I grumbled as I stared at the writing portion of the exam. My sister was right; I should've studied more! What was I going to do if I failed? I couldn't go back home. My dad had closed all doors for me there. Then again, did it really matter? My magic was pathetic. At this point, it would be a miracle if I passed.

I finished filling in the last question and put down my pencil. But maybe even a miracle couldn't do it.

"Think you did badly?" Kanja asked as I finished turning in my paper. She had turned hers in just before me.

I nodded. "A-and you?"

"I think I did well," she said, swinging her arms behind her back.

I smiled slightly. "Seems that your confidence grew," I mumbled as we headed for the exit.

She sighed. "And yours seems to have plummeted down to earth."

I laughed nervously. "Guess that's what I get for having it as high as outer space."

Kanja laughed. "At least you acknowledge it now."

"Pathetic," Ling said, glaring at me as we walked into the hallway. She, Lidia, and Huo had finished before us. "You do badly in an exam, and you allow yourself to become unmotivated. So much for you becoming the next Magus Maximus."

I lowered my head.

"Hey, not everyone here has nerves of steel like you!" Kanja snapped.

"No, she's right. I am pathetic," I said. I slapped myself. "I can't give up! I'll just have to wait for the results before I go back to moping!"

"Uh, can't you skip the moping part altogether?" Huo asked.

"Huo, it's not that simple!" Lidia said.

"Indeed, but I understand where he's coming from. Moping doesn't make the defeat go away," Rob said as he walked over to us. He must've finished the test long before us.

I smiled at my childhood friend. "How do you think you did?"

He held out his right hand and winked. "Aced it."

I grinned. "I sure hope so!"

"Even if it means that one in your group of ten won't pass?" a voice called out. It was Adela.

"Huh? What do you mean? Aren't there going to be a dozen of us admitted?"

She shook her head. "It was decided that only ten would move on. Which I know is a strange number. I expected it to be twelve to fit with Nine Petal's habit of grouping students into teams of four. But it seems that they have other plans this time in regards to that. As such, one of your teammates won't make it. Or perhaps, it will be you who doesn't join them."

I lowered my head. Considering my trash performance, it probably was me who failed.

"Is it set in stone?" Rob asked, staring at Adela.

She crossed her arms and nodded. "As far as I know, yes, it is."

I bit my lip. Great, more bad news. Though, I already knew it was me who wouldn't make it. Rob and those who accompanied me here had done better for sure.

"Let's go back to the motel and rest," Kanja said, patting my back.

"O-okay."

"Don't give up hope," Rob said, raising a fist toward me.

I closed my eyes and tapped his fist with my own. It was hard to look him in the eye. Right now, I just wanted to get some sleep. There was no way I could call my sister like this.

***

The sound of a phone buzzing woke me up. "Who's phone is that?" I asked, sitting up.

"Uh, I'm the only one in this room with one," Nate said, laughing.

I leered at him. "What's so funny?"

He gave me a deadpan stare. "Why are you so uptight?"

I grabbed my pillow and hugged it. "What do you care? You're going to pass easily, so there's nothing for you to stress about."

Nate sighed and stood up from his bed. "I see it's about the test. No wonder you're impossible to talk to right now. I'll be downstairs if you need me. By the way, the results will be out in a bit."

"Already?" I asked. Lei said that they might not be out until tomorrow.

He nodded. "Seems like it. They'll be handing out golden tickets to the ten that passed."

"A golden ticket?" Reminded me of a book I'd read as a kid.

"Yeah, you'll need it to board the boat going to Kyuu Seishin."

"I see. And those who don't pass have to find a way back home on their own?"

"No, they get a bronze pass. With it, you can board the same boat as the ones who passed or board a different one if you so like."

So, even if I didn't make it, I could spend a little more time with him and the others.

Nate and I left the room and descended downstairs.

"Did you get the text too?" Jude asked as he rode Mira's shoulders. He continued to wear the same metal mask he had on in the test. Was it to help him get over his shyness? He wasn't stuttering like before, so it must've been doing something to it. Maybe I should get one to use when talking to girls. Though, that might scare them away...

Nate nodded. "Yeah."

"Where are the others?" I asked, glancing around.

"They decided to go on ahead," Mira responded. "We were just about to head there."

"What about dinner?" Nate asked.

"How can one eat with the stress?" I asked.

"Know what you mean. It's hard to eat before and after an exam," Sirius said, walking over to us. His daughter waved at us.

"Hello," Astra said, smiling.

"Hello, little one," Mira said, holding a hand out to her. Astra stared at it for a bit before finally touching it.

"It's big!"

Mira laughed. "My real hand is much smaller."

"How can that armor fit you then? Is there a lot of stuffing inside?" I asked.

She laughed. "It's complicated."

I raised an eyebrow. Maybe Mira was using some kind of strange magic to fill it in.

"Bye, little one," Mira said, waving at Astra.

"Take care!" Astra said, waving back.

Mira chuckled. "You too!"

I head for the door.

"So, you're finally awake," Kanja said, smiling as soon as I stepped out. She was the only one outside.

"Y-you didn't go with the others?"

She pressed a hand against her chest. "I know that I said that I probably did well on the written exam, but I'm still scared. My magical scores were all average. As for the first part, I'm not exactly sure how they even score that."

"Good point." I smiled. Hopefully, it was by who arrived first. If so, then that meant I got the top score in that part!

Kanja snickered. "Did I press your happy switch or something?"

My face turned red. "Y-you gave me some hope."

She beamed. "That's great to hear! If you're ready, let's head out."

I nodded.

"Going without us?" Nate asked as he appeared behind us.

"Ah, don't sneak up on us!" I said, jumping.

"You get scared easily," Mira said, snickering.

I crossed my arms over my chest and grumbled. "I do not!"

"Yeah, you do," Huo said.

"You forgot when you thought Mira was a ghost?" Nate asked, chuckling.

"Hey, you eventually did too!" I snapped.

Nate rubbed his neck and laughed. "Touché."

"Let's just go!" Kanja said, pushing us.

"H-hey! W-why are you always pushing me?" I asked.

She laughed. "You need a good push sometimes."

I smiled. I guess that I did, especially right now.

[Sometime later]

"You're Carter's friend, no? Rob?" a green-haired girl said, walking up to me as I waited at the school.

I held out a hand. "Yeah, what's your name?"

She took my hand and shook it. "Ling. I'm surprised to find you here instead of your friend. He was the first one to arrive for the exam, so figured he would also be the first here for the results."

His nerves must not have let him sleep.

"I see. That does sound like Cart."

She blinked. "It does? He looks more like the type to be late to things."

I laughed. "Hey, looks can be deceiving. That said, it's usually things he really cares about. Like his father's inauguration. He was there before the seats were even prepared."

"Thought that they had a bad relationship based on your conversation from this morning."

"You heard that? Yeah, they aren't on good terms anymore. But, before his mom died, they used to be close. Carter dreamed of being the next clan chief."

Ling lowered her head. "Wonder if his mom dying is why he can't talk to girls."

I laughed. "That's not it. He has a sister, so it's not like he's not used to being around them. Even when we were kids, he would get shy easily.

"Oh, so he's naturally a shy boy." She smiled as she said that.

I nodded. "Yup."

"Sounds a bit like Jude," a dark-skinned boy with green eyes said, chuckling. He had been standing as quiet as a guard all this time.

"Jude's shy?" Ling asked. "That explains why I barely see him around."

He laughed. "That's because he likes to hang behind Mira, literally. Her armor makes a great hiding spot for the kid."

"I see."

I laughed. It reminded me of when Carter would hide behind his parents and sister whenever a girl complimented him. Sometimes, he would even hide behind me even though we were the same height.

"Wait, I thought that you disliked shy guys," the boy said, pointing at Ling.

"To some extent, I do. But there are occasions where it's adorable."

The boy laughed. "Carter would turn into a tomato if he heard that."

"Me?" Carter said as he ran into the hall. Multiple people began to pour behind him, including the rest of our group.

"Oh, you're finally here," Ling said.

Carter's face turned like a tomato. "Y-you were waiting for me?"

"Not exactly, but I did expect to find you here before Rob, Tamara, and Aurelius. Though, the latter two accompanied me here."

I glanced at the short white-haired girl. She looked up and smiled as soon as she noticed me staring.

"Hello," I said, waving.

She didn't respond.

"She's mute," Ling whispered.

"Oh," I said. I held out my hand and wrote out 'hello'.

Tamara's eyes shimmered. She moved her hands around, causing me to laugh.

"What's she saying?" a cyan-haired girl said, leaning in. Think her name was Lidia. Hadn't expected to see a Seran here.

I smiled. "She's saying that she found a great team. Full of oddballs like her!"

Huo blushed. "I-I'm not odd!"

Lidia giggled. "It's not good to be in denial, Huo."

"Wow, you know sign language?" Mira said, staring at me.

"Yeah, my mom taught Carter and me."

Carter stared at his hand and tried to write out hello with it but failed. "Ugh, this is still hard."

I grabbed his hand. "You're supposed to put your thumb over your index finger like this for the h, not under."

"Ohh. I-I knew that."

I laughed. "Sure you did."

"Someone is afraid to admit being wrong," Nate said, smiling at Carter.

"What? No, I'm not!"

"See!"

Carter grumbled.

"Quiet down, everyone!" Mr. Obi said as his voice echoed over the intercom. "We're about to announce the ten who passed. The following is in no specific order."

"Wait, there's only going to be ten?" several people asked. The building was rapidly filled with confused looks along with some sad and angry ones.

Mr. Obi cleared his throat. Wherever he was speaking from, he must've heard us. "The ten who passed are Nate, Ling, Kanja, Aurelius, Robert, Jude, Mira, Tamara, Lidia, and Huo."

Cries and angry grunts filled the school.

Suddenly, Ms. Key appeared in front of us and handed out golden tickets starting with Nate and Ling.

"Here you go, Kanja," Ms. Key said, handing the silver-haired girl one.

"Thanks," Kanja said, smiling as she took it.

"You're welcome. You deserve it." She turned to Aurelius and me and gave us each one.

Kanja giggled and jumped at Carter, hugging him. "I did it, Carter! I passed!"

"Y-yeah," he said, his eyes devoid of joy.

"Carter?"

"His name wasn't called," Jude said as he jumped off of Mira's back to grab his ticket.

Lidia sighed. "Poor guy. He wanted this the most."

Kanja gasped and let go of Cart. "T-that's right!"

Carter collapsed to the floor.

"Carter," I said, kneeling in front of him.

Lidia stared at the ticket and then back at Carter. "Uh, Cart..."

"Lidia, don't. Remember why we came here," Huo said, grabbing her by the arm.

Was she going to give it to Carter? Wait, was that even allowed?

My childhood friend closed his eyes. "I failed. My dream, it's over..."

"Don't say that!" Kanja yelled. "Just because you didn't pass, it doesn't mean that you can't become Magus Maximus one day!"

Carter blinked. "It doesn't?"

"Of course, it doesn't. Don't let this single setback get to you."

"She's right!" Nate said. "You can try to apply to another school. There's bound to be one with an entrance exam later than this one."

"But, Nine Petal Academy is one of the best. The only ones better than it already had their exams."

"It doesn't matter if you go to a small, unknown school. You can make something out of yourself in it," Kanja said.

Tears rolled down his face. "You really think so?"

"If you have perseverance, anything is possible," Aurelius said, patting him on the back.

I nodded. "That's right. You can't quit."

Carter remained silent. His eyes remained the same.

"Cart," Lidia said, sighing. She stared at Huo who once again shook his head.

I shifted my gaze to the ticket that Ms. Key had given me. Since we were kids, I knew that Carter's dream of becoming the Magus Maximus would be a hard one, but despite my pleas to pick another one, he clung to it. Now that he had failed the exam, would he finally move on?

"I still plan to become the Magus Maximus," Carter mumbled as he pushed himself off of the floor.

I snickered. Figures. That guy wouldn't ever give up so easily. Still, his dream wasn't going to be any easier to achieve if he goes to a school with a weak magic program.

I turned around and walked back toward Ms. Key.

"Hmm, is something wrong?" the white-haired, dark-skinned woman asked.

"There's something I was wondering. Is it possible to give one's ticket to someone else?"

Ms. Key gasped. "Why do you ask?"

I glanced over at Carter. "Just wondering."

I sighed as I walked with my fellow travelers toward the ship. Most of the other flunkies had gone off on their own ways, preferring to take a boat directly to Mina.

I glanced up at the ship and sighed. I know that said that I would fulfill my dream some other way, but was it really possible? The lower-tier schools usually didn't put an emphasis on their magic programs like Nine Petal did.

"Still feeling down?" Rob asked as he walked over to me.

"Huh?" I smiled. "What makes you think that?"

"Your eyes, they're still glum."

I lowered my head. "You really are an eye reader."

Rob patted my shoulder. "It doesn't take one to see. Your eyes are too obvious."

I smiled. "I get that a lot in general. I'm easy to read, people say."

He laughed. "Indeed, you are!" He reached into his pocket and pulled out a golden ticket. "Here, take this."

I stared at the golden ticket as he slammed it into my hand. "Wait, this is-"

"I know," he said, turning his back to me. "Use that to accomplish your dream."

I clenched it. "But this is yours! You're the one who earned it!"

Rob adjusted his shoulder bag. "Yeah, and I chose to give it to you. I asked the proctors, and they said that one can give away their spot so long as they do so willingly. I already signed off on the paperwork, so there's no going back."

I gulped. "W-why did you do that?"

He looked up at the sunset. "Things are a lot harder for you than they are for me. Plus, you wanted it more than I did. Plus, we're friends, aren't we? Once you're Magus Maximus, be sure to remember your old pal."

I ran up and hugged him from behind. "What are you talking about? I would never forget about you! Even after all these years, you're still my best friend!"

Rob laughed. "Glad to hear it. Now, please let go. You're sort of embarrassing me."

I turned around and saw Kanja, Mira, and Tamara staring back at us. The latter had a light blush on her face.

I laughed nervously. "S-sorry."

Rob sighed. "You sure haven't changed. Anyway, let's go inside. You have a tournament to win!"

I clenched the ticket and ran after him. I planned to win the first-year tournament when I first set out, but that was for myself. Now, I had to win it for him.

**Solar Note: Hope that you enjoyed the chapter ^^. Thoughts? Predictions?**