His parents were worried, because only thirty people passed and there were twenty thousand candidates this year. But Julian knew that his son was more stubborn than anyone and would not give up easily. The father explained that their duty as a family was to support the boy in his decisions.
Arriving at the exam site, Louis noticed that all the other candidates were older than he was.
A man then floated in the air and announced that the academy's entrance exam was about to begin. He introduced himself as Aronian Smith, the academy's director and the supervisor of the entrance exam. The candidates were surprised that the director and grand master himself would be administering the test.
In this world there were six classifications for martial artists and arcanists, starting with apprentice. The title of grand master was the third highest, and those who held it belonged to the privileged class.
The director then pointed to a staircase and said that the first test was to climb it. He continued, explaining that the passes for those who cleared this first phase would be placed behind the upperclassman waiting at the top. In total there were one thousand passes, and only those who grabbed one could proceed to the next test. As soon as the passes ran out the exam would end, leaving everyone else behind.
With a shout to begin, the director signalled the start of the test, and everyone ran desperately. Some confident candidates shouted that the exam was a piece of cake and charged at the upperclassman. But the upperclassman greeted them with a sinister smile and welcomed the examinees as a red aura exploded out of him.
The power was so great that everyone's vision became completely distorted for a moment. The candidates were caught by surprise and were left wondering what had happened. Immediately several numbers were announced, and many candidates were disqualified all at once. Those who remained wondered in fear whether that had been an attack, and recognised the upperclassman.
Louis realised that what he had felt at that moment was pure killing intent.
The other candidates were confused and could not understand what had just happened. Louis explained to those near him that it had not been an attack, but rather the man's aura. The upperclassman had been releasing his aura to intimidate all the candidates at once. Anyone with a weak will, Louis realised, would not be able to withstand that pressure. Many of the weaker candidates had ended up fainting purely from the fear they felt.
The upperclassman then turned to Louis and said that he seemed to have some courage, at least. But he added that there was no room for commoners here, because there were many talented ones already. Louis was not intimidated, and faced the upperclassman as an equal, showing his courage. With a challenging look, the upperclassman said that since the boy was here, he would see what he was capable of.
He then vowed to make the boy kneel.
With that, the other candidates screamed in pain and begged him to stop the attack. But Louis remained standing, unaffected by the upperclassman's aura. Then, with a smile, he asked whether this was all of the man's killing intent.
To Louis this was nothing, because he had faced worse things in the past. The boy had fought against countless beasts and monsters to train his combat skills. Facing the killing intent of wild creatures had been his daily training. That was why the upperclassman's aura had no effect on him at that moment.
The upperclassman was completely shocked to see that the boy was not affected by his aura. With a confident smile, the young man told him that it simply would not work on him.
Then Louis got ready to show what true killing intent was. The boy was determined to show all the nobles what a real intent looked like. He was going to teach them what it meant to feel true fear for the first time. His aura expanded throughout the entire area with impressive force and pressure. The other nobles who were watching were completely shocked by the boy's power.
Even the upperclassman was terrified by the immense pressure he felt on his body. Louis's fist came at the upperclassman's face while the man stood frozen in fear — and then Louis stopped the attack and simply stared him down. The upperclassman was completely shocked and speechless at the strength the boy had shown. The other candidates wondered how a commoner could withstand an upperclassman, let alone attack one.
Without caring about the confusion, Louis simply walked past the noble to continue the exam. The boy approached the board where the passes were and prepared to take his. He reached out his arm and finally grabbed one of the admission passes.
But the upperclassman did not accept defeat, and shouted angrily that he would not let it slide. Full of fury, the noble charged at Louis with everything he had, releasing his energy.
Seeing the attack coming his way, the young man prepared to fight back with all his strength, and both attacks collided. The upperclassman was shocked to see that a mere commoner had blocked his strike without using magic.
The director then appeared and held the upperclassman back, saying that the boy had passed the first exam. He scolded the noble and said that the academy treated all examinees equally. The upperclassman bowed an apology and thanked the director for his wise words.
Aronian then congratulated Louis Cygnus for successfully passing the first phase of the test. Suddenly he noticed the boy's hair colour and said that it was a bit concerning. Louis was confused by the director's comment and asked what he meant by that. With a serious look, the director placed a hand on the boy's shoulder and stared at him intently.
He then offered a special magic potion to hide his unique features. The young man did not understand what the director was planning, but he decided to focus on the next phase of the exam. With that, he turned and walked towards the location of the academy's second test.
As Louis walked away, the upperclassman glared after him with a look full of hatred and resentment. He did not understand why the director had protected a commoner, and he swore that he would remember his name.