Please Don't Talk Tough Before You Know Your Opponent's Strength

The final round of Saint Delro Academy's entrance examination proceeded as scheduled.

The sky was overcast, thick with dark clouds, as though lightning, thunder, and torrential rain could strike at any moment.

But the dreadful weather did nothing to dampen the enthusiasm of Larven's people for watching the examination.

The academy square was packed solid with people.

This day also happened to be Saint Delro Academy's annual Open Day. Even those who had not come to watch the examination wanted to stroll around the academy, especially parents with children only three to five years old.

They wanted to experience the atmosphere of a top-tier spellcaster academy. Perhaps their own children might possess a talent for magic as well.

Likewise, this was a day Saint Delro's students both hated and loved.

They hated it because the academy was crowded everywhere, leaving not a single quiet spot.

They loved it because they could watch the new students get humiliated. Who could refuse to eat pastries, drink juice and beer, and watch their future juniors get beaten up by the instructors?

The auditorium, stadium, square—every place in the academy that could fit a large audience was completely full.

Because more than five hundred candidates were taking part in the final round, divided into nearly one hundred and eighty groups, five examination sites had been set up to run simultaneously and ensure the test could be completed in a single day.

The most popular candidates were assigned to the square, which had the largest audience capacity.

That was right. As a highly anticipated examination, Saint Delro's entrance test naturally attracted quite a few students who already had some fame, with some even having their own fan clubs.

This was thanks to the current phenomenon of academic idol worship.

Powerful spellcasters were famous far beyond the magic and academic circles. They were often admired by the general public, carrying something of the appeal of entertainment idols.

But unlike entertainment idols, academic idols were followed entirely by people who cared about strength. Those with achievements were simply stronger than those without; there was no nonsense like, "My big brother has no talent, but he's still amazing."

And Saint Delro Academy was the breeding ground for countless future archmages.

Coming here to support candidates was basically raising idols from the ground up.

Under the influence of this trend, volunteers were even handing out introductory booklets around campus.

They contained information on famous candidates, introductions to popular matchups, and all sorts of amusing trivia.

"Kingdom's Blazing Flame Dragon, Thomas Reinhardt."

Looking at the flashy lettering in the booklet, Jia Xiu felt thoroughly disgusted. Why make it sound so embarrassingly dramatic?

"Boss, is this the guy targeting us?"

"That's him. You can tell from his face he's no good."

"What's a face tell?" Ram asked.

"Why a bird?" Mia asked.

"It means he doesn't look like a good person. No, wait, isn't there anything about me in this booklet?"

Jia Xiu kept flipping through it until, on one of the final pages, he found a tiny introduction tucked away in a corner, without even a portrait.

"Mysterious man who submitted his written test early..."

Jia Xiu slowly closed the booklet and took a deep breath.

Why was Thomas some Blazing Flame Dragon while he was just a mysterious man?

He looked at the cover to see who had compiled the booklet.

"Saint Dero Academy News Society."

Ah, he really wanted to give every person in that society a thorough healing.

Just then, a thunderous roar of cheers rose from the square.

"What happened?"

"Let me see." Taking advantage of his "high-altitude" field of vision, Ram looked into the distance. "Looks like Thomas's team is about to begin their examination."

"Come on. Let's see what he's made of."

A few minutes later, Jia Xiu's group squeezed their way to the outermost edge of the square, barely catching a final glimpse of Thomas's team.

On the enormous four-sided light-screen projection at the center of the square, Thomas stood in the battlefield with flames burning around both hands.

His two teammates had already fallen. He was the last candidate still standing.

The broadcast crew was quite good at finding shots, giving Thomas's determined gaze a close-up.

There were only two minutes left before the examination ended.

Compared to Thomas, who was still making his final stand on the field, the fans in the audience seemed even more emotional.

"Waaah... Thomas..."

They cried as though their parents had died.

Jia Xiu could not help reminding them, "Miss, the examination is taking place in the Phantom World. It looks pretty miserable, but no one can die in reality."

He was afraid the people in front of him would cry themselves unconscious.

"What do you know?!" Several fans snapped back at Jia Xiu without mercy. "Do you know how important this examination is? Do you know how hard he worked to get where he is today?"

Her words apparently struck a deep chord with even more fans, and more people immediately joined in condemning Jia Xiu.

After condemning him, they went right back to crying their hearts out.

Jia Xiu did not share their joys or sorrows. He only found them noisy.

They were making such a fuss. Sooner or later, he would make their precious idol crash and burn.

Second by second, the examination time slipped away. Thomas struggled to dodge the instructor's barrage of spells, and by now, he could no longer mount an effective counterattack.

Ding-ding-ding—

The bell marking the end of the ten minutes rang out. As the only "survivor" of his team, Thomas was swaying on his feet, but he had still not lost consciousness.

An even louder cheer immediately erupted from the audience.

No wonder people wanted to become idols. Having so many people supporting you really did feel great.

Jia Xiu squeezed out of the surging crowd.

"Let's go. There are only three groups left before ours after Thomas's match. It's time to wait backstage."

Gudrian wiped down his bow.

This was a bow that had been with him for many years. Nearly every component on it had been replaced, and he did not know whether it could still be considered the original bow.

They would enter the Phantom World during the examination, so the bow did not actually need maintenance. It would be generated in its optimal condition.

Wiping it down now was simply a habit.

He respected every battle, regardless of who his opponent was.

So he had made thorough preparations.

Files on Jia Xiu's three-person team sat on the table, incredibly detailed—even more detailed than the academy's records.

He had learned about the abilities Jia Xiu had displayed, such as that bizarre healing spell, so he had prepared a purification spell that could dispel healing.

He had also devised a battle plan. He judged that Jia Xiu preferred fighting with his wits, and the best way to deal with someone like that was to make him lose control.

Anger was an excellent method.

Personal insults were the easiest way to provoke anger, so he had prepared plenty of lines.

The projected broadcast of the final examination would not transmit the contestants' voices, because there was commentary.

This method might seem somewhat beneath contempt, but it had always been the Reinhardt family's creed.

In battle, every method was acceptable, so long as it led to victory.

Likewise, to fulfill Thomas's request, he needed Jia Xiu's team to suffer a crushing defeat, utterly unable to fight back—a defeat so pathetic that the audience would laugh aloud.

Thus, his complete plan was to enrage them first, then pick apart the three of them arrow by arrow, as though playing with prey.

"Instructor Gudrian, it's your turn."

"Alright."

A few minutes later, inside the Phantom World.

Gudrian opened his eyes. Before him stretched a plain, with a patch of woodland farther away.

The examination environment was random, testing candidates' ability to adapt to changing conditions. That was also one of the selection criteria.

Jia Xiu's team stood less than two hundred meters away from him.

"You lowborn country bumpkin, Druid who spends all day rutting with corpses, and mongrel who knows how it was born—kneel and beg for mercy. I might reward you with a less agonizing defeat. Otherwise..."

Gudrian began carrying out the first step of his strategy: a verbal assault to provoke his opponents...

In the distance.

"Ram was born from his mother."

Ram shouted back with his hands cupped around his mouth.

Mia hurriedly cut him off.

"What are you doing?"

"He asked how Ram was born, so Ram answered him," Ram said with complete sincerity.

"He was insulting you. Couldn't you tell?"

At that moment, Jia Xiu frowned as well. Was this guy's upbringing really that poor?

It was just an examination, and he was already spewing trash talk.

Then they had to hit him hard.

Mia leaned closer. "Boss, how much dosage should we use?"

"How much dosage do you have?"