The Demon King is unfathomable

Chapter 358 The Shadow Beneath the Tower

The Academy, the magnificent Tower of the Great Sages, Professor Hector Raine's study.

The heavy snow was pounding against the glass windows, but the room was so quiet that the only sound was the rustling of the pages turning automatically in the old book.

Hector, who had just returned from the winter assessment site at the border, sat in front of the fireplace, listening wearily to the work reports from his teaching assistants.

Most of the content was related to research he personally oversaw, especially experiments involving one of the Academy's top secrets, the "Virtual Realm."

Standing before the professor, the teaching assistant, clutching the report, nervously gave his report.

"...The energy of the seventeenth virtual realm is still unstable. We lost three 'Mirror Golems' and found nothing."

"Our initial contact with the 'Flying Ship' world has failed. They seem to possess a field that we cannot understand, capable of interfering with the conduction of magic. Our power dissipated automatically as soon as it touched the edge of that energy, and unfortunately... they don't seem to have noticed us at all."

Hector listened to the teaching assistants' reports with a blank expression; all of them were basically within his expectations.

Until the last teaching assistant in charge of recruiting apprentices for the winter came forward and quickly reported on another matter.

"Professor, the grading of the written exams for this winter recruitment has been preliminarily completed. As in previous years, one thousand people passed the assessment. However... there is something you might be interested in."

The teaching assistant looked excited, and as soon as he finished speaking, he presented a report with both hands and continued excitedly.

"An unprecedented answer sheet appeared in the exam room. The three teaching assistants responsible for the final review unanimously awarded it full marks without knowing the others' knowledge!"

Hector's slightly furrowed brows relaxed, then furrowed even more, showing some indifference.

He personally set this year's exam questions, and he knew how tricky they were.

In particular, subjective questions about magical ethics and origins cannot possibly have a "perfect answer" in the standard sense.

"A perfect score?" he asked calmly. "Did you lower your standards, or did a true genius slip into this year's pool of candidates?"

"Please take a look!" The teaching assistant did not back down because of the professor's questioning, but became even more excited and handed over a copy of the answer sheet that had been rewritten.

Hector raised an eyebrow, waved his wand, and the exam paper floated in front of him.

His gaze began to scrutinize the first line, his initial expression carrying a hint of examination and criticism, but it was quickly replaced by shock.

"...The soul is not merely a vessel for magic, but a 'string' that interferes with reality. Its essence is the fulcrum for leveraging the material world from the spiritual level. The depth of the soul may not determine its capacity, but rather its 'vibration frequency,' thus determining what level of 'source power' it can resonate with..."

"By the way, my understanding of 'Source Power' is that it is unrelated to religion and involves the 'source power of the world's origin' of all forms of extraordinary power."

Hector's expression shifted from shock to disbelief, and then to ecstatic joy at discovering a treasure of unparalleled value, to the point that his breathing became rapid.

Influenced by the doctrines of Saint Cecilia, most of the students that Xuebang can find in the Empire are scum whose brains have been filled with a lot of shit. They neither understand the doctrines of Saint Cecilia nor the principles of mysticism. So much so that it is no exaggeration to say that Xuebang’s winter assessment every year is like finding gold in shit.

He never expected that he would actually find a gem this time, a single sentence that revealed the essence of extraordinary power!
This is certainly common knowledge in the Tower of the Great Sage.

It's incredible that someone could grasp this level of understanding even from slag that hadn't been recycled!
It's not just about supernatural powers!

Regarding the topic of the virtual realm, this extraordinary candidate also offered a truly brilliant insight based on the limited information on the stone tablet!

As if bewitched, Hector read a short passage aloud, his fingers trembling slightly as he held the exam paper.

"As for the 'virtual realm,' my guess is that it might not be the stars in the sky, but a parallel spacetime that overlaps with our world, but with a completely different 'vibration frequency.' As I mentioned before, the spirit is like plucking the strings of the material world, and two strings with the same frequency can resonate. This is precisely why we can see them..."

genius!

The flaws in the theory don't prevent this guy from being a genius!
If it weren't for the fact that only the Academy was researching the Void Realm in the entire empire, he would have even suspected that this guy might be some old fellow who was involved in Void Realm research answering the questions!

Of course, that's impossible.

Not to mention that Xuebang's professors wouldn't be so bored, these arguments are clearly inferences based on the premise itself and do not include any specific experimental content.

If he were to solve this problem, he might write a more rigorous argument, but he would never have thought of such a tricky angle!
Even more unexpectedly, the theory of strings and resonance can be used to connect the "virtual realm theory" of Xuebang with the "source power theory" of the Tower of Great Sages!
"Snapped!"

Hector slammed the answer sheet down on his knee, his eyes burning with an unprecedented light. He gave the teaching assistant his order in an unquestionable tone.

"What's this candidate's name? Where did he intend to go? We must capture this person at all costs, the Tower of Great Sages!"

The teaching assistant quickly replied, "Professor, his name is Marco Gage."

“Marco Gage…” Hector repeated the name as if trying to etch it into his memory, then continued excitedly, “Go to the border immediately! Conduct his interview—”

He changed his mind halfway through his sentence, his face now showing undisguised urgency, and stood up with a flick of his sleeve.

"No, I'd better go myself!"

He couldn't wait to discuss the theory of the virtual realm with that candidate in person!
Hector could even imagine how overjoyed the genius who longed for the academic world would be when the renowned Professor Hector stood before him and invited him to join his research team!

……

A perfect answer sheet, from a candidate named Marco Gage, caused a small ripple at the top of the Sage's Tower.

Professor Hector Raine has decided to personally travel to the border to welcome this once-in-a-century genius.

However, the sages atop the tower were unaware that behind this work of art lay not a brilliant soul worthy of its description, but rather a freak cultivated by the empire itself.

Just as Professor Hector Raine was astonished by a "perfect answer sheet," an apprentice named Milos, under the cover of his senior, sneaked out of the Academy's temporary camp on the border of the Kingdom of Rhodes and quietly infiltrated the almost undefended Eagle Rock Territory.

As a prospective student from the Northern Duchy of the Kingdom of Rhodes, unlike his martial-minded fellow countrymen, he has been fascinated by the mysterious magic since childhood.

It's not just an interest.

He was also fortunate enough to have a talent for exploring the mystical!
An accidental fall into the water awakened his ability to fly, and at the time he didn't know a single spell, so much so that his parents once thought it was a miracle sent by Saint Sith.

After learning that it was not a miracle, but a sign of awakening extraordinary power, his parents sold off the last few acres of their meager land without hesitation, turning themselves from free citizens into serfs, in order to finally raise enough money for the journey to Xuebang.

Milos's talent was quickly proven. He showed his brilliance during the written test and, with his extraordinary "soul potential," received an offer from the Tower of Great Sages.

So far, the story has been wonderful, and Milos firmly believes that he will soon become a noble mage and bring his parents from the lord's place to his own mage tower.

However, he still overestimated the extent of his genius.

This place is a gathering place for magical geniuses from the entire continent of Os, while he is just a boy who accidentally fell into the water and miraculously survived.

There are many extraordinary individuals here whose experiences are even more legendary than his.

Not only that, there are also those nobles who can learn magic with a wave of their hand, and can cast spells without having to go through any embarrassing or ridiculous things... as long as they are willing to learn that stuff.

Compared to those true "darlings," his talent can only be considered mediocre.

After struggling for several years at the bottleneck of promotion, he not only exhausted all his savings but also his spirit, and it seemed that bringing his parents away from the lord's land was a distant dream.

He knew very well that his talent was limited, and the blessings he had accumulated in his previous life had come to an end. He had used them all up, and the Bronze level was the limit of his soul level—he could never break through it in this lifetime.

unless--

Use methods outside the system.

Milos had heard of a place called "Void Realm," which was the highest-level secret of the Academy. It was said that there was something there that could raise the soul level of mediocre people without any side effects!

Even though he knew that using these things would come at a huge cost, he had no other choice when he was desperate.

He needs money!

And it's a lot of money!
Although redeeming his elderly parents, who were too old to farm, didn't actually require a mountain of gold, or even a single gold coin, had he worked hard for most of his life just to give his parents the life they could have lived before?
If that's the case, what does his arduous journey amount to?
Someone as intelligent as him should at least be a guest of honor of the Duke of the North or even the family mage. Only in this way could he at least obtain a knighthood when he retires and pass on the fief he was granted to his future eldest son!

Fortunately, Xuebang had many intelligent people who, like him, longed for progress, and he quickly found like-minded people in this chaotic utopia.

There's a very unpopular job at the Great Sage's Tower: overseeing the annual winter apprentice recruitment assessment. Many mentors find this tedious task extremely boring, but it's actually quite lucrative.

Although Xuebang has a recommendation letter system, not all recommendation letters will ultimately be accepted.

Especially when the person holding the letter of recommendation only possesses worldly wealth but not worldly power...

They would select the easiest and the hardest person to bully from among these easy targets, and then make minor, harmless adjustments to their fates.

For example, Marco Gage, who is wealthy but not very bright, is a child who needs some adjustment.

As a member of the wealthy merchant family of the Kingdom of Rhodes, Marco Gage's father, Dorian, possessed immense wealth, but unfortunately lacked the power to match it.

In this situation, no matter how much money they had, it was merely being held on behalf of the king and dukes; it didn't truly belong to them. Dorian was very clear about his position: his entire family was a front for the nobles to amass wealth, and once it got dirty, it should be thrown away.

Money may bring him luxurious estates, beautiful women, and even the fake smiles of nobles, but it cannot buy him true respect and a sense of security.

He knew very well that in this class-divided theocratic kingdom, the fate of the Gage family had already been written in the Book of the Holy Word.

Their only way out is to bypass this rigid feudal system and obtain a "hard currency" recognized by the entire empire—the identity of a school mage.

That was one of the tickets to the "Path of Glory," and unlike the Path of the Knights, it was not fraught with danger, nor was it just a seemingly sweet pie in the sky like the Path of the Adventurers.

If the unattainable "treasures of the virtual realm" were Milos's lifelong desire, then his greatest wish in life was to put his eldest son Marco, who was good for nothing and only knew how to recite poetry all day, into the ranks of magicians!

Otherwise, no matter how much money you earn, it's all for someone else.

However, he underestimated Xuebang's arrogance.

Too many people are trying to "pull strings" here. As a businessman without a title, he is no match for the Master.

The letter of recommendation from the Imperial Baron, which he had obtained at great expense, disappeared without a trace after he submitted it. It wasn't until the winter recruitment season approached that he learned his son still needed to diligently participate in the apprenticeship assessment, and that his connections weren't as strong as he had imagined.

After all other avenues failed, Dorian Gage finally decided to take a gamble and use money, the tool he knew best, as a means to pave his way.

In his view, everything in the world has a price. Since power can be traded, then a mere examination paper is certainly no different.

As long as the price is right.

And so, a down-on-his-luck apprentice who betrayed his principles for his future, and a wealthy man who trampled on the rules for his family... two souls who had no connection whatsoever were now intertwined by the red thread of fate.

As dusk fell, in the "Adventurer's Home" tavern at the Eagle Rock Territory Travelers' Camp, Dorian's butler, Yankov, straightened his clothes and pushed open the creaking wooden door.

Ever since the list of accepted students was published on the stone tablet, the "Adventurer's Home" tavern in Eagle Rock Territory Traveler's Camp has become a place where two extreme emotions meet.

Some people come here to celebrate wildly, while many more come here to drown their sorrows in alcohol.

The butler, Yankov, traversed these joys and sorrows that were none of his concern, and in a secluded corner of the tavern, he found the person he had been waiting for.

As Milos watched the old butler approach, he leisurely sipped a glass of expensive ale, a knowing smile on his face.

Yankov sat down opposite him.

At the same time, an inconspicuous sack slipped from under his cloak and landed silently at Milos's feet, concealed by the shadow of the table.

“Sir, you’ve lost something,” Yankov said in a very soft voice, as if exchanging a secret code. “...Please check it.”

Milos didn't even glance at the money pouch at his feet, simply waving his hand dismissively.

The unassuming storage ring on his finger flashed slightly, and the money pouch on the ground vanished without a trace, as if it had never existed in the tavern.

That storage ring was lent to him by his senior for handling some business.

“No need, I trust you.” Milos took a sip of ale and said lazily, “Anyway, your young master is still in school, you know what I mean… This shop didn’t just open today, and this money isn’t something I can earn all by myself.”

"Yes, I understand. Please trust the character of the Gage family. My patriarch has built such a large business precisely because of the family motto of integrity."

Yankov nodded slightly; of course he knew these rules.

But then, his gaze involuntarily fell on Milos's storage ring. After a moment's pause, he couldn't help but ask politely, "By the way, please don't mind, do you still have any of these storage rings? My master has been wanting to buy one."

Milos scoffed as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world, and flatly refused, saying, "Then you can make him give up that idea. That's not something your master deserves."

That was an unpleasant remark, but Yankov couldn't refute it.

He didn't bring up the ring again, nervously glancing around before lowering his voice to confirm one last time, "Alright, I was just asking. Also, about my young master's affairs... won't be exposed, will it?"

"Don't worry." Milos took another sip of his fragrant ale and waved his hand lazily. "All the failed papers were burned to ashes at the 'incineration point' that very night. Your young master's doggerel is now beyond repair. As for the passed papers, hardly anyone actually reads them. Do you expect those professors to personally review such childish stuff?"

He paused for a moment, then quietly placed a piece of paper on the table.

"Oh, by the way, just in case, I copied the contents of that test paper. Remember to have your young master memorize it so he can handle any questions from the professor."

After saying that, Milos leaned back in his chair, sipping his ale with a carefree air, his eyes gleaming with calculating shrewdness.

The scroll that was swapped was one he had carefully selected, and in the eyes of a professional test-taker, it was obviously unremarkable and had nothing noteworthy.

His insights, especially regarding Source Power and the Void Realm, were so naive they were laughable. Although he himself had never been to the Void Realm and had never truly understood the origins sought by the Tower of Great Sages, he knew that it was not something an ordinary person could pontificate about.

However, considering that the scroll contained a lot of words, the handwriting was neat, and the student's attitude was serious enough, it was still easy to get a passing grade.

The written test for winter recruitment is, in the end, just a preliminary screening; only those who didn't become apprentices take it too seriously.

Milos was certain that the person he had switched was a powerless bookworm who dreamed of infiltrating the academic community and might have even sold his family fortune for it. Otherwise, the guy wouldn't have written so much in the midst of a snowstorm.

Nobody will stand up for a guy like that.

As for why he was so certain, it was because he himself had once been that kind of person.

Since you like exams so much, then let's take them again next year.

After hearing this, Yankov finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He thanked Milos profusely, as if Milos were a great benefactor of the Gage family, and then hurriedly left the tavern.

Milos rubbed the storage ring on his knuckles, feeling a surge of elation, as if he had reached the pinnacle of life.

So what if the Gage family is incredibly wealthy?

Before the esteemed Master, I am as humble as a dog!
With confidence as hard as steel, he decided to go to the traveler's camp to find those ordinary girls to release his pent-up energy before returning to the Academy.

However, when he excitedly arrived at the corner of the camp, he was shocked to find that the women who had been soliciting business there had all disappeared overnight, leaving only a few empty tents that smelled of cheap perfume.

It's so weird.

He returned to the tavern and asked the bartender, who only vaguely said that it seemed he had been arrested by Sir Richter's guards the day before.

“This is nominally his territory… although he doesn’t come here often, you know, such things are not recognized by Saint Sith.”

Milos looked at the bartender in bewilderment.

“By Saint Sith above… He actually still remembers that he is a knight of Saint Sith. I heard that he doesn’t even care about the dead.”

That necromancer seems to have some connection with the school. He remembered hearing a senior mention that they should never cause trouble for themselves, and that it was not something they, with their bronze-level strength, could challenge by being good people for a few dozen silver coins.

The bartender seemed a little embarrassed and coughed as he spoke.

"That's not necessarily true. Lord Richter is quite diligent. I heard that he led his men to wipe out the undead in Pompeii a few days ago."

That guy?!

Milos was dumbfounded, but too lazy to investigate further. He felt extremely disappointed and could only drink a glass of wine alone before returning home dejected.

However, at that moment, he was unaware that his small mistake had brought enormous trouble to himself and even to the mages behind him.

The three teaching assistants responsible for grading the papers had no idea that the perfect score papers they assigned were "products" that had been switched by their colleagues.

They upheld fairness in the trivial matter of "grading papers" simply because of their academic vision and knowledge reserves, and were moved by the talent of that 6,000-word "paper".

It is unprecedented in the past century for three teaching assistants to unanimously give the same scroll a perfect score.

After all, those were subjective questions, and there were no standard answers.

It is virtually impossible for a mere mortal to simultaneously shock three mages with silver or even gold-level strength.

However, there are so many coincidences in this world that this seemingly impossible, low-probability event actually happened.

Moreover, this scroll also alarmed the true powerhouse of the Great Sage's Tower—Professor Hector, who possessed Platinum-level strength!

However, neither Professor Hector nor the other professors who were also eyeing this legendary apprentice had yet realized what the scroll they had placed on the scales actually was...

(End of this chapter)