He Holds a Rose from the Abyss

After Joyce turned his head and walked away, Chi Lang still felt bad and looked at Sheffield: “Sheffield, why did you say that?” They clearly hadn’t mentioned anything about “perfect score”.

Sheffield: “If you must really know the reason… it’s because I want you to get a ‘perfect score’.” When he said this, his tone and demeanor were incredibly relaxed, but his gaze was heavy, making it hard to see what he was thinking.

Sheffield looked downstairs, where a small patch of roses was planted.

“This year’s examination is different from the usual, in addition to the scholarship, there is a special reward for those who get a perfect score.” Sheffield whispered, “money and knowledge are regarded as the two things that are indispensable to the practice of magic, so the college will reward the so-called ‘knowledge’.”

Rewarding knowledge, is it possible to send a bunch of books… Chi Lang is very suspicious of this reward.

“The Grand Magician, Margaret, lives in the magic tower on the outskirts of Zefnar City. If you can get a perfect score this time, you can ask her a question.”

Chi Lang has also made up for basic common sense these days. Margaret, a magician of the prophecy department, has always been called an “omniscient and omnipotent” magician, who knows the past and the future. Margaret had stayed out of mundane strife a long time ago, standing at the top of magic and looking down on all magicians with the air of a loner.

Such a character who was written into magic textbooks actually lived outside Zefnar City.

“Does she live outside Zefnar City?” Chi Lang asked.

“She only recently arrived in Zefnar City because her prophecy magic detected something.” Sheffield smiled, “She thinks that maybe those things that were once sealed have come out again.”

“Those things that were once sealed?” Chi Lang thought about the novels he had read, “like the holy sword or something?”

“No, it’s the Demon Lord of the Abyss.”

Chi Lang nodded. Although he had heard of the term “Demon Lord”, he subconsciously felt that it was something far away from him. So, he asked, “What does this have to do with me getting a perfect score?”

“I want you to ask a question for me.”

This logic is even more strange. Since Sheffield has the ability to get a “perfect score”, why not ask Margaret himself? Chi Lang implicitly expressed his doubts to Sheffield.

‘It would be too boring to meet with Margaret so early.’

Sheffield: “Because the rule is that only one question can be asked, if I ask you to help me, I can ask her two questions.”

Chi Lang was very puzzled by such a rule: “Can only ask one? Can she really answer everything?”

“Yes, as long as you can ask it and she is willing to answer.”

A thought flashed in Chi Lang’s mind – if Margaret can answer everything, can she also answer… Is there any way to cross the realm and bring him back to modern times.

However, the thought only flashed by.

After listening to Sheffield’s explanation, Chi Lang immediately agreed to his request: “So what do you want me to ask?”

The expression on Sheffield’s face was gentle.

“How do I unlock the seal of the Demon Lord?”

Chi Lang belonged to the people who handed in their papers earlier, most people were still answering in the classroom at this time, and there was no one else in the corridor except for the two of them.

Chi Lang heard his own voice: “Why… why do you want to ask this?”

Today, he asked “why” too many times.

Sheffield approached him, and Chi Lang always felt that Sheffield should have picked a rose again. There was a faint scent of roses on his clothes. He said in Chi Lang’s ear, “Because I am one of those sealed demon lords.”

Chi Lang’s heart skipped a beat, and his brain even became blank for a moment, he was unconsciously looking at the powder flakes fluttering in the sun.

Sheffield straightened up, looked at Chi Lang’s expression, and smiled easily: “Just kidding… I’m just interested in this aspect of sealing.”

Chi Lang breathed a sigh of relief for no reason.

“Micah, aren’t you interested in this, don’t you think that breaking the seal sounds exciting?”

Chi Lang shook his head firmly: “The blood boils only in legends. What happens to the protagonist is called a legend, and what happens to ordinary people like me is called an episode in a legend.”

*

In the written test in the next few days, Chi Lang half relied on his own rote to complete the test paper and also half relied on Sheffield’s help to complete the test well. There is a three-day break between the end of the written test and the actual combat assessment.

Only then did Chi Lang understand the rules of the actual combat assessment. Students from one faction send “challenges” and students from other factions complete their challenges. There are many magic factions in Saints Magic Academy, and you can choose the direction of study in the path of magic at will, even if you are the only one in the faction, you can still call yourself a member of this faction.

The combat exam’s challenge-giver is rotated in order among the major factions with a large number of students, and this year, it happened to be the Elemental Department’s turn.

If students from other departments pass the challenge, they will be marked as passed, and the first ten percent who pass will be marked with a ‘perfect score’, while the elemental department’s grade will be calculated by the percentage of the total number of students who pass.

Chi Lang still took advantage of the three-day break to arrive at the “House of Hope” pub. He only had a few silver coins on him now, so it was better to make more money while he had the time.

Mrs. White noticed him coming in and did not care about him, but counted the coins on the table, muttering as she counted.

“Micah, why are you here again? Isn’t the exam over yet?”

“There is an actual combat exam in three days, and the exam will be over after the actual combat.”

While putting the coins in the cabinet, Mrs. White instructed Chi Lang: “You remember to come to the pub early after the exam. There must be many guests that day, so I can pay you a little more.”

Chi Lang nodded, and Mrs. White seemed to remember something and asked, “Which department is hosting this year?”

“The Elemental Department.”

Mrs. White nodded first, then shook her head: “Not very good, but it’s better than the change department, the damn change department exam.”

Chi Lang: “What happened to the actual combat test of the Change Department?”

Mrs. White: “That year, the content of their exam was too outrageous. They made other people turn clay into silver coins and come to the pub to buy wine, and if I didn’t notice it, then it would be a pass.”

Mrs. White said more and more angrily: “It’s unreasonable, I have lost a lot of wine for nothing. Those change department boys even dislike me for being old and forgetting all my magical knowledge, so I can’t even recognize this.”

Chi Lang also felt that the exam rules were a bit excessive. Mrs. White gave Chi Lang a sidelong glance: “What department are you from?”

Chi Lang pondered for a while: “I…learn everything…” I don’t understand anything.

“So from then on, if I found out who was from the change department, I would sell him wine for ten times the price.” Mrs. White began to wipe the counter.

She hesitated for a while, and said to Chi Lang, “I made some roast goose today. You can bring some back later. I wish you good luck in your exam.”

Chi Lang was a little surprised. Mrs. White was usually very stingy, reluctant to buy meat, reluctant to buy new clothes, and was keen to count her coins every day, squeezing Chi Lang’s labor force to the extreme.

“I saw the hosting of the elemental department once before. Some years ago, when students in the pub discussed the exam, they said that it was more difficult to pass the exam of the elemental department, you have to suffer some injuries, take the test well…” Mrs. White went into ramble mode.

This is not the first person to say that the exam of the elemental department is difficult. Sheffield also said that if it is the exam of the elemental department, the actual combat assessment is often rough. It does not require much use of brains, but the requirements for mastery of magic are high.

The people Chi Lang met on the road recently also discussed that the exam of the elemental department was difficult.

The more this happens, the more uneasy Chi Lang feels, and he also thinks of Joyce from time to time, always feeling that he will not pass the exam.

Generally speaking, bad premonitions always come true.

For example, on the day before the exam, Chi Lang was walking on the campus and felt that the eyes of the people around him were a bit strange.

He finally couldn’t help telling Sheffield about it before going to bed: “It’s so strange today, I feel like people are intentionally and unintentionally looking at me when I walk down the road…”

He had only told Sheffield as a strange school story.

Sheffield: “Not strange.”

Chi Lang’s heart “thumped”.

Sheffield looked at him with a smile: “Joyce said, as long as they can let the two of us fail the test, he will let all the others pass.”

What? The two of them?

Chi Lang was dumbfounded and frightened: “Impossible, Joyce can ignore his own grades, and other people in the elemental department will also accompany him?”

“If I guess, then there are two possibilities. First, Joyce should be responsible for part of the assessment, just let them pass the part he is responsible for. Second, Joyce has a high reputation in the elemental department. In addition, the elemental department is a group of energetic magicians, and they might be willing to accompany him to make trouble.”

“Those two possibilities might really be possible.” Chi Lang began to pray, and apologized to Sheffield again, “I’m sorry, if I hadn’t gotten the paper for Joyce wrong, there wouldn’t have been any of this.”

“It’s okay.” Sheffield’s voice was very soft, but his words somehow made Chi Lang feel calm.

“We will pass, you just need to trust me.”