Witch Training Manual: My Water Magic Is Wrong

The streets became quiet.

The leader shook the blood off his sword, squatted down to examine the fallen guard's body, stood up after a moment, and shook his head at the two men beside him.

"It's too late, his throat was ripped open, there's no way to save him."

The two guards, now rescued, collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. It took them a long time to recover before they managed to stand up and solemnly bow to the three men.

"Thank you so much for your help, gentlemen!"

The leader waved his hand: "Next time, we need at least five people on patrol. Three people are too few; we simply can't handle this kind of situation."

After he finished speaking, his gaze swept over the tightly closed doors and windows on both sides of the street, as if to check for any lurking threats. Once he confirmed there was nothing amiss, he turned and walked with the other two towards the square, quickly disappearing into the dimly lit alleyway.

Wayne saw all of this.

He withdrew his hand from the windowsill and drew the curtain.

These three people acted cleanly and efficiently, and their teamwork was excellent; they didn't seem like a hastily assembled team.

It seems this underground city is not entirely without order.

Some were responsible for patrolling, some for clearing out invading monsters, and others for maintaining the dungeon's most basic operational rules. Aside from experienced hunters like those three, most were just ordinary people.

They might be civilians who stumbled into the city by mistake, or passersby who woke up groggily from their slumber. They had no fighting ability, no means of survival, and all they could do was hide.

Wayne glanced out the window.

It seems we need to find Emily and the others as soon as possible.

The next morning, Wayne was woken up by a knock on the door.

"Little brother, are you awake? Your sister has brought you breakfast."

Wayne rolled out of bed and unlatched the door. Mary stood in the doorway holding a wooden tray with a bowl of hot porridge, a dish of pickles, and half a rye bread on it.

"It's a complimentary gift from the hotel; every guest receives one."

She smiled.

"Did you sleep well last night? You weren't disturbed by the noise outside, were you?"

"good."

Wayne picked up a spoon, took a sip of porridge, swallowed, and then looked up at Mary: "Sister Mary, who were those three people who killed monsters last night?"

Mary was tidying up the cups and saucers on the tray when she heard this, and her movements paused slightly.

"That's the anti-demon guard."

"Anti-Demon Guard?"

"The underground city has its own patrol force. During the day, they are responsible for maintaining order, and at night, they are responsible for clearing out anything that has infiltrated from above. This team is not officially organized; it was formed by a few old men who have been here for a long time. Many of the rules of the entire underground city were set by them."

"Oh, I see."

After finishing the last mouthful of porridge, Wayne placed the bowl on the tray, wiped his mouth, got up, and went out.

There were noticeably more people on the streets than last night. Some were setting up stalls, others were repairing sheds, and several children were chasing a ball around at the alley entrance. It looked no different from an ordinary town on the surface—if you ignored the bloodstains that were everywhere.

As Wayne reached the edge of the square, he saw Bill crouching on a fallen stone block.

Bill saw him too, immediately jumped down from the stone bench, and ran to him in a few steps: "Brother, you're up early!"

Without a word, Wayne pulled a silver magic coin from his pocket and flicked it over. Bill caught it with lightning speed, and when he looked down, his eyes lit up immediately.

"This is the guide fee."

Bill stuffed the silver coins into his pocket and patted his chest: "Where would you like to go today, sir? Just say the word. There's no road in this dungeon I don't know well."

Wayne asked, "Was yesterday a blood sacrifice?"

Bill nodded. "Yes, yesterday was a moonless night. The sealing power underground drops to its lowest point of the year, so last night was called the Day of Blood Sacrifice. At this time of year, the amount of stuff seeping down from above is several times greater than usual."

"So, are you a trial participant?"

Bill shook his head, his tone frank: "No. How could I possibly become a trial participant? To be a trial participant, you have to be in the top 100 on that stone tablet over there."

"So, only the top 100 on the leaderboard can participate in the trial?"

"That's right." Bill squatted back on the stone bench, counting on his fingers. "Points are settled monthly, and the top 100 automatically qualify for the trial. The higher the ranking, the more benefits you receive during the trial. It's said that the person ranked first even has the chance to be received directly by the gods."

After she finished speaking, she glanced at Wayne and said, "Big brother, you're asking this... you wouldn't happen to be thinking of climbing the charts too, would you?"

"I have that plan."

Bill whistled, "Then you'd better work harder. None of the top 100 are pushovers; they've all been in the dungeon for at least six months. It won't be easy for a newbie like you to squeeze in."

Wayne then asked, "How exactly do I earn points?"

Bill jumped down from the stone pillar and counted on his fingers for him: "Demon hunters. People in the dungeon mainly earn points this way. You can team up or go solo. Killing a Tier 1 monster gives you 10 points, Tier 2 gives you 30, Tier 3 gives you 100. Tier 4 monsters are said to give you 500, but for ordinary people, encountering one is just suicide."

After she finished speaking, she gestured with her chin towards the stone tablet in the center of the square: "See that? The tablet displays the points ranking, which is refreshed every month. The top 100 automatically qualify for the trial."

Wayne followed her gaze. The surface of the gray stone tablet was engraved with names and numbers, and the number following the first name had already exceeded ten thousand.

His gaze swept downwards and stopped at the third position.

Tessa.

Points: 2180.

The name made him pause slightly.

Tessa?

Is it the Tessa he knows?

Perhaps it's just a case of the same name.

He didn't dwell on the idea.

Where do I register for the trial qualification?

Bill blinked. "You're really going to climb the charts?"

"It's worth a try."

Bill didn't try to persuade him any further. He turned and led Wayne across the square, stopping in front of a small stone hut. A metal sign hung on the door of the hut, with four words crookedly engraved on it: "Trial Registration".

There was only one middle-aged man in the room.

"Register? One silver magic coin."

Wayne slammed the silver coin on the table.

The middle-aged man then looked up at him, took a black bracelet from the drawer, and pushed it onto the table.

"Put it on. The points earned from hunting monsters will be automatically recorded and the data will be synchronized to the stone tablet. If you lose it, you can get a replacement for two silver magic coins."

Wayne took the bracelet and fastened it to his wrist. The size automatically adjusted to fit his wrist perfectly. He moved his wrist a couple of times and didn't feel anything unusual.

Are there any restrictions on the area where demons are hunted?

"There are no restrictions. Throughout the entire City of Eternal Sleep, above and below ground, any kills made within the city count. However..." The middle-aged man paused, "I suggest you start from the second basement level. Anything below that is not suitable for a newcomer."

"There are different layers underground?"

The middle-aged man did not answer.

Bill tugged at his sleeve at the door and lowered his voice: "That's all he talks about. He won't say anything more if you ask him. Let's go, I'll tell you as we walk."