The Moonlight Swordsman

The forest resonated with the echoes of magic spells and the snarls of wolves.

Aizel dashed to the dead wolves and began neatly picking up each of their bodies, carefully storing them in his storage ring one by one.

With a final surge of mana and lightning, Aizel accelerated toward the meeting place with tremendous speed, his footsteps thudding heavily against the forest floor as he moved.

The repeated use of lightning spells and mana sensing had left Aizel's mind depleted as he sprinted towards the gathering area.

Despite this, he could still feel his mental energy rushing within him, his core beginning to radiate a faint crescent-shaped glow.

As he felt the warm glow emanating from his mental core, Aizel knew that he had finally advanced to become a Grade II mage.

"Now that my core is healed up to Grade II, I might be able to use more complex powers and spells.

"I need to test my abilities and limitations of Grade II power afterward." He thought.

Aizel's keen senses picked up on the chaos surrounding him as he dashed towards the gathering point.

He observed his fellow mages battling furiously with both the wolves and each other for the corpses. Aizel easily maneuvered around them, moving through the chaos without drawing attention to himself.

As Aizel emerged from the forest, he saw the examiners waiting for the mages. However, to his surprise, only one mage had arrived before him.

The mage was the woman.

Her silver hair fell down her back in lovely curls that glinted in the sunlight. Her eyes were as bright and silver as a full moon on a clear night, and her skin was fair. She wore a basic brown robe that was unadorned and unassuming.

Aizel made his way toward Professor Liam and summoned the pack of wolves he had hunted from his storage ring to show them to the professor.

Professor Liam's gaze went over the wolf corpses, taking in the deep gashes and wounds on their bodies. His look was serious and thoughtful.

"Hmm, good. Now go and stand beside her."

Aizel inclined his head in a respectful bow before walking over to stand next to the woman.

Aizel stood beside the woman, but she seemed lost in thought and paid him no attention. Her gaze was fixed on the forest, her face betraying no emotion.

Aizel stood there for what seemed like an eternity, but after a while, two more mages arrived on the scene. They were twins, both bald and muscular.

They approached Professor Liam and summoned the wolves they had hunted from their storage rings.

Following the inspection, the twins joined Aizel and the woman's side. They were dressed in crude leather armor, and their breath reeked of alcohol. They stood there silently, casting occasional glances toward their companions.

As Aizel and the others waited, they noticed a figure sprinting toward them.

The newcomer had long, fiery orange hair that curled at the ends like the previous mage. Her eyes were a lighter shade of orange, matching her hair, and she wore a simple outfit—a cream shirt and brown pants—with blood stains on her boots. Without hesitation, she approached Professor Liam.

After the inspection, she approached the group, but rather than standing silently, she walked directly toward the woman and spoke up.

"Wow, our hairstyles are the same but different colors, and your eyes are so cool.

"I am Hazel, what's your name?"

The woman's eyes shut tight in response to the other mage's words.

"Ahhh, how rude."

Hazel eagerly extended her hand toward Aizel, ready to shake his hand.

Aizel grasped her hand and spoke, "My name is Aizel."

"Wow, even your eyes are pretty; it's so dark and deep," she commented with a smile.

She then approached the twins, who seemed to be quite timid despite their intimidating appearance. As she extended her hand for a handshake, they nervously shook it and introduced themselves.

"We are Jareth and Jaxon from the Baroth family."

"Wow, you two had some great muscles."

The group's attention was drawn to a commotion of fighting and cursing coming from the mages emerging from the forest, engaging in heated arguments and brawls.

EVERYONE BE QUIET!

Liam's booming, thunderous voice resounded throughout the area, prompting everyone to instinctively cover their ears.

"Now that all of you are here, let me announce the result."

He extended his hand toward Aizel's group and addressed them.

"They are the five mages who have passed the test; the rest of you can now leave and try another time.

"Remember, a mage can only give the test twice in a single year. Good luck."

As soon as he finished speaking, the other mages began to depart the area with gloomy looks on their faces. Shortly after, he approached the Aizel group alongside two other professors.

"Congratulations to you all! Now you are part of our Felgura Magic Institute."

"Now be… Before he could finish speaking, Aizel raised his hand.

"Yes?"

"Sorry for interrupting you, sir, but I would like to give you something." Aizel stepped forward, lowering his head slightly, and extended his hand to present a card with a skull emblem. The woman at the potion shop had given him the card before he came to take the test.

The professors looked at Aizel with shock.

Liam directed his magic energy toward the card, causing it to react. A bright white strand of mana emerged from the card and headed straight toward Liam's head.

He nodded his head simply while his eyes were closed.

"You...how do you know her... well, never mind." He opened his eyes and spoke, which made Aizel a little confused.

"I was already going to request the headmaster allow you guys to take the high class after the performance, but now I think even the headmaster would have no say in that matter."

"Congratulations, you all are now part of the high class; come tomorrow in the morning for classes and other things; you may leave now."

Aizel and the group watched the professors leave in hurry with the card.