The mage exam continues

I couldn't help but sneer at the calling of her name.

I watched as she walked gracefully up to the table where the judges were seated. She was as poised and as beautiful as ever, that I couldn't deny. She was very beautiful and it was really a shame that she didn't have a personality to match.

I felt Edgar move uncomfortably beside me, as if reacting to Lavinia's presence.

"Have you met Lady Lavinia?" I asked him, noticing the unpleasant grimace on his face.

"Just once before..." he replied softly, "I'll just say that she isn't the type of person I want to be involved with. Lord Elian feels the same way about her."

I looked up to Lord Elian and he nodded in agreement.

"Lavinia and I grew up together, so I know what she's like." Continued Lord Elian, "that's why I'm so surprised that she is even trying to take the exam." He frowned. "She was never very good at using her magic, she was only even admitted into the Royal Mage society because of her family connections and status as a second rank noble. So I don't understand why she would risk the humiliation of getting a low grade rather than keeping her pride and not participating." He sounded puzzled.

"I can tell you why." Chimed in Cornelius. "You're right Elian, she wouldn't risk her pride and try out for an examination where she would get a low grade. She would only participate if she knew she could get a good grade. That's why she is participating, she knows that she will get a good grade." Cornelius stated clearly.

"Huh?" Murmured Alice confused, I was also confused. "How is it possible for her to know that she will get a good grade if her magic skills are subpar?" Asked Alice with a big frown on her face.

Just as Cornelius was about to speak, a smooth silky voice interrupted him.

"There are two ways for her to be sure." We all spun around and were greeted by the menacing beauty of three individuals. Lords Sinjin and Alucard Von Esterheim, as well as Lord Gawain Smithson.

Edgar, Elian, Bard and I quickly bowed to greet the trio of higher ranked Lords. While Alice and Cornelius who were of the same rank bowed their heads in greeting.

Sinjin first addressed me, "Don't look so surprised Riley, did you think that I would miss my own student's exam?" He asked mockingly. I blushed and turned away.

Then Lord Gawain spoke, "I have come to see if you will keep our promise." Lord Gawain stared down at me with a mischievous glint in his eyes. I gulped nervously, even though I knew that I would keep my promise to recognize him as the person who gave me the idea for the artifact.

"Please continue Lord Alucard. What are the ways for her to be sure that she will get a high grade?" Alice urged on.

Lord Alucard obliged her and carried on talking.

"The first way would be for her to bribe the judges." He said so plainly as if it were common sense. "However Since Prince Geoffrey is an adjudicator this year, that would be impossible. Prince Geoffrey is committed to magic and would never accept bribes. Also since he is the prince he is wanting of nothing." Alucard explained.

"He definitely would not." Agreed Gawain.

"The other way would be to cheat. To simply submit an artifact that someone else created and call it your own." Alucard continued.

"But wouldn't she be caught for submitting someone else's work?" I interrupted not seeing how it was possible.

"Not if that person were paid handsomely for their creation..." Alucard grinned slyly.

My head was spinning, so not only was she not suffering the consequences for trying to ruin me, she was now about to get away scot free for cheating during an exam!

"Well can't we tell the judges that she cheated." I suggested hopefully.

"There is no proof Riley, unless the person she paid comes forward, nothing can be done." Sinjin replied to me with a sympathetic smile on his face.

I sighed a long depressed sigh, and then turned back forward to watch Lavinia cheat her way to the top. The only thing I could do was to make sure to completely smash my exam and get the S grade in order to outdo her.

Third person

Lavinia confidently stood in front of the judges and began to showcase her artifact. She was very confident that she would be able to get an A grade for this artifact, seeing as she had paid a lot of money for one of the mages from the 'Steel Maiden' guild to create it for her. She had better get an A grade after the amount of money she spent.

She couldn't help the sly grin that broke out across her face when she envisioned herself getting a higher grade than that peasant Riley. She couldn't wait to beat her, with one of Riley's own spells Nonetheless.

Lavinia promptly picked up the artifact from her maids hands and held it up for everyone to see, she was delighted to hear the 'oooh's' and 'aaaah's' coming from the contestants around the room. All the attention was on her, and she basked in the glory.

The object looks similar to a gun. Except the barrel was made with a type of gemstone and there was no trigger, only a large sack of water underneath the barrel.

Lavinia then turned to the side and chanted the spell, the Mage had told her to memorize.

"Piercing water arrows, fly!" She called out dramatically trying to squeeze out as much from this performance as possible.

Everybody watched intently as a powerful shot of water magic erupted for the barrel of the barrel and hurtled across the hall at lightning speed and then crashed against the side of the hall causing the nullification magic to strain at the advanced water magic.

The other contestants immediately started cheering and clapping, Lavinia not-so-modestly curtseyed to everyone with a perfect fake smile across her face.

Riley on the other hand was about to burst over with rage because Lavinia hadn't just cheated, she had used one of a Riley's spells. Lavinia had literally used the same water bullet spell that Riley had used at the Mage tournament against Dimitri. All Lavinia had done was surround Riley's spell in an artifact and redone the chant for it.

Riley thought back to the Mage tournament to her battle with Dimitri.

I visualized the water hardening and then forming bullets, "A thousand water arrows!" I chanted, not actually needing to chant, just to give the audience an idea of what I was doing and I replaced the word 'bullet' with 'arrows' since they didn't have bullets or guns in this world. All around me a thousand water droplets rose from the ground and transformed into the shape of bullets. Which then flew at lightning speed towards Dimitri.

Suddenly Dimitri tapped Riley shoulder with a concerned look on his face.

"Isn't that one of your spells Riley?" Dimitri whispered into her ear.

Riley only nodded. She couldn't even speak she was so furious. Lavinia wasn't going to get away with this, Riley was about to march over to the judging panel and expose her when Prince Geoffrey put up his hand silencing the room.

Lavinia straightened up, eagerly waiting for the prince to announce her A grade, however she noticed that the prince was staring at her and wasn't announcing her rank. Lavinia giggled to herself thinking that perhaps the prince was so captivated by her beauty that he found himself unable to speak. She smiled back at him and fluttered her eyelashes.

"Lady Hestia..." began the prince with a cold expression on his face that made Lavinia recoil a bit. "This spell, I see that you have not acknowledged anyone for giving you the idea for this spell." Lavinia snickered internally thinking about how she had stole the idea from Lady Riley.

"Yes that's right. This is an original spell." She replied.

"While the judges and I were deliberating we noticed that this artifact has significant resemblance to a spell exhibited by Third rank noble, Lady Riley Delton, during the Royal Mage tournament..." Lavinia's throat went dry, did the Prince actually remember Lady Riley's spell from so many weeks ago?!

Riley grinned from the other side of the hall. Lavinia had been caught out by the prince, yet again.

Lavinia began to stutter not sure about how to justify the resemblance of the two spells, she hadn't predicted the prince remembering Riley's spell from the tournament.

"Nevertheless it is still quite an excellent improvement!" Chimed in Cressa Theorden the newspaper deputy chief editor.

"You only say that because you did not see the original spell Madam Theorden." Replied the shrill thin voice of the Saint, Corvinia Isleen. "The original spell that I witnessed with my own eyes was nothing short of ten times more powerful than this projectile, and was able to shoot a thousand water arrows. This is nothing compared to the original!" The old woman looked very dissatisfied with a menacing scowl across her face as she regarded Lavinia.

Lavinia began to sweat and fiddled with the artifact in her hand.

Then Mr Bazthornia spoke up, "By the rules of the exam if a contestant forgets to acknowledge their source, they can score no higher than a C grade." He said as he shifted his glasses on his nose with shaky hands. Mr Bazthornia had taken quite a liking to Lady Riley Delton. He decided that she was a very kind and intelligent young lady and he would not see her taken advantage of, especially when she sent him home with such a delicious cake after he had finished molding the sword for her.

Lavinia went cold. The highest grade she could get was a measly C grade?! She was starting to feel dizzy. She couldn't believe that this was happening to her.

"Mr Bazthornia that rule only applies if the contestants creation is in fact an improvement on the original." Began Lord Umfrey. "In this case, the original spell was for more powerful..."

"That means that the spell presented to us is just a copy of an old spell and is thus eligible for disqualification." Stated Mr Bazthornia.

Lavinia's vision was beginning to blur. She couldn't fathom the idea of being disqualified.

"Well, let us be kind. She did still present the spell in a new easily portable artifact. How about giving her an F grade?" Suggested Lord Mannon Brunhild Who was beginning to feel a bit sorry for Lavinia.

Lavinia's breath hitched and her throat. She couldn't handle this. How could this be happening? What was she doing wrong? Why did she always lose to Lady Riley?  Those were Lavinia's last thoughts before she promptly fainted and landed on the marble floor with a thud. Her maid shrieked frantically and tried to wake her up, but Lavinia was already in a deep sleep.

"Butlers!" Called the prince, "Escort Lady Lavinia to a bedroom where she can rest for a while. When she wakes up, inform her of her disqualification." Commanded the prince coldly.

The butlers promptly shuffled into the room and carried her out, with her frantic maid shuffling alongside her.

Riley was trying very hard not to smile, but she couldn't help but feel that justice had been served.

Riley

"Lord Edgar Heathson!" Boomed the announcer. I gave Edgar a happy squeeze which propelled him forward.

When Prince Geoffrey ordered Edgar to begin, he brought out an object that looked like a leather whip, and everybody watched curiously and he held it up in his hands.

I watched carefully as Edgar began to channel lightning magic into the whip. After a moment the whip was crackling with lightning magic, you could literally hear the sound of the lightning magic inside the whip, it sounded like a thousand tiny birds chirping in a high pitch.

Edgar then raised his arm high into the air and held the whip there for a moment before cracking the whip down on the floor with a powerful whack. Lightning magic emanated from the whip and struck the floor with an astonishing force. The lightning magic from the whip shot down against the nullification magic, the nullification magic wasn't strong enough to withstand the force so the lightning magic broke through and made a huge crack in the marble floor. The lightning magic then traveled across the floor like a hundred little snakes gliding at a lightning pace over the marble and then eventually dispersed.

Cheers and whoops erupted from the everyone around us, but I think that I was definitely the loudest.

"Whooohoo! Nice Edgar!" I shouted.

"Well done Edgar!" Cheered Lord Elian, who looked like a very proud tutor.

"Edgar truly is impressive." Complimented Alice.

"If Prince Geoffrey wasn't the adjudicator this year, he would definitely get an S grade. However since the prince is so strict he will probably get an A grade." Said Cornelius. I thought that he was probably right.

"Well done Lord Heathson." Said the Prince with a slight smile on his lips.

"Thank you your Highness!" Shouted back Edgar nervously, still not used to being addressed directly by the prince. Geoffrey chuckled at his awkwardness.

"Your grade is," once again the whole room listened anxiously.

"A".

The room broke out into cheers and clapping and Edgar was blushing profusely.

"Thank you very much your Highness!" Exclaimed Edgar as he bowed again.

"There is no need for thanks. This is all due to your efforts." Edgar smiled brightly at Geoffrey's words and bowed to him once again before making his way back over to us.

"Oh Edgar, Well done!" I said as I gave him a big bear hug.

"You've made me proud." Complimented Elian.

"Quite well done," commented Alucard from behind us as he regarded Edgar for the first time. He actually looked quite impressed, "Who would have thought such power would be granted to commoners..." he commented which made me roll my eyes. Alucard was still Alucard.

"Lady Riley Delton!"  Oh gosh, here I go.