Chapter 579 – Unexpected Challenge

– Meanwhile, Outside –

As the entrance exam for the ‘Supports’ of the academy began, the girls found themselves being led to an enormous room by security guards, filled with large desks and chairs evenly spaced out from one another.

Each examinee was assigned a table, and they were to stand behind it until further instructions. If one room filled up, the remaining examinees were taken to a different one, and so on and so forth.

The exam center was enormous—it was clear the IMF had made significant preparations for this day, and they had done well to estimate the amount of people who would be attending. There was even room to spare, just in case any latecomers wanted to join. Apparently, they were pretty lax about punctuality—for the Supports, at least.

In any case, the girls soon found themselves each seated at a table, spaced out from one another. The seven of them just happened to take up one whole row, so no one else was beside them—many of the boys there were pretty disappointed about that. 

“These tables… what kind of test is it going to be?” Yu An Yan murmured to herself, still worried. Qing Yue, beside her, gave a sigh and tapped her on the shoulder.

“Relax, would you? As long as it’s not fighting, all of us will be able to make it. Besides—we’re sitting right next to each other. If it’s just a written exam, I can… y’know.”

She winked, and Yu An Yan smiled back, but her heart wasn’t in it. She was just the type to overly worry like this—there was nothing to be done.

The other girls weren’t as ‘worried’, per se, but they were curious. A large table with nothing else on it. If it was just a written exam, there was no need to make the desks this wide. It certainly wasn’t anything involving direct combat either. Questions filled their heads, but they were soon answered as the doors to each room slammed shut, and every examinee had taken their spot in one of the many rooms.

“Welcome, all, to the entrance examination of Counterhex Academy,” a familiar voice stated—Tian Lin—through the PA, blaring through each of the large rooms. “In this exam, you will be faced with a variety of different tests to your skills, including quick reactions, maximum mana, and high adaptability. We look forward to your performance—the first test begins now.”

After a brief second, the tables in front of the examinees suddenly opened, revealing various cooking utensils hidden beneath the surface, including a frying pan, a pot, various foods, and a portable stovetop.

“… This is…” Yu An Yan’s eyes were widened in shock, and so was pretty much everyone else’s.

“Your first task,” Tian Lin continued through the PA. “Cook a dish with the materials provided. You can cook anything, so long as you complete it within the time requirement of half an hour. The faster you are able to finish it, the better—however, be sure the quality is up to standards as well. Professional chefs will be grading your food in terms of three factors: taste, healthiness, and balance. Do your best, examinees. The time begins now.”

With a loud beep that blared through all the rooms, the first test of the exam began. Immediately, the examinees got to work, the girls included. Cooking was, of course, the girls’ strongsuits. They’d cooked a lot for Xuan Kai in the past, and even those who weren’t as good at it previously had learned a thing or two from watching the others.

And since the likes of Qing Yue and Lan Xiao Su were probably better than the professional chefs themselves, well… this task was pretty much free.

… Or at least, it should’ve been.

Mei Gui and Obsidia, however, were left staring at the cooking utensils before them, completely stumped. Neither had cooked before, and although Mei Gui had tried to learn, it just did not go well. She ended up either overcooking or undercooking, nearly setting the entire kitchen on fire once. Then, she used water magic on the entire thing, and drenched everything, but… ah, that’s another story.

Qing Yue, noticing them being stuck, smiled slightly and got out of her seat, then walked over to them.

“C’mon. What are you two doing? Get the cooking utensils out.”

“… I can’t,” Mei Gui said quietly, a look of terrible discomfort on her face. “I can’t… cook… I can’t.”

“Neither can I,” Obsidia snorted. “Cooking? What a farce. Dragons eat raw.”

“Yes, you can,” Qing Yue said with a wink. “Because I will help you.”

“… What?” Obsidia arched an eyebrow. “This is a test. I do not know human convention very well, but do you all not do tests independently?”

“Normally, yes,” Qing Yue said smugly. “But this is no normal test. Did the PA just now say anything about us not being able to help others? We are Supports, remember? Our entire purpose is to help others out! Now come on! Stop worrying about that, and get the utensils out. Time is ticking away!”

“I’ll help out too,” Lan Xiao Su said from their other side. “I don’t know how much I’ll be able to do so, but… I’ll try.”

Mei Gui and Obsidia were still dubious, but they did as told, taking out their respective cooking utensils from within their tables. Their movements were extremely clumsy, as both were more suited to use weapons, but there was nothing to be done about that.

Half an hour later, all three had completed their dishes. Qing Yue and Xiao Su both stuck to something very light since the majority of their time was spent on helping the other two, but surprisingly enough, Mei Gui and Obsidia both turned out with decent dishes. They were by no means amazing, but the average person would call them delicious—and that was enough.

Sure, Mei Gui ended up undercooking a bit and Obsidia nearly burned hers, but that was another matter altogether.