Taking a test
"Oi, brat, you ignorin' me?"
'Yes, yes I am, now, fuck off.'
That was what I wanted to say, but I maintained my serene expression and ignored them.
It was at this moment I wished that I had less lethal spell options.
But this man didn't seem to get the message.
"Oh, I get it! You've mad from fear, haven'cha? What, did ya piss yerself?"
'...'
If I modified my bullet to be less lethal, they'd probably survive, right?
"Ay boss, looks like he thinks 'es too good for us, mister rich boy doesn't wanna waste his time on us."
I kept my eyes shut, thinking they were finally getting the message.
'Or not.'
I heard the boss of the grunts take a step forward.
Thud!
He slammed his fist on the table, causing it shake.
At this point, I could feel the gaze of others in the tavern.
'...Actually, I probably won't have to deal with this, will I?'
Seemingly unaware of the attention he was drawing, the grunt boss began speaking again.
"Listen brat, this is a place for men, not some wannabes like you, understand?"
He shouted at me despite him being right next to me.
'Disgusting.'
He spat bits of saliva on my face as he spoke.
'Yeah, I'll deal with the consequences afterwards.'
I opened my eyes, ready to unleash fiery magic bullets.
"Trash. Don't you think. You're causing. A ruckus?"
A wave of killing intent washed over me, making me pause.
The low and threatening voice of a woman rang out in my ears.
Looking towards the gang of grunts, they had...
All passed out.
A few of them seemed to have wet themselves, showing a damp area around their crotch.
'Ew.'
This level of killing intent was no joke, but it was nothing compared to my master.
To describe my master's killing intent... it was apocalyptic?
It felt like the entire world would fall apart.
I stood up from my table, sidestepping the fallen thugs.
"Hmph. Even this level. Was too much. For them?"
I looked towards my benefactor.
She spoke with a strange mannerism, pausing randomly mid sentence.
I bowed my head slightly, showing my respect.
"Thank you for the help."
I could've easily taken care of them, but it wouldn't have been as clean as what she did.
'...Well, rather than piss, there'd be blood.'
"Don't thank. I know. You could have. Handled it. Easily."
A beautiful black haired woman gazed at me with emerald eyes.
...Rather than emerald, Iit seemed more like poison.
"Sorry, I don't know how to fight very well whilst holding back."
It was true.
I avoided fighting since iI genuinely might have ended up blowing their heads off.
At my answer, she smiled.
"I see. Restraint. Is a. Virtue."
'Right, I have this, don't I?'
Analysing her, I managed to get some information.
[Mai]
Threat Level: Very High
S Rank Adventurer
A small window popped up, telling me the woman's name and that she was an S rank adventurer.
'More impressive than I had expected.'
Taking another look at her, I realised her skintight bodysuit seemed to be made of some special materials.
'Probably some kind of assassination type.'
I thanked her for her praise, and got ready to move to another table.
Apparently, this action surprised her, as her next lines were spoken quite hurriedly.
"Wait. Name?"
"Outis."
"It's good. I'm Mai. I will. Remember you. Outis."
I was a little confused as to what I had done to catch the attention of an S rank adventurer the moment I had walked into the association, but I nodded my head and smiled.
Honestly, such attention sounded troublesome more than anything else.
Luckily, she seemed rather... well, socially inept, based off her speech, so she probably wouldn't go around blabbering about me.
An hour quickly passed, and the pant pissing grunts were hauled off and kicked out the building by staff.
A man shouted that newbie trials would be commencing, and that anyone with an application sheet should follow him.
About twenty people ended up following him, most of which had plain appearances.
I wasn't sure what exactly the beginner trials would entail, but if it involved any sort of combat, I felt that I could with a one versus twenty against everyone else.
Maybe it was arrogant to think so, but someone who had trained under an archmage should be capable of this much, right?
Although... if there was any sort of written test, I'd probably do poorly.
I could imagine how it'd go.
Q: What is the best way to approach a goblin encampment?
A: Shoot them.
Q: What is the biggest weakness of an ogre?
A: Bullets
Alright, maybe I wouldn't bomb it that bad, but I wasn't too confident if I was asked about battle tactics.
My plan of action would boil down 'monkey see monkey shoot.'
As we followed the association employee, we walked out the tavern area into a large courtyard.
A bearded middle aged man wearing steel armor explained the trials to us.
"There will be four tests for you all to complete."
Mai sat with her friend on the rafters.
"The kid, that's the one you mentioned right?"
"Mhm."
Mai responded casually, keeping an eye on Outis.
"Firstly, you there will be a general physical fitness test, it is a pass fail test, as it is meant to ensure you have the minimum amount of physical fitness required to act as an adventurer."
"I guess he's good looking for a kid his age, but is he really anything special, Mai?"
Mai thought back to when a group of aspiring adventurers (albeit they seemed closer to thugs) were bothering the kid.
Right before she intervened, she had sensed the boy's killing intent towards the thugs.
She had never seen such impressive intent from a child of that age.
"Second, if you are a phyiscal combatant, your skills will be tested in a duel against another individual gathered here. Keep in mind, losing the battle does not necessarily mean you fail, just do your best to display your skills."
Before the boy wandered off, she managed to take a peak at his application form.
"Just watch. He's a. Third Layer."
"Whoa, at that age? You sure?"
Mai nodded her head as her friend, Kara, looked at her with suspicion.
To be honest, she couldn't be one hundred percent certain that the claim was true, but that was why she was here, after all.
"Third, if you wield magic, a test will be conducted by a mage to check your layer and general abilities."
"...Well, even if he is, do you plan on doing something?"
"No. Just a little. Curious. Is all. Let's see, then talk."
Kara nodded her head, deciding to listen to her strange and eccentric friend.
"Fourth, a written test, to see if you possess the necessary survival knowledge needed to live as an adventurer."
"Woah, that takes me back, Mai, didn't you completely bomb that?"
Mai blushed, refusing to respond to the question.
"Oh, looks like they're starting!"
LOG 28 - THE PAULINA FAMILY & THE PAULINE ART
The Paulina family are known for their legendary scrying abilities, being able to read the stars to grasp the future, a bonadfide prophetic art. Their propechies have guided the empire for centuries, and are known to be superior than the prophecies of even saints in religious orders. Unfortunately, the power of prophecy is not an easy one to bare, causing many of its users to go insane.
