Curse the Mainframe! 119 Proficiency Test III

The moment the six hours were up, the illusion that surrounded them faded briefly, bringing the vision of the room back.

When the candidates saw that it had finally ended, some of them lost the tension that had been running through their veins, causing them to slump powerlessly onto the desks that had been supporting them the entire time.

"Submit the papers," Edward said unfeelingly.

Alec had already long submitted his paper and had been closing his eyes briefly as he thought about some of the questions that had stumped him previously.

The act of encountering different questions from the style that his master used to question made Alec obtain a few new views regarding some of the things that he had been previously struggling with.

The screen pinged, glowing green, showing that Alec had directly passed the first written test.
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When he glanced around, he found that five of the other candidates had failed, leaving behind six others to take the remaining three tests.

Alec's brow raised lightly when he thought about how more of them failed than he expected.

By now, the five that had failed had ugly expressions on their faces, while those that passed looked relieved.

When those that failed looked around to comfort themselves, their first glance was all towards Alec's desk, where they were sure that he would have failed.

Their eyes nearly popped out when they saw that the screen that was in front of him lit up with a bright green. The contrast between their own glaring red screens and the green on the young boy's screen made them feel like killing themselves.

The slap to their face had come without any warning, making them feel like their faces were stinging from the swift and collective retribution for their earlier unkind thoughts.

There was one candidate that couldn't accept this conclusion no matter what. He was also the most vocal of the lot, whereas the others were content to watch him be the one to address their grievances.

"Proctor, he must have cheated!" the man cried out. Had he been able to kill with his glare, Alec would have already been six feet under. "I don't believe it! I want to see proof!"

Still, no matter how much the man shouted, he was the only one who was voicing his doubts. The rest were content to wait and watch out the drama like it had nothing to do with them.

Alec felt the stirring of his temper wake up, his previous happiness abating somewhat. The System looked over at the man who was pointing and glaring at him.

Alec narrowed his eyes, unhappy that he was being questioned for someone that he had put in work to achieve.

The rest of the candidates were able to see that the boy wasn't as happy as he appeared. The narrowing of his eyes caused his smile to seem more sarcastic and cool rather than the earlier genial aura he'd been giving off.

Since they were able to see it, how could Edward be blind to it?

The loss of control over the man's emotions as well as his blatant tone filled with accusation and complaint drew the disdain of the rest of the candidates and their proctor.

Even if he had his grievances, did he have to say it out loud for everyone to hear so blatantly? It was as if the man had never once heard of subtlety.

Still, the more he talked, the more the other candidates felt like their earlier knee-jerk reaction that Alec had been cheating was off.

Who here hadn't passed on their own merit?

They had been looking down on Alec earlier because they thought that he was throwing his money away just to randomly try out the test, but the results of the first test had soundly and thoroughly slapped them in the face before they could even begin to put their disdain away.

Now that they weren't blinded by prejudice, even the most arrogant of them would have taken a step back when they saw that the young boy had passed the test. Just being able to pass the test already meant that he was qualified to stand on equal, if not higher, grounds with them.

What right did they have to continue looking down on him?

Cheating?

Just how did he expect that a small child would be able to cheat under the proctor's watchful eyes, ah?

Now that they weren't being blinded by prejudice, they couldn't help but wonder. Did the man have a hole in his brain?

Not to mention, not only was the man not currying any favours from the young boy, he was accusing him of cheating. If this wasn't the height of stupidity, then they didn't know what.

For even being able to pass the first test, the boy was destined to be a star in the array crafting circles. The man had to be completely and utterly blind not to realize this fact.

Sooner or later, there would be a meteoric rise of the youngest ever array master, and the man was too lost in his own arrogance and stung pride to see that.

The failed candidate continued making a fuss out of nothing, drawing Edward's ire.

"Silence!" Edward thundered. His face was as black as the bottom of a pot. The fact that his integrity was being questioned instantly put him in a terrible mood. As a lofty array master, when had he ever had his work ethics questioned by someone of lower standing than himself? Preposterous!

The thing Edward placed the most importance on was his principles in life.

The sole man who had been making a fuss shut up instantly, hearing the anger in the array master's voice. His teeth clacked from the force he shut his mouth with. His face paled, but he did nothing to take back his words.

The sound of the proctor's voice soothed Alec's rising temper somewhat. That's right. Why should he waste his time arguing with an insignificant character when he could just smack him in the face with his results?

"Are you calling my integrity into question?" Edward said dangerously. "Are you calling the institution's integrity into question?" Edward's face was cold and devoid of any neutrality that he'd been projecting before, morphing into something that was dangerous.

The man sputtered. He clearly wanted to retract his rash words, yet his pride didn't allow him to do so.

Edward and the rest of the candidates watched him with cold eyes.

In the end, Edward grabbed the man by the collar, bodily tossing him out of the examination room. "Isaac Baslk, you are no longer welcome within the institute. You may retake your exam in twenty years if you still wish to become an array master."

The man let out a yell of sorrow and instant regret as the security outside hauled him away on Edward's orders, they left him the silver badge that was pinned onto his collar but marked his name down on the institution's blacklist.

Edward turned around. "The institute does not tolerate being called into question. Take this as a lesson."

Edward's eyes met each of the candidates, before landing on Alec's. Alec nodded his head lightly to the man in thanks.

The man did not have to take such a harsh stance to help Alec, but he did. Alec wasn't one who didn't appreciate help, and there was no doubt that the stern-looking man had helped him out, dispelling the doubts of the remaining candidates other than Baslk, as there was no way that he wasn't the only one who had doubts about his legitimacy.

Edward turned around. "Failed candidates see yourselves out. The rest of you, do not think that the time we just spent on that trash isn't coming out of your test time. Remember, you need at least three thousand points to pass. Begin!"

At his words, the previous illusion enveloped them again.

Four other candidates other than Alec were busy cursing Baslk in their heart, their faces dark. They would cause trouble for him later on, mark their words.

Chapter end

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