Lord of Smoke and Dust"

Chapter17: Grade Assessment

Besides Fatty Bao Si, another friend that Sain knows inside and out, and with whom he can be close, is named Mary.

She is a little girl who arrived in the Dark Territories three years after Sain and Bao Si; she is only fourteen years old this year.

Although she is only fourteen, Mary's luck and talent are enough to make Sain jealous. Apart from her initial spiritual power, which was as high as 13 points, in the third year of her arrival at the Black Magic Academy, when she had just been promoted to a low-level apprentice, she was accepted as a disciple by a formal Black Mage.

The reason Sain has a close relationship with Mary, besides the above-mentioned origins, is that five years ago, during a dissection experiment class, he saved her life. Thanks to Sain's little act of kindness, he was able to say a few words to protect her from being dissected by Master Koslon.

It was that experience that made Mary, who had just arrived in the Dark Territories and had no one to rely on, completely acknowledge Sain as her big brother. Even after she became a disciple of the formal Black Mage Master Diirsi, she never broke off contact with Sain. In fact, the two of them would occasionally discuss academics after their public classes.

Master Diirsi is a famous alchemist, but unfortunately, this Master rarely appears in public classes to teach. Mary becoming his disciple was purely a matter of luck. Over the past half year, he has rarely appeared in the academy, probably due to some experiments or potion preparations with the guidance of Master Diirsi.

Mary and Bao Si are friends who know Sain well and are close to him. In addition to the reasons mentioned above, there is another reason: Sain himself carefully maintains and manages this friendship. In the Black Magic Academy, you can't really get by without a few helpers. Although Mary and Bao Si are not very strong, the former has a formal Black Mage as a mentor and also dabbles in alchemy. The latter has a wide network and business acumen. Many times, they can help each other and live well in the Black Magic Academy. It's all for survival. Sain is indeed very interested in the mysteries of magic and the truths held by the Black Mages. However, he knows that his primary goal is still to stay alive.

...

The location of the grade assessment is behind the largest teaching building of the Black Magic Academy, where there is a relatively spacious training ground. Many apprentices come here to practice when they are mastering a new spell. Sain still remembers that the first small flame he conjured was there. The Black Magic Academy's grade assessment does not have a very detailed set of regulations. The high-ranking Black Mages on top clearly don't have the energy to deal with these things. There are rarely more than four formal Black Mages attending the grade assessment every year. This year, just like last year, there are only three. In the vast training ground, more than five hundred magic apprentices have entered sporadically. This is almost 80% of the total number of magic apprentices in the Black Magic Academy, with the majority being novice and low-level apprentices. The number of intermediate apprentices is probably around seventy, and there are only ten or so high-level apprentices who have shown up. This is definitely not the total number of all the apprentices in the Black Magic Academy. For example, Sain knows that his senior sister Fira has also come to participate in this year's grade assessment, but his senior brother Zolo did not. In addition, there are always some apprentices who, for various reasons, are unable to participate. The Black Magic Academy has never forced all apprentices to participate in the grade assessment. After all, the grade assessment is a game for the strong. The weak... can be eliminated in the daily life of the Black Magic Academy. The specific content of the grade assessment is just dueling and one-on-one combat. Among apprentices of all levels, as long as they participate, they can fight recklessly, with no regard for life or death. Of course, you can also choose to challenge up a level. If you win, you will not only lock in the top three places directly on but also have a great chance to gain the recognition of several formal Black Mages present on the field. For novice apprentices, who have little knowledge of magic, low spiritual power and magic values, it's even possible that they can't even cast a single spell. So, in the circle of novice apprentices, what determines their ranking is either not using magic but being able to defeat or even kill their opponents, or being able to successfully cast a low-level spell. Even after Sain and Bao Si walked all over the training ground, they didn't see Mary, and Sain guessed she probably wouldn't come this time. "Are you going to compete for your rank this time?" Bao Si asked Sain in a low voice. By now, Sain had put on the pale mask. Facing Bao Si's question, Sain nodded and said, "My senior sister said there might be some good prizes for this academy assessment, so I should try to win some." Hearing this, Bao Si also nodded in agreement. Through the information obtained from other magic apprentices, Bao Si knew that besides this pale mask, Sain had a very powerful magic wand, which was the self-defense item given to him by his mentor Moses. With that wand in hand, Sain even had the strength to challenge the intermediate apprentices. After the grade assessment officially began, the three Black Mages who were seated on the highest viewing platform were also in position. "There are quite a few good seeds this year," one of the Black Mages seemed to sigh. First, he looked at the ten or so high-level apprentices, then at the intermediate apprentices, and finally roughly glanced at the low-level apprentices. As for the large number of novice apprentices, this Black Mage didn't even look at them. It's worth mentioning that, when he looked at the low-level magic apprentices, this Black Mage paused on Sain for half a second. He knew Sain. Sain and Lena made such a big commotion in Black Street two months ago, and one of the two formal Black Mages on the scene was him. There are not many Black Mages in the city of Losla, but there are not a few either. Almost every Black Mage has a position in the academy or some kind of responsibility. From a certain perspective, the city of Losla provides these Black Mages with a shelter and a place for communication, which benefits both the Black Mages and the city of Losla. So, in return, these selfish, self-willed Black Mages have to do something for the academy and the city of Losla. One big secret that most novice apprentices don't know is that the lord of Losla City is actually the mysterious and powerful dean of the Black Magic Academy. However, the dean has almost never appeared in the eyes of the apprentices, and even the formal Black Mages are rarely seen by him. At present, the Black Magic Academy is operating normally and has certain authorization from these Black Mages, provided by the three deputy deans. Sain previously contacted Dada Ron, one of them, and he was responsible for the supervision of many positions in the academy, including the observer from the Academy of Owls. The other two deputy deans also don't