Chapter 158 : Final Exams (7)
Chapter 158: Final Exams (7)
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"……I lost."
Hannes nodded and calmly admitted his defeat.
It had been a razor-thin margin.
The armies clashed back and forth in a muddy brawl, and the war didn’t end until only a single soldier remained.
Even so, the one who never gave up and seized victory in the end was, of course, Carl.
‘That was close.’
Carl wiped the sweat off his forehead and grasped Hannes’ extended hand.
"My specialty is mana manipulation, but you’re the first opponent who made it this difficult."
"To be acknowledged by the top of the theory class—there’s nothing shameful in that."
Despite losing to a junior, Hannes didn’t seem to mind at all.
Bavaria was a strictly merit-based society.
Seniority or experience didn’t matter—juniors often overturned their seniors.
After all, it was a place where the continent’s finest geniuses gathered.
"You’re aiming for the top spot again, aren’t you?"
"Yes, I am."
"You have some tough competitors, but I hope you defend your position."
With that, Hannes exited gracefully.
He was as composed in his exit as he was in his entrance.
‘That’s the kind of man I like.’
Carl preferred people like that.
The kind who carried out difficult tasks without questioning them, quietly fulfilling their duties.
Those who whined and complained were difficult to keep as subordinates.
At least if they were superiors, their tendency to take the easy way out could be exploited—but regardless of rank, people like Hannes were the kind of talent everyone sought after.
‘Now then…….’
As Carl dusted himself off and stood up, a few cadets began to approach slowly.
They must have assumed that the intense battle with Hannes had drained him both physically and mentally.
Carl looked at them and gave a faint smile inwardly.
‘The points are walking right up to me.’
Expectations were that high.
At the very least, he had to solidify his position as the top of the theory class.
Since Laysis seemed to be progressing smoothly as well, he intended to prove himself too.
"……I lost."
"I lost too."
"Ugh……."
After racking up five consecutive wins, Carl ended the exam with a perfect score plus bonus points.
The exams continued over the next two days, and one by one, cadets began to complete all their tests.
For first-year cadets, the exams generally ended today.
That’s why they were all gathered at the café terrace, collapsed with exhausted expressions.
"……I’m burned out."
"You didn’t burn your scores too, right?"
"I actually did pretty well."
Maximilian raised his head and retorted at Gale’s teasing.
At least he managed to recover from the blunders he made during midterms.
‘It’s all thanks to Carl.’
Maximilian’s gaze turned toward Carl, who was leisurely sipping coffee.
If Carl hadn’t dragged him along and drilled knowledge into him, he wouldn’t have even scored half of what he did.
That’s how brutally difficult the finals were.
"Judging from the wailing all around, the test must’ve been really hard."
"Yeah, it was. If I hadn’t done the study group, I would’ve been in big trouble."
Even Amy and Lien clicked their tongues at how much harder the exams had gotten.
The theory was one thing, but the practical section added a wide range of components that made preparation a nightmare.
Especially the siege warfare segment in the Understanding of Combat I lecture held over three days—it was downright hellish because they didn’t even have time to wash.
"Still, now that it’s over, it’s fine. We’re on break starting now."
"Right."
At Carl’s words, Maximilian smiled broadly.
Now that finals were over, there was no need to stay tied to Bavaria.
Of course, there were still optional studies held at the academy, but he wasn’t eager to dedicate himself to those as a first-year.
"……Carl, just checking—you're not planning to apply for Bavaria’s intensive study sessions, right?"
"Ah, the professor did recommend it."
"Are you doing it?"
"Unfortunately, I had to turn it down. I’d love to do it, but I’ve got responsibilities in the territory over break……."
The Leipzig territory saw frequent monster incursions not just in winter, but also during the warmer seasons like spring and summer.
Carl’s combat strength was comparable to that of a seasoned knight.
As a scion of the Leipzig family, he had a duty to protect his land.
‘And I should inspect the headquarters while I’m at it.’
The Leipzig territory was now completely under NOX’s control.
Just like at the end of last year, all potential disturbances had been suppressed by sheer force and brought under NOX’s umbrella.
Since it was the heart of the supply line to the capital, any problems arising from there would be troublesome.
"Oh, so we can’t go on a trip?"
"It’s possible. If you let me know in advance, I’ll make time."
"That’s a relief. Then where should we go? The sea? The mountains? Or somewhere else?"
"The sea, of course."
"I vote for the sea too. Nothing beats sipping whiskey under the southern sun."
"I heard the southern night sea is beautiful. Should we try going?"
"That sounds great. Carl, do you think Miss Yuria and Miss Laysis would be okay with that too?"
"They’re on their way over. Let’s ask them."
Following Carl’s gaze, they saw Laysis and Yuria returning after finishing their final exams and joining them.
They had now become a fully established group.
"Laysis, how were your scores?"
"Let me calculate them now."
At Amy’s words, Laysis sat down and opened her Archive, immediately beginning to tally her scores.
Bavaria usually released scores right after exams, and unless there were corrections or disputes, they rarely differed from the final results.
In Laysis’ case, she’d scored perfect marks in nearly every subject, so there was nothing to correct.
"……714.5."
She had earned perfect scores in seven lectures and received 14.5 bonus points.
Even compared to midterms, it was a score that reflected growth and raised expectations.
"What’s your total for the first semester?"
"My midterm score was 698.2, so the total is 1,412.7."
"That's incredible."
Maximilian clicked his tongue.
If he subtracted roughly 400 points from that, he’d probably be about the same.
The top scorers had exceeded perfect scores, placing them in another class altogether.
"Nerian’s midterm score was 707.1 points, right?"
"Yes. So if Nerian scores below 705.6, I can take first place."
"Hmm……."
Carl stroked his chin and narrowed his eyes.
Looking solely at this semester’s scores, it was clear Laysis had worked incredibly hard.
She had learned the Boundless Azure Sword Technique from him and hadn’t neglected her studies.
But just as Laysis had grown, Nerian surely had as well.
He had a prestigious lineage, exceptional talent, and wasn’t one to slack off.
"When will the results be released?"
"They said they’d be announced on the dot."
There were barely three minutes left until the exact hour.
Everyone sat at the terrace, nervously checking their Archives and focusing on the ticking clock.
"……."
The most nervous of all the cadets was, of course, Laysis.
If she didn’t surpass Nerian now, during the first semester of the first year, it would become impossible later.
As time went on, the gap between them would only widen, and until graduation, all she’d see was Nerian’s back, blessed with divine power.
Beep.
The clock struck the hour.
With trembling fingers, Laysis checked the final rankings for the semester exam.
[1. Laysis]
[2. Nerian]
[3. Louis]
[4. Yuria]
.
.
.
"……!!!"
Laysis’ eyes flew wide open.
Even more shocked than when Carl had displayed overwhelming prowess against the Death Knight and Lich in the Temple of the Fallen Heretic.
"Wow!!!"
"Congratulations, Laysis!!"
The other cadets erupted into cheers, congratulating Laysis on ranking first in the semester’s final exams.
But Laysis quickly regained her composure and calculated the total score.
"……Ah, I didn’t take first overall for the semester after all."
Nerian’s score was 712.1 points.
Judging by the finals alone, he was about 2 points lower than Laysis.
But once the midterm was added, he still overwhelmingly secured the top spot for the entire first semester.
"Still, it’s amazing that you took first in the finals."
"Yes, being the final exam top scorer is more than enough."
"What rank are you, Carl?"
"I'm 13th."
"……Carl, you’ve risen a lot."
Maximilian clicked his tongue again.
He had started at 50th during the entrance exam, then climbed into the mid-20s for the midterms, and now he had shot up into the top teens for the finals.
At this rate, he might show explosive growth and settle in the top ranks by the second semester.
"I barely made it into the top 30."
Maximilian sighed in relief as he checked his results.
In Bavaria, class placement changed every semester based on scores.
Cadets were divided into groups of 50 based on rank, and anyone whose grades fell too low would be pushed down into the lower class.
If everyone else was in Class A and he alone got demoted to Class B, it would be humiliating beyond words.
He let out a sigh of relief, having just barely stayed in the safe zone.
"Hmm."
Yuria had dropped from her original rank.
She had intended to firmly hold onto third place behind Laysis, but had been overtaken by Louis in the practicals.
‘Was it because of the siege warfare?’
Having lost the emblem to Laysis, she had lost some points.
That minor difference must have caused it, but seeing Laysis so genuinely happy made her not mind at all.
The goal of graduating as top cadet had already been shattered long ago—now she only intended to maintain her current position.
"The theory top scorer is Carl again."
"……He’s overwhelmingly ahead. The overall top theory scorer for the semester is untouchable."
"I studied a bit harder."
Carl scratched his cheek awkwardly at the cadets' praise.
Laysis was second in theory, but when tallying the total, there was more than a 30-point gap between them—an even wider margin than the one between Nerian and Laysis.
"Carl, if you do well next semester, you might even break into the top 10."
In high spirits, Laysis joked with Carl.
In truth, she knew that if he truly set his mind to it, he could easily surpass both her and Nerian and claim the top spot outright.
‘He might even rewrite Bavaria’s history.’
He had already shattered all previous records in theory with his first-semester high score.
If he also did well in practicals, he could really go on to write a new history.
She didn’t know why he was holding back, but Laysis was deeply grateful to Carl.
‘Because without him, I could never have achieved these scores.’
If she hadn’t learned swordsmanship from Carl.
If he hadn’t yielded points to her in several exams.
Even in the finals, she would’ve ended up second behind Nerian.
Tap.
Laysis reached under the table, grabbed Carl’s hand, and smiled at him.