The director rose into the air so that everyone could see him and declared the hundred and sixth entrance exam of the academy open. He was the director of this academy and the observer for this examination, and his name was Aronian Smith.
Everyone started shouting at once. It was the grandmaster, Director Aronian. Was the director himself really going to observe the exam?
Louis considered what he knew. In this world there were grandmaster arcanists who practised secret martial arts. There were only six ranks: saint, sage, grandmaster, master, warrior and disciple. Grandmaster ranked third in that hierarchy. In other words, the privileged class of this world.
The director announced that the first test was to climb the steps guarded by their older comrades. The certificates of successful completion of the first exam lay behind them. There were a thousand of them, and only those who managed to obtain a certificate would be admitted to the next test. The exam would end as soon as there were no certificates left. So now they would begin.
When the exam began the candidates started pushing each other and shouting that they would be first. Yes — it was easy as pie.
Aronian smiled and welcomed his challengers to hell, smiling ominously. He released a dark magical aura that rolled down over all of them, and they screamed in pain and terror. A moment later many were disqualified and fell straight to the ground, unconscious.
The others did not understand. Was this an attack?
The senior standing highest on the steps was the son of the master of finance. He had been last year's top candidate, so it was a frightening thing to face him.
"That's killing intent, isn't it?" Louis said.
The candidates around him heard this and turned to him in fear. Louis walked confidently toward his target, insisting that it was not an attack. The man had released his aura to intimidate them. It would not be surprising if the weak-willed fainted from fear.
The senior said that was exactly how it was, and that this one seemed to have some kind of backbone. But there were any number of talented boys here, and there was no room for commoners. He looked sharply into Louis's eyes and said that since he had come, he would make him kneel.
At that he released his magical aura, and the people around him screamed, unable to breathe, begging him not to kill them. Louis did not react to any of it. He watched in bewilderment.
Was this all his killing intent? It was enough to scare ordinary people, but against someone who had trained the way he had, it would not work at all.
At that moment the senior slammed his hand down on the ground, and Louis smiled, then started to run and passed straight through those terrifying barriers. He would show these nobles what true killing intent was.
The senior's eyes glowed with bright magical light and he came on. Everyone was dumbfounded with horror and screamed, not understanding what was happening. When Louis's fist came near the senior's face, the boy glared at him, and the senior gritted his teeth in fear.
The surrounding students began to wonder how he had managed it without using magic. Not only had he survived, he had also struck an upperclassman. He was only thirteen or fourteen years old, wasn't he?
Louis announced that he was passing, and took the first certificate.
When he grabbed it the upperclassman became furious and released his dark magical aura again, and Louis turned on him abruptly, after which their fight continued. People shouted that it was impossible, that some pathetic commoner was behaving like this. Why had he blocked the blow without magic?
The director announced that he had passed the first test, and took the upperclassman by the shoulder. The senior started screaming — but he was a commoner. Aronian explained that their academy treated all applicants equally. Noble or commoner: in front of monsters, they were all human beings. The upperclassman bowed and shouted that he was absolutely right.
Louis thanked him for those words.
The director congratulated Louis Kiril on clearing the test. Then he suddenly came closer and said that the colour of his hair bothered him.
Louis became wary. Was it possible that his eyes gave him away too? He could not look up. Then he did look up, sharply, and asked what the director meant by that.
Aronian touched his shoulder and whispered that if he was accepted, he would prepare a special magic potion for him to hide his unique appearance.
Louis did not know what the man was planning, but first he needed to pass this exam. He replied that he would go and prepare for the second test, and he continued on his way. He passed the shaking upperclassman, who glared after him, confused as to why the director had interfered with the exam for the first time in memory. Why would he protect some commoner? He would remember this boy.
The academy's second examination hall was incredibly huge.
The second test would begin soon. The candidates had to wait here. Of the twenty thousand, only a thousand remained. Most of them were nobles who had received an elite education, and there were practically no commoners left among them.
He was shoved aside again by the same unpleasant young man, who turned around and said that next time no one would help him. He called him an ugly name, but Louis ignored him.
One of the man's friends came up and shouted, "That's right. If the director hadn't intervened, he'd have been thrown out long ago."
Louis sighed with relief and grinned. "Seriously, what an idiot he is."
The two of them turned around and started shouting. "What?"
Louis said that the grandmaster understood a great deal more than they did.
The young man clenched his fist and showed it to him, saying plainly that he was a freak. Was he really looking for a fight?
Louis looked silently and smilingly into the eyes of his opponent, who shouted that he would simply beat the life out of him. He swung his fist — and Louis merely stuck out two fingers and struck him with them.
"What?" the man exclaimed. His body simply would not move.
Louis spoke. "Meridian rupture. A pinpoint strike along the spiral."
When he used the technique, the man flew far to one side and screamed in horror. His friends cried out in fear and did not know what to do. He fell to the floor and hit his head. All the students in the hall noticed what was happening, and Max began coughing and shaking with fear.
His friend ran up to him and started asking how he felt. Max, frightened, looked at his hands and said that he could not feel them, that he could not even move them. That thing had used poison, damn it. He would report it right away.
Louis replied that it was not poison, but a martial art. He had held back, just as his mother had told him to. But his patience also had its limits. Those who hit other people must be prepared to take it in return.
At that moment Cain caught him by the hand and said that their exam was in full swing. Did he not care if he got expelled?
Louis looked him in the eyes in silence and tossed his hand aside.
Max's friends started yelling at Cain to mind his own business. Damn commoner. He would kill him.
Cain asked them again. They knew who he was, didn't they? They should back off.
So he stood up for Louis, and the others were furious about it and told him to forget it. Max turned and told everyone to follow him. Nobles and commoners were all the same here, he said. Let them remember that.
Louis considered this from the side and understood. They used their status to do whatever they wanted. All nobles were the same.