It was the morning of the annual Knights Guild trial, and I had just set out with the intention of making the cut. Elizabeth had already given me the run-down of what to expect, as well as some directions to actually get there.

  Upon arriving at the location Elizabeth had described, I could immediately feel an intense sort of 'presence'. I didn't understand what it was at the time, but I would shortly find out. The building was quite massive, and it also looked pretty fancy.

  I pushed open the doors, and there in front of me stood at least 500 people, a combination of men and women, all varying in age and physicality, all doing their own things. Chatting, drinking, arm wrestling, the lot. At the furthest edge of the room, atop a raised stage, stood seven people.

  The one furthest to the left was a gorgeous woman with purple hair that had white streaks running through it. She gave off an immense presence of pure pressure. She's probably strong, I thought.

  On the opposite side, stood a young man, who only looked about a year older than I did. He was gripping onto a katana sheathed at his hip. His presence gave off nothing but an unbearable sense of dread. He must be powerful, too.

  The man standing in the middle lightly tapped his microphone twice, causing everybody to stop what they're doing and divert their attention to the front.

  They have mics in 1744? I pondered.

  "Hello, and welcome, to the annual Knights Guild trial. My name is Taira Michi, I'm the current head of the Knights Guild. I will now begin a debrief of the trials you will undergo, for those unaware."

  What's this guys deal? I wondered. He doesn't exactly give off a presence as potent as those other two, yet he's the one at the top?

  "Every one of you will undergo a trial. If you pass, you will move to the next, and if you pass that, you'll move to the final trial. Upon completion of all three trials, you will be accepted into the Knights Guild. This isn't an easy task, however. Out of the 500 or so of you here today, we predict that only around 60 of you will make it through."

  Yeah, I'm cooked.

  "The trials remain unchanged from prior years, but I will still explain them all now." He stated. "The first trial will be a physical examination and test. The second trial, will be the mana equivalent of the first."

  He paused before stating the third trial.

  "The final trial, will be a free for all, where the killing of others is permitted." What? Seriously?

  "A person who possesses Resurrection Magic will be on standby. Each participant can be brought back to life a maximum of two times, meaning you're not immediately out if you are killed. Of course, you can opt out at any given time."

  Okay, that's not so bad. I thought.

  "To finish off, I'll state all possible pass conditions, and then I'll hand it over to our top two Singularity Class Knights."

  Singularity Class? Is he referring to those other people on the stage?

  "The first passing condition, and the one you're most likely to achieve, is to successfully make it through all three trials. The second pass condition, is to successfully land a Critical Fracture during any part of this tryout. And the final condition, is to be able to use a Spacial Resonance. If you're capable of using Spacial Resonance, we encourage you to come to the front right away, where you'll be transported to another area where you can provide evidence."

  Nobody moved.

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  "Very well then. Now, a word from Kuroyuri Hana, our most powerful knight."

  Taira Michi handed the mic over to the purple haired woman, and she promptly moved to the centre of the stage.

  "Yo!" She shouted.

  The crowd exchanged a few light chuckles as she looked over us all, smiling.

  Is this chick serious?

  "The fact that NONE of you can use a Spacial Resonance kinda pisses me off, but it's not out of the ordinary!" She claimed. "Out of the 500 or so of you here, only around four of you will ever be able to use it! So don't let that bring your spirits down!!!"

  The air itself began to distort and twist as she rose into the air, floating on nothing at all.

  "On a more serious note, however. Today, you're trying out for a role that is highly important. If you succeed today, you'll be responsible for protecting the lives of the innocent, so I expect great things from you!"

  With that, she dropped back to the ground, landing cleanly on her feet.

  "Now, let's hear it from... ISEKI KUPONI!!!" She cried out before handing the mic over to the young looking boy.

  He didn't say anything at first. In fact, he just stared into space before snapping back into it.

  "U-um... Do your best, okay...?" He stuttered out, sounding nervous as a cat in a room full of rocking chairs.

  This dude is one of the top two knights? Jesus Christ.

  He hurriedly handed the mic back to Kuroyuri Hana, who looked a little startled.

  "Okay then, thanks for the motivation, Iseki! Am I right, guys?!"

  There was absolute silence throughout the entire building.

  "Tough crowd. Anyway, did you guys know that Iseki only started his career as a knight last year? And he's already a Singularity Class? He's only second to me, and he's been at it for less than a year in total! In fact, I heard he slaughtered everybody with ease in his third trial! Oh, and he's the world record holder for most Critical Fracture's landed in a minute!"

  Seriously?! This dude was too shy to say anything meaningful, but apparently he's some sort of murderous prodigy?

  Kuroyuri handed the mic back to Taira Michi, who quickly initiated the beginning of the selection process.

  "Everyone, please, collect a form from the front and fill in your information, and then head through the portal on the left."

  Bro, what portal? I questioned before turning to the left, where a big, glowing white rectangle was standing against the wall. Probably that one.

  "Once you're on the other side, somebody will check over your form to assure that you've filled in all the necessary details, and then the first trial shall begin."

  I collected my form from the front and quickly filled in the basic details.

  Name: Evan Hale.

  Age: 17.

  Magic: Force.

  Preferred combat style:

  Hold up.

  I don't exactly know what my preferred combat style is, as I've never actually fought anybody before. Although, considering that I barely know how to utilise my magic yet, I doubt it'll be smart to go in empty-handed. That Iseki guy from before obviously uses a sword, so I suppose I might as well do the same, at least until I know how my magic fully works.

  Preferred combat style: Swordsmanship.

  I had filled in my details, meaning I was ready to progress. I stepped through the white portal in the wall, and after a quick flash and a slight stomach drop, I reappeared in a completely white, endless room, that seemed to be some sort of void.

  I showed the person waiting at the front my form, and they took it from me before telling me to continue onwards.

  The room was littered with couches, chairs, buckets of water, food rations, and anything else that you could need. People were scattered throughout the entire area, chatting to one another and seemingly preparing themselves for the trials to come.

  That guy from before had told us the first trial would be some sort of physical test, so it probably won't be that difficult.

  We only had to wait for a little longer, before a voice suddenly came over the entire space.

  "You will now be transported to your own designated testing spaces."

  I, along with everybody else, was quickly enveloped in a bright light, before we popped out of reality. I suddenly reformed in a medium-sized room that was still completely white. I was the only person in sight, however. I took a swift 360 scan of the area before that same voice from before suddenly came over the entire space, once again.

  "You will now undergo various tests, all of which target separate physical attributes. There is no specific score or goal you need to aim for, your results will be paired against everybody else, and you will either pass or fail depending on the different between your results, and the top 300."

  Okay, so I'll just have to go all out.

  "Please feel free to take any test in any order, all your results will automatically be collected upon completion. You have one hour to complete them all, if you are to finish before the time is up, you are free to reattempt the tests in the hopes of a better score. Only your highest score will be recorded."

  Alright, then. Time to get started.