Chapter 37

The First-Class Exam is the thirty-seventh chapter of Yamada Kanehito & Abe Tsukasa's Sousou no Frieren.

Summary
Twenty-nine years after the Hero Himmel’s passing, Frieren, Fern, and Stark are in the Kühl Region. The trio spot Äußerst in the distance and catch a coach the rest of the way. Meanwhile, in a remote area of Graf Granat's Domain, Mage Übel meets Monk Kraft when accosted by thieves. Übel reveals that she intends to take the First Class Mage Exam in Äußerst and the two part ways. Some time later, at the Northern Branch of the Continental Magic Association in Äußerst, Frieren and Fern are informed the First Class Mage Exam will be held in two months. Despite not having received the necessary mage class standing necessary to partake in the exam, an older mage recognizes Frieren's Holy Wand Emblem and allows her to participate. Frieren and Fern then spend the next two months training for the exam. Two months later, all the mages participating in the First Class Mage Exam have gathered. The proctor of the first exam, Genau, commences the first exam, a team battle, by splitting the examinees into groups of three. Frieren and Fern both find their teammates. To Frieren's dismay, her teammates are already fighting amongst themselves.

Plot Details
Twenty-nine years after the Hero Himmel’s passing, Frieren, Fern, and Stark are in the Northern Lands, specifically the Kühl Region. From atop a cliff, the party are able to see Äußerst off in the distance. Frieren remarks that they will need to catch a coach the rest of the way. As the three continue to walk, they discuss their travel plans, with Fern musing that after Frieren obtains the qualification to become a first-class mage in Äußerst, the party will be able to continue onwards to the Northern Plateau. However, Frieren tells Fern to become a first-class mage instead, as she is uninterested in a title that will soon be obsolete. Fern tells Frieren that only a select few mages are able to become first-class, thus she will most likely not be able to obtain the title, but despite her words, Frieren remains uninterested in the exam.

Sometime later, the trio have caught a coach that will take them to Äußerst. As they sit in the back, the three discuss the upcoming first class mage exam in Äußerst. Frieren states that she will investigate the nature of the exam once they arrive, but as it is likely there will be combat, they will need to strategize. Fern questions the necessity of strategizing with Frieren's mana, as despite Frieren's limitation of her own mana, as a skilled and elderly mage, her mana is still able to be seen. This in turn causes Frieren to pout, and seeing that she is pouting, Stark bids Fern to apologize for her commentary on Frieren's age. However, Frieren merely shoots at Stark that she still remembers him calling her a "stinking hag", and she then lies down on Fern's lap in order to take a nap. However, noticing that Fern's chest has grown, Frieren decides to forgo a nap as she is only able to see half of the sky lying down.

Now perched near the back of the wagon, Frieren gives Fern a word of caution that mana is not the only thing that determines a mage's strength since factors such as technique, experience, spell usage and handling, effort, and willpower are important as well. This causes Stark to comment that it sounds like mages are part warrior as well. Frieren then mentions that the last quality that can make a mage's strength superior is simply talent. In her life, she has lost eleven times to mages who possessed less mana. Four of them were demons, Qual included, one was an elf, and the remaining six were humans.

Twenty-nine years after the Hero Himmel’s passing, a black-haired woman wielding a staff is in the Northern Lands, specifically a remote area of Graf Granat's Domain. As she stands in a grassy field at the outskirts of a forest, the woman muses that she will likely be able to see Graf Granat's Domain soon and that the path to Äußerst is an intense one. As the woman sits down on a rock to take a rest, a group of thieves approaches from the forest behind her. The leader of the thieves notes the quality of her staff and asks her to leave her valuables. The woman bemoans that thieves have appeared again despite the region becoming more peaceful after Aura's defeat. Confused at her bantering, the thief again tells her to leave all of her goods behind.

He is interrupted by the appearance of Monk Kraft, who defeats the leader of the thieves and tells the rest of the thieves to leave if they wish to keep their lives. The thieves proceed to retreat, and the woman thanks Kraft for saving her and introduces herself as the Mage Übel. After Kraft introduces himself in return, Übel notices that Kraft is an elf, but Kraft merely tells her not to show a killer's gaze and refutes Übel's thanks as his intent wasn't to save her. In the forest nearby, Kraft had found and buried the corpses of a group of thieves chopped to pieces by a skilled mage. Hearing this, Übel questions whether Kraft intends to preach to her, but Kraft denies any intent to guilt her for killing the thieves in self-defense, and claims that he, well aware of Übel’s prowess and ruthlessness as a fighter, merely stepped in to save the lives before him. This causes Übel to proclaim Kraft boring, and after confirming that Übel intends to head to Äußerst for the first-class mage exam just as Frieren is, the two go their separate ways.

Sometime later, at the Northern Branch of the Continental Magic Association, Frieren and Fern are registering for the first-class mage exam. They are informed by the clerk that the exam will occur in two months and that to qualify for the exam, they must be a fifth-class mage or better. Hearing this, Frieren tells Fern to break a leg and tries to walk out of the room, only for Fern to catch her by the sleeve and entreat her to participate alongside her. Frieren is adamant that Fern can become a first-class mage on her own, and when Fern asks what they will do if she fails, Frieren flippantly says that they will just hire a first-class mage or travel north by sea. Even when Fern refutes Frieren by bringing up the enormous expense of traveling by sea or hiring a first-class mage, Frieren brings up that she is unqualified to participate, since she never took a class examination with the current Magic Association. The only thing she has is her Holy Wand Emblem, which Fern doesn't even recognize. However, an older mage appears who recognizes the Holy Wand Emblem and allows Frieren to participate in the first-class exam. As they leave the Continental Magic Association and walk on the streets of Äußerst, Frieren expresses her surprise that there is anyone alive who still recognizes her Holy Wand Emblem, which should be considered an incredible object.

In a flashback, Himmel asks Frieren if she is a member of the Mage's Guild, the organization that governs magic in the time of the Hero's Party. Frieren explains that because magic organizations change so frequently, it would be illogical for her to join each and every one of them. She then holds out her Holy Wand Emblem with pride, implying that with it, joining a organization would be unnecessary. However, Himmel, Heiter, and Eisen are unable to recognize her Holy Wand Emblem, leaving Frieren in low spirits since the Holy Wand Emblem is her only proof of being a mage. Seeing this, Himmel reassures Frieren that though the Hero's Party may not know of her necklace, they do know that Frieren is an incredible mage. However, Frieren merely refutes that her party members will soon be dead, leaving Himmel with a melancholic expression on his face.

Recalling this memory, in the present day, Frieren again looks pensive. However, Fern calls out to her and reassures her that she and Stark both know that Frieren is an incredible mage, just as Himmel did in the past. Frieren appears surprised before this time acknowledging Fern's statement by patting her hair.

Frieren and Fern then go to a library in Äußerst, where they begin to research about the Continental Magic Association. In the meantime, Stark sleeps on the table. Frieren summarizes from a book that mages are considered to be adults once they reach at least fifth-class. She then asks Fern why she chose to become a third-class mage, with Fern replying that it was simply because the exam was scheduled the earliest. Continuing with her reading, Frieren narrates that there are around two thousand mages total, with around six hundred mages that are at least fifth-class and the remainder being sixth- to ninth-class apprentices. Of the fifth-class or higher mages, there exists only forty-five first-class mages total. The first-class exam is held every three years at the Northern Branch of the Continental Magic Association and the headquarters in the Holy City of Strahl. Many years, no one passes the first-class mage exam; casualties are not unheard of either. Placing the book back on the shelf, Frieren muses that the number of mages in recent times has significantly decreased, as back when the Demon King Army's offensive intensified, there would be many mages found in any town, whereas nowadays, only magical towns have a concentration of mages at all. With their research on the exam complete, Frieren and Fern decide to train in order to prepare for the first-class mage exam.

In the next two months, Fern and Frieren train their magic in various ways including staff handling, spell practice, and research. During the two months, the party also celebrates Frieren's birthday. Finally, after two months have passed, Frieren and Fern, along with various other first-class mage hopefuls, gather at an ornately decorated building where Genau, a first-class mage who is introduced as the first exam proctor, commences the first-class mage selection exam in Äußerst. At the side of the hall, two unknown mages comment on the impressive backgrounds of some of the competitors. Wirbel, with a fur cloak and shaggy, pale colored hair, is introduced as the second-class captain of the Northern Magic Corps, which has been active in the fight against remnants of the Demon King Army. Fern is revealed to be the youngest mage to ever not only pass the third-class exam, but obtain the highest grade as well. Denken, also a second-class mage, is an imperial mage who came out on top in a violent power struggle. The same mage from before then notes that there are troublemakers participating this time around as well, specifically Übel, who he remembers having killed a first-class proctor of the second-class exam two years prior. Following this, the mage ascertains other promising competitors. Upon sensing Frieren's mana, he thinks to himself that her mana expression is that of an elder mage’s and asks his companion who Frieren is. Neither he nor his companion appear to recognize Frieren.

Genau then announces the details of the first exam. It will be a team battle with three mages in each group. Genau divides all fifty-seven competitors by giving each competitor a ring. Each ring is marked with a number that represents which party each competitor is in, and party members may be identified by imbuing the ring with mana. Frieren is in the second team.

As Frieren walks to find her party, she thinks that cooperation with other mages impromptu may be difficult. As such, she resolves to have a good first impression on her team. However, as she finds the rest of her party, she sees that her party members, both girls around Fern's age, are already fighting each other, with one of them pulling the other's pigtails. Seeing this, Frieren looks resigned. Meanwhile, Fern finds her team members as well. One of them is a male mage with glasses, while the other is Übel. Übel and Fern both greet each other, baring the bracelets that show they are the fourth team, as the first exam is set to begin.

Characters in Order of Appearance

 * Frieren
 * Fern
 * Stark
 * Qual
 * Übel
 * Kraft
 * Lernen
 * Himmel
 * Heiter
 * Eisen
 * Genau
 * Falsch
 * Sense
 * Wirbel
 * Denken
 * Lawine
 * Kanne
 * Land

Locations

 * Kühl Region
 * Graf Granat's Domain
 * Äußerst

Battles

 * Kraft & Übel vs. thieves

Events

 * Fern and Frieren arrive in Äußerst and register for the First Class Mage Examination
 * First Exam of the First Class Mage Examination commences

Spells

 * Unnamed magic used to attack multiple times (possibly Zoltraak)
 * Unnamed magic used to levitate

New Tools

 * Übel's Staff

Chapter Notes

 * An older mage was able to recognize Frieren's Holy Wand Emblem, showing it would only be significant to older mages who are likely more versed in the history of magic.
 * In the two months Frieren and Fern were training for the First Class Mage Exam, the trio were shown at one point eating a large cake together. As Frieren was sitting directly in front of the cake, this implies Frieren's birthday passed during the two month training period.