Wizard: Starting from the Skill Tree

Chapter 777 - 731: The Outcome

Someone immediately crowded around.

"Lord Visenfels!" A young Warlock in a White Cliff Academy uniform strode up, his tone full of obvious respect. "How did you do on the exam? Could you share it with us?"

Adrian tilted his head slightly and glanced at him.

"Not bad," he said, his tone casual.

"Not bad?" The Warlock was clearly not satisfied. "Please don’t be modest, everyone’s guessing how many you managed to absorb."

A few more people squeezed over, chiming in from all directions.

Adrian stopped walking. His gray-blue eyes swept over the expectant faces around him, and the corner of his lips lifted slightly.

"Six," he said.

The hall fell silent for a moment.

"Six?!" someone cried out in shock. "You absorbed six?"

"Three Water, three Fire." Adrian’s tone was still flat, as if he were commenting on the weather.

The crowd exploded.

"Six... and it’s three of each element..."

"Maintaining absorption of two Elements at the same time? What kind of Spiritual Power does that take..."

"My god, I nearly died just absorbing one..."

Adrian ignored the exclamations, merely gave a slight nod and continued walking inside.

Someone from the Star Tower side stood up to give him a seat. He thanked them politely and sat down with composure.

The discussions would not die down.

"Six... then the top score in this assessment is basically Lord Visenfels, isn’t it?"

"Do you even need to ask? Six. I don’t even dare to imagine that."

"So this is what an Elemental Mage with dual Water and Fire affinity Talent is like. We really can’t compare..."

Duke listened quietly, his face showing little expression.

After a while, Vera stood up from her seat by the window.

She walked very slowly, her steps still cold and unhurried.

But as she passed the crowd, someone still recognized her.

"Lady Vera!" A young Witch from a small West Coast faction hurried up, her tone carrying a hint of nervousness. "How... how did you do on the exam?"

Vera stopped.

She glanced at the Witch, her cool eyes devoid of much emotion.

"Five," she said.

Another sharp intake of breath sounded around them.

"Five? That Vera Wizard from the Thorn Holy Tower absorbed five?"

Vera ignored the chatter and continued forward, finding a seat not far from Adrian and sitting down.

After a while, Cecilia stood up from among the Star Tower people.

Her delicate face carried a faint trace of fatigue, but her eyes were still fairly bright. Someone immediately leaned over to ask.

"Lady Cecilia, what about you?"

Cecilia paused, then said softly, "Three."

"Three is already amazing!" someone beside her hurried to flatter. "After all, your main field is Astrology, elemental control isn’t your primary focus..."

Cecilia shook her head and said nothing more, sitting back down.

The discussions continued.

Duke sat quietly in the corner, listening to these voices as if listening to a play that had nothing to do with him.

Lis had, at some point, squeezed her way over.

She sat down next to Duke, her face wearing a look that was both tense and curious.

"Lord Duke." She lowered her voice. "How... how did you do on the exam?"

Duke turned his head and glanced at her.

"I should have passed," he said.

Lis blinked, as if waiting for him to say more. But Duke had already withdrawn his gaze and continued to sit quietly.

Lis hesitated for a moment and didn’t press further. She lowered her head and murmured, "I... I only absorbed one, I almost didn’t make it."

Duke didn’t speak.

Lis didn’t seem to need him to.

She went on by herself, "My Magic Model almost collapsed too. When I came out my legs were shaking..."

She babbled on and on, as if trying to pour out all the tension of those three hours. Duke just listened, occasionally giving a slight nod, without interjecting a single word from beginning to end.

After about a quarter of an hour, the small door at the front of the hall suddenly opened.

Aethlyn walked in.

She was still wearing that deep blue Magic Robe, her steps composed, a folded piece of parchment in her hand. Her eyes, deep as if holding an entire starry sky, slowly swept across the hall, and the once noisy auditorium instantly fell silent.

Everyone sat up straight.

Aethlyn walked to the podium and came to a stop.

She didn’t speak immediately, merely placed the parchment on the podium and gently unfolded it.

The hall was utterly silent.

"The assessment results are out." Her voice was not loud, but it carried clearly to every ear.

Her gaze swept across the hall once more. On that stunning face, no emotion could be read.

"Some of you surprised me," she said. "Surprised me... a lot."

The atmosphere in the hall abruptly tightened.

Some people subconsciously held their breath, some clenched the hem of their clothes, some lowered their heads, not daring to meet her eyes.

Even those Golden Continent students who had been chatting and laughing just now had put away their smiles.

Aethlyn glanced down at the parchment, then lifted her eyes.

"First, a few words off-topic."

Her voice was still calm, as if making small talk.

"This assessment is divided into two groups: Elemental Mages and Non-elemental Mages. The content of the assessment is different for the two groups, and the scoring criteria are different as well. The results for the Non-elemental Mages will be announced separately later."

She paused.

"So, the rankings I’m about to read apply only to Elemental Mages, starting with the top three."

Some people in the audience quietly let out a breath, while others frowned.

The students on the Non-elemental Mage path would clearly have to wait a bit longer.

"Third place."

Aethlyn’s voice did not waver.

"Vera Moon Shadow, Thorn Holy Tower. Five Crystal Stones: three Earth Element, two Water Element. Magic Model completion rate 91%, synchronization and coordination rating: excellent."