Chapter 25
Silveryn said, "Watch them carefully. They'll torment the freshmen from the entrance ceremony to throughout the semester."
I swallowed as I looked at the giant wooden puppets.
If ghouls had the strength to tear humans apart with their hands, Plantera could tear those ghouls apart with their hands.
They were beings of a different caliber from what I had faced so far. I would have to pour all my capabilities into this.
Erzsebet, led by her escorts, climbed the stairs to the entrance with heavy steps.
The six masked examiners didn't follow her closely but stood next to the carriages.
There was a reason for this. In principle, neither I nor Silveryn were supposed to even greet the examiners until the test was over. They weren't here for a social gathering.
There would be no tea time for them. The evaluation would begin as soon as the preparations were complete.
Silveryn called the butler and ordered, "Guide the examiners to a suitable site for the examination. Somewhere with firm ground and nothing that could be destroyed even if things get chaotic."
"Understood."
The butler approached the examiners.
Silveryn greeted Erzsebet.
"Your face hasn't changed."
"It's been a while, Silveryn."
Silveryn didn't lower herself before Erzsebet. Her attitude was like greeting an old friend.
"Was there a reason for you to come such a long way?"
"How could I ignore the news that Silveryn had taken a disciple?"
"You would have seen him someday even if you had stayed put."
Erzsebet replied with a slight smile, "If I could restrain my curiosity, I wouldn't have become a Magic Engineering scholar."
"That's true. There's still time before the evaluation, so let's go inside."
Before following Silveryn, Erzsebet glanced at me.
"So you're Damian."
"It's an honor to meet you."
"I've heard the rumors. We'll have a lot to talk about after the evaluation."
She has things to talk about with me?
She was such a high-ranking person that I honestly didn't know what to say. I'd be lucky if I didn't stumble over my words.
Silveryn turned her head as if remembering something and said to me, "They'll start as soon as the preparations are done, so wait in your room, Damian."
"Understood."
Silveryn led Erzsebet towards the VIP room.
Liria, who was approaching with quick steps across the central hall, saw them and covered her mouth in surprise.
Then she bowed and waited for them to pass.
When the footsteps faded away, Liria approached me again with quick steps.
She took out a hand-sized potion bottle from her bosom and handed it to me.
"Here's the potion combined according to the note. The combination method is a bit unusual, so you must test it before drinking. If you drink it right away... huh?"
As soon as I received the potion, I uncorked it and gulped it down.
Liria shouted, "No!"
It must be a horrifying action from an alchemist's perspective. Normally, one would carefully check for any mistakes or errors. She must be very flustered since the combination method was unfamiliar.
But the arrow had already left the bowstring. There was no time for explanations. I had to drink it as quickly as possible.
Liria, startled, hit my forearm as hard as she could.
"If my grandmother had seen this, she would have beaten you to death, Master Damian."
Ignoring her reaction, I said, "Thank you, Liria. If things go well, I'll repay you."
***
The examiners followed the butler's guidance.
After passing through the mansion's back gate and going a bit further, they came to an open space that seemed suitable for use as an examination site.
Gael said to the butler, "This is sufficient."
The ground wasn't evenly spread, so some work was needed to smooth it out. Once that work was done, there would be no other problems.
At Gael's gesture, the Planteras moved ahead of the examiners, raising dust. They immediately began the work of digging out soil to level the ground.
Flynn spat out a sigh as he watched the Planteras. He had more than one or two questions, but since he wasn't qualified as an examiner, he couldn't bring himself to ask about this and that.
Seeing so many Planteras brought along, it was clearly the “Trial by Sword”.
This was a test taken during the process of promotion to the upper half of Eternia's Combat Department rankings.
Despite its grand-sounding name, the test content was simple.
Break through the Planteras' defense and cut down the flag at the rearmost position.
That was all.
The problem was that the ones in front of them now were completely different from the ordinary Planteras faced in the “Trial by Sword”.
The Planteras used for student practice matches were smaller in build and generally inferior in strength and reaction speed.
The ones in front of them now were not for that purpose.
Due to the overflow of mana in the ground of Mount Grace where Eternia was located, magic creatures constantly crept in.
These Planteras were created to protect Eternia from those magic creatures.
Eternia Scouts
Killing machines born to tear apart and kill magic creatures.
They were different from the toys students faced.
Their strength, speed, build, and combat sense all overwhelmed the practice Planteras, and it was impossible to cut them down without sword aura.
Moreover, even if one broke through all the Planteras, they would have to face Flynn himself as the final guardian of the flag.
Thanks to the dwarf treasure sword that amplified sword aura, Flynn was far superior to even a single Eternia Scout.
Is this really right?
Even he, who had lived as a sword prodigy since childhood and maintained top rankings in the Combat Department, had never experienced something like this.
Flynn opened his mouth, "Professor, should we... go all out?"
Gael's attitude remained consistent, "We didn't come here to play around. Crush them mercilessly."
"..."
She gently stroked her chin and said, "If you don't perform well, it'll reflect poorly on me for bringing you."
***
I was waiting in my room. I couldn't focus on reading a book, and I felt like training alone would just drain my energy unnecessarily, so I did nothing.
I just lay on the bed, slowly recalling what I had trained so far.
About two hours might have passed like that. The sound of clicking heels approached my room from the corridor. Then, without a knock, my door opened abruptly.
I could tell who it was just from the sound. I immediately got up from the bed.
"Teacher."
"It's time. The evaluation is about to start."
Silveryn gestured for me to follow. I followed her without a word.
We didn't exchange any words while leaving the mansion.
My heart was pounding so hard it felt like it might burst from nervousness.
I wondered what Silveryn was feeling.
I broke the silence first, "Teacher."
"Yes."
"What happens if I fail the Masters Class evaluation?"
Silveryn spoke in a calm tone, "Nothing will happen. My reputation might take a hit for making such a big fuss about this."
"..."
Her reputation, huh?
I was already getting attention just for being Silveryn's disciple. On top of that, Silveryn personally trained me and wrote a recommendation letter, and though it wasn't her intention, even Eternia's Communicator came to see me.
If I failed here, it would surely leave a big stain on her reputation.
Silveryn suddenly stopped in her tracks and turned around.
"But there's something you need to keep in mind."
"..."
Silveryn grabbed my shoulders and looked directly into my eyes.
"This is entirely my doing without your consent, and the responsibility is all mine. Even if you fail this evaluation, I won't be disappointed in you. So never approach this evaluation for the sake of my reputation."
"But your reputation is important to me too."
"Let me assure you. If you fail the Masters Class evaluation, your academy life will be much easier, more stable, comfortable, and happier. If you pass, it'll be the opposite."
Why is she telling me this? It’s like she’s telling me I shouldn’t pass.
"Then, is there a reason why I should pass this evaluation?"
Silveryn fell into thought for a moment.
"...It's necessary if you want to fulfill the mission given to you."
Mission?
"You probably have a vague idea. That power didn't come into this world for no reason. There's a mission behind it. To fulfill that, you need the help of the Masters Class."
She was speaking as if she knew something I hadn't realized yet.
Silveryn's eyes deepened.
"And... the path of that mission will be extremely painful. You might feel it would be better to go back to the workshop and just hammer away."
"..."
"Whether you live for that mission or not depends on your choice. Right now, you're standing at the turning point of that choice..."
Silveryn finished speaking and quietly waited for my answer.
There was no need to think long.
I gained power for reasons I didn't understand.
I didn't even know that a mission had been given to me in the first place.
Even now, I was undergoing high-intensity training that I couldn't have imagined when I was staying at the workshop. This alone was hard enough.
But to fulfill that unknown mission, I had to endure even greater pain. Growing old peacefully and passing away in bed might become a dream.
It's scary.
But my choice had already been solidified.
I had made up my mind to follow that path, no matter what happened.
From the moment I started searching for the star fragment.
After reaffirming my will, my heartbeat gradually returned to a stable rhythm.
"What do I need to do to pass the evaluation?"
The corners of Silveryn's mouth turned up slightly.
Her hand slowly caressed my face.
In her eyes looking at me, there was a coexistence of pity and pride.
"Like you did before, crush everything."
***
At the open space where the evaluation was to begin, a large oval-shaped arena had been created.
Each Plantera was given a wooden sword as tall as a person.
They were lined up with the sword handles at their chests and the swords pointing towards the sky. Their presence alone cast a large shadow in the center of the arena.
Five on the left, and five on the right. A total of ten Planteras. And behind them, Flynn stood with his back to the flag.
And in the distance, from the direction of the mansion, Silveryn and Damian were approaching the arena.