Chapter 49: Herbert

“Is that him?”  

Seeing the instructor walking toward them, Li Xian raised an eyebrow. 

He had seen this instructor before.  

It was the handsome man who appeared before them after the first round of tests with Sara, the one who caused quite a stir.  

He still had that signature stubble on his face, adding a touch of maturity. 

His handsome face had slightly sunken eye sockets, revealing distinct dark circles, but it didn’t affect his image at all. 

If anything, that faintly disheveled look gave him a unique charm.  

“Oh, looks like everyone’s here…”  

He approached the group and half-closed his eyes to scan them briefly. 

His gaze paused slightly on Li Xian and Sara before he spoke.  

“Well then, first let me introduce myself. I’m Herbert, an instructor at the Academy. So… who wants to go first?”  

After a brief introduction, his gaze narrowed slightly, sharp light hidden within his eyes as he looked over the students before him.  

‘This man was strong!’

In an instant, Li Xian judged him to be very powerful, at least by human standards. 

Even stronger than those two old men lurking in the shadows.  

The sudden question left the dozen or so students momentarily stunned. 

After a moment, a young girl lifted her chin and looked at him.  

“I’ll go first!”  

Li Xian glanced at the speaker, his pupils contracting sharply, a chill running down his spine.  

Damn it, isn’t that the girl who was with that purple-haired girl the other day?  

He hadn’t noticed her at all just now!  

So the purple-haired girl… seemed to be missing.  

Li Xian looked around again but didn’t see the purple-haired girl among these students. 

She must have come for the test too, but her talent was probably insufficient.  

Li Xian didn’t dwell on it and focused his attention on the blonde girl who had stepped forward.  

This girl dared to volunteer first, so she must have some skill. 

At least, she looked very confident.  

When Herbert saw the girl, he unconsciously twitched the corner of his mouth.  

He had planned to make the first test strict, to give these kids a sense of urgency, but now this girl had jumped the gun…  

This was a test, and it must be fair—no favoritism—but this was Princess Ellie.  

If she got hurt by accident, it would be a huge mess, and trouble was the last thing he wanted. 

If it weren’t for that person, he wouldn’t even bother coming here as an examiner.  

Rolling his eyes internally in resignation, he feigned indifference and said, “Go ahead.”  

With that, he turned and stepped onto the duel platform, the blonde girl following him.  

“Come at me with everything you’ve got.”  

He still looked listless, and there was a trace of reluctance in his voice.  

Such an attitude wasn’t friendly at all to the test takers.  

Others didn’t know he was lazy; they would just think he looked down on them.  

The blonde girl obviously thought that way, too. 

Though she knew he was a Transcendent-level instructor, her face flushed red with anger and she threw all her strength into the fight.  

After all, as a royal princess, with considerable talent and abundant resources backing her, Ellie’s strength was far from weak.  

She had already reached the peak of a junior Mage’s abilities, only a step away from intermediate.  

With such power, she could already cast quite impressive magic. 

Feeling dissatisfied, Ellie unleashed her strongest spell without holding back.  

“Great Wind Blade Technique!”  

After a brief incantation, a large amount of wind element rapidly gathered in Ellie’s direction.  

Holding her staff, she swung it and unleashed a huge Wind Blade much larger than the usual ones.  

This was one of the strongest spells an apprentice could cast, and one of the strongest junior Mage spells.  

Herbert was somewhat surprised by Ellie’s move.  

Not only was the casting smooth and quick, but the speed was impressive as well. 

The Princess had clearly been training hard.  

Of course, given the Empire’s situation…  

Herbert’s thoughts were abruptly interrupted as Ellie’s Wind Blade surged toward him.  

He smiled faintly and, with a wave of his hand, sent out a Fireball that scattered the Wind Blade midair.  

It was just the most basic Fireball Spell, yet it easily countered Ellie’s Great Wind Blade Technique.  

Ellie was momentarily stunned by this, but before she could recover, Herbert threw another Fireball at her.  

Seeing the fast-approaching Fireball, Ellie was suddenly reminded of the overwhelming flames from that day.  

She shivered and hurriedly dodged.  

She breathed a sigh of relief, and Herbert did too.  

In the end, Ellie passed the test fairly easily. 

This was partly because Herbert held back, but also because Ellie’s own strength was not weak.  

After that, the rest of the candidates began their tests one by one.  

Notably, this instructor Herbert was not only a Mage but also a Warrior.  

When Vick stepped up for his test, Herbert casually broke off a branch from a nearby tree and used it to beat Vick, who was wielding an iron sword, back step by step.  

After everyone finished their tests one after another, it was finally Sara and Li Xian’s turn.  

“Sara, you go first.”  

Sara was nervous when she heard Li Xian, but she still took her sword and stepped onto the duel platform.  

The moment she swung her sword, Herbert’s expression changed sharply.  

“Intermediate Warrior?!”  

Caught off guard, Herbert nearly suffered a loss at Sara’s hands. 

Fortunately, although his Warrior skills were slightly inferior to his magical abilities, they were still firmly Transcendent-level.  

Sara ended up gasping for breath, barely passing the test.  

After Sara passed, only Li Xian was left.  

“Outstanding-level talent, truly extraordinary.”  

As Li Xian slowly stepped onto the duel platform, Herbert spoke.  

“That young lady was indeed much stronger than anyone before. Now, as someone with the same Outstanding-level talent and the last examinee, how strong are you?”  

He smiled, clearly interested in the challenge ahead.  

Li Xian smiled but gave no answer.  

At this moment, the crowd below erupted.  

More precisely, Vick and Light exploded in surprise.  

If before they had only doubted or refused to believe it, now the reality was undeniable.  

The ‘weakling pretty boy’ they had looked down upon was actually a genius with Outstanding-level elemental affinity, even above them!  

Even if they had some prior hints, the huge gap between imagination and reality left them stunned.  

Not just that ‘pretty boy,’ but Sara was also an Outstanding-level talent.  

Were they the ones who didn’t deserve Sara?  

Had they been the bitter lemons all this time? 

No, sour cabbage—both bitter and weak…