TBATE: Art and Tess's Second Chance

Chapter 14: S Rank Examinations

Arthur Leywin's POV:

We walked into the arena prepared for us where I saw two familiar faces. Swinging his sword in practiced motions was Barald, from my raid in the Dire Tombs when I adventured with Jasmine. On another side of the room was a very energetic Alea, she was practicing her plant magic.

Kapsian whistled to get their attention then introduced us using our aliases. Alea must have instantly recognized us as she was holding in a giggle as he was talking. It was a little surprising to me considering our last encounter at the auction house.

"Do you two know how this is going to work?" Kapsian asked with a raised brow looking directly at me. "Not the S ranked exam, I've only ever heard of the regular rank examinations, so do enlighten us Mr. Bladeheart." I replied, conjuring chairs made of polished marble for us to use while he explained.

He thanked me for the seat, stopping himself from gauking at the craftsmanship of the chairs before starting his explanation. "The S rank examinations are only a little bit different than the usual practical exams. Instead of one instructor gauging a candidate for a rank, this is more of a prove yourself situation." He said while gesturing to Alea and Barald.

I nodded understanding where he was going with this. "So this will be a two on one situation, one where we have to either beat our opponents or last for a certain amount of time I presume?" I raised a hand to gesture towards our soon to be sparing partners as I asked.

"Three on one actually. Based on the little information I have on you, as well as your...connections, I wanted to make sure this exam was genuine to what an S rank exam should be." He replied with a smirk.

"In other words, you want this to be extremely difficult for us." I deadpanned before letting out a small laugh. He raised a brow at my actions but I simply replied, "You would need a lot more than one white core to challenge us Kapsian, but I suppose you'll see soon enough."

"Well if you're that confident, then I suggest we get started so you can receive your ranks." He said bitterly as he stood up from the smooth surfaced chair. 'I think you hurt his pride princess,' Regis snickered inside my head. I rolled my eyes at my companions' remark as the rest of us got up from our seats, the chairs crumbling back to match the dirt-like arena.

"You wanna go first, or do you want me to set the stage for you?" Tess asked me as she stretched her lean, athletic body.

"Up to you, I'm not here to show off. This is just a means to an end after all." I shrugged as I began to stretch my body as well.

"Then you go ahead and I'll follow your lead." Tess grabbed Sylv off my head and walked to the side of the arena to watch the exam. I looked across the arena to find the other three waiting for me to get prepared to fight.

I casually walked a few feet towards them with my hands lazily in my pockets before stopping roughly 20 paces from their position.

"Ready when you are." I said in a monotone voice. The only way they could push me to fight even somewhat seriously was with incredible teamwork. 'I guess it's time to see if they take us seriously or not.' Regis gave me a mental smirk in agreement.

Barald was quick to take the front line with his sword and shield, Kapsian played middleman preparing his wind bullets, and Alea stayed back preparing to conjure vines that would impede my movement. It was a good strategy, almost reminding me of an Alacryan battalions' fighting style the way they tried to make up for each other's weaknesses.

I've spent a lot of time in this world hiding my true capabilities. Now, I finally have the strength I need to live a happy life, so it's time to stop restraining myself. Of course I'm not here to kill these people, but I will use the most optimal skills to win.