Meanwhile, at the academy, the professors were meeting about the incoming students, and they all came to the same conclusion: this year's intake was exceptional. One of the professors, a strange man who wore around his neck the same unique pendant as the one who had killed Oscar, admitted that the new first-years were all impressive. At the same time, far away in his village, Oscar was studying harder than he had ever studied in his life.
Six months later, he finally prepared to leave for the academy, and his father stood outside to see him off. Brian let him know that, just as he had learned the sword, there were likely many who had spent all their time refining their magic. He told Oscar that he was in no position to lecture him, but he urged him never to stray from the path he had chosen for himself.
Oscar smiled and assured his father that he would be fine, because there was obviously no one in the world more terrifying than his own father. Brian smiled and let out a breath of relief when he heard it. Once they were done with their father and son moment, Oscar turned around and left, wearing a broad smile, because he could finally attend the magic academy he had always wanted.
Soon afterward, Oscar arrived at the Imperial Kirk Magic Academy, and he was blown away by how different everything was. There were students flying around on brooms. There were miniature figures walking about playing musical instruments. He stood there in complete astonishment, because the place was nothing like the sword academy. He walked up to the miniatures, wondering what principle made them work when they looked so similar to a golem.
He was in the middle of this when Isabel appeared behind him, telling him that he was going to be late for his enrollment procedures if he kept staring at the miniatures. Oscar jumped up in excitement, happy to see his master, and Isabel asked him whether he had been slacking off while she was away. Oscar proudly told her that he could do much more now than he could six months earlier.
Isabel let him know that she would be looking forward to it, and she urged him to make sure he surprised her the way he had before. Then she pointed off into the distance and told him that the first-class selection exam was being held over there. Oscar asked her what she meant by that, and she explained that new students were divided into two classes depending on whether or not they possessed mana.
Above those two, however, was a class where the exceptionally gifted students were gathered, and that was the first class. Isabel told him that the exam was simply a means of sorting talent. All the same, she advised him to avoid taking it, and Oscar curiously asked her why. Isabel told him that the students who made it into the first class were all monsters, because they were elites who had been raised with magic since their earliest childhood.
Hearing this, Oscar only got more excited, because it meant he could learn advanced magic there. Isabel grabbed her head in frustration, having come to the realization that trying to change Oscar's mind was completely useless. She told him that he was free to go and look at it if he was curious, and Oscar walked over to where the exam was being held.
When he arrived, he saw the current candidate shoot down a cluster of balloons with his magic, and Oscar realized that the exam revolved around hitting targets with a spell. All the same, he got the strange feeling that he was being watched by everyone there.
Suddenly he was approached by a rude, white-haired noble boy, Zazan Gilosis, who told him that he had no business at the selection exam, since he was a commoner. He told him to leave. Oscar argued back, saying he had heard that any student could be accepted, but Zazan berated him and told him that he certainly knew how to run his mouth. Oscar finally understood what Isabel had been trying to say, because he was seeing it firsthand: whoever was not a noble here suffered discrimination. Zazan pushed him aside, saying that he was next in line, so Oscar should just stay quiet and watch him.
The professor in charge, Ruth, put up the test parameters. Zazan boastfully told Oscar that the first class was a place for those who had dedicated everything to magic since their youth, and he wanted Oscar to witness the difference those years made. Then he unleashed an overwhelming ice magic that froze every target solid, leaving the watching students in complete shock.
They started praising Zazan and praising his family's house, talking about how powerful the house of Gilosis was. Some of them even believed that he had not yet displayed his full power. Hearing the roar of approval behind him, Zazan walked confidently up to Oscar and told him that he surely understood now that someone who could not use decent magic was not welcome here.
Oscar answered him by saying that his magic was quite impressive, and that he was glad to finally see the magic of someone who had poured everything he had into it. Then he told him, with complete confidence, that everything he had just witnessed was a waste.
That shocked Zazan. Oscar walked past him, because he was someone who understood the weight of effort and time very well. He had actually been worried that he might not be able to get into the first class, but after what he had just seen, he could not help but thank Zazan for giving him the confidence he needed.
Oscar whipped out his wand, and the other students started mocking him, saying he was using a beginner's wand, so there was no way he could even aim at the targets with it. Zazan, on the other hand, was worried about what Oscar had just said, because his magic was supposed to be perfect. It set him thinking about what he might have done wrong, since he believed there could not possibly be a flaw in his ice magic.
He soon brushed the thought aside, confident that he stood far above Oscar and should not trouble himself with whatever a commoner thought. Ruth, meanwhile, was impressed with Zazan's magic, and she finally understood why all the professors had agreed that this year's new students were impressive. She believed that Zazan already had one leg in the race for freshman representative.
Just then, Ruth noticed that Oscar had not made a move for some time, and it left her wondering what he was doing. The watching students were already trash-talking him, screaming at him to give up. But Ruth got the idea that Oscar was waiting for something, because she could not feel any anxiety or impatience from him at all.
Once he had finished analyzing everything he wanted to analyze, Oscar activated a fire bullet spell. The bullet travelled at an incredible speed and cut through the targets in a single strike. All of them crashed to the ground, and Ruth was shocked, because the attack had been so fast that the other students had not seen anything at all. They stood there wondering what had happened, and even though Oscar had hit all five targets, none of them could admit that he had done something good, since there were only tiny holes in the targets.
They even condemned him, saying that he definitely had not passed with that. Zazan turned away to leave in disappointment, because he had been expecting Oscar to use some overwhelming magic. Oscar then turned to Ruth and asked her whether he had failed the exam, and Ruth told him confidently that he had passed without question, since he had hit all five targets. Then she asked him why he had not simply aimed at the targets one by one, since he was clearly capable of doing so.