Daniel raised an eyebrow in surprise and wonder. He had truly never heard of anything called the River of Dragon's Tears—not even in the online community.
Of course, it was possible that his access level didn't allow him to see that kind of information, but still, it genuinely shocked him.
He had read a lot about the founder of the Elthanor Empire. Hearing this man say that such a legendary figure owed much of his growth to the River of Dragon's Tears was honestly shocking.
"I really have permission to access something like that?" Daniel questioned Atlas a bit and even felt like there might be some kind of scheme involved.
Especially after what Leia said last night, he didn't exactly have a positive view of the Duke.
"Haha, well, it's not that easy to access. The Duke gave you an entry slot, but whether you can actually enter or not depends on you," Atlas replied with a smile.
"Of course, keep in mind—you're not the only one. The top students of the academy each have an entry slot as well."
"I see," Daniel nodded. Naturally, he had assumed he wouldn't be the only one allowed in. If he was, that would've been too generous.
"Anyway, can I ask why it's called the River of Dragon's Tears?" he asked suddenly. Dragons were extremely important in the Celestial Domain.
As far as he knew, even humans didn't dare casually name things after dragons—otherwise, they risked drawing the wrath of the most powerful race in existence.
"We don't know either. We didn't name it. It's been called that since ancient times. Some rumors say the tear of an ancestral dragon exists there, and that's the most accepted theory."
"The tear of an ancestral dragon?" Atlas's response shocked Daniel again.
Dragons were ranked based on the purity of their bloodline and their power. As far as Daniel knew, ancestral dragons were the most powerful.
"That's right, but it's just a rumor," Atlas nodded. He himself partly believed it.
"Thanks a lot for such a reward," Daniel said respectfully. He hadn't expected to get such an incredible opportunity just for saving Lorena.
"Haha, don't mention it. This reward is from the Duke, but I'd like to give you a reward too."
"What do you mean by that—" But before Daniel could finish his sentence, the space around him suddenly shifted, and in the next moment, he found himself in a large hall filled with various stone tablets.
Several youths around his age were sitting in front of some of the tablets, their eyes closed—clearly trying to understand the inscriptions on them.
"This is the first floor of the Magic Tower. It's where we hold the recruitment test," Atlas said, placing a hand on Daniel's shoulder.
"Huh? I thought all mages had access to the Magic Tower?"
"They do. But mages who aren't official members and have other backgrounds are considered guests and have many restrictions," the Grand Mage said, stroking his beard.
"I see... But what are these tablets?" Daniel looked curiously at the iron slabs. Some kind of text was written on them.
What was interesting was that some of the tablets had a bronze tint, others were silver, and one even had a very small section that had turned gold.
"The recruitment system is the same in all Magic Towers. That's one of the rules set by the Central Magic Tower. These tablets contain one of the most difficult magic skills ever created."
"The test is simple. You're given a set amount of time, and during that time, you need to understand at least 5% of the skill. If you reach 5%, the tablet turns wooden. 15% turns bronze, 30% is silver, and 50% is gold," Atlas explained, also glancing at the young man whose tablet had a faint golden shine.
Looks like they were going to recruit a very talented member today. They didn't have a fixed recruitment day—anyone could come anytime to apply.
"50% is gold? Is there nothing beyond that?" Daniel's interest was piqued, and he looked at the tablets again.
"Turquoise is for 75%, and above that is purple. But no one has ever managed to understand more than full gold within the time limit," Atlas sighed.
The more you understand, the harder it gets. Even he had only reached 46% back in the day—and he had been considered a top-tier genius.
"Then why are we here?"
"This is my reward for you. I'm letting you learn the skill written on one of these tablets."
"What? Seriously?" Daniel asked in surprise. He had assumed he wouldn't be allowed to join the Magic Tower because of his origin.
"Yeah. Even though you can't become a member of the tower, there's no rule preventing you from studying the tablets. However, most tower leaders won't give this kind of access to otherworldly climbers," Atlas explained with a smile.
In truth, his goal was simple—he wanted to test this boy's talent and limits. He had already asked Leia everything about what happened yesterday.
If everything that girl said was true, then this boy was far beyond the level of a normal genius. This kid didn't just hold out against a peak B-rank… he resisted a corruption worshiper of that rank!
Even Leia was easily knocked out during that fight, but this boy? He was still fighting by the time they arrived.
More than that, Leia claimed that the corruption worshiper killed Daniel—smashed his head entirely. But Daniel somehow came back to life. How? Atlas guessed he might not have died at all and had just used some illusion skill.
Still, all of this was enough to grab his and the Duke's attention.
"I guess I should thank you again," Daniel said gratefully. First the River of Dragon's Tears, and now this tablet—he truly hadn't expected rewards like these.
"You saved our young lady and protected the city from a major disaster. This is the least I can do for you... Although, you'll only be able to learn from these tablets if you have talent in magic—or more precisely, if your class is magic-related."
"You said your class is a dual class, so I don't know whether you'll be able to comprehend it or not. People with dual classes usually only have average talent in both areas due to balance," Atlas explained and then looked at Daniel with deep eyes.
Daniel didn't answer. In truth, his class wasn't a dual class. More importantly, it wasn't even related to magic. Still, he didn't know if he could comprehend the tablet's skill or not.
"No more wasting time. Go and sit in front of one of the tablets. I'll give you the same amount of time as the others. Let's see if you can surprise me, little friend."