"Don't say that. Don't you want to know who attacked you?"
Elan's next words piqued Fran's interest. She asked:
"Then you know...?"
"I don't."
"Then why did you say...?"
Elan straightened his sleeve before continuing:
"I don't know exactly who attacked you, but I can be certain that it was the high-ranking apprentices."
"Why?"
Elan pointed at the battered transmutants on the ground and explained:
"The mastermind used these transmutants to attack you because he didn't want to expose his identity, so he specifically acquired a batch from the Transmutation School... Of course, it's also possible that he belongs to the Transmutation School himself."
"You may not know this yet, but among high-ranking apprentices, those who have only recently advanced are fine—they won't be targeted much. But those with a certain level of strength will be attacked frequently."
"For those high-ranking apprentices, becoming formal Mages is their greatest pursuit. And to achieve that goal, the best way is to take part in assessments and earn a ranking, then use the precious resources awarded by that ranking to improve themselves."
"Every rank is of vital importance. To them, obtaining a higher rank means more chances to advance to become formal Mages."
Elan continued:
"To them, settling who is superior in the assessments alone isn't enough. They also attack others outside the assessments."
"What they think is, if I take that person out outside the assessment, won't my rank rise?"
"So do you understand now? They'll attack anyone strong once."
Fran understood. Elan was reminding her that the mastermind behind this attack was not important. Even if they dragged him out, others would still attack her.
With a smile, Elan said:
"Actually, you wouldn't have been attacked this early. The problem is that your reputation has grown rather large lately, and you