“May the first Skyline Trial begin!” Daedrik’s words brought the entire school to silence—Everyone stood with bated breaths. Breaths that turned to gasps of surprise when the ground underfoot began to rumble, the grass tearing itself apart in order to reveal the stairway below.

  “Let the chosen trio lead the way.” Deadrik said with a smirk, stepping back he gestured to the stairwell.

  Lushia and Kendrick didn’t hesitate to take the first move, their steps falling in perfect synchronization with one another. Nenema and Silva followed suit only a heartbeat later, while their steps lacked the methodic synchronization of mother and son, it was impressively well timed.

  Lastly, I was left to speed walk in order to catch up with Carmine when she began walking without me. I tried my best to match my steps to hers in a similar fashion to the other groups, but it proved to be rather difficult thanks to the better part of a foot of height between the two of us.

  I could feel the prying gazes of hundreds of eyes burning into my back, the weight of their dispositions bearing down upon my skin like a tidal wave of pins and needles. It was almost relieving when I walked across the threshold into the stairwell, the oppressive stone walls felt reassuring as a barrier between the scorn burning into my flesh.

  However, the walk down was anything but calming. The absolute silence left nothing but the beat of my own heart as company, while the echo of steps encroaching from behind me began to sound like a cacophony of rain pounding against the stone walls.

  Finally, the stairs began to expand rapidly—Ballooning outwards into the massive underground chamber. The polished wooden walls quickly dulled the thunder of steps, the brilliant white lights fought in direct opposition with the overwhelming darkness of the underground. And at the very center of the room, a great pedestal stood in place, a crimson line dividing the room into two halves.

  Lushia and Kendrick already took their positions on the far end of the room from the stairs, Nenema and Silva followed suit—And with a deep breath I followed Carmine over, standing in the most pristine line that I could manage beside her.

  The next figure to enter the room was Deadrik, his conniving grin plastered wide across his face as he approached the pedestal in the center of the room. Afterwards came the deluge of students, all filing into the room in a neat line before falling into a formation with one another.

  I was able to pick out a few familiar figures from the crowd, the brilliant blue hair of Hico, Anestesia’s violet hair, and for a moment I saw a flash of silver amongst the crowds. Levi was more than easy to pick out once some of the teachers began to file in, his massive frame was so wide that it nearly couldn’t fit through the narrow passageway! And, in my distraction I was utterly unprepared for the surprise that launched itself my way.

  “Uff!—” I grunted out, feeling the furry missile slam its way into my gut. Not a moment later I heard the disgruntled yips of the Kitsune that landed gracefully at my feet. “Hi… Akemi…” I huffed out through gritted teeth. I had to clench my jaw down tight in order to fight the bile that rushed up my throat from the impact.

  “Tsk,” Lushia muttered. “Are you really so pathetic that you can’t control your pet?” She sneered, the corner of her lip raised into a partial snarl more akin to a beast than anything else.

  I chose to subsequently ignore her as I bent over, extending an arm out for Akemi to climb up and find her perch along the nape of my neck.

  “Now!” Daedrik shouted out while clapping his hands together, his voice reaching a volume that was utterly excessive for the echoing chamber. “I believe our trio of Representatives shall be the ones who go first—So, let us see, who wishes to take action against the Elemental and prove their grit the most?” Daedrik cast his eyes from left to right, moving over Kendrick, Silva, and lastly me. During this process, there was an uncomfortable amount of movement from the bare skin where he should have worn eyebrows.

  “I’ll gladly show these two how to kill an Elemental.” Kendrick spoke before either Silva or myself could even think of speaking.

  “Then go right ahead, Kendrick,” Daedrik gave the much younger man a cruel smile, gesturing enthusiastically to the marked line. “Once you step across the line, your trial shall begin.”

  “I know old man,” Kendrick scoffed as he stepped forwards. His right arm reached upwards, gripping the near vertical hilt of his blade before prying the blade away from himself. “Just get on with it.”

  “As you wish—” Daedrik seemed utterly unfazed by Kendrick’s blatant disrespect. Instead, a maniacal grin spread across his face as his hand rested upon the gem embedded within the pedestal.

  “Watch closely, Kirin,” Carmine spoke in a whispered tone, barely loud enough for me to hear. “You’ll have to go last, take this time to observe how they fight.” As if Carmine’s words were his cue, Kendrick took a heavy step forwards—Entering the ring, a grin wide on his face as the pebbles pulled together into a vaguely hominid shape.

  Kendrick looked down to the blade in his hands, tightening his grip in unison with the words thee broke free from his lips.

  “Oh Earth…” Kendrick began in a low voice, yet every word he uttered boomed with a great earthen echo. “Oh Earth, grant me strength,” Mana began pouring out from Kendrick, congealing into a visible aura around his body before he continued, “Oh Earth, grant me your might,” He turned the tip of his blade from vertical down towards the ground, dragging the tip across the stone, “Oh Earth, hear me and Cleave!”

  Kendrick took a heavy step forwards, his blade scraping across the ground as he did so. Stones hovered into the air, closing in alongside the flats of his blade until they compressed into a solid layer that increased the blade's length by over two feet.

  “What… is he doing?” I asked softly, barely prying my gaze away from Kendrick to Carmine.

  “He’s speaking a chant, it assists mages in casting powerful spells with more reliance,” Carmine answered quickly. “I’ll find some time to teach you how chants work in a few days' time.” She added after a heartbeat-length pause.

  If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

  Kendrick didn’t wait for the short conversation to end—Instead he continued his heavy charge. Each step sent a shaking quake through the earth, rattling the ground with each confident stride.

  Across the Arena from him, the Golem finally moved into action. It brought both of its bulky, ape-like arms back into its chest, pounding closed fists upon its upper section before it began to run forwards with all of its might.

  All four of the Elemental’s limbs began pounding against the ground in a gallop, sending equal, if not superior quakes across the entire room to collide with Kendrick’s. The shockwaves met each other only moments before the two bodies did.

  The Golem let out a gravely roar, Kendrick matched it with a warcry of a mountain. The Golem raised both of its forearms well above its head, holding them there for a single heartbeat before it crashed down towards Kendrick.

  Kendrick met the overhead strike with a single arm caked in stone, catching the overwhelming crushing force while he swung his gargantuan blade with only a single hand. The Golem was brought to an absolute stop by the clash, Kendrick however was not.

  Without a moment to react, Kendrick’s blade finished its motion. It looked effortless, a simple, smooth motion no different than swiping away an insect. His boulder covered blade cut across, slicing the Golem in two.

  Kendrick however didn’t stop there—He withdrew his blocking hand in order to reinforce his grip upon his sword, reversing the energy before crashing the blade downwards vertically. In only two swings Kendrick quartered the Golem.

  “Was that really it?…” Kendrick scoffed as he swung the blade over his back once more. The Golem was little more than gravel at his feet, crumbling apart with each passing heartbeat.

  “Indeed, that is it,” Daedrik replied with a monotone voice. With a deep breath, Daedrik turned his gaze back towards the gathered students. “That is what you must live up to. This first challenge is to divide the strong from the weak,” his gaze turned slowly before he chose to settle it upon me. “The fight only ends when one of the two combatants perishes.”

  “How was that so easy for him?…” I asked no one in particular once Daedrik let the room fall to disconcerted mutterings.

  “That’s the difference in power between the barriers of magic, Kirin,” Carmine answered in a dreadful tone. “He’s undoubtedly broken through the barrier into becoming a Sage, he’s practiced enough… he might even be in the middle ranks of it,” She turned her head towards me, her lips pursed into a thin line. “You’re only barely into the range of being Magus, it’s simply the difference between entire ranks.”

  “So I’m just that weak…” I mumbled.

  “No, you just haven’t been training since the age of six,” Carmine corrected, placing a reaffirming hand upon my shoulder. “Just watch the next fight, prepare however you can. Do that, and you’ll have no issues at all.”

  “Silva Helme, you’re next.” Daedrik declared after a few more moments of muttering throughout the room.

  “Yes sir.” Silva answered with a quick bow of her head. She flicked her gaze towards the black haired woman beside her, locking azure blue eyes with the milky-white abyss of Nenema’s gaze. It was such a powerful line of eye contact that I felt as if an entire conversation was held, a thousand words spoken without exhausting their breaths on pointless extras.

  I couldn’t begin to think of what their heartbeat-length conversation could have been, but when Silva turned to the arena she exuded confidence—Her shy demeanor I found familiar was scorched away, revealing a fiery determination in her gait.

  Every step she took was light, not even a sound could be heard as she approached the arena.

  “I’m ready.” Silva stated as she placed her first foot across the red line. Daedrik answered by placing his hand upon the pedestal once more. Following his actions were waves of mana rushing through the room, conforming once more into a single mound of living rock.

  “Then begin.” Daedrik said with a deadly calm, bringing both figures into furious life.

  Silva’s fight didn’t begin with a calm chant, nor did the Golem so peacefully watch and await its opponents actions—Both figures launched off of the ground, the Golem’s galloping frame hitting the floor once for every dozen times that Silva’s flaming steps did.

  Silva was blindingly fast. Flames echoed in her steps, casting themselves in upward arcs in her wake. She bore no weapon, but I had no doubt in her ability to handle the Golem.

  Mana pulsed with each of her rapid steps, scorching the ground wherever she went. However, she never approached the Golem entirely, she dashed in before sidestepping away whenever the Golem turned towards her. It created a deadly dance of ornate patterns and flames, met by a partner of earthen fury.

  “Kirin, watch her mana.” Carmine instructed hastily.

  “Alright…” I answered carefully as the world of mana filtered overtop of my vision. I was however forced to close my eyes when the countless waves of blinding colors assaulted my vision. An immediate migraine rushed into the depths of my skull, sending such an intense shock of pain that I barely held myself from falling.

  “A little less…” I thought as I tried to force my eyes open. At the same time I tried narrowing my vision of mana, leaving the two sights to overlap over each other.

  By the time my eyes found Silva again, my vision was torn between two worlds. Her blurred figure hurt my head enough just to keep up with—Yet the countless strings of mana, each controlled under absolute finesse, sent an equal, if not greater pain through my head with each one added.

  Every step Silva took was one taken with absolute purpose, she skated and danced around the Golem that could do absolutely nothing but attempt to turn and keep up with her. But even that small feat was too much for the Golem as it spun around and around, even when Silva dove right underneath the Golem it was done so quickly that it couldn’t react in time.

  However, even with all of my attention on her, I couldn’t figure out what Silva was doing. The countless strings overlapped one after another, placed with purpose, yet lacking in use—Until she stopped.

  With a final dash into the Golem she effortlessly tapped her hand on its back, pulling yet another origin point for a new string. She then stamped a foot into the ground, flipping through the air until she landed a safe distance away. She landed with a smile planted on her face and over a hundred strings of mana in her hands.

  It was only then that I could see the full picture, the web of mana Silva had placed. It was intricate, thousands of layers wrapped upon layers that all terminated in her grip.

  It only took a small flex from her arm to ignite every string of mana, creating a spiraling storm of fire that whipped inwards to crush the Golem where it stood. It hadn’t even tried to escape, it only stood its ground and screamed with fury in its earthen lungs.

  When the storm of flames faded away Silva let out a soft huff, sagging forwards for a moment before fixing her posture. Her grin faded away the instant she saw the eyes locked in her in wonder, replaced once more by the timid expression of a girl who didn’t want to be seen—A girl who very quickly speed-walked back over to her teacher.

  “Well done Silva!” Daedrik laughed out joyously. “Such a unique way of fighting, certainly something I should have come to expect from someone taught by Nenema.” Daedrik continued to chuckle to himself for a few moments before he turned his gaze, landing his Emerald gaze upon with a palpable weight.

  “Kirin, you’re up next.”

  Patreon

  Discord

  LoneStar,