Chapter 381
A few days later.
Elementary Black Magic class.
The information the students had been desperately waiting for finally flowed from Jane’s mouth.
“An announcement regarding the exam has come down from Keyzen Headquarters.”
‘At last!’
Simon and the Class A students couldn’t hide their tension as they swallowed hard.
The notorious exam, said to eliminate 200 or even 300 of the first-years. Jane unfolded a document handed to her by the assistant, with a soft rustle.
“The stage for this advancement exam and the 5th BMAT, the integrated exam is—”
Her voice rang clearer than ever before.
“—a dungeon.”
Dungeon!
Simon clenched his fist tightly. He was finally going to step into that truly unknown place.
“See? Told you I was right.”
Dick chuckled.
The advancement exam had several variations every year. Last year, they entered a monster-infested island, and the year before that, it was a dungeon.
Since they had already undergone the “Island Survival Evaluation” this year, Dick had guessed it would be a dungeon, and he was spot on.
“First, there’s a document you all need to fill out.”
Jane said.
As she gestured, the assistants bustled around the classroom, placing documents on each student’s desk.
“…Ah.”
Simon let out a bitter smile as he flipped through the document.
It was the infamous paper commonly known among students as the “Waiver of Bodily Responsibility.”
To summarize, it declared that they acknowledged the dangers of the exam and that under no circumstances would they hold the school responsible for anything that might happen during it.
Having filled this out several times already at Keyzen, the students didn’t seem shocked—just resigned, as if to say, of course it’s time for this again.
“The danger level of this advancement exam will be on a completely different level from any you’ve experienced before.”
Jane said.
“All previous exams were supervised and controlled by Keyzen Headquarters, but this one is not. You will receive no assistance inside the dungeon. The convenient teleportation magic that returns you to school when your barrier gauge hits 0%—”
Her voice echoed—
“—will not exist.”
The weight of it crashed down upon the lecture hall.
“Death in the exam means actual death. Anything can happen in the dungeon, and nothing is guaranteed. If you intend to quit, now is your final chance.”
Smack.
She placed the documents on the podium and sat down. Even the way she sat exuded aristocratic grace.
“Completing your first year at Keyzen is a respectable enough career that could let you make a living somewhere. The choice is yours.”
Snap!
No sooner had she finished speaking than Dick was the first to sign the document. Simon and the others followed, gripping their quills tightly as they wrote down their names and signatures.
After surviving this far, none of them had the slightest intention of backing down just before advancing to Keyzen’s second year.
“At the very least, it seems there are no cowards here.”
As the assistants collected the documents, Jane rose from her seat and returned to the podium.
“Then, I’ll explain the rules of the exam.”
As she began, Simon thought—as expected of Keyzen, the scale of this exam is massive.
Every first-year student would enter the dungeon. Around their necks, each of them would wear an unbreakable artifact imbued with “Recording Magic”.
The goal of all students was the same: clear the dungeon.
Because the dungeon was such an extremely dangerous space, combat between students was strictly forbidden. Violators would be expelled.
The moment the dungeon was cleared, the entire exam would end.
“In other words.”
Jane emphasized,
“The exam will continue until the dungeon is cleared. It could take a week, or a month. Or even when the next batch of freshmen enrolls next year, some of you might still be stuck in that dungeon.”
Brutal.
That was the thought that simultaneously arose in every student’s mind.
This was indeed the infamous Keyzen advancement exam. No wonder only around 300 out of the 1,000 first-year entrants survived each year.
And because of how dangerous the exam was, Jane was deliberately instilling a sense of urgency in the students with her words.
Snap!
Just then, a hand shot up—unsurprisingly, it was the one everyone expected.
“Jaime Victoria speaking. Professor! How do we clear the dungeon?”
Jane gave her a small nod.
“There is an entity within the dungeon known as the ‘Dungeon Master’, or sometimes ‘Boss Monster’. If you destroy this core entity that maintains spatial distortion, the dungeon will collapse on its own, and you will all return to the original world.”
This time, a male student raised his hand.
“Scott Snyder! Professor, earlier you said the entire school’s goal is to clear the dungeon. So, what if we all just charge at the Dungeon Master together, like 1 vs 647 or something?”
“Yes, that is allowed.”
The students buzzed with murmurs and chatter.
Scott Snyder lowered his hand and was already whispering to his teammates, “Then isn’t it way too easy?”
“However,”
Jane added,
“Only a very small number of students among the 647 will even reach the final location where the Dungeon Master resides.”
“R-Right…”
This time, Maelyn sitting in the back raised her hand. Jane acknowledged her with a nod.
“Maelyn Villene here. I’m curious about the evaluation and grading criteria for the advancement exam.”
A truly model-student question.
“The evaluation is based on ‘your performance in the dungeon’. How you make decisions in the dungeon, which monsters you defeat and with what black magic, how you respond to emergencies, how you secure basic necessities, manage your mental state, and set goals. Everything you do will be part of the evaluation.”
Since it was the final exam for first-years, it served as a sort of comprehensive test.
Jane explained that everything they had learned, experienced, felt, and mastered as necromancers so far would be assessed.
“However, since the evaluation is based on ‘performance in the dungeon’, meaningful results will only come if your actions align with the goal of clearing the dungeon.”
At that, the intelligent Maelyn tilted her head.
“I-I’m not sure I understand. Could you give an example?”
“Let’s say a student decides to just hunt as many monsters as possible during the exam period, purely for grades.”
She began drawing a stick figure on the board at lightning speed.
“On the other hand, there’s a student who deliberately lures and fights off swarms of monsters to buy time for those fighting the Dungeon Master. Even if the first student kills more monsters, Keyzen will award significantly higher marks to the second one.”
‘Oh.’
Simon was mildly impressed.
This was the rule that penetrated the entire structure of the exam.
If someone thinks ‘someone else will clear it for us~’ and focuses on meaningless monster hunting, they’ll be penalized right from the start.
To get good grades, everyone had no choice but to move forward toward one goal, clearing the dungeon.
“Hmm—hmm. Hmm.”
At that moment, Dick, seated next to Simon, was tapping the desk with his fingertips, wearing a thoughtful expression.
Then he raised his hand high. Jane pointed at him.
“Beloved Professor Jane! This is Dick Hayword!”
Dick shot up and shouted.
“Yes, the most concerning student in our class, Dick Hayword.”
Jane replied.
“So, if cooperation between students is possible, is it always better to work together? How will that be graded?”
Jane looked him over silently for a moment before responding.
“I wouldn’t say cooperation is always the best. If you form a ‘party’ with other students, your teamwork and positional role will be additional factors in your grading.”
In a party, a student assigned to defense can focus solely on defense and still earn points.
A student focusing on support will also be evaluated based on that.
Of course, teamwork and team play can also work against you, creating room for negative marks.
“In other words, even your sneaky tactics could count as a contribution to the party, and earn you points.”
“As expected of Professor Jane! You’ve seen right through me!”
“Take your seat.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
Laughter trickled through the room as Dick quickly planted himself in his chair.
Maelyn, sitting behind, sighed deeply and covered her forehead.
“…I’ve never met someone as embarrassing as you.”
“Oh, come now! Thank you for the high praise!”
“You’re a real lunatic.”
After that, other students began flooding Jane with questions, and she answered them without hesitation.
The type or theme of the dungeon couldn’t be disclosed, that was Keyzen Headquarters’ policy. Jane told them to see it for themselves inside the dungeon.
The only detail she could share was that the dungeon was huge. So big, in fact, that while cooperation was allowed, there was a chance you might not meet a single person throughout your entire exploration.
“The advancement exam is one week from today.”
Jane said.
“I trust there are no students in Class A who would slack off just because finals are over. Sharpen your abilities to the limit. Studying the basic knowledge of dungeons would also be wise. That is all.”
* * *
After the exam schedule and details were announced, the student body was in chaos.
Students in other classes had also received the notice from their respective professors, so talk of dungeons filled the air all throughout the cafeteria.
[A dungeon the size of a small kingdom…]
Simon was climbing a hill, taking a walk with Herseba. Floating weightlessly through the air, Herseba had taken the form of a woman shaped from surrounding sand.
[It really is fascinating!]
“There’s something else I want to ask.”
Simon said.
“Even inside another dungeon, can you still use your third authority to invite someone into your own dungeon?”
[Of course you can!]
Herseba responded like it was a silly question.
[Is it hard to understand just because they call it a ‘dungeon’? Space is just space. Whether we use it here or inside a dungeon, my authority will work just fine. Once the duration ends, they’ll return to where they were originally.]
“That’s a relief.”
Herseba frowned.
[But why do you ask? I’d prefer not to use the third authority unless absolutely necessary.]
Ever since the battle with Shatel, Herseba had been groaning and bedridden for a whole week. The aftereffects were serious, and she even showed signs of mild trauma.
That’s why Simon had been coaxing her gently and experimenting with various ways to use her ability more efficiently.
“Speaking of which…!”
Simon suddenly grabbed Herseba tightly, making her squeal in surprise. He picked up a small stone from the ground, tossed it upward lightly, then struck the ground with his staff.
‘Golden Transmutation!’
The transmutation spread across the ground just enough to activate, and from it, a pointed golden structure shot up, striking the falling stone dead-on.
“Doesn’t this feel a lot less taxing?”
Simon asked.
[W-Well, yeah. Ah! Don’t hold me so tight!]
Herseba grumbled.
[The issue is that third authority, I’m telling you.]
“I’ll adjust that as much as I can. I think bringing out that mummy last time was too much.”
Simon, enthusiastically twirling Herseba in the air while testing her abilities, had unknowingly reached a thickly wooded area of the mountain.
“Go into subspace for now, Herseba.”
She blinked.
[Why? The scenery here is beautiful. Can’t we stay a bit longer?]
“If we go any farther, it might get tough for you as a lich.”
—Meow!
—Meow! Meow! Meow! Meow!
At that moment, accompanied by meowing, two little kittens—one white, one black—came scampering toward Simon.
“Whitey! Blackie! You’ve been doing well?”
[What the—cats?]
The kittens rubbed themselves against Simon’s feet, clamoring to be petted and picked up.
“You two haven’t grown at all.”
Simon said with a grin, scooping them up—one in each hand, perfectly fitting.
“You’re here.”
An old man with a white beard and martial arts robes emerged from the bushes.
“Professor Farahan!”
It was Farahan, the professor for Defense Against Holiness.
[H-Huh?! What the—Who’s that?!]
Herseba trembled in fear. Since becoming a lich, this was her first time sensing holiness. Her reaction was perfectly understandable.
Simon, being considerate, tucked her into subspace and walked toward Farahan’s house.
‘If I pull someone into Herseba’s dungeon, one restriction disappears.’
A confident smile formed on Simon’s lips.
‘A space for just Herseba and me. As long as I can handle the recording artifact problem in this exam, I’ll be free to use holiness as much as I want.’
Everything I can do—
Simon resolved to keep all possibilities open and move accordingly.
“Alright. Today, we’ll be reviewing the basics of Divine Beastology.”
“Yes, Professor!”
Superb.
When are we getting more free chapters?
Thanks for the new chapters