RotDG Chapter 54: Midterms III

“Eli, are you sure about this?” Cecil asked as he ran alongside me, keeping up with my pace without even breaking a sweat.

It was the day of our midterms for our class on Combat and Consecration. Unlike our finals, which would be an off-campus evaluation of our combat abilities, the midterms were just a timed physical fitness test. Right now, we were still in the middle of running laps around the field, but we were going to have to compete in an obstacle course and more later on.

The elf running next to me was evidently capable of running at a far faster pace than me, however he slowed down to talk to me regarding what transpired yesterday during our summoning class.

“You still have time to back out,” Cecil continued, meeting my gaze seriously as we ran alongside each other. “Archdeacon Emmett said you can change your mind before the end of the week.”

“I’ll be fine,” I said reassuringly as I tried to catch my breath. “I wouldn’t volunteer to take the accelerated exam if I didn’t know what I’m doing. Remember, I held my own against Prince Claudius just fine.”

Cecil just pursed his lips in response. “That’s true, but… this is also different.”

I raised a brow at him, and he shook his head.

“I do not wish to place doubt on your abilities once again, Eli. However, that was a royal duel. That was a test of skill, not a real battle. You’re a [Healer]. How do you expect to take on a spirit with only a week’s worth of preparation?”

I raised my head when I heard that. It was a valid question on the elf’s part. After all, we were allowed to bring in potions and artifacts to help us subdue the summoned spirit for our final exams, and we would normally have had a month to prepare for it and plan it all out.

But contrary to Cecil’s opinion of me, I was no ordinary [Healer]...

I waved a hand dismissively. “Trust me, I’ve got it all planned out. Just focus on passing your own exams, alright?”

The elf opened his mouth, before hesitating. He looked at me with uncertainty for a moment, then he relented.

“Very well, then.”

And with that, he sped up, running ahead of me as we continued making laps around the track. Eventually, the test came to an end, and even though I wasn’t the fastest or the strongest in the class, I performed in the top percentile because of my all-around versatility.

***

Cecil wasn’t sure whether to believe Eli. Of course, the elf wanted to believe in his… friend… 

Actually, were they even friends? They were roommates, and they had gotten to know each other better ever since the young boy’s duel with Prince Claudius. But neither of them had ever agreed on being friends, so could they even be considered friends?

Cecil didn’t know. He hadn’t even expected to make any friends when he was brought here to the Holy Academy of the Church of Life. Because, from a very young age, he knew that humans and elves would never get along, unless they had a common enemy.

But Eli was different, somehow— the young boy didn’t seem to care about the fact that Cecil was an elf. So they had to be friends, right?

Cecil pursed his lips at the thought. Whatever they were, he was simply worried about Eli. And the concern carried on even until the next day, during their Education on Elements midterms. They were required to demonstrate their proficiency in elemental magic by casting at least one spell in each of the elements— given a list of spells they could study beforehand, ranging from Iron Rank in tier to Silver Rank in tier.

As an [Arcane Assassin], Cecil’s capabilities were not typically related to elemental magic. However, it was not necessary to cast a spell in every elemental magic category to pass the class. Passing simply required being able to cast Iron Rank earth, fire, water, and air magic spells. But to be able to get a distinction in the class— which was the highest grade— it was necessary to be able to cast a Bronze Rank spell in every single element, which included lightning, ice, wood, and lava. 

Knowing that he couldn’t get a distinction, but wanting to stand out anyway, the elf managed to master Bronze Rank spells in earth, fire, water, and air magic. And that was exactly what he displayed during the midterms.

“[Water Bullet], [Rock Dome], [Fireball], and [Wind Cutter]. That was a very impressive demonstration, young Cecil.”

Professor Kallie clapped slowly as she came to a halt before the elf. She was the professor in charge of his class for Education On Elements, and she was a rather kindly older lady who walked with a wooden staff at her side at all times.

He just bowed his head respectfully at her and stepped back. Behind him, the training dummy across the field that had been his target was left a destroyed mess.

But with the snap of a finger, Professor Kallie created a new training dummy, molded from both the earth and the roots of the nearby trees. 

“While I would have preferred to see a wider array of spells in your repertoire, this was certainly still an excellent performance for a non-[Elementalist].”

“Thank you, Professor Kallie.” He bowed once more, before finally moving out of the way.

Professor Kallie called out for the next student waiting in line as he took a seat to the side. As he waited, watching his fellow classmates take their elemental magic aptitude test, his gaze was focused only on a young boy waiting towards the back of the line.

Eli was just casually chatting with Myrla as he waited for his turn to be called up by Professor Kallie. He showed no concern or worry at all about this upcoming test— which was not unusual, since he always seemed to take everything in stride.

But Cecil had heard of Eli’s performance at the entrance exam. The young boy had accidentally blown himself up when attempting to cast a fireball spell. Even though it had been a few months since then, it was evident that elemental magic was not his strong suit. So why was he so unconcerned?

Cecil didn’t know. He wished he understood what was going through the boy’s head. Unfortunately, everything about Eli eluded the elf.

Eventually, Eli’s name was called and he strode up next to Professor Kassie. 

“And what will be the first spell you will be showing us, young Eli?” she asked as he came to a halt next to her.

He just smiled back at her. “A fireball spell, Professor Kassie,” was what he said.

A susurration swept over the watching class. They whispered and pointed at him— a few of them giggling, probably hoping to see him blow himself up again.

“Is he trying to redeem himself for what happened during the entrance exams?”

“He probably spent the last few months just practicing a fireball, huh?”

“But he’s a [Healer]— there’s no way he won’t blow himself up again!”

“Those annoying bastards…” Cecil whispered as he glared at the last guy who spoke.

The elf had to stop himself from cursing them out. But even he couldn’t help and doubt whether or not Eli was going to be capable of casting a fireball. However, as he watched with bated breath as the young boy stepped forward, another voice drew his attention.

“You don’t have to be so worried about Eli. He will prove them all wrong.”

Cecil blinked and looked towards the source of the voice. It was Myrla. The young girl had just finished her turn not too long ago, and she was now walking over to the elf. The two of them had never really spoken before other than exchanging pleasantries whenever they were around Eli.

However, Myrla didn’t seem to show any disdain for the fact that Cecil was an elf, which was good at the very least.

She just spoke confidently as she eyed Eli as he raised a hand.

“Just watch,” she said, and Cecil silently did as he was told.

Eli took in a deep breath and began weaving a ball of fire. It started off just like any other fireball spell, growing from the size of a small candle flame into a sphere the size of a head. But when it reached the size of an ordinary [Fireball] and should have stopped growing… it continued to expand.

Cecil’s heart sank when he saw that. Oh no, he’s going to fail, the elf thought as did most of the other onlookers. They all leant forward— some like Prince Claudius with excitement in seeing Eli fail, while others like Kelton did so in worry— and watched as the fireball continued to balloon in size. 

And just as Cecil thought the fireball was going to explode in Eli’s face… it simply shot out.

The giant fireball soared straight for the dummy, before erupting into a powerful explosion that shook the field. The shockwave from the blast knocked the elf off his seat, alongside many other of the watching students.

Myrla, however, stayed planted on the ground, having braced herself for the blast.

When Cecil picked himself back up to his feet, he looked up to see a large crater where the training dummy had been, still burning and pouring with smoke. An ordinary [Fireball] would have left a crater less than a quarter of the size, and there would have been very little residual smoke after the initial blast.

Most of the class was staring at what Eli had just done in utter shock. Even Professor Kallie couldn’t help but blink as she lowered her clipboard uncomprehendingly.

“Impossible,” Claudius said from the side. “He has to be cheating, right?”

“Wait, so was Eli just pretending to fail at the entrance exams?” Kelton blinked, evidently confused.

Even the ordinarily quiet Sonia Redheart looked impressed by what Eli had done, although she stayed silent as usual.

Myrla just smirked, crossing her arms triumphantly. “Told you all.”

“That was… a [Greater Fireball] spell?” Professor Kallie finally asked, turning to Eli.

The young boy just nodded, before tapping a finger on his chin. “I believe that was equivalent to a Gold Rank spell, if I am not misremembering?”

“Indeed it is, but I…” Professor Kallie glanced between the young boy and the smoldering crater, before she steeled herself. Clearing her throat, she picked back up her clipboard as she faced the young boy. “Very good, young Eli. Show me what else you’re capable of.”

“Alright,” he said as he began to conjure up another spell.

All the while, Cecil just watched, alongside the rest of the class. The rest of the spells Eli cast weren’t as jaw-dropping as the [Greater Fireball]. But they still ranged in strength from Bronze to Silver, encapsulating every single element as well.

When Eli was finished with his demonstration, Cecil only had a single thought. Perhaps Eli is right, the elf thought, watching the young boy draw away from a very-impressed Professor Kallie. Maybe he is actually prepared for his spirit summoning exam…

***

I nodded at Cecil as I walked past him, before finding myself a seat amongst the rest of my class to watch as the rest of this exam played out. But I was no fool— I could feel the eyes of most of my fellow classmates planted on my back. 

I knew that they all doubted my capabilities after the mistake I made at the entrance exams. So I had to make a statement by casting a [Greater Fireball] here. That was why I made sure to learn it, even if the other spells I learned were only Silver Rank at best.

I would have liked to take more time to learn multiple Gold Rank elemental spells, just because it would have been useful for the future. I knew that I could learn them all relatively quickly, but I unfortunately had a limited amount of time I could allocate to this because there were so many other obligations I had to deal with.

Although, a part of me was now wishing I had spent more time teaching myself more powerful spells, because of my upcoming spirit summoning accelerated exam. As much as I reassured Cecil that everything was going to be fine, there was a small part of me that was worried about it as well. However, I wasn’t worried for the same reason as the elf.

Because he thought that I was going to be summoning and taming an ordinary spirit, which I was certain I could do. But that wasn’t going to be the case. Instead, I was fully intending to summon and tame a greater spirit.

And without my death magic, that was going to cause me quite a bit of trouble.

A/N:

Sorry for the delayed chapters. I've been rewriting this chapter and re-outlining book 2 because I didn't feel happy with the direction it was going in. But now, I think I've found a direction I like, so I will be posting more frequently again.

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