Indeed, there is no end to the search for strength.
You are one step closer to finding the secret.
There is nothing left for me to teach you.
You tell me that every day.
Oh, Fern?
Pout...
She's angry? Why?
I'm scared.
ORIGINAL STORY BY KANEHITO YAMADA / TSUKASA ABE
I had a fight with Mistress Frieren.
Again? This has been happening a lot lately.
The upcoming third stage is the final stage of the exam, right?
This is no time to be fighting.
This time, she has crossed the line.
My staff broke during the battle in the Ruins of the King's Tomb,
so I told Mistress Frieren that I wanted to get it repaired.
But she told me that I should throw away
my old staff and buy a new one.
That staff?
She said it was shattered and can't be fixed.
But still,
I received that staff from Master Heiter.
I've had it ever since I was small.
You know how Frieren is. She didn't mean to hurt you.
For me, the thought of
throwing it away never even crossed my mind.
The next first-class mage exam is three years from now, huh?
Three years is a long time.
Go ahead and laugh at me, like usual.
You want me to laugh at you?
No.
Well then, little Lawine, want me to pat you on the head?
You want to fight?
Hurry up.
She's really taking it hard.
Oh, it's Frieren.
What's that bag?
Hey.
How long are you going to stay here?
I failed the exam. We have nothing to do with each other anymore.
You're interfering with my business. Go away.
I am here as a customer right now.
Then hurry up and pick something.
-You can have it. -Keep it.
You were out of luck this time.
The situation was not in our favor.
Everybody who was there could have ended up like you.
Either way, I still failed. I didn't have enough skill.
Don't bring this subject up again.
I may not look it, but I am in the worst mood.
And yet you still opened your shop.
Denken, this may come as a surprise to you,
but no matter how bad their mood is,
people need to work to put food on the table.
I see.
Well, it's a good thing that I was the one who dropped out.
First-class mage exams are once in three years.
Denken,
for a feeble old man like you, that time may never come.
True.
At least try to retort.
Richter, you really are an impudent little punk.
You disrespect authority and are willing to
mistreat the weak for the sake of fulfilling your purpose.
You are definitely no saint.
Despite that, I don't have any ill feelings toward you.
That is probably
because I used to be an impudent little punk myself.
But look at me now.
I am now an Imperial Mage.
What are you trying to say?
What I mean is, you don't have to be so pessimistic.
Three years from now, you will be much stronger than you are now.
Let's go, Laufen.
Sorry. That old man isn't good at expressing his feelings.
What is your relationship with him anyway?
That old fart...
In the end, he didn't even buy anything.
Today is really not my day, is it?
I asked around town, and everyone said that
you would be able to repair any staff, no matter how broken it is.
Let me see.
What are all these pieces?
Don't tell me this is a staff.
What am I supposed to do with this trash?
It's not trash...
I think.
I was starting to feel a little better,
but now I'm back to being in a horrible mood because of you.
I have the right to choose my jobs.
Just give up on this staff.
I see.
If you're unable to fix it, it's okay.
Frieren, you sure know how to get on my nerves, don't you?
When did I ever say I was unable to do it?
Can you finish it by today?
I want it ready by the third stage of the exam.
What an unreasonable request.
-Frieren. -What?
I'm sorry for calling it trash.
It's a nice, well-maintained staff.
I can tell the owner really treasured it.
Fern, let's go back already.
Mistress Frieren doesn't understand me at all.
Well, I don't understand you either.
Stop it! Don't take it out on me!
In my opinion,
that is why it's important to try to understand.
I think Frieren is doing her best.
Oh, you're Frieren's...
apprentice, right?
Am I wrong?
No, you're right.
Well, I couldn't care less either way.
The second stage just ended,
and I'm already being overworked because of your master.
It would have been better for my business
if she had just bought a new one.
Take good care of it.
SWALLOW INN
My staff...
Frieren lacks emotions and sensibility.
I'm sure that will lead to difficulties and misunderstandings.
But there is also one good thing about it.
To make up for what she lacks,
Frieren will spend more time worrying about you.
You're not going to find another master like her that easily.
It's dark...
Um, Mistress Frieren, about yesterday...
What?
Never mind. It's nothing.
Okay.
We will now begin the third stage of the exam.
Do you know the reason why I came
all the way here, Sense?
You're not going to answer?
This is how you are whenever things become inconvenient.
There were 12 people who passed the second stage.
That is an unprecedented number. It's too many.
I don't mind exams where everybody joins forces.
The existing first-class mages lack a sense of cooperation, after all.
I'm afraid that's true.
But among them
was one person with too much power.
You mean Mistress Frieren?
Thanks to that, many inadequate people were able to pass as well.
If they go onto the third stage as scheduled,
they will all die.
Sense,
that's not even close to what you desire.
And even I don't want
to waste the lives of this many people.
Mistress Serie...
You don't have to apologize.
It's all Frieren's fault.
We'll make an exception this time.
I will take care of the third stage.
I'll select them in a peaceful way.
You were in charge of it originally, right?
You don't mind, do you, Lernen?
This isn't my first time
being at the mercy of your one-sided decisions.
Plus,
I am not at a level where I can test Mistress Frieren.
Just one glance, and I knew
that she was suppressing her mana.
She has an enormous amount of mana.
It is on par with you, Mistress Serie.
Falsch, did you notice?
No, I don't know what he's talking about.
I saw her mana with my own eyes at the exam hall.
I highly doubt that her mana was suppressed.
It didn't even have the characteristic of instability of suppressed mana.
All living organisms with mana have this instability
and it cannot be stopped.
Even if that is possible,
it'd take an exorbitant amount of time.
It is by no means a practical skill.
Frieren dedicated her entire life to this so-called unpractical skill.
In order to deceive demons.
Demons are far more sensitive to mana than mankind.
Unless you're some kind of prodigy,
you wouldn't be able to deceive them just by suppressing
your mana for 100 or 200 years.
It's literally a waste of time.
Using that time on other training would make you
significantly stronger.
It's completely inefficient.
However,
such inefficiency can open up a window of opportunity.
When it comes to battles between skilled mages,
miscalculating your opponent's mana can lead to your death.
Frieren is living proof.
Her level of skill is low for someone her age,
but she's been defeating demons this way.
That is how precise Frieren's mana suppression is.
As far as I know,
the Demon King is the only one who noticed in one glance.
At least, that's what I thought up until now, Lernen.
It was a coincidence.
I happened to see the slightest instability.
That's all.
You're so modest and dependable.
It's been half a century since you became the very first
first-class mage.
You are still the same timid boy you used to be.
And that's why it's such a shame.
You've made it this far, and yet you
don't have much longer to live.
You probably will never have the chance to battle Frieren.
Even if it's a battle you can possibly win.
I really shouldn't take in any human apprentices.
It's such a shame...
In the end, not even he could notice the instability
of my mana, huh?
The third stage of the exam
will be an interview with the Great Mage Serie.
I didn't expect that.
Serie has no intention of letting us pass.
You know her?
From a long time ago.
She's probably going to choose who passes by instinct.
But Serie's instincts are always right.
As proof of that,
I still haven't become the mage that Serie wants me to be.
-Excuse me. -You fail. Go home.
Can I ask why?
Right now, you are afraid of my mana.
You are well aware of your limits.
You can't visualize yourself as a first-class mage, can you?
In the world of magic,
you can't actualize it if you can't visualize it.
That's the basic principle. Go home.
Fail. Fail.
Frieren,
you also can't visualize yourself as a first-class mage, can you?
But the reason is different from the other examinees.
You are absolutely sure that I'm not going to let you pass.
It's the truth, right?
I will give you one chance.
Tell me a spell you like.
The spell to create a field of flowers.
You learned that from Flamme, huh?
How stupid. You fail.
Okay.
You're not going to stand your ground even after being ridiculed?
It's hard to believe that a mage
like you was able to defeat the Demon King.
I didn't do it alone.
Himmel, Eisen, Heiter, and me.
If even one of us was missing, we couldn't have done it.
You were blessed with good comrades?
How lucky of you.
That's right.
I was lucky.
Himmel,
why did you invite me into the party?
Because I was looking for a strong mage.
There are a bunch of them in the royal capital.
It didn't have to be me.
I wanted you.
Why?
Frieren, you probably don't remember,
but I've met you once in the past.
Yeah, I don't remember at all.
I figured.
When I was a kid, I entered a forest to pick herbs
and got lost.
For a while, I was wandering around the forest at night.
For the first time in my life, I experienced solitude.
I thought I would never be able to return to the village.
But then
an elf pointed to the direction of civilization.
She literally only showed me the direction
and didn't give me any words of encouragement.
As a child, I thought she was so coldhearted.
I don't know if you sensed my fear
or if you just did it on a whim, but...
you showed me
the spell to create a field of flowers.
I thought it was beautiful.
For the first time in my life, I thought magic was beautiful.
It's probably nothing but a coincidence,
but the "stupid" spell that Master taught me
was what brought me together with Himmel and the crew.
Also, Serie,
I'm sure you're planning on failing Fern as well,
but I don't think you can.
She will exceed your expectations.
We've entered the era of humans.
She will "exceed my expectations"?
My mana has her paralyzed with fear.
She's the same as all the other examinees.
Wait, what is it that you see?
It's unstable.
Your name is Fern, right?
Become my apprentice.
What? No.
You won't regret it.
I will be able to take you to even greater heights.
To a level which no other mage has ever reached.
Will that impact my result on this exam?
Maybe it will.
I see.
Mistress Serie...
Fern,
I'm sure Serie is going to say this and that,
but you don't need to listen to her demands.
Just as I will be failed no matter what I say to Serie,
you will pass no matter what you say to her.
After all, Serie's instincts are always right.
I am Mistress Frieren's apprentice.
You were advised by Frieren, huh?
I'm not foolish enough to let a promising mage slip away.
You pass.
Next!
See you again.
Subtitle translation by: Kiko Morita