Entrance exams

A young woman with a large brimmed hat looked through a window, overlooking the throng of people entering the academy.

Inside a large office filled with books on one side, 

Stroking the fur on her shoulders acting as a small coat, the long black and blue robe streaming behind her,

A small smile on her enchanting face, a knock came from the door behind her causing a slight reaction from the woman.

"Come in" Voice mesmerizingly soft, in reply to the approval a tall man in a suit entered through the dark wood doors highlighted in blue.

Holding a stack of papers in his hands the man adjusted his glasses and spoke.

"Headmaster, I have finished sorting the people who have joined the academy due to the Church's... generous sponsorship"

Turning away from the window and looking at the man with piercing blue eyes, her lips parted.

"No need to sugarcoat it Sebastian, everyone knows what the New faith really did, and there are no ears here"

Rubbing his head in tiredness the man named Sebastian spoke to the woman who was smirking at him from across the desk.

"I understand Headmistress"

"Call me how you usually do"

"Ugh... I understand Evangelina" Awkwardly spitting out those words the man adjusted his glasses and set the stack of papers onto the desk.

"Is it still awkward saying my name Sebastian?"

Moving around the desk the Headmistress sauntered around it with a sway in her hips as she arrived near the man who was sweating profusely.

"Wait, Wait, Wait, isn't this on school grounds? Why are you doing this now!?"

Backing away hurriedly the woman followed and made Sebastian back up to the wall, sweat dropped off his head as it hit the carpet.

"Are you afraid Sebastian? We've been in a relationship since a long while ago, why are you afraid?"

"THE LIST OF CANDIDATES! I THINK WE SHOULD LOOK OVER THE QUALITY OF THE STUDENTS SENT BY THE NEW FAITH!"

Hurriedly changing the subject, Evangelina pouted before backing off.

Pulling out a sigh of relief from the man who tied to hurriedly fix his flustered appearance.

"Sebastian, among those the church has chosen, who are the most noteworthy?"

Patting his head with a handkerchief he received from the Headmistress he nodded.

"Thanks to the sponsorship of the Church of The Abyss, they have sent several people we usually wouldn't see"

Taking the stack of pages held by a singular metal piece she held it in her hands as she flipped through them.

"Any noteworthy figures we must take care of to the best of our abilities?"

Straightening his back the man adjusted his glasses again as he fixed his disheveled appearance and gestured to the paper

"This semester the noteworthy figures that the Abyss sponsored are already marked on the list"

"And that's why I like you"

Smirking as she flipped through the list, mentally taking count of all the marks appearing on the list while ignoring the flustered Sebastian.

She paused for a moment before placing the piece of paper on her desk, moving around it while mentally smirking when she heard a gulp behind her.

Looking through the window that was at the back of the desk and tenderly touching the glass that was framed with an expensive wood that was resistant to magic.

Admiring the throng of people that came from all sorts of backgrounds originating all over the continent enter the academy.

A small smile naturally made it's way to her face as Sebastian bowed to the turned back and exited the room, hurriedly closing the door as he did so.

Chuckling to herself in the large room wearing black and blue she seemingly murmured to no one but herself.

"It seems this entire school will be a much more interesting one than usual."

Her only reply was the shadows in the room deepening as they seemed to hug the corners of the room.

The page she left open on the desk sat there quietly.

Two pictures, one of a boy with wispy grey and brown hair, the other a girl with thick strands of grey and green, eyes of red and blue stared out of the paper.

Their faces were staring out of the paper with a neutral paper as they were placed right next to various letters.

Thick red marks stamped next to their names.

Scoria Del Dmantra

Ellora Laga Nephele

---

The School Of Amandus, founded by the Infinite Circle Mage Exor Amandus

A man most well known for his abilities to infinitely spam high tiered magical abilities like nothing and without mental strain.

Thus granting him the title of the Infinite circle Mage as he was a feared entity to greet on the battlefield.

His high tiered magic that poured out like water being the reason.

As a school founded by such a man, his knowledge being the core of the Academy that only a few could even access, even fewer to comprehend and even fewer able to use.

The requirements to even see, comprehend nevertheless use being incredibly high requirements that most couldn't fulfil in their lifetime.

And just how the knowledge of a man most known for his ability to put out several magic circles at a time.

And with the knowledge as an incredible allure, the nobles attracted to the ability to make their house rise higher come.

The periodic royal doing the same in hopes of gaining the knowledge of an ancient genius who was active since the fourth Great war.

However with the appearance of knowledge that could be obtained if you luckily have the perfect of talents.

It also had the ability to attract vagrants who were young hopefuls deluding themselves that they had talent.

Of course there were sometimes metaphorical diamonds in the rough that would appear amongst the coal.

But they were in the minority of course.

But the cutoff point was high enough that about 90% of the aspiring students would go home disappointed.

It once got so bad that at least 99% of the aspirants were rejected and the academy of Amandus faced it's first year of declining status.

However luckily it was a one time event and the group of accepted students were talents that couldn't be ignored at the least.

It seemed that particular generation was one that squeezed the majority of the talent into a few people instead.

But besides that.

In the Academy that sat right front of a mountain that continued to climb higher to the skies, a majority of the facilities either built onto it's side or rather inside it.

The test was an incredibly harsh one where nearly all the people who were hailed as geniuses in their localities were rejected.

So much so that complaints inevitably rose and were launched at the academy.

But the standards of geniuses always differed amongst people that didn't have anything else to compare it with.

To compare it was like seeing someone much better than you in one thing but having nothing to compare it to.

That was why they were called geniuses.

But the school couldn't care less about them, as they couldn't accept people who complained otherwise they would have to accept everyone who complained.

To the point that the entirety of the status of the academy would be dragged to the dirt because of them.

So, to make sure that only the cream of the crop could attend at the school.

The tests were both hard and rigorous, requiring only the best.

The tests were as followed.

The First, a test of will.

It served for a wake up call to the aspirants that the path they might take wasn't as glorious as it seemed.

It also served to find those who could go past the trials that would appear in the future.

The Second, a test on talent which was the bare minimum that was required to enter the schools so that the academy could accept them.

The third was the test of potential.

It tested the natural foundational concepts of the body and how well it was developed at the age of sixteen.

The test basically tested how well you acclimated to change and how best you could take advantage of it.

One either needed incredible instinct or high intelligence about general knowledge.

The fourth and final test is one that the Academy of Amandus held in high regard.

As people seem to forget what he was also known to specialize in before becoming renowned as the infinite circle mage in the war.

Looking past the grand title of the Infinite circle mage.

The man named Exor Amandus?

He was also known as a War Mage.

And thus the final test was the test of combat.

---

The headmaster stopped talking in front of the crowd of children barely at adulthood, well according to the standards of the world as they were all sixteen.

Eighteen being the generally accepted age for adulthood all around for humans.

It could be different if it were other species but the general age range for being accepted as an adult was eighteen.

"And that is the basic set up for the tests"

Eyeing the crowd with a crafty smile, the look of cunning in her blue eyes shone underneath the shadowy brim of the hat.

The woman known as Evangelina or also known as the Head mistress.

Clad in black robes marked in blue subtly scanned the crowd of aspirants making sure to find the ones who may pass with her specialized eyes that spoke of immense experience.

Her large wide brimmed hat with a spiked top, much like a witch's hat hung on her face and covered her beautiful face in shadows.

Subtly emanating a pressure that was unique to those who had reached her level or who had experienced enough to generate such an aura.

Silently pressing down on the students she grinned when she looked at them.

People with low talent instinctively were pressured and backed away, those with mediocre talent according to her talents couldn't face her.

The ones that were of note however were the ones unaffected by the pressure.

Standing out amongst the crowd like diamonds in the dirt.

Smiling at those prospects, the Headmasters eyes were attracted to a pair who if one didn't know better looked like two peas in a pod.

One boy with large billowy clothes that covered his body, the clothes reminding one of fire as they hung in the air under the lightest breezes.

Playfully stared at the girl with a challenging stare.

The girl being subject to his stare accepted it without problem while looking back playfully.

Wearing clothes that reminded one of the ocean waves in the sea, the long breezy cloth hanging loose against her body.

'A rivalry? Between two different marked ones at that?'

Eyes lighting up in slight mischievousness the Headmaster grinned, flashing her white teeth at the crowd looking at her.

It however was missed by the good majority of them as they were making sure to not even faint under the pressure.

'Oops'

Seeing one faint just at the thought passed by her mind, she subtly gestured for someone to get the boy.

Extending a thread of mana only visible to herself that touched the boy he instantly reacted and turned her way, the girl doing the same as they both quickly turned to find the source of the mana.

Chuckling the head mistress though to herself as she slowly dismissed the aura that hung over the crowd of aspirants.

A good majority of them falling against the ground, a sheen of sweat covering their faces.

'It seems that I must tell the supervisors to pay attention to those two specifically.'

Smiling she opened her mouth as she thought.

'I look forwards to your achievements in the future, young students'

"For those who passed the First test of Will, congratulations, you are one step closer to entering the academy.

+++

Tree