Lanchi's Logic Was Crystal Clear

Sage Institute Main Building, top-floor Conference Room.

As the third round of examinations proceeded today, the teachers of the Sage Institute once again began their meeting, just as they had before.

Apart from the Magic Screens connected across the center, the surrounding walls featured a simple white color scheme that blended perfectly with the smooth marble floor.

At the moment, they were watching the first examination in real time, with Lanchi and Hughberlian as the candidates and Examiner Ferrat as the examiner.

"Their luck..."

"Those two candidates aren't actually planning to challenge Ferrat, are they?"

The teachers in the Conference Room either remained silent or occasionally exchanged a few words of discussion.

The subject of the examination was Infinite Phantom Canyon.

If they could not escape for thirty minutes, then their only option was to face the examiner head-on.

Sometimes, confident and powerful students would indeed choose to intercept the examiner directly.

However.

A fully assembled team of Tier 3 candidates might still have some hope of holding back an examiner restricted to Tier 4 for a while.

But every teacher seated in the Conference Room understood.

The examiner for this test—Ferrat Shawenson—was exceptionally strong.

He was a cautious, merciless positional mage.

Even without Magic Cards, Ferrat had mastered numerous highly destructive spells and could easily defeat officers of the Kingdom's regular forces at the same tier.

Even setting aside their tiers, Ferrat's years of battle experience alone were enough to crush two new students.

What was more, he could now display the combat power of a full Tier 5.

The two sides were simply not in the same league.

"..."

Vice Principal Ron covered his chin and silently watched the projection on the Magic Screen at the center of the Conference Room.

He knew that this Entrance Examination involved the interests of several figures in the upper levels of the Kingdom.

There was also an invisible force influencing the examination and trying to prevent Hughberlian from enrolling.

After those people had increased the difficulty within the rules by using Lanchi, the only unstable factor for them was Lanchi's own "unorthodox ingenuity."

But the Plain Terrain had sealed off every opportunity for trickery.

Ron could not say whether this was accidental or inevitable.

He could only say that from the moment these two new students encountered each other, their luck had already been exceptionally terrible.

The Shadow World was no different.

Those who were not favored by luck would find it difficult to survive no matter what abilities they possessed.

On the boundless grassland.

Dewdrops clung to the tips of the grass, crystal clear like individual gems.

As a fierce wind swept in from high above, the dewdrops trembled and scattered like shattered transparent jewels.

A Tier 5 examiner could even fly using Tier 5 wind magic.

Lanchi and Hughberlian could already see a shadow like a black dot in the distant sky, drawing closer and closer to them.

"Do you have a strategy?"

Hughberlian asked.

Lanchi's calm state of mind puzzled her.

Yet she felt that under these circumstances, no matter how much wisdom Lanchi possessed, he had no way to use it.

"No. What strategy can you have on a plain?"

Lanchi shook his head. The examiner had thrown all shame to the wind. What else could he do?

Either they could compete in a cross-country race across the plain, or grit their teeth and fight.

"Do you know anything about the examiner?"

Lanchi turned to the duchess beside him and asked.

When he had heard Theresa, who had received them at the examination site, mention the name "Ferrat Shawenson," Hughberlian had seemed to recognize it.

After all, she was from the royal capital and was very familiar with the tangled noble networks and influential figures there.

Hughberlian nodded.

"Viscount Ferrat Shawenson is a bully who picks on the weak, a despicable yet cautious wretch, and a hound of the faction opposed to the Aransal Family. Ever since my father disappeared, they haven't stopped hounding me..."

Hughberlian clenched her silver teeth as she told Lanchi what she knew about Ferrat. It seemed she had long harbored an endless grudge against him.

"Although he has mastered many spells himself, he relies more on powerful magic output and fights through combinations of Magic Cards..."

"It's obvious he can't afford to lose."

Lanchi nodded. He gazed into the distance at Examiner Ferrat flying rapidly toward them and muttered.

During their brief exchange.

Ferrat had already drawn visibly much closer to the landmark where they stood.

A mage flying with wind magic was far faster than anyone running.

"Do you have a way to hold him off for a short time while protecting yourself?"

Lanchi asked, as if he wanted to confirm one last thing.

Life-saving Magic Cards were rare, but Hughberlian, being a duchess, might very well possess some.

"...Protecting myself won't be a problem. I'm not sure how long I can hold him off."

Hughberlian hesitated slightly before admitting it to Lanchi.

"Then trust me."

"Our compatibility is terrible. Your healing magic won't do much for me."

"Don't worry. After today, you'll find that I'm the best support you've ever seen, regardless of compatibility."

Like the final moments of preparation before the real examination began.

Their casual conversation had lasted only a few seconds.

Ferrat had already stopped in the sky some distance away from them.

He abruptly halted after streaking across the sky like a meteor, no longer approaching.

This distance was already sufficient for him to blast the two of them to death with high-powered spells.

Examiner Ferrat looked down from midair.

He remained silent for a long while.

It seemed he was observing the two of them.

They were far more relaxed than he had imagined.

"You can withdraw from the examination now."

Ferrat slightly raised his hand and pointed at Lanchi, who stood behind Hughberlian.

His voice was low and carried the unquestionable tone of an order.

However, in the next second.

He saw only this.

Hughberlian's eyes filled with vigilance as she stepped even more decisively in front of Lanchi, like a vanguard.

From this angle, it would be even harder for him to kill Lanchi instantly.

"Why should I withdraw?"

Lanchi looked up at him in confusion and asked.

"..."

Ferrat lightly tapped the air with his index finger, feeling that this irrelevant outsider named Lanchi was an eyesore.

He had originally intended to convey certain instructions from the higher-ups to Hughberlian alone.

But it seemed that before he could do so, there was still an irritating little black rat in the way.

"Did she promise you money, status, or something else?"

Ferrat's words carried a hint of mockery as he asked condescendingly.

In his eyes, any reward this duchess, whose future was uncertain, could offer would be nothing more than an empty promise.

Unless.

This foolish boy had become captivated by the duchess's beauty and was willing to help her.

But once he truly learned what kind of person this duchess was, he would probably be frightened out of his wits.

"Heh heh."

Lanchi smiled when he heard that, as if he had been asked a ridiculous question.

He took a deep breath. His gaze grew slightly stern as he stared at Ferrat and asked:

"According to the examination rules, she's my teammate. Article 13 explicitly states that I need to fight alongside my teammate. As the examiner, didn't you even read the rules before coming here?"

His tone sounded like that of an inspecting superior criticizing a subordinate.

Ferrat, hovering in the air, was stunned.