Chapter 252

The line moved quickly as applicants’ slips were processed, and they were allowed into the Tower. A few times, the guards at the gates had to turn someone away for trying to enter without one, but no violence occurred because they simply pointed out that there was still a chance to get one if they only walked to the building a couple of hundred feet to their left.By the time it was Nick’s turn, he had greeted quite a few familiar faces. Eona had gone in first, having apparently arrived just after dawn when the gates were still closed, while Tim got there just behind him. They chatted idly to pass the time, trying to work through their nerves.

Yet, there was a niggling worry at the back of his mind that told him he shouldn’t take it for granted. Alluria’s Magic Tower was an ancient institution, with many obscure bylaws and competing interests.

It would only take getting on the wrong person for everything to fall apart.

“Next!” The bored guard called, and Nick stepped forward, handing over his slip.

The man checked the paper, passing it through a device that reminded Nick of a credit card reader from Earth, before handing it back with a nod. “Your classroom is forty-seven C. Your seat is on the back of the slip. You can ask for directions if you get lost, but try not to.”

Nick was tempted to reply with something cheeky, but the breath was stolen from him the moment he stepped through the gates.

From outside, the Tower was a beacon of power, so bright in the ether that he had to consciously suppress his senses to avoid being blinded. It had taken many days to get used to its constant presence just at the edge of his range, but Nick was now able to use his senses without fear.

He’d expected the inside to be more of the same. He was both wrong and right at the same time.

Within, there was no overwhelming brightness to worry about. Instead, it felt like the eye of a storm, one so massive and layered that someone might think they were completely cut off from the outside world.

But Nick knew. He could see it now that the Tower wasn’t just an immensely powerful magical construct, but that it was the nexus upon which the entirety of Alluria’s wards rested.

It both held the entire structure together, acting like a vast stabilizing matrix, and supplied it with power, constantly drawing energy from the ether and beyond through the layers of reality.

It was, in essence, omnipresent, equally mighty across every dimension. Its complexity was so great that Nick had to once again abort his observations, lest his mind become lost in places that no mortal should dare explore.

Tamping down the surge of panic, Nick told himself it couldn’t be as reckless as it appeared. First of all, there wasn’t a howling legion of otherworldly demons banging at its gates, which meant it was either protected well enough to keep out even the most powerful abomination or simply not accessible to them.

“Everything okay?” Tim’s voice pulled him out of his thoughts, and Nick nodded, blinking to refocus on what was happening around him.

“Yeah, yeah. Sorry, I got a little overwhelmed," he muttered, taking in the actual atrium.

Compared to the monstrous vision the Tower cut in the ether, it was nowhere near as shocking, but it was still very interesting. Silver and blue seemed to be the favorite colors, applied liberally throughout, from the floor—which was made of a kind of marble that looked extremely shiny yet provided good traction—to the columns and statues along the walls, depicting men and women in various poses, all holding staves, wands, or simply thrusting their hands outward as if casting something.

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“Yeah, the mana levels here are insane. I thought Alluria was already a lot, but this is way more..." Tim commented, dreamily looking around.

Nick didn’t need to sense his emotions to know the teenager was imagining what his life would have to be like to earn the honor of being placed here, among the greatest casters in the region.

“Oy, you lot, keep moving!” A man in mage robes shouted, “What’s your classroom?”

“Forty-seven C,” Nick replied, eyeing the newcomer. As was becoming more common, his mana reserves were very high compared to almost everyone else he’d met in this life, enough so that back on Earth, he would have been seen as a demigod.

Here in Alluria, he was a moderately powerful mage, just slightly above the average of the officials he could sense in the atrium. Probably around level sixty, if he’s a pure mage. Not bad, but also nothing extraordinary. He has to be at least thirty, so he’s probably hit a plateau.

“Then go and take the leftmost elevator. It will take you to the seventh floor, where you’ll see indications for your classroom,” the mage said, vaguely gesturing to what looked like a metal cage.

Nick nodded distractedly and followed the directions, stepping into the elevator without hesitation. Tim, on the other hand, trailed after him uncertainly, eyeing the contraption with more than a little wariness.

“Are we sure this thing won’t drop us?” He muttered under his breath, earning a snort from Nick.

“I doubt it. I heard Archmage Tholm is the one who built most of the Tower’s artifacts,” Nick replied, causing a surprised sound from behind.

Alongside them, a few other applicants who had heard the instructions strolled by, and one, a man who looked old enough to be a teacher rather than a student, looked at him with interest. “Do you have a source inside the Tower? I’ve been trying to find out more, but no one seems eager to talk about what’s going on inside.”

Nick regarded him with a raised eyebrow. The man was clearly experienced enough that he should have known better than to ask that in a public place, especially inside the Tower.

Using still felt a bit uncomfortable, but by reducing its sensitivity, Nick was able to sound him out.

He discovered surprisingly powerful mana reserves, which indicated that this had to be either a plant or a talented self-taught mage who had reached the limits of what he could do on his own. Either way, antagonizing him wouldn’t be wise. “Nothing of the sort, I’m just curious about artificing.”

His mild response clearly wasn’t satisfying, but the conversation was interrupted as the elevator doors opened, spilling them out onto the seventh floor.

As promised, a bright red arrow pointed the way, guiding the group toward an open door on the right, where Nick sensed several mages waiting.

“Come on in, we are starting in half an hour, but that’s no reason to dawdle,” called one of the proctors, an older man with a shiny bald head, as the group filtered in. “Your slips should have a number and letter on the back, which will tell you which seat and row is yours. Please sit down and be quiet.”

The classroom was a bright and airy space, designed to resemble a lecture hall, with rows of sturdy wooden tables, each slightly higher than the one in front of it, to ensure everyone could get a good view of the main desk.

Nick shrugged to himself, nodded to Tim, then moved on. He summoned the slip from his ring, examined it, saw a bold 13B, and headed for the seat.

As soon as he sat down, the Tower’s magic enveloped him. He flinched, instinctively pushing to protect himself, only to realize that nothing was happening.

He hadn’t felt wrong. Some powerful spells were cast over the classroom and activated as soon as anyone sat in their seat, but instead of directly affecting the test takers, they remained in standby, analyzing everything and feeding it back into the immense mass of power that was the Tower’s wards.

As the proctor had promised, they had to wait another half-hour for every seat to be filled. People came in fits and spurts, some arriving in groups like Nick had done, while others came alone.

He spent the time analyzing each of his potential classmates, especially noting those few who appeared to have more mana than the average.

Of course, that didn’t necessarily mean they would pass. Most mages could develop enough spells for adventuring on their own, and killing monsters was always a reliable way to grow, which meant some people would have more developed reserves despite having less talent and skill than those who didn’t risk their lives.

It was somewhat uncomfortable for Nick to be around so many powerful magical presences. His previous life had been marked by a severe lack of mana, and even during his time in Floria, he had only met the occasional adventurer who knew more than a basic elemental spell.

Still, his observations reassured him that he would have to really mess up to fail. Most applicants were around level twenty, which wasn’t bad for an average civilian, especially since the age mode was about sixteen, but it was nothing compared to him.

A couple were lower, being barely classed children, while a few older mages were higher, with the man who asked Nick about his source of information being the highest, around level fifty.

Considering that this was just one of many classrooms full of prospective students, the Tower’s masters would have their pick of the litter.

A loud clap echoed, breaking the silence that had fallen, and the head proctor walked up to the podium as the classroom’s door closed behind him. “Now that we are all here, it is time to begin the test!”

At his words, a parcel appeared before each applicant, thick enough that Nick heard several people gulp.

“Alluria’s Magic Tower is an ancient institution,” the bald man began, eyes sweeping over the rows, “one that produced some of the best mages Berea has ever seen. We pride ourselves on taking rough gems and turning them into beautiful jewels, so don’t despair if you can’t answer most questions. This isn’t a test of knowledge but of intellect.”

A beat passed as he studied them carefully, his eyes lingering on a few, including Nick. “Some of you are young enough that we don’t expect you to even get through the whole thing. But that doesn’t mean you won’t pass if you give it your all. Speculate if you have to. Share personal experience to add weight to your writing. Do everything you can, and I assure you, you will be rewarded. There will be a time to learn the theory once you've cleared this hurdle.”

With a flourish, the mage swept his arm forward, and fountain pens appeared beside the papers. “Now, let’s get this exam started!”