The importance of the test was at an all-time high so there was little I was going to leave to chance. After checking, double, even triple-checking each of my sigils and runes, I made my way to the school from the small inn I had reserved several months in advance. On my way, I made a point to pay attention to the people walking around the city. If I had not been as nervous about the test, I think I might have paid more attention to the city structure. Its tall scrapers, high ornate arches, and winding paths are quite the sight but, that’s for later.  

In the test that year there were a lot of races mixed. I could be facing any of them, the prince who’s an aura user, another mage with a different type of magic from my own, a werewolf, a shifter, an elf, or even a fairy. Any race has the chance to enroll and grow in this academy. A beautiful thing for the advancement of the empire and an effective way to weed out the weaklings. Harsh but, it wouldn’t be one of the best schools if it accepted everyone. 

For a moment my ambition shook under that great pressure like being a worm in a tank full of piranhas. But again, I could NOT go back. Yes, my parents would receive me with no hesitation, they may not even ask me what happened. No, I couldn’t! I talked big at home, worked hard learning everything I could, got great results from all the training, and I couldn’t let that all go to waste! I couldn’t give up right in front of the beautiful tall arches of the academy’s entrance. I may have been cowering a little but not enough to stop me from going inside.  

Okay, I did have to take baby steps to finally make it inside. Sometimes breaking a step into tinier baby ones is what you gotta do to spur yourself along. 

"Registration number,” I jumped and almost fell over. A few laughs erupted from behind me and around me. Oh, the shame! Even now, the shame! From the get-go too! 

The prospective students behind me showed their registration numbers to the voice and kept walking. I tried to keep my eyes down, but I could still feel those mocking glances.  

“I apologize for my rude behavior. I was lost in my own thoughts.” I said showing the owner of the voice my registration letter. No reply came from the stout-looking gargoyle as he returned to his perfect stance after glancing at my paperwork. I would be lying if I didn’t stop for a while to watch the gargoyle at work. I knew the academy used gargoyles as a type of security system to stop anyone trying to sneak into the testing area.  

Gargoyles are creatures of the night and usually sleep during the day in a form that sort of resembles stone. However, they are fierce protectors of whatever building they are hired to guard. In this case, it’s the academy and I got a nice show from them. Apparently, there were a lot of newspapers attempting to get an interview or a picture of the prince. Of course, the academy wouldn’t allow that, thus the security around the school kept every creature without a registration letter out.  

Every couple of steps I heard a scream or a yelp of someone being forcibly escorted off-premises. I felt safe but also a bit scared.  

After having gawked at the beautifully laid walkway and the immaculately kept garden, I made it to the hall in the center of the campus where I thought the test was going to be held. Once inside I took some breaths to calm myself. I was expecting some current students to sort of, I don’t know, watch some of the candidates to be students but, I wasn’t expecting them to pick fights with the ones they saw as strong or weak. Luckily, none of them saw me sneak in under the cover of a half-giant candidate. No one would pick a fight with one of them, because of obvious reasons.  

Breathe, breathe, I kept telling myself as I walked. I can’t have the wind knocked out of me till I at least saw all the candidates for the test.  

The main hall of the academy was specifically designed to hold more than ten thousand people and equipped to seat all of them. Yet, there were no chairs laid out and apart from the registration table, there was no furniture or any decoration. The tall marble columns, as intricate as the ones in the city, were bare. Above me, I was expecting to see the ornamental antique chandelier, described in the handbook as the most delicately crafted crystals in all of the empire. Instead, there was only sky. The roof was enchanted to appear as a clear blue sky.  

A little disappointed, I walked toward the registration table. My mind was wandering about many things and one of them was how suspicious that was. An enchantment of that scale would take either one practitioner with a lot of mana or many mages casting the same spell or it could be a distraction from something else.  

Seated at the table were five goblins dressed in the same dark green suit with a little red pocket hanky. Each of them performed one task, as one leafed through my paperwork, they nodded to the next who promptly gave me a number, while the next one asked for my luggage, and the final two had the most important job. They had to make sure I had not brought any prohibited items.  

The registration letter had come with a set of instructions for the test. I could go on to list the intricate rules, but I’ll stick to the ones that applied to me as a witch. One I could not bring a wand with me, all spells had to be cast verbally or with hands. I’ll explain the pros and cons of verbal spells versus spells cast with your hands later. Anyway, a wand is like a crutch for many magic practitioners but sometimes when a spell is miscast it’s better for the wand to break rather than your arm. The school banning wands for the test meant they wanted to see talent, control, and versatility. The second item I wasn’t allowed to bring was a broom. Again, this is a handy item but, understandable that they wanted to keep witches grounded. Pun intended. Third item: potions. Ready-made potions were not allowed. This meant healing potions, exploding, or other potions to give an edge were not allowed. The school was adamant about their students showcasing their raw talent and potential for growth under pressure.  

One of the goblins checking my hat saw the abyss enchantment it had and made sure to check every item I had stored inside by violently shaking it. An abyss enchantment makes an item bigger on the inside, it works as a sort of portable chest to store items. Remembering it makes me angry. Nothing was breakable of course, but still my poor hat! If the other goblin hadn’t been checking my shoes, I think I would have leaped to catch my items. The last thing they checked was my gloves which I wear for certain reasons.  

Once I received an ‘all clear’ my small suitcase was stamped with my number and sent to storage. Depending on my results I would see it in my dorm room in the academy or outside the school gates on my way home.   

The goblins were fast at their jobs so there was no line. All the students who had passed the inspection were just standing around waiting for the test to begin. A few of them had formed groups and were chatting away about the test.  

The thought of joining one of the groups did pop up but I quickly dismissed it. I can’t join a group I don’t know! How would I even enter?! How should I greet them? What do I say? I’m a socially awkward peanut!!  

I’m also a dark mage. We’re not exactly looked at nicely in many places because there’s still the stigma that dark magic is the same as forbidden magic. The reason is the use of the term black magic which is not the same as dark magic. One is the affinity of a person’s body with its source being mana, while the other one is gained through horrible acts like sacrifices and other questionable means. I could go on and on, but I’ll leave that for later because this will come up many more times. 

Anyhow, I decided to observe the other candidates instead of worrying about greeting them. Depending on the results of this test I may not be a student with a lot of them. The research I had conducted, before even applying, over the last five years, has shown that most of the tests were a sort of competition with a pass rate of about thirty-five percent. Thirty-five percent! I was more than a little nervous, so I didn’t need the extra pressure.  

I found a nice place where I could watch the entrance and have a good view of the large hall. The hall seemed to stretch forever but I couldn’t explore it, I had to wait in the same area as everyone.