For once, the examiner paused to stare at Nero instead of directly turning to write on the notepad. Though these questions were designed to not have perfect answers, if there was one that came close, it would be Nero’s. Now whether that was a genuine answer, or the one he thought would be best for this question, the examiner could not tell, nor was it his duty to assess.
He looked down to his clipboard and wrote something, though this time he wrote for much longer than before.
"Tell me of a time you disobeyed an order by a superior," the examiner said, maintaining the same, neutral expression he had maintained throughout.
Just like all the previous questions, this one was too vague in its criteria. Nero wasn’t sure what kind of answer to give for this one, and took a few seconds to decide.
"I consistently and decidedly disobeyed my fathers orders to not eat his food growing up," Nero answered with a straight face, showing not a hint of humour or nonseriousness.
"If you have to kill an innocent person to save many lives, or let him live and allow many others to die as a result of your inaction, what would you choose?"
Again, some context would make this an easier question to answer. Nero could ask for some, but he doubted it would be given. He would just have to compensate in his answer.
"It depends on the situation. It depends on the number of people being killed, who they are, and who I have to kill. Depending on how dire the situation is, I would kill the innocent," Nero answered firmly, although this question left a bad taste in his mouth.
The examiner picked up his pen to write some notes, but paused and turned back to Nero.
Something about the examiner’s tone made Nero realise that this wasn’t originally on the question list he was supposed to be asked. What would he do in that situation? Even Nero didn’t know.
One, two, three, the seconds passed him by as Nero’s brain surged, logic and emotion clashing. This... was a tough situation - one where he literally had to assign value to lives. Nero genuinely didn’t know what he would do if he were in such a situation, but after a few seconds of consideration, he knew what he was going to answer.
"I would not kill my subordinate, even if that means bearing the weight of guilt," Nero answered firmly, without any hesitation in his voice or his conviction.
"And if the situation was reversed? Would you kill a child from Saint Codale to save your subordinate?" the examiner asked without a beat, as if he already had the question prepared.
Nero felt like cursing this damn examiner. What kind of absurd questions were these? Yet just as his emotions flared up, Nero took control of himself. He had been through enough training in his life to realise what this was. The actual question itself did not matter nearly as much.
His decision making and morality were being tested, yes. But much more critically, his mindset, his self control of his emotions, and his reactions were what were being judged right now. The examiner was asking difficult questions on purpose to rile up Nero. He needed to agitate Nero, but it would take far more than some hypothetical questions to rile him up.
Once again, Nero did not know what he would do in that situation, but he knew how he was going to answer.
"I believe in loyalty," Nero said firmly. "That is why I would not kill my subordinate even if it meant others were going to die. For the same reason, if there is guilt or blame to be borne, then I would bear it to save my subordinate."
The examiner remained stoic, turning to his clipboard and writing something. This time, he took a long time before he was finished, the sound of pen on paper filling the room, leaving Nero with his thoughts and the weight of his decisions.
What the examiner did not know was that there was no weight. Ordinarily, one would be reeling from the tough choice they had made, but Nero simply reminded himself that these were all hypothetical questions. As of right now, they bore no moral weight, and he had not made any tough decisions. He would not be fooled into decision fatigue through a simple questionnaire.
"Have you ever wanted to kill someone?" the examiner asked once he finally stopped writing.
Nero controlled his emotions, and his thoughts meticulously, not allowing the obvious choice and name to even appear in his mind. He did not, even for a moment, think of those who targeted his brother, and then later claimed to send an assassin for Nero. It was funny how Nero still bore the bad reputation of fratricide although he had done no such thing, but the one who sent assassins after him was just fine and dandy.
Well, he wasn’t technically fine, but that was besides the point. Nero did not allow him to think of any officials, or anyone who was a part of the army. Instead, there was a very convenient answer available to him.
"I was on a mission when one of my subordinates betrayed us, resulting in the death of many from the team. I wanted nothing more than to rip his throat out and watch him die. Instead, I saved his life and brought him back to base for interrogation and questioning."
The examiner’s expression flickered, a solemn look appearing in his eyes. He did not think Nero was lying - something like this could easily be checked by them. In fact, it would be checked by them, but that wasn’t his role.
Understanding that the cadet before him had already faced some of the trials that this academy was supposed to train him to face, the examiner gave Nero a soft nod, acknowledging the difficulty of Nero’s choice.
"If you have two subordinates, and they both disobey your orders for different reasons - one because of morality, and one because of cowardice - who will you punish more and why?"
A flicker of recognition flashed through Nero’s eyes as he heard the question. So far, all the questions he’d been asked followed certain themes.
Besides putting him under pressure, they tested his deductive skills, his pattern recognition, his tactical logic, morality and so on. This question, however, seemed instantly different. This one seemed to be testing his command style.
That was interesting. It felt like the purpose of this test was far more multifaceted than he realised. If everyone were asked questions like these, then this would be the place where a baseline would be created for him. After some training, if he underwent a similar set of questions, how his mentality evolved could be seen by comparing those answers to the ones given now.
But if that was the case, the examiner seemed not to be writing enough to record all his answers.
Suddenly, Nero looked around the room to see if he could find any signs of hidden cameras, or maybe some hidden examiners who were recording his answers. He found none, but that was only to be expected. The army would not be sloppy like that.
"I would punish the coward," Nero said. "Morality can still be useful down the line, especially if that soldier grows and acquires higher ranks. A coward, however, will only poison the army."
The pattern continued. Writing, question, writing, question, without break. After a while, Nero realised that they were also testing his mental strength. After all, after so long thinking and straining the mind, one would begin to wear down. Nero, however, was just fine.
"At what point should a commander stop listening to advisors?"
"Is a commander responsible for the crimes of his soldiers if he never gave the order?"
"Would you accept a minor defeat, or risk a decisive victory with heavy casualties?
"Who bears the greater burden - the soldier that dies, or the commander that sends them?"
"How do you maintain authority over someone stronger than you?"
"Is it acceptable to lie to your troops if the truth would lower morale?"
"Why should someone trust their life to you?"
"How would..."
"When would..."
"Where would..."
The questions seemed to never end, going on and on for what seemed like eternity, yet Nero never wavered. In fact, he never even used up his full ten seconds before answering. Throughout, he remained firm in his answers, even if the question was difficult and left him feeling bitter.
Then, abruptly and without forewarning, the examiner put down his clipboard.
"Your exam is complete. You may move on," he said plainly, though Nero’s gaze was fixed on the piece of paper. From start to end, it contained only random scribbles, and not a single word.