KAYLA

Oh God, focus, Kayla! You can't throw up now! That would destroy the atmosphere.

I never liked olives, and I remember why that is. You can hardly call this food! So disgusting! But it was worth it. I would do it again, 10 out of 10 for the experience of being fed.

The embarrassment on Miko's face was priceless, but I never intended for this situation to turn out the way it did. Everything was much cuter in my mind, just a sweet moment between two friends…

After chewing for what felt like an eternity and a big sip from my Coke, I managed to swallow the monstrosity I let Miko put in my mouth.

"Delicious!" I exclaimed jokingly before eating some of my own pizza. The sweet sensation of the pineapple quickly restored the taste in my mouth, and I began to enjoy my life again.

We spent the rest of the meal without another word, neither of us knowing what to say... unwillingly, I imagined what the whole scene must have looked like from the outside. Actually, quite harmless, so I could not understand why she was so against the idea of feeding me.

"Let's head back," Miko said after we threw away our trash.

"Yeah, let's do that." I agreed with her, so we started walking back to the ministry building. I still had some time left before taking my practical exam.

I wasn't nearly as excited as I was before the theoretical test because Miko said that the practical part was just a check to see if I could control my mana flow and use actual magic in the end.

Since Miko was worried that they couldn't properly test healing magic because they needed someone injured or drunk… she taught me another simple form of magic just to be safe.

During the small lessons, she called me the opposite of talented because although I could use healing magic, which was apparently very difficult and rare, I could not create something as simple as a small fireball in the palm of my hand.

But I have managed to manipulate wind with my mana. I can make small things fly with it or push something light away. Nothing special, but definitely enough to pass the exam, at least that's what Miko said.

Back at the building, we planned to go our separate ways, but why should we?

"Do you want to come inside with me? Maybe you recognize someone?" I asked, smiling in anticipation. Her expression changed instantly. Maybe she had bad memories or was just as unsocial as I am and did not want to meet anyone.

"Alright, I'll go with you." She said and added a big sigh at the end.

A surprised "Nice." escaped my mouth, so we walked together.

I couldn't help but observe Miko as she looked around cautiously, perhaps hoping not to run into anyone she knew.

"It still looks the same. Nothing changed at all." Miko talked more to herself, but I still nodded, agreeing with her.

"And have you already discovered someone familiar?" I asked quietly.

"Yes, someone I worked with some years ago, but it seemed like he did not see me." She answered, relieved.

"Stop! Miko-Chan, stoop!" a male voice called out behind us. It seemed like he did see her!

"Call me like that once more, and I will kill you here and now," Miko shouted furiously, turning around to face a middle-aged man. From his looks alone, he could easily be my father. His physique resembled a rectangle; some muscles were hidden under his suit, and he had pretty long eyelashes. His short brown hair also reminded me of someone who regularly hits the gym.

"Don't shout... everyone is looking already," I whispered.

"Who is that?" the dude asked, looking skeptically in my direction.

"Someone like you, who gets his magic license a few years too late," Miko said.

"You know that I was a special case." He muttered.

"Definitely something special, but look at you; after seeing the inside of a dungeon once, you've managed to turn yourself into someone who sits in an office all day."

"As far as I know, you did not see a dungeon from the inside for some time, either."

I don't know what their relationship is, but the mood of the conversation changed very quickly from joking to unsettlingly tense.

"If you are so well informed, you would know that I was simply banned from doing so, but the sentence expired last month, so you don't have to worry about me anymore." Miko seemed pissed, so I grabbed her hand and pulled her with me.

"I don't want to know what is going on between you two, but I definitely don't want to ruin the vibe right before my exam." I turned around and gave the guy a death stare. He just stood there, smiled, and raised his right hand to give me a thumbs-up.

From that single interaction, I knew that I couldn't stand him. And I really hope that I don't have to see him again.

We ended up before a gym in the center of the building.

"You should go. The other participants are probably already inside," Miko suggested. "Don't worry, you'll be fine," she tried to calm me down.

"And you can wait outside the building if you want to. I guess you don't need another encounter like before."

"Kayla, don't get discouraged when you see the other contestants." Miko put a hand on my back and stroked it lightly. It may sound strange, but I really like it when she touches me.

I tried to remember her words not to get discouraged after I entered the gym, but it was harder than I thought. In addition to the various testing stations, the gym was filled with a bunch of children.

The youngest looked about ten years old. The oldest was maybe fourteen. I was looked at as if I were out of place... even the judges gave me one or two disapproving looks.

I went to the testing center with the number I had been assigned before the theoretical test. At exactly 5 p.m., the exams began. Most of the participants finished within two minutes, others took a bit longer, and some candidates even failed. Miko told me that the practical part was much easier than the theoretical part... I'm starting to get a little worried.

Finally, it was my turn. And can you guess who my judge was? Exactly this old companion of Miko, whom I could not stand. I definitely jinxed that, so I was to blame. The moment he saw me, he grinned over his whole face. 

"How do you know Miko?" he asked with a soft voice, looking at some papers.

"We are in the same guild," I answered shortly.

"Miko is in a guild? Who is the leader?" he seemed surprised.

"Lilith."

He chuckled and glanced over at me.

"You don't know anything about the world of mages, do you?" he asked, chuckling. Yes, it's true. I don't know anything, and of course, I'm curious to know what Miko was saying earlier. She was no longer allowed to enter dungeons… she was no longer allowed to work. What went so wrong that she was punished like that?

"That doesn't matter. Could we start the exam, please?" I acted uninterested, but in all honesty, I just didn't want to hear anything from him… if I wanted to hear something about what happened, then from Miko and Lilith themselves.

"Of course, sorry for drifting off." He said as if nothing had happened and smiled.

"So, what kind of magic have you got for me today?"

"I am experienced in healing magic," I stated, looking at him in expectation.

"I understand."

His eyes turned red, and small clouds of black smoke rose from his right hand. The smoke gathered and began to take on a shape that looked less and less like smoke with each passing second until it formed a long, pitch-black, thin needle. Without hesitation, he cut his hand with it and opened a long slit in his palm that immediately started bleeding.

"Would you please," he said, reaching his injured hand in my direction.

Since his wound was open, I had no intention of touching it, so I imagined my magic taking the form of a small sphere. A warm, burning sensation crept through my body and finally reached my eyes. That was the sign that my body was ready to use magic, so the image from my mind took shape, and a small bright green orb appeared, hovering above my palm.

"That's different." He suddenly said.

"From what?" I asked, placing my magic on his wound where it disappeared, closing the cut instantly.

"You passed." He said, ignoring my question. I was still perplexed when he handed me a paper he had just stamped. "Take this to the entrance desk, pay the license fee, and you are done. Congratulations."

"Thanks," I said briefly and walked quickly to the exit of the hall. Outside the door, I saw some of the kids crying, some out of joy, others because they had to retake the exam in three months. Somehow, my head could not celebrate my passing… it was full of questions that I probably won't get answered anytime soon.