Alert!: this chapter has been translated by Mangademon / demonicscans.org, this is a premium translation, not mtl
"It’s been a while, Vice Lord Gis."
"Have you been well, Royal Mage Rozes?"
Gis greeted Rozes Lewallin.
Rozes Lewallin.
A cousin of the current head of the Lewallin family, he held the title of Imperial Royal Mage of the empire.
"For Abad, Chelsea, and Celia to enter Lumerne in the same year—it’s a great honor as citizens of the same empire!"
Abad, the heir of the family, was sixteen, and Chelsea was fourteen.
From the empire's perspective, having three representatives of the nation’s finest talents enter in the same year was a cause for celebration.
But for the two families competing for the title of the empire’s greatest, it marked the beginning of a cutthroat rivalry.
"Abad will undoubtedly secure the top spot in the western entrance exam."
"Do you have a reason for such confidence?"
"Both Abad and Celia are strong contenders for the top position."
Rozes glanced at Albi, the examiner standing on the platform.
"This year’s exam is unusual. There are many variables. And Abad has Chelsea."
It meant the siblings would work together to defeat Celia.
Chelsea was among the top five candidates in terms of skill.
If she helped Abad, Celia would have no way to resist.
‘Although the odds aren’t in our favor... it’s not entirely hopeless either.’
There was a wildcard on their side.
Thinking of Leo, Gis smiled meaningfully.
At that moment, a large square magical mirror appeared in the air.
Oooh-! The spectators gasped in awe.
It was a magic that allowed them to observe the interior of the World of Heroes.
The mirror emitted light, and an image appeared on the surface.
At the sight of the image, Gis burst into laughter, while Rozes’s eyes widened.
Though no sound came through, a girl with light sky-blue hair was screaming.
Bound hand and foot, she dangled in the air, a campfire blazing beneath her.
Meanwhile, a white-haired boy holding a vine was grinning wickedly as he adjusted the rope.
***
When Chelsea regained consciousness, she found herself bound hand and foot, dangling in the air.
"W-What is this?"
"You’re awake? Perfect. Let me ask you—will you cooperate with me or not?"
"You’ll regret not eliminating me and using such crude restraints."
Chelsea sneered, summoning her mana.
‘Huh? What? Why can’t I control my mana?’
It felt as though something nearby was suppressing her power.
"Could this be a Mana Sealing Formation?"
"Bingo. I drew it myself."
"You’re a Magic Swordsman?"
"Nope. I don’t have mana right now, so the sealing formation isn’t very strong."
"Ugh! I didn’t expect you to have magical aptitude! But I can break a sealing formation without mana in it!"
"Sure, but only if you can concentrate properly."
"What? Hiiik—!"
Feeling a sudden heat on her backside, Chelsea shrieked in panic.
As Leo lowered the rope, the fire beneath her became all too real.
"W-Wait! Stop! Kyaaaa! Don’t lower it!"
"So? Will you cooperate or not?"
"As if someone from the Lewallin family would ever cooperate with a Zerdinger!"
"Alright. I don’t care if your butt gets roasted."
"Kyaaaa! Stop! Please stop!"
Chelsea struggled desperately.
The scorching heat was climbing up her back.
She tried to break the sealing formation, but it wasn’t easy.
A Mana Sealing Formation required considerable magical expertise.
Even a formation without mana required intense concentration to break.
Of course, if Chelsea were a more experienced magician, this wouldn’t have worked.
But she was still inexperienced compared to her skill level.
Leo had judged that perfectly.
Chelsea’s face turned pale.
‘The entrance exam is being broadcast outside! If others see me like this...!’
This was the ultimate humiliation!
Fwoosh-!
The hem of her skirt caught fire!
"Kyaaa! It’s hot! Stop! Please stop!"
"Swear on your family’s name that you’ll cooperate."
"I will! I swear! I’ll cooperate on the honor of the Lewallin family, so please stop!"
Tears welled up in Chelsea’s eyes as she pleaded.
‘Kids are so easy.’
Chuckling, Leo pulled the vine.
Chelsea, finally freed, put out the fire with teary eyes.
‘There’s no way others could’ve seen this, right? Yeah, they wouldn’t have. The exam just started, so they must’ve been showing someone else.’
Unfortunately for her, Leo and Chelsea’s scene had been the very first to be broadcast via magic.
***
‘Hmm.’
Albi sighed listlessly, looking disinterested.
The World of Heroes unfolding now was special to him.
It was the first chapter of his heroic tale.
The event that had marked his rise as a hero.
Watching the examinees struggle within his world, Albi reflected.
‘Every single one of them is so underwhelming.’
Clicking his tongue, Albi frowned irritably.
A hero was someone recognized by the gods.
People often thought heroes were noble and dignified.
There were certainly heroes who fit that description.
But Albi was far from that ideal image.
He was irritable and obsessed with efficiency.
He hated inefficiency.
He also hated unnecessary hassle.
That was why he designed this exam.
Survival in a perilous domain.
Those who survived were strong.
A simple yet effective test to distinguish the worthy.
And its effectiveness was evident.
Eliminating competitors.
Fighting monsters to survive.
These were the two choices presented by the exam.
The majority of examinees chose to eliminate competitors.
‘Utterly foolish.’
They must have thought they were being clever.
Believing it was the quickest way to rise to the top rankings.
The monsters in the Forest of Demonic Beasts—
Orcs, gnolls, and goblins—were not significant threats to the examinees.
Of course, trolls were dangerous, but they were few and far between.
The examinees had made two major mistakes.
First, they didn’t fully grasp the information.
Albi had explained the exam but had not specified the criteria for passing.
In other words, eliminating competitors wasn’t the only way to pass; they should’ve moved with caution.
Second, they underestimated the Forest of Demonic Beasts.
It was a forest that even the armies of great nations had failed to conquer.
Even low-ranking monsters could tire them out if the battles were endless.
Fighting each other in such a situation?
In a real scenario, it would’ve meant complete annihilation.
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‘Of course, if someone has overwhelming skill, they can take both objectives: defeating monsters and eliminating competitors.’
Albi smirked as he watched the magical mirror.
A girl with black hair and red eyes was visible, her sword glowing with fiery Aura.
‘Celia Zerdinger. As expected, the rumors were true.’
Celia was facing off against three trolls.
Behind her, a boy with light sky-blue hair was chanting a spell.
‘Abad Lewallin is no different. The empire’s future is bright.’
The two rivals had coincidentally met right at the beginning of the World of Heroes.
With the overwhelming skill to pass the exam on their own, the two chose cooperation over competition.
They had correctly assessed the nature of the exam.
‘Those two won’t have any problems. It’ll be hard to determine a clear winner between them.’
Albi wore a satisfied expression.
While he was certain that the top two positions would go to them, the screen changed again.
The next examinee shown on the magical mirror was fighting orcs.
‘Was his name Leo Plov?’
Leo had been the first examinee shown on the mirror.
He had also performed the most bizarre action in this exam—tying up a Lewallin girl and threatening to roast her over a campfire.
Most people thought Leo was insane for doing such a thing.
But Albi gave him high marks.
‘Regardless of the method, he secured Chelsea Lewallin’s cooperation, and that’s commendable.’
He was curious to see what Leo would do next in the exam.
And the current performance exceeded expectations.
In fact, even Albi, a hero, was impressed.
‘He lacks the sheer power and flashiness of Celia Zerdinger, but...’
His minimal movements and the way he dispatched orcs exuded an almost immeasurable level of experience.
‘He’s an unexpected dark horse.’
***
Swish-!
"Screeeech!"
Leaving behind an orc with its heart pierced, Leo spun his body.
His sword followed naturally, slicing off the head of an orc that had been attempting to ambush him from behind.
Upon encountering a group of ten orcs, Leo had immediately charged at them.
Orcs were intelligent monsters. If given time, they would form a formation and attack strategically.
To prevent that, Leo struck first.
While Leo led the charge and cut down the orcs, Chelsea chanted a spell.
"Wind Arrow."
She cast the completed spell.
Thwack-thwack-thwack-!
"Kyaaaaagh!"
"Shrieeek!"
The orcs screamed as the spell pierced them.
The magic killed seven orcs instantly.
Leo cleanly slashed the neck of the last orc and flicked the blood off his sword.
Without a word, he began walking ahead.
Chelsea, following behind him, muttered to herself.
‘Combat feels so smooth.’
Even if she aspired to be a Battle Magician, she was still a magician.
The most efficient strategy was to leave the frontline to a skilled warrior and focus on providing firepower from the rear.
And Chelsea felt that her coordination with Leo was exceptionally good.
Though she had been resentful when she was coerced into forming a party with Leo, after three battles, she now thought it was a good decision.
It wasn’t just about dealing with monsters.
Leo skillfully herded the monsters into clusters, maximizing the effectiveness of her magic.
Magic was most effective when used for area attacks.
Naturally, the more densely packed the enemies, the greater the effect.
"Not bad. Taking care of orcs so easily without using Aura."
"I don’t know how to use Aura."
"What?"
"I haven’t learned it yet."
‘He can move like that without using Aura?’
While puzzled, Chelsea also began to understand why she had been defeated earlier.
‘He doesn’t use Aura, so there was no mana signature for me to detect.’
Placing a hand on her hip, Chelsea smirked confidently.
"Revealing your secrets so easily! Foolish!"
"I’m not worried because you can’t beat me with your current skills."
"Hohoho! What arrogance!"
"I’m just stating a fact."
Leo spoke indifferently.
"Honestly, your skills are quite impressive."
"Hmm?"
"You have strong mana and likely know many spells."
"Flattering me won’t get you anything."
She spoke curtly but felt pleased by the unexpected compliment.
"But that’s the problem."
"What?"
"Your skills are so good that you’re not using wind magic to its full potential."
Chelsea’s combat style relied on overwhelming her opponents with powerful magic.
But that wasn’t the essence of wind magic.
"The pride of our family is wind magic. And you’re lecturing me about wind magic? Ridiculous."
Chelsea scoffed at him.
Leo’s comment was unacceptable to her.
She began chanting a spell in runes, pointing her staff toward a target.
"Wind Break."
"Graaaaaah!"
The blades of violent wind slashed through the bushes, tearing apart a hidden troll.
The fallen troll twitched briefly before going limp.
Chelsea had used a high-tier pre-cast spell to showcase her strength and humble Leo.
‘He must be stunned after seeing this!’
Wearing a proud expression, Chelsea glanced at Leo.
But Leo’s face remained indifferent.
"That’s not how you use wind magic."
The greatest strength of wind magic was its versatility.
Overwhelming opponents with sheer power was the least effective way to use it.
Leo’s comment made Chelsea’s face contort with irritation.
She turned her head away in frustration.
‘Well, it’s not like I can use magic right now, so my words probably seem ridiculous.’
Leo, who hadn’t yet learned magic in this life, smiled faintly and suddenly stopped walking.
Chelsea’s eyes widened.
The area was littered with troll corpses.
But their condition was strange.
They looked withered, as if their life force had been drained.
"What happened to them? There aren’t supposed to be life-draining monsters in the Forest of Demonic Beasts."
Chelsea examined the corpses with a perplexed expression.
Touching one of the bodies, Leo narrowed his eyes.
‘Could it be?’
"We should find Celia and your brother first. I think I understand the objective of this exam."
"Huh? What is it?"
Leo gave Chelsea a meaningful smile.
"It’s to conquer this world."
End Of Chapter
