I Seem to Have... Finished?

As soon as Steampunk finished speaking, a low murmur rippled through the crowd.

"A complete runic structure?"

Ike chewed on his rough fingernail, brows knitted, his eyes full of uncertainty.

"I've only learned the basic Runic Frame so far, along with a few Mana circuit connections..."

"As for constructing the central core, I can barely understand it when I look at one, let alone carve it."

Although he was a first-level apprentice, he had poured all his time and resources into reaching that level.

He had only learned a little about everything else.

Meanwhile, on the Cain Wizard Tower's side,

Locke turned slightly and glanced at Kathy beside him before asking in a low voice,

"Kathy, are you confident?"

Kathy pushed up the oversized glasses that were almost sliding off her nose. Her voice trembled slightly.

"My Runic Studies rating is only 0.5... I can just about design a complete small rune, like 'Glimmer.'"

"But... I've never tried carving one into bone."

At that, Locke's brows furrowed even more deeply.

"My Runic Studies rating is 0.6. Designing a rune shouldn't be a problem."

"The difficulty is that bone isn't flat like rune paper. Its surface is curved, and it has pores inside."

"Hardness and pressure are problems, too."

Across from them, Joyce and Virgil of the Blazing Sun Wizard Tower were also communicating rapidly with their eyes.

As elites carefully cultivated by the Blazing Sun Tower, both of them had already reached the astonishing Runic Studies rating of 0.9.

Among all the first-year students, that level was an absolute rarity.

It was also the biggest reason they dared to come here today and make a scene.

Joyce lowered his voice, a hint of wariness in his tone.

"Be careful. The other side might tamper with the carving knives and bones."

"I'll start working out a rune that's small enough yet complete, so we can crush them with the elegance of our design."

Virgil immediately nodded, a vicious glint in his eyes.

"Fine. I'll check the materials and carving knives."

Then he turned to the burly Corpse Collector Apprentices behind him and gave them a look.

The apprentices nodded knowingly, grinning maliciously.

Just then, Steampunk spoke again, still wearing his professional smile.

"Since most of you are new students and may not be very familiar with Runic Studies yet..."

"This competition is sponsored exclusively by the Sko Chamber of Commerce. Every participant will receive a Purple Diamond Carving Knife enchanted with 'Sharpness'!"

"These knives cut through bone like mud, making carving as easy as possible."

"As for the bones..."

Steampunk snapped his fingers.

With a clatter—

Several shop assistants stepped forward and dumped two large sacks of treated bones onto the open ground in front of the shop.

The bones came in all shapes and sizes: skulls, leg bones, ribs, and even some animal bones.

"To keep students who know nothing about Runic Studies from wasting everyone's time..."

"Everyone must first have their Runic Studies level verified by me."

"The minimum requirement to participate is a Runic Studies rating of 0.3."

At that, the crowd, which had been eager to try, fell silent.

Many low-level apprentices who had been rubbing their hands together in anticipation wilted like flowers in a frost.

Ike, who had been looking especially eager, was among them.

"Damn it..."

Ike clenched his fists, his eyes full of frustration.

"That Purple Diamond Carving Knife is worth 3,000 Purple Gold Coins! And it's enchanted!"

"Just getting to touch it would give me enough to brag about for ages!"

He sighed and turned to Tylen beside him, forcing a wry smile.

"Well, that settles it. We'd better just watch from the sidelines."

"This kind of high-level competition has nothing to do with us."

But the next second, Ike froze.

He realized that Tylen had somehow left his side and was walking toward the competition area with the two noble apprentices ahead of them.

"Hey! Magnus, what are you doing?!"

Ike hurriedly called after him in a hushed voice, afraid the guy would embarrass himself by getting kicked out for not knowing the rules.

Tylen turned around and grinned at Ike, showing a row of white teeth.

"My level's high enough. I want to give it a try!"

"Huh?!"

Ike's mind went completely blank.

That timid guy who usually kept his head down and did nothing but collect corpses had already reached a Runic Studies rating of 0.3?

Ike himself hadn't even made it to 0.1!

There were only twelve apprentices walking toward the competition area.

The Cain Wizard Tower had just four: Kathy, Locke, Tylen, and a short, freckle-faced boy.

The Blazing Sun Wizard Tower, by contrast, had eight participants.

The difference in numbers alone was enough to show the enormous gap between the two sides in the quality of their students.

The twelve lined up in front of Steampunk for their level certification.

When Kathy and Locke saw Tylen, they both looked surprised.

They vaguely remembered him as the low-level apprentice who had once received Teacher Makley's special permission to sit in on lessons.

But after the other noble students had ostracized and despised him, he had stopped showing up.

Who would've thought he'd meet the entry requirement?

Just then, two burly men in the Blazing Sun Tower's group grinned and eyed Tylen with open hostility.

"Well, look who it is. The Cain Tower's Corpse Collector Apprentice, the one we chased off like a dog."

"What, did picking up corpses give you some confidence? You dare show your face here and make a fool of yourself?"

Tylen raised his head and calmly looked the two men over.

They were the same two who had fought him over the corpse of a pedestrian hit by a carriage a few days ago.

Before Tylen could speak, a cold glint flashed in Locke's eyes. He snapped,

"You filthy-mouthed dogs."

"You're a bunch of losers who only pick on people when you outnumber them, and you still dare to run your mouths here?"

Joyce, who was leading the other side, snorted and glanced at Locke.

"Sara, why are you in such a hurry?"

"Let the low-level apprentices sort out their own business."

"You're a noble. Are you really going to meddle in commoners' affairs like those losers? That's beneath you."

Locke's expression darkened. He was about to retort when the burly man grinned and taunted him even more brazenly.

"What's wrong, little puppy? Cat got your tongue?"

Just then, Tylen, who had been silent until now, spoke.

A calm, almost unsettlingly easygoing smile remained on his face. His tone was as casual as if he were discussing the weather.

"I'm not scared."

"I was just wondering: if we duel later and I kill you, will I have to pay the guards for it?"

At those words, the air around them seemed to freeze for several seconds.

There was no angry shouting or heated argument.

Only a matter-of-fact indifference, as if he were stating something that had already been decided.

Locke and Kathy couldn't help glancing at the apprentice who was usually so easy to overlook. For some reason, they felt a chill creep through them.

The burly man paused, then burst out laughing as if he'd just heard the funniest joke in the world.

"Good! You've got guts!"

"Don't run when you lose. Grandpa here will teach you a thing or two about the rules!"

Soon, all twelve participants had completed their level certifications.

When Steampunk checked Tylen's rating, a glint flashed in his sharp eyes.

He quickly composed himself, once again wearing his professional smile. But his last trace of worry had finally vanished.

"Certification approved."

The competition was about to begin.

More than a hundred onlookers had gathered around the area.

There were curious apprentices, passersby, all kinds of mercenaries, and even some working official wizard apprentices who had stopped to watch.

The twelve participants were soon handed Purple Amethyst Carving Knives.

Tylen gripped the familiar knife and felt its just-right weight and balance.

Teacher really thought of everything.

He must've been worried that switching knives would throw off my feel for it.

Next came the bone selection.

Throughout the process, Joyce and Virgil watched the four participants from the Cain Wizard Tower like a pair of venomous snakes, afraid they might try something.

The five minutes allotted for choosing bones passed in a flash.

With their quick eyes and hands, Joyce and Virgil snatched two relatively large, flat hip bones.

These were best suited for carving a rune array.

Kathy got a smaller hip bone, while Locke chose an intact skull.

As for Tylen...

He had just set his sights on a decent shoulder blade when the burly man deliberately shoved him aside and took it.

He reached for a rib, only to be blocked by another Blazing Sun Tower apprentice.

Despite the obvious targeting, Tylen remained calm and unfazed.

After they had shoved him around several times, he seemed to pick up a thin, elongated shinbone at random, as if he had no other choice.

The burly man immediately looked smug and taunting, as though he had already won.

Watching from a distance, Virgil nodded to himself.

He had just learned from one of his men that the kid had mastered Magic Thorn Art and might be a hidden threat. That was why he had arranged for his men to target him at every turn.

Now that he saw the other boy angrily choose a shinbone—one of the hardest bones to carve, and relatively tough in texture—he finally relaxed.

"Shinbones are hard and thin, with a heavily curved surface. They're completely unsuitable for carving flat runes."

"This guy's no threat at all."

"Begin!"

At Steampunk's command, the atmosphere instantly grew tense.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, the participants quickly got to work.

Joyce and Virgil lived up to their reputations as elites. Their carving knives flashed back and forth, their movements fluid and confident. They had clearly come prepared.

Kathy and Locke worked more slowly, but they were steady, carefully tracing lines onto the bones.

Time passed bit by bit.

Soon, half the sand in the hourglass had run out.

Thirty minutes had passed.

Most of the participants were still sweating over their rune connection points. Some even cracked their bones by pressing too hard and were left frustrated.

Just then, a calm voice that felt strangely out of place broke the silence.

"I think... I'm done?"

The voice wasn't loud, but in the quiet competition area, it rang out like thunder.

Everyone turned in shock, their eyes converging on him.

Tylen stood there, holding the thin shinbone, looking a little dazed.

His expression seemed almost bewildered, as if he were asking:

That's it?