Chapter 21: Reward
The annual assessment was concluded with an award ceremony.
Instead of handing out the academy awards, Master Andes ignored the three winning senior initiates and approached Leena with a chuckle.
“That was quite the battle. If Fareena had not accepted you as her apprentice, I would have definitely taken you under my wing.”
The most exciting battle in this year’s assessment was no doubt the battle between Leena and Michael, the Harbinger of Death.
Rather than the flashy display of magic spells, it was Leena and Michael’s murderous intent and their fearless fighting style that impressed Andes the most.
This was precisely the kind of battle expected of black magic initiates!
Their battle had transported Master Andes back to his own days as a humble initiate five hundred years ago, struggling to survive in Blackhaven.
For Andes, memories of his weaker days were not exactly pleasant. Nevertheless, they lingered vividly in his mind, serving as a constant reminder for him to pursue greater strength.
“This piece of Obsidian Copper is my personal reward for you. Keep up the good work, I expect to see more surprises from you in the future.”
Andes tossed a palm-sized black metal ingot to Leena before leaving.
Throughout the entire ceremony, he did not spare a glance for the three victorious senior initiates.
Despite their fierce battle, neither Leena nor Michael managed to secure a spot in the top three.
The top three among the senior initiates were Faye, another guy named Silas and Liliana.
Although Faye was very strong, she relied heavily on her vast arsenal of magic equipment.
As for Liliana, she won by a stroke of luck.
While Liliana was fighting in her own battle, she managed to catch a glimpse of the ferocious clash between Leena and Michael out of the corner of her eye. Her observation told her that neither of the two were people to be trifled with, especially Leena.
Despite only recently being promoted as a senior initiate, Leena displayed remarkable decisiveness and ruthlessness in her actions. Her command of advanced magic spells was exceptional, attesting to her undeniable brilliance.
Silas, on the other hand, was the sole contender who truly relied on his strength and therefore deserved the academy award for his excellence. However, his overall strength was only on par with Michael.
Considering Leena’s extraordinary performance, it was not surprising that Master Andes hardly paid him much attention.
Hoot! Hoot!
The cry echoed from ahead of Sein. Before him stood an owl, almost half the height of a grown man.
Sein seemed to have a unique connection with this owl, having crossed paths with it on three separate occasions.
When Leena was going to risk everything to deliver the final blow to Michael earlier, it was this owl that intervened in what could have been a lethal stand-off. With a graceful sweep of its wings, it erected an Aero Barrier that effectively isolated them from each other.
In the end, both Leena and Michael reluctantly disengaged and retreated to their respective corners, each driven by their individual fears. In Leena’s case, her decision was also partly influenced by Sein’s strong dissuasion.
“This is a token of my gratitude. Thank you for your timely action, including that time in the dungeon...” Sein expressed his respect to the owl and took out ten autrum from his chest pocket.
The owl blinked in response and remained still.
It was then Sein suddenly recalled from his research in the public library. He had once read in a magic book that magic beasts generally preferred to devour energy crystals or survive in areas rich in elemental energy.
Realizing this, Sein immediately took out the only energy crystal he had on him.
It was the basic geo-attribute energy crystal with half-depleted elemental energy that he looted from Elrik back then.
Sure enough, the owl in front of him sprang into action as soon as Sein presented the geo-attribute energy crystal.
It grabbed the crystal so fast with its beak that Sein could barely see what was going on. In the next second, the crystal had disappeared from his hand and all Sein heard was the sound of loud crunching.
These academy overseers were most likely magic beasts of the aero element. Whether it was their consistent use of aero elemental magic spells or their remarkable speed, they exhibited distinct characteristics of aero creatures.
A basic energy crystal with half-depleted energy barely satisfied the appetite of this academy overseer. Nevertheless, it was a good offering, as the academy overseers rarely received gifts from the initiates.
Additionally, the dean and vice dean’s orders made it nearly impossible for the academy overseers, despite their considerable strength, to leave Mystralora City and hunt for magic cores.
“I won’t forget your kindness, initiate. My name is Seven. If you ever require assistance in the future, you can find me in the canopy on the eastern side of White Raven Forest!” With a series of hoots, the owl spread its wings and gracefully departed from the training ground.
White Raven Forest was relatively close to the dormitory. Sein recalled that on its eastern side, there were no buildings except for a towering wall and a thick grove of trees.
After seeing the owl off, Sein turned around and walked toward Leena.
Master Andes, as well as Faye, had already left long ago. Only Leena and Bousse were in his sight.
When Sein stopped in front of Leena, a girl with green hair suddenly came out of nowhere and rushed to Sein’s side.
“Ah, am I too late? Sein, you’re really badly injured. Here, I’ve got some potions for you!”
The green-haired girl was none other than one of Sein’s two close friends in the Black Magic Academy, a junior initiate named Marie.
Sein had initially assumed that Marie would skip the annual assessment this year. To his surprise, she appeared after the assessment had just ended.
Marie, despite being two years younger than Sein, was a late bloomer. As a result, she appeared even slightly younger than Leena.
Unlike the other competitive initiates in the Black Magic Academy, Marie seemed to be a pure girl who did not belong in this dark place.
Sein often wondered if Marie would have survived in this environment had she not been fortunate enough to be apprenticed to a full-fledged black mage from a young age.
As soon as Marie arrived at the training ground, she quickly spotted the wounds on Sein’s arms, armpits and thighs.
Sein had fought with two relatively powerful junior initiates earlier. Despite emerging victorious in both battles, he had inevitably sustained some minor injuries.
Compared to Leena, who had been affected by the decomposition gas, his wounds were nothing.
In fact, they were insignificant enough to recover with a month of rest or two, even without any healing potions.
The one in dire need of potions and other means of recovery was Leena.
Her condition was dire, due to the insidious poison released by the decomposition gas from Michael’s rotting arms.
She needed antidotes and purification potions as soon as possible. Although these potions were expensive, Leena should be able to afford them, now that she was a senior initiate.
Otherwise, she could always return to her mentor as soon as possible. No matter how difficult Master Fareena was to get along with, she would not never ignore an apprentice in need.
Sein’s polite refusal and the chilling aura from Leena beside him, caused the green-haired girl, who stood at barely 1.5 meters tall, to leap back in fear.
Truth be told, Marie had always been a little afraid of Sein’s live-in girlfriend.
While Leena had never shown any hostility toward Marie, Sein noticed that she had never displayed any friendliness in Marie’s presence either.
In the past, Sein had brushed it off as the typical contempt and cold attitude that a superior initiate often directed toward their inferior juniors.
However, in this moment, he began to sense that there might be something more beneath the surface.
Despite Marie’s fear, she always harbored good intentions toward others.
With trembling little hands, she took out a small, transparent vial from the red bag in her arms.
It was a basic antidote Marie had concocted herself.
Although it was not potent enough to completely expel the poison in Leena’s body, it would at least make her feel better.
With Marie’s kind gesture, the frostiness on Leena’s face began to thaw.