The Wizard's Pursuit of Truth

The commotion wasn’t limited to the freshmen; even the many Teaching Wizards on the high platform looked visibly stirred, their expressions far from calm.

Jialan Wizard, still in her Blue Wizard Robe, had messy, greasy hair. She rubbed the corner of her eye, flicked away the sleep, and said with some surprise, "Kids these days are terrifying. The quality of this batch of Wizard Freshmen is so much higher than mine was."

"Those ten or so Wizard Freshmen standing behind Kaze Antuun all have the aura of a Level 2 Wizard Apprentice. Let’s see... an Elemental Wizard, a Mechanical Wizard, a Soul Wizard, a Blood Wizard... Tsk, tsk. This Secret Realm competition is going to be a good show."

Jialan Wizard picked her nose, completely ruining the effect of her fair skin and beautiful features with such... distinctive habits.

She then turned to the expressionless Gusai Wizard at the front of the platform. "Gusai, the commoner Wizards probably don’t stand a chance this time. The Wizard Clans are going to sweep the top ten spots in the Secret Realm competition. Do you have anything else planned? If not, I’m heading back to the administration building for a nap."

Gusai Wizard: "..."

The corner of Gusai Wizard’s mouth twitched. "Jialan Wizard, please try to have a little patience."

Jialan Wizard replied, "No, I don’t have any. A Secret Realm competition where you can tell the outcome at a glance holds no appeal for me."

"You could always open a betting pool, Senior Sister," Lando Wizard said, having appeared on the high platform at some point and now walking over with a smile.

Accompanying him was the Wind Wizard, who wore a half-face Golden Mask.

"Lazybones Lando, what are you doing here?" Jialan Wizard said irritably. "And who would I even bet on? I’m the second seat of the Water Swamp Lineage. If I bet on a freshman from one of the Wizard Clans, that old fossil Saiya would probably show up at my door every single day to nag me to death."

Lando Wizard yawned. "Senior Sister Jialan, you’re one to talk. When it comes to laziness, you’re the one who set the trend. But there is one little fellow worth paying attention to."

As he spoke, Lando Wizard pulled a spherical Witchcraft Artifact from his pocket. He pressed a switch on it, and a projection instantly materialized in the air.

It was a betting platform for the Secret Realm competition. The name of every Wizard Freshman, along with varying amounts of their Witchcraft information, was displayed on it.

The betting options included: placing in the top ten, placing in the top three, failing in the first stage of the Secret Realm, and failing in the second stage.

It also showed the odds and the size of the Magic Stone Pool for each bet.

"Wang Ya Harak? You want me to bet on him?" Jialan Wizard looked surprised.

The freshmen with the highest betting totals were all from the Wizard Clans. The top three were Rod from the Stark Clan, and Gurest and Aitri from the Mad Clan.

For the commoner freshmen, most of the bets were on which stage of the Secret Realm they would fail. Very few bet on them to place in the top ten, let alone the top three.

The sole exception was a Wizard Freshman named Wang Ya Harak, who had shot up the ranks to claim the largest Magic Stone Pool among all the commoner-related bets.

Furthermore, among the four betting options available for him, the Magic Stone Pool for him placing in the top three was the largest.

Jialan Wizard looked at Lando Wizard curiously. This was clearly abnormal. The Wizard Freshman’s listed Witchcraft information was sparse, and he hadn’t even completed many Wizard Tasks—all of them were just basic D Level tasks.

Still, the name felt vaguely familiar. She was sure she’d heard it somewhere before, but she just couldn’t place it.

"Knowing how lazy and forgetful you are, Senior Sister Jialan, I figured you wouldn’t be up on this information," Lando Wizard said with a hint of resignation. "The recent uproar about the Evil God incident? Wang Ya Harak was the one who reported it."

"Oh, so it was him! Right, details about the Evil God incident can’t be disclosed. And he’s a commoner Wizard?" Jialan Wizard’s mind raced, and she raised an eyebrow. "Don’t tell me he’s one of your people, planted among the freshmen to stir things up in this Secret Realm competition?"

Her interest piqued, Jialan Wizard waved her hand grandly. "I’ll bet twenty thousand Magic Stones. Put it on him to place in the top ten."

Lando Wizard grinned. "The Wind Wizard and I bet on him to place in the top three. The payout is the highest that way. Of course, if he takes a top-three spot, your top-ten bet becomes void."

Jialan Wizard snorted. "Do you take me for an idiot? The Wizard Clans have their sights set on those top three spots. I’ll believe he can make the top ten, at least."

Lando Wizard shrugged, not revealing that many other Wizards from various School Lineages had also bet on Wang Ya Harak to place in the top three.

The young man had already attracted the attention of numerous Extraordinary Schools. It all came down to what rank he could achieve in this Secret Realm competition. If he placed in the top three, it was doubtful any Extraordinary School would refuse to accept him.

For all they knew, countless other Wizards were likely watching the scene in the square at this very moment.

「Wizard Family Alliance Projection Conference Room.」

A group of figures sat in their respective seats, their faces shrouded in darkness and impossible to make out clearly. The five seats at the head of the room remained empty.

In the center of the projection conference room, an image showed the exact situation unfolding in the Wizard Square.

Puni Stark said with a smile, "The Dark Cultivation Plan’s main goal is the development and exploration of ’Deep Blue.’ This is an unprecedented opportunity. If we seize it, with this batch of freshmen, perhaps all of us will have the chance to become Official Wizards."

Ocam Mad immediately added, "There are only three spots for the freshmen. The various Wizard Clans will have to compete for them on their own. The Secret Realm competition is absolutely fair. As for the remaining spots... I won’t say much else. Let the capable rise and the strong prevail. I just hope this doesn’t disrupt the peace within the Wizard Family Alliance."