The following day, the judges declared that there was nothing wrong with the test. Even though the deaths were still fresh in all the participants' minds, the judges felt that one night was enough for them to console their souls and go through with the test. Many more people were about to die, and everyone understood and accepted this as fact, but no one could go against the powerful judges who were Supreme magicians.
"Can we withdraw from this test? If the price for joining the Avalon Society is death, then there is no reason for us to join," said one of the participants. Cate looked at the young woman who had been brave enough to actually come forward.
"Who are you to lecture us?"
"Do you have a death wish?" two judges cried out at the same time. Cate could see the shame on their faces. These judges were going through with the test because of the benefits that could possibly be harvested. Throughout history, some of the most powerful spells were created when a magician was placed under extreme stress and had no option but to reach into the magic of the world and survive. With this second test, the participants were in this exact situation, and if they were to be pushed even further, there was a chance that some of them could actually come up with decent spells. Spells were the foundation of all magic, and the more spells a magician had, the better. Powerful spells were so crucial that some depraved people went as far as kidnapping other supernaturals, especially magicians, and putting them through stressful situations just so that they could come up with some spells. This was the way of the world, and the Avalon Society was part of the world.
The young woman did not back down just because the judges barked at her. She stepped forward and smiled sweetly at the judges. "I am Jordan Staranse. I come from the noble and ancient Staranse Mage Clan. I will not be forced to death by your madness. I do not give a f**k that you are judges with authority from the chairman of the Avalon Society. I also care very little that you are backed by the High King. I refuse to die in this place. If you still insist on my death, I would rather die fighting you. I am sure that I can at least drag one of you to Hades with me."
The young woman was furious, and yet the smile never left the corners of her mouth. Her red hair whipped around, and the air in the hall grew thicker. She was already channeling her magic. When the other participants saw this, they saw their only way out of this situation, and they took it. They moved closer to Jordan, and this was enough to show their stance. Even though the judges were Supreme magicians, they were not powerful enough to go up against all these people, some of whom were dangerous dark magicians with sinister spells.
The hall became heated. The thin old woman who had been standing to the side finally came forward. "Since all the participants have agreed that this test is far too dangerous, we the Avalon Society are reasonable people, and we will not force you to take it on. We will come up with another test for all of you to go through instead of this one," she said in her gruff voice that made everyone shiver as though suddenly remembering that she was still around.
The reason the old woman, who was the main examiner for these tests, had relented, even overruling the judges, was that just as Jordan Staranse had said, she was from the Staranse Mage Clan, one of the Three Mage Clans. If they were to force her to death here in an unreasonable test, the Staranse Clan could even declare war on the High King. They were simply far too powerful to be taken lightly. This also reminded the old woman that even though this was a test to join the Avalon Society, some of the participants came from ancient clans, dark families, evil factions that dwelled in the darkness, and some even claimed descent from gods. These were not people that could be forced to death so easily.
"I thank the examiner for taking our concerns to heart," said Jordan.
The examiner nodded slightly before moving away with the judges. They had to discuss the matter and come up with a new test. Cate had seen the examiner's eyes, and within them, she had seen a great rage at Jordan, but she had still held back this fury. Still, Cate surmised that Jordan would face a few problems within the Avalon Society.
"We have decided that your test will be to enter the Edgeless Forest and tame a single magical beast. You should not go deeper than five miles into the forest," the examiner said. The judges took their seats once more, but it was clear that they were less than enthused by this test. There were many magical beasts in the world, and supernatural beings such as magicians could tame these beasts and take them as their familiars. A magician or any other supernatural being could only ever have a single familiar, but not all tamed beasts had to be familiars.
Just when the examiner was about to declare the beginning of the test, Cate stepped forward. "I have an objection to your changes," she said. The examiner was already pissed, but she lowered her hands and waited for Cate to explain herself.
"I am Catherine Staranse," she said as she bowed. This was the name of the girl whose identity she had stolen to join the Avalon Society. This girl was clearly also from the Staranse Mage Clan, but she was a bastard that had been abandoned by her clan. The moment she said her name out loud, Jordan Staranse, who had been discussing something with her group of friends/followers, looked towards her. Cate could sense the young girl's gaze, but she did not care. From the information she had gotten from the real Catherine, Jordan Staranse was one of her sisters.
"You gave us the second test, and some of us put in great effort until we created our spells. We are ready to present our spells, and that would be the end of our second test. Why then should we put in more effort to pass another test just because a few fools died? This is unfair to those of us with enough brains to have completed the test," said Cate.