Wizard: My career panel has no upper limit

Chapter 146 Sequence Evaluation Defection

The central tower hall was resplendent in gold, and the surrounding walls were adorned with portraits of some of the greatest pioneers in wizarding history.

The ceiling is a beautifully painted star map, with twinkling stars that seem indistinguishable from the real night sky.

This is the most solemn place of the Black Mist School, and it is almost never open to ordinary apprentices.

Today marks the start of the quarterly assessment meeting for the candidate wizards, held every three months.

On this day, as Ron was conducting an alchemical experiment in the workshop, a large, blackish-grey parrot fluttered into the window.

"Ron's Apprentice. Ron's Apprentice"

The parrot landed on the windowsill, emitting increasingly sharp cries:

"Lord Griffith requests that you proceed to the Central Tower conference room immediately."

Ron put down his alchemy tools.

"The evaluation meeting for the candidate wizard sequence is about to begin. You, as the candidate being evaluated, are required to attend."

The parrot mechanically repeated the tasks it was told to do.

This should be the sequence ranking assessment meeting that he was notified of in the letter he received a week ago.

As a member who has made significant progress recently, he will naturally be a key figure in the discussion regarding whether he should be promoted.

“I’ll go right away,” Ron nodded, quickly straightening his clothes to make sure he looked dignified and proper.

Half an hour later, Ron arrived outside the conference room on the twelfth floor of the central tower.

Two officers in dark gray uniforms stood at the entrance, watching the corridor with wary eyes.

"Ron Ralph, a candidate member of the wizarding order, has come at the summons of Lord Griffith," Ron introduced himself politely.

The officer on duty checked the list and nodded, signaling him to enter.

The conference room was spacious and bright, with a huge round oak table occupying the central position.

Several figures dressed in robes of various colors were already seated at the table. Ron immediately recognized Sauron and Yuni, as well as several other mentors he had met before.

This included Corinna, who exuded a chilling aura, like a ghost from the snowy wilderness.

The other person was still wearing that exquisite white mask. After noticing his gaze, the other person nodded at him. Ron could only bow slightly in response.

On one side of the room stood several young candidates for the wizard sequence.

They also appeared to have been called in for evaluation; Ron recognized several familiar faces among them, including Trish.

"Ron, you're here. Go wait over there for a bit."

Soren noticed his arrival and nodded slightly, gesturing for him to stand in the candidate area.

Ron bowed to all the mentors present, then quietly walked to his designated spot.

Trish gave him a smile, her eyes filled with a hint of encouraging kindness.

But she maintained her characteristic indifference, as if she was deliberately controlling herself and not showing too much emotion in public.

After waiting a while longer, when the appointed time arrived, everyone stood up.

"Now that everyone's here..."

The deputy dean, Hayek, an elderly man dressed in a dark purple robe with an intricate badge on his chest, spoke first:

"Then let's begin this quarter's candidate wizard sequence evaluation meeting."

His gaze was sharp and authoritative, sweeping over every young apprentice present:
"As is customary, we will make appropriate adjustments to the sequence rankings based on your recent performance, potential, and mentor evaluations."

Ron looked around. In the center of the hall was a huge round table, surrounded by the school's high-ranking members and other candidates for wizarding positions.

He found his seat according to the seating arrangement in the notice—seventeenth seat, which matched his current ranking in the sequence.

Looking around, Ron recognized many familiar faces.

Tracy sat in the twelfth seat. Today, she was dressed in a formal dark dress, a departure from her usual casual style.

Her hair was neatly combed together and adorned with a jeweled hair ornament, making her appear exceptionally dignified.

Holt remained at the top of the list, his expression calm.

As the absolute leader in the sequence, his strength and aptitude are among the best in the entire school.

The fourth through tenth were some advanced apprentices whom Ron had seen on various occasions but was not very familiar with.

To Ron's slight surprise, Oliver was ranked fifth, a drop of two places from his previous ranking.

Even more surprisingly, Cynthia, who was supposed to be sitting in ninth place, was nowhere to be seen; her seat was empty, which sparked some whispers.

"quiet."

The stern voice of Vice Dean Hayek rang out, and the hall immediately fell silent.

"Welcome to this quarter's candidate wizard ranking meeting."

He surveyed the crowd, his voice calm yet firm:
"As is customary, we will first announce the ranking changes for this quarter, and then discuss important matters."

With a wave of his hand, the old man conjured a huge, transparent leaderboard in the center of the hall, clearly displaying the names and rankings of all the candidate wizards.

"First of all, congratulations to Holt Irwin for continuing to hold the top spot in the rankings, marking his sixth consecutive quarter in this position."

Holt stood up, bowed slightly in thanks, and wore a humble smile.

"Secondly, Herbert Levine and Caitlin Gardner remain in second and third place respectively," the vice dean continued, noting that the rankings of the top three remained largely stable.

"There has been a significant change in the rankings from fifth to tenth. Trishlinde rose from twelfth to tenth, performing exceptionally well; Oliver West dropped from fifth to sixth and needs to work harder."

As the daughter of a hunter, Trish originally had no surname; Lind was her birthplace.

Upon hearing her name called, the brown-haired girl bowed slightly in thanks, her expression remaining restrained, with only a barely perceptible hint of self-satisfaction flashing in her eyes.

Oliver's expression remained unchanged, though a fleeting shadow crossed his eyes.

Ron keenly noticed that Oliver's fingers were tapping lightly on the table, clearly indicating that he was not as calm as he appeared.

While everyone's attention was focused on the vice dean's speech, Ron cautiously activated his "Supernatural Recognition" ability and quietly scanned Oliver's condition.

In an instant, a stream of information flooded into his senses:

Oliver West

Mental strength aptitude: Upper-level sixth-rank star (original) / Lower-level fourth-rank star (current)

Current status: Moderate mental pollution (continuously accumulating)

Special Talent: Living Assimilation (Third Tier)

—Able to absorb and integrate some of the abilities and memories of other creatures through special rituals.

—The integration targets should be at most at the same level as one's own strength.
—Each assimilation exacerbates the accumulation of mental pollution.

Ron was startled and quickly looked away.

The special talents of the third tier are extremely rare even within the entire school.

However, this also explains why Oliver's ranking is declining.

The intense aura of spiritual pollution emanating from him would be absolutely imperceptible to those perceptive, formal wizards.

Oliver's total magical power is indeed higher than before.

However, the instability and contamination inherent in that magic robbed him of his potential to continue growing.

Ron discreetly observed Oliver and noticed a faint black pattern around his right wrist, resembling some kind of curse or contamination.

What's even more alarming is that the pollution appears to be spreading slowly but steadily upwards.

“He’s taking an extremely dangerous shortcut,” Ron thought to himself, recalling Mrs. Allen’s warning to him earlier.

Clearly, Oliver chose a forbidden source of power in exchange for a rapid short-term boost.

However, this improvement comes at the cost of sacrificing long-term potential and health.

The vice dean's next sentence, however, drew his attention back:
"...It should be noted that the ninth-ranked Sincia Novik has not appeared within the school for three consecutive weeks. According to the school's rules, her sequence qualification is temporarily frozen pending further investigation."

This news sparked even more whispers. Although Cynthia wasn't particularly strong, she was well-known in the Sequence because of her various perverse hobbies.

Her sudden disappearance was undoubtedly shocking news.

The vice dean waited a moment, allowing the murmurs to subside naturally, before announcing the subsequent rankings.

When the fourteenth person was announced, the vice dean paused, turning his gaze to Ron:

"This ranking adjustment is based not only on your recent performance and progress, but also on the recommendations and evaluations of your mentors."

He picked up several letters bearing his mentor's personal seal:

"It is particularly worth mentioning that Ron Ralph received strong recommendations from mentors Soren, Yuni, and Corinna, and even semi-retired Master Magnus and Mrs. Allen wrote letters of recommendation for him, which is extremely rare in the history of the school."

The news caused a noticeable commotion in the hall. Magnus and Mrs. Allen were both highly respected in the school and rarely endorsed prospective students in person.

“These recommendations probably include nearly a third of the formal wizards from these schools of thought…” an older senior apprentice assistant murmured in amazement.

The vice dean raised his hand to signal for silence: "Taking these factors into account, as a member of the college committee, I cast my vote in favor of confirming Ron Ralph's ranking as fourteenth."

In fact, as a subordinate branch of the Crystal Spire, the Black Mist School did not have a headmaster.

As the vice dean, he holds the highest position here, and his agreement essentially seals the deal.

A distinct gasp of surprise rippled through the hall.

A promotion of three ranks is quite rare in the candidate wizard sequence.

This is an unprecedented achievement, especially for a newcomer who has risen through the ranks in less than half a year since joining the ranks.

Ron calmly stood up and greeted the vice-dean and the wizards: "Thank you for the school's recognition of me. I will continue to work hard."

He noticed that the three wizards, Corinna, Uni, and Soren, were all giving him approving looks, clearly indicating that his progress had been recognized by these higher-ups.

Especially Corinna, whose cold eyes now flickered with a rare hint of concern.

The other sequence members present reacted in various ways: some were surprised, some were envious, some were curious, and a few showed barely perceptible jealousy and rejection.

The vice dean nodded slightly and continued to announce the remaining ranking changes.

After all the rankings were announced, he moved on to the next agenda item.

"Next, we will discuss two important matters. The first is the investigation into the disappearance of Sincia Novik."

An older, highly trained apprentice, one of the key figures in the enforcement team, stood up and gave a brief report on the investigation:

"Based on current clues, Cynthia was last seen three weeks ago at midnight when she was seen entering the Edge Forest, and then disappeared without a trace."

(End of this chapter)