Chapter 2 Departure_1

"Unqualified, next."

The girl from the neighboring house in front of Link was also eliminated, her eyes reddened, her mouth clenched tightly.

Link didn't pay much attention, he only had one thought at the moment:

Finally, it's my turn!

Before this, all have failed, and no one was qualified.

The four age-mates standing behind Wizard Palo all showed their arrogant or contemptuous expressions to varying degrees.

But they do indeed have the capital to be arrogant.

Wizard Palo visited the Quete Archipelago, traversing seven noble territories of varying sizes, and only selected four young men with qualifications above the lower third rank.

These four could indeed be considered as one in a thousand, a pick among tens of thousands of geniuses.

Moreover, once chosen by Wizard Palo, their social status would undergo a drastic change.

Even the normally lofty nobles had to speak to them humbly and go out of their way to curry favor with them.

Being a wizard's apprentice, the sweet taste of power could be felt even before the power truly manifested.

Link took a deep breath and stepped forward, placing his hands steadily on the crystal ball.

He only felt two streams of Qi separately pour from both hands into his body.

The cool stream coming from the black transparent crystal ball entered his brain along his left arm and neck.

The warm stream coming from the colorless transparent crystal ball entered his internal organs along his right arm and chest.

The two streams of Qi each swirled for a while, and then returned to the crystal ball along the same path.

The crystal ball began to radiate light.

The colorless transparent crystal ball radiated a rich blue and green glow, and the black transparent crystal ball radiated a very dazzling white light.

Wizard Palo, who had been squinting his eyes, suddenly opened them wide, and said in a somewhat surprised voice, "Innate Spiritual Power 17, high affinity with Water Element and Wood Element. The comprehensive score of wizard qualifications is intermediate fourth rank."

As his voice fell, the entire Castle Hall fell silent.

Then, various gazes fell on Link, mixed with envy, jealousy, and hatred.

There will always be people like this, who, not being able to get something for themselves, also don't wish for others to obtain it.

"Stand behind me."

Wizard Palo quickly regained his aloof demeanor and ordered softly.

"Yes."

Link bowed to Wizard Palo, walked to his left behind him, and stood next to the blonde, blue-eyed girl.

The four peers, a pair of twin siblings, a brown-haired boy with uneven eyes, and the blonde, blue-eyed girl, nodded in acknowledgement to Link.

Clearly, Link had been accepted by them, and there was a hint of intentional friendliness.

Link responded with a friendly smile.

He didn't know that among the four, the one with the highest qualifications was the brown-haired boy with uneven eyes, ranked lower fourth.

The twin siblings and the blonde, blue-eyed girl were the same, all upper third rank.

Upon Link's arrival, he instantly became the one with the highest qualifications.

And Wizard Palo had revealed earlier that those with third rank qualifications had a 30 to 40 percent chance of becoming an official wizard, while those with fourth rank qualifications had a 40 to 50 percent chance of becoming an official wizard.

If calculated, wouldn't an intermediate fourth rank have a 45 percent chance of becoming an official wizard?

Of course, this calculation is incorrect.

But there's some persuasive power in it, right?

...

The wizard qualification test ended, consuming a whole morning.

Out of the sixty-eight of Viscount Holliday's domain, only Link Grande received the precious ticket to the mainland.

Viscount Holliday, who had been observing the testing ceremony, was very pleased.

For scattered nobles like them, living on the islands and islets of the Stormy Sea, sending a wizard apprentice to the mainland brought many benefits.

Rewards from the mainland wizard organization, such as the Knight Breathing Method, potions, rune objects, notwithstanding, nobles with a landsman as an apprentice, or even an official wizard active on the mainland, did not need to worry about being undermined by surrounding nobles.

If there happened to be a wizard with a nostalgic heart who suddenly decided to return home, only to find his homeland ruined, how outrageous would that be?

...

"Wizard Palo Sire, I have prepared a dinner, and I invite you to grace the banquet and allow me to show you our local hospitality," Viscount Holliday humbly invited Wizard Palo.

"Hmm."

Wizard Palo nodded slightly, seemingly indifferent, then turned his head and instructed Link, "Go home, pack some clothes and belongings, say goodbye to your family. We will leave in the afternoon."

Hearing this, Link was slightly taken aback. He did not expect the timetable to be so tight, but he quickly responded, bowed to Wizard Palo, and said, "Thank you, Wizard Palo, I will go home now."

After that, Link headed towards the exit of the Castle Hall.

Viscount Holliday gave the steward, who was standing at the side, a meaningful look.

The steward understood and immediately went forward, accompanying Link out of the Castle Hall, and arranging for a carriage to take him home.

It felt a bit like returning to his hometown in luxurious clothes.

High-end carriage, for nobles only, escorted by a knight aside from the driver.

If it had been an inexperienced youngster, he would probably have been moved by Viscount Holliday's arrangement.

Link's home was not too far from Viscount's Castle, requiring more than half an hour's walk but only about ten minutes by carriage.

The Grande family had already heard the news from the adolescents who had been tested after Link but had been eliminated. A large number of relatives, some very close, some not so close, and even those they seldom interacted with, had gathered.

The head of the family, the usually taciturn blacksmith Grande, had a rosy complexion, accepting the blessings and congratulations of the relatives.

And Mrs. Grande (uh... this title was not applicable before Link was chosen by the Wizard Sire) stood outside the door, gazing in the direction of the Viscount's Castle the whole time.

In the past, some people from Viscount Holliday's domaine had also been chosen by wizards.

People of her age knew that by the afternoon, the Wizard Sire would leave with his person.

What Mrs. Grande was longing for at this moment wasn't the future wealth of her family, but rather her youngest son, who had changed a lot since he was injured a little over a year ago.

Finally, in Mrs. Grande's yearning anticipation, a noble and gorgeous carriage drove over.

Mrs. Grande bowed her head, rubbed her somewhat reddening eyes, turned back into the house, picked up the parcel that she had quickly packed after hearing the news, and met the carriage.

"Mom..."

After the knight opened the carriage door, Link stepped out and called out affectionately to Mrs. Grande as he saw her coming.

Before he could say anything else, Mrs. Grande had thrust the parcel into Link's arms, tightly grabbing his hands, yet remained silent for a long time.

After a while, as Mrs. Grande continued to hold Link's hand and pushed him towards the carriage, she choked up and said, "Go, little Link, study hard and don't worry about home."

She wouldn't let Link get tangled up with the relatives harboring various intentions, not until she had pushed Link into the carriage, did she let go of his hand.

Link did not defy Mrs. Grande, signalling the driver to turn around and leave.

Through the curtain, Link saw Mrs. Grande standing there, waving and watching the carriage leave.

Facing children who are setting off on a journey, mothers are naturally worried, but they always urge their children not to worry about them.

Living together is not easy, cherish every moment.