"Self-taught?"
Those two words piqued Bev's interest.
In her understanding, magic was synonymous with luxury, forever tied to expensive tutors, a well-off family background, and costly tomes.
Someone from a commoner background teaching himself magic?
That sounded far too unusual.
Just as Bev wanted to ask more, a wooden door on the right side of the hall opened.
A mage wearing a monocle beckoned to Bev and Zeliel.
"Your turn."
The place for the examination was a room called the Chamber of Serenity.
The surrounding walls were built from white stone, and a crystal pillar stood in the center, giving the place a sacred air.
The mage in charge of the evaluation adjusted his monocle and spoke clearly.
"My name is Marvin Kofiler, a High Mage and the examiner for your assessment."
It seemed like he was introducing himself to both of them, but Marvin was really only speaking to Zeliel.
Judging by Bev's expression, she had known Instructor Marvin for a long time.
"My name is Zeliel." Zeliel placed one hand over his chest and gave a slight bow.
When Marvin heard that Zeliel had no surname, he was mildly surprised, but the expression quickly vanished from his face.
"All right, Uncle Marvin, hurry up and begin." Bev urged him.
Marvin glanced at Bev, looking somewhat helpless.
"Bev, this is already your third time taking the mage assessment this month. If you fail again, I'll have to put you in a ninety-day cooling-off period."
Bev pursed her lips, and her voice grew noticeably quieter.
"I'll definitely pass this time..."
"The Magic Apprentice assessment is very simple. First comes the magic power test, followed by spellcasting proficiency. I'll judge whether you qualify based on the process."
Marvin raised his palm toward the crystal pillar. "Bev, you first."
"Good luck." Zeliel smiled and encouraged Bev.
Bev clenched her fists and nodded firmly.
"Mm!"
She removed her pale purple mage robe and set it aside together with her wand.
Items that could amplify magic power were not allowed during the assessment.
Bev took a deep breath, walked up to the crystal pillar, pressed her small hand against it, and infused it with magic power.
This crystal pillar was made of material similar to the crystal ball the guard had taken out at the entrance, except it was purer and could clearly determine the intensity of one's magic power.
A blue glow lit up from the bottom and gradually rose, slowly reaching Bev's waist.
She gritted her teeth and desperately poured more magic power into it. The blue light rose a little further before finally stopping.
Zeliel estimated it visually.
About... a little over one meter?
Around 1.2 or 1.3 meters.
Marvin gave it a glance.
"Not bad. Barely passes."
The corners of Bev's lips curled up, and a delighted smile appeared on her pretty face.
"Woohoo!"
Last time, she had not even passed the magic power test.
Next, it was Zeliel's turn.
He likewise placed his palm against it. Blue light emerged from the base of the crystal pillar and shot upward.
Not only was it much faster than Bev's, but it soon surpassed the height she had reached.
Bev blinked, seemingly unable to believe what she was seeing.
Marvin was also somewhat surprised, and his gaze at Zeliel gained a few more layers of meaning.
In the end, the blue light stopped slightly below Zeliel's chest, twenty to thirty centimeters higher than Bev's.
"Not bad."
Marvin nodded approvingly. "Your magic power intensity fully meets the Magic Apprentice standard, with some room to spare."
"Thank you for the compliment." Zeliel withdrew his hand.
With a Spirit attribute of 71, it really was more than enough for the requirements of a Magic Apprentice.
If Zeliel chose Spell Surge among his talent skills, the light on the crystal pillar would probably rise even higher.
"You... really taught yourself?" Bev muttered under her breath.
He was actually better than her.
Next, Marvin would test their spellcasting proficiency, with Bev going first again.
The process was simple as well. They only needed to cast magic they were proficient in, and Marvin would evaluate it.
Bev extended her palm forward and began mobilizing magic power to form a spell structure in her mind.
Marvin narrowed his eyes slightly and carefully observed Bev's casting process.
"Whoosh!"
The air suddenly warped slightly, and a pale cyan blade of wind slashed forward!
Wind Blade.
Although there was no wooden target or anything similar to quantify its destructive power, Zeliel felt that the attack was quite powerful—at least comparable to an ordinary sword slash.
Next, Bev began forming a second spell structure.
After roughly six or seven seconds, bright light bloomed in her palm.
With Bev's movements, the light could also gather into a sphere and float high in the air, illuminating a larger area.
Illumination.
After resting briefly, Bev began forming her third spell.
This time, a water ball the size of a human head gradually gathered before her.
With a loud "bang," the water ball shot forward at tremendous speed and struck the wall.
Water Ball.
"Huff... huff..."
Casting three spells in succession had clearly taken a toll on Bev. She panted lightly and looked toward Marvin.
"How was that, Instructor Marvin?"
"Looks like you've been working hard lately."
Marvin nodded slightly. "You passed, Bev. From now on, you are a Magic Apprentice."
"That's great!" Bev was overjoyed.
Bev was not the only one happy. Zeliel was quite pleased as well, because he clearly saw three more progress bars appear beneath Spell Structure Evolution.
Wind Blade, analysis progress—2%.
Illumination, analysis progress—2%.
Water Ball, analysis progress—2%.
This talent skill was truly useful. It saved him from spending money and effort obtaining magic scrolls himself.
Moreover, compared to a relatively complex spell like Mistflow Veil, the three spells Bev had cast were clearly being analyzed much faster.
They had reached 2% progress the moment they joined the queue. They would probably be fully analyzed in just a few days.
"Your turn, Zeliel." Marvin gestured.
Zeliel stepped forward and exhaled softly. The spell structure of Fireball appeared in his mind.
Magic power spread along its predetermined path, ready to flow.
But at that moment, Zeliel suddenly froze as he made an unexpected discovery.
Within his mind, the originally complete spell structure of Fireball actually contained some redundant parts that seemed unnecessary to him.
Those winding, redundant sections could be changed into straight structures that would allow magic power to flow faster.
What was going on...
Zeliel could not help feeling puzzled.
He had never had this sensation when casting Fireball before.
However, Zeliel did not dwell on it. Following his instincts, he modified those redundant portions and successfully completed the spell structure.
Before you continue