What if you are reborn as a demon after a funeral?.

Looking at the meteor bird in Ash's hand, which gradually became docile and stopped struggling, he found it hard to imagine that he could be more effective, stronger, or more resilient than the meteor bird through hand-to-hand combat.

"You too?" Standing on the ravaged ground, looking back at the two people not far away, Ash's tone was filled with boredom, even a sense of frustration, like punching cotton.

“…I’m out of magic, I can’t fight anymore…I’ll die if I keep fighting…” Lishita squatted on the ground and sighed. The two rock walls in the distance had also stopped moving.

“My magic power is no longer sufficient for High Speed ​​Movement.” Raofen silently raised her hands in surrender: “...I demand to be treated as a prisoner.”

"What? You guys are really done for? I even went out of my way to fight you on the ground."

"They actually found out?... And they've been letting us win all along?" Duncan's face showed undisguised frustration.

Duncan didn't think Ash was bluffing or anything like that, and in fact, that was the case... because when dealing with a mage like Lishita who manipulates the ground, simply taking flight would reduce their combat power by at least 8%.

Despite Ash's apparent awareness of this, he remained standing on the ground, allowing Ash to manipulate the ground and launch attacks from his most advantageous position.

“...They’re monstrous.” Knowing that the other party had already discovered this problem, Lishita’s face was filled with deep frustration.

“Don’t feel inferior. As far as I know, even a first-level mage doesn’t have such monstrous abilities.” Duncan shook his head to reassure Lichta, but his eyes remained fixed on Ash, and he asked in confusion, “But speaking of which… you said you know me?”

"It was probably forty years ago, right? You were taller and younger back then. I never imagined... you'd actually gotten shorter!"

Ash half-squatted down and casually patted his head, revealing a nostalgic expression: "But even earlier, probably fifty years ago? I met your teacher there. He was quite a troublesome opponent."

“My teacher…Mahat?! No, fifty years ago? How old were you exactly?? You encountered Mahat but weren’t killed? No, no, back then…”

"I think it's impolite to ask a gentleman's age casually." Faced with the old man's face once again showing shock, and who even forgot to push his hand away, he simply smiled without answering, took the birdcage from the man, and put the bird inside.

"This will be my spoils! And for today... um??"

Ash hadn't gone far when two intersecting golden halos appeared beside him, causing his movements to freeze for a moment.

At that moment, another small team of three emerged from the forest, their faces beaming with the smug satisfaction of being the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.

But no one was surprised by this scene. After all, they had made such a big commotion, which could be said to be the biggest battle in the entire examination room. It would be really strange if no one noticed and observed this place, or didn't want to take advantage of the chaos.

However... these three were clearly hiding quite far away to avoid being discovered, and didn't witness the actual battle. They only came over after things calmed down here, which led them to seem to have underestimated Ash's strength.

Duncan, Lichta, and Laoffen looked at them as if they were idiots courting death.

"...How naive! To think you could defeat this monster. Anyone else would have been better than him..." Duncan murmured, then couldn't help but smile bitterly, because he suddenly remembered—he had just thought he had a chance of winning.

..............................

The three who suddenly appeared were led by Viabel, a young second-level mage in his thirties who was a mercenary who initially fought against the Demon King's remnants. However, due to the demons' retreat, he had been involved in exterminating demons and fighting human civil wars for many years.

There's also El, the granddaughter of Lylene, the most senior first-level mage whom Ash is familiar with, a brown-haired girl in a purple-red cloak, and a second-level mage who graduated first in her class from the magic academy.

There's also the tall, level-three mage Sharuf, who specializes in self-developed magic that transforms flower petals into steel-like weapons. He's not particularly remarkable otherwise, hence the limited records about him.

"Am I being treated like prey?... How interesting."

Suddenly captured by an extremely powerful binding magic, Ash understood without even turning around—this was Viabel's unique gaze-binding magic.

It can bind any creature completely covered by its gaze, and also seal the magical control of the bound.

Since the warriors here also rely on magic to strengthen their bodies, although their physical strength is already higher, the restraining effect will not be weakened. Therefore, in a one-on-one situation, it can be described as a magic that can kill. Even if the meteorite bird is captured, it will be in a predicament where it cannot move.

"What an amazing old man! He caused such a commotion, but... in the end, he still lost." The team leader, a fierce-looking silver-haired man named Viabel, grinned smugly. "Just like the exam, luck is also a part of strength!"

"...Do you really think you're very lucky?" Duncan looked at the expression on his face and even felt a little sorry for him...it was like looking at his own foolish self.

"Isn't that good enough? In this situation, there's absolutely no way for humans to break free." Viabel assumed he was just being sarcastic out of spite, but his gaze remained fixed on Ash. He gestured for his companion Sharuf to go up behind him, and confidently stated:

"Once captured, no one has ever escaped my sight... although it can only be used on one target at a time."

"But the premise... the target still has to be within the human realm, right?"

What are you trying to say?

"There's nothing strange about it. No magic is without flaws, and if there are no flaws, then there must be limits."

"Magic is a world of imagination, where nothing is impossible. So, once I set my sights on something, I cannot let it slip away. In principle, no human or living being can possibly gain anything when magic is completely suppressed... What?!"

Before Viabel could finish speaking, he noticed the strange situation where teammate Sharuf reached out to grab the birdcage in Ash's hand, but Ash wouldn't let go, making it impossible for Sharuf to take it away.

Normally, he should be completely exhausted from being suppressed, but Sharuf was stuck there with him... This made Viabel frown and urge him on:

"What are you doing! Sharuf! Take it away now!"

"No, no... I can't pull it out!" Sharuf strained with all his might but still couldn't pull the birdcage out. Frustrated, he grabbed his wand, intending to threaten her, but...

Bang—Ding!

Before he could make a move, Ash stretched his body, causing the two halos to tremble before collapsing and shattering without warning, turning into specks of golden light.

While Sharuf was still stunned, he casually reached out and snatched the wand away.

"...You must be kidding me?" Sharuf stared in disbelief and instinctively took two steps back, almost falling to the ground in shock.

Not only him, but even his two companions couldn't help but wonder if they were under some kind of illusion, their faces filled with disbelief.

..............................

..............................

The three, who had already been defeated, faced a scene that should have been unexpected, yet all wore expressions of "I knew it," as if they had become numb to this situation that was beyond their control.

Laofen even felt a little schadenfreude, and couldn't help but want to laugh... Even though she couldn't benefit from others' misfortunes, she couldn't help but feel a sudden sense of balance and her mood improved considerably.

Ailu was the first in the squad to come to her senses, backing away while turning to glare at her previously confident captain:

"—I told you we should listen to Grandpa! Don't get involved with him!!"

“Let’s retreat now…” Before Viabel could finish speaking, Ash suddenly took a step forward: “—It’s too late!”

boom!!

Under the abnormal gravity, the earth cracked, shattered, and collapsed in an instant.

"Ah—uh!!"

As he took that step, Viabel's body couldn't withstand the sudden pressure. He screamed and was uncontrollably pressed to the ground. His vision went black due to insufficient blood supply to his brain, and he was completely unable to use his previous abilities.

The two people right next to him were also forced to kneel on the ground under that intense pressure, unable to lift their heads, hands, or feet.

Their chests were also being compressed, and if the pressure increased any further, it felt as if their internal organs would be expelled from their mouths. The discomfort made it impossible for them to breathe, let alone fight. They couldn't even pull out their signal flares to surrender.

The overwhelming disparity in strength, and the unprecedented defeat they suffered in an instant, shattered all their hopes, filling their hearts with unspeakable despair almost simultaneously.

Outside the area, the other three were immediately relieved to see this, realizing they had kept a considerable distance from the start; otherwise, they probably wouldn't even have had the strength to fight.

Although they didn't know how wide Ash's magic range was, or whether what had happened before could even be considered a battle for him.

And even if they kept their distance from the start, it was still an undeniable crushing defeat. Thinking about it that way... it seems like there's nothing to be thankful for?

Seeing the miserable state of the three men, Duncan felt a pang of pity and hesitantly offered his advice: "...They are no match for you at all, just a bunch of hotheads. There's no need to kill them, is there?"

"It's alright, I'm not the kind of person who's bloodthirsty. In fact, I'm glad that a young person dares to challenge me. But... since someone attacked me, it wouldn't be right if there wasn't some punishment, would it?"

Rather, he could utilize all the people in the Magic Association, so there was no need to exterminate them all.

Duncan, however, didn't quite understand what he was trying to do and could only nod in agreement: "That... is true."

At this moment, Soya also withdrew the pressure of gravity, finally giving the three of them a chance to stand up, panting heavily and staggering.

Only then did he turn his gaze to his old subordinate—Layleen's granddaughter, the top student at the magic academy:

"Try your best to take this cage from me, little Ailu."

"...Why? Can't we just surrender?" Ailu's face, which had just shown a hint of joy, was once again filled with despair.

"Don't misunderstand, I don't simply enjoy bullying children. Speaking of you, I even held you when you were little. How could I possibly kill you? I'm just giving you a chance now."

Listening to his high-sounding words, Ailu was completely confused, while Viabel gritted his teeth in anger: "Nonsense... You just want to play with us! If you want to deal with us, just do it directly, why make up excuses?!"

"Well... think what you want. I'm too lazy to explain to you. After all, you chose me, not me. Blame your bad luck, because—you attacked me first."

Although his behavior did resemble bullying, he didn't actually intend to bully the children; he simply wanted to defeat them completely.

Well, it might sound a bit like bullying, but his real goal is simply to defeat them completely... Whether they can become first-level mages afterward is another matter, but at least they should be considered some of the most powerful people in this group.

All these people were defeated by him. If Celie doesn't make him a first-level mage, he can smear her and publicize her malicious targeting and underhanded dealings, so that she can see the consequences of differential treatment.

If we could make him a first-class mage, that would be even better. He would also gain a special privilege—by transferring magic, he could request the magic he wanted from Seria.

His plans backfired. These unfortunate souls who willingly came to deal with him, despite not knowing the truth, were forced to muster their energy under Ash's urging, causing explosions and screams to echo through the forest once again.

..............................

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When everything calmed down, only three people remained, staggering about on the ravaged ground.

Ash, having finished, drifted away satisfied, leaving the three heartbroken. After resting for a long time, they helped each other up, sighing as they considered trying their luck somewhere else.

They weren't the only ones obsessed with privileges; Duncan and his two companions had long since gone off to try their luck, hoping to find someone even worse off than themselves who happened to have an Iron Meteor Bird.

And so, as the sun began to set in the west, time passed little by little.

Just as Ash was wondering if it was time to leave, two flashes of light suddenly appeared from the bushes not far away.

boom!!!

Without warning, beams of light appeared on both sides, so thick that they almost instantly engulfed Ash's figure.

"This... isn't he really doomed? He just went through two battles."

Yubel sat on a treetop, observing with great interest the focal point where the light converged in the distance. He seemed a little worried, but his face was full of anticipation.

From the bushes, Frilian, who was unleashing her fury, calmly shook her head: "Impossible, he's not someone who can be dealt with so easily."

"...Thank you. But you don't have to greet me like that, do you? I might get hurt; even if I'm not physically hurt, I might be emotionally hurt. After all, I'm being attacked by my best friend right now."

As the two beams of light disappeared and the dust was dispersed by the wind, Ash's spotless figure and calm voice appeared in the empty open space of the forest.

His gaze instantly fell on Frilian's direction, and then quickly swept over Connie and Rabine to his left and right, and he couldn't help but feel annoyed:

"What's wrong? You couldn't find the bird yourselves? Are you planning to steal mine?"

“Philan already has it, and we already have our method, but before that… well, actually, a long time ago, I wanted to give you a good test, and—last night you said a lot of bad things about me.” Although Frilian’s face was expressionless, her words revealed that she was holding a grudge, and even seemed a little sullen.

Although the exams still have to continue, their infighting seems inappropriate. To put it dramatically... if we exclude Ash, the other mages present who have already fought several rounds, even if some are cunning and haven't fought yet, probably wouldn't be a match for Frillie combined.

The vast difference in strength made it difficult for Frillie to take the exam seriously. In fact, the most powerful characters had already been defeated by Ash, leaving only a few weaklings who couldn't cause any trouble. Now it was time for them to compete.

Ash probably understood this idea as well, but he was a little frustrated by the situation of being targeted by everyone as if he were attacking the ringleader, and he turned his gaze to Philon.

Before he could speak, Philon had already taken the initiative to say, "This is Lady Frilian's request, and... as I mentioned before, Lord Ash, do you remember?"