Floating Stone (1)
TL/ED: Lolz
Ability assessment.
The ability assessment was an evaluation that objectively calculated the abilities possessed by students in numerical terms, as the name suggested.
It was also known as rank measurement, as the results of the assessment directly determined the rank.
Rank was essentially the grade of skilled individuals.
Whether one became a knight, a magician, a priest, or a scout, their level and value were determined by their rank.
Therefore, rank measurement was one of the most important events for students.
Of course, its impact was not limited to students alone.
For professors, the rise in the rank of the students they oversaw signified the success of their teachings. It became a criterion for evaluating the professor’s performance.
Numerous guilds were also actively recruiting promising talents. Their attention was naturally focused on rank measurement.
In summary, students who achieved good results in rank measurement inevitably saw their reputation skyrocket.
They became the hot topic at the center of Academy issues overnight.
“Of course, the protagonist of this rank measurement will be Sharon Pierce.”
Department of Grading and Ranking, Lichten Academy.
This administrative organization, responsible for tasks related to novices’ ability assessments, was led by the head, who received treatment equivalent to that of a vice principal.
“Ah, I wish I could have graduated Miss Sharon too. Wouldn’t it have been better if I had been born just 5 years later? Do you agree, Chief?”
Of course, that didn’t mean the job was easy. The head of measurement was currently massaging his temples.
The main reason was the periodic nonsense outbreaks of Assistant Anne Brita, a subordinate.
“Assistant Anne, stop the nonsense and get to work.”
“No, Chief! Look at this picture!”
“What is it?”
“Miss Sharon Pierce, of course.”
“Oh, come on…”
“How beautiful, cold, and haughty is she? This style is very popular among girls like her. I’m sure Miss Pierce will be the main character of this rank measurement! Hehehe!”
The head of the department almost slapped the giggling assistant on the back of her head without realizing it.
He probably would have done it if this naive girl wasn’t the daughter of a viscount.
Suppressing the twitching fingers, the head let out a small sigh.
“Phew.”
Patience was crucial at times like this.
The schedule for rank measurement was just around the corner.
It wasn’t uncommon for lower-ranking employees who had been working night shifts for several days to lose their minds occasionally.
Even the head himself had dark circles that had already reached the vicinity of his eyes.
“Originally, there’s no student to look forward to except Miss Sharon.”
“That’s true. Indeed, most of the children’s growth has been stagnant lately.”
Not long ago, even students with lower ranks showed growth of one rank each.
However, recently, the growth trend of children had noticeably decreased. Even the number of mana-awakening individuals was decreasing.
This was not a problem confined to Lichten Academy alone. Other academies faced similar situations.
Various pessimistic analyses had been put forward.
Some said it was because most students admitted already reached their potential through private education.
Or that the World Tree in the Grand Forest was withering and the quality of its mana was declining.
Or perhaps the demons were plotting something.
Various gloomy stories circulated, and there were rumors that the empire and the kingdoms were investigating quietly.
There were abilities now, but at this rate, there would definitely be a shortage.
In any case, the situation was bleak.
“… It would be nice if a student with a proper growth trend appeared this time.”
“There is! Miss Sharon. Sharon Pierce!”
“Assistant Anne, I’ve said it before, but Sharon is an entirely crafted child of her family. Don’t be fooled by appearances. Of course, there’s no doubt about her abilities.”
“That’s enough! What’s wrong with being crafted? Sir, you don’t know, do you? Nowadays, idols are popular in the capital of the Empire.”
“Idols?”
“Yes! They are singers who sing and dance, and how pretty they are. For your information, I like a group called Magical Girls! Hehe. I wish Miss Sharon would create a group like Knight Girls.”
“The Empire has really gone astray.”
He shook his head with a shiver.
Sharon Pierce.
Certainly, she was a student worth watching.
But by his standards, Sharon was not ‘real’.
But in his experience of evaluating the abilities of many students, the ‘real’ ones emerged unexpectedly.
For example, someone who awakened to a very minor elemental power, or someone who mastered unexpected abilities.
‘Come to think of it, it’s been quite a while since we had a graduate specializing in Earth Elemental abilities.’
Lost in thoughts of such musings, the supervisor suddenly snapped back to attention. It was time to get to work.
“Any unusual preparations for the 1st and 2nd stage rank assessments?”
“Yes. David and Jane are out and rolling right now.”
“Good, that’s settled then.”
Although the assessments for the upcoming 1st and 2nd stage were already decided and set up, the decision for the final 3rd stage assessment was still uncertain.
The evaluation report submitted by the Ability Measurement Department had to go through approval from the four department heads, the principal, and external auditors before it could be finalized as the evaluation criteria.
“”What about Dean Jan Bommel? Still no comments?”
Professors and external experts participated in drafting the evaluation criteria. Dean Jan Bommel was representing the professors in the task force for this rank measurement.
“…Yes, he’s trying, but you know that gentleman. He despises these trivial matters. We have to figure it out ourselves.”
“Sigh. That guy is something else.”
There were no expectations to begin with.
The man was like a wild beast, and his interest in such ‘trivial matters’ was practically nonexistent.
As the supervisor’s sigh deepened…
– Knock, knock!
Assistant Anne, who had stood up from her seat, opened the door and received something.
In her hands was an envelope. Her eyes widened as she read the writing on the surface.
“Oh? It’s from Dean Jan Bommel?”
“…Huh?”
“I’ll read it, okay? Regarding the proposed evaluation criteria for the 3rd stage of the current rank assessment, he suggests the following. It will focus on mobility. It is recommended to add explosiveness and unexpectedness to the evaluation criteria. He recommends the following evaluation method: walking on a broken bridge over a cliff… Wow! He even provided detailed instructions for the evaluation method. The handwriting is hard to read, though.”
The superior’s face was filled with astonishment.
Even though he belonged to the administrative department, he had worked in Lichten for a long time. The Jan Bommel he knew was never this cooperative.
“Why in the world…?”
What did that Jan Bommel, the man of all men, want?
As a sense of relief that one problem was solved mixed with curiosity, the supervisor’s mind was filled.
◆
Lichten Academy’s open field near a dormitory in the north.
“Nyaah—!”
A cat was flying in the sky.
No, saying it was flying had its issues.
The distance between her white paws and the ground was about 1 cm.
Danya floated above the earth with a magnetic force, hovering just at a touchable height.
“Kyaa. This is fun!”
With a smile on her face, Danya touched the ground with a small smile on her face.
On the other hand, Ian sighed softly.
“Ugh.”
Was this experiment also a failure?
Ian marked an ‘X’ in his notebook, which he held in his hand.
What he was researching now was ‘mobility’.
The problem was that creating a plausible means of mobility was challenging, especially for earth-elemental magic.
Originally, earth-elemental magic was specialized in tanking and physical damage.
That’s why Danya, who was a beastman, was experimenting with various things.
The first attempt was using magnets.
Among the properties of the earth, magnetism was the one closest to mobility.
There was a force to attract or repel. Therefore, Ian aimed to magnetize the ground and the soles of his shoes, floating and walking in mid-air.
— Kwoong!
— Nyahaha!
And Ian’s result was a bump on his forehead and reddened skin.
Controlling the magnet was difficult, and there was more resistance than expected.
He couldn’t float as high as he thought.
Originally, Ian couldn’t even stand, unable to balance.
Danya, floating above with impeccable balance, continued to walk in mid-air, emitting a playful purring sound.
Indeed, a cat is a cat.
“Ian! Do more of this for me! It’s so much fun!”
She seemed somewhat carefree, to say the least.
Anyway.
Ignoring her request, Ian prepared for the next experiment. What he had created this time was a large cylindrical structure.
“What’s next!… Eh?”
Danya’s excited expression turned pale.
“Wait a minute. You’re not thinking of putting me in there and launching me, are you?”
“Yeah, with a little bit of gunpowder.”
“Are you out of your mind, you idiot!”
Tsk. It seemed it was too much.
Next, there was an idea of creating a structure similar to a spring to utilize the force of physics.
‘The time it takes to create such a structure is too long.’
In practice, it was practically impossible to use.
By this point, Ian was starting to have thoughts like, ‘Am I really a magician?’
It was closer to an alchemist or a magical engineer.
… Anyway.
It all came back to levitation.
The key was floating above the ground, eliminating friction.
‘As long as that is achieved, surprise is guaranteed.’
Why such an obsession with being unexpected?
Because the essence of mobility lies in unexpectedness.
For example, knights who need to read the movements of their opponents and react. It would be very effective when dealing with them.
The unexpectedness in close combat.
For Ian, a close-quarters mage, this was practically synonymous with his life.
If there was another method similar to magnetism…
It was difficult, too difficult.
By this point, Ian even thought about just rolling around.
Rolling up his entire body into a ball, coating it with a layer of metal, and adding sharp spikes on the outside like a turtle ship.
Then just roll around.
Since it could also serve as an attack, it seemed like a good deal.
The ability could be named something like ‘Roll’.
“… Would that work?”
As Ian let out a sigh and was about to stand up.
— Thud
He stumbled over something rooted to the ground.
Ian felt something slipping out of his pocket.
Shortly after, Danya’s astonished voice rang out.
“I-Ian…!”
A seemingly ordinary stone floating above the ground.
It was the stone that the bumped girl had dropped.
It felt instinctive.
This stone was what he had been looking for.
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