Standing before the wall, the three members of Larkspur's team looked at one another. They had all noticed this extremely conspicuous sight, but none of them knew what it was. So they placed their hopes on their teammates, wondering if anyone else had a clue.
Obviously, no one did.
Even Larkspur, who had taken the assessment before, knew nothing about it. The practical assessment changed every year. Perhaps this maze-walking trial had appeared in some previous year's assessment, but it certainly had not been there when she took hers. As a magical girl, her abilities and experience now surpassed those of these children, but when it came to understanding the assessment rules and gathering information, she was no different from the other candidates of the same year.
"What do we do?"
"Let's go examine it."
"...Okay."
After that brief decision, the three of them stepped forward together and stopped beside the wall.
For the sake of the team's safety, they did not investigate it together. Tudingui still silently took the lead, placing her hand on the wall and activating Mana Perception.
In Larkspur's vision, the fluctuations of mana around Tudingui instantly merged with the light on the wall. Aside from the change in mana, Tudingui herself froze before the wall, as though she had suddenly turned into a statue, without the slightest movement.
This lasted for a moment. Just as Larkspur began to wonder whether something had gone wrong, Tudingui let go.
"How was it?"
Larkspur asked as she watched her.
"I think I know what this is."
Tudingui wore an odd expression. "This is an extra challenge."
"An extra challenge?"
"Yeah. There's something embedded inside this wall. I tried to take it out, but it didn't seem to do anything." Tudingui told them everything she knew.
Once they learned