Academy Entrance Exams (Part 1)

The next day Caxon woke up early and immediately went back to the academy's entrance.

When he got to the gates he saw that it was wide open and swarms of people could be seen entering the academy's campus.

He followed the crowd as they went towards the area that was not separated by fences directly in front of the tower. After arriving at the populated middle area the group seemingly cut in half as some went towards the left and some went towards the right.

Having no idea what which group to follow Caxon had no choice but to ask one of the people in uniform what he should do. This man was not in the same uniform as all the people Caxon had seen yesterday so he assumed he was a teacher instead of a student.

The teacher took one look at Caxon as he made a disgusted look on his face before he scoffed.

"Go to the right-side boy."

He did not like the way this man was treating him, although he wished he could just let this go Caxon needed information mainly what was the difference and why did this man treat him so badly after only looking at him.

"How do you know that sir?"

He tried to make the nicest face and the most innocent voice he could possibly make as he asked, he man. However, the man was still annoyed but since it was his job to guide people, he couldn't do anything about it.

"This campus is for the prestigious Arbren Magic Acadamy as I am sure you know. But clearly what you don't know is that this academy is split into two parts. On the left side is the Arbren Royal Acadamy made up of only the most talented nobility in this kingdom. On the right side is the Arbren National Acadamy, which is for whatever commoners somehow manage to show some skill. So, unless you are one of the geniuses recognized by a high standing teacher or have a written recommendation from a noble you are looking for the Nation Acadamy, so as I said go to the right side."

As he listened to the man he could hear the disdain they held for those they thought of as below themselves, when the man said commoners, it seemed as though he almost spit on the ground.

After the man finished his speech deep down inside Caxon wanted to pull out the golden ticket Alarat had given him as he was sure that would get this teacher to shut his mouth. But he knew that it was not worth the risk of standing out as he simply wanted to get into the academy and keep his head down while he learned as much as possible.

"I see thank you for clarifying."

He bowed to the man who once again scoffed at him once more as he followed the crowd to the right side.

The crowd seemed to lead all the way into a large stadium that looked nearly identical to the roman colosseum. Once the group was stopped inside the arena portion of the building, they were told to wait for an examiner.

Caxon didn't have to wait long as the endless stream of people were told to stop and everyone outside had to wait for the current group to finish before being tested. Just as more people stopped entering the main area of the arena a man suddenly appeared at the edge of the group and talked in a domineering voice that somehow reached everyone's ears even though he did not raise his voice.

"I do not know what you have been told up until this point but you are attempting to join one of the most prestigious Acadamy on this continent, if you are not worthy or you are here for some stupid reason such as supporting your child leave now. Anyone who is younger then 14 or older then 21 leave now, and if you are not a hollow core rank 3 at least leave now.

If you do fit the requirements know that the exam is potentially dangerous and you are taking your life into your own hands so if you are scared leave now. Anyone who was told to leave and decided to try and sneak by know that I will not hesitate to simply assume you are a spy and kill you.

Now if you are still participating, please follow me."

After saying his speech, the man waved his hands and the large gate opposite of where everyone came in opened and the man walked into it. Caxon followed without thinking twice but he noticed that nearly half of the group stayed back.

He continued to follow the crowd from near the back as the examiner lead them under ground to a large room that was illuminated by magic stones that gave off a bright light. The man came to a stop at another set of large doors before he turned around to face the group once again.

"It seems we have a lot of you this year, I will say this once more this is your last chance to leave..."

The man stopped but no one else seemed like they were going to budge so he simply smiled.

"Well... then good luck."

As he said this a massive pressure fell on everyone's shoulders. Just like the silver core attackers on the road this man was using his peak rank 10 silver core to crush every participant at the same time.

While Caxon had been able to stand up to the bandits this pressure was much greater as he was driven flat on his stomach instantly. As he looked around, he saw almost every single person was on the ground passed out so he simply gritted his teeth and held on as he would not allow himself to be defeated so easily, he would pass this test no matter what.

Just as he was thinking about how this was a ridiculous first test that no one could pass the pressure was lift.

"Even though there are a lot of you it seems like we got a slightly below average number of passes. Well good job, anyone who is able to stand walk through this door to the next challenge and you will have passed your first test."

Caxon waited on the ground until someone else stood up before he also stood and walked through the door.

He felt a distortion as he walked through the door, when he opened his eyes, he saw that he was in another large room with no doors. He then heard a women's voice that sounded like it came from a loud speaker.

"For the second test we will be determining your reason for joining our institute, please put your hand on the ball."

As this was said a crystal ball on a pedestal soon rose out of the ground in front of him. Caxon was a little nervous about what this would reveal but he assumed that this room had no exit for a reason and he would not be able to back out so he moved forward and put his hand on top of the ball.

The second his and rested on the ball a small spike shot out and pierced his palm. He could feel a small portion of his blood be sucked into the ball, he ripped his hand away as his blood seemed to dye the crystal ball red.

"First are you between the ages of 14 and 21 and have at least a rank 3 hollow core magic core?"

"Yes."

Without hesitation he answered the question, as he said this the inside of the crystal ball seemed to ripple.

"Would you say that your main reason for coming here is to learn and better yourself?"

"Yes."

Once again, the crystal ball rippled.

"Do you have any plans or desires that would put the academy or its teachers, students, and supporters in danger?"

"No."

"Thank you please touch the ball once more to be transferred to your next test."

Luckily he was not asked anything that he had to lie about and he doubted that his blood could prove that he was a participant in anyway so he moved on and put his hand on the ball with a small weight lifted off his shoulders.

When Caxon touched the ball this time he could see the floor below him light up with magic runes as he once again felt an odd distortion just like when he went through the doors only moments ago.