The overload alarm brought the staff from the entire floor running.
By the time the inquiry room doors were pushed open, more than a dozen people were standing outside. Some held protective wands, some carried first-aid kits, and the security mage at the front had even changed into his combat gear.
They rushed into the room, only to find papers scattered across the floor, a long table askew, and a measuring pillar whose twelve marks had all lit up.
"Where are the attackers?" the security captain asked.
The young examiner pointed at Lin Yuan. "There's no attack. He was testing his magic power."
Everyone's gaze fell on the boy, who looked no older than ten.
The security captain glanced at the three spare Magic Crystals still smoking by the wall. "Did you use a high-risk magic weapon for the test?"
"We followed standard procedure."
"Then why did all three backup power sources activate?"
"Because one wasn't enough for the measuring range."
"And he hasn't even finished the test," the older examiner added.
Silence fell over the doorway once more.
Makarov stood nearby with his hands behind his back, the corners of his mouth nearly reaching his ears. After waiting a long time without anyone speaking, he finally gave a deliberate cough.
"If you need to test him again-"
"There's no need!" all three examiners answered at once.
The rest of the questioning went remarkably smoothly.
Lin Yuan gave a truthful account of the Sleeping Church, the ancient cursed object, and the snake pattern that had fled into the spatial line. The examiners didn't ask him to recreate large-scale spatial magic indoors. They only confirmed whether he could stop it at will, whether he would lose consciousness, and whether the Guild had arranged training.
Makarov put the training records on the table.
The first page listed folding distances, and the second listed the range of control. The dozen or so pages after that, however, were almost entirely itemized compensation for tables, chairs, windows, and wooden stakes.
The female examiner flipped through a few pages. "This was training too?"
"Growth always comes at a price." Makarov looked solemn.
"Why did the Guild building have to pay that price?"
"We're still looking into that."
In the end, the Magic Council provisionally classified Lin Yuan's magic as "Non-Elemental God Slayer Magic," required that large-scale training be conducted away from residential areas, and left Fairy Tail in charge of supervising him.
There was no detention and no additional restriction.
Before they left, the young examiner caught up with them in the corridor and handed Lin Yuan a copy of the test report.
"If we find an instrument with a higher measuring range in the future, we may request another test."
Lin Yuan took the report. "Will it crack next time?"
The young examiner's hand stiffened. "Until we find one that won't crack, perhaps we'd better not."
On the way back, Makarov bought two large bags of snacks. Lin Yuan carried them, while the old man spent the trip looking over the report bearing the words "unable to measure" again and again.
"Master, you've read it eight times already."
"I'm checking whether they wrote anything wrong."
"And?"
"The handwriting is quite good."
That evening, the Guild doors swung open.
Natsu was the first to rush over. "Did the Magic Council fight you?"
"No."
"Then what was the point of being gone so long?"
Gray squeezed out from behind him. "How did it go?"
Makarov didn't answer immediately. He jumped onto the bar and held the test report high, deliberately making sure everyone saw the conclusion that had been circled three times first.
"Total magic power unable to be measured?"
"The Magic Council's instrument must have broken!"
"That's standard equipment capable of testing advanced mages."
The doubts in the hall quickly turned to exclamations. When Natsu heard that all twelve marks had lit up, he excitedly breathed fire on the spot, setting alight the shirt Gray had just found.
Erza snatched the report and examined it carefully. "All three spare Magic Crystals activated at the same time too... Why can't we usually sense this much magic power?"
"Because he's been holding it back," Makarov said. "The real difficulty has never been how much you possess, but whether you can keep it under control enough not to hurt your companions."
Mira stood outside the crowd instead of gathering around the report like the others. She walked up to Lin Yuan and swung her demonic right hand at his shoulder.
Lin Yuan raised his hand and caught it.
"The Magic Council didn't detain you, so our bet continues," she said.
"I never conceded in the first place."
"Having more magic power doesn't mean you'll win."
"That sounds like you're trying to comfort yourself."
A vein twitched at Mira's temple, and she immediately put more strength into her demonic arm. The floorboards beneath Lin Yuan groaned under the strain. Seeing trouble brewing, the people around them expertly moved the tables and chairs out of the way.
Lisanna poked her head out from behind the bags of snacks. "Lin Yuan, did you really put the whole room under pressure during the Magic Council's test?"
"Yeah."
"All twelve marks lit up at once?"
"Yeah."
"Then how much magic power did you actually use?"
The hall gradually fell silent. Everyone looked at Lin Yuan, and even Mira paused their contest for the moment.
Lin Yuan recalled how the measuring pillar had nearly cracked and answered truthfully.
"Not even half."