Exam VII

-Clang!

The now usual sound of swords clashing together echoed a few meters away from me.

At this moment I was watching the battle raging between the group of the girl Alan called, Lica, and the black-haired young man sitting next to the camp, Aris.

My eyes followed every moment of the battle and in just a few minutes the outcome of the battle was already visible.

According to what he told Alan, Lica had just broken through to E-Rank, but the strength she should have had was nowhere to be seen. Instead, a constant weakness in her mental fortitude was showing.

The confidence she exuded when we heard her talk about her plan had disappeared like ashes in the air and all that remained was the vague and futile attempt to save her companions, who were falling one by one.

As we watched each one die Lica's expression became vacant. But unlike her, one expression became savage and full of hate, it was Alan's, who tried to repress his fury, but eventually, it was impossible.

His eyes moved towards me, looking for approval to run and I watched the fight, Lica looked like she was about to die, so maybe it was the best time.

I gave a slight nod towards Alan, who disappeared with a golden flash and I for my part activated Ice Hear.

-Haa...

An icy breath came out of my mouth and the temperature around me dropped exponentially until slowly an icy Aura came out of my arm and coated my surroundings.

-Baaaaang!

I moved my arm and along with an explosion that echoed through my ears a huge ice eardrum appeared at my side, racing across the snow until it impaled two boys between its beaks.

The icy air blew and my eyes slowly scanned the ground, from which I was rising to the same level as the eardrum, where I was standing.

The snow generated by the explosion blurred and a golden light flickered through the remaining snow, running at high speed and generating noises.

As I continued scanning my surroundings I stopped at Lisa, as she had never shown before a fierce hatred shone in her eyes and her sword was held high, ready to kill Aris.

The snow disappeared completely and a golden light exploded, signaling the beginning of the plan I had hatched.

It was a simple one.

Kill everyone who saw me conjure the ice tympanum.

So far I didn't care much about using my mana as a mage, but now that the numbers were dwindling if one of the approved five counted my power this shit would get pretty difficult.

-TAP!

My monologue ended as I stomped my foot in the snow and placed my hand on my scabbard, Alan had finished off the two guys who abused the women, so I had to finish off the girl, Lica.

Lightning enveloped Rose, which I unsheathed in one swift movement, but slower than the leap that took me towards the stupefied Lica.

Her state of stupor disappeared when she felt death rising in her neck, for a step she managed to dodge.

The step she took was followed by another and just as she fell, she somersaulted backward, trying to defend herself, but it wasn't enough because once again my sword was coming towards her.

-Clang!

Her block to my sword resounded without pause as I continued to send attacks, her speed when moving was fast, but especially the way she used the air, which deflected the blows.

A lightning bolt traced its way through the air and came towards her, in the meantime I took a great leap to the left and then another forward, the momentum I carried was used in a spin on my axis that resulted in a swing that carried the weight of death.

The air moved towards the lightning and deflected it to the ground, his sword that was still high moved to block me, but a bad stance and his weak block were not good enough to block me.

The recoil from the blow generated a burst that sent Lica flying and the same thing would have happened to me if I hadn't conjured ice around me.

My eyes fixed on Lica and I tensed my legs generating a jump, falling on the snow it froze and as if I was skating I crawled on the ice that I conjured towards Lica.

She tried to take a stance, but before she could do anything I kicked her rib breaking some bones with a crunch.

Lica fell to the ground, were still clinging to the life she spun backward and conjured a green Aura on her sword.

With a swift movement, she came towards me, I responded by taking a step forward that surprised her.

A swing escaped my arms and the sword that threatened to cut me was blocked by a wall of ice.

She dodged my sword, but not my blow to her stomach, which deprived her of all the air in her lungs.

Small bullets of air prevented me from approaching Lica, who with her heavy repairs took her sword in her hands again.

A large amount of mana was released and a large green bullet of air turned around Lica's hands.

She looked me in the eyes, conveying the hatred and resentment she felt towards me.

"You sons of bitches. - She said as she raised her hand. - First I will kill you and Aris and then Alan and pass this FUCKING EXAM!"

As I listened to her curses which I ignored like a weed on the road, a bolt of lightning was conjured in my hand, the bells perpetuated in Lica's ear, who fearfully released her air bullet.

-Catatumbo - I muttered.

The beams raced through the air and Lica tried to deflect them, but to her surprise, it didn't work.

I had copied her technique, which was better on me, after all, I was a son of mana.

My lightning bolts raced across the ground and stopped Lica's attempt to flee with a crash.

Her body fell limp to the ground and flooded into the snow.

-Crack!

The snow crunched with every step I took, alerting Lica, who tried to crawl on the snow, but stopped when my sword pierced her right foot.

-Gaaaahhhh!

I kicked out, turning her body and her gaze upwards, I drew my sword sharply and raised it while generating a silver Aura around her.

"Please. - Lica said as she looked at me, dragging her shaking hands through the snow in a futile attempt to run away. - No, p, plus don't k, kill me."

His pleas did not stop my slow advance with my sword towards his head.

-Spurt.

Lica's eyes closed waiting for the impact, never to open again.

I withdrew my sword from her inert head and conjured from my storage a piece of cloth that I slowly ran across the transparent white blade, depriving it of the blood that ran through it, meanwhile I fixed my gaze on Alan, who had just entered into battle with the black-haired boy.

******

Bastard.

That was the only way my irrational mind could describe Aris, I had always considered him a weird kid.

He unlike Cristian had not been born and raised in the town of Dawnwinter but had been brought by his master when he reached the age of 12, like most of the examinees.

His strength was clear, he had reached Rank E a few months after me, at the age of 15.

Perhaps because of his strength, I had always considered him as someone who deserved a minimum of respect, I knew his almost sadistic behavior, which I saw for the first time in his duel with Sudh, whom he defeated in a humiliating way that abandoned the courage of a swordsman, leaving aside the first teaching given in the Dawnwinter style, respect.

What his subordinates did completely disempowered the courage that any swordsman should show with an enemy. Respect.

I felt my remaining string of rationality snap and before I knew it I was running through a cloud of snow, thrusting my sword into the necks of the two minions who were killing the girls they raped.

My eyes scanned the surroundings and only stopped when I found Aris fleeing like a rat into the dirty waters.

As I ran I could hear the clanking of metal resulting from Adad's battle, which gave me confidence that I could finish Aris without further worries.

My hand touching my sword moved, generating a ziing that echoed through the little snow that remained floating.

A translucent golden aura covered my sword, but halfway through the light exploded and turned to gold that was about to leave the transparency.

This was the maximum display of strength I had shown since the exam began and I had only managed to generate this Aura recently when I reached NV.5 in my profession.

-Fuuuuu~.

The icy air blew away all the remaining snow, exposing Aris.

My eyes met his and my feet tensed, the snow beneath me crunched, and in a few seconds, I was facing Aris swinging my sword.

He blocked my attack, but not my advances.

I spun with a kick towards his rib, he recoiled, but I followed with another swing.

His Aura enveloped his sword as we clashed, I tried to take the first step, but he beat me and I slashed towards my legs.

The blood from my body splattered the snow, but I was forced to put aside the pain and concentrate on my sword, which I swung over my right hand and swung towards Aris' ribs.

-Ghhhh!

The still sickening feeling of flesh being cut pierced my sword, which I swung into Aris' body which spat out a mouthful of blood.

I didn't give him time to recover when I expelled a golden light that transformed into a moving sword at Aris' heart.

Aris only narrowly dodged it and right after it expelled a bullet of fire that forced me to withdraw my sword and retreat.

The fire engulfed Aris' sword and moved with difficulty around him, I responded by generating the limit of five swords that my skill allowed me.

The two of us ran to meet and a few feet away we swung our swords.

But out of Aris' plans, I did not block him, but one of my light swords exploded on contact.

Quickly he tried to counter with a footwork dodging of the swords and conjuring fireballs, his sword turned over his right hand was taken by the left which he used to deflect a sword approaching him.

But Aris could not celebrate his victory.

A layer of light enveloped us and blocked the vision of both of us.

It was all or nothing, the one with the most accurate sword within this layer of light would win.

-Spurt.

The sound of flesh being pierced flooded my ears.

My eyes opened quickly from the pain and fixed on my pierced ribs.

Then I moved them slowly towards the smiling Aris, who was about to speak, but stopped when quickly a golden sword came out of the snow and swung until it stuck in one place.

His head.

After that, I lost all awareness of what happened.

** ** ** **

Soon I will be publishing the auxiliary volume where for now I will leave the images of Adad, Alan, Emilia, and Lou.