Three Essentials of An Apprentice

Murder. Entrance exam.

Those two completely unrelated words together made Edwyn feel just how twisted this world was.

"An entrance exam that requires killing? What page did you see that on?"

He suspected this might be some kind of sick joke. What kind of academy would want a bunch of killers as students?

Still crying, Elia handed Edwyn the admission handbook. At that moment, the magic lamp in the room flickered on. Now able to read the text in wizard language, Edwyn turned to the folded page she had marked.

It read:

Wizard Apprentice Entrance Exam: Life-and-Death Sprint

Prospective wizard apprentices will receive one crystal orb and seven nutritional potions (each substituting for one day's food) at the start of the exam.

Participants must reach the designated location within 14 days, bringing with them at least two crystal orbs.

Those who fail to arrive on time or fail to meet the orb requirement will lose their admission eligibility.

Note: The academy does not provide return transport. Disqualified candidates must find their own way home.

Edwyn finished reading and tossed the handbook back to Elia. He then climbed into his bunk and grabbed his own copy of the handbook, flipping to the same page.

The contents were identical.

So it wasn't a joke.

"This… is gonna be rough."

He closed the book and frowned. Why would the academy go to such lengths to transport students across vast distances, only to screen out half of them with such a brutal exam?

It didn't matter. He was already on the airship.

He had no choice now but to find a way to pass.

Among the apprentices were both impoverished peasants and privileged nobles. The former, like Edwyn, were malnourished and frail, while the latter had strong physiques and years of combat training.

The phrase "every noble is a knight" was widely known in the Kingdom of Goldengrove, considered the foundation of aristocratic rule.

Here, knight wasn't just a title, it was a badge of individual combat prowess.

Every knight was expected to wear full armor and swing a greatsword with ease.

In this kingdom, only a knight could inherit a noble title. So even if noble children were spoiled or foolish, their bodies were far superior to commoners thanks to rigorous training from an early age.

Competing with such opponents? Hopeless for most peasants.

"No way. Think. If the academy admits commoners, then there must be a way for them to survive."

With thoughts racing, Edwyn pulled out the three books provided by the academy.

Surely the exam was designed with some balancing mechanism to give commoners a fighting chance.

He laid the books on his bed:

One was the Wizard Language Dictionary.

The second was the Admission Handbook.

The third had a straightforward title:

"How to Become a Wizard Apprentice"

[Material: How to Become a Wizard Apprentice]

[Extractable Info: Basic Meditation Technique, Mana Loop Construction, Four Basic Cantrips]

[Extraction Cost: 7 Spiritforce]

[Proceed with Extraction?]

"Extract."

Elsewhere on the airship, Mage Quarters

"Elenei, how many of these apprentices do you think will survive?" Tyrek stared out at the sea of clouds. The airship was flying at an altitude of around 2,000 meters, up here even the clouds looked like solid land.

"Four thousand or so," said Elenei, the muscular woman with the door-sized sword, leaning casually against the wall. "They cut the crystal-to-mana-stone exchange this year, so there's no incentive to hunt each other down."

"The Chancellor got wrecked in the last Planar War," Tyrek replied, "so he's desperate to refill the academy's numbers. These new kids have it easy."

Tyrek's voice held a trace of envy. Once, he too had clawed his way up through the ranks of apprentices, until a failed breakthrough crushed his dreams forever.

Now he worked for the academy just to scrape by.

Watching these bright-eyed apprentices always made the 100-year-old Tyrek think of his younger self.

"Where's Marlowe?" he asked.

"A few sharp kids pooled some mana stones and paid him to explain meditation."

"Oh?" Tyrek raised an eyebrow. "Is that allowed?"

Elenei shrugged. "You don't tell. I don't tell. And you think the bigwigs upstairs care?

They even followed the principle of equivalent exchange, paid mana stones. If anything, the academy will praise them for being resourceful."

Tyrek shook his head.

"The Chancellor wrote those textbooks himself. If these kids can't even understand that, they're dead weight anyway. The path of truth is one you walk alone. A few shortcuts won't carry you forever."

Room 225.

Edwyn sat cross-legged on the bed, calming his thoughts.

After extracting the content from How to Become a Wizard Apprentice, he now fully understood the theory of meditation, the foundational practice for wizards.

Meditation was the cornerstone of wizard cultivation.

Its primary purpose: to grow and restore Spiritforce.

"To become a wizard apprentice, three core conditions must be met:

Connect to the Sea of Souls Construct a Mana Loop Engrave a Spell Inscription

Among these, the hardest is connecting to the Sea of Souls.

Following the book's guidance, Edwyn regulated his breathing and focused his mind.

The stronger one's Spiritforce, the easier it was to link to the Sea of Souls.

Once connected, you were halfway to success.

As Edwyn calmed himself further, he began engraving mental runes in his mindscape.

The Basic Meditation Technique involved three runes. When he finished the final one, his spirit suddenly detached from his body, plunging into a bottomless abyss.

Silent. Empty. Timeless. Spaceless.

In this void, he didn't know how long he drifted. Monotony, loneliness, and fear surged within him like tides.

But he endured.

Because this was the only way to connect to the Sea of Souls.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, his consciousness touched it.

And in that moment, he saw the stars.

"The Sea of Souls mirrors the material world. Each realm in the physical universe appears as a star within the sea. This breathtaking vision leaves a deep impression on all who witness it, thus, wizards began calling the material world the Celestial Realm."

The words from the book echoed in Edwyn's mind. For a brief moment, he felt one with the countless wizards across history.

"It's… beautiful."

He sighed in awe and began etching his soul mark in the Sea.

This mark would allow him to reconnect more easily in the future.

"What kind of mark should I leave?"

Staring into the endless sky, a wave of loneliness surged through him.

A stranger in a foreign world. Each time I gaze upon the stars, I miss home more deeply.

He shaped his spiritforce into a pen and drew a five-pointed star.

As he finished, his consciousness began to waver.

The Basic Meditation Technique only allowed him a short stay. To remain longer, he'd need an advanced technique.

Seconds later, his spirit returned to his body.

He had completed the most difficult and most important step in becoming a Wizard Apprentice.