In a spacious room filled with various kinds of instruments, bookshelves, and scattered papers sat Gilgamel on the complex magic circle drawn on the floor.
With his eyes closed, he breathed rhythmically through his nose. A faint four-colour light surrounded him as he swallowed, gradually enveloping his entire body.
Time passed without him realizing it as the four-colour light poured steadily into him.
When he opened his eyes, a sense of joy filled his gaze.
"I finally reached level 7!"
At the same time, a layer of information appeared before his eyes.
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Name: Gilgamel Shad
Race: Human
Affiliation: Owl
Profession: Wizard
Sub-Profession: Potioneer (Tier-0)
Age: 16
Level: 7 (Zero Circle Wizard)
Attribute: Earth, Wind, Fire, Water
Ability: Appraisal
Magic Spell
Basic: Telekinesis (Max)
Tier-0: Earth Wall (Max), Hardened (Max), Air Bullet (Max), Levitate (Max), Fireproof (Max), Ignition (Max), Water Heal (75%), Purify (Max).
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It took Gilgamel five years to reach level 7, while other members of his age had already reached this level long ago. Some were even just one step away from reaching level 10 and becoming a First Circle Wizard.
Different talents led to different results.
However, that doesn't matter. Although Gilgamel's level was far behind, his mastery of magic spells was superior to anyone else in his batch. He was confident about this!
Gilgamel was well aware that mediating would not bring as satisfying results as others, so he dedicated more time to practicing magic spells.
He possesses exceptional appraisal skills that allow him to analyze information effectively, particularly in mastering various magic spells.
For instance, to master the Earth Wall spell, he must practice on hard ground, as the toughness of the surface significantly impacts the magic spell's effectiveness. Although challenging, successfully creating an earth wall from a sturdy foundation can lead to substantial improvements in his mastery level of this particular magic.
Similarly, to achieve results comparable to those of Earth Wall, he must practice the Hardened on liquid or soft soils, such as mud.
The Air Bullet spell requires training in conditions with high wind pressure, while the Levitate spell necessitates practice in environments with heavy gravity.
For Fireproof, Gilgamel needs to build his heat endurance, making a volcano an ideal training location. The Ignition should be practiced under high water pressure conditions, and Purify requires him to clean a dirty swamp regularly.
Water Heal presents a unique challenge, as it relies on practice under specific conditions rather than environmental factors. To enhance this magic spell's mastery, Gilgamel needs to frequently heal injured individuals. However, there are only two locations within the Owl where injuries occur often: the Training Field and the Magic Arena. Despite his regular visits to both venues, he has found his progress to be less than satisfactory.
With the First Trial approaching in just a week, Gilgamel is concerned about whether he can elevate Water Heal's proficiency to its maximum level. Having spent two years achieving a 75% mastery, he realizes that completing this task in only a week may be unrealistic.
'.. Maybe I should bomb this castle to harvest a lot of wounded?'
Gilgamel rubbed his chin, deep in thought. After a moment, he shook his head and quietly said, "I probably can't do that."
Nevermind...
As a Potioneer, he wasn't too worried about getting hurt. He could compensate for any injuries with his potions if his healing magic spell were still imperfect.
Even though he was only a Tier-0 Potioneer, he had mastered many Tier-0 potions. Healing potions belonged to the common category. Making them was as easy as baking a cake.
"Ah, I can't cook..."
***
The Magic Arenas are colossal structures that exceed 100 meters in height, making them ten times bigger than Wembley Stadium. They are the venue where Owl members duel or challenge the strongest. Due to its popularity, the arenas are always filled with crowds on a daily basis.
Gilgamel sat on the bleachers with his popcorn. Dodo joined him, looking bored as it sat next to him.
Personally, he didn't like fighting, but watching other people fight was a different story. Apart from entertainment, he could also indirectly gain insight and experience about battle.
However, rather than being a spectator, Gilgamel usually came to this place as a doctor and worked in the infirmary to treat the injured participants and watch the fight on the screen in the infirmary.
Today, because he heard there was a big match, he ended up in this audience seat. After all, watching from a screen and watching in person is a different feeling.
Then again, even though Gilgamel heard about the big fight, he didn't know whose fight it was. So, he couldn't help but ask the audience next to him.
"How can you not know? It's the fight between Farad and Magnus!"
The answer caused Gilgamel to react as if he had just swallowed bitter medicine.
"Those two maniacs?"
In Gilgamel's generation, five individuals were considered leaders. They were charismatic and talented, and their strength had already reached the limit of a Zero Circle Wizard. Wherever they went, they were always the centre of attention.
Farad and Magnus were two of these five leaders.
Their rivalry had been ongoing for five years, and everyone on the first floor knew about it.
Whenever one of them took part in a challenge, the other immediately joined in. Despite their competitiveness, they had never directly fought in the same arena.
That might be why their match today was so crowded.
However, that was not the reason why Gilgamel's face changed when he heard their names.
The main reason was because they were annoying bastards.
As previously mentioned, Farad and Magnus were both highly competitive individuals. If Farad decided to go west, then Magnus would also go west, and vice versa. In essence, they were unwilling to lose to each other.
The problem was here: Farad, one of the two lunatics, somehow disliked Gilgamel for an unknown reason.
Gilgamel, who had always been friendly and never caused any trouble, caught Farad's attention.
Although Gilgamel had never interacted with Farad before, Farad seemed to focus on him for some reason, and he constantly challenged Gilgamel whenever they crossed paths.
As a result, the scenes where Farad challenged him attracted a lot of attention from the other members, including Magnus.
Thanks to this situation, he not only had to deal with Farad but also with Magnus, who was just as annoying as Farad. These two were the reason why Gilgamel preferred to stay outside the castle rather than inside.
Today, he hoped that both of them would perish in this match!
Gilgamel eagerly focused his attention on a particular stage, where two young men with different hair colours stood facing each other. One had yellow hair, and his name was Farad, while the other had red hair and was named Magnus.
They both had striking and attractive appearances, which made them very popular.
The match had been underway for some time, with both players demonstrating equal power, making it difficult to determine who had the advantage. The game was currently at a standstill.
On the stage...
"Why don't you reveal your trump card already? Maybe you'll have a chance to hurt me." Magnus spoke in an elitist tone.
"My trump card?" Farad sneered and said, "I'm not even warmed up yet; why are you so impatient to lose?"
After their brief argument, a tense silence engulfed them, noticeable to the audience.
"It seems like you won't admit defeat unless I force you to," Magnus said.
As he spoke, a long, thick red stick appeared out of nowhere. He then cast a spell that only he could hear. Looking at Farad, he said playfully, "Let's enjoy the fight, Farad."
"I just hope that it won't end quickly," Farad responded with a cold smirk.
The atmosphere changed instantly as two different force fields suddenly broke out and collided on the stage. One was a lightning field, and the other was a magma field.
The two forces seemed to push and destroy each other, with neither of them giving way.
"Woah, as expected from the leaders of our generation. They were able to master even a Tier-1 magic spell."
"While they have mastered a Tier-1 magic spell, I am still on my way to learn my fifth Tier-0 magic spell. We are of the same generation; why is the difference so great?"
"I'm not jealous. Really!"
"1+"
For a moment, conversations broke out among the audience. Some expressed admiration, while others did not bother to hide their envy.
Perhaps the only person who felt nothing was Gilgamel. He even felt bored.
Mastering a Tier-1 magic spell while still in the Zero Circle Wizard was indeed impressive, but displaying it on this kind of occasion is nothing but showing off.
Tier-1 magic spells were powerful, but they consumed a lot of mana, even for a peak Zero Circle Wizard.
Gilgamel foresaw the rest of Farad and Magnus' battle. After showcasing Tier-2 magic spells, they would engage in close combat using their magic tools. Ultimately, they would deplete their mana and power, resulting in a draw.
After all, this is not an official competition. Winning or losing will not determine their yearly ranking on the first floor, nor will they gain any additional resources.
Neither of them probably cares about the result. Most likely, they are trying to test each other.