Chapter 101: Chapter 101: Exam Day: Part TwoThe Grand Hall was packed.

    More than a thousand students filled the space, arranged by year and class, with the members of Class S standing at the front. Despite the crowd, the room was silent. No one spoke. No one moved unnecessarily. The atmosphere was heavy—not with fear, but anticipation.

    Noel stood among them, arms crossed, Revenant Fang sheathed at his side. The weight of the blade was familiar now. Comfortable. Noir had been left behind, sleeping soundly in the warmth of the dorm room. Noel had made sure to feed him before leaving.

    He scanned the hall briefly—so many faces, so many auras. First years, second years, third years. Normally separated, but not today. The practical exam didn’t care about your year. Only your performance.

    At the far end of the hall, a circular platform rose from the floor. A figure stepped onto it.

    Nicolas Von Aldros.

    Even among so many, his presence stood out like a flame in darkness. He looked no older than forty, with short silver hair and sharp features, dressed in deep violet robes marked with arcane embroidery. But everyone knew the truth—he was over eighty. One of the strongest mages in all of Valor.

    When he spoke, his voice carried across the entire hall without effort. S~ea??h the n?vel_Fire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

    "Welcome, future legends and current rising stars."

    Noel straightened unconsciously. The voice had power behind it—calm, measured, but undeniable.

    "Today you face the practical exam. This year, there will be only one test. A simple one."

    He raised a hand, palm open.

    "You will each be transported into my illusion, a personal domain constructed for this trial. There, you will fight monsters. Do not worry—they are illusions. You will take no real harm. However, should you suffer a mortal blow... the test ends immediately."

    A quiet shift rippled through the crowd.

    "You only get one chance. So do what you can. Show us how you fight when it matters. The monsters will come in waves, and each wave will be stronger than the last."

    A pause.

    "Good luck."

    With a snap of his fingers, magic surged through the room. A pulse of energy expanded outward, and one by one, students began to vanish in flashes of silver light.

    Noel felt the pull a second later.

    ’Here we go.’

    The world folded, and everything turned white.

    Far above the Grand Hall, in a sealed chamber lined with crystal walls, a massive circular platform stretched across the room. Hundreds of glowing crystals hovered in the air—each one assigned to a student, each showing a live image of their illusion chamber.

    More than thirty professors moved among the rows. Some stood silently, arms behind their backs. Others took notes or murmured to each other.

    At the far left stood Instructor Dauk, arms crossed, brow furrowed. His eyes shifted between different crystals, occasionally stopping to mutter something to the assistant next to him.

    "Third-year. Strong form. No control," he grunted. "Next."

    Beside him stood Professor Daemar, his violet eyes locked onto one particular crystal.

    Noel Thorne.

    The image displayed a rocky terrain with scattered cliffs and uneven ground. Noel had just materialized in the center, sword at his waist, feet firm, scanning the environment with cold efficiency.

    "Still focused as always," Daemar said quietly.

    Dauk glanced over. "That one yours?"

    Daemar didn’t look away. "He asked for help with theory. Studied harder than anyone I’ve seen in years. Not the most conventional student, but... an interesting one."

    "Hmph. We’ll see if that carries over to combat."

    Elsewhere in the room, conversations overlapped as professors commented on their best students.

    "She just used a triple cast barrier. Impressive."

    "That boy from Class B—he’s already down."

    "Look at that second-year. Five waves in and he hasn’t even used a spell."

    Each crystal flickered, glowing brighter as the illusion trials began.

    Wave One had started.

    The air was still.

    Noel stood alone in the center of a rocky arena, surrounded by jagged cliffs and shallow pits. The sky above was grey, motionless—a painted dome that gave no warmth, no sound, no direction. The ground under his boots felt solid, real. It was easy to forget this was all an illusion.

    A blue glyph shimmered in the air before him:

    [Wave 1]

    He reached down and unfastened Revenant Fang from his belt. The blade slid free with a low hum, its edge trailing faint tendrils of black mist that curled and vanished into the air. He held it loosely in one hand, eyes forward.

    A rumble echoed across the field. From the shadows between rocks, three creatures emerged—low-slung beasts, their bodies coated in dark fur, with gleaming yellow eyes and jagged claws.

    Noel exhaled once.

    He stepped forward calmly and raised his free hand.

    "Fire Arc."

    A curved line of red flame exploded from his palm, sweeping forward in a crescent. The spell split the air with a sharp hiss and carved through all three beasts before they could react. Their bodies shimmered, cracked, and dissolved into motes of light.

    [Wave 2]

    Noel turned his neck slightly, cracking it.

    Two larger creatures appeared—twice the height of a man. Their skin was gray and leathery, like stretched stone. Clubs of twisted bone hung from their arms.

    He raised his hand again.

    "Glacialis."

    A stream of freezing wind burst from his fingertips, coating the first ogre in a thick layer of frost. The creature roared and swung wildly—but Noel had already stepped around it.

    "Surge."

    A flicker of orange light gathered in his palm, then ignited. He slapped the second ogre’s chest. Flames erupted outward in a blast of internal combustion, searing it from within. The illusion staggered, cracked, and collapsed.

    The frozen one tried to turn, but Noel cleaved through it with Revenant Fang before it could move.

    Two more bodies faded into light.

    He stood alone again, sword dripping with steam.

    [Wave 3]

    ’Keep it clean Noel, keep it clean.’

    Noel readied himself.

    The terrain was beginning to change.

    With each wave, the illusion adjusted slightly. More jagged rocks. Less open space. Subtle elevation shifts that made footing trickier. Noel had reached Wave 6, and his breath was starting to deepen. Not from exhaustion—yet—but from the increasing tempo.

    This time, the enemies came in numbers.

    Dozens of skittering insectoid beasts emerged from the cracks in the stone. Their chitin gleamed like obsidian, limbs twitching with unnatural speed. Eyes glowed faintly green.

    Noel gritted his teeth.

    He backed up a few steps, raised his hand.

    "Flare Trap."

    A glyph of red light burned into the ground beneath him, then vanished. When the first wave of insects lunged, the glyph exploded upward in a burst of searing flame, incinerating the first group instantly.

    "Frost Wall."

    A solid sheet of ice erupted in front of him, cutting off the left flank. Several creatures slammed into it and shattered on impact.

    Noel spun on his heel.

    "Ice Spike."

    Spikes of jagged ice burst from the ground beneath the rear group, impaling four of them mid-lunge.

    Only a handful remained.

    He raised his sword and slashed downward—"Fireball." The glowing sphere exploded mid-air, engulfing the last group.

    [Wave 7]

    Noel exhaled slowly.

    Then they came—heavier this time. Beasts with armored hides, slow and deliberate, each the size of a warhorse. Their skin was pale gray, their muscles dense, their eyes red.

    He lunged forward before they could close in. One swing. The blade bounced off the armor.

    ’No good.’

    He jumped back, gathering mana in his palm.

    "Ignition Surge."

    He pressed his hand to the side of the creature’s neck. The spell pulsed. Steam hissed from the cracks in its hide. It dropped.

    "Frost Wall."

    He redirected the second beast with a wall of ice, then swept around it, driving Revenant Fang into its exposed side.

    [Wave 8]

    They were coming faster now.

    Noel wiped a trickle of sweat from his brow.

    ’Still manageable.’

    [Wave 9]

    The glyph flickered again. This time, only one figure appeared.

    It was tall—humanoid—but wrong. Its limbs were too long, its skin mottled gray, and its face was covered by a bone-white mask with no mouth, only a single vertical slit for an eye. It moved with a twitching elegance, like a puppet that had learned to dance.

    Noel didn’t cast a spell.

    Instead, he adjusted his grip on Revenant Fang.

    The sword responded with a faint hum, its dark mist curling tighter around the blade.

    ’1v1s now?’

    The creature dashed forward, unnaturally fast. Noel sidestepped, brought the blade down, but the enemy twisted at the last second. A claw swept toward his ribs.

    He parried it cleanly.

    His feet skidded slightly on the stone as he redirected the momentum.

    Revenant Fang cut low, slicing through the creature’s thigh. The monster didn’t scream—it simply moved again, spinning, backhanding with brutal force.

    Noel ducked. The wind from the blow ruffled his hair.

    He countered with a rising slash.

    The blade carved diagonally through its torso.

    A pulse of black mist exploded from the cut as the creature cracked and crumbled into light.

    He lowered the sword.

    ’That one could’ve killed someone. Even in a real fight.’

    [Wave 10]

    The air shifted.

    No glyph this time. Just a sound.

    From the mist ahead, something stepped into view—a beast made entirely of jagged black rock, molten light glowing from within its joints. A golem. Its arms ended in blunt, stone hammers. Its body radiated heat.

    Noel took one step back.

    ’Revenant Fang only cuts what it can reach. And I doubt fire spells will help against living lava.’

    The golem roared. The ground beneath its feet cracked as it charged.

    Noel ran to meet it.

    He used the terrain—bounced off a rock, slid under the first swing, slashed upward along its leg. Sparks flew. The blade bit in but didn’t go deep.

    The golem turned and slammed the ground where he’d landed.

    He was gone before it hit, already climbing its arm like a ladder. He reached the shoulder. Raised the blade.

    And struck with both hands.

    The black mist erupted in a downward arc, slicing into the core embedded in the center of its back. The golem staggered.

    Then shattered.

    Noel dropped back to the ground, landing hard on one knee.

    He stood slowly. Breathing steady.

    A new glyph appeared ahead, glowing faintly.

    [Wave 11]

    He raised his sword again.

    ’Still not done.’

    And stepped forward.