His Majesty the King's Third Student (Part 2)

After confirming that His Majesty the King was conscious, the Prime Minister asked a question that had been on his mind for a long time.

"Your Majesty, since you intend to eliminate a group of members, why didn't you eliminate those with low scores when you tested their magic power?"

After stretching his stiff neck, His Majesty the King looked ahead and said, "Prime Minister, you don't often deal with mages, so you may not know that while some mages may not be strong in attack, their magic is indispensable in certain areas. Therefore, after the first round of testing, I simply ordered someone to record everyone's scores and did not eliminate anyone."

"Oh! I see!"

Just as the Prime Minister's doubts were dispelled, a loud gong sounded from below the platform, followed by the referee's high-pitched voice echoing across the arena.

"Test time is up. Everyone stop writing, stand still, and wait for the staff to collect the test papers!"

Upon hearing the referee's words, the participants all put down their pens and stood obediently behind the desks. Well... anyone who's taken a large-scale exam knows that although the exam rules are read aloud after each session, there are always some people still frantically writing when the papers are collected. People on Earth do this, and of course, there are such people in Ishgar too.

However, unlike the kind proctors on Earth, the Heavenly King Guard under Old Suo's command will not show any mercy. Instead, they will follow the rules set by His Majesty the King to the letter. So, some guys who break the rules... are in big trouble!

"You have been disqualified from the competition. Put down your pen immediately, or you will be permanently disqualified from participating!"

As the cold pronouncements rang out, the contestants who had not stopped writing on time were led away from the arena by the Black-clothed person.

In an instant, the once dense crowd thinned out considerably.

After the clearing process was completed, the exam papers were sent to the examiners, followed by a tense waiting period.

Twenty minutes later, a member of the Heavenly King Guard handed a parchment scroll to the referee, and then the exciting moment arrived.

"After the examiners have graded and tallied the results, the scores for the last round are in. First place: Herder Cross, 100 points. Second place: Sinstaton Creel, 93 points. Third place: Pinkel Davidch, 90 points."

"Currently, the overall rankings are as follows: First place, Sinstaton Cliere, 953 points. Second place, Wins Gucci, 920 points. Third place, Herder Cross, 900 points."

Upon hearing the referee's announcement, the four contestants in the audience were all deeply moved.

"Excellent! Now all we need to do is gradually close the gap like this!" (Herder)

"Hehe! It's a bit challenging, but still within expectations. I'll gladly accept first place! (Synstatton)"

"Damn it! They've caught up with me. Looks like I'll have to show my true skills!" (Wines)

"Still haven't caught up? (Pinkel)"

Just as everyone's emotions were beginning to calm down, the referee's voice rang out again.

"Now we begin the third item: the ability test!"

"Next, each of you will fight a member of the Heavenly King Guard. Those who can last one minute against their opponent will be considered qualified, those who can last two minutes will be considered good, and those who can last three minutes will be considered excellent. Those who are qualified will receive 20 points, those who are good will receive 40 points, and those who are excellent will receive 60 points."

"Did you all understand?"

Just before everyone was about to answer, two slightly immature voices rang out.

"Referee, what if we defeat the members of the Heavenly King Guard? (Herder)"

"What if I defeat the members of the Heavenly King Guard? (Synstaton)"

In an instant, everyone's eyes, both on and off the stage, focused on the source of the two voices.

"If you can defeat your opponent, you will receive one hundred points, and regardless of your subsequent performance, you can enter the Royal Magic Academy or the Erus Military Academy to study. (Old Suo)"

Upon hearing the voices from the judges' panel, countless eyes in the audience lit up.

"Do you still have any questions?" (Old Suo)

Upon hearing His Majesty the King's question, the two troublemakers, their expressions excited, shouted loudly, "Your Majesty, no more!"

After nodding knowingly, Old Suo called out in a serious tone, "Referee!"

"Ah?"

Upon seeing His Majesty the King looking at him, the referee, regaining his composure, immediately began to perform his duties.

"I hereby declare that the strength test shall now begin!"

At the referee's command, the participants and members of the Heavenly King Guard took their positions.

"Hey guys, let's show them our strength and teach these bastards a lesson, so they don't look down on us!"

"Captain, don't worry. Just for those two kids, the brothers will definitely teach them a lesson!"

"Hey, hey, hey... Repairing is fine, but don't go overboard!"

"Captain, don't worry, the brothers know what they're doing!"

"That's good, let's go!"

"Clear!"

In the time that followed, these confident teenagers finally witnessed the terror of the Heavenly King Guard, and the visions they had previously made in their hearts vanished in the wind along with the sound of their elimination.

When the one-minute time limit is up, only about one-tenth of the people on the stage remain. Only a handful, perhaps a few dozen, will survive two minutes and advance to the excellent rank. As for the stage where fighting continues after three minutes, there are only two remaining.

"Haha! These two lads actually made it through! (Old Suo)"

Hearing the king's sigh, the prime minister asked in a low voice, "Your Majesty, do you think the two of them can defeat their opponent?"

"That purple-haired kid will definitely be able to defeat his opponent, but that blond kid's chances are slim!"

"Your Majesty, do you mean that the purple-haired boy has more potential?" (Prime Minister)

"That's not necessarily true!"

"But you just now... (Prime Minister)"

"Prime Minister, take a close look at their opponents, and you'll understand what I mean!"

Upon hearing His Majesty the King's words, the Prime Minister took the binoculars handed to him by the person beside him and carefully observed the two members of the Heavenly King Guard on the arena.

The moment the two men's collar insignia came into view, the Prime Minister instantly understood that His Majesty the King had given a Contradiction explanation.

"That blond boy has terrible luck; he actually ran into a captain-level figure (the Prime Minister)!"

"Heh! Prime Minister, you're mistaken. On the battlefield, the enemy won't spare you just because you're weaker. Therefore, knowing how to defeat a stronger enemy is a skill every soldier must master, and you can't rely on luck. (Old Suo)"

"Your Majesty's teachings will be remembered by our humble servant!" (All judges)

Just as everyone finished speaking, the purple-haired boy finally ended the match as Old Suo had predicted, and the blond boy unsurprisingly found himself in a fierce battle.

"Wow, that's amazing! They actually defeated the members of the Heavenly King Guard!"

"That's awesome!"

"Tsk tsk! Comparison is the thief of joy!"

"Who can argue with that!"

"Damn! I need to hurry up and suck up to the big shot. Maybe I can hitch a ride and sneak into the Royal Magic Academy!"

"Tch! With your looks, even if you managed to get into the Royal Magic Academy, you'd probably be rejected by the academy's entrance exam!"

"You!"

"Hey, do you guys think the other one is the real big shot, or just an imposter?"

"He must be a real big shot, otherwise how could he have lasted this long!"

"Hmm! You're right, buddy. I just don't know if this big shot can succeed in the challenge!"

I doubt it!

"That's not necessarily true!"

Amidst the murmurs of the crowd and the disdainful gaze of the purple-haired boy, the blond-haired boy finally got his chance to launch a counterattack.

"Click"

A muffled thud came from the ground, and then the captain's foot sank into the ring.

Just then, the blond boy struck a strange pose and shouted, "Sandform - Rock Wall - Four-Sided Castle!"

"Boom!"

The next second, four Rock Wall suddenly appeared on the ground, enveloping the captain.

"Sand-shaped Iron Cannon"

"Buzz"

Several clumps of yellowish particles appeared Rock Wall, and then four giant rock cannons appeared on top of the four Rock Wall.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

With four cannon shots, four yellow rock spheres, each the size of an adult's head, shot towards the bottom of the well at extremely high speed.

After shooting down the captain who was trying to escape Iwai, the blond boy pressed his hands against the Rock Wall and shouted, "Sand-Shaped Rock Wall, Four-Sided Castle, Iron Maiden!"

As soon as the blond boy finished speaking, long rock spikes appeared on the surface of the Rock Wall, fixing the captain's hands and feet to the wall and rendering him unable to move.

"Big brother, are you going to continue fighting?"

Hearing the voice from above, the captain shook his head with a wry smile and then shouted, "Heh! No need, I admit defeat!"

Seeing the blond boy looking at him, the referee on the field finally remembered to announce the result of the match.

"Since the members of the Heavenly King Guard have conceded defeat, the winner of this battle is... Herder Cross!"

"Your Majesty, the move that young man just used wasn't... not the one from back then...(Prime Minister)"

Upon hearing the Prime Minister's words, the stunned His Majesty the King nodded mechanically, then said incredulously, "That's right, that's indeed the trick I used back then!"

After Old Suo finished speaking, the Prime Minister quickly scanned the appearance of the boy below the stage, then compared him with the silver-haired boy in front of him. Then, with a strange look, he kept shifting his gaze between the king, the boy, and the palace.

"Alas! Your Majesty, I can't help you this time. I hope you're lucky enough to live to see tomorrow's sun... um, tonight's moon!" (The Prime Minister's inner thoughts)