The Heavenly Hero Returns

Chapter 7: The Combat Exams Begin

With the magic evaluation concluded—and your disastrous performance still fresh in everyone's minds—the combat placement exams commenced.

The dueling grounds were located in an open-air coliseum, where students would fight directly against the instructors in a series of structured tests. The goal wasn't to win—because none of them would.

It was to impress.

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The Five Notable Exams

1. Lucien von Hohenfeld – The Golden Prodigy

The first student called was Lucien von Hohenfeld. The moment his name was spoken, the crowd grew silent in anticipation.

Lucien strode to the center of the field, his crimson eyes glinting with amusement, his golden hair almost glowing under the sunlight. He carried himself with effortless confidence as he faced his assigned instructor—Sir Aldric Faust, the grizzled veteran of the battlefield.

"You may begin."

Lucien drew his sword, a beautifully crafted rapier, and—

FWOOOM!

A burst of fire erupted along the blade.

In a blink, he lunged forward, striking at Sir Aldric with blistering speed. Each movement was fluid, seamless, as if he had been born to wield both sword and flame in harmony.

The duel was a display of precision and pressure—Lucien layered his swordplay with magic, feinting attacks with flame bursts while seamlessly transitioning into actual strikes.

Sir Aldric was impressed.

But not overwhelmed.

With a sharp parry, Aldric dispersed one of Lucien's flame attacks with his own Sword Aura, forcing the young noble backward. Even then, Lucien didn't falter. His footwork was too polished, his instincts too honed.

It took a full five minutes before Aldric finally disarmed him.

A performance far beyond what was expected from a first-year.

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2. Seraphina von Aurelius – The Celestial Princess

Next was Seraphina von Aurelius.

The moment she stepped onto the field, a hushed reverence filled the air. She was royalty. Untouchable.

Her opponent? Lady Isabeau de Montclair.

Instead of drawing a sword, Seraphina raised her hand—Light gathered at her fingertips, golden and radiant, before suddenly morphing into blades of pure energy surrounding her like an orbiting halo.

Her control was flawless.

With a gesture, the Light Blades shot forward. They moved as if they were alive.

Lady Isabeau countered with a conjured shield of pure mana, dispersing the attacks before they could reach her. But Seraphina was unrelenting—she flicked her wrist, and the swords curved midair, redirecting toward her opponent from multiple angles.

A true test of magical control and multi-tasking.

Lady Isabeau finally retaliated with her own spell, sending a concentrated burst of force that shattered Seraphina's light constructs. The princess staggered back, visibly strained—but not once did her composure break.

She bowed after her defeat, regal and composed.

The students watching were entranced.

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3. Magnus Reinhardt – The Unshakable Shield

The third name called was Magnus Reinhardt.

Unlike the others, Magnus didn't carry himself with noble elegance. He walked onto the field like a fighter, not a duelist—his uniform slightly unkempt, his expression unreadable.

His opponent was Sir Aldric once again.

Magnus wielded a greatsword, a weapon nearly as tall as he was. The moment the match began, he slammed the blade into the ground—spikes of earth erupted forward, aiming to restrict Sir Aldric's movements.

Sir Aldric evaded.

Magnus followed up with sheer brute force—his sword swings carried the full weight of the Earth element, sending shockwaves through the ground with every strike.

Unlike Lucien or Seraphina, he wasn't graceful.

He was relentless.

Blow after blow, he forced Sir Aldric on the defensive, leveraging pure power to create openings. At one point, Aldric was nearly knocked off balance—a feat no one else had come close to achieving.

It was only after a well-timed counterattack that Magnus was finally disarmed.

Still, when the match ended, the murmurs were clear—he was a monster in his own right.

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4. Alistair von Aurelius – The Silent Storm

When Alistair von Aurelius stepped forward, the audience was still buzzing from Magnus' match.

Unlike his twin, Alistair's presence was cold. Detached.

He faced Grandmaster Wolfram von Eisenwald himself.

Why? Because Alistair was expected to be among the absolute best.

As the duel began, Alistair summoned Wind magic, his blade becoming an extension of the very air around him.

Where Lucien burned and Magnus crushed—

Alistair cut.

His sword strikes were impossibly swift, his movements unnatural in their efficiency. He barely seemed to touch the ground as he weaved through attacks, launching razor-sharp wind slashes that forced even Grandmaster Wolfram to parry.

And then—

Alistair vanished.

No—not vanished. His movement became so fast that it looked like he disappeared. His footwork carried him like a phantom, attacking from unpredictable angles.

The duel lasted almost ten minutes, the longest by far.

But even he could not defeat Wolfram.

When the match ended, the air was thick with tension.

For a first-year… he had forced effort from a Grandmaster.

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5. Hannelore Eisendreich – The Ice Queen

The last of the major students was Hannelore Eisendreich, daughter of a powerful marquis.

Where Seraphina's presence was regal, Hannelore's was glacial. She was beautiful, tall, and coldly composed—her pale blue eyes held no warmth.

Her magic was Water, but her control was so refined that it functioned as Ice.

Her duel was against Sir Aldric.

The moment the match started, she froze the entire battlefield.

An instantaneous shift in terrain.

Sir Aldric barely had time to adjust before jagged spears of ice shot toward him from every direction. Hannelore's control was near inhuman—she manipulated multiple ice constructs simultaneously, creating an ever-shifting battlefield of lethal formations.

But—

Sir Aldric shattered them all.

It was over in less than two minutes.

Hannelore, despite her best efforts, was completely outmatched.

Even so, as she stepped down, she remained expressionless, as if the loss had meant nothing to her.

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Your Turn – The Last Duel

By the time your name was called, you were already half-asleep from waiting.

After watching five impressive duels, the audience was hyped. That slowly faded as the rest of the riffraff followed up. 

And then—

Jessica Moran stepped forward with all the enthusiasm of a corpse.

People snickered.

The sword in your hand felt like a tumor—too heavy, too slow. You hated it.

Your opponent? Sir Aldric, because of course it was.

You sighed.

This is going to be annoying.