The moment Cyril got closer, the light intensified and a string of beautifully handwritten words appeared.
"Good work! :D" There was even a smiley face drawn at the end.
Cyril wasn't sure if any of the professors he knew had the personality to write something like this.
Soon the words changed.
"Reward!" and a cutely drawn treasure chest shone brightly in the air.
After a delay, the text finally disappeared.
When things calmed down, nothing seemingly happened.
However, Cyril soon realized the plant had changed somehow—it no longer felt out of place.
Is this a real herb now? Cyril wondered as he carefully picked up the plant the way he'd learned in class.
"So the treasure was actually real? The Academy sure is generous."
Yeah...
Not that Cyril was complaining, since he and Rhamn needed precisely materials like this to enhance his physique.
Before he could even start searching, he found something useful; maybe Myra's luck was rubbing off on him.
Cyril had to store the herb in the pocket of his training uniform for the time being.
After doing so, he took one last look around to make sure he didn't miss anyone or anything and went away.
...
Now that the test began, there were obvious changes in the forest.
For an example, there were now many animals walking around: deer, rabbits, boars, and birds flying in the air.
They all behaved just like real animals would, evading Cyril whenever he approached.
Naturally, Cyril caught a deer to satisfy his curiosity.
He scanned it's body with a spell and discovered something unusual.
The deer didn't have any internal organs; there was simply nothing on the inside.
Though Cyril had the feeling that if he were to cut it, that would change.
Not that he was going to test it.
Cyril let go of the poor animal and continued on his way.
"Illusion magic seems like a lot of fun—maybe we really should learn it," Rhamn mused.
I've already decided to try, but without sufficient guidance, I won't even understand what's written in the spell book, let alone learn it.
Cyril, too, was intrigued by the capabilities of the principal's magic.
"Speaking of which, the principal must be here, right? With this being her spells and all. We could just ask her after the test."
We'll see—if the opportunity presents itself. But Morpho and I need to go see Selene today, don't forget that.
Cyril was having a good time learning the Dragon Art; he saw no reason to hurry.
"That's true... Let's go crush some weaklings." Rhamn quickly switched her attention to another interesting thing.
At this moment, finally Cyril's ears managed to pick up a human sound.
A student was dragging something on the forest floor.
Cyril cautiously approached, paying attention to his surroundings.
It turned out to be another familiar face.
Regina was dragging the body of a student and propped it against a tree.
Her face was solemn as she did so, though she usually wore that expression.
"Who's there?!" Regina suddenly exclaimed, hurling a throwing knife.
Cyril caught the projectile midair and went out in the open.
"What if it wasn't you, but some weak student?"
"What are you doing?" Cyril asked with curiosity.
Upon seeing who it was, Regina's expression didn't change much, but her hand went behind her back.
Her whole body was ready to strike at any moment.
"This student was acting suspicious. And when I confronted him. He attacked me." Regina replied while staring him in the eyes.
Cyril took another, more thorough look at the unconscious student. The barrier around him was broken.
Shouldn't he be disappearing now that he is knocked out?
"How was he suspicious?" Cyril asked while crossing his arms.
"He had a communication tool with him. Such things shouldn't be on a normal student. He must belong to some organization, and since I don't know him, it must be some illegal one." Regina revealed the hand she had kept behind her back.
In it lay a pendant embedded with a small crystal.
Normal citizens can't have a communication tool? That seems a bit excessive.
Cyril also had one of these, but he wasn't part of any criminal organization.
"Maybe Selene is..." Rhamn quietly reminded him.
"Alright then, are you going to call a professor to take this guy away?" Cyril asked next.
It's a pity; I wanted to fight her, but it seems this is not the right time...
Just as he was thinking that, the knocked-out student, along with the pendant, suddenly started disappearing into nothingness.
"A bit of a delay this time."
Cyril nodded with satisfaction and turned towards Regina.
"It's not our problem anymore; let's continue with the test." He gave the disc back to reluctant Morpho.
Regina moved her gaze from the disappeared body towards him with some confusion.
But as she noticed him taking a fighting stance, Regina had a realization and quickly created some distance between them.
Her eyes darted between the butterfly holding the disc and Cyril, as she drew her twin short swords.
"This won't be like last time," Regina said with her gaze sharpening.
"I wonder~"
Regina approached first, dashing in and striking with her two swords at the same time.
Cyril caught her blades barehanded, gripping them without fear.
But the moment his hands made contact, the barrier around him showed signs of damage.
What?
Acting fast, he hurled Regina away.
Cyril wanted to rely on his enhanced skin to protect himself against the blades, but it seems the barrier around him still considered it a hit.
It looks like tactics like that are off the table...
He quickly refocused back on the fight.
Regina, in the meantime, has cast a spell and reentered the fight.
She was using the same technique from the competition.
Though this time Cyril was able to follow after her movements.
Mid-dash, her body was covered in a greenish hue, a gust of wind almost visible behind her.
So it's a form of wind magic.
Cyril, while avoiding the blades this time, threw a punch at Regina, his hands leaving light blue afterimages.
His speed surprised Regina greatly, and she could only try and twist her body to avoid the blow.
She didn't succeed in fully dodging, only softening the blow as she rolled on the ground away.
However, the greatest threat lay in the Heavenly Dragon's Judgement technique.
The mana Cyril had unleashed through physical contact was tearing the barrier apart.
With a tense expression, Regina pressed her hand against the affected area, suppressing the rampaging mana before it was too late.
Cyril didn't pursue her at this time, taking a wait-and-see approach.
"I saw it during your duel with Bran, but still… what a strong ability..." Regina said in awe as she got up from the ground.
"Thanks," replied Cyril.
At this moment Regina threw a dagger, aiming right at Cyril's throat.
Cyril managed to catch it midair at the last second.
However, before he could feel good about himself, he noticed the presence of magic on the dagger.
Cyril quickly threw the blade away and made a magic shield in front of him.
A fiery explosion rang out soon after. Thankfully, Cyril reacted in time, keeping himself safe from the blast.
The moment the shield went down, Regina jumped in through the lingering smoke, slicing at him with her swords
Cyril, expecting this follow-up, weaved between the swords, closing the distance before landing an uppercut.
This time it was a direct hit, and Regina got tossed in the air before falling down on the ground, barrier breaking.
Not too bad. Cyril massaged his fist, while looking at the motionless Regina.
"Still weak," Rhamn gloated without restraint.
Soon Regina raised her head and looked at him with a pair of calm but cautious eyes.
"It's my loss... again." Regina then closed her eyes and laid her head down, disappearing bit by bit.
Cyril, with satisfaction, looked at the number on his bracelet going up.
This is a good feeling, somewhat addictive.
At this moment Morpho flew in closer again, giving away the disc and venting her frustrations.
"Sorry, the next fight will be yours, okay?" Cyril said apologetically.
Only after this did Morpho stop pestering him and land back on his shoulder, her demands satisfied.
"Let's go! We should still have a lot of time left." Rhamn also found some joy in seeing these students lose.
With a butterfly on his shoulder and a disc in his hands, Cyril continued on his way.