Chapter 135 - The Second Test

The old man looked at the people staying there and nodded slowly to them. When did he do the second test? And more importantly, how had they passed this test without their knowledge?

While most people did not understand the event, those who understood the situation waited silently.

The old man smiled happily. "You may be confused. I don't blame you for that. The second test was a determination test. I have simply tested how determined you are to enter this school. Even in this situation, those who are indecisive and take a step back will never be able to move forward in important and vital events that they will encounter in the future. I honestly wouldn't want such people to be in the Rezuba Battle School. Also, I don't want those who hesitate and step back to take the entrance test of this school again. 'Those who pass the first test will no longer be able to sit for the Rezuba Battle School entrance exams if they fail the test I'm going to explain to you now..' I was pretty serious when I said it. None of those who took a step back and left here will ever take the exams of this school again. Now I want to wait for a while begging your pardon. That way, the young people next to me will be able to count how many people are left."

The situation had become clear after the old man's speech. The tests this man did were really tests where too many people were likely to be eliminated. However, the things he had done were beginning to please Asil. This old man was unlike anyone he had met before. The fact that he could only hear his speech while others could not hear it proved that he was strong. However, despite this, he still seemed to be someone who was free from arrogance and spoke politely to the people who were there. He even tried to console those who failed the first test, although he didn't need to, and looked gratefully at those who passed after the tests. Asil wondered what the old man's next tests would be like. In fact, besides the desire to pass all the tests and join the Rezuba Battle School, the desire to talk to this old man was beginning to form.

In about five minutes, twenty youths finished counting the remaining ones. One by one, they whispered the results into the old man's ear, just as after the first test. Upon learning the results, the old man nodded and thanked them and turned to those who had passed the second test.

"It seems that there are a lot of people who are not determined. It is really sad to know that even among bright young people like you, there are those who are so indecisive and pollute their light. I hope they can somehow continue to move forward with a determination just like you in the future." The old man took a deep breath. "The number of people who remained after the first test was about fourteen thousand. And after the second test, this number is exactly three thousand two hundred and forty-eight. So, in the second test, more than ten thousand people were eliminated. Now that we've completed the easy tests, then we can move on to the hard ones."

After the old man's words, the facial expressions of the majority changed instantly. If the tests that caused so many people to be eliminated were 'easy', how would the 'difficult' ones be? It was too frightening to even imagine that.

The old man took one hand to his chin and slowly scratched his chin. He looked at the people who remained as if thinking about something: "Sorry to you all, but due to my age, I can forget things. I had already decided what the test I would do now would be. But I forgot about it right now. I will ask you to wait without making any noise or moving until you remember this. I get distracted when there is noise. That's why it takes a long time to remember things that I can easily remember. I am already grateful to you for your understanding."

After the old man spoke, he closed his eyes and tried to remember how to do the third test, to the bewilderment of the remaining people after the second test.

While the old man was trying to remember how to do the third test with his eyes closed, none of the people present dared to move or make the slightest sound. Someone who made a simple word game to test their determination and said 'this test' instead of 'second test' could take a test by saying I forgot. He hadn't told them that, but maybe the test had already started. No one was sure about whether this was true or not. That's why they thought it was right and used all their attention to avoid moving or making a sound.

However, this wait was not easy at all. Because they were in an area close to the sea, the humidity was high, and the sun was hanging in the sky with all its warmth. Although it seemed easy at first, waiting was a boring and tiring thing when it took a long time even under normal circumstances, in this case, it was much more difficult and boring.

They continued to wait, but even when the time had passed and fifteen minutes had passed, there had not been the slightest reaction from the old man. He is still the same as when he closed his eyes, and his stillness was like a statue with one hand on his chin and thinking.

Time continued to move forward, and when they began their wait for about forty minutes, those who thought it was pointless began to appear. In fact, they weren't wrong either. The man in front of them looked like an extremely old man, and it was only natural for someone his age to forget things. But even so, they continued to stand still, as they thought it might be a test.

As the waiting time got longer, the cruelty and fatigue of waiting increased in direct proportion. The people there didn't want to move. But their bodies were no longer listening to words. If they could do simple moves, it wouldn't be too much of a problem. However, they were not supposed to make the slightest movement, as the old man wanted them to stay still. Both the burden placed on their bodies by not moving at all and the psychological pressure of not knowing whether this was a test or not was increasing.

"Ahhh... I can't take it anymore, how long are we going to wait?" About two hours into the waiting, a youth in the crowd could not stand it any longer and shouted reproachfully.

After the youth's shout, the old man slowly opened his eyes, which had been closed for nearly two hours, and said sadly: "I'm sorry, bright young man. But I don't have a young and strong body like you. I can't get up in the morning vigorously and fill my lungs with deep breaths. Or I can't stand like you for too long. If it wasn't for the walking stick in my hand, I would have already fallen to the ground. These are my physical flaws. But these are all things that have been formed because of my age. But what about you! You are a young, strong, determined and vigorous person. Even at my age, I was trying to stand with you so as not to disrespect you, why did you shout when I told you that the noise you will make can distract me and prolong my recall? I'm not important, but disrespecting so many people is pretty bad behavior. If you are tired of standing up, you can sit down without disturbing others. But I have to tell you that I was just about to remember what the third test would be like. But I forgot it again because of your shouting. Looks like I'm gonna have to keep you waiting a little longer." The old man looked away from the youth and looked at the others, and sadly bowed his head: "I'm sorry to keep you waiting a little longer."

After the old man spoke, he closed his eyes again and continued to try to remember what the third test would be like.

After he closed his eyes, several people turned their heads harshly and looked towards the youth who had just shouted with angry expressions. The old man said that after two hours he was almost about to remember. But because of this young man, their wait would be longer. Maybe they would have to wait that long.

The brutal waiting began once again. 'If you're tired of standing, you can sit down without disturbing others.' But this time, those who did not want to continue to stand because of his words began to sit on the ground.

"Mm, mm... Hum…" The voices suddenly caught everyone's attention. Two hours had passed since the old man closed his eyes again. So it had been four hours in total since people started waiting. There had been many people sitting on the ground so far, making some sounds that were hard to even hear among themselves.. But none of them attracted as much attention as this one. Because this time, the person making the noise was not one of the youngsters who took the tests to attend the Rezuba Battle School, but the old man who was the officer who took these tests! The old man was making noises as if he had unexpectedly fallen asleep!