"Here we are," an instructor said on one side.

"This is the eastern side of the forest," another said from my other side.

The hundreds of examinees on opposite sides of the forest stood silently, analyzing the great wall of trees before us.

There was a wide rack filled with wooden training gear, ranging from swords to wooden-tipped arrows, designed to accommodate any and all preferences in weapons.

"You are free to pick up your preferred weapon from the racks," the instructors explained.

Everyone slowly perused the rack, picking up their weapons of choice with little hesitation. I, of course, picked swords for the both of me.

In the end, my theory was proven right.

The fact that we were given weapons meant that we had to fight something during the exam, be it between ourselves or something in the forest...

Speaking of, using Feyt's ears, cutting through the chatter of the examinees around me, I could hear faint sounds from within the forest. Past all the nature sounds, the birds, the rustling leaves, the buzzing of bees... I heard breathing, steps, and grunts.

Those weren't the sound of animals, rather... they sounded human.

There was someone, or rather, several people already in the forest.

I wondered who those could be, and why they were there to begin with. The instructors hadn't said anything about guests... Were they part of the exam? Or unrelated?

The instructors began to speak, cutting my line of thought. Though their words overlap on both sides, they meant basically the same thing.

The trumpet is our start signal. Once it sounded, we would enter from any point on our side of the forest, not just the point we were led to. This was to prevent a bottleneck effect with the crowds. I wouldn't want to rub shoulders with hundreds of frantic examinees, so thank god for that.

The two instructors wished us all good luck in their own words before leaving the premises. The examinees around both of me immediately started spreading out, trying to peer into the forest, probably judging which way had more flags.

I tried doing the same thing as Feyt, but no luck. My eyes couldn't even get past the first few rows of trees. I could hear several flutterings of cloths inside, undoubtedly coming from the flags, but it was hard to pinpoint an exact location...

That was when I heard a chatter from a sizable group in the distance. I closed in to get a better view of the group.

They are standardized examinees like me, a mix of a dozen of them, huddled together. They stood in a tight circle, drawn together by a single voice at the center.

It belonged to a young girl with a slim but fit build, dark red hair tied back, her stance straight as if she was used to being listened to.

"We all only need fifteen points to pass," she said. "But alone, that will be difficult. Some flags are bound to be hidden, high up, or even underwater. If we scatter, we risk wasting time or failing outright. That's why I propose this: we work together. Pool our Talents, share what we find, and ensure that every one of us walks out with the points we need. Got it?"

The group murmured among themselves, a few nodding in agreement. Others crossed their arms as they pondered her words.

Meanwhile, I was intrigued by the idea.

I lingered at the edge of their circle, listening as they weighed the plan. A dozen people, pooling their efforts to reach fifteen points each… If their teamwork is solid, they can gather more than enough flags with their variety of Talents.

Though I had to wonder, were there enough flags in that forest for us all? The more people in the group, the thinner the spread of points. Sure they might have access to more flags with their wide array of Talents, but will they really get enough to share evenly?

I figured the risk was a bit too risky. So, I tightened the grip on my blade and walked past them, eyes still on the edge of the forest, hoping for any easy route pickings.

"Hey, you! Wait a moment!"

A voice cut through the chatter. I stopped and glanced back.

The girl who was leading the group earlier was striding out of the circle. She held her blade at her hips as she approached me with a confident look on her face.

"Are you talking to me?"

"Who else?" she said before finally stopping just a step before me.

Her eyes swept me from head to toe as she hummed to herself. She took a look at my shoulders, my chest, my arms... She was staring rather intensely, too, to the point I took a step back.

Then, she straightened herself and flashed a smirk.

"You. You've trained well with a sword, haven't you?"

I hesitated, then gave a half-shrug. "…Maybe."

"That's good enough!" She shouted. She slammed my shoulders with a forceful pat. "You're with us."

"...Excuse me?!"

Behind her, a boy from the group scowled. "Attila, you don't even know his Talent. For all we know, he could be a dead weight."

"Hmm, I doubt he will," she responded. "Training leaves traces in the body. From the way someone walks, how they grip their blades, they're all clear as the sky for me to see." She turned to me once more with a smirk. "And I believe this one is trained quite well."

The group murmured among themselves again. They were all skeptical about me, and it seemed the only one confident in my abilities was this Attila woman.

I awkwardly scratched the back of my head. "S-Sorry, but I... never asked to join."

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"And I didn't ask if you wanted to," she replied with a smile. "But if you're smart, you'll accept. After all, are you really confident you can get fifteen points by yourself?"

"Uhh..."

"If you're still unsure, I won't force you to join us," she said confidently. "However, do please give us a chance. We'll rack up the points in no time! And if we somehow don't, you're free to leave us at any time!"

Her smile was bright, unwavering. From the tone of her voice, I could tell she was serious about every word she said. But, whether her words came from intuition or just naivety, I couldn't tell.

But her offer did seem enticing.

If the group was doing well, I'd stick around and ride on their coattails to pass. If they don't, I'll split up and go with my original plans or just wing it.

The cons were seemingly negligible.

"So, how is it? You in?"

I stared at her and the group; they all stared at me expectantly.

I sighed and lowered my shoulders. "...Alright, I'll give it a try."

Her smirk widened. "That's the spirit! Now, let's go and pass this exam together!"

She merged back to the circle, urging me to follow her. I joined reluctantly, standing among them as they discussed what to do.

At around the same time—

—

I was walking along the edge of the forest with my arms crossed as Carine, my eyes peering into the dim forest. From here, even with the numerous trees blocking my vision, I could already spot several white flags and a few green flags, a contrast to my attempt as Feyt.

A few of them were just placed in the open, mainly the white ones. The green ones seemed to be made to camouflage with the surroundings, as the ones I spotted so far seemed to be placed in bushes, or jammed into a tree branch or two.

No red or yellows so far, must be deeper in the forest.

I found one spot that seemed to have more flags than the others and stopped in front of it. This was going to be my starting line...

Until I realized some of the examinees had their gazes locked on me.

They're planning on following me, aren't they?

I let out a sigh and turned to face them, arms crossed, eyes narrowed.

"Listen, if you're goal is to gather as many points as you can, then don't follow me. I have no plans on sharing any flags with any of you."

Faces of disappointment spread on the crowd. I could mouth-read some of them as they mumbled, saying how I was stingy or on a high horse. I stood there unshaken, and before long, the crowd started dispersing.

Say comments about me all you want, I alone will grab those flags.

I turned back towards the forest, eyeing the flags I could spot from here. The moment the trumpet sounds, I will rush there.

But then, I hear someone approaching me from behind.

"Lady Carine," a voice called gently.

I didn't need to turn to know who it was. Of course.

Phil-something, something.

I really need to learn his name...

He approached with that same soft smile plastered on his face, a wooden sword balanced carefully in his hand. His eyes followed mine toward the same dim opening in the treeline.

"Are you entering through here, Lady Carine?"

"I am," I replied curtly. "And if you're planning to stick with me, don't."

"R-Right, I heard what you told the others." He rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"...Then why are you here?"

He smiled gently, holding his sword firmly. "I'm sure you're aiming for the Honors. I believe I can help you achieve that goal with my Talent, [Wind Compass]."

[Wind Compass]?

A Talent that allows the bearer to know where they are heading, just by feeling the wind... That would certainly prove useful.

But still—

"Help me, you say? I thought I made myself clear earlier. I won't hand you a single point."

"That's no problem at all, Lady Carine!" He shook his head. "I merely wish to help you in your goals."

...But why though??

As I eyed the young man in front of me with concern for his mental well-being... several others approached me as well. Three of them.

One of them stepped up; it was the spearwoman girl vying for my attention from earlier. She placed a hand on her chest as she smiled confidently.

"Greetings, Lady Carine. I believe I haven't introduced myself properly before. My name is Eveliana of house Limineid." She offered a deep curtsy with a charming, confident smile, her blonde hair shining brightly under the sun.

"Lady Carine, please allow me the honor of joining you in your hunt. And rest assured, I need no share of the flags I gather for you, only that you remember my name in turn."

Another one approached me. He was a well-built, towering young man that I couldn't believe was the same age as the rest of us. He carried no gear from what I could tell, but judging from his physique, I figured he didn't need one.

"Pleasure to meet you, Lady Carine!" he said with a booming, but respectful tone. "My name is Kyro de Astanista, the second son of the Astanista house in Ortensia!" He offered a deep bow.

From Ortensia, huh?

"I, too, wish to join you, if you would allow me the honor. If anyone even thinks of stealing your flags," he slammed his fist together with a smug grin. "Allow me to handle them!"

The third and final one stepped forward and offered a respectful curtsy. "G-Greetings, Lady Carine. My name is Clarissa Sayisied. I-I wish to join you in this exam, and with my [Marksman Expertise], I will spot flags and perhaps shoot down foes if needed..."

I stood there silently. My eyes would be twitching in bafflement if they could.

Why did four examinees approach me out of nowhere, offering their help for basically nothing in return?

Hell, even Phil-man seemed surprised at this turn of events, the corner of his lips twitching as he mumbled, "This is starting to become a party..."

"Lady Carine," Evaliana said. "Are you perhaps wondering why we offer you our help?"

I blinked, just staring at her silently. Thankfully, she took my silence as confirmation.

"If I may be frank..." A small chuckle came from her lips. "My Lady, to serve you is worth more than any flag. A single word of approval from a daughter of the ducal house would open more doors for me than Honors ever could." She turned towards the others. "I believe all of you thought the same thing as well, correct?"

Both Kyro and Clarissa nodded. The only one who didn't was Phil-man, who was seemingly as confused as I am.

So, if I put things simply...

Earning my good graces was more worth it than being in the Honors?

Considering the Gilded Track's admission was guaranteed, I suppose I could see the logic. They didn't need points. They didn't need risk. All they needed was to plant themselves in my shadow and hope the ducal connection might get them farther.

I wasn't sure whether to feel used... or privileged.

It really reminded me that, yeah, I'd take over my family once I was of age and become a Duchess... That far-off future still held weight, even in the present.

My gaze flicked across the four of them again. A thought occurred within me... what other examinee had this kind of support?

Most of the others would be walking through the forest half-blind, scrambling for points on their own or forming parties that would share points. Meanwhile, here I was, with a walking compass, a charming spearswoman, a towering wall, and a Talent-ed marksman, all vowing to support me fully.

It was an unfair advantage.

A massive one.

If I played this right, I could carve through the forest with efficiency no one else could match.

Getting enough points for Honors would be a breeze... Maybe I could even afford a few left to give out as thanks.

I let out a long breath through my nose, shaking my head.

"Fine," I muttered. I turned back towards the forest, my hand still on the hilt of my wooden sword. "Do as you like. Just don't get in my way."

Their enthusiasm broke out instantly.

"You won't be disappointed, Lady Carine."

"It is an honor, Lady Carine!"

"T-Thank you! I'll try my best!"

I forced myself not to grimace. Yes, this might tip the scales in my favor. But I wasn't fool enough to forget the truth.

No one ever offers loyalty without expecting something in return, and earning my favor might not be enough for them...

—

Both of me were now in groups, standing by the edge of the forest.

As Feyt, I was in cahoots with fellow standardized examinees, vowing to help each other pass the exam.

As Carine, I had a small party who swore they'd give all their flags to me.

Though I held reservations for both of those groups, I'd take all the help I could get.

Everyone held their breath, their legs ready to sprint into the forest at any moment.

Then, a deep note coursed through the skies.

The trumpet had been blown.

And thus begins our practical exam.

A flag hunt that would determine all of our futures.

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