Demon-Hunting Genius Mage

Chapter 19

After spending several busy days with bodyweight exercises and requests...

Finally, D-Day. The day of the Aldeon Magic Tower\'s disciple selection evaluation.

After thorough preparation, I headed to the Aldeon Magic Tower and was utterly astonished.

\'Just how many people are here...?\'

Mages here, mages there.

Even before arriving, everywhere I looked was filled with mages.

I had expected a large number of applicants, given that the tower was opening for the first time in 100 years and it was an evaluation for Aldeon, one of the Five Great Academies... but this many?

"Huh."

After fully entering the tower, it was even more of a spectacle.

The first floor lobby of the tower, which had been expanded to a vast size using space expansion magic, was bustling with all sorts of mages.

It looked like there were easily a thousand people.

Though I had come here confidently, at this point, I was starting to worry.

\'...I might actually fail this.\'

With so many people, there were bound to be some outstanding talents mixed in.

There might even be mages above the 3rd Circle, which was my level right now.

Of course, unless they were geniuses, most wouldn\'t be able to reach the 4th Circle without the help of a magic tower, so such cases would be rare.

Most of them would already be affiliated with other towers.

But exceptions exist everywhere. The possibility couldn\'t be ruled out.

\'If I fail, what would I... No, what am I thinking right now?\'

As fear suddenly gripped me, I quickly snapped out of it.

\'...Stay calm.\'

It\'s really funny.

Here I am, possessing a character created to defeat Baal, and I\'m worried about the possibility of failing this selection evaluation.

I calmly assessed the situation.

Right now, I have the Mythic tier trait I gained through grueling effort as a zombie swordsman character, and the top-tier spirit engraving obtained by sacrificing that character.

I had diligently trained my magic and body and overcame several near-death experiences.

Me, failing the selection evaluation?

\'...Don\'t make me laugh.\'

The people gathered here have probably learned magic comfortably by reading books or attending classes.

It was safe to say there was no chance I\'d fail against such opponents.

Even if some genius mage were to show up.

"Phew, I\'m finally calming down a bit."

After easing my tension through mind control, I looked up at the figures on the second floor.

The examiners were watching us like we were children.

My gaze focused on the old man seated in the center.

\'Is that the Tower Master?\'

Judging by the incredible aura he exuded just by sitting there, it seemed likely.

From what I heard from Lena, his name was Dercion... or something like that?

Just then, Dercion stood up and strode towards the railing.

"Welcome, those who have come to become disciples of Aldeon. I am Dercion Pygma, the Tower Master of Aldeon."

A voice that seemed to pierce directly into our minds rather than be heard by our ears.

With that single statement, the noisy clamor instantly subsided, and the wide-open gates of the tower began to close slowly with an unpleasant metallic sound.

It seems they\'re about to start the evaluation.

Dercion calmly received the focused attention and slowly began to speak.

"From now on, we will select the talented individuals who will have the honor of becoming disciples of the Aldeon Magic Tower, which has opened for the first time in 100 years. Is everyone prepared?"

Everyone, including myself, nodded with determined eyes.

Dercion, looking satisfied with our response, continued speaking.

"Before that..."

The satisfied smile had disappeared completely.

"We must first weed out the weeds."

"...Weeds?"

"What does he mean?"

Dercion\'s cryptic words caused those around to start murmuring.

Dercion extended his hand with a resolute expression as if he had no intention of resolving the confusion.

And then.

Whoosh!

In an instant, he gathered mana and floated a sphere.

[Mana Compression].

The first skill I attempted when I entered this world.

"This is [Mana Compression], something a 1st Circle level mage can do. And..."

Whoosh!

Suddenly, flames appeared in the sphere Dercion had created.

"This is [Fireball], with flames contained in the sphere. It\'s a magic only those who have mastered the fire attribute can perform."

Dercion, with a face that seemed to say \'This should be enough of a demonstration\' dispelled the fireball and spoke in a commanding tone.

"Fire, water, earth, lightning, wind, and so on. It doesn\'t matter which. Right now, float an attribute-infused sphere above your palm."

Suddenly being told to create an attribute sphere.

The applicants tilted their heads at this unexpected request, but some quick-witted individuals started to float attribute spheres as Dercion had instructed.

Some created spheres infused with flames.

Some with water.

Some with wind.

I too joined in and created a sphere infused with the most familiar attribute to me, electricity.

Crackle!

"Why suddenly attribute magic...!"

Not all applicants managed to create attribute spheres.

Pop!

Many instances of mana dispersing as people with insufficient skills tried to infuse attributes.

Judging by their shabby appearances, it seemed they either couldn\'t afford attribute spellbooks due to financial constraints or couldn\'t attend magic academies run by societies due to lack of funds for tuition.

"It seems we\'ve narrowed it down somewhat."

For them, this Aldeon evaluation must have been a ray of hope.

Unlike other magic towers, Aldeon didn\'t require exorbitant participation fees or letters of recommendation from societies as conditions for attending the selection evaluation.

Of course, Dercion wasn\'t showing this generosity out of pure altruism.

"Those who still haven\'t managed to float anything... leave. Now."

Dercion pointed towards the tower exit with a stern face, crushing their hopes.

An utterly merciless act.

"L-leave? How can that be...! We haven\'t even properly taken the evaluation yet!"

Someone shouted in protest, but it didn\'t change Dercion\'s resolute attitude.

"Hmm, you look quite indignant. Wasn\'t it clearly stated in the announcement that we hoped only those confident in their abilities would apply?"

"That\'s...!"

"Don\'t tell me you were confident with that meager level of skill?"

"..."

The man who had shouted in what seemed like unjust indignation couldn\'t give any reply, and Dercion clicked his tongue a few times with a frown before speaking.

"Begone, you worthless insects. Aldeon has no need for those without talent."

"Damn it!"

Starting with one man leaving, the applicants who failed to levitate their attribute spheres began to turn away one by one. Their number was far from small.

Nearly half—a full half of the applicants rushed out of the magic tower, each wearing a face as if they\'d eat the shit.

Boom!

As the tower\'s main gate slammed shut, Dercion looked around at those remaining and spoke.

"So five hundred remain..."

The fact that a thousand mages had gathered here wasn\'t important. What mattered was that the old man was still frowning, as if unsatisfied. As if there were still too many impurities.

\'Geez, the old geezer\'s got quite the temper.\'

A question suddenly struck me.

If I had possessed a rare or heroic trait instead of a mythic one when I transmigrated... No, even before that, if the red-haired one hadn\'t thrown me that spellbook... Would I still be standing here now?

The answer to that was unknowable, but one thing was certain.

"Now we\'ll begin the formal selection evaluation."

It seems the selection process to enter Aldeon\'s magic tower won\'t be flowing smoothly at all.

***

The evaluation proceeded quickly.

From assessing how finely one could sense mana, to the amount of mana, mana control, efficient mana circulation construction, and so on...

They scored and ranked each field, and in the process, many more applicants were eliminated en masse.

Then came the allotted rest period.

"Phew... This is really killing me. I know they\'re selecting talented individuals, but aren\'t they pushing too hard?"

"Evaluation or not, at this rate I\'ll run out of mana completely!"

"...I don\'t know if Aldeon is related to demons, but I\'m certain the tower master is a devil incarnate."

The surviving 100 mages were busy resting, completely exhausted. Of course, I was one of them.

\'...This is tough.\'

About 10 hours into the evaluation?

I had never expended mana for such a long period before.

Of course, thanks to my [Prodigy of Magic] trait, my mana recovered faster than anyone else\'s, so mana itself wasn\'t the issue. This was a matter of mental fortitude.

Handling mana requires significant mental energy and concentration, so my head was starting to throb.

Well, this much is nothing, but...

The others must be having it worse than me, not better.

As I was thinking this, suddenly:

"Hey, Mr. First Place. You holding up alright?"

Turning my head at the unexpected voice, I saw a large, burly man looking my way.

With a build ill-suited for a mage... Perhaps he trains with dwarves like I do?

Whatever the case, he doesn\'t seem to bear any ill will.

"...I\'m managing so far."

"Well, aren\'t you a monster? Just what kind of mana circuits do you have?"

"It\'s thanks to diligent training, I suppose."

"Training, my foot... If that could solve it, I\'d have become an archmage ages ago."

The man walked over to me and extended his right hand.

"I\'m Thompson and I have no surname. I\'m a 3rd Circle mage."

"I\'m Yuhan."

"Oh, so you\'re a commoner too?"

After shaking hands, Thompson naturally sat down beside me.

With the rest period upon us, it seems he wants to chat. I didn\'t mind, as I was bored anyway.

"You\'re so talented, I thought you might be a noble."

"You approached me so friendly for that, didn\'t you?"

"Haha, busted? Don\'t take it too badly. Your appearance doesn\'t give off noble vibes."

"Well... that\'s true. If I were born with a silver spoon, I\'d be decked out in high-grade artifacts."

"Silver spoon? What\'s that?"

"...Never mind."

"Hmm, you\'re an odd one."

Looking puzzled for a moment, Thompson shrugged it off and scooted closer.

"Say, have you heard that rumor?"

"...What rumor?"

"That passing this evaluation isn\'t just about entering Aldeon."

"What else is there?"

Thompson glanced around cautiously before continuing.

"They say those who pass will be given... the \'Essence of Light\'."

"What?"

I wondered if I\'d misheard. After all, the [Essence of Light] is Aldeon\'s one and only consumable artifact.

Its effect was simple. It granted the user a light-attribute growth-type \'trait\'.

In other words, it was an artifact that bestows a new trait.

"...Is that true? Aldeon is giving away the Essence?"

"I don\'t know for certain. It\'s just a rumor. But..."

As Thompson was about to elaborate, we heard footsteps.

Thud, thud.

An applicant with their robe\'s hood pulled up was slowly approaching us.

As Thompson and I watched warily, the figure reached us and pulled back their hood, revealing an unforgettable golden sheen.

"You..."

Roan Vilgef. The rich person who had made my equipment look shabby in the library.

"Ahem, I\'ll be going..."

Realizing the newcomer was nobility, Thompson carefully excused himself, leaving me to face Roan\'s inexplicably hostile gaze.

"Have you come to discuss magic again?"

Roan replied to my question in a low voice.

"The Essence of Light... is mine."

There was none of the slyness in that voice that I had felt when we first met.