A mage? A spell engineer!

Chapter 558 Census and Massive Enrollment

At Rorschach's behest, Praggle launched a massive census.

It's not just about census; the focus is on testing magical talent.

After word got out about the census, widespread panic broke out in the market. The remaining, die-hard opposition seized on Pavel's "foolish move" and quickly compiled and spread all sorts of rumors.

In summary, it seems that the Byrnes, the traitorous Pavel, are trying to steal everyone's next generation for purposes including but not limited to food, medicine, rituals, and research. Users include Pavel and secret societies that support his national salvation alliance, high priests who support Pavel, and well-known, undisclosed cult organizations.

They fabricated the story in a very convincing way, but there was no need for these people to add fuel to the fire; many people thought the same way.

So a great panic spread like wildfire across the wasteland.

To prevent the situation from escalating, the male lecturer and devilish Varan, who was well-versed in human nature, took a multi-pronged approach: on the one hand, he launched a heavy crackdown on the remnants of the rumor-mongering party, and on the other hand, he carried out Rorschach's orders with a headache.

First of all, a census is not about randomly ordering people to the streets, creating opportunities for crowds to gather and cause trouble. The first step, in order to control the situation, was for him to have Pavel declare martial law throughout the city.

Under the threat of four-legged steel monsters and armed soldiers, factories closed and shops shut down. To continue operating, the families of the owners and employees had to be organized, and their children had to be tested one by one.

In other words, they were threatened with their livelihoods.

The winters in Prag were bitterly cold, and many families lost their livelihoods, meaning they had no food or fuel. In response, Valenjann Pavel promised that families participating in the testing would receive relief food and coal, distributed according to the number of family members—the more children who participated in the testing, the more they would receive.

Finally, on the day before the census was to begin, the Governor's Office suddenly released detailed rules: the census would be mandatory, and minors with magical talent would be given the opportunity to become spellcasters, but whether or not they used the opportunity was entirely voluntary. Adults could also voluntarily undergo the test.

This eased the tension among citizens a little, and they didn't seem so resistant anymore.

Although Varen had no idea what PUA or Stockholm Syndrome were, it didn't stop him from playing with them expertly. In his eyes, the general public was full of weaknesses—weren't they enough to be manipulated?

On the fourth day after the new Bain Legion moved in, the census began without major incident. It started in the industrial zone, organized by factory; they would be allowed to resume operations only after the census was completed.

Standardized testing has been iterated and is now based on the Tree of Law for "Gestalt Granting"—the test subject needs to touch a crystal ball, and the testing terminal will display spell models corresponding to level zero tricks belonging to Evocation, Transmutation, Conjuration, Illusion, and Protection, and expand the loops in a limited way.

If the person reacts to any of them and can intuitively open the circuit, it proves that the person being tested is capable of learning magic.

For test subjects without talent, all they can see is the crystal ball changing colors and patterns, and then nothing more.

The first time you cast a spell, it's like crossing a chasm of unknown distance. This device is like a bridge, but it's only visible to those who have the hope of reaching the other side. For those who don't have the talent, going from material reality to the dimension of imagination is still incredibly difficult.

After everyone finally believed that the test wasn't about devouring the children, a glimmer of hope arose: what if their own child suddenly became powerful and actually produced a mage?

Public opinion shifted so quickly that overnight, rumors and gossip were replaced by fraudulent products like "potential development agents," which parents eager for their children to succeed flocked to.

"Is it over?" The boy who was testing the crystal ball withdrew his hand after seeing that it did not move. The originally cold surface was now warm to the touch.

"That's it, what are you expecting?" The apprentice in charge of security and registration waved his hand impatiently. "Next. Ah, wait."

This "wait" rekindled the young man's hope, but unfortunately, the apprentice only noticed the snot bubble in his left nostril and remembered a friendly policy: "Go out the back door, and you can get a cup of hot sugar water at the door."

"Oh—" The boy's drawn-out last syllable betrayed his disappointment.

The apprentice put an X next to the child's name on the registration form and muttered to himself, "Tch, didn't even say thank you."

After complaining, he picked up the megaphone with the "amplification" function rolled up: "Next, is Jacob Benesher here yet? Parents don't need to come in."

The testing site was set up at the intersection of the Prag Industrial Zone. A group of parents held their children's hands and lined up. The testers called out names from the list provided by the workshop owner one by one.

Of course, in order to dispel the doubts of these workers' families, the soldiers held guns to the workshop owners and management, forcing them to send their children into the testing area first.

The other employees watched with a mix of relief and satisfaction as the elegantly dressed "little princes" and "little princesses" cried and fussed as they entered the small house. When the "second-generation" children emerged, bewildered and unharmed, the employees felt a mixture of regret and relief; at least now they were no longer afraid.

The Empire's own Royal Magic Academy already "selects the best" during the public school stage, sending exceptionally talented teenagers—those who can demonstrate "abnormalities" without the current inducing tests—to the capital early on. How many of those being tested now are simply slippery spots or have gone unnoticed by the Empire?

However, Rorschach accepted all comers, especially those aged fourteen and above who were immediately usable spellcasters. Some of them were still learning, while many others had already started working to supplement their family income or were apprentices in a trade.

The latter two are easy to handle. It's simply a matter of offering a higher salary and an advance payment. These young men will happily follow along. Even for young women, poor families don't care much; it's just a matter of how much money they get.

They could be taken by train to Byrne for training, quickly becoming apprentices.

For other age groups, Rorschach doesn't need to be "forced" to do so. He can provide an opportunity, an opportunity that they never dared to imagine before—allowing them to freely choose to study at various mage towers.

Of the thirteen magic towers, all those within the Empire's territory are open to them, even those within the borders of Istani and Valuva. This is merely a demonstration; similar to Rorschach's mage tower, there will also be individual towers accepting members of magic guilds.

This is an unprecedented "expansion of enrollment".

On the one hand, in terms of student selection, the guild is conducting a national-level census for the first time with the support of a legitimate authority.

Prag was just the beginning; it inherited Byrne's experience and added Varen's own talent for managing people, allowing the movement to proceed smoothly.

Next, the other cities in Bomia will complete a census upon the arrival of Byrne's new legion, and will receive assistance from magic guilds in various regions.

On the other hand, the reason these mage towers are able to teach without discrimination is not because they suddenly took pity on others, nor because Rorschach suddenly took control of all the tower masters and chiefs, but because all the managers are feeling an unprecedented shortage of manpower.

They finally realized that in order to replicate the model of Rorschach Tower-Bain District and to emulate the influence that the Tower of Stars exerted on Valuwa, they needed a sufficient number of spellcasters.

Since they're all consumables anyway, what does it matter to the current mages whether their talent is strong or not, whether they have a chance to climb the ladder of magic or remain an apprentice for life?

Taking the Astral Exploration Project as an example, the latitudes of the Tower of Stars and the Rorschach Mage Tower are not ideal for launch, but they are able to lead the current project progress simply because they have enough "cogs in the machine".

Whether they're made of steel, iron, mithril alloy, or humanoid. To put it nicely, it's about material resources and talent reserves.

(End of this chapter)