Correspondence Education Enrollment Invitation

"Detective, now that the incident caused by the Poet Level relic has been resolved, and I have helped you deal with the trouble of the former detective's death, let us return to the original topic."

The blue-eyed doctor in the single sofa looked at Shade:

"What do you think of Saint Byrens Comprehensive College now?

Because Ring Arcanist talents only awaken for seventy-two hours, the Orthodox Church and the Three Great Academies primarily recruit from among core believers and industries affiliated with the Academies. That also makes observation more convenient. But neither side minds taking in fresh blood completely unrelated to their own forces. It is simply different from cultivating gifted individuals who are already trustworthy."

"Then could you give an example of the treatment people like us—ordinary people originally unrelated to the mysterious—would receive after joining the Church or an Academy?"

Shade considered the question, chewing over its meaning. It seemed only reasonable that he would not be fully trusted.

"Of course. For the Orthodox Church, Ring Arcanists who are not devout believers may not leave their diocese during the first ten years after successfully taking office, and the support they receive from the Church is also limited. It takes at least twenty years before they can be fully trusted.

"As for the Three Great Academies, the conditions are somewhat more complicated. We use Correspondence Education to train gifted individuals who originally did not belong to the mysterious world.

"All outside students receive instruction through Correspondence Education. They cannot directly contact the Academy itself, much less enter it. Correspondence Ring Arcanists are divided into different groups according to region, with three to seven people per group. Once a group has at least one Sixth Ring Arcanist, one Fifth-Ring Arcanist, and one Fourth Ring Arcanist, while also having more than five members, the entire group may pass the test and truly enter the Academy. It must be the whole group; no one may be abandoned. This ensures that the group members supervise and vouch for one another."

As the doctor explained, Shade raised an eyebrow.

"If I join Saint Byrens Comprehensive College..."

Doctor Schneider nodded, acknowledging Shade's guess, and pointed at himself.

"Then the group I belong to will once again have five Ring Arcanists. We currently have four members. It would not be convenient to disclose the others' information before you join, but I promise that we will not undergo the formal enrollment test until you have reached the Third Ring at the very least. After all, we are still far from meeting the other requirements."

That was why Bill Schneider had been so enthusiastic about guiding Shade into the Academy. "Wild" gifted individuals were truly hard to find—perhaps only slightly less difficult than finding a needle in the ocean.

Seeing that Shade was still thinking, the doctor continued:

"Mr. Hamilton, I am very satisfied with you—your background, your origins, and your attitude toward the mysterious. When we witnessed that terrible scene together a few hours ago, the pity you showed and the calm you pretended to have were both quite good. Please consider my proposal carefully. The conditions here are very good."

"I do not understand. Why are the Orthodox Church and the Academies so... wary of people like us?"

Shade remained hesitant. In the early stages of entering this world, an Outlander found it difficult to trust others easily.

"You have not yet become a Ring Arcanist, so you do not understand how dangerous this world is. The world is like a mad ocean, while the world of ordinary people is merely a tiny island. Ring Arcanists can venture into that deep sea and gain more, but that also makes them more susceptible to madness, more easily twisted by the whispers of evil things and nature's malice. Even though we have Another Me to resist those distortions and strange things together, Ring Arcanists who were not cultivated from a young age are more likely to take one wrong step and lose control completely. That would be quite a horrifying matter."

The doctor gave only a brief explanation, as though he did not dare speak too clearly. Shade, meanwhile, felt that this world's foundations might not merely involve steam and mysticism; it might also contain rules of agnosticism, or perhaps Cthulhu culture.

"Then is it possible to naturally become a Ring Arcanist without undergoing guidance and training?"

Shade asked again.

"Absolutely impossible. You do not understand Ring Arcanists, nor do you know what they truly are. We mentioned this in the morning: during the seventy-two hours after a Ring Arcanist's talent awakens, many things can happen without guidance. In most cases, they go mad. In a small number of cases, they die. With an extremely tiny probability, they become strange things—monsters of piled flesh, madly howling spirits. Roughly speaking, the kind of terrifying existence that would give you nightmares after a single glance."

Upon hearing the doctor's words, Shade completely understood the situation. He straightened up and summarized:

"My time is running out. I must make a choice as soon as possible. And if I refuse to join Saint Byrens Comprehensive College, you definitely will not let me leave with today's memories."

Shade looked at the doctor. The blue-eyed doctor nodded cautiously.

"I introduced this from the beginning: students of the Three Great Academies conceal their identities in areas where the Orthodox Church is present. Yes, if you refuse, I will use certain methods that are inconvenient to mention to erase your memories. I am skilled at manipulating emotions and dreams, so I am also skilled at altering memories. Of course, that is because you are merely an ordinary person. It would not be so easy with a Ring Arcanist."

Shade did not take the doctor's words as a threat. These methods were all for self-protection, and Shade understood that no one was obliged to accommodate him.

"If you erase today's memories, I will not know about the seventy-two-hour limit either."

He analyzed further.

"Yes. I think Tobesk City's Mental Sanatorium may have a new guest soon. But do not worry. I have acquaintances among the staff at every Mental Sanatorium in Tobesk City. I am joking, Detective. We can relax a little."

The doctor evaluated him cautiously.

"I will not force you to choose Saint Byrens Comprehensive College, the Academy I belong to. But as adults, we must all pay the price for our choices. Besides, compared to the Church, becoming a Correspondence Ring Arcanist is actually somewhat freer. Once an ordinary person like you, who is not a Believer, enters the Church's training system, you will certainly receive the Church's care, but you will also lose your freedom of movement.

"But Correspondence Ring Arcanists are different. As long as we pass the examinations each semester, earn enough required credits, complete practical work, earn enough Practical Credit, and do not do things like murder or arson, the Academy does not care what we do.

"Now, do you understand the difference between Academy Faction Ring Arcanists and the Church's Ring Arcanists?"

"I understand."

Shade nodded. Judging solely from the doctor's account, the Academy indeed had more advantages.

"The Three Great Arcane Academies are Saint Byrens Comprehensive College, which specializes in relic containment and utilization; Zaras Academy of Literature, which specializes in Thaumaturgy involving the development of Elemental Spirit Runes—that is, the use of magic from stories; and Serkeses Higher Medical College, which understands everything but is particularly adept at alchemy.

"Mr. Hamilton, this is not only my opportunity, but yours as well. Do you know how rare an opportunity it is to enter the Ring Arcanist training system through proper channels rather than through cult organizations and secret societies?"

The doctor spoke again. His profession had made him very skilled at persuading others.

The hesitant Shade nodded again. Though the original owner's mind had probably not been very useful, he was an Outlander from another world. Even though he was only in his twenties, he had his own judgment.

"Then how will you prove that everything you have said so far is true? All the information I have received up to now has come from you."

Shade asked very seriously.

Although he was doubting the doctor, Doctor Schneider was instead quite pleased. This meant that the young man before him was interested.

"I can apply to the Academy for that Poet Level relic to prove what I have said. But once I do so, the Academy will know that I have discovered a new gifted individual here. The Academy will not force you to enroll, but it will definitely record your identity information. So, would you like to come into contact with the Poet Level relic, Saint Byrens Comprehensive College's Dream?"

"May I think it over? Give me two hours? No, one hour. I want to carefully consider everything that happened today."

There was too much information for Shade to make a decision immediately. But he was inclined to believe the doctor in his heart, which was why he asked for time to think.

"No Problem. After all, that is far too much information for an ordinary person. You may think here, or you may leave. I happen to have some Trivial Matters to handle as well, so we will..."

The doctor looked at the clock in the corner of the room. Beneath the pendulum in its glass case was a heart-shaped metal piece.

"Meet here at two in the afternoon."

"No Problem. I will stay right here."

Shade said. It made no difference Where They Are when he thought. If the doctor intended to harm him, he would not have needed to wait until now. The sanatorium Just Now had been an excellent place to kill someone.

"If you remain here, there are some Academy enrollment materials that are inconvenient to take outside. You may look through them. I will return after I finish handling my affairs. If you need anything, you may ask Mrs. Carla for help."

Mrs. Carla was the middle-aged maid who had served the tea earlier.