CHAPTER 61: THE FIRST TEST

The envelopes were opened simultaneously in every examination center across the various nations.

The test was supposed to last two hours. To succeed, a candidate had to submit at least one carefully completed copy out of the three provided before the time ran out. The examiners clearly had no intention of grading the papers: as long as one copy was submitted, the candidate passed; otherwise, they failed.

---

Order Headquarters

Administrative and Political Affairs Office (Chancellery)

Surveillance Center

Over a hundred screens and computers were broadcasting live footage from all the examination centers.

In front of the monitors sat interns from the Chancellery, all recruited for their skills in computing and networking.

Gramm was in charge of the entire operation. Though it was the Chancellery members who were physically present on-site and had handled all formalities, Gramm was the true supervisor. The Chancellor had other matters to attend to and had not bothered to show up.

The surveillance center was buzzing with activity: failure reports were piling up.

Barely moments after the envelopes were opened, some candidates rushed to start writing without reading the questions. As a result, their sheets burst into flames before their eyes. The fire automatically spread to the two other copies, causing instant failure, before extinguishing itself without producing heat or burning anything else.

Upon hearing this, Gramm could only shake his head.

("People who rush in without thinking and lack the means to succeed have no place in the Order.")

Suddenly, an intern called out to him:

"Director, someone just submitted all three copies, perfectly completed. The examiner on-site suspects cheating. What should we do?"

"Show me the surveillance footage."

A giant screen lit up, displaying the examination room. A young man with long red hair tied back in a ponytail could be seen. He opened the envelope, read the prompt for a brief moment, then within less than a minute, answered all the questions, not just on one copy, but on all three, and calmly handed them over to the examiner, who stood frozen in disbelief.

Gramm watched the footage without a shred of doubt.

"This candidate didn’t cheat. And frankly, if someone is smart enough to cheat without getting caught by their examiner, let them pass. The rules were clearly stated. The rest is up to the participants’ imagination."

"Understood."

The intern spoke into a microphone, instructing the examiner to validate the candidate’s test.

Gramm then asked,

"What’s the name of this candidate?"

The intern typed rapidly. The information appeared on the screen.

"Kritos Franklin, 17 years old.

Combatant.

Candidate for the Bureau of Etheric Applications Research."

Gramm found Kritos Franklin intriguing and regretted that he hadn’t applied to his own office.

More than half an hour passed, and still, no other candidate had managed to submit even one copy. On the contrary, the number of failures kept rising: over 200,000 candidates had already been eliminated, their answer sheets completely incinerated.

Gramm couldn’t help but think how pathetic they were.

"What kind of image do they have of the Order to apply with such little imagination?"

---

Capital of the Palm Grove Republic

Examination Center

Sirius leaned back in his chair. He had read and reread the prompt several times, without writing a single word, preferring to observe the other candidates.

("Iris and the others aren’t here. Judging by the black badges everyone is wearing, the candidates have probably been grouped by department and category. Combatants must be separated from non-combatants.")

("How should I approach this test? There are so many ways to pass, and each one leaves a different impression of who I am.")

While the others were focused on how to succeed, Sirius was thinking about the impression he would leave behind. Then suddenly, he had an epiphany.

("I doubt they expect this kind of performance.")

---

Iris, meanwhile, was in the same room as Carla. Thirty minutes had already passed, and she had done nothing but sleep. Only when the examiner woke her did she begin working.

With a single glance, she understood the mindset of everyone in her room and even in the neighboring rooms. She was surprised to realize that Sirius was just below her. She decided to wait until Sirius wrote something so she could copy him.

("Why bother racking my brain?") she thought.

But to her dismay, the prompt was not the same for her department.

Disappointed, she reread her instructions:

Question 1: What is the purpose of the Bureau of Military Affairs?

Question 2: What is the date of the Great Migration?

Question 3: What is the difference between a human’s power and that of a Calamity?

Upon finishing the reading, she understood the trap: out of the ten questions, only the tenth one mattered. The rest was common knowledge that even an idiot could answer.

Question 10: The Bureau of Military Affairs is an elite group. How would you impress us?

Iris smiled. She stood up from her seat, drawing confused looks from the examiner, walked toward him, and without asking grabbed a regular pen from his pocket. Then she returned to her seat and started writing.

To everyone’s astonishment, after filling out the first copy, she continued with the other two none of the sheets caught fire.

But instead of handing them in, she stood and addressed the room:

"Who wants to pass this test like I did?"

Out of a hundred candidates in the room, nearly half had already failed. Carla was the first to rise.

"Me, ma’am!" she shouted. Her shaved head gave her a military appearance.

Iris smiled and handed her the pen.

"Write whatever you’re thinking."

Carla obeyed. She completed one copy, placed it before the examiner, and exited the room.

Iris then turned to the others:

"For those of you still hesitating what more do you want me to do?"

A large brute stood up, cracking his knuckles.

"I just have to take that pen from you!" he shouted, convinced he could overpower a fragile girl.

Iris looked at the examiner, who stayed silent, signaling: "I’m not here."

Realizing he wouldn’t interfere, Iris tossed the pen to the brute. As he lunged to catch it, he was suddenly overwhelmed by a visceral fear that dropped him to his knees.

His hands trembled. He now feared for his life.

Iris calmly approached, picked up the pen from the floor, and extended her hand toward him.

"Don’t be afraid. I can help you."

In that moment, the brute saw her as an angel descended from heaven someone to whom he would owe his life.

---

Meanwhile, Sirius, after having mapped everything out, stood and declared aloud:

"Whatever you do, it’s impossible to pass this exam.

Only those with high-ranking connections stand a chance."

The others stared at him, thinking he was crazy.

"This paper and pen are rigged. They contain a high concentration of ether. When they interact, they combust unless certain conditions are met."

His words began to resonate throughout the room.

"Then how do we pass?" one candidate asked.

"Good question. The solution is simple." He pointed at a pen. "These pens contain very little ink. If you completely refill the reservoir, the reaction is neutralized, and you can write freely."

He paused, answering the question everyone was likely thinking:

"As for where to find more ink? Everyone has a pen. And there’s no rule... against stealing."

That was all it took. As soon as one candidate stood up, a fight erupted in the room and quickly spread.

---

Back in the surveillance center, an intern asked Gramm:

"Director, is what this candidate said actually true?"

Gramm smiled.

"Who cares whether it’s the truth or a complete lie?"

("I like him.")

---

While the others fought, Sirius took advantage of the chaos to discreetly steal the answer sheets of others. When one candidate caught him in the act, Sirius knocked him out cold.

One by one, the candidates took each other out. The few still standing were too exhausted to put up a fight, and Sirius knocked them out in no time.

With 15 minutes remaining, he took the pen from his envelope, filled out his three copies along with the ones he had stolen, and handed them to the examiner: 64 perfectly completed copies in his name.

---

Elsewhere, in other centers, different scenes unfolded. There wasn’t a single way to succeed interpretation of the exam was left entirely to the candidates.

In one room, just before the end of the two hours, Lucy handed in her three copies to the examiner, who was stunned to realize that no one in her room had failed.

---

And so, after two hours, the first test came to an end.

Out of two million candidates worldwide, only 97,350 passed the first round.

Gramm, still in the surveillance room, was reviewing footage of the most promising candidates.

Eventually, he announced:

"All candidates who passed the first test are to be placed on a train as soon as possible.

In three days, the second test will begin.

And this time... I’ll be there in person."

He held in his hand the files he had just printed. On the covers were the

faces of three candidates: Kritos, Sirius, and Iris along with eight others.

One thing was certain:

The second test would be known as the most difficult in history.