Inside the dome was where the examination was being held, and it was handled by an elf called Professor Kate. At the center of the dome was a wide field where a flesh golem and a troll were fighting. Once the golem slashed the troll in the abdomen using its blade-like fingers, the troll rolled backward while holding his abdomen, which soon regenerated. As the golem charged again, the troll quickly got up and slashed the golem's arms once more. At a glance, it was clear that the troll's wound had already fully regenerated.
Soon, the flesh of the golem began reaching out again toward its severed arms, but the troll was able to quickly cut the flesh apart once more. This time, the troll split the golem's body from top to bottom. However, as the body was split apart, the flesh began reaching toward the other half again, attempting to regenerate. This time, however, it was different—the regeneration took longer than before.
Thus, the weakness of the flesh golem was revealed. Although it could regenerate endlessly, there was a limit to how much it could recover, depending on how much mana it possessed. Once the troll understood this, he took the initiative and repeatedly struck the golem again and again, even as he was struck by the golem's blade-like fingers repeatedly as well. In the end, the troll realized that it had become a battle of endurance.
As the golem and troll continuously slashed at one another, Phoebe looked around the surroundings to observe. She saw that some examinees were watching the fight seriously, carefully observing every move, while others were not even watching at all and were sitting on the ground with their chins resting on their hands.
Soon, Phoebe looked upward, and there she saw Headmaster Andrew watching from above along with a male professor. When Andrew noticed that Phoebe was looking at him, he waved his hand in the air. Phoebe waved back in response.
Later, the one standing beside Phoebe spoke.
"Wahhh, w-what should we do, Phoebe? That golem seems so strong, and it has those absurd regeneration capabilities. The only way to beat it is to keep defeating it until it can't regenerate anymore," Ammy said nervously.
"It's okay, Ammy. We only need to keep beating it, right? So we'll be fine. Plus, it doesn't even seem sentient at all—it only keeps attacking whatever it sees in front of it," Phoebe said, her voice filled with assurance that they would make it through.
"W-Well, if you say so, let's do our best then, okay?" Ammy said.
Phoebe simply nodded.
Soon, the sound of the golem falling to the ground echoed throughout the dome. Finally, the golem had been defeated by the troll. Everyone's gaze shifted toward the fallen golem.
"Finally, you were able to defeat it in 13 minutes. Good job, you passed," Professor Kate said.
As Professor Kate spoke, the troll began bragging to the others about his victory. Soon after, the professor rolled the dice again. As the dice hit the ground, a name popped up: Sera Hexin of the Lumier race.
Soon, everyone's attention turned toward her, excited to see what she would show. Even the troll gulped when he realized that she would be the next one fighting the golem. As she stepped into the center, everyone's attention locked onto her—except for two individuals: the male examinee Riveras and the female human holding a gothic parasol.
Soon, the professor infused mana into the golem's body, and the golem repaired itself then began to move once more. When the golem fully stood up, it charged toward Sera, raising its fist high into the air. As the golem neared her, Sera raised one hand and pointed at it. Suddenly, the ground beneath the golem turned into mud.
As the golem rushed forward, it slipped on the slippery surface. Just as it was about to fall, Sera summoned spikes from the ground directly beneath where the golem's head was falling. The golem's head was instantly impaled. Sera raised her hand again, and more spikes emerged, impaling the golem's body.
Although the flesh golem continued to regenerate, its impaled body was unable to move. Soon, Sera moved her hand upward and then sharply downward. Rain began pouring heavily over the area surrounding the golem, followed by three powerful lightning strikes that crashed down onto it. The golem began to slow down.
Noticing this, Sera repeatedly unleashed gales of wind that sliced the flesh golem's body into pieces over and over again. Eventually, the golem collapsed onto the ground. Everyone who was watching began clapping as she defeated the golem.
"Hm, four minutes. That's great. Good job, you passed," Professor Kate said.
As Sera walked out of the fighting area, the troll and the other examinees praised her.
"A-As expected of you, Lady Sera. Your abilities are far beyond our mortal league. I congratulate you, my lady," the troll said, flattering her with his words.
"Y-Yes, it was a honor for us to witness the might and power of the gods, Lady Sera," Examinee A said.
"They're right, my lady. For us mortals to witness this, it is truly our honor," Examinee B added.
Soon, many more people continued praising Sera. Despite all the praise, she remained unfazed, as if she were already accustomed to such admiration.
As the professor shook the dice in her hands, all the examinees focused on it. When the professor raised the dice into the air and let it hit the ground, the next examinee was revealed. A hologram appeared, showing the name Robrecka Everblack of the human race.
Soon, an elegant-looking woman stepped forward and walked toward the fighting area. She held a gothic parasol and a bladed fan that covered her mouth.
As she walked, voices from the other races could be heard.
"A human? Ha! After witnessing Lady Sera's fight, I doubt there's still anything worth seeing," the troll said with an unfazed expression.
"Right? I wish this would end soon. I don't want to watch boring fights," Examinee 3 said.
"Robrecka Everblack? Isn't that the name of the human who bought land in the Archine Empire near a duchy—the Everblack Duchy?" Examinee 4 said.
"You sure? So that woman over there lives in that duchy located on the Middle Continent?" the troll asked.
Soon, everyone's gaze locked onto the gothic human girl. Even Riveras was watching this time. Andrew also fixed his eyes on her seriously, along with the other professors, including Professor Kate. All of them observe intensly against the mysterious girl before them.
As soon as Robrecka stepped into the fighting area, she asked Kate something.
"Hey, elf, can you remind me of the rules again? I wasn't listening earlier when you explained them," Robrecka said, her bladed fan still covering her mouth.
"Wha—ugh, listen properly next time. The rules are simple. You must defeat the flesh golem. The time it takes you to defeat it will be recorded. Once I record it, you pass. If you are unable to defeat it within thirty minutes, you fail," Professor Kate said.
"Pff, what terrible rules," Robrecka said.
"What do you mean by that?" Professor Kate asked.
"Let me ask you this then. If I completely destroy the golem, making it unable to function anymore, do you have spare golems for the next exam?" Robrecka asked calmly.
"I have no idea why that would even happen in the first place, but in case it does happened, we do have spare golems for the next examinee," Professor Kate replied.
"Good. Then we can begin," Robrecka said confidently.
As Robrecka spoke, many people around her became annoyed.
"That human—who does she think she is? That level of arrogance is really over the top," the troll said irritably.
"That woman—I hope she gets crushed by the flesh golem once the fight starts," Examinee A said.
"True. How dare a lower race be this arrogant? Even if they're nobles of their race, how dare they act like this?" Examinee C added.
Many examinees were annoyed, while others were puzzled by the woman's actions. Among those puzzled were Phoebe, Ammy, Murlok, Guertenaz, Lumier, and even Headmaster Andrew and the professors, including Kate. While most were either confused or irritated, there was only one person smiling—the examinee Riveras. He smiled as if he had witnessed something amusing.
Soon, Professor Kate poured her mana into the flesh golem. The golem began to move and slowly stood up. When it fully stood, someone shouted,
"Go rip that arrogant girl to pieces! HAHAHA!" Examinee B shouted, cheering for the golem.
When Robrecka heard those words, she laughed.
"Pfff, arrogance? I wonder what you could possibly mean by that," Robrecka said.
As the flesh golem charged toward her, it raised its hand and threw a punch at Robrecka. As the punch drew closer, Robrecka closed her bladed fan and used it to block the golem's attack.
Everyone watching—except for Riveras—was shocked by what they witnessed. Then Robrecka spoke again.
"It's not arrogance, but experience. Remember that, you weak beings," Robrecka said with a cold expression.
The golem continued trying to push its punch forward, but it was useless—it would not budge even slightly. Soon, something even more shocking occurred. Beneath Robrecka, she softly spoke while using mana to use her ability, "Umbral Feast."
A massive pitch-black shadow circle appeared beneath her, surrounding her completely. Soon, ten enormous shadowy tentacles emerged and ripped the golem apart. As the tentacles tore into it, the golem was slowly absorbed into the darkness. Before long, there were no traces of the flesh golem left.
Soon, everyone began speaking again.
"T-That—isn't that an ability? She can use mana?" Examinee C said.
"N-Not only that—didn't that bladed fan block the flesh golem's full punch without breaking?" Examinee A said.
"Could it be? An artifact user!?" the troll exclaimed.
"How is that possible? You're saying she can use mana and also has an artifact? How lucky can a person be?" Examinee D said.
While everyone was confused and questioning themselves, Phoebe muttered softly,
"She uses an ability made out of mana and an artifact… just like me…"
Soon, Robrecka spoke again.
"Twenty-five seconds. Take note of that," Robrecka said to Professor Kate.
"W-What?" Professor Kate replied.
"Tsk. Weren't you supposed to record the time? It's twenty-five seconds," Robrecka said irritably.
"O-Oh! Y-Yes—twenty-five seconds… what, twenty-five? I mean—well done. You passed," Kate said, clearly confused.
Everyone stood there in shock. All of them shared one thing in common—confusion was written all over their faces, including the god-race examinees, the professors, and even the headmaster.
But one thing was clear. Everyone present was staring at only one person—the gothic girl, Robrecka Everblack.