"Next."
A voice came from the front of the line. The boy in front of Saul gave him one last glare before turning around.
Saul only shot him a cold glance, memorized his face, then shifted his attention to the front.
As the group moved forward, Saul was able to see the people at the front of the line.
Two individuals sat behind a table. There were some objects laid out on it, but from this distance, Saul couldn’t make them out clearly.
After a little while, there were only five or six people left in front of him. At some point, three or four more had lined up behind him, too.
They were probably servants like him, dragged in to make up the numbers.
“…This kid’s magical aptitude is garbage, and his mental strength is even worse. Completely worthless. How did he even get selected?”
A young man at the front suddenly raised his voice in anger.
Saul quickly looked up and caught sight of a chubby boy squinting and smiling as he handed something over to the irritated youth.“My talents are average, but I hope you’ll show some leniency, sir.”
That was blatant bribery.
But to Saul’s surprise, the young man, clearly just a wizard apprentice himself, took the offering and still sneered, “A single magic crystal? So this is how you’ve coasted through so far? You really think all wizards can be bought?”
The boy’s usual tactics had failed, and his smile froze on his face.
“I didn’t mean it that way, sir.”
He tried to explain, but the apprentice suddenly flicked something with his thumb.
From Saul’s angle, it was hard to tell where it landed on the boy’s face, or maybe into his mouth.
Then, Saul witnessed a scene he’d never forget for the rest of his life.
The chubby boy’s body froze, then melted like a candle into a puddle of liquid. Within that puddle, you could faintly make out his facial features and limbs.
The man beside the wizard apprentice clicked his tongue. “Ugh, how disgusting. Would have just sent him to work as a servant.”
Saul’s heart sank.
He was a servant, too.
At that moment, the long-silent hardcover book suddenly flew up before Saul’s eyes and fluttered open.
[May 25th, Year 314 of the Lunar Calendar
You’ve finally snuck into the ranks of the apprentices.
But you forgot how you became a servant in the first place. You failed the magical aptitude test back then—Do you really think that a few years later, you’ve suddenly got potential?
Laughable. Absolutely laughable.
You laughed yourself to death.
Just as I thought!
Saul stiffly followed the line as it moved forward, hearing nervous whispers behind him.
If he took the test as-is, he wouldn’t pass either.
Judging from the contents of the hardcover book, there was a good chance he’d be exposed and die laughing—literally.
Saul glanced down at his left hand, hidden in the shadows of his sleeve.
It might be enough to scare off other servants or even a steward, but it certainly wouldn’t intimidate wizard apprentices.
Should he bring Kongsha’s name?
Just as he thought that, more lines appeared in the hardcover book:
Because you failed the magic test and your servant status was revealed, Sid interrupted the test and tried to kill you.
In a desperate moment, you brought up Kongsha. Sid fell silent and let you go.
After completing the remaining two tests, you managed to become a low-level wizard apprentice, and that very night, you luckily turned into a pile of bones.
At least then, your left hand didn’t seem so out of place.
Saul froze.
So even bringing up Kongsha wouldn’t work?
Fear once again gripped his heart.
What could he do to pass the test?
Even if he tried to quit now, all that awaited him was death.
He didn’t need the book to tell him that.
Every step forward felt like one closer to the abyss—he was about to fall in!
Think. Think. There has to be another way.
Saul’s eyes stayed locked on the table that was getting closer and closer, focusing on the testing instruments laid out on top.
He closely observed the testing procedure.
Each candidate had to go through the tests from left to right.
On the far left was a black crystal orb used to test magical aptitude.
The orb had to be pressed against the forehead. The more transparent it became, the greater the candidate’s potential.
In the center was a wooden doll carved to look like a little girl, lifelike except for the hollow black pits where her eyes should’ve been.
Testers had to stare into those hollows. The more the doll moved, the stronger their mental energy was.
The final test involved a paintbrush dipped in paint, used to assess elemental affinity.
Candidates had to draw a circle on a blank sheet of paper. The paint would automatically change color, and the apprentice would then announce two elements, which a man next to him would record.
Saul nervously watched the two people's test process. They also got by with money like fat boy, both of them passed the test.
But Saul noticed that both looked utterly drained afterward, pale and exhausted.
One of them could barely stay on his feet after finishing.
Maybe…
He wasn’t totally sure yet, but since he now had an idea and the hardcover book hadn’t popped up again. Saul decided to go for it.
He had no choice left but to risk it all.
The number of people in front of him dwindled.
Finally, it was his turn.
The lazy-looking young man lounging in the chair let out a cold chuckle the moment he saw Saul’s face.
Does he know me?
Saul’s heart skipped a beat, but his face showed fear.
“Begin,” the wizard apprentice drawled, pointing lazily at the black crystal orb on the left.
Obediently, Saul reached out—not for the orb, but for the paintbrush used to test elemental affinity.
Before the apprentice could say anything, Saul gripped the brush tightly in his right hand and quickly drew a trembling circle on the paper.
The freshly drawn circle was pitch black.
Saul put down the brush and held his breath.
The apprentice didn’t look pleased, but after squinting at the paper, he didn’t say anything.
Slowly, the black circle began to change, several colors appeared, though the longest section was barely the length of a pinky and still black.
The rest was a chaotic mess of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet, gold, white, all the colors at once.
“Heh.” The apprentice let out a chuckle. “A bit greedy, aren’t you?”
Saul could hear the mockery but only lowered his head in submission.
“Dark element… As for the rest, I can’t even tell what the second strongest is. Nick, just write down whatever.”
The man beside him, Nick, nodded and scribbled: Dark element, Light element.
The apprentice, who Saul now realized was definitely the Sid mentioned in the book, burst out laughing. “Dark and light? Opposing elements? You’re really just writing anything, huh?”
Nick said nothing.
Once Sid stopped laughing, Saul reached for the wooden doll.
He stared into the empty hollows where the eyes should have been, watching closely for any movement.
“Help me, help me, help me…”
A string of whispers began in Saul’s ears—fast and faint, just enough to pull him in.
The more he listened, the more jumbled the voices became. Soon, the message began to shift.
“Help me, help me… Kill me… Kill me… Help me…”
Saul felt dizzy and disoriented.
“Alright, that’s enough.”
Sid’s voice snapped in his ears.
But Saul didn’t move. He let his mind sink fully into the whispers.
“I said enough! Do you have a death wish?!”
Saul jolted, snapped out of it. He lifted his head, first glancing at the doll—its tiny wooden arms were raised.
Then he looked up at Sid, who was now standing, face twisted in anger.
Before Sid could say another word, Saul rolled his eyes back—
—and collapsed in a dead faint.
(End of Chapter)