SWNOVELXO Chapter 165: Exam II
"…What do you mean?"
"You mean the rewards are going to be reduced? Or maybe they'll get worse?"
"But I only came to see the B-rank item. If they removed it, I want my money back."
Hearing the murmurs among the audience—and even among some students who were listening—Philip smiled and continued speaking.
"Before we talk about the rewards, let me explain the test itself."
"Students will be split into teams of two and teleported into the test area. Once they arrive, they'll each receive a flag. The task is to defend your own flag and capture other people's flags."
"Even though it's a team competition, there will still be a rivalry between the two members of each team. The student who collects the most flags in their group will be declared the winner."
"You have to hold onto the flags you collect until the end of the test. If someone else—whether an enemy or your teammate—takes them from you, you'll lose the points for them."
The head of the academy paused, giving everyone a moment to absorb his words.
He looked at everyone's expressions and, once he was sure most had understood, he continued.
"As for the rewards, first place will receive a B-rank item, a letter of recommendation from me, and access to the Lapis Phoenix Domain."
"What? The Lapis Phoenix Domain?"
"Isn't that the legendary domain that used to be a dungeon? If I'm not mistaken, it's the only dungeon that didn't disappear even after being cleared. At first, the Awakened Association was cautious about it, but because of the valuable resources and items found inside, they decided to convert it into a training dungeon."
"Still, it's not just any training dungeon—anything you manage to obtain inside, you're allowed to keep."
"That's it? Heh, I heard the domain even has Phoenix Blood. If someone manages to absorb it, their power and potential will rise to an unbelievable level."
As the crowd kept talking about the Lapis Phoenix Domain, Daniel also found his interest piqued.
"The Lapis Phoenix Domain? I've heard a few things about it. If I'm not wrong, it's located in the capital. But to enter it, you have to place top three in the Phoenix and Dragon gathering. So what does this old man mean? How can he give someone access to that place?" He frowned slightly.
As far as he knew, only the Awakened Federation had the authority to grant entry to that domain.
Meanwhile, Philip continued his announcement.
"Second place will receive a C-rank item along with a letter of recommendation from me. With that letter, you can even get a scholarship from the best Awakened Academy in the country."
"The rewards for third to tenth place will follow the usual structure."
He scanned the crowd again.
But this time, his eyes focused more precisely on a specific person—a striking boy with white hair and strange eyes.
'What's with those eyes?' Philip frowned slightly and made a mental note to ask if he had the chance later.
"Any questions?" he asked in a loud, clear voice.
But this question wasn't aimed at the audience—it was directed at the students.
No one said anything. They were all still in shock over the first-place rewards.
In fact, many of them hadn't even planned to fight for first place. Most just wanted to make it into the top ten.
But now? The fire of competition was blazing in their eyes.
No one wanted to miss the chance to enter the Lapis Phoenix Domain.
"Seems like there are no questions. Then let's begin the test. You'll see a number appear on your hand—this shows how many flags you currently have. Your own flag doesn't count."
Philip spoke, and portals suddenly appeared in front of the students.
They didn't hesitate. One by one, they stepped in—and as soon as they crossed the threshold, the world around them shifted and they were scattered across different regions.
"Huh?" Alice looked around. She found herself beside a beautiful waterfall—and more importantly, there was a blue flag stuck in the ground in front of her.
"So this is the flag, huh?"
"You? I didn't expect you to be my teammate."
She groaned upon seeing her partner—a beautiful girl with long purple hair.
Why did it have to be this girl?
Did this mean she had to fight and compete with Tiana?
"What? You don't look happy to see me." The purple-haired girl smirked.
Alice didn't respond immediately and stayed silent. If it were up to her, she really wouldn't have wanted to be paired with this girl.
But unfortunately, she didn't have a choice. There was no option to request a teammate change.
"I don't like you either, but we don't have a choice. Let's put our issues aside for now."
She reached her hand out.
"Fine by me," the purple-haired girl replied with the same smirk.
Then Alice turned and went to pick up the flag. She examined it briefly—nothing special. It was just an ordinary object.
"So what do we do now?" the purple-haired girl—Livana—asked.
"We look for the other participants. With our power, our team should be among the strongest, so there's nothing to worry about," Alice answered.
Caution was still important, of course. But with Livana around, she didn't need to be too cautious. As much as she hated to admit it, this girl was strong.
Livana nodded, and the two of them started heading north. They weren't sure how far the other students were, so for safety, they tried to move quietly.
Minutes passed. The test area was fairly large, and even after tens of minutes, they hadn't encountered anyone else.
"Hm? Did you hear that?" Alice frowned as she picked up a sound.
Livana didn't say anything, just glanced at her—but that was enough for Alice to understand. They both headed in different directions toward the source of the noise.
It didn't take long for them to see what caused it—four students were fighting over their flags.
Alice recognized them immediately. Thankfully, they weren't even close to her in terms of strength.
If she attacked, she could grab two flags.
"But…" Her gaze shifted to the tree where Lievana was already watching the battle from above.
With her around, Alice doubted she could take both flags. But there was nothing she could do about it.
"Guess I'll have to settle for one."