Chapter 46: The Labyrinth Test

The magic shop on the second floor of the Mage Tower had a dome hall with a dizzying height. Dozens of translucent crystals floated in the air, casting a pale blue magical light across the entire hall. Rows of enormous black wooden shelves stood around the hall, displaying all sorts of strange items. A faint glow occasionally emanated from these unknown objects, creating wondrous light and shadows. The smooth marble floor was etched with mysterious patterns, and the faint green light could not be confused with the surrounding bright magical illumination even amidst such brightness. This scene, combined with the quiet atmosphere, perfectly captured the mystical essence of magic.

However, today, this usually tranquil space was filled with the angry shouts of the Mage Apprentice in charge:

“Are you here to buy something or to cause trouble?”

—In truth, we must say that Mages had never had much business sense, nor even the patience necessary for commerce. Constantine had only browsed the shelves twice and inquired about the value of a dozen items, yet he had already driven the Mage Apprentice in charge of the area to this state. If not for the luxurious clothes Constantine wore and the faintly shimmering arcane aura on his magic badge, this fellow might have physically thrown the annoying customer out.

But today’s customer clearly didn’t care about such things. He unhurriedly browsed for a full quarter of an hourglass’ time before finally picking out a belt said to be made of genuine dragon hide, several scrolls, a deep gray Mage’s robe that looked of good quality, and two light-colored linen shirts.

Actually, Constantine wasn’t very keen on spending money in this place, but he didn’t have much choice. Mages in this world weren’t like those in some stories Constantine had read, needing to wield various lengths of staves to cast spells. However, according to Archmage Nikolai’s hint, at least a proper robe of magic was essential to participate in this test—wearing that luxurious hunting attire would only draw attention and offered no help in defense. The robes provided by the Mage Tower for low-level apprentices also possessed certain magical effects, though most were only at the level of simple tricks.

Actually, calling this place a shop wasn’t entirely accurate. It should be considered the Mage Tower’s logistics department, originally existing to provide materials commonly used by all Mages. But some Mage with a bit of business acumen had discovered the more practical method of acting as a sales agent. Over time, the items placed here for sale by the Archmages had become this place’s main business.

Thus, although this place also cheaply provided some items for Mage Apprentices, all the goods here had one thing in common: extravagance. Whether it was Mage robes or various staffs, all were exquisitely patterned, finely carved, and made of fine materials. Of course, there were some high-quality items among them. But after the Lich’s explanation, Constantine saw that most items here had poor cost-to-benefit ratios—excessive in beauty but lacking in practicality. It was only natural he would need more time to pick and choose.

Therefore, when Constantine appeared in the bustling competition grounds located on the first floor of the Mage Tower, he found he was already late.

It was now the morning of the second day. The grounds no longer had yesterday’s chaotic scene. A large wooden and stone spectator stand now stood around the lawn. Over a dozen magical symbols were drawn on the stand’s base, their glow flickering unevenly, the rough edges hinting at hasty work. Nearly a hundred apprentices taking the exam or watching stood below in loose formations. A group of formal Mages, their robes shimmering with various magical glows, sat on the high stand, observing each student’s performance. As the youth entered the venue, one of them was rhythmically reciting something akin to inspirational words:

“An excellent Mage, possessing only a solid theoretical foundation and proficient, swift casting techniques, is far from enough… Whether in classrooms, laboratories, or libraries, what can be provided is merely rigid theoretical knowledge suitable for everyone. Those things truly suited to oneself can only be honed through practical combat experience. Experience gained in battle can never be learned in classrooms or libraries. Similarly, a Mage who spends all day in libraries and laboratories, even if able to touch the fourth or fifth layer of the Weave of Magic and swiftly cast powerful arcane arts, could very likely die by the hands of a Mage who only touches the third or even second layer of the magic weave but has rich practical combat experience…”

“It seems being a Mage isn’t so easy either…”

The Mage’s speech ended, and polite applause followed. Constantine’s gaze swept around, and he suddenly recalled scenes from his university’s graduation thesis defense…

“I don’t think I’ve seen you before. Which mentor’s apprentice are you?”

Being late wasn’t something worth boasting about. So before the youth’s thoughts finished, a young Mage clad in a glowing white robe had already approached from the side and asked.

“I don’t have a mentor. I am a Sorcerer.”

Constantine was slightly taken aback, then noticed the insignia on the other’s chest Mage badge. He seemed to already be a Formal Mage, probably someone maintaining order. So he answered honestly.

“Sorcerer?” As expected, this Mage frowned.

Mages usually didn’t get along well with these innate magic users. If a Mage matured early and started learning spells from childhood, there were quite a few who could barely touch the second layer of the magic weave in their teens. But Sorcerers who cast spells by talent didn’t need this process; once their ability awakened, they could use first-level spells on their own. However, Mages proud of their intellect always held a special contempt for these people who acted purely on feeling, much like how Nobles felt about the nouveau riche…

But this Mage’s temper was apparently rather mild. Although his voice grew colder, he still gave the youth a piece of friendly advice: “Even Sorcerers must have a recommendation from a Formal Mage to participate in the assessment… That person should count as your mentor. If you’re here for the test, then when you go on stage, the mentors will definitely ask this question. You’d better be careful.”

“Thank you.” Constantine responded with a smile and habitually rubbed the bridge of his nose.

If he directly answered that his recommendation was personally signed by Nikolai, would this guy in front of him jump right up? The youth smiled self-deprecatingly; that feeling would probably be quite satisfying. Unfortunately, drawing attention in such a setting wasn’t anything to be proud of… It would be a big hindrance to the goal he wanted to achieve.

Unfortunately, he soon discovered new hindrances had already appeared—the Mage on stage had just finished speaking, everyone was in the quiet moment before moving to the next procedure. His earlier conversation with the red-robed Mage seemed like a magic spell, instantly silencing the circle of Mage Apprentices around him. Then, buzzing whispers gradually rose.

“A Sorcerer, huh… Can such annoying upstarts also take the exam?”

“We risked our lives under our mentors for five years, others just need to awaken for a month to take the exam with us… Does even the great god Boccob make mistakes?”

“Probably can only cast a few spells. If you ask him to draw a basic scroll magic array, he’d probably blow himself up!”

Perhaps Mages all had the self-awareness of being highly cultured beings, but that probably didn’t include these youngsters before him. Even though the buzzing whispers only came from slightly farther away, the surrounding crowd’s silent and cold gazes already fully expressed disdain and contempt. Constantine, however, seemed oblivious. He smiled slightly, completely indifferent. Although these guys were also Mage Apprentices and, depending on the situation, might become his opponents later, ever since witnessing the abilities of that group of four apprentices, his opinion of these fellows hadn’t been very high.

But his behavior seemed to catch the attention of the young white-robed Mage before him. From the deep shadows of his hood, a thoughtful gaze swept over Constantine, seemingly impressed by the youth’s excellent self-control and composure, his expression remaining unmoved despite the whispers and scornful comments. He asked, “May I ask, what is your name, sir?”

“Just call me Constantine…” The Mages on stage seemed to have begun the next stage; apprentices started filing onto the stage one by one. So he answered with a smile and began preparing to move in that direction. Unexpectedly, this answer elicited a startled exclamation: “Constantine? The Sorcerer? Could you be that… Constantine from the Connallyvis Family?”

…

At least half the surrounding people’s gazes were fixed on him, as if even his robe of magic couldn’t block them. The youth’s brow furrowed tightly. He didn’t like this feeling of being famous, but at this moment he couldn’t do anything. He could only quicken his steps and approached the center of the stage.

On a huge pedestal, a set of exquisite models was placed.

This thing looked very much like the sand table models Constantine was very familiar with; in his previous life, he often saw similar things in urban planning courses. Only now, the buildings on that sand table weren’t the familiar PVC material skyscrapers, but some dilapidated ancient structures, corridors, passages, and tunnels dug in the sand. They formed intricate routes on the sand table, looking like a labyrinth… the kind children on Earth occasionally played with. Just compared to building blocks or sand, these things were made extremely finely, as if they were real objects shrunk down hundreds of times.

Archmage Nikolai’s Mage Tower’s test used the traditional labyrinth exploration. The only difference from tradition was that ordinary Mages generally used natural terrain for this kind of exam, but the master of this Mage Tower clearly possessed powerful strength and genius ideas—he actually created a miniature labyrinth.

Mage Apprentices entered through a teleportation circle. Various rewards were placed within this labyrinth, where they could explore… but the final victory condition was simply to survive. This test was relatively short, lasting a maximum of four hourglass hours. Those not eliminated within this time could be considered qualified.

Those who could find an item within the time limit and bring it out of the labyrinth would be considered the top winners; the item would be their reward. However, there were only three item rewards. Next was successfully exiting the labyrinth, and exceeding the time without exiting. Of course, if you didn’t leave but kept a treasure the whole time, that also counted as success, and an even higher level of victory.

Only, this was definitely not as easy as it sounded—the monsters in the labyrinth would naturally bring various troubles. Mages at this level didn’t have many spells per day. Dealing with monsters of this level wasn’t difficult, but having many of them was troublesome. Fellow contestants were also one of the obstacles; any means could be used within the labyrinth, including killing opponents.

In comparison, the rewards were exceptionally generous. Besides that Bequli Gem, there was a seemingly quite decent staff and a ring whose spell was a third-tier Dragon Breath, considered a very practical spell.

Of course, besides these tangible rewards, there were other rewards that made the Mages who had just shed their apprentice titles drool even more… The High-Rank Mages in the Mage Tower watched their performance through the sand table. If they could catch their favor, they would have the chance to receive guidance after the test, or even become their formal disciples… That was something even more precious than those magical materials.

Constantine, however, clearly wasn’t very interested in the latter. He already had a spell advisor by his side. Although Hartdiel had always performed rather poorly, the title of a centuries-old Lich wasn’t just for show. When it came to discussing the application of spells, he was ten times more advanced than those so-called High-Rank Mages who had only touched the fifth or sixth layer of the magic weave.

His target was only that Bequli Gem.

Actually, the labyrinth on this sand table didn’t look very complicated. Constantine only glanced at it briefly and had already outlined the simplest entry and exit routes. But he knew it would be completely different inside the labyrinth. Due to the different perspective, someone looking down at the labyrinth from above outside could not comprehend the feelings of someone inside the labyrinth. It was the classic case of being unable to see the forest for the trees.

“Final reminder: there are various monsters in the labyrinth’s passages. Which ones you encounter depends on luck. However, these are all relatively low-level; even with your abilities, you can deal with them easily. As long as you’re not too careless, there won’t be any danger. If truly unable to withstand, shout ‘give up’ loudly, and you’ll be teleported out. Remembered?” Before entering, the Mage in charge reminded everyone.

“What monsters are generally included?” Constantine asked. Although he had received some information about the test from Nikolai, there were no detailed explanations about the monsters.

“Nothing much,” the Mage said lightly. “Just some Kobolds, Goblins, though occasionally there might be an Ogre or a Minotaur or the like.”

This answer was as vague as Nikolai’s. And before Constantine could ask again, a nauseating blue light accompanied by dizziness—he was already sent into the labyrinth!

Constantine blinked hard. The sudden transition from light into a dark passage left him only able to see pitch blackness all around. Luckily, the vision granted by that unknown entity quickly took effect; the dark environment became as clear as under the afternoon sun. The youth steadied himself, guessing he had been sent to the labyrinth’s underground passages. These passages, as if they once belonged to part of a vast city, were actually built with beautiful marble, with gleaming floors, walls adorned with exquisite torches and valuable murals.

Constantine reached out and touched; the sensation on his fingertips made him suspect this wasn’t a model at all, but a real scene located in another space.

Steadying himself, Constantine began moving in one direction. The terrain there was relatively higher, and in the youth’s memory, the approximate area holding the Bequli Gem was somewhere on the surface. But after taking only a few steps, his pace suddenly slowed… He listened carefully. A faint noise reached his ears, making his brow habitually furrow. It was the sound of footsteps.

This exam process was quite well-considered. Thirty participating apprentices were placed in various corners of the labyrinth at random. The chance of meeting each other wasn’t small, but they definitely wouldn’t encounter each other right at the start… Therefore, the source of this sound could only be a monster.

Just as the youth made this judgment, the source of the footsteps appeared… Around a bend in the passage, a figure emerged.

It was about one meter tall, its whole body skin a pale green. Apart from being only half the height of a normal Human, it was almost exactly like a Human in other aspects. This creature wore crude clothes and armor, held a spear in one hand, and also carried a leather pouch. Looking at the bulging muscles on its limbs and its slender build, it was clearly an extremely agile and swift creature.

The creature’s head moved left and right, then suddenly turned towards Constantine’s direction. On its thick neck, its head was somewhat disproportionately large. Its face was covered in dense wrinkles, completely lacking anything resembling eyes. But in this pitch-black environment, it accurately sensed Constantine’s presence.

Croak! It let out a shrill cry and charged straight at Constantine!