Bookbound Bunny

B2 - Chapter 65 - Gauntlet Gathering

The day of the mock dungeon trial had finally arrived and the excitement from the first years was infectious, causing a stir throughout all of the cafeterias in the morning.

The older students couldn't help but be caught up in the excitement, as they too were once in this position. Some even tried to offer last-minute tips or advice, although whether it actually would have an influence was unlikely at this point.

Lily herself was brimming with confidence, and Arakil even declared his full faith in her. To keep up appearances he'd shrunk down to his smallest size, and she easily pocketed him. This way he could be present for her test through his magesight, although he would be strictly staying silent to adhere to the spirit of the competition.

The students gathered in Alice's classroom and almost at once they were ushered down into the dungeon. The reason for the hasty entrance was to ensure their Wards would be sufficiently charged for the extra layer of protection, unique to Regarth.

While the dungeon was supposedly under the headmaster’s control, accidents could always happen and so caution was always preferable.

When they entered and passed through the barrier, everyone quickly noticed how their newbie area had changed quite drastically. It was much larger than before with a clear waiting area, and four large doors with rusty iron portcullis. The four doors were separated into pairs, with a fifth open passageway as the dividing line.

That wasn't the only surprise however as there were other staff present who had apparently been waiting for them. Lily didn't know who these staff were, although she did notice Pete looking quite cheerful in the crowd.

Once everyone arrived and settled down, Alice began her explanation.

"Four randomly selected students will enter together and once you reach the end, you will exit through the central tunnel and come back to us. The route will reset, and the next student will take their place."

"You are to reach your destination as quickly as possible, using everything you've learned. Each room will have a preferred method of conquering it; however, you are encouraged to think outside of the box and find any other possible solutions. This goes without saying, but do not mention anything that happened inside to your fellow students."

"Once you exit the final door, your time will be officially recorded. Once everyone has had their turn, we will head to the prize room outside of the dungeon and starting from first place, you will have five minutes to make your choice."

I guess I didn't need to worry about bringing Arakil with me for the test then. Even so, I want him to see me in action!

"As for the rules... While I'd love to say there aren't any, we do have a few. If your Ward has spent both your charges in succession—you fail. However, don't be disheartened if you take a blow, as in the dungeon your Ward can recharge! Think carefully and if you aren't reckless you can recover. I'd rather you all pass slowly than fail trying to chase a quick time."

"Another rule is no outside help. We don't want anyone using mommy or daddies magic weapons, this is supposed to be about your accomplishments. Naturally if you've created something yourself, then it will be allowed. Considering how early this is, we will be quite strict in checking anything you are trying to bring. Basically, if you haven't already gotten it signed off, expect it to be rejected."

Some students grumbled, looking a bit peeved off.

"Lastly, no Familiars. We want to see what you are capable of."

Lily couldn't help but feel Alice was staring directly at her when she said that and judging by the looks some of the other students were giving her, it wasn't just her imagination.

Lotte gave her poke in the side, and when Lily glanced at the girl, she gave a reassuring thumbs-up. Lily smiled, she didn't need Arakil to pull the dungeon monsters away from her.

With the explanation out of the way, the presence of the extra staff became clear as they began interrogating each and every student to confirm they weren't trying to cheat with a hidden item.

While Lily was watching the staff distribute themselves across the students, she spotted Alice coming straight for her.

Lily sighed. I knew it...

"Got any items you want to declare?" Alice asked. "If you use anything during the test, you'll automatically fail."

Lily reached into her pocket and pulled out a stack of talismans, looking almost like a deck of cards with how thick it was and causing Alice to frown.

"I have the glyphs I drew myself," Lily answered.

"This many..." Alice grumbled, glaring at the stack of tiny pages.

"And I had two professors confirm I did it myself," Lily quickly added, attempting to shut down any protest.

"Yes, yes... I know," Alice sighed, looking both annoyed and defeated. "Anything else?"

Lily pulled out the notepad sized grimoire, placing the stack of talismans on top of it before turning out her pockets. "Nothing else."

Alice eyed the tiny book suspiciously but didn't say anything. As long as Lily didn't "summon" Arakil, she wouldn't be disqualified. Sighing for the umpteenth time, Alice turned to Lotte.

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"I got nothing," Lotte replied with a shrug. "The best I could do is an herbal ointment, but if I'm lathering up scrapes and bruises, I imagine I've failed the test already."

Alice nodded. She then took one last look at Lily before turning and walking to another student.

"Sheesh, what's her problem?" Lotte asked.

"I really have no idea," Lily admitted.

She pocketed the book and then began to distribute the stack of talismans to various pockets, based on what the glyph was. She had kept them stacked up for proof, but searching through a pile for the right one in the heat of the moment was a terrible idea.

When the last few students were busy being checked, the headmaster made an appearance. He came walking down the exit passageway and gave a friendly smile and waved to everyone present.

"Good to see all of you again!" he said cheerfully. "I've come to wish you all good luck and hope that we will see some impressive performances this year."

Fabrelis chuckled to himself and then simply walked away, as if he'd lost interest. Most of the staff followed after him, as if that was their cue to leave.

Did he really come all the way here just come here to say that?

Unfortunately, she had no idea, and before she knew it the draws for the students going up had started. Lily had wondered how they would do the random students and was almost expecting some magical item or spell or something equally wondrous.

So, when one teacher pulled out a simple hat and another teacher reached in, pulling out a folded, torn up piece of paper she was dumbstruck. She looked around and clearly the other students were also somewhat let down by this method. It made perfect and practical sense, but when you were inside of a dungeon underneath one of the top magic schools, you expected more!

Lily held back her complaint and waited with bated breath, but her name wasn't called out from the first four draws, much to her surprise. With how Alice seemed to be bullying her, she thought for sure she would be one of the very first to go.

The four students lined up at a door, and when Alice gave the signal, the doors swung open, and they dashed inside. The door swung close behind them, and Alice pointed to the two remaining helpers.

"Do the next draws and have them wait outside a door, I'll be back later," Alice said, and then she hastily walked off in the same direction the headmaster took.

Wait... she's not even going to watch!?

Lily was so confused. What was the point of doing this if the person in charge was leaving? Her ponderings were once again interrupted as the names began to get called out, although she wasn't in the second round either.

This is so weird...

***

"I didn't miss anything, did I?" Alice asked as she entered the hidden room.

Comfortable chairs and sofas were scattered about the room, and there were even tables with drinks, snacks and food present. The large room was currently occupied with almost every teacher, professor or staff that belonged to Regarth.

"Not unless you count them beating the first skeleton," Fabrelis chuckled and pointed to four floating images projected at the end of the room.

The four images were from a floating perspective above and behind the students that had first entered, giving the viewers a third person perspective of their actions.

"I still can't believe this counts as illusion magic," Pete said, pointing at the four images.

Beatrice gave a quick cackle in response. "When you get to my age, you stop being excited by all the new-fangled magics everyone comes up with."

"It's most definitely illusion magic, I effectively can't do anything else," Fabrelis admitted with a shrug.

"Surely this counts as scrying though?" another teacher asked.

Fabrelis shook his head and held out a hand, a purple floating eyeball appearing above it. He held out his other hand, and above that a projection appeared, displaying what this newly formed eyeball was focused on.

"I simply project what this eye sees using illusions," he explained.

"But that's more akin to summoning, no?" Pete asked again.

The headmaster shook his head again, "They aren't alive, and they aren't really seeing... I'd liken them closer to mirrors than anything else."

"Well, who cares if they let us watch the tests like this!" Professor Elius said, gesturing at the four students with the drink in his hand.

"It definitely beats the tests the Adventurers can come up with," Alice admitted, grabbing an unoccupied seat and kicking up her feet. "When you've got a veteran following you around, you can't help but feel tense with them watching you constantly."

A few of the staff nodded in agreement, it wasn't easy to always perform your best with someone constantly on your shoulder.

"And I swear watching these is the best! When else can we drink during work hours?" Elius chuckled.

The atmosphere was incredibly jovial as they watched the four students performing. The staff would casually chat while observing, occasionally making comments on actions taken or what the student should have done.

If there was a professor who was closer to the student, they would sometimes provide more detailed commentary on their capabilities or what they were currently working on or struggling with. This usually only happened later in the year, but thanks to the Personal Development time slots some students had already sought out mentors within their respective fields.

In some ways this mock dungeon trial was a good way to debut a student to the rest of the staff. Not everyone was socially inclined and there had been many times when a particularly awkward student would cause their talent to be forever hidden.

With the staff now getting to see the students' capabilities firsthand, this added a much needed safety net to ensure that no hidden gem, or a student suffering in silence, would be left alone.

Of course, not every teacher was present, like those currently teaching the older students, but the teachers talked and sometimes word of mouth was enough to ensure a student ended up in the hands of the right mentor.

Occasionally the door to the hidden room would be opened, with another teacher joining the festivities or one regretfully leaving to another obligation. However, when the door opened to a certain blue-tinted individual, some of the staff couldn't help but choke on their drinks and stare in bewilderment.

"Has the bunny had her turn yet?" Sylwel asked.

"Sylwel!?" Professor Elius spluttered in response.

His shock and surprise were shared by all of the staff, as far as they knew he had never come to one of these events. Hell, the mad scientist was almost never seen outside of his lab, period.

"Since when do you give a damn about the kids?" Pete asked.

"I invited him to attend," Ollie replied.

This caused even more confusion, as far as everyone present knew these two hated each other. Well, admittedly the hate was likely from one side only as Sylwel was seemingly oblivious to almost everyone.

"Yes, I want to see how well Lyla does," Sylwel replied.

"Lyla? Isn't she in the third year?" Beatrice asked.

"Lilith?" Sylwel tried again. "Leili?"

Those who knew of Sylwel knew he had no memory for anything that didn't interest him. Often times he would just call them "hey you" or by their appearance. The fact he was even trying to recall a name was quite a mystery to them.

"He means Lily..." Ollie sighed.

Sylwel snapped his fingers. "That one."

"Her name hasn't been drawn yet," Headmaster Fabrelis answered, evidently also quite surprised by the appearance.

"Excellent. Hopefully it will be quite impressive," Sylwel said, taking a seat.

While everyone else was recovering from the rare sighting of the hidden and elusive alchemy professor, one person was most definitely not happy. Alice was glaring daggers at him and wondering why this abominable man was interested in her student.