Several tests

Chapter 6

After a nice breakfast of fruit breads and warm, aromatic coffee, Naoya, the fairy and the knights proceeded to Aetheryn Order’s Intelligence Department for his interrogation.

Naoya couldn’t help but watch everything around him as they walked through the halls, like a child going through a toy store. The world’s magic was on full display around him, with fairies carrying objects in bubbles under them, people walking through paintings that replaced doors, and even places where the paths curved into the walls, letting people walk sideways and onto higher levels. It felt weird at first, as he thought he would fall on his back, but surprisingly gravity itself followed the path’s curve, making the transition feel natural, aside from everything else being sideways from their view.

They eventually reach a rectangular doorway, which was replaced by a translucent, hazy veil with the word “Interrogation” glowing above it. Naoya walks through after the Knights and enters a large room. It was almost empty, except for a massive sphere in the middle of the room, composed of several rings that slowly spun around and gave off a pale blue light, illuminating most of the room like a fireplace.

Standing next to a table near the rings was a woman wearing a large witch’s hat and an elegant form-fitting dress. She had her back turned to the door, busily reading something and seemingly unaware of their arrival.

“We’re here, Miss-” Greta started saying, but Lance quickly silenced her by muffling her voice with a bubble around her head. He gestures at Greta to be quiet before making a sly smile and approaching the lady.

“How was your morning so far, Miss-”

Before Lance could continue, the lady snapped her fingers, covering his entire body in heavy metal armor. She points her finger upwards, and they could hear Lance’s muffled screams as he shot upwards into the ceiling and stayed stuck there, unmoving.

Naoya and Astrea giggle, and Greta pops the bubble over her head to talk to the lady. “I’m sorry about Lance again, Miss Selwyn.”

“Oh no, it’s alright, Miss Greta. I’ve learned to just shut him up before he speaks,” the lady says as she turns to face them, closing the folder she was reading. “He’s the subject, yes? Shiranui… Naoya?”

“Yes, ma’am. I’m Shiranui Naoya… ummm, in my country we say our family name first, just in case you’re confused.”

“Hmmm, I see. I definitely have a lot of questions for you after reading the report, but that’s what we’re here for, anyway. Shall we begin?”

“Oh, okay. Ummm, one question though,” Naoya says nervously, “how many fingers am I gonna lose? I’d prefer it in my left hand, if possible, since I’m right-handed. Or if we’re going for the rack, I just wanna make sure you guys can pop my shoulders and legs back to their joints since-”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, stop. What are you saying? Is that how you think we’re gonna interrogate you?” Miss Selwyn says, interrupting his question. All the ladies looked at him in shock.

Naoya looked around, embarrassed. “Yes...?”

The lady laughs. “No, silly. We don’t need to resort to those methods; we’re not barbaric. And besides, it’s not like you’re a war criminal or anything…right?”

“No, of course. I’m just… a lost traveler, I guess. Hahaha,” he replies, regretting his questions.

“We’re gonna be using that,” Miss Selwyn says as she points to the sphere. “Culibard’s Matrix. You’ll be going inside, and it will determine if you’re answering our questions truthfully or if you’re lying. So don’t lie, okay? Or there will be consequences.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He was curious about the consequences but decided that he didn’t really want to know, anyway.

“When you’re ready, stand near the sphere and let’s start,” she says as she takes a seat by the table. The knights and the fairy stay behind her as Naoya approaches the glowing blue sphere. The rings dragged him in as he got near.

This is pretty fun, he thinks as he floated inside the sphere.

“Interrogation of subject ‘Naoya’ begins. First, how are you feeling today?” Miss Selwyn asks.

“I’m feeling fine, miss. Very excited to learn more about… everything, really. It’s all been new to me since I woke up and, uhhh… I miss my friends and family back home a bit,” he says as he fights a tear from falling. “But I’m okay now. I’m more focused on my future.”

“Hmmm, so far, so good. Next, please state your identity. Your name, age, what you do in your life, all that stuff.”

“Uhhh, okay. My name is Shiranui Naoya, first name Naoya. I’m 16 years old, and I am… well, I was a second-year high school student. My hobbies are anime and video games… which I’m not sure if they exist in this world.”

“Maybe we call those things differently… but I’m more curious about your wording. You said, ‘in this world’. What do you mean by that? Where are you from?”

“How do I explain this… I guess I can start with how I got here.” Naoya then narrates everything that had happened to him before his encounter with the knights, including the old lady, his death, and his awakening. He recalls his first experience with magic, his adventure through the forest, meeting the wisps and how they taught him about the world.

“... so I said goodbye to them and gave them that paper flower art we call ‘origami’ as thanks, and I approached the knights, which should be where their record begins,” Naoya says as he finishes his recount.

Only Miss Selwyn survived until the end of his story. Greta and Astrea were already dozing off while standing.

“Hmmm…” the interrogator says as she observes the surrounding rings, looking for any changes within them. “Very honest answer, and somehow gives me more questions. Let me clarify this: you said you came from a country called ‘Japan’ from a different world, yes?”

“That’s right. I know this is a different world since there isn’t any magic where I’m from.”

“And what is the name of your world?”

“Earth.”

Miss Selwyn looked surprised. “Huh, that’s interesting then, because we also call our world Earth.”

“Wait, what? Really?” Naoya gasps. “Does that mean I’m in a parallel universe?”

“It’s possible, yes. Though I’ve never seen or heard of otherworldly travelers like you from historical records.” Miss Selwyn thinks for a bit before continuing. “I’ll let others deal with that fact; let’s move to another question then: what are your goals?”

“Hmmm, my goals… I think right now I really wanna learn more about this world and the magic. Maybe I can improve my abilities, then become an adventurer or something like that, then fight and defeat the demon lord and save the world. Like the stories I’ve seen before,” he awkwardly says, stating his grand plans.

“Very noble and honest answer. Though you won’t really be able to do the last part anymore,” Miss Selwyn replies with a smile, “we already defeated the demon lord half a century ago.”

“Wait, really? That’s a good thing then. I’ll just continue practicing magic.”

“I’m sure you’ll do well. Hmmm… that should be everything, unless you girls have questions?” The lady turns to look at the knights, who both suddenly woke up.

“Oh, uh, I’m uhhh… not really. I don’t have one,” says Greta, regaining her composure.

“I have question,” Astrea raises her hand.

“Go on, then.”

“Making the sun. How?” she asks Naoya.

“Well, the fairy told me to make fires, then focus on keeping them on the sphere, then when it was stable I started putting more fire into it. I just repeated that cycle with the fairy’s help until it was bright enough, then boom,” Naoya says with a gesture of explosion. “I’m not really sure if it was supposed to be easy or hard, so I don’t know if I should be amazed with myself.”

“It was great. Your magical control. And energy. Very good.”

“Really? Wow… my first time using magic was great…” Naoya says, a hint of disappointment in his voice. “It’s all thanks to the wisps, I guess.”

“Wisps are quite smart, yes, especially when they evolve into fairies and nymphs. It’s surprising they stayed with you. Most of the time they’re hard to spot and also quite fragile, which is why they avoid other creatures in the first place,” Greta explains.

“That is true. I used to wish for a fairy companion when I was a kid,” Miss Selwyn adds with a smile. “Well, if there’s no other questions, let’s wrap up the interrogation. Thank you for your cooperation, Naoya,” she says as he slowly floats back down.

“I’ll be sending the report to your captain today. Oh, and here’s your teammate back.”

She flicks her pointer finger down, and from the ceiling falls the screaming, iron-clad form of Lance. He stayed silent and unmoving on the ground.

“We might have to bring him to the clinic. I think I heard a bone crack. Then after that, let’s bring Naoya to the Academy for his S.E.M.T.U.C.K.L.E.R. Thank you, Miss Selwyn,” Greta says as they leave the room, Lance’s body scraping on the ground behind them..

After a quick detour to the clinic, Naoya and his companions head to the building’s gate hub, where several glowing glyphs shine on the ground with a sign on top of them, naming their destinations. They step through one labeled “Valebryn Academy” and instantly appear outside a massive white castle, beautifully designed with simplistic ornaments and intricate carvings on the walls. They enter the lively and vibrant main hall, full of students busily going about their day. There weren’t just humans, but also elves, dwarves, beast people, and other races that Naoya didn’t know the names of. He quickly glanced at his surroundings, not wanting to look weird for gawking at people.

They reach the front desk, and Greta talks to them for a while before another teleportation glyph appears beside them. They thank the staff and step through, appearing in a quiet, empty, and massive room.

“Alright, Naoya, listen carefully. You’ll be taking your S.E.M.T.U.C.K.L.E.R. now. It stands for Standardized Evaluation of Magical Talent, Understanding, Capacity, Knowledge, Latent potential, Equilibrium, and Resilience, but you don’t have to remember all of that. It’s just a test to measure your magical abilities. Just follow your examiner’s instructions and do your best, alright? Any questions?” Greta explains.

“Is it hard?” he asks half-jokingly.

“Not really; most of it is just simple tests. There are some weird ones, but they serve a purpose. And don’t feel too pressured. All 13-year-olds take this test. You’re not gonna get kicked out of the city if you get a low score or anything.”

“Alright then. Wish me luck!” Naoya confidently replies, taking a deep breath before following the examiner into the test area.

The test took almost two hours. It included a written exam, which Naoya knew nothing about even though he could somehow read it, physical tests with several magical apparatus, and some practical tests where Naoya had to apply his magical skills to pass through several problems and scenarios.

He returns to his companions after the test tired and hungry, and after a quick lunch, seeing more of the city along the way, they go back to the examination room to receive his scores. Greta and Astrea were both positively surprised, while Naoya himself didn’t really understand what his test results meant for him.

-- VALEBRYN ACADEMY S.E.M.T.U.C.K.L.E.R RESULTS --

Examinee: Shiranui Naoya

Examiner: Othwin Brimble

Test Purpose: General Examination

RESULTS:

Talent - GIFTED

Understanding - UNSTRUCTURED

Capacity - WELLSPRING

Knowledge - SCATTER-MINDED Latent potential - VEIL-TOUCHED

Equilibrium - BALANCED

Resilience - IRON-BOUND

FINAL ASSESSMENT -

VERY HIGH NATURAL APTITUDE, BUT LITTLE TO NO MAGICAL KNOWLEDGE. IMMENSE POTENTIAL WITH PROPER EDUCATION AND TRAINING.