[color=forestgreen][b]Character Name:[/b][/color] Den, Mentor of House Meadowmist
[color=forestgreen][b]Time of Day:[/b][/color] Early afternoon
[color=forestgreen][b]Location:[/b][/color] The practice fields
[color=forestgreen][b]Interacting with:[/b][/color] Marius Sirvaki [@ShwiggityShwah]
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After telling his students to line up and calling for the first student to step up to the square marked on the field, Den went to join the other two proctors for the diagnostic exam.  As the mentor to House Meadowmist, he was expected to lead the test in a sense, which mostly just meant making sure that the students’ demonstrations proceeded smoothly and were judged fairly.  It was no big deal really.  And, truth be told, Den generally enjoyed getting the opportunity to see what the abilities of his students were, so he didn’t particularly mind the extra responsibility.

The first student to take the test was a red-headed man that approached the square on the field with an eager, yet confident stride.  After the man had stepped into the square, he introduced himself as Marius Sirvaki, the Phoenix Dawn after a rather snide remark concerning the ignorance of the Guild when it came to legends such as himself.  [color=forestgreen][i]”So this is the student that challenged Marwyn to a duel the other day,”[/i][/color] Den thought wryly as he noted the Schools of Magic that Marius had an affinity for, as well as his disdain for the others.  That was a mindset that would almost inevitably cause issues when he needed to work with his fellow students.  But that would be a problem for a later day.  For now, Den just needed to focus on evaluating his skills.  [color=forestgreen][b]”Okay, Mr. Sirvaki, you may proceed with your demonstration.”[/b][/color]

Evidently eager to begin, Marius wasted no time in dropping into a stance and pulling on the mana around him to cast his flame wall spell, his figure surrounded by faintly smoldering arcane symbols.  While such displays were decidedly impressive to watch, they also happened to be largely unnecessary for the manipulation of mana from a purely academic standpoint.  Many students that had received some level of training before coming to the Guild had similar habits when it came to casting magic, however, as they had somehow learned that they were necessary.  Either that, or they had a habit for showing off whenever possible.  Considering what he had seen of Marius’s personality so far, Den wasn’t quite sure which was more likely.

As the flames from Marius’s spell surged from the ground to form a wall that partially obscured him from sight, Den had to admit that Marius’s overconfidence was perhaps not entirely undeserved.  Simultaneously using magic from two separate Schools at the same time was definitely something that was beyond the ability of the Guild’s typical new student.  Using the barrier to maintain the wall of fire so that he didn’t have to continuously feed it mana had also been pretty clever.  Of course, that didn’t really mean that Marius had mastered either of the Schools that he used, but that was a lesson that he would probably have to learn on his own.

Marius promptly followed his wall of fire with another demonstration, drawing mana before leaping into the air and utilizing a barrier to provide himself with the ability to jump again.  As he cleared the wall of fire that he had created, he launched a bolt of lightning at the ground a short distance in front of Den and the other two proctors.  Reflexively, Den put up a small barrier to protect himself and his colleagues from any errant effects when he saw that the bolt was going to land nearby.  When Marius signalled that he was finished with his demonstrations by dismissing his wall of fire, Den allowed his own barrier to vanish as well.

Marius’s demonstration with the lightning bolt further cemented Den’s belief that he had had a significant amount of training before arriving at the Guild.  Even though air and fire weren’t opposite elements, it would still take a complete novice some time before they were able to achieve the level of mastery in each that was necessary for combining them.  The aftereffects of the demonstration, namely the damage to the environment, also confirmed Den’s suspicion that Marius was somewhat lacking in finesse.  While Den supposed that it might just be the case that Marius was showing off, there were ways to demonstrate power and dexterity at the same time that would have been more impressive than just brute force. 

[color=forestgreen][b]”While I appreciate your enthusiasm,”[/b][/color] Den said as he finished scribbling down his notes on Marius’s performance,  [color=forestgreen][b]”advancing to the rank of adept requires more than just demonstrating a proficiency with magic.  In particular, you’ll also have to show that you have learned the material from your classes to a satisfactory degree by passing an exam.  Not to mention the fact that the actual test of your magical ability will be a lot less free-form than this diagnostic test.”[/b][/color]  

As Den responded to Marius’s somewhat absurd request, the other two proctors went about making certain that none of the embers remaining from Marius’s demonstration would catch anything on fire.  [color=forestgreen][b]”That’s not to say that your demonstration was lackluster,”[/b][/color] Den continued after he had placed his notes on Marius’s performance in a wooden chest nearby.  [color=forestgreen][b]”You’re clearly a talented mage who has had a substantial amount of training before arriving.  It probably won’t be too long before you pass the actual advancement test.”[/b][/color]

Once the other proctors had returned and placed their own notes in the chest and Marius had rejoined the others, Den called out for the next student to step forward.