As I was hurriedly posting on the gallery, the proctor called me.

*

“Examinee 888?”

“Yes, I’m ready.”

*

I quickly hit post and closed the gallery.

In the exam hall, a female examinee, likely my opponent, was waiting.

The proctor explained the rules.

*

“The exam is a one-on-one duel lasting five minutes. Do your best. Losing doesn’t mean you fail; your overall performance determines your score. If a dangerous situation arises, the proctor will intervene, and the exam will end immediately.”

*

Just as MagicIsntHard said, showing skill matters more than winning.

Five minutes worried me, though.

I can only cast one spell. How do I fill five minutes?

Do I dance or something afterward?

As the exam loomed, anxiety crept in.

*

‘This one spell will get me through, right, great wizard bros?’

*

They wouldn’t mess with me, would they?

The comments suggested the spell was legit.

Whatever, it’s all I’ve got right now.

*

“…Hmph.”

*

My opponent glanced at me, frowning with displeasure.

She was definitely the one getting attention in the waiting room.

I think her name was Hisena.

People were saying she’s strong and hoped to avoid her.

*

‘Of all people, I get her.’

*

My duel luck sucks.

Guess I’ll just cast the spell as fast as possible.

They said casting it should be enough to win.

*

“The duel begins when the bell rings.”

*

Beep—

*

The bell rang, and the duel started.

I immediately began tracing the memorized magic formula.

No forgetting under pressure; I stayed calm.

I drew the five components at the same speed.

The formula took shape in the air with my mana.

*

But then—

*

Flash—

*

Hisena completed her spell first.

A radiant orb shot toward me from her magic circle.

Like a small sun.

F*ck, I’m not done yet.

I stopped tracing, yelled, and threw myself to the side.

*

“Did he dodge?”

*

As I tumbled to avoid Hisena’s spell, she looked shocked.

F*ck, of course I dodged—it’d kill me! Why’s she surprised?

Would you bet your life on an exam?

The proctor looked equally shocked, like, What’s with this idiot?

Was my roll that pathetic?

*

‘But I only get one shot…! I don’t know any defensive spells!’

*

What am I supposed to do? I’m a one-punch, no, one-magic man.

I focused again, starting the formula from scratch.

Adrenaline from the tension made my mana move faster.

The components were still clear in my mind, just drawn quicker.

*

“What kind of… I’ll end this.”

*

Hisena prepared her next spell.

She finished faster again, this time launching a torrent of water at me.

Dodge again? No, that’s endless.

My operation was nearly done.

I had to finish before her spell hit me.

Just before her water magic reached me, my five components met at one point.

*

[Fivefold Radiant Flash]

*

A brilliant golden light erupted from the completed formula.

Five streams of light, like comets, spiraled out.

They pierced straight through Hisena’s water magic, shattering it with a boom.

The five streams reached Hisena in an instant.

*

“What…!”

*

She must’ve cast a defensive spell, as a rock wall rose before her.

But the five streams split, arcing around the wall and striking her directly.

*

BOOM—!

*

“Homing missiles, huh.”

*

This spell’s legit.

It easily broke through her attack.

Dodged her defense like it was nothing.

The light wasn’t even that big, but when it hit, the entire hall shook with its destructive force.

So this is what they meant by optimized efficiency.

Not flashy, but the function, effect, and power were better than expected.

*

“…Exam concluded.”

*

The proctor, who’d been staring blankly, declared the end.

As the dust settled, Hisena appeared.

A spherical barrier surrounded her.

Must be the proctor’s protection for dangerous situations.

Inside, Hisena’s expression was hard to read—shock or panic?

But as the dust cleared, she glared at me intensely.

*

Everyone was so wary of her, but maybe she’s not that strong.

A pure muggle like me took her out in one hit.

Was she overrated?

Is she mad her hype got exposed?

We’re just examinees, after all.

I must’ve been too scared.

*

I thought it was lucky Hisena wasn’t that strong, but then she marched toward me.

*

“You.”

“G-Good work.”

*

I hurriedly bowed and bolted out of the exam hall.

Definitely not because her glare scared me.

*

“Examinee 888, please wait. We’ll announce results after 891 comes out.”

*

I had to wait for Hisena anyway.

Results came quickly.

The proctor announced as Hisena emerged.

*

“Examinees 888 and 891, both pass. Proceed to the successful candidates’ waiting room for further instructions.”

*

We both passed.

I scurried to the waiting room.

Other successful candidates were already there.

*

“…That’s the guy. Just used a 5th-tier spell.”

“Who is he? Never seen him. Which family is he from?”

“His clothes look commoner… no way…”

*

As I entered, the candidates whispered, eyeing me.

There was a huge screen up front.

It showed the duels in the exam hall.

So everyone here saw my duel with Hisena.

Being near the end of the 800s, a lot of people were already here.

*

‘That’s why Hisena was so mad.’

*

It clicked.

Losing in front of so many people must’ve hurt her pride.

I wouldn’t get mad over that, but she seems like the prideful type.

*

Time to sit and browse the gallery—then another voice interrupted.

Another proctor.

A cycle of exams had ended, and successful candidates were called for orientation.

After a long session of instructions, dorm assignments, and freshman rules, I finally opened the gallery.

*

***

*

[Title: Sorry, Teacher Bob, I Failed.]

Author: Kim Muggle

MagicIsntHard, you taught me so well, but I’m sorry. I failed. Guess a pure Kim Muggle like me couldn’t pull off the spell a great wizard taught…

*

.

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.

.

.

*

Just kidding lol, I passed, magallers!

(Picture of me giving a thumbs-up with my academy acceptance certificate)

(Picture of my issued first-year uniform)

(Picture of the academy’s interior)

Thanks, MagicIsntHard. Your easy teaching let me cast the spell and pass. Bow (_ _). Calling you Teacher Bob from now on.

Thanks to everyone who cheered me on, mwah mwah. Academy freshman in the gallery lol.

*

– CantEvenDoThis) Holy f*ck, you actually did it? What’s with you, Kim Muggle? Congrats!

– For real?

– ?!? You actually used it? How?

– You’re not a muggle, are you?

– MagicGirlLulu) Hawawa—? Congrats!

– MagicIsntHard) Oh, oh?! Congrats! See, magic’s not hard, right?

– Why’s this guy shocked when he taught it lol?

– Shocked his bluff didn’t work lol.

*

I could only post after getting my dorm assignment.

The flood of comments sent dopamine surging.

Successful candidates could use the dorms before the semester started.

Getting a place to stay was a nice bonus.

*

– CantEvenDoThis) F*ck, if you passed, why didn’t you post right away? We all thought you failed.

– Kim Muggle the master of suspense.

– Kim Muggle) Sorry, sorry, got caught up with orientation stuff. Passed, and I can use the dorm right away. Housing sorted.

– ExtremeEfficiencyFreak) But how’d you do it? You really used that 5th-tier spell?

– Kim Muggle) Yup, kept image-training before the exam and used it.

– Image-training lol. A muggle using a 5th-tier spell with image-training, for real?

– This guy’s not average. You’re not a muggle, are you?

– MagicIsntHard) Told you, magic’s not hard ;;

– Teacher, this guy’s sweating.

– ExtremeEfficiencyFreak) Spill the details, man.

*

Everyone was super curious about my exam.

Was it really that hard? Teacher Bob said it wasn’t.

It felt doable with the optimization.

Do great wizards see me as ant-level?

Guess it makes sense if they’re fascinated by a talking ant.

Even ants can talk a bit, right? (Or not.)

*

[Title: Exam Story Time]

Author: Kim Muggle

The waiting room was intense. As 888, I was in the corner practicing Teacher Bob’s spell.

They split us by hundreds. But everyone in my room was talking about one name.

That name was ‘XXX’ (protecting their identity). Seemed like someone famous for magic skills pre-admission.

When I entered the exam hall, guess who’s waiting? Her.

Thought, God’s abandoned me. A pure muggle like me against a top candidate.

But clearing my mind helped me stay calm.

As soon as the exam started, I began tracing the formula.

But she finished her spell first. Some radiant orb came at me.

I wasn’t done yet, so I rolled on the ground to dodge.

Got back up and started tracing again.

But she was faster again. Fired a firehose-level water blast.

Dodging again wouldn’t end it. I sped up my operation and finished just before the water hit.

Then five streams of light shot out from my formula.

(Rough sketch of the spell)

It smashed through the water blast. She summoned a rock wall, but the streams dodged it.

Yup, they were homing missiles.

Result’s obvious. Five homing shots hit, and I won. Passed.

Oh, the opponent passed too. She was good, just not against me lol. Overrated?

*

– F*ck lol, so many highlights, where do I start?

– ExtremeEfficiencyFreak) Rolling was a bit much, but you really operated the formula. The spell’s shape is accurate.

– Rolled to dodge lol.

– WanderingBattleMage) Yo, you’ve got combat talent.

– StabbyIfPissed) You should pick up a sword. Wanna learn?

– MuscleMage) Next time, tank it with muscle.

– The hopeless trio showed up lol.

– Can’t handle the rolling part lol.

– EcoActivist) lolololol.

*

“What’s the big deal about rolling?”

*

The gallers were weirdly fixated on the rolling part.

*

– Kim Muggle) What’s wrong with rolling?

– ExtremeEfficiencyFreak) Nothing wrong, but in magic duels, people don’t usually do that. Blocking with defensive spells is standard. Fighting only with magic is an unspoken rule.

– WanderingBattleMage) I think you did great. In real combat, unspoken rules don’t exist.

*

Got it. Guess it wasn’t classy for a wizard’s duel.

Since I passed, it’s not banned, just a matter of wizard pride or something.

*

– ExtremeEfficiencyFreak) Still, good job. You couldn’t block, so getting hit would’ve ended you.

– Kim Muggle) Yup, I grabbed my balls and ran. Felt like I’d die if it hit.

– lolololol.

– A muggle really used that spell? Still can’t believe it.

– MagicIsntHard) See? Magic’s not hard ^^

– Opponent seemed skilled, just bad luck.

– Who’d expect Kim Muggle as an opponent…

*

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I stopped reading comments and flopped onto my dorm bed.

I wanted to keep browsing, but my head hurt from reading.

It started after the duel, but wasn’t unbearable.

Still, not something I could ignore forever.

I was so exhausted, even walking was tough.

*

[Title: My Head’s Been Hurting Since the Exam]

Author: Kim Muggle

Thanks for the congrats, everyone. But why the headache?

Head’s been hurting since the exam. Now I’m so drained I feel like dying. Is this normal?

*

– That’s mana exhaustion.

– They didn’t warn about mana exhaustion. With 100 mana, it’s obvious.

– Did they actually think a muggle could cast it?

– MagicIsntHard) Oh, right.

– Yo, you’re not supposed to miss that.

– ExtremeEfficiencyFreak) When your mana hits zero, that happens. It’s fine at first, but if you don’t recover, it gets worse, and you could collapse.

*

Mana exhaustion, huh.

My status window showed 1 mana.

Must’ve recovered a tiny bit naturally.

But at this rate, I might actually die.

*

– Kim Muggle) What do I do?

– MagicGirlLulu) Transform into a magical girl, and mana’s infinite!

– Just do mana breathing.

– EcoActivist) Just breathe.

– ExtremeEfficiencyFreak) Normally, you use mana breathing to absorb ambient mana. Regular breathing doesn’t recover it.

*

Mana breathing? I don’t know how to do that.

Then I remembered a certain fixed nick associated with it.

Before I could even call, he commented like he was waiting.

*

– MeditationKing) Meditation fixes it all. Want me to teach you?