The hardness of mana crystals was enormous. They were practically indestructible in normal use.
These weren't fragile ornaments or decorative pieces. They should have been able to withstand anything Ren could produce, even with his abnormal reserves.
Should have.
The evaluator stood slowly, his expression with dropped jaw and mouth wide open showing genuine confusion. "That's... How...?"
The words came out strangled, disbelieving. In forty years of administering these exams, he'd never seen anything like this. Students failed to activate seals. Students made mistakes in the pattern. But breaking the crystal itself?
Impossible.
In the upper stands, something changed in the air.
A shift, subtle but unmistakable. The kind of change that came when predators sensed wounded prey.
Jin Strahlfang straightened suddenly, his eyes gleaming at the recognized opportunity.
This was 'The chance'. The opening he'd been waiting for without knowing it.
