The Half of the Sky Hidden from View

After nearly a week of travel, Rienta and her companions arrived in the Kull Region.

Standing on the mountain, the outline of the Magic City of Äußerst can already be seen.

On the way down the mountain.

Fern was about to arrive at her destination, seemed quite happy and asked:

"After Lady Frieren obtains her First-Class Mage qualification here, we can continue our journey to the Northern Plateau, right?"

Frieren replied calmly, "I don't think I'm the only one who has to take the First-Class Mage qualification exam."

After saying that, he looked at the two people behind him and said in a serious tone, "Anyway, we won't need it for long, so why don't Rienta and Fern go take the test?"

"Huh? Us?" Rienta gave a wry smile and said:

"Frieren, First-Class Mage extremely rare. How could we possibly possibly pass the exam?"

"However, Fern does have a chance."

Frieren pursed her lips but remained silent.

Although I don't know exactly what level First-Class Mage is at now.

However, as the most elite group of humans, they are unlikely to lose to those who came before them.

After all, human progress is happening very quickly.

Moreover, based on her experience, Rienta and Fern were perfectly capable of handling things on their own, even during wartime.

Fern glared at Rienta, who was trying to slack off, and said, "Lady Frieren doesn't seem to be very interested in taking the First-Class Mage exam."

Frieren: "..."

Seeing that Frieren had fallen silent, Stark asked with some curiosity:

"Speaking of which, why is it necessary to First-Class Mage accompany you when entering the Northern Plateau?"

Relieved, Frieren quickly explained, "The Northern Plateau have always been teeming with cunning monsters, weak in form but capable of using extremely troublesome magic, such as Ainzam."

"Without monks and skilled mages, it would have been impossible to traverse this place."

"But now, just getting through requires a mage of this strength, so the situation on the Northern Plateau is probably already quite dire."

Rienta three companions were lucky; they encountered a carriage bound for Äußerst as soon as they descended the mountain.

After negotiating with the driver (and paying him), the four boarded the carriage.

Rienta leaned lazily against the carriage and said, "It's good that we got a carriage, otherwise we probably would have had to walk for a long time."

During that week, the four of them traveled almost non-stop, and Fern even caught a cold along the way.

But the cold only survived until the moment Rienta discovered it.

"Yes," Frieren agreed with Rienta's statement, and then said, "Once we arrive, let's find out some information about the exam."

"As Fern said, the exam also includes a practical component, so we need to prepare strategies in advance."

Fern was somewhat helpless, not understanding why Frieren didn't take the exam, but instead sent her and Rienta.

Although Rienta had already agreed, she still wanted to know the reason.

"With Lady Frieren's magical powers, she could easily handle any kind of exam, right?"

Even with her magic suppressed, she possesses the skill of a seasoned veteran mage.

Frieren, who was quite pleased with the first part of the sentence, changed her mind after hearing Fern's next words.

He turned his head away and said in a muffled voice, "Don't call me the old magician."

"She's unhappy," Stark said, looking at Fern sitting opposite him. "The old mage went a bit too far."

Fern looked at Frieren beside him and said, "Private Marseille, Lady Frieren."

Frieren glanced at Stark indifferently and said, "I haven't forgotten Stark's 'old hag' either."

Perhaps because she'd been spending so much time with Fern, Frieren's angry expressions were starting to resemble Big Puffshroom.

Stark looked helpless under Rienta's mischievous gaze.

When they had just defeated the Red Mirror Dragon, Rienta had reminded herself, but who would have thought that Frieren would still remember it now?

"That was so long ago..."

He wasn't really angry from the start; it was just that Stark interrupted him.

Fern apologized, and Frieren then leaned against Fern's lap.

"Never mind, time to sleep."

"Call me when we get to Äußerst."

Lying on Fern's lap, Frieren suddenly realized that she could only see half of the sky.

It hasn't been that long, yet Fern has grown so much.

What an injustice!

Frieren watched quietly for a while, her sleepiness completely vanishing at that moment.

He rolled over and left Fern's lap pillow, leaning against the edge of the carriage, gazing into the distance with a touch of melancholy.

"Never mind."

Rienta asked, somewhat puzzled, "What's wrong?"

"Only half the sky is visible now."

Frieren's voice carried an indescribable emotion.

"Huh?" Stark didn't understand what he meant.

"?!"

Rienta understood, but could only pretend not to, and turned to look at the scenery outside the car.

Now wide awake, Frieren decided to boost the confidence of her two disciples.

"Fern, Rienta."

"Magic power is not the only factor that determines a mage's strength."

"Technique, experience, control, effort, perseverance, and a unique magic—these are all indispensable."

Upon hearing the unique magic, Fern instinctively glanced at Rienta had her back turned.

It was only when she dealt with the Chaos Flower that she truly understood the gap between herself and Rienta.

He independently researched new magic, demonstrating the use of Goddess Magic without Sacred Scripture, and together with Frieren, he overcame the curse to resolve the Chaos Flower.

He could only stay in the village and wait for them to return.

Stark even said that if both sides went all out, Rienta would have a very high chance of winning, even in close combat.

While in the Mount Schvia, Kraft secretly approached her and asked her to persuade Rienta not to take the wrong path of becoming a warrior.

At the time, I didn't understand why, until Frieren explained Rienta's talent.

God knows how much effort she put in during this period to avoid falling too far behind.

"It feels like there's some warrior element mixed in," Stark, somewhat surprised.

Frieren had no idea what Fern was thinking at that moment.

He continued, "Finally, it's about talent."

Upon hearing this, Rienta turned around and looked at Fern.

Rienta felt that Frieren was referring to Fern's control over magic and the speed at which he cast spells.

Fern was even more convinced that Frieren was referring to Rienta.

Frieren's voice continued to come through.

"I have only lost to 11 mages with lower magic power than myself in my life."

"Among them are four demons."

Fern stopped looking at Rienta and asked, "Is Qual one of them?"

Frieren nodded and continued, "One of them is an elf like me, and the remaining six are all humans."

Rienta was somewhat surprised that Frieren remembered so clearly how many times she had lost.

Something seems off.

Rienta felt like she was overlooking something.

At the same time.

People preparing to take the First-Class Mage Exam are gradually making their way to Äußerst.