No Damage 19

Test

19. Shall We Begin the Examination?

"Wow, are all of these people examinees?" 

I sighed as I glanced around.

Hundreds of examinees had gathered in the venue.

Only one or two people pass from among them. It's a narrow gate.

This is how the guild entrance examination goes.

In the morning, a simple written test and an interview with guild staff.

From afternoon to night, three mock battles against professional adventurers.

Points are given for each, and those who reach a certain score get admitted to the guild.

That was what Lilith and Alice taught me.

Among them, the mock battles conducted in the afternoon are the most important.

The written test and interview are just to check basic social etiquette and personality, so there seems to be hardly anyone who fails here.

In reality, it's the results of the mock battles that determine whether one meets the criteria for admission.

That's the dividing line between pass and fail.

The scoring criteria for the mock battles are simple.

Fight with the examiner, an adventurer, for five minutes and score based on the content.

Rather than just looking at wins and losses (after all, examinees rarely win against examiners in a fair fight), it seems they comprehensively score techniques and magic used, as well as strategic abilities displayed during the battle.

As we were talking, the written test began first.

The content is mostly simple questions like those taught in middle school.

The interview consisted of standard questions like "Why did you apply to this guild?" and "What did you do during your student days?"

It really felt like just going through the motions.

I finished the written test and interview without any issues, had lunch, and then it was time for the afternoon mock battles.

"Alright, this is where it gets serious." 

I psyched myself up.

The mock battles take place in the arena of a separate building adjacent to the guild hall.

Special barrier devices that reduce damage from physical and magical attacks are embedded multiple times.

Although the devices are quite elaborate, they're not strong against external impacts. So they cannot be used in real combat against magical beasts or demons.

However, this is the perfect place for assessing the abilities of such applicants.

I was guided to the 3rd arena.

"Excuse me."

I nervously opened the door to the room.

"You've come, youngster." 

The examiner — whose plate showed his name as Dalton — smirked.

He was a muscular man.

He looked to be in his early thirties.

He had a rough appearance with a bearded face and three white eyes.

He looked like a warrior, but seeing him holding a staff in his right hand, he seemed to be a magician.

"I'll assess your aptitude — shall we start the examination?"

"Please, go ahead." 

I bowed.

"Alright, let's proceed." 

Dalton returned the gesture.

Then, he glanced at the documents in his hand.

"Examinee number 775, Haruto Riva. It says here you're applying as a defensive-oriented magician. Well then, let's test your defensive abilities right away."

With that, Dalton readied his staff.

"It's simple. I'll cast attack magic now. Your task is to defend it with defensive magic."

"If I could defend against powerful attacks, does that mean I'll score higher?"

"Hmm? Well, yes. But, I'm a Rank A adventurer, you know. It's unlikely that an applicant's defensive magic could fully defend against me."

Dalton frowned.

"Although there are barrier devices, it's not completely safe. I don't want to cause serious injuries, so I'll go easy to some extent."

"Um, I'll be fine... Could you please come at me with full force if possible?"

I expressed my gratitude for his concern and made the request.

After all, the competition rate for adventurers' examinations is high.

Since the results of the mock battles practically determine pass or fail, I wanted to score as high as possible in all three rounds.

My selling point is my defensive ability.

The quickest way is to demonstrate by blocking high-powered attack magic or highly damaging weapon attacks.

"Aiming for a high score is risky," Dalton's expression was serious.

It wasn't discomfort, but rather, he seemed concerned about me.

He looks tough but seems like a kind person.

"Even if I get seriously injured, it's my own responsibility. Please."

"...Understood. But I'll gauge your strength to a certain extent first. Since we have five minutes for the mock battle, I'll go easy for the first three minutes, and if it seems okay, I'll go all out for the remaining two. Is that okay?"

I gratefully accepted Dalton's proposal, and the mock battle began.

— Not three minutes, but within the first minute, Dalton's expression changed.

"What kind of defensive magic is that?"

He unleashed flames, lightning, whirlwinds—.

I effortlessly dispersed them all with the brilliant colors deployed before me.

"You're not even fazed by Common Spells?? Then!"

Dalton readied his staff with both hands,

"I'll use Uncommon Spells. Be prepared to defend properly, or you'll get hurt!"

He warned as he started chanting a longer spell than before.

Magic is ranked according to its power.

It's starting from the lowest. There are Common Spells, Uncommon Spells, and then Rare Spells.

Looks like he's going into serious mode now.

I watched his movements closely.

Even if I say "won't receive any damage", it comes with a caveat that it's only when my skill is activated.

If I mistime the activation, I'll obviously get hit.

Conversely, if the timing is right, I'll be invincible — that's also true.

"Now, how much can you defend? Show me your strength... Funeral Flame!"

Crimson flames spiraled out from Dalton's staff.

The surrounding space groaned and flickered.

It seemed that the barrier devices were reacting intensely to the more powerful magic than before.

The flames, burning through the air, headed straight for me—,

"Disperse."

I mentally commanded with ease.

At the same time, a motif of angel wings spread out in front of me.

The flame magic was easily scattered by the defensive barrier I had deployed, [Armor Phase].

"What...!?"

Dalton, who had confidently cast what would have been his most favored attack magic, stared at me in disbelief.

"Fool... that was my most skilled attack magic...!? Fine!"

Dalton began chanting another spell.

Being a Rank A adventurer, he quickly recovered from the shock.

— From there, it was a chaotic barrage of magic.

Flames, lightning, whirlwinds, freezing.

He poured all kinds of magic onto me one after another.

However, when casting magic, he needs to do some preparatory incantation or action.

By observing that, I can determine the timing of the attacks.

It's easy to activate my skill beforehand before the opponent casts magic.

"Protect."

The dazzling colors reappeared.

Countless explosions occurred in front of me, and shockwaves swept through.

The arena shook, the flashes, incessantly unfolding.

If there were no barrier devices, this attack energy would probably cause the building to collapse.

However, all of it was in vain.

My defensive barrier, Armor Phase, is an invincible shield that even repels dragon attacks.

I felt sorry for Dalton, but this level of magic wouldn't shake it.

It couldn't.

— Eventually, the five-minute time limit passed, and the mock battle ended.

"Huff, huff, huff, huff..."

Seems like Dalton had exhausted both his physical and magical strength with the constant barrage of magic. He was panting heavily.

"W-What are you...!?"

He stared at me in bewilderment.

"Even with Rare Spell-class magic..."

I was satisfied with the battle.

Alright, this reaction might expect a high score.

"...This one's promising."

Dalton seemed to have finally recovered from the shock, and instead, he had a broad smile.

"The next mock battle is in an hour. This time, your opponent will be much tougher than me, but do your best. The guild wants as many strong fighters as possible, especially since the appearances of magical beasts and demons have been increasing recently..."

With that, Dalton gave me his encouragement.

"Thank you. Um, who's the next examiner?"

"Oh, you've probably heard the name? They're a Rank S adventurer, known as the [Hyoujin]—"

As he was about to continue, I heard a rumbling sound-like thing from outside the room.

What on earth!?