Inside the Barrier.
Clad in a pristine white robe, Lernen stood silently before the grand hall doors, his gaze calmly observing the candidates gathered beyond the barrier.
However, upon glancing to his side, he noticed his senior, Gut, seemed distracted and absent-minded, so he curiously asked,
"Senior? Are you thinking about something?"
"Ah?"
Gut, called upon, blinked for a moment before responding with a nod.
"Yeah, just thinking about a few things."
Gut lifted the massive magic tome in his hand. "After all, I already boasted in front of Teacher Serie that I'd master this within three years."
"I was really fired up at the time, but now that I think about it… I'm starting to have some doubts."
"It's certainly a formidable task," Lernen affirmed.
Having once served as a Court Mage, Lernen had firsthand experience decoding and studying Mythical Era Magic, and he was deeply aware of the challenge it posed.
Judging by the sheer thickness of this tome, even under ideal conditions—no language or conceptual barriers, and full familiarity with all referenced magical theories—it would still take an exceptional mage two to three years to fully digest.
But Gut's tome wasn't a product of the current era—it was written during the Mythical Era.
No one could accurately trace how many linguistic, lexical, and symbolic transformations had taken place since then.
Take for example the magical notes of the Mythical Era Sage—Ewig, unearthed from a grave just a few decades ago: the contents had long been indecipherable, written in a script even older than Ancient Elvish, filled with pictographic ciphers.
Because people of that era often recorded magic using visual riddles, decrypting and learning from them became exponentially harder.
As Lernen knew, after decades of fruitless attempts, the Empire had sent a handwritten copy of the notes to Saint City Strahl, seeking help from Bishop Heita to crack them.
And even all of that only touched on the difficulty of understanding the book. The actual magical theories from the Mythical Era were even more troublesome.
Before the great mage Flamme established a unified magical doctrine during the Unified Empire Era, humanity's magical theories were chaotic and disorganized.
Despite sharing core principles, they were cluttered with subjective views and various interpretations—making them extremely difficult to learn.
"Senior, if you're feeling overwhelmed, why not talk to Teacher Serie and explain? Apologize, maybe?"
"With your talent, and Teacher Serie's guidance, five years would be a much more reasonable goal."
"No."
Gut shook his head. "It's too late. I now have a reason why I must complete this on time."
"Let's change the topic—Lernen, do you think Teacher will find a suitable disciple today?"
One hour earlier.
After Gut promised Serie and accepted the task of assisting in the examination, the system triggered two notifications.
[Ding!]
[Main Quest Unlocked]
(Completing main quests grants random items and chances to extract, revoke, gift, copy, or upgrade talents.)
[Main Quest: Three-Year Deadline]
Objective: Complete the introductory portion of [Curse Reversal Magic] within the agreed timeframe.
Rewards: System Scanning Module, 1x Talent Extraction, 1x Talent Copy
[Main Quest: Examination Support (Part 1)]
Objective: Assist Teacher Serie in the first Continental Magic Association mage examination
(Note: This main quest has two phases: the Äußerst Branch Examination and the Saint City Strahl Headquarters Examination)
Rewards: 1x Random Interdimensional Item, 2x Talent Extraction
If it were just ordinary rewards, Gut could've let it go.
If things didn't work out, he could apologize to Teacher Serie like Lernen suggested.
But this promise triggered a Main Quest, and the "Three-Year Deadline" reward was a whole system module.
Though he didn't know exactly what the System Scanning Module could analyze, anything that could upgrade his cheat system was something he couldn't let slip by.
And truthfully, Gut wasn't entirely unconfident about his three-year goal.
Thanks to years of monastic life and experience copying countless ancient texts, Gut had surprisingly little trouble understanding Mythical Era script.
On top of that, his own strong magical aptitude was further boosted by the Mythical Mage's Disciple trait, granting him enhanced intellect and comprehension.
Most importantly, he had Serie, the legendary "Magic Oldie," by his side for guidance.
Combined, these advantages made the Three-Year Deadline an extremely difficult quest—but not an impossible one.
Besides, the rewards from completing a Main Quest were tantalizing.
Talent Extraction, Talent Upgrades, Items from Other Worlds—any of them might help Gut in reaching his goal.
One way or another, he'd push until the very end.
"Senior, you're asking if anyone will pass Teacher Serie's interview today…"
"I think there's a good chance. Not only have talented mages from nearby nations come, but considering the Association's early-stage staff shortages, Teacher might be more lenient in accepting new disciples."
Lernen gave a serious response, but Gut's mind had already wandered elsewhere.
Looking at the group of early-arriving candidates gathered outside the barrier, Gut pulled out the ring from his pocket and handed the barrier terminal to Lernen.
"Senior? What's this?"
"Hold the barrier for me. I'll be back in about an hour."
"Eh? O-Okay…"
Though both were instructed by Teacher Serie to help maintain exam order, Lernen, being a bit timid, didn't protest. He accepted the barrier terminal from Gut.
Leaving the exam hall, Gut made no delay.
He ran directly to the largest bakery in town, pulled out several Strahl silver coins, and handed them to the clerk.
He bought two whole baskets of freshly baked baguettes—at least thirty or forty loaves.
Having skipped breakfast, Gut immediately bit into one and, munching as he walked, headed straight back toward the exam site.