"For the Finals, you will be challenged by the greatest Scholar in the history of the Eastern Empire—Lewis Griffith!" Klaus announced, much to the surprise of everyone who watched... including me.
'E-eh?!'
The lone Scholar on stage, Reinhardt Ciera, gasped at the difficulty of the Finals. How could she, a mere student, compete with the Great Sage?
Her eyes frolicked uncomfortably across the stage, but it seemed like she did her best to control her expression from leaking out the sense of nervousness she felt.
"Do not worry. Considering your level, we have not compiled the more difficult ones for you. Rather, your challenge will be to argue against one of Lewis Griffith's earlier treatises concerning the Mana Core Grade revolution and relevance, as well as the Concept of Inepts."
I sighed as soon as I heard the question.
It was indeed one of my earlier works and, being honest, I still considered it to be childish and juvenile compared to my other advanced works.
Admittedly, my motivation for creating that piece was due to the lingering frustration I had concerning my Inept Status.
Since this was an outdated philosophy, and a very flawed one at that, it was probably going to be a very simple matter to argue against it.
"You have thirty minutes to complete your argument. You may begin!" Klaus declared, setting a timer above us to observe the events of the contest.
The flustered girl began making her case, beginning from the introduction of my treatise and the relevance it had in the past. Afterward, she began addressing the essential components it contained.
As the girl went further on in her argument, I grew more and more disappointed. Her start was excellent, but she had yet to mention one of the flaws my concept had.
The question had been fo argue against my philosophy, not explain it!
The problem wasn't the nature of the question posed, which I considered to be quite simple, but the stage it was set in! It was no wonder the girl was finding it hard to properly perform what was expected of her.
Firstly, it was an impromptu presentation, making Reinhardt Ciera flustered in her thoughts.
Secondly, the timer. A Scholar had to make proper use of time and ensure that every moment was not wasted. As a result, she was rushing to deliver her speech while trying to collect the jumbled thoughts in her head... all at the same time.
The third challenge was her opponent—me! Many would feel reluctant to challenge more powerful and respected figures in society, especially young students who looked up to them.
This Ciera girl must have been so conflicted when it was announced who she would be arguing against. That insurmountable wall that existed in her mind must have put a mental strain on the young lady.
Finally, the pressure! Usually, it would be inconsequential whether or not there was a crowd watching you—especially if it was a competition.
However, thanks to the first three factors, our beloved competitor must have already been worn out. Adding the expectations and critical gazes of the crowd to the mix was just too much.
As a result, even though her start was impressive, the girl flopped midway through and spoke in gibberish.
"Time up!" Klaus announced, preventing her from going any further in her pointless presentation.
It had to be painfully obvious to the experts, at this point, that the girl performed woefully.
Klaus looked above him, to the area where the Judges sat, most likely awaiting their decision. I watched the brief exchange between them and saw the moderator nodding in agreement.
"The winner of this round is..."
A moment of silence filled the room and it seemed like everyone was curious about the verdict. Of course, I already knew it would be—
"Reinhardt Ciera!!!" Klaus' voice boomed.
"What?!" I blurted out in shock as soon as I heard the verdict.
It was completely different from what I expected.
"E-eh...?" The Reinhardt girl even gave a gasp of surprise.
She must have been certain that it was her loss, same as my conclusion. Why was she awarded the victory, then?
"The goal of the match was not just focused on giving the right answers, but it measured the contestant's mental prowess, the eloquence of words, and the ability to remain composed in unfavorable conditions."
'What the heck is this guy talking about?' I glared angrily at Klaus.
The man went on about how Ciera knew the historical value of Lewis Griffith's treatise, showing her wealth of knowledge. She was also able to completely use her time without breaking down, blah blah blah!
I got so pissed off listening to his drivel that it took a great deal of my self-control to remain silent.
'This... this is bias!'
"What's going on here? J-Jared, is this true? I actually thought she would lose." Anabelle suddenly spoke, looking at me innocently.
Even an airhead like Ana knew something wasn't right here, yet the judges and moderator had decided the girl was the winner.
"You were right to think she would lose," I muttered in a low and grim tone.
Ana didn't seem to get my message as she furthered her inquiry.
"Then why did she... win?"
I sighed and shrugged. At this point, there was no use getting angry because of these things. Obviously, they figured out a loophole to ensure that the Upper-Class student went home with the medal.
It was only for a moment, but I somehow wished Ana had participated in the Scholar Division. If she had, we would have been able to show what an actual Scholar was capable of.
'Urgh! There's no use in thinking about that now...' I quickly chastised myself.
Anabelle's participation in the Magic Division was something I didn't regret. We had both lost, but... clearly, the Exchange was epic thanks to our matches.
As a result of our powerless as students, Ana and I—no, everyone who watched—merely had no other choice than to tolerate the gross bias displayed in favor of the Upper Class.
"I now declare that the one who has officially scored first place in the Scholar Division for the First years is... Reinhardt Ciera!"
