The Wizard: Starting as a Corpse Collector Apprentice and Paying for a Monthly Subscription

The carriage moved steadily forward on the official road, which had been solidified by earth elemental magic.

The atmosphere inside the carriage was somewhat awkward.

Tyron was somewhat surprised to find that he had been deliberately arranged by Markley to ride in the same carriage as Cathy.

Now, there are only the two of them in this small space.

Cathy, who is usually shy, introverted, and socially anxious, seemed much more relaxed at this moment.

Perhaps it was because the two had worked together before, but more importantly, Tyron's background and status were far lower than hers.

This natural class disparity made her instinctively feel safe—no matter how vulnerable she was, she wouldn't be bullied by a lowly apprentice.

Cathy was tilting her head to the side, her fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes, her eyes staring blankly at the lush green farmland outside the window, clearly lost in thought.

Seeing this, Tyron coughed lightly and tentatively asked:

"Hoffman, before you left, did your teacher give you any special instructions?"

"what?"

Cathy was startled by the sudden sound and jerked her head up like a frightened rabbit.

Only after recognizing Tyron did she breathe a sigh of relief and quickly nod:

Yes! Yes, there are!

As she spoke, she hurriedly pulled a thick stack of documents from her backpack and handed them over:

"This is the information on the place we are heading to: the 'Bounty Hunting Alliance Outpost' located on the edge of the Northern Languages ​​Forest."

Tyron took the document and quickly flipped through it.

This location is 60 kilometers northeast of Lion City, and is on the boundary line of Lion City.

The entire outpost was jointly established by eight forces: the four Wizard Towers, the Bounty Guild, the Lion City Government, the Frontier Knights, and the Church of the Holy Father.

As Tyron watched, his eyebrows rose.

This is practically a miniature power vortex.

According to the information, this outpost has three main functions:

First: be stationed on the front lines to monitor the silent mountain range north of the Beijing Language and Culture University forest, known as the "cradle of destruction".

That place is a paradise for monsters, and the outpost needs to monitor it at all times, control the migration and reproduction of monsters, and prevent large-scale monster tides from breaking out.

Second: It serves as a controlled testing ground.

Various factions will send their young talents here for practical training, allowing them to grow rapidly in real combat.

Third: Resource acquisition.

This is one of the main channels for obtaining level 1 to 4 monster corpses, magic crystals, and various materials from various wizard towers.

Tyron turned to the next page, which detailed the personnel configurations of each faction.

The first to fifth-year apprentices of the four wizard towers will each send representatives to be stationed at the front lines.

On one hand, they are responsible for collecting monster materials, and on the other hand, they serve as "guides" and "service personnel" to provide logistical support for students who come here for training later.

"In other words, we're actually going there to act as housekeepers and purchasing agents."

Tyron understood.

Continuing on, the information mentions an extremely special entity: the [Wandering Secret Realm].

This is the core reason for the existence of the entire outpost.

Two hundred years ago, a large-scale interdimensional invasion war left behind a huge spatial wormhole here.

Although the war is over, the wormhole is permanently fixed, continuously spewing out all kinds of monsters below level four from various other dimensions.

This is also the root cause of the Silent Mountains' danger: a large number of invasive species that do not belong to this world thrive here, and because they have no natural enemies, they are very likely to cause beast tides.

Later, a powerful Stigmata Wizard who called himself "The Wanderer" came here.

He single-handedly used his own holy mark rules to completely seal the entire wormhole and banish it to a separate small world in the interdimensional space.

Subsequently, he established the inviolable rules of the Holy Mark, forcibly dividing this small world into four regions.

From then on, all magical beasts that emerged from wormholes were automatically filtered out by the power of the rules.

Level 1 monsters are thrown into the first level, level 2 monsters into the second level, and so on.

This not only resolved the beast tide crisis, but also conveniently left future generations with an excellent testing ground.

Upon seeing this, Tyron couldn't help but comment.

"These wizards at the top are practically the programmers of the world."

"Based on the underlying logic of the material world, write rule codes according to your own will."

Now, under the constraints of the Holy Mark, the Wandering Realm has truly become a dungeon.

Tyron quickly completed the summary of the locked content.

[Peace Mode]: Inside the secret realm, all humans are strictly prohibited from attacking each other. If the system determines that you intend to attack your fellow humans, you will be teleported out of the secret realm.

【等级限制】：5级以下的学徒只能进入第一层；正式巫师无法进入1、2层虐菜，只能进入3层或4层挑战高阶魔物。

[Lens Lock]: First come, first served mechanism. Whoever discovers the monster and enters combat first has priority to hunt it, and the monster will temporarily become invisible to others.

[Kill Determination]: Monster-stealing mechanism. When multiple players attack a monster, whoever lands the fatal blow gets the loot.

……

All these rules have only one core purpose—to minimize internal friction among humans and encourage everyone to focus their energy on killing monsters.

"This wanderer is truly a saint who puts the public good first."

Tyron closed the document and sighed.

At this moment, Cathy, who had been secretly observing Tyron's reaction, finally mustered up the courage to speak.

Her voice was soft and reserved, yet it conveyed a sense of seriousness:

"Well... there's a rule in the entire alliance that each grade can only be responsible for collecting items that are equivalent to their own strength."

"This is how it's being done at all four wizard towers now."

"This year, I will be in charge of the first-year hunting team at our Kane Wizard Tower."

She paused here, seemingly a little embarrassed, her cheeks flushing slightly:

"But... I also know that I can't handle those strong or cunning people, and I'm not good at bargaining."

"So, the teacher already told me before I left."

"You'll be responsible for all the detailed business coordination, personnel management, and accounting..."

"I... I'm responsible for submitting reports to higher authorities and getting them stamped."

Upon hearing this, a knowing glint flashed in Tyron's eyes.

Sure enough.

MacLeod's arrangement was meticulously planned.

This secretly gave him actual power, making it easier for him to complete his tests through manipulation.

He then arranged a perfect "tiger skin" on his head.

Who is Cathy?

She is the eldest daughter of the Hoffmann family, a legitimate noble family.

More importantly, her father was the cavalry captain of the Frontier Knights at this outpost!

In this chaotic place, this is the strongest backing.

With this relationship in place, no matter what merits Tyron makes or what mistakes he makes, Cathy will nominally bear the responsibility.

Those who want to cause trouble should first consider whether they can afford to offend the Hoffman family and the Frontier Knights.

"It's clear that my teacher isn't doing too well these days."

"Sending me down here this time, and even bringing along the eldest daughter of the Hoffman family, is practically going all in."

Tyron analyzed the situation in his mind.

This is not just a test, but a huge gamble.

MacLeod needs Tyron to do this job brilliantly to enhance Cathy's reputation and resume.

This would make the Hoffman family more willing to cooperate, and the alliance between the two sides would be more solidified.

But the risks involved are also enormous.

This requires Mackley to have absolute trust in Tyron's abilities and loyalty.

If Tyron messes things up, or if he has ulterior motives and runs away with the money, Cathy's gilded journey will turn into a joke.

Markley will also offend the Hoffman family as a result, and his fate will be quite ugly.

"Teacher, oh teacher, you treated me like a national hero, and I will repay you with the same respect."

Tyron's lips curled up slightly.

Then, Cathy took out a few more forms from her backpack and handed them to Tyron:

"This is the list of requirements sent from the Wizard Tower."

"Every week from now on, the tower will assign tasks to students of different grades. We need to collect monster corpses and related materials according to the requirements on the list."

"As for how to obtain it... the teacher said it's up to you."

"You can hunt for yourself, trade with others, or buy directly with money."

"The Wizard Tower only cares about the final result; as long as everything is complete, that's fine."

"As for how much money you saved in the process... the higher-ups don't ask."

Tyron nodded knowingly; this was within his expectations.

Low-ranking positions with high power and lucrative benefits are the best candidates for character assessment.

"To succeed in this position, the first thing you need to do is prove that you know the rules well and are reliable enough."

In any circle, those who benefit from the system hate those who break the rules the most.

Tyron already had a preliminary plan in mind.

For the rest of the time, the two chatted casually.

Despite having worked together in the previous competition, Cathy's inherent wariness of strangers and social anxiety still remain.

After exchanging a few words about trivial matters concerning the outpost, she found herself struggling to withstand Tyron's overly calm and rational gaze.

Like an ostrich, he buried his head in the thick magic book, pretending to read.

However, they didn't notice it even when the book was upside down.

Tyron looked at her small head, which was almost buried in her firm chest, and a slight smile appeared on his lips.

The little girl is quite cute.