Artificial Fantasy

Chapter 156: Spell Demonstration

A few minutes have passed since we encountered those snobby players and Hiroshi, and we've reached the courtyard where our second test of the entrance exam awaits. While Yur1 and I didn't have a chance to chat with Hiroshi a bit more, we do know more about his history with those jerks.

Apparently, Hiroshi was originally a girl, but now identifies as a boy. I'm not sure why he changed, but Yur1 says it depends on whether they were comfortable with their new identity, not just from personal preference alone. Not only that, but him being a "trans male" as they call him has gotten him a lot of hate from some of the players. I guess they pick on him because in their minds, he's not supposed to be a boy at all. To be honest, that's mean and hurtful to Hiroshi. Heck, the only reason my bullies from elementary picked on me was because they saw me as a weak fantasy weirdo nerd. Of course, Hayate was furious once he got his act together, and he didn't waste any time dissuading them from picking on me. But for Hiroshi, it feels cruel that his bullies would harass him just because he feels that he was meant to be a boy instead of a girl. What's the point of expressing yourself if people keep putting you down because you're different from them?

But to my surprise, he didn't mind it for long, thanks to his friends in real life, just like me with Wind and his friends. That was a big relief to learn. If he'd played the game alone, I can't imagine the suffering he had with those guys. But just in case, I decide to hang out with him for a while during the exam. I want to get to know him more, and he might have skills on the field!

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Eventually, we arrive back at the courtyard, the very same place where we had an opening ceremony for the exam. Like before, we are lined up in groups of 5. But this time, Yur1 is behind me while Hiroshi is beside me instead. And unfortunately, I can see the snobby player and his posse two lines behind us. I have a feeling it won't do any good to interact with them right now. So I should ignore them until further need. Besides, at that moment, Xiri and another proctor came up in front of us.

[Welcome back, participants,] Xiri greets. [For this next test, we will test your magical aptitude. You can use any spell you learned either from your mentors, spellbooks, or by self-practice. However, to make things fair to anyone who learned two schools of magic, you may only choose one spell per element via the targets we provided.]

They pointed at the large targets that they had replaced on the stage before. Looking closely, there are six targets made of stones and two more seemingly made of wood or a tree trunk.

[Each of them is specifically made to withstand any magic under the [Master Rank] and is enchanted to automatically cast a [Mana Shield] to protect us. So feel free to show off your strongest spells as long as you prioritize others' safety. Now then, how about we start off by the order of arrival? Participant No. 1 <Tolae>! You will go first.]

Since we've arrived on time, Yur1's number should be 17 while mine is 18. So it won't be long until it's our turn. But that doesn't mean we aren't allowed to observe the other participants.

Participants 1 through 5 have some decent magic mastery compared to ours. One player looks like a barbarian, yet he had a strong [Earth] magic enough to leave cracks on the target, while another controls her [Water] spell like a conductor. There's also an NPC who uses [Light] magic to hit a bullseye, but not before blinding most of us with a big flash. Then there's the snobby player and his friend, and I hate to admit it, but they're good. The snobby player, <Earlin>, casts a lot of [Flurry Arrows] that put a lot of holes in the stone target as well as almost incinerating the wooden target with his huge [Fireball]. His NPC friend is also no slouch as he detonates a lot of [Mana Bombs] to the target, enough to create a huge create around the bullseye. This is kind of nerve-wracking. I know I said I would show them, but now, I'm not sure if I can outcast them with my magic.