Chapter 30 — The Gauntlet
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Kael Grenfort:
About fifteen minutes had passed. Lilith still hadn't come out.
Is she alright? Kael wondered, glancing around curiously.
Then he spotted Sedrik returning.
"Where have you been all this time, Father?"
"Nowhere special. I brought some food. And… relieved myself," Sedrik whispered, leaning close to Kael's ear.
He stuffed a piece of bread into his own mouth and handed another to Kael.
Kael stared at it. "This isn't food."
"Try it. It tastes like food."
"Fine, fine," Kael said in a strange tone.
Just then, Lilith emerged from the door.
Ah, there she is. She looks fine.
"Did it go well?" he thought to say, but didn't. What else can you expect from a girl of a first-tier family? he muttered to himself.
"Next… next… next…"
"Young sir, are you finished? Hurry up, people are waiting," said the man by the door to a boy who had just exited the test.
"Don't leave. Here is your token," he said, handing it back.
Yes, so it ends like this. I had so many dreams, so many hopes. Now I'll just work on that farm like my father… The boy thought, then burst into tears.
No. I don't want this. He knew for certain — he hadn't gotten in.
His hands and feet trembled with fear. Most of these children came from ordinary families. He believed there would be no other chance.
And many grew up early — the reason being hard life and hardship. Imagine having no childhood. By the time you learn to speak and know yourself, they send you to the fields.
In a corner of the waiting hall, children were gathered — crying, sobbing, or in very low spirits. All of them resembled that boy. A few, after failing even the second test, simply left the waiting hall. They knew it was pointless.
Kael watched them from afar. Nothing came to his mind — except fragments of his own miserable past.
If only I could help you all, Kael sighed.
"What did you say?" his father asked.
"Nothing. Pay no mind," Kael said, gesturing downward with both hands.
At that moment—
"Number 100 — Nolan!" the examiner by the door called out.
The boy with the cold gaze, leaning against the wall, stood up.
So he's Nolan… crossed Kael's mind.
Nolan walked toward the door.
The examiner stared at his face strangely.
Nolan took a token from his pocket and handed it to him. The examiner didn't take it — just kept staring at his face.
"Is your name Nolan?" he asked.
"Yes, Nolan. Is something wrong?"
"No. What's your full name?" the examiner asked.
"Why do you need that?"
"I need it."
"Why?"
"That's none of your business. What's your full name? This is not your concern. Take the token and let me through," Nolan said coldly, with a hint of anger.
"What a rude young man. Do you want to play games with me?" the examiner said.
Just then, the Director stepped out from inside the door. He walked slowly, his long white hair covering his face.
"Hey, you stinking guard. I personally recommended this man. Don't you want to let him in?" he said, looking at the examiner. His words were enough to make one's flesh crawl. The guard trembled and fell.
"No, no, Director. Forgive me, I didn't know."
"Well, come to my room tonight. We'll discuss why only his first name is written," he said in a voice as sharp as a blade, piercing through everything.
"Y-yes, sir," the examiner said. The Director walked back inside.
The examiner quickly stood up, brushed himself off, swiftly took the token from Nolan's hand, and opened the door.
"Here you are, sir. You may enter," he said, even bowing slightly.
At that moment, the hall erupted in noise and commotion.
"Did the Director personally recommend someone?" a woman said. "Yes, it seems so."
"This can't be. No, it's impossible."
People wouldn't stop. "Quiet," said the woman standing before Lilith. A reddish-gold aura emanated from her, enveloping the entire hall, and everyone fell silent.
---
Ten minutes later.
"No, what are you talking about? He hasn't even come out yet."
"How do you know? That boy… recorded very strong results."
"What…?"
Baseless rumors began to spread. No one knew who started them. The noise rose again. The woman before Lilith, as if her patience had run out, glanced around. Everyone fell silent.
At that moment, Nolan stepped out of the door. No one spoke. Strange.
Nolan took the token from the examiner's hand and left the hall.
"Next… next… next…"
"Next — Number 168, Kael Grenfort."
Kael had been covering his face with his hands. He rubbed his face and stood up.
He walked to the examiner, who said, "Show your token." Kael handed it over.
"Prepare to enter."
The examiner opened the door. "You may enter," he said, emotionless.
Kael began walking, a small smile on his face.
Let's see what interesting tests await me.
And he stepped inside.
---
Inside — First Room
"Hello, boy," said an old man.
"Hello."
Before Kael stood a sphere. Beside it, a strange man.
"Direct your energy into this."
"What energy?"
"Cultiva…"
"I understand," Kael said before the man could finish his sentence.
Kael extended his hand toward the sphere — from a distance. He began to cultivate, channeling the resulting energy straight into the sphere. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
Invisible power flowed toward the sphere. The man could see it.
What is this amount? He looked at the sphere.
The sphere cycled through colors — white, yellow, reddish-brown, pink, dark pink, then black. Then nothing — the colors vanished, and it became a transparent glass sphere. Then a reddish color appeared in its center, slowly expanding.
What is this? the man wondered, and suddenly understood.
"Stop! Stop releasing!" he shouted at Kael.
Kael opened his eyes. "Yes? What's wrong? Is everything alright?" he asked, worried.
He looked at the sphere. On the side facing him, a hole the size of a finger — the inside of the sphere was melting and dripping out.
Oops. It's done, Kael thought to himself.
"Enough. The evaluation is complete. Move to the next room."
---
Next Room
Huff… ufff… Kael sighed deeply.
Well, at least it went well, hopefully.
In the second room, two people were waiting for him.
"Hello, boy. Nice to meet you. My name is Lighard. Yours is Kael, if I'm not mistaken," he said, shrugging at Kael.
"Yes, sir. I'm Kael. Nice to meet you." Kael extended his hand.
"Oh, a bold move. We expect great things from you. Unlike that other boy," Lighard said.
"Well, which boy are you talking about?" I asked hesitantly.
"What was his name… ah, I remember. Nolan, wasn't it?"
Yes, I understand. So, Nolan. Well, I won't let you down.
"What do I need to do?"
"See that door on the right? That's the illusion room. There are various creatures inside. You can only use physical strength — no magic. There are barriers against magic inside, so even if you try, it's useless."
"Alright."
Kael stepped forward and entered.
---
Inside — Illusion Room
A hot, foul smell filled the air — blood and rotting flesh.
Kael stepped forward. Behind him, they closed the door.
Ugh, such a stench. He pinched his nose.
Before him, a door opened. Ten meters away, a large gate. Very bright light shone from it, making the outside invisible. Kael approached the gate step by step.
As he drew closer, a sound grew louder — like the roar of hundreds of thousands of people in a stadium. As he neared, it became clearer:
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
They were shouting.
"Kill!"
What does this mean?
Kael ran through the gate.
Outside — chaos. Noise. Under his feet — hot sand. He looked up, but nothing was visible — just light. It took him a moment to adjust.
Thousands of people surrounded him. This was the famous gladiatorial arena. And he was standing in the gladiatorial ring.
The crowd wouldn't stop. "Kill! Kill! Kill!" — loud enough to shake the ears.
Sweat poured down Kael's forehead like a river.
He looked to the other side. A sound echoed — a door opened. A man entered. Thin, holding a dagger. The top of his head was bald, his beards long and unkempt, His whole body is dirty. He looked around, then at Kael — and immediately began running toward him.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaa!" he screamed, brandishing his dagger. He had only two teeth in his mouth, screaming like a goat being slaughtered.
"AaaAAaaaAAAaaa!"
A dagger appeared in Kael's hand. He gripped it firmly by the tip and threw it at the old man.
The dagger spun through the air, as if slicing the wind, and embedded itself right in the man's head.
He fell to the ground.
His eyes began to close. "Ahhhhh… kill…" were his last words, and he dissolved into white particles, absorbed into the air.
Kael watched in amazement.
Bells rang. Before him stood four doors. The second door opened. Again, the crowd roared — "Kill! Kill! Kill!"
A teenage boy walked through the second door. A spear in his hand, his clothes torn and ragged.
"I'll kill you!" he shouted and lunged toward Kael.
Bushy eyebrows. Bloodstains on his clothes.
A sword appeared in Kael's hand.
Hmm… Kael thought.
And Kael began running straight toward him.
The opponents ran toward each other. Only a short distance remained.
As they met, Kael pretended to leap upward — one foot lifting off the ground. The boy naturally raised his spear. But Kael's other foot never left the ground. Instead of jumping, he slid low, passing under the spear and slicing through the boy's leg.
The boy, moving at full speed, fell forward. As he tried to get up — placing his hands on the ground, lifting his head — Kael ran up and stabbed him from behind.
"That's enough. Sleep now," Kael said, twisting the blade once.
Blood flowed from the boy's mouth. He coughed three or four times. Kael pulled out the sword. The boy lay on his back, coughed a few more times — spattering blood around him — and slowly dissolved into the air.
The sword in Kael's hand vanished.
Ah… is that it? Kael's tone betrayed his disappointment.
---
The third door began to open slowly. Kael hadn't even caught his breath. The door made a loud noise — screeeech… boom.
It opened.
A tall, middle-aged man entered, clad in iron armor. A sword in one hand, a shield in the other. One eye was scarred — blind. He looked like a true maniac.
"I will destroy you!" he said in a rough voice.
Kael stared at him for a moment.
"Hey, uncle. Can't we calm down and talk this over?"
The man began running toward Kael.
Oh-oh. This is bad. Time to run.
Kael fled from the maniac inside a large, open-topped arena surrounded by stone walls.
What is this? I didn't agree to this!
A weapon appeared in his hand — an assassin's dagger and three small throwing knives.
Kael paused briefly.
Oh, I understand.
He ran straight toward the gladiator and rolled between his legs. He tried to strike the man's leg, but it was impossible — the gladiator wore armor even on his legs.
Once behind him, Kael aimed a throwing knife at his head — the neck area — and threw.
The knife flew through the air. But suddenly, the gladiator turned and batted it away with his shield.
"Ha, boy, what are you doing? You think you can kill me?" He began running toward Kael again.
"I'll chop you to pieces. Come here."
He stuck out his tongue and licked his lips.
Ah, what a disgusting man, Kael said, his skin crawling.
Kael ran. As the gladiator approached, he swung his sword vertically. Kael rolled to the side and threw the knife from there.
Kael knew there was one exposed spot — the head area, from the neck up. He aimed and threw.
The knife spun in the air, drawing closer. When it arrived, the gladiator deflected it with his sword.
"Hahaha! Your plans aren't working, are they? Or you're just unlucky," he said, laughing at Kael.
Kael's anger flared.
We'll see about that.
He stood, facing him directly. The gladiator also rose.
"Well, what are you going to do now? You can't do anything anyway. If you surrender, I'll kill you without torture. Ahahahahaha!"
Furious, Kael threw the last knife straight ahead. It flew toward the gladiator's eye, but at the last moment, the gladiator blocked it with his shield. The knife flew into the air.
"Foolish boy. Now you have nothing left."
Kael stood frozen, watching. The gladiator ran toward him. And then — the knife that had flown into the air came down, stabbing straight into the gladiator's head.
The gladiator stopped running.
"Ehhh… uhhhh… what… happened?"
Kael burst into laughter.
"You said it — 'or you're unlucky.' I'm sure now — I'm very lucky! Ahahahahaha!"
The gladiator fell to the ground. After a few seconds, his body vanished.
Ugh. That was tough. I think that's the last one.
The final door remained. Kael looked at the last large door. His heart pounded. His hands trembled from exhaustion.
I can win.
In the center of the arena, a large chest appeared, filled with various weapons — swords, daggers, knives, spears, axes, bows.
Oh-ho. Who needs so much preparation? Kael said with pride.
---
Huff… ufff… huff… ufff…
Kael gasped, waking up. He looked around — a white room. A single door.
Ahhh… what happened? Did I die? Is this heaven? No — I've died once before. It wasn't like this then. I was reborn. If I simply died without rebirth… Ahhhhh! You bastards! he screamed.
Then the door opened.
The final door began to open with a
deafening screech.
Kael's heart pounded like a war drum. His breathing was ragged, his body drenched in sweat. The last two opponents had pushed him to the limit. His hands trembled, not from fear alone, but from exhaustion.
The door fully opened.
A thunderous sound echoed — heavy hooves striking the ground. The arena shook.
From the blinding light emerged a monstrous figure. Twice the size of a normal horse, its body covered in thick, metallic armor-like hide. Its eyes burned with savage intelligence. An Ironhoof — a creature spoken of in legends as a living nightmare.
Kael froze.
"Oh… you've got to be kidding me," he whispered, voice cracking.
The Ironhoof let out a earth-shaking roar and charged.
Kael turned and ran.
His legs burned. The sand beneath his feet felt like fire. Behind him, the thunder of hooves grew louder, closer. The ground trembled violently with each step.
He could feel the creature's hot breath on his back.
Just a little more—!
He dove to the side at the last second. The Ironhoof's massive hooves slammed down where he had been standing, sending a shockwave of sand and dust into the air.
Kael rolled, coughing, and scrambled to his feet.
But there was nowhere to run. The arena walls were too high. The doors had sealed shut.
The Ironhoof turned slowly, its eyes locked on him. It lowered its head, snorting, ready for the final charge.
Kael gripped the dagger in his hand until his knuckles turned white.
This is an illusion room. It's not real. It can't kill me… right?
But the fear felt real. The pain felt real.
The Ironhoof charged.
Kael screamed and ran straight toward it — a desperate, suicidal move.
At the last moment, he dropped to the ground and slid between its front legs, slashing upward with all his remaining strength.
The blade cut deep into the creature's belly.
Black blood rained down on him.
For one brief, triumphant second, Kael thought he had won.
Then the Ironhoof reared up and brought both front hooves crashing down.
The impact was catastrophic.
Kael felt his ribs shatter. His lungs collapsed.
Blood filled his mouth.
He tried to scream, but only a wet gurgle came out.
The hooves came down again. And again.
Bones cracked. Organs ruptured. His vision went red, then black.
In his final moments, a strange calmness washed over him.
So this… is how it feels to die again.
The world faded.
His body dissolved into particles of light.
"Sir, the second test is over. Please come out."
Yes, coming.
Kael began walking out.
So I'm not dead yet. Hmm… so this is how it works. As soon as I can, I will learn illusion magic.
When he stepped out, the test proctor stood before him with surprise. "How did you do that?" he asked.
"I don't understand what you're referring to," Kael said, shrugging.
"Ha, ha. Never mind. Just move on to the next room."
He held his forehead nervously.
"Yes, thank you, sir."
Kael opened the door to the next room.
---
Next Room — The Panel
This room was very large. Before him stood a high stage, and on it sat five people. The Director in the center. Hanna on his right. Other teachers in the remaining seats.
Kael slowly stepped forward. The atmosphere was intense — thick waves of aura threatening to crush him.
Are they doing this on purpose?
He stood before them and greeted.
"Greetings to you all — dear teachers of the esteemed Revius Academy. Peace be upon you."
"Enough. No need for excessive flattery," said an old-looking man on the left.
"Well, boy, I'll get to the point. Your name is Kael. You are eight years old. Why do you want to study here? Or to put it differently — what is your purpose in life?" the old man asked.
Haha. I've been asked such questions many times in my past life. You just have to give the answer they want. Such questions cannot reveal your heart anyway — though someone who has learned mind-reading magic could, hmm…
"Well, I'll give my answer. My purpose in life is to make our great empire even greater. I wish to dedicate my life to this cause."
Just then, another person entered the room and handed a piece of paper to the Director.
Kael, surprised, continued speaking.
"So, that is my purpose. Nothing more," he concluded.
The Director read the note. Then, with immense force, he struck the desk before him with his hand. The sound was so loud it echoed and reverberated through the room.
He jumped up and appeared before Kael.
Their eyes met.
And suddenly, he spoke.
"You…"
—