Mage Certification Examination

The Imperial Royal Magic Academy had been established at Dianne Castle, the estate sponsored by the young Duke William von Iman. It also received funding from His Majesty the Emperor and the Imperial Council, and was located in the capital's Queen's District.

Today, its open-air courtyard had been converted into a special examination venue for the official mage certification exam.

The Mage Guild, which spanned the entire Floren Continent, classified mages into nine ranks. Passing this examination meant being registered by the Empire as an official Spellcaster while also being recognized by the guild as a first-rank mage accepted throughout the continent.

The assessment required apprentices to choose the three spells they had mastered best from the list of beginner spells. Every beginner spell on the list had established testing methods and quantitative criteria. Each spell could be cast twice, and all criteria had to be met to pass.

Completing three spells according to the quantitative standards was neither easy nor especially difficult for apprentices in the Empire's four-year program. Aside from teaching common theory classes, academy instructors each took on around ten apprentices and taught them practical work. The apprentices also assisted their teachers with magical experiments and instruction. Under normal circumstances, apprentices could master five to eight beginner spells over four years.

What left Rorschach speechless was that the original owner of this body had been a complete Fireball fanatic. Aside from being proficient in magical theory, that guy had devoted most of his energy to researching Fireball. Only in order to pass the assessment had he hastily learned the relatively simple Water Creation and Basic Decomposition. While everyone else was more troubled by the Spellcaster Theory exam, with its many subjects, numerous test points, and difficult questions, the original Rorschach had been the opposite.

"This guy was definitely planning to keep his head down and do something huge. My transmigration has truly contributed to building a harmonious campus!"

After sighing over it for a while, Rorschach headed toward the testing station for his own subjects. The silver Thin Slice in his hand had a Magic Circuit engraved upon it, and it would emit blue light when he arrived at a registered test item.

First came Basic Decomposition. Quite a few apprentices had chosen it, since Decomposition Technique could be said to be the simplest spell.

Neatly stacked beside the examiner were cube-shaped stone blocks of roughly the same size, each about as large as a fist. Rorschach could tell they were all limestone.

"You may begin when you are ready. Decompose this stone block without touching it. If you mistakenly decompose any other object, the casting will be considered a failure."

A Magic Aura flashed over the stone, and the block swiftly crumbled apart.

The examiner first checked whether the tabletop had suffered any magical damage. Once he confirmed it had not, he lightly raised his right hand.

Rorschach watched as the examiner used Mage Hand to transfer the stone fragments onto a coarse metal sieve. After shaking it for a moment, he weighed them together with the sieve.

The chief examiner carefully read the scale and announced on the spot, "The mass of fragments larger than three centimeters is less than one-third of the original stone block's mass."

After the assistant recorded the result, he gestured to Rorschach. "Congratulations. You have passed this item."

"Thank you."

Next was Fireball.

Not many people had registered for Fireball, but its sound and light effects were certainly impressive. As he passed through the soundproofing magic array and entered this testing station, the booming blast from the previous candidate assaulted Rorschach's eardrums.

Boom!

The examiner directed the apprentice to fire a Fireball at a huge block of black iron. Rails had been installed beneath the enormous iron block.

Once the bombardment ended, the assistant ignored the heat wave and quickly pulled out a color chart to compare it with the center of the iron block's impact mark. He then read the measurement of how far the block had moved along the rails.

"Temperature, level fourteen. Momentum, level twelve!"

Both metrics had a maximum level of fifteen. The chief examiner was startled. "Your Fireball is very good, very good." Then he added, "With these results, the Imperial Army would welcome you as a special operations mage."

Using the red-hot metal to measure the Fireball's temperature and the iron block's displacement to measure its kinetic energy really was a decent way to assess its power. Damn, why did this exam feel so scientific?

"Thank you." Without taking even a moment to feel proud of the Fireball examiner's praise, Rorschach moved on to his next item: Water Creation!

This was the moment to test his newly created spell, the decisive round that would determine his fate.

The test for Water Creation required candidates to condense a water sphere of a specified volume within a set time. In terms Rorschach understood, it required Water Creation to achieve a certain flow rate.

The measuring apparatus was a brass balance as tall as half a person. On one side were weights, and on the other was a large glass measuring cup that appeared to hold about a liter.

The chief examiner for this item was Rorschach's instructor, Lecturer Caroline, who also taught their course, "Space, Time, and Astronomy." Caroline seemed to be somewhere between a young woman and a mature lady. A braided lock of hair draped over one side of her chest, giving her both youthful vitality and mature charm. The original Rorschach had liked her very much.

"Signal me when you are ready. I'll begin timing after I count to three."

"Alright, please begin."

"Three, two, one!" The examiner pressed her exquisite pocket watch and began counting the seconds.

Caroline paid particular attention to this student. She had guided Rorschach in practical spellcasting and knew that he was not skilled at Water Creation. She could not help feeling concerned, but when she saw how calm Rorschach looked, she finally relaxed.

Then Caroline went from relieved to astonished.

Rorschach held his palm upside down over the measuring cup, abandoning the water sphere form of Water Creation and beginning to spray fiercely. Under Lecturer Caroline's incredulous gaze, the cup filled, and the balance swiftly tipped toward it before leveling out.

Ding. It turned out the balance produced a crisp chime when the measuring cup and weights balanced.

"The water is clear and transparent. Time used: 3.35 seconds. Assessment passed!" Caroline stared for quite some time longer. "Rorschach, I was worried you were a blockhead who could only memorize books and cast Fireball. Congratulations, Mage Rorschach."

"Maybe I was a blockhead before, but not anymore. Thank you, Lecturer Caroline." Rorschach bowed and left the courtyard.

Caroline watched his departing back thoughtfully.

"How was it?"

"Passed on the first try."

"Passed."

"Wonderful, absolutely wonderful!" Bart was still highly excited after they met up—whenever he went through an exam or cast a spell, he entered this state, like a rooster that had just begun to crow.

"To celebrate three outstanding young men of the Empire formally embarking upon the path of magic, I have the honor of inviting two among them to dine at Moonlight Lake Restaurant. What say you, gentlemen?"

Bart jokingly imitated an aristocratic tone. One hand rested over his chest while the other extended toward Rorschach and Richard, and he bowed deeply.

"Sure."

Unexpectedly, Richard seriously took Bart's hand in return. "Richard gladly accepts your invitation."

Bart burst out laughing. "Don't do that—you're making me feel awkward instead!"

A vast woodland surrounded Dianburg, wrapping around the academy. Beyond the sparse trees lay the bustling streets of the Queen's District.

Moonlight Lake Restaurant was a popular spot frequently visited by instructors and apprentices alike, practically the academy's unofficial cafeteria. But it was far too expensive for Rorschach, and he could only afford to eat there when following Bart and Richard.

The bright dining hall was filled with the music of elven harps. The floor was inlaid and polished from pale blue and deep blue stone, while the ceiling above the hall displayed a starry sky. Together with the soft illumination of Magic Lamps, it perfectly lived up to the name Moonlight Lake. Looking around, Rorschach spotted quite a few apprentices wearing the academy crest.