9 Chapter 9. Evaluation
The president, Tae Choi, started to explain how the evaluation was going to be done. He explained that there were four parts to the evaluation. The first part would determine your [mana control], the second part would check your [mana quantity/quality], the third part would score your [mana recovery] and the last and most important part would test your practical [mana usage].
These four tests would determine your total score, which would determine in which class you would be. The best twenty people would be in class one, the forty people below that would be in class two and so forth, till class five, which would have the one hundred worst students.
Everyone had to take the test in the same order, but because of the large amount of students, they were randomly split up in ten groups of thirty, where each group had their own examiner.
Hanuel and Sook Baek were split up in different groups. Hanuel being nervous for the evaluation, because it would determine something very important, but especially nervous for the practical mana usage test. He had never actually formed something from mana besides using it to have his sense, but that is not something that was going to be acceptable in this test.
Hanuel was deep in thoughts. "Hanuel Jin, it is your turn" Said the examiner. It was Hanuel's turn for the mana control test. The test looked really simple, there was a simple parkour of some bends and holes where you had to guide your mana through. You would get a perfect score if you could guide your mana to the end of the parkour, which was ten meters away.
Because Hanuel was deep in thought, worrying about the last test, he didn't see anyone do the test and didn't know what scores everyone before him got. Hanuel thinking that it looked very easy and that it was only the first test, assumed almost everyone reached the end of the parkour.
The examiner started to count down "Okay you can start in 3. 2. 1. Start!" Hanuel gathered a little ball of mana and smoothly guided it through the parkour, with minimal effort he guided it around all bends and through all holes easily reaching the finish, where a green light turned on.
The other students started to chatter loudly amongst each other. "What, how can that be, he must have cheated" With a time of five seconds, Hanuel was the first person to complete the parkour. "Hanuel, perfect score. Next, student Ari Jeong" Hearing the examiner validating the score, the crowd started to quiet down and Hanuel stepped back confused as to how someone could not finish such a simple parkour.
Hanuel carefully observed how the next few student did the test. Seeing most students hit a wall in the first few meters or losing control of their mana if it got to far away, which made the mana dissipate. Thinking about the fact that almost no one could see their mana, Hanuel understood why so many people failed.
Now, everyone was done with the first test, only two other people in the group managed to complete the parkour, but because of their time they didn't get a perfect score.
Not only feeling, but also seeing a lot of people staring at Hanuel with expressions of doubt and disdain in their eyes made Hanuel feel weird. 'Why are people looking at me like that? It's not like I did anything wrong."
Not letting that effect Hanuel, he unwaveringly went to the second test. This test being even more straightforward and simple, not taking any skill at all. In this test you had to place your hand on a golden mechanical looking measuring device and supply it with as many mana as possible. This device would not only measure the quantity of a persons mana, but also the quality of the mana.
"Kim Rae, your turn", "Next up is Mei Lin". The examiner started calling for names again, but in a different order than last time. And unlike last time, she didn't reveal our scores. Coincidentally, I was the last person for this test. Having observed everyone else, it looked like it took an average of a minute to pour out their mana in the device.
Putting my hand on the device, I felt a slight suction force, which naturally took in some mana. 'This is probably for the people who can't pour in their mana themselves" was what Hanuel thought, before starting to pour out all the mana into the device. Immediately Hanuel noticed that the device didn't take in all of the mana, so he slowed down his output so there wouldn't be any waste.
'This student is taking so long, he probably doesn't have a big mana output. But it shouldn't matter that much, he will make up for it in mana control' Is what the examiner thought. "I am done examiner" Said Hanuel after a few minutes.
"Yes, you may go back." She said calmly before getting his test scores from the machine. "What! How can that be!!" What she was shocked at was a score much different than the other students. The quantity, which was also big, wasn't so shocking and was comparable to one other student in their group.
What the examiner was shocked about was the mana quantity. A 100% purity score, something that hasn't been seen before. Speechless the examiner started looking at the device to check if the machine was not broken and if the score is valid. Not seeing anything unusual, she was left speechless and in a daze.
"What are you doing examiner, we can add up the scores later, one hour has passed so the first person has to start the third test." Said a teacher overseeing the examiners.
The third test would determine our mana recovery/mana flow effectiveness. This was tested in the same way as the second test by supplying the same device with mana. This test would be conducted exactly one hour after the second test, which would determine how much mana you could gather in one hour. This would show how fast your mana recovery is.
So in that one hour I shut of most of my senses to concentrate more and started to accumulate mana in my body. After the one hour had passed, I had recovered about 50% of my mana and I took the third test and everything went smoothly.
Now having to wait for the third test to begin, they allowed us to do whatever we wanted for an hour before starting the last part of the test, the practical mana usage test.
"Hey Sook, how did the tests go for you" Hanuel asked Sook Baek, now being close enough to call each other by their first names.
"I think it went pretty well, but I don't know" And you, Sook Baek asked. "The first test I got a perfect score and I also did well on the second test, but I don't know about the third test. And I am feeling really nervous about the last test, because I have never successfully formed something with my mana."
Not knowing what situation Hanuel is in, the only thing Sook Baek could do was cheer him up. "Don't worry, I believe in you."
"Yes, thank you, that really helped. We should probably recover as much mana as possible for the final test" Hanuel said with a slightly somber expression.
While recovering, Hanuel started to think about why he has never been able to form anything from his mana. He had enough mana, good mana control and he knew his mana was blue, because he could see his mana. With blue mana, there would only be a few possibilities.
Either it was the water mana element, or maybe a form of ice element or the unique illusion attribute mana, which is also blue. But no matter how much I tried, none of these options worked.
For the next two hours Hanuel kept thinking about this, but he still had no idea how to form something with his element. And finally time was up. The teachers and examiners formed some kind of barrier inside the gymnasium, so that the facility wouldn't be damaged.
While everyone was watching, the students would be taken into the barrier for the practical test. Some students would enhance their bodies and showcased their agility by running as fast as they could, some even so fast that it was hard to see with the naked eye. Some showcased their physical strength by punching the barrier on the ground or the wall, some hurting their hand and some making the barrier tremor.
But what was more impressive to see, was people using mana to create things out of nothing. Some people formed a bright light and some people shot out fireballs and created earth walls from the ground. The most interesting thing for me to see was not how it looked or how strong it was, but how they did it.
The mana I could see would transform and transition into something completely natural. The red mana would change into a natural fire in a seamless transition as the mana had never existed in the first place. 'How can they do that' was the only thing on my mind, baffled by the sight of every new student.
Until it was Sook Baek's turn. Calmly entering the barrier and standing before the examiners and teachers, she began to thinly spread out her mana. Almost in the same way I use it to see. And then, that transition happened. Her pure white mana, thinly spread out changed the temperature in the whole room. Once again the mana disappeared and only the cold air remained.
While everyone thought she was done, I could see a large and dense amount of mana forming. Mana all around her in the shape of spears formed. Slowly letting the mana spin ten spears of solid ice appeared, which shot out into the barrier at a high speed, stuck in the barrier they continued to spin like a riffling bullet trying the pierce through it. Leaving some dents in the barrier, the ice spears stopped spinning and fell to the ground.
All students were amazed by what they just saw, what was the best performance yet after about sixty students, which left the room silent. After one person started clapping, it soon turned into a grandiose applause.
With a certain calmness over her, Sook Baek left the barrier and the next person was called up.
"Next is Hanuel Jin"
My name was called...
Having to follow up that performance, knowing that I couldn't form anything with my mana, I became visually nervous. With my legs shaking I walked towards the barrier.
Passing Sook Baek, she put her hand on my shoulder and looked up at me "I know you are special, so don't let this practical test stand in your way. Break out from those shackles and show everyone an even more breathtaking sight."
