"Mr. Karin!" Mage Kirkland looked distinctly displeased. "This Blue Crystal Orb is a magical instrument used to test whether a mage has reached the First Ring," he said sternly. "I don't think you have any use for it yet!"
"Well... Instructor Kirkland... I think I may have reached the First Ring too!" Karin replied calmly.
"The First Ring?" Mage Kirkland immediately gave Karin a skeptical look... He knew perfectly well that this young elf had joined the Apprentice Horde only two months ago, and had not even absorbed any water from the Sunwell at the magical gathering a month earlier...
"Karin, stop joking!" Oliver could not help speaking up beside him. "Don't expect to fool the Crystal Detector with some little trick. That's impossible!"
Oliver knew his friend Karin all too well. He simply could not believe that Karin had reached the First Ring in a mere month, so he assumed Karin intended to fool the detector with some little trick... Of course, Oliver had no idea that Karin Sunfury had acquired a different soul a month ago!
Meanwhile, Enclair nearly burst out laughing in the front row. He could not resist sneering, "Karin Sunfury, how long have you even been in the Apprentice Horde, and you're already claiming to have reached the First Ring? Do you think you're a genius like Prince Kael'thas... or did that group beat your brains out a month ago?"
Enclair's remarks immediately sent the other mage apprentices present into fits of laughter!
Apparently, no one in the Apprentice Horde believed Karin had reached the First Ring!
"Instructor Kirkland, may I give it a try?" Ignoring Oliver's warning, Enclair's mockery, and the other apprentices' doubts, Karin calmly extended his right hand.
"Very well, Mr. Karin. Good luck, then!" Faced with Karin's insistence, Mage Kirkland remained skeptical, but waved his staff.
The crystal orb that had been sitting on Enclair's desk flew over to Karin.
Karin reached out with his right hand and gripped the crystal orb tightly!
Immediately, he felt a powerful suction emanating from the crystal orb, holding his right hand fast... Karin instinctively relaxed his body, allowing the orb to sense the mana within him...
Blue light instantly poured from the crystal orb, shining even more brilliantly than when Enclair had held it...
"Karin, you really did reach the First Ring..." Oliver murmured, his mouth hanging open.
"That's impossible... Karin Sunfury... how could you?" Enclair's face was filled with shock!
After a brief moment of astonishment, Mage Kirkland's expression turned to delight. "Excellent, excellent, excellent!"
He said "excellent" three times in a row!
"Mr. Karin, you've done very well!" Mage Kirkland said excitedly. "Advancing to the First Ring in just two months is an impressive achievement anywhere in Quel'Thalas!"
"It's all thanks to your excellent teaching, Instructor Kirkland!" Karin said modestly.
"All right, children! I may have to excuse myself for now!" Beaming, Mage Kirkland suddenly spread his hands, signaling the mage apprentices to quiet down. "Two apprentices have crossed the threshold into the First Ring in just one month. This is a remarkable achievement, and I feel I must inform the Royal Court... This magical gathering will be postponed until three days from now. I hope you'll all follow the example set by Mr. Karin and Mr. Enclair..."
Before his words had even finished ringing out, Mage Kirkland strode out of the little house and soon disappeared from sight!
For an instructor like Kirkland, dispatched by the Royal Court, every apprentice he trained into a First Ring novice mage counted as an achievement! Producing two First Ring mages in a single month was an especially outstanding accomplishment, so he was eager to return to the Royal Court and report the news. He might even earn a promotion for it!
"Karin, how did you do it?" As soon as Mage Kirkland left, Oliver hurried over excitedly.
"Meditation!" Karin replied calmly. "Didn't Instructor Kirkland give me a book about meditation last time? I just followed its instructions, and before I knew it, I'd broken through... If you're interested, I can lend it to you!"
"Thank you, Karin!" Oliver said gratefully.
Karin had already added plenty of notes to Simple Meditation Insights based on the All-Knowing Eye's guidance! Since he and Oliver were such good friends, he had no intention of keeping it to himself... Whether Oliver had the perseverance to keep meditating and studying, however, was beyond his control!
"Impossible! That's impossible!" Enclair screamed hysterically nearby.
He glared furiously at Karin and demanded in a low voice, "Karin Sunfury, what exactly did you do to fool the Crystal Detector? How could an idiot like you reach the First Ring in so little time?"
Enclair considered advancing from mage apprentice to First Ring mage in two years something well worth being proud of. No matter what, he refused to believe that Karin Sunfury, that insecure idiot he had played for a fool a month earlier, had now broken through in just two months!
"Let's go, Oliver!" Karin ignored him and prepared to leave with Oliver.
"Karin, do you dare face me in a Mage's Duel?" Enclair's dark voice came from behind him.
"A Mage's Duel?" Karin repeated, puzzled.
Oliver explained quietly, "It's a set of rules for duels between mages. Both participants must be at least First Ring mages, and each can have one assistant. If you die, your assistant takes over... No one else is allowed to interfere!"
"Karin!" Oliver continued. "If you fought Enclair right now, what do you think your chances of winning would be?"
"According to the All-Knowing Eye's projections, if the host engages Enclair Morningwind in combat, the probability of victory is 91.2%!" The All-Knowing Eye's voice sounded in Karin's mind.
"Eighty or ninety percent!" Karin said confidently.
"Good... Then teach that bastard Enclair a proper lesson!"
With that, Oliver rushed up to Enclair. "On Karin's behalf, I accept your challenge to a duel. I'm his assistant. Oliver, who's your assistant?"