CH 8

"It’s been a while. Lord Jess.”

"How have you been? Royal Wizardess Rozes."

Jess too greeted Rozes Llewellyn.

Rozes Llewellyn.

She was the cousin of the current patriarch of the Llewellyn family and also the one who serves as a Royal wizard.

“Abad, Chelsi, and Celia, three great talents will be enrolling at Lumeln at the same time. Hahaha! As a member of the same empire, I can’t help but be proud!”

Abad, the son of the family head, just turned sixteen. Chelsi was only fourteen.

From the Empire's perspective, the fact that three great talents representing the country entered the same year was considered a good thing.

However, for the two families vying for the title of the most prestigious Hero family in the empire, it could be described as the beginning of a bloody battle.

“I guess Abad will come first in the Western Entrance Exam.”

"Is there a reason for you to be so certain?"

“Abad and Celia are definitely strong enough to compete for the top spot.”

Rozes cast a glance over. She observed Examiner Alby on the podium.

“This test is different. There are bound to be many variables. However, Abad got Chelsi.”

In other words, the two siblings may team up to bring Celia down.

Chelsi was one of the top five candidates.

If she stood by Abad, Celia wouldn't be able to do anything.

'It's disadvantageous in many ways...… but.’

There was also an ace on his side.

Jess smiled meaningfully when he thought of Leo.

Soon, out of nowhere, a massive square magical mirror appeared.

“Ooh-” 

The audience exclaimed looking at it.

It was a magic device that allowed everyone to see what was going on inside the hero's world.

The test situation would be relayed in sections.

Soon, the Magic mirror shone and a scene got reflected on it.

The moment they saw the screen.

“Pffff-!”

Jess burst out laughing unknowingly while Rozes’s eyes widened in disbelief.

There was no sound, but there was the visual of a young woman with light blue hair screaming.

Under the girl, whose hands and feet were tied and dangling in the air, a bonfire was burning.

And, near her, a gray-haired boy holding the vine was seen smiling wickedly while controlling the rope.

⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ 

When Chelsi regained consciousness, she was suspended in the air, and her hands and feet were tied together.

"Wha…, what's this?"

“Are you awake? Let's ask the princess who woke up. You would like to cooperate with me, right?”

"I'll make you regret not getting rid of me and tying me up with such a sloppy rope."

Chelsi, who spoke angrily, tried to cast a spell.

"Uh, what? Why can’t I channel my mana?"’

She had a feeling that something was suppressing the mana around her.

“Is it a magic seal?”

"Bingo. I drew it. How is it?”

“Are you a magic swordsman?”

"No. I currently have no mana. That's why the seal I cast isn't very powerful."

"Ugh! I never thought you could use magic! But, it won’t work on me. This worthless seal that doesn't contain any mana, I can break it in no time!”

"I suppose so. But only if you could concentrate perfectly."

"what? Hee-ik-!”

Chelsi was startled by the heat that was felt in her butt.

As Leo lowered the rope, she felt the presence of the bonfire.

“Wait! Wait! Wait! STOPPPP! Aaaaagh! Don't!”

"So? Are you going to cooperate? Or not?”

"As a member of the Llewellyn family, I would never cooperate with a Gerdinger!"

"Really? Then, don’t resent me if your butt gets cooked."

“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa? stop! stop!"

Chelsi struggled.

As the pain from the heat increased in her butt, she hurriedly tried to break the seal, but it wasn't easy.

To use a magic seal one requires considerable magic knowledge, and to break the seal that did not contain mana, a high level of mental concentration was required.

Of course, if Chelsi had been a bit more experienced wizard, this would have been easy.

However, she was immature despite her skills in magic.

Leo seemed to see right through it.

Chelsi's face turned pale.

'They can see what’s happening here from the outside, right!? If other people see this!'

There was nothing more disgraceful than this!

PUCHHH-!

The skirt she wore caught fire!

“Kyaaaagh! hot! stop! Stop! Stop it please.”

"Swear on the name of your family that you'll cooperate."

"I'll do it! I'll do it! I will cooperate in the name of Llewellyn, so please stop!”

Chelsi begged, with tears in her eyes.

'It ended easily because she was a kid. Keukkeuk-’

Leo laughed inwardly as he pulled the vine.

Chelsi, who got freed, put out the fire on her skirt.

‘No one would have seen this, right? Yeah, it should be so. They probably didn't see it. Since the test has just begun, I'm sure they would have shown other participants.’

Unfortunately for her, the first image to be displayed in the Magic mirror was that of Leo and Chelsi.

⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ 

'Ha...'

Alby sighed, his face expressionless.

The [world of heroes] that was now unfolding was special to him.

It was the first page of his heroic journey.

It was the moment from where he began to rise to the position of a Hero.

Looking at the participants struggling in that world, Alby thought.

‘Low-level.'

Alby grumbled and clicked his tongue.

A Hero was someone recognized by God.

So people think of Heroes as noble and dignified.

Of course, there were people like that.

However, Alby, on the other hand, was far from stereotypical.

He was a neurotic, efficiency-seeking individual.

He doesn't like wasting time.

He doesn't want to be bothered either.

That was why he gave them this test.

Survival in an unexplored land of demons.

He who survives is strong.

It was a simple and effective test for distinguishing between good and bad.

And the effect was evident.

Get rid of a competitor or fight monsters and survive.

In this test, everyone was given two options.

The majority of the candidates chose to eliminate their competitors.

‘So stupid.’

The only thing on their minds was themselves.

The fastest way to reach the top of the rankings.

And, as for the monsters that existed in the Devil’s forest such as orcs, gnolls, and goblins, they are not much of a threat to such level of the participants.

Of course, trolls would be dangerous, but due to their small population, it was difficult to meet one.

However, there were two mistakes that the candidates made here.

First and foremost. They misunderstood the information given.

Alby told them about the test.

But, he never mentioned the passing criteria.

In other words, they had to proceed cautiously after realizing that eliminating their competitors was not the best course of action.

Second. Their misjudgment about the Devil's forest.

It was a forest that many powerful countries tried to conquer, but couldn’t.

Even fighting low-level monsters could become exhaustive if fought indefinitely.

To fight without cooperating in such a serious situation would be a bad choice.

In real life, this would have resulted in complete annihilation.

'Of course, if you have overwhelming skills, subjugating monsters and eliminating competitors– You can do both.'

Alby’s lips curled upwards as he looked at the magic mirror.

Red eyes and black hair.

He noticed a girl with a flame aura around her sword.

'Celia Gerdinger. Just like the rumor.'

Celia was dealing with three trolls.

And behind her, a boy with light blue hair could be seen chanting.

‘The same goes for Abad Llewellyn. The Empire has a bright future.’

The two rivals met as soon as they entered the world of heroes.

However, the two chose cooperation over competition despite their overwhelming ability to pass the test on their own.

It was because they had a clear understanding of this test.

'If it's those two, there won’t be any problem. Rather, it would be difficult to distinguish who is above and who is below.'

Alby had a satisfied expression.

The 1st and 2nd place were unconditionally between those two.

Soon, the mirror changed again.

This time it showed candidates who were engaged in a battle with the orcs.

'Was it Leo Flove?'

The first candidate to be displayed on the screen of the magic mirror.

And he was the one who did the most bizarre thing throughout this test.

Most people saw Leo as an insane person who tied up the Llewellyn family's daughter and attempted to burn her on the bonfire.

However, Alby gave Leo high marks for his action.

‘Getting Chelsi Llewellyn's cooperation is something to be evaluated positively.’

So, he looked forward to seeing what he would show him in this test.

And what he was showing now already exceeded his expectations.

Even he, as a Hero, felt astonished.

Leo had neither power nor splendor compared to Celia Gerdinger, but......

Alby could feel the inexhaustible experience when he cut the orc with minimal movement.

'An unexpected dark horse.'

⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ ⏩ 

Puhwak-!

“Chwiiiii-!”

Leo turned around, leaving the heart-pierced Orc behind.

The sword was drawn naturally.

The sword that was swung using the centrifugal force blew off the head of the orc that was sneaking on his back.

Leo ran away as soon as he encountered ten orcs.

Orcs are highly intelligent monsters, so if you give them a chance, they would form a formation and attack.

Before that happens, he has to finish them quickly.

Chelsi chanted an incantation while Leo got busy cutting down the orc’s head.

“Wind Arrow.”

She cast the magic after finishing the chant.

Pobobobok-!

“kkuaaaak!”

“chwieek!”

Orcs pierced by wind arrows screamed.

Seven orcs were killed by the magic attack.

Leo wiped the blood from his sword after slashing the last orc's throat.

And he walked ahead without saying anything.

Chelsi, who followed behind him, murmured to herself.

"It feels good to fight like this."

Though she aspires to become a battle mage, end of the day, a wizard is a wizard.

The most effective strategy was to leave the front to an excellent warrior and concentrate on attacking from behind.

And Chelsi felt she and Leo fit in very well.

She was resentful when she reluctantly formed a party with Leo because she was intimidated, but after three battles, she believed she made the right decision.

It was not just about fighting monsters, Leo also skillfully drove the monsters into one place so that the magic attack could have its full effectiveness.

Magic was a wide-range attack method.

Hence, the more the enemies come together, the greater the effect.

"That's great, you can kill Orcs simply without using Aura.”

“I just don’t know how to use Aura.”

"What?"

“I haven’t learned yet.”

'Is it possible to move like that without using an aura?'

On the other hand, she understood the reason why she was defeated earlier.

'It's not that I couldn't detect his Aura; he simply didn't use it.'

Chelsi placed her thin hands on her waist and smiled triumphantly.

“To reveal your secret just like that! How foolish of you!"

“Don’t worry about it. Even if you know that you can’t beat me with your current skills.”

“Ho-ho-ho! Such bluff doesn’t work on me."

"I simply stated the truth."

Leo said softly.

"To be honest, you do have great skills.”

"What?"

"You have a lot of mana and know various spells."

“I won’t be flattered just because you praised me honestly.”

Despite her sarcastic tone, the unexpected compliment made her feel good.

“And that’s where the problem lies.”

"What?"

"Your abilities are so strong that you are unable to properly utilize the essence of wind magic."

Chelsi’s fighting style was to overwhelm her opponents with powerful magic.

That was not the essence of wind magic.

"The pride of our family is wind magic. Discussing wind magic in front of Llewellyn. That's ridiculous."

Chelsi laughed.

Leo's statement just now was unacceptable.

So, she chanted a spell and then extended her staff.

“Windbreak.”

“Geuooooo!”

The blade of the rough wind flew into the bushes and tore up the troll that was holding its breath to shreds.

The troll that had fallen to the ground wriggled and drooped.

Chelsi demonstrated her strength by casting the top spells she had prepared in advance to intimidate Leo.

'You dare to mess with me despite knowing nothing about magic! You must be surprised by what happened just now, right?'

Chelsi had a smug expression on her face.

Seeing this, Leo had a sour expression.

"That's not how you use wind magic."

The biggest advantage of wind magic is its ever-changing nature.

Simply pressing ‘wind’ with power is the least effective way to attack using the characteristics of wind magic.

Chelsi made a tearful expression at Leo's words.

And he simply turned away, as if he hadn't noticed.

'Since. I can't even use magic right now, saying something like this would be seen as absurd.'

Leo remembered what it was like to use magic in his previous life, but he hasn't mastered it yet in this life.

Leo in deep thought suddenly stopped walking.

Chelsi's eyes widened as well.

In the place they stopped, the corpse of trolls was scattered around.

However, the condition of their bodies was strange.

It was dry, as if it had its blood sucked away.

“What happened here? Are there monsters that suck blood in the Devil’s forest?”

Chelsi looked at the corpse with a puzzled expression.

Leo, who touched the body, squinted his eyes.

'I can't believe this.'

"First and foremost, I believe that joining Celia and your brother will be our main priority. I think I know the criteria for passing this test.”

"Huh? What is it?"

Looking at Chelsi who had a surprised expression, Leo smiled and said.

“To conquer this world.”