large hallway, filled with magitech and inscribed seals. Opening silently, the two were ushered in while their escorts waited outside, leaving Cordelia and Chloe to face Kaine and several other men who sat at a desk.

      She found out that they were senior instructors who worked alongside the Head Examiner to judge examinees, their performances and entrance into the academy.

“Throughout the entire practical exam, we found that you had been travelling with a nondescript girl in a cloak who was not registered. We’d like to ask you who that is.”

As Kaine questioned her, Cordelia felt a sense of familiarity with the man. Even though his appearance was completely different, voice several octaves higher and personality an almost 180 change, there was something that felt familiar to her.

      “She is a Recommended Student.”

Cordelia didn’t bother lying. In front of such powerhouses, lying would do her more bad than good; ruining Chloe’s prospects wasn’t on her bucket list. The current situation was already bad enough so there was no need to make it worse by trying to worm her way through with deception.

      A few of the judges murmured, eyebrows raised, but Kaine remained motionless. 

“Who is she?”

It did not sound like a question, but a command.

“Chloe Atican.”

As if not surprised by her reply, he immediately pushed on.

“Why did you bring a Recommended Student into the exam?”

      Her Will stat withstood Kaine’s soul-seeking stare, preventing Cordelia from hesitating in her answer. The certainty in her voice remained unmoved.

“I take full responsibility for my thoughtless actions. At first, I only brought her because she wanted to spectate my performance but due to the nature of the exam, it was inevitable that she was pulled in. However, all of this only happened because of my inconsiderate thinking.”

Cordelia had nothing to lose. Entrance into Cheiss Academy wasn’t really important to her, despite it being the most prestigious educational institution in the world. 

      The Head Examiner did not answer, resorting to observing the girl instead before him to ascertain the truth behind her words. All he found was a steel wall. Impassable. Impenetrable. Committed. 

      There were no lies.

“I see.”

He already expected the girl to be Chloe Atican and could also tell that the older girl was covering for the other, displaying admirable courage. This was, in a way, a test, because the number of cores that she submitted was not enough. The only reason why she was able to pass through was because of Department Head Lyon and Conrad’s insistence. The only condition was that she goes through this simple test.

      Cordelia Auster’s combat abilities had already been proven. He himself was aware of the strength she wielded, having watched her many times from behind a screen. It was just as he suspected since that first meeting; she was no simple girl.

      “As punishment, you will have all of your Points docked when you enter the academy. If you are able to pass the written exam, that is.”

Neither Chloe nor Cordelia knew what Points were but they knew that she was getting off with a light punishment. The man did not look particularly ruffled or angered so the former took a breath of relief. If her Big Sister took the consequences for her own actions, she wouldn’t know what to do. 

❈ ❈ ❈

“Hey, we’re gonna have a week off after this. What do you wanna do in Alexandria, Cordelia?”

Cordelia’s recall was disturbed by Mareike’s enthusiasm, the girl right in her face. Uncomfortable with the closeness, she stepped back and replied.

“Training and studying.”

“Eh? But that’s so boring. We need to take you out somewhere so we can repay you for saving us.”

She insisted, trying Cordelia’s tolerance and was saved by Eldrich and Abelard’s timely appearance. 

      “Oi, don’t bother her so much Mareike. We can repay her in the academy.”

“Aw. Finee…”

The journey back to Alexandria would take around 5 days. After being replenished with rest, food and water, their speed was faster. Add on to that, instructors were clearing the way with complete ease. Seeing them slaughtering their former tormenters so easily, the examinees had mixed feelings.

      In that time, Chloe, who had tagged along with the permission of Kaine, talked a lot with her new big brothers and sisters. Axel especially was very entertaining; their similar dispositions melded very well; Cordelia was still her favourite, though.

      Over time, the group subconsciously tagged Cordelia as their ‘leader’. When Chloe felt tired, she carried her to bed. When Axel got out of hand, she would calm him down if Soleil wasn’t present. If Mareike had a problem, she would teach her. It was all of these little things that pegged her with the title. Not only that, but her ever-present tranquil state fit the bill.

      It was now the 4th night. Tomorrow morning, they would see the gates of Alexandria. Campfires littered the large clearing in the forest with tents around them. Cordelia and co. had set up their own tents around a fire with no strangers around them so they had no reservations when playing around. 

      Unsurprisingly, Chloe was the first to feel drowsy, followed by Mareike and Abelard. Their physical endurance was the weakest, being exhausted by today’s journey.  The rest remained awake, constantly studying their surroundings. Even when they were within the heart of the camp, the practical exam had drilled them with habits and instincts. It wasn’t so easy to throw them away when it was so fresh in one’s memory. 

      Instructors were satisfied with this behaviour; the practical exam not only weeded out the weaklings but also strengthened the talented and lucky. While it was a shame that so many potentials were denied access, the academy wanted to keep a high standard.

      Hundreds upon hundreds of smoke columns twisted into the night sky, accompanied by the joyous sound of laughs, conversations and exclamations. Some were worried about their entry into Cheiss Academy while others were carefree, completely confident. Whether or not this confidence was unfounded did not matter. The senior instructors realised that this year was significantly more talented than previous generations. The number of geniuses and powerful examinees trumped their predecessors.

      But even this wasn’t enough. Even the conditioning from the practical exam wasn’t enough to save the young, inexperienced teenagers from panic when an ear-wrenching shriek erupted from an area of the camp. Naturally, many began to stand up in caution, hands on their weapons as instructors also ran towards the origin of the sound. Their faces were dead-serious as they directed the examinees away.

      All of this was subverted when that very same area was devastated by an explosion, flaring up higher and brighter than any other pillar of smoke. Many screamed and ran away while the instructors attempted to calm them down, simultaneously investigating the incident.

      Cordelia was far away as the explosion was on the outskirts of the camp but that didn’t lessen her caution. Chloe woke up not from the sound but from the turbulent emotions which had stirred up the air, alerting her. Mareike would’ve remained asleep through the entire event were it not for the exam honing her intuition and Abelard only slept lightly so he awoke straight away. 

      This was for nought however since the situation was solved with instructors arriving on the scene and subjugating the Tier 8 Pseudo-Kirin. Its thunderous strikes and roars echoed across the camp, geysers of dirt splaying up into the air until all went silent. Black figures emerged from the smoke, their clothes more like rags and faces smeared in ash and blood; it was a tough fight.

      Everything had gone back to normal, discounting the ambient anxiety that loitered around the camp, raising everyone’s nerves. Even the instructors, especially the ones who fended off the Pseudo-Kirin, were much more on-guard. The speed of the journey had risen considerably as they killed all of the beasts faster.

      It wasn’t until the sight of Alexandria and its grand walls greeted them that they were able to relax. Cordelia had also remained high-strung that day; her position in the stream of people was quite safe but she had been separated from her companions, causing her to subconsciously worry about them without her even knowing. She had managed to grab Chloe’s hand but everyone else was washed away by the tsunami of bodies.

      When they strolled through the gates they had previously entered for the practical exam, Cordelia looked around for the others and found them one by one. 

“That was scary, huh?”

Axel smiled shakily. Even he was affected by the sight of their instructors when they came out of that fight. Optimistically, he could fight against a Tier 5 beast but only defensively. A Tier 8 beast was out of his league. It made him realise how far down he was. How pathetic his strength really was.

      Others had similar reactions. The Alemann triad wasn’t as impacted due to their life and death experiences before but it was still visible in their gloomy air. Soleil was just pondering, not showing anything. Impassively regarding them, she turned around and walked into the city, not realising a breath had expelled itself from her lungs, having been trapped for too long. 

      “Ah! Wait for us, Cordelia!”

Mareike and Chloe ran after her, the others following her with amused faces. That cold, red-eyed girl wasn’t perturbed at all. 

      Just as expected; that was just like her.

❈ ❈ ❈

Lyon’s face was calm. Eerily so. He gazed at the dozens of craters in front of him with Conrad standing by his side, his expression equally as severe. Instructors patrolled the area, searching for clues under Lyon’s command. 

      The Pseudo-Kirin had long fled, leaving only ruin in its wake. The instructors who had combatted it barely made out alive, only managing not to collapse in front of the students so that their pride and image wasn’t smashed. 

      Around them, there was only emptiness and the silent forest. The investigation had only commenced after the examinees left so as not to arouse suspicion and alarm. All they knew was that it was a regular monster attack, right? 

      But how could Cheiss Academy spare any efforts to assess their future golden eggs? These were the future generations of their academy, the lifeline of their existence. A Tier 8 Magical Beast is considered strong but it shouldn’t be enough to cause such a commotion. In the first place,  Pseudo-Kirin were passive and don’t attack humans; they were only categorised as dangerous to justify their killings for the materials. 

      Which was why this was so odd. Nobody except them knew it was a Pseudo-Kirin so there were no doubts about the simplicity of the nightly disturbance. But the academy knew. To break through their seals and Domain spells, one would need to be on the level of a Tier 10 beast. In other words, something on the level of the Pseudo-Kirin’s great ancestor, the Kirin. 

      “For someone to meddle in the Cheiss Academy’s affairs… we must have been too idle lately.”

“Hmph. They think we are soft persimmons.”

Nobody got away with slighting the Cheiss Academy. Not if Lyon, Conrad, or anyone of Cheiss Academy had anything to say about it. 

❈ ❈ ❈