"It's the same every year, I'm telling you," Lumi said, pointing at Elias.
"So, you're saying everyone already knows what their midterm exams will be like?" Elias shot back.
"It's not that simple, doofus. The format is similar, but they change the conditions for winning just slightly, so no one exactly knows how to win," Lumi continued.
"Stop with the baseless rumors, you two," Sam interjected while eating his lunch.
Lumi didn't stop, though. "But it's true! I heard Lady Einar talk about it."
All eyes around the table turned toward Einar, catching her mid-chew. She took her time, as everyone stopped what they were doing and waited. At last, she took a sip of her wine and said,
"Yes, the format of the practical exam stays the same. The written one is just writing exams for all theory subjects."
"See!" Lumi said triumphantly to Elias, who squinted at her then focused on his food, ignoring her.
"For real? Why don't people just prepare for that then?" Sam asked, confused.
Einar put down her glass and began to explain,
"It's not that simple. The ranking is determined by both minimum points earned in each subjects and total points earned in both the theoretical exam in the main six subjects and the practical exam, which tests all the combat aspects: fighting techniques, spellcasting, runic device crafting, beast training if you have one, and all other practical skills that aid one in battle.
The objective each year is different, though. Some years, the goal is to get from one place to another like a race; some years, it's to survive until the last person as everyone else gets eliminated. Sometimes it's a plain group battle against conjured beasts, testing leadership and fighting skills. The practical exam itself is held in the vast campus of ours, but the goal is different each year, and every move made by a student is analyzed and graded."
"Yeah, last year's second term was the group monster battle thing," Reize added, offering her support.
"Sounds cool," Sam said excitedly.
"Sounds lazy to me," Damian remarked, not looking up from his plate as he and Toph continued enjoying their meal.
Reize chuckled. "The concept is simple, but they do prepare a lot for it and make it as realistic as they can…"
It had been four months since they had ventured into the dungeon together and Damian had met the emperor-ranked monster, the Scorch Titan. Days were pleasant, and the routine was set. They attended classes in the morning, then Damian, Reize, and his two assistants worked on their project until dinner time. Sometimes they ate in the Knowledge Keeper's section discussing their project, and other times they joined others in the Spellborne Legion mess hall.
After dinner, Damian and his two squires trained with Lucian for at least an hour—sometimes more. At first, only the two of them participated, but since his two clueless assistants were also his responsibility, he ordered them to join as well and got Sam and Einar to train them. He wasn't going to take on that much trouble by himself.
The training room had never been taken back from him since he had claimed it during his squire selection challenge, and it had turned into their personal indoor training area. Damian never stopped anyone who wanted to join them, though. Occasionally, some kids got excited and joined in but soon left. Even his two assistants, along with Sam and Einar, sometimes had other things to do and missed the training, but not the two of them—Damian and Lucian never missed a single day of practice.
And it showed. Damian was now able to match any average fifth-year student with his aura blade. He had even managed to launch an aura slash. The control of aura without his sword was still not possible for him, though. In fact, it wasn't possible for even Lucian, and she had trained day and night for it. She had mentioned, though, that she had other things to focus on, so she didn't solely hone her aura control skills.
The midterm exams were drawing near, and students flocked to the libraries, hurrying to finish projects and assignments given by various professors. Damian and Reize had mostly ignored the academic term, though Damian had done the bare minimum. However, he still couldn't pass because, unlike everyone else who had six main subjects, he only had five.
"Also… I heard they're removing the minimum points required in each subject this year," Grace added. "One just needs to get 45% of the total, and they proceed to the second term. For others, there's a remedial exam, but if they don't clear it by the end of the year, they fail."
"Huh?" Damian said, "You mean I don't need a sixth subject to pass?"
"It's just a rumor I heard in the 'Society of Noble Lineage community," Grace replied.
After finishing lunch, Damian and Reize returned to his lab as the others went back to their classes. It was Runefather's class, so Damian was free, and even if it were someone else's, he wouldn't go now that the two of them were so close.
Damian had started attending only morning classes for the past month, giving extra time to perfect what was going to be the biggest creation of his life: a real working synthetic mana core. After the understanding he had gained from the emperor-ranked Titan, Damian had compiled a report and presented it to Runefather and Worldscribe. They had then presented it to the High Table, and they were so impressed with his findings that his funding was increased from 100 gold to 1,000 gold, with an offer of special privileges if he signed the contract for the core. Damian had refused, and ever since, they had left him alone. However, the budget remained, and Damian kept all the money, using only his own funds for the project, in case they ever asked for it back.
"Are we doing it inside, or should we take it outside?" Reize asked, typing the protection key and entering his lab ahead of him, with Damian following behind and Toph walking majestically beside him.
"Inside, for now," Damian replied.
After months of preparation, he had created a prototype. Actually, this wasn't the first prototype; it was more like the fifth or sixth one. But Damian had really high hopes for this one.