The morale and enthusiasm displayed by the Guard Corps greatly satisfied Rocky, so he stepped forward to face the crowd. After nodding at Monte, he turned his gaze towards the guards.
At such a time, his duty as the City Lord naturally required him to speak a few words. For this reason, Rocky was also quite nervous, for he had never addressed hundreds of people before; this was a first for him.
While observing the Guard Corps, he pondered what to say. Yet, throughout this process, he managed himself well, exuding authority despite the intense pounding in his chest, giving the guards the impression that the City Lord was assessing them all.
After a short while, Rocky began to speak: Your journey continues at M V L
“Guards, do you know why I am here today?”
“We do!”
After Rocky finished his sentence, the neatly arranged guards before him answered in unison.
“Very good.”
With that response, Rocky nodded his head and swept his hand, signaling Liliya who immediately understood and took out a runic shield, no, a ‘Magic Energy Shield’ from a row of boxes behind her.
Holding the shield, Liliya turned towards Rocky and, upon seeing him nod slightly, she activated the shield’s magic energy.
In an instant, the shield in Liliya’s hands emitted a faint glow, making the otherwise ordinary shield seem extraordinary.
Such a scene immediately energized the gathered guards, their eyes sparkling with excitement.
For these guards, mana weapons were considered treasures. Until now, not only had they never had the chance to use one, but they also had never even seen real magic energy equipment, nor had they ever imagined they would be able to use such high-grade gear.
Therefore, when Liliya took out the runic shield, no, the Magic Energy Shield, and activated its power, how could the guards not be thrilled?
However, as excited as everyone was, they also knew that these pieces of equipment were not for everyone. Only the most outstanding amongst them would receive them, which only served to increase everyone’s determination to demonstrate their readiness for battle.
And this very excitement was exactly what Rocky wanted to see.
He felt that nothing he could say at this moment would be as effective as simply presenting the real deal, and indeed, the outcome was just as he had expected, immediately motivating the guards.
Consequently, he cleared his throat and loudly announced, “Today, I will conduct an assessment to test the results of your training!”
“And those who perform excellently in the assessment will be rewarded with a One-Star Magic Energy Shield and a piece of One-Star Mana Armor. Have I made myself clear?”
“Clear!”
Once Rocky finished speaking, the guards in front of him puffed out their chests and shouted with full vigor.
“Very well, maintain this spirit and show me your true performance in the assessment!”
Having said this, Rocky then turned to Monte, who immediately stepped forward and addressed the guards: “Attention, everyone! I will now announce the details of the assessment…”
Regarding this assessment, Rocky had already discussed it with Monte beforehand. The content was straightforward combat: the guards would pair off and engage in one-on-one battles, with their performance during the fight determining their assessment. Only those who excelled in actual combat would receive the equipment.
This assessment might seem simple, yet it’s the best way to determine the strength of the guards. After all, these individuals would soon follow Rocky to execute tasks for the Mercenary Guild, and absolute competence in combat is essential.
It didn’t take long for Monte to explain the rules of the assessment to the guards. While everyone had already anticipated them, learning they had to engage in one-on-one battles and only those who performed exceptionally could receive Mana Equipment did cause their expressions to change to some extent.
Some guards became even more nervous after this, with a few of them turning pale, but others showed complete confidence. Far from being tense, these few unconsciously curved their lips into a smile, appearing utterly determined to succeed.
Monte then brought over a box, specially prepared for this assessment. It contained slips of paper with the guard’s names written on them, and who would face whom was to be decided entirely by drawing lots to ensure the fairness of the assessment.
“My lord, please.”
Presenting the box of lots to Rocky, Monte clearly intended for him to draw the first pairing for the assessment.
At that moment, Rocky too felt a bit of excitement and immediately plunged his hand into the box, rummaging around for a good while before pulling out two slips of paper.
“Lamiro, Mario.”
Glancing at the slips, he read the names written on them aloud.
As his voice rang out, the guards’ gaze swiftly shifted en masse, settling on the two individuals in the ranks, naturally Lamiro and Mario, whose names were called.
Both men were around thirty years old, but perhaps they didn’t expect to be picked first—whether that was lucky or unlucky—both appeared somewhat disconcerted. It took them a good while to nervously step out from the formation.
“Snap to it! Show the level you have in training, and don’t embarrass me!”
Perhaps sensing their nervousness, Monte shouted encouragingly as Lamiro and Mario stepped out of the ranks and stood facing each other.
His shout sounded fierce, but perhaps due to being accustomed to his loud voice during training, Lamiro and Mario relaxed significantly.
Then, following Monte’s command, their battle commenced.
The fight went on for over ten minutes before finally coming to an end, with Mario emerging victorious over Lamiro.
However, the triumphant Mario didn’t receive the Magic Energy Shield and Mana Armor, for although he had won, the performance of both combatants was rather ordinary. To put it bluntly, apart from showing good vigor, the battle had no shining moments. Such a display won neither Rocky’s nor Liliya’s approval, nor Monte’s.
Both the victor Mario and the defeated Lamiro were clearly aware of their dismal performance. Being overly nervous, they failed to show their best in the fight, not even managing to demonstrate half of the strength they exhibited during training.
This was precisely their issue: after all, Rocky isn’t going to bite. If they are so nervous in front of him that they can’t perform properly, how will they handle facing Demons?
Against real Demons, even an above-average performance may not suffice to save one’s life. How could they expect to survive if their performance was subpar?
So, under these circumstances, neither Lamiro nor Mario received the coveted Mana Equipment. They could only return to their ranks dejectedly.
As they rejoined the ranks, many among the troops began to understand. They finally grasped that the assessment wasn’t something that could be easily completed. Simply winning wasn’t enough to earn the Mana Equipment; they had to perform exceptionally well, which undoubtedly increased the difficulty of the assessment significantly.
As a result, the atmosphere became even more tense and somber…