Chapter 122


    Two wizard apprentices, who had recently moved from out of town without proper residency documentation,y dead in their temporary dwelling. No one mourned their loss, and no one seemed to care—except for thendlord.


    “This is thirty magic stones for the house repairs,” Lynn said, handing thendlord the magic stones.


    “Thank you, friend. Next time you n to burn down a house, give me a heads-up,” thendlord said, epting the magic stones with a cheerful grin.


    Returning to the house, Lynn inquired of Lauren, “Did you manage to get any information?”


    “Yes, using the method you taught me, master. He didn’tst through the first round before spilling everything,” Lauren replied.


    “He confessed that your head has a bounty ced on it by some faction. He and another apprentice took the bounty and came looking for you. They had been lurking around for days, but since you stayed in theboratory, they decided to attack the goblin to draw you out,” Lauren exined.


    A bounty on his head? Lynn was intrigued. “How much is my head worth?”


    “It can be exchanged for a spot as an official wizard student,” Lauren answered.


    “That’s quite low,” Lynn mused, touching his neck. Such a low price for his life felt like an insult. Not even magic stones were offered, just a promise of a student quota. Whoever set the bounty was stingy, expecting apprentices to risk their lives for a mere promise.“Who ced the bounty?” Lynn asked.


    “A wizard named Biff, currently a mentor at the Dawn Wizard Academy. It’s said he has been an official wizard for over fifty years,” Lauren informed him.


    Lynn nodded thoughtfully,mitting the name to memory.


    “The wizard apprentice also said that if they died, others would take up the task, so he hoped we would let him go,” Lauren added.


    Lynn chuckled at this and waved his hand dismissively.


    Understanding the gesture, Lauren departed. There was never a limit to the number of people who could take on such tasks.


    Lynn made his way to the service hall, intending to thank Toby. Although it had been a minor favor for Toby, it meant a great deal to Lynn.


    To him, this favor still held great significance.


    Lynn understood well that true friendships required reciprocity, not just one-sided requests.


    He decided to show his gratitude by gifting an Abyss Mother Crab. This crab, with a diameter exceeding one meter, thrived on the edges of the Abyss Mother River. It was known for its exquisite taste but also for its tendency to retreat into the river when threatened, making it extremely rare. In Demon City, obtaining one was nearly impossible, and Lynn had paid 76 magic stones to acquire this crab,parable to a second-level extraordinary creature.


    After leaving the service hall, Lynn nced at the mission board. For wizard apprentices not affiliated with the Abyss Wizard Academy, this was the only ce to ept missions. However, apprentices like Lynn could ess a special handbook containing all historical unepted missions from the board.


    This system indirectly filtered out simpler tasks since they were quickly snatched up upon posting. The remaining missions were of higher difficulty, but they also offered more substantial rewards.


    One mission caught Lynn’s eye: “Recruitment of Laboratory Assistant” with a reward of selecting one out of five source materials of choice. The mission had been posted for two months with no takers, which seemed odd given the generous reward.


    Upon inquiring with the staff, Lynn learned the reason. Many wizard apprentices had expressed interest in the mission due to the generous reward, but its requirements were stringent. The first condition was a hard requirement: a mental strength greater than 100. The second condition involved a qualification test, details of which could only be understood upon visiting theboratory.


    While some apprentices met the first criterion, none had yet passed the second. Therefore, the mission remained unfulfilled.


    Lynn believed he could meet the second criterion and was curious about his own current level of qualifications.


    He epted the mission. The staff informed him that due to the repeated failures of previous applicants, the issuing wizard had decided to wait until five applicants had epted the mission before conducting the test. Including Lynn, there were now four apprentices who had taken up the challenge. They needed just one more to proceed.


    Lynn wasn’t in a hurry and told them to notify him once the group wasplete.


    Returning to his residence, Lynn dove into a new round of research. He began to delve deeper into runology. He realized that with his current level of runology—level 2 at 15%—constructing a wizard tower would be a bit challenging.


    Some wizard apprentices would enlist help, either by calling on others to assist in building the tower or by paying an official wizard to help design certain aspects. However, Lynn believed that such a crucial structure should be entirely his own creation.


    This meant that his skill level needed to be exceptionally high. Ack of proficiency would render the wizard tower construction inadequate.


    Yet, Lynn relished this learning environment. He thoroughly enjoyed acquiring new knowledge, especially with the progress bar system that added a sense of anticipation to each learning session.


    After a week of intensive study, Lynn attended sses rted to his fields of mastery. Soon, he received a notification from the staff informing him that the required number of applicants had been met.


    Lynn headed to the service hall to meet the others. Among the five, he recognized three apprentices from his runology sses. Though he wasn’t familiar with their abilities, he knew they had all surpassed the 100 points of mental strength threshold.


    Upon seeing Lynn, the three of them greeted him with polite nods.


    In stark contrast to the familiar camaraderie among the four of them, thest apprentice, who stood alone at the edge, appeared somewhat aloof. He carried two short swords—one red, one blue—on his back. His features were strikingly androgynous, with an air of haughty detachment.


    As he observed the interaction between the four, a trace of disdain flickered across his face. To him, the notion of camaraderie seemed absurd. Only the weak sought sce in groups, while the strong stood solitary. This was a selection process for aptitude, and grouping together was of no use.


    A staff member produced an invitation that Lynn recognized immediately. As the invitation was torn, the very fabric of space seemed to rend, revealing a door that appeared in the center of the room.


    One by one, the group entered through the door. Lynn nced around, noting that this was not the same entry point he had seen before.


    It was an unfamiliar one.


    Soon, a figure arrived to guide them—a being floating just above the ground, shrouded in a ck cloak that made it resemble a specter.


    The specter-like figure circled around the group and then, with anguid turn, began to drift away. A rasping voice echoed directly into their minds, “Follow me.”


    Lynn and the others followed behind. The other wizard apprentices curiously examined their surroundings, asionally eximed in amazement.


    ——