Please read this
Episode 57
Final Exam (4)
“What do you see?”
“… … .”
[… … .]
At that moment, Yann Lantes asked a question.
His inorganic eyes were directed at the chessboard.
“The shape of a chessboard varies depending on the person’s eyes.”
“… … .”
“For some it’s just a board game, for others it’s a little battlefield… … .”
Swish.
Yann Irantes, looking up at Riley, continued asking questions.
“Well then, child.”
“… … .”
“What do you see with your eyes now?”
Riley stared down at the chessboard, her mouth tight.
She stared at it for a while, then answered quietly.
“I can see the ruins.”
“… … .”
“The ruins I saw during the second test looked exactly like that.”
A faint smile appeared on Jan Lantes’ lips as he heard that answer.
“okay.”
“… … .”
“To you, it looks like the remains of the second test… … .”
Jan Lantes nodded slowly and then immediately asked the next question.
“Then, child, what do you think?”
“……yes?”
“What do you think about the second test that was held five days ago?”
He continued speaking.
“Humans naturally reveal their true value in extreme situations. And thanks to sticking to that testing method, I was able to discover a treasure like you in the second test.”
“… … .”
“But in return, dozens of wizards lost their lives. Those who barely managed to escape suffered serious internal injuries and were unable to cast spells any longer.”
Second screening test.
Of the 42 candidates, only nine passed the exam.
The remaining 33 candidates were eliminated, most of whom lost their lives or were seriously injured, as Yann Lantes said.
“So, kid.”
“… … .”
“What do you think?”
Jan Irantes once again questioned Riley.
“Do you think that a peaceful method like the first test can sufficiently assess the applicants’ abilities?”
“… … .”
“Or do you think that putting candidates on the line is the best way to gauge their abilities?”
Either/or.
Now Jan Lantes was forcing him to choose between two options.
Riley and I were lost in thought after hearing that question.
“… … .”
[… … .]
In fact, most people would choose the latter option.
As I’ve said several times, the selection test is not a place for ‘evaluation’ but for ‘proof’.
There is no reason to feel sorry for a idiot who came to take the test without even knowing his/her topic.
Because they were unqualified to begin with.
but…….
‘… … Choosing that option would be a trap.’
[huh.]
Didn’t I say that before?
This position is like a final interview.
It is no different from a place where the tendencies and values of the applicant and the candidate must be bridged.
Now, Yann Lantes wasn’t asking Riley about his personal values.
Instead.
The guy wanted to know how well Riley’s thoughts aligned with the values of the Tower.
‘The values pursued by the Lantes Tower are colorless.’
[huh.]
Colorless.
A personality that has no firm identity, but can therefore change into any color as needed.
Given what we’ve figured out, there’s only one answer we have to come up with.
“… … .”
Swish─.
——————
faqwiki.us
Join our Discord for new chapter updates!
https://discord.com/invite/xr7SxG5T6V
——————
Riley slowly raises her head.
She opened her mouth, looking at Jan Lantes.
“I would rather ask the Lord’s opinion than that.”
“… … .”
“Your Majesty, what do you think about this second test?”
Riley answered questions with questions.
Hearing that, Jan Lantes frowned.
“What?”
It was a rather unpleasant looking face.
In an instant, the magical energy felt from behind Yann Lantes began to grow more fierce.
“Child, I asked for your opinion.”
“… … .”
“But you dare… … to answer my question with another question?”
Jan Lantes drove Riley as if he had committed a serious offense.
But I was able to gain confidence once again through this appearance of his.
Jan Lantes, who had never shown any emotional agitation until now, was showing overly artificial anger.
There was an extremely obvious intention hidden behind it.
And I could see right through him.
[Riley is trying to scare you.]
“… … .”
[So, they are trying to prevent you from coming up with a rational answer even though you are close to the correct answer.]
But what do I do with this?
We already knew all this.
The fact that Jan Lantes is angry is just an act.
And now he was more satisfied with Riley’s answers than ever.
“Your Majesty.”
That’s why Riley was able to answer without being intimidated by the ominous aura he gave off.
“The reason I ask for your opinion, Lord Top.”
“… … .”
“Because the Lord’s answer will soon become my answer.”
If you give this answer in the final test with another magic tower, it might actually be counterproductive.
He was reprimanded for not being able to answer such a question on his own.
But the case of the Irantes Tower will be different.
-While others were falling behind the times by insisting on their own colors, we changed to fit the colors that the times demanded.
Because they wanted a flexible wizard rather than a wizard with a strong ego.
“… … .”
“… … .”
silence.
Silence followed.
After hearing the answer, Yann Lantes just looked at Riley silently with an incomprehensible expression.
“under…….”
But soon the silence was broken.
A bright smile began to appear on Yann Lantes’ lips at Riley’s answer, which so well understood the identity of colorlessness.
Shh …
His smile was eerie.
It was as if a broken doll was trying to force a smile.
“this…….”
Between those eerie smiles.
His low, muffled voice echoed throughout Daejeon.
“This is totally something.”
“… … .”
[… … .]
Jan Lantes’ eyes sparkled.
He looked at Riley with eyes that said he had truly found the talent he was looking for, and continued speaking slowly.
“Yes, kid. I asked you what you thought of the second test.”
“… … .”
“I believe that the second test was the true selection test. Since ancient times, the true skills of a magician are only revealed on the battlefield where the fear of death lingers.”
As Jan Lantes said, split-second decisions that determine life and death only become more valuable when talent and experience are combined.
And this could be said to be an element that only appears in completed wizards.
Therefore, from the perspective of the “Five Great Magic Towers” that are pursuing a perfect magician, they have no choice but to put the applicants in a dangerous situation.
Because that was the best way to evaluate the wizards’ perfection.
“Of course, some of the magicians have different opinions than me.”
“… … .”
“They thought that they could evaluate the wizard’s qualities through peaceful means, like the first test.”
Jan Lantes continued, chuckling and laughing as if the idea was ridiculous.
“But look. Of the 42 wizards who passed the first test, how many survived until the end?”
“… … .”
[… … .]
9 people.
42 people attempted the second test, but only 9 wizards survived until the end.
“Do you think the method of the second test is unreasonable?”
“… … .”
“Do you think this method of putting applicants in danger in order to select a small number of successful candidates is unreasonable?”
Of course I think it’s unreasonable.
That would be the case, because while there is a saying that small sacrifices can be made for the greater good, I have never heard of a greater sacrifice being made for the less.
“But, child.”
“… … .”
“That’s what the original magic was like.”
But as Jan Lantes said.
Originally, the path of magic was unreasonable from the very beginning.
Those with high mana affinity.
Those who excel in mana management.
These are the ones with strong Manahat circuits and strength.
AKA those blessed by Mana.
As such, the right to walk the path of magic was granted only to a select few.
A path that you are not even given the chance to walk unless you are chosen.
That is why magic was unreasonable.
But is that really only the starting point?
no.
This absurdity often comes to us even while walking along the path of magic.
As a wizard walks through the magic path, he will inevitably encounter a wall.
And this wall was never an obstacle that could be broken down by acquired effort.
talent.
That wall could only be broken down by innate talent.
“Do you understand, child?”
“… … .”
“The path to magic is not equal for everyone.”
Jan Lantes declared in a firm voice.
“What may be an extremely steep cliff to some may be a smooth flat ground to others.”
“… … .”
“For some, it may be a lonely path that they must walk alone, but for others, it may be a march that they can walk with many people.”
And there is only one factor that determines all of these circumstances.
“It all comes down to talent.”
“… … .”
[… … .]
Swish─.
Yann Lantes paused for a moment and slowly raised his head.
He looked at Riley with a stern expression and asked.
“Hey kid.”
“… … .”
“If that isn’t an unreasonable length, then what is?”
It was all correct.
There was nothing wrong with what Jan Lantes said.
As the guy said, the magic was an unreasonable path.
And also selfish.
It was also a very self-righteous path.
[… … .]
but.
Even so… … .
[you…….]
I couldn’t admit it.
I don’t know about other people.
I couldn’t tolerate that son of a bitch, Jan Irantes, talking like that.
[… … You shouldn’t say things like that.]
Haven’t I said this before?
I once used contractors as tools.
That they were just test subjects, without any consideration for their safety.
okay.
right.
My past self continued to force the contractors onto dangerous paths, regardless of whether they died or not.
They just used those overlapping deaths as data to do better in the next round.
The path I have walked was a path built on the sacrifices of unfortunate contractors.
Even if this path has raised countless great wizards, the bloodstains engraved behind my footsteps will never be erased.
That was the price I had to pay for the rest of my life.
That is why my magic was unreasonable.
Because I drove so many contractors to their deaths for my own benefit.
And those who could have grown into great wizards if they had met me now, were treated like scraps of data and died simply because they met me a little earlier.
[… … .]
But Jan Lantes was different.
The guy was a fraud who stole all the fruits of my sacrifice.
I have said it time and again, but the crime he committed was not simply an insult to Martha Pargerich personally.
The path I have walked.
It was an act of denial of all the contractors who sacrificed themselves in that bloody witchcraft.
And it was an act of deception that had me walking that painful path, teetering precariously on the edge of a mental abyss.
On that subject, that son of a bitch had the nerve to discuss magic in front of me.
He had gotten to that position by lying and deceiving others, and now he dares to say that magic is unreasonable.
[… … That’s a lie.]
It was a lie. That he was also a disciple of Martha Pargerich.
It was a lie. That he had succeeded in creating the magic of immortality.
It was a lie. It was also a lie that he had grown the Irantes Tower using only worldly wisdom.
[… … That’s all a lie.]
Stop─.
There was a sound of something breaking.
[But how… … .]
The string of patience I was barely holding on to snapped.
An indescribable anger began to boil up inside me.
[… … But how dare you discuss magic.]
