Chapter 24: Seniors, Don’t Look at Me Like That, I’m Really a Newbie!

Fiora closed her eyes.
She placed her fair palm on the crystal pillar.
Through the sensation in her palm, it felt as though a path had opened between her and the pillar, allowing her to channel her magic power into it.

The notches on the crystal pillar climbed upward bit by bit.
Fiora focused intently on releasing her magic power, feeling layers of barriers along the way.
But to her, these barriers were as thin as paper.
She pierced through them without much effort at all.

Pushing toward her limit, she finally reached one last barrier.
Its thickness was greater than all the previous ones combined.
Others had taken several minutes to get their results, but Fiora encountered real difficulty in just about ten seconds.

Since her eyes were closed, she could only guess at the situation from the sounds around her.
The scene was deathly quiet, and she could feel the intense gazes of those nearby.

Waah, waah, waah! No one’s talking anymore!
I must be too weak.
Leon said I can’t embarrass him too much, or I’ll get chewed out later.
Dragon King Fiora, magic core, full power!

Mindful of Leon’s warning about keeping a low profile, Fiora didn’t dare absorb the magic power of others and relied solely on her own stored energy to break through the barrier.

Buzz, buzz, buzz—

The crystal pillar began to hum from within.
A small crack appeared in the barrier.
Fiora seized the opportunity, pushing harder, pouring in more power, aiming at the crack—

BOOM!!!

Something exploded.

“Eh?”

Fiora opened her eyes to see the crystal pillar shattered into pieces across the floor.
The people around her stared wide-eyed, as though they had just witnessed the impossible.

It seems… I did something stupid.

The silver-haired girl’s forehead beaded with nervous sweat.

The staff member who had been teasing her moments ago now wore a completely different expression.
When Fiora’s confused gaze met his, he even stepped back several paces.

“I–Impossible! Could you have more magic power than the Grand Sage?!”

“What are you talking about?”

“According to the Mage’s Guild’s ranking system, the magic test pillar can measure magic power at LV10, LV20, LV30, LV40, LV50, LV60, LV70… Just now, you displayed LV70.”

Before he could finish, another voice cut him off.

“If you possess magic power that surpasses mine, then the magic test pillar cannot withstand it.
The capacity of this device is set according to the standard human limit.
And the limit of humanity—”
The speaker’s eyes narrowed.
“—is me.”

It was none other than the Grand Sage.
The composure on his face had vanished, replaced by pure shock.

“May I ask who you are, to possess magic power beyond that of a human?”

“No, no, no, I’m not, I don’t…!”

Fiora didn’t dare answer him directly.
Instead, she turned her head and saw Leon.
He was biting his lower lip, looking furious, fists clenched tight.

It’s over, I messed up.
Leon’s angry.

Fiora felt deeply wronged.
She was only in her human form right now—one level lower than her Dragon King state.
Why was her magic power still higher than the Grand Sage’s like this?

Human magic power is too low!

If this continued, her true identity might be exposed right here.

I need to find an excuse to bluff my way through…

Her gaze shifted to the staff member who had mocked her earlier.

“You—why did this thing explode?” Fiora asked.

“Ah, me?” The staff member looked completely baffled.

“Yes… you tell me! I don’t know, so you must know!”

The man thought for a moment before blurting out frantically:
“I–I think it malfunctioned, that’s why it exploded! Definitely not because it couldn’t handle the magic power!
How could there be someone in the Donghui Kingdom with more magic power than the Grand Sage? Everyone, don’t you agree!!”

His voice rose, carrying across the training grounds.

People began murmuring amongst themselves.

That’s right, he’s right.

No one could believe it.
How could a mage stronger than the Grand Sage suddenly appear—and one who looked like a silly little loli, at that?

Impossible.

“That’s right, the Grand Sage is a powerful mage who has lived nearly two hundred years, the supreme existence among humans.”
“Unless that little mage is something like a Dragon King.”
“Yeah, right. How could a kid like that be a Dragon King?”

As the discussion continued, most people sided with the explanation they wanted to believe: the device had malfunctioned.

Seeing this, Fiora seized the moment.
“Test me again! He’s right—this thing malfunctioned!”
“Test me again!”

“…Alright.”

The Grand Sage’s expression was caught between belief and doubt.
With a wave of magic, he cleared away the broken pillar and summoned a spare.

Fiora stood before it once again, placing her palm on its surface.

Hooo, hooo, hooo… Don’t look at anyone else. Calm down, calm down!

She took a deep breath, preparing herself—this time keeping her eyes open and fixed on the notches.

Slowly, carefully, she released her magic power, controlling the speed just like the others had done before.
Holding steady under the weight of countless stares, she guided the energy upward… and stopped just before the Transcendent mark.

The staff member announced her result: High.

The crowd murmured, gradually accepting this explanation.
The earlier crystal pillar must have been faulty.

Fiora forced a stiff smile before quickly slipping off the stage.

“…”

The Grand Sage’s eyes followed her, making her scalp prickle.
Fortunately, he said nothing and walked away, his steps heavy.

The staff member then declared that the test would move on to the next stage, bringing an end to the farce of the first round.

I absolutely, absolutely, absolutely cannot let the next test get messed up!

Fiora clutched her staff, praying inwardly.