New Student Entrance Exam

Afterward, Victor invited Blake to stay at their home.

Their residence was quite large, so one more person was not a problem at all.

Blake, of course, accepted the offer; he had no money for an inn and would surely end up sleeping under a bridge otherwise.

Although Denise was clearly reluctant, she still led Blake to a small wooden cabin in the backyard.

She told him in a flat tone that this was his temporary lodging.

Blake could see that the cabin was quite nice, both in location and decoration.

It was even better than some of the rooms in the main house.

The unconcealable look of heartache on Denise’s face said it all; this was probably her “secret base” she had reserved for her own enjoyment.

She was only forced to let Blake stay here temporarily because the other guest rooms hadn’t been tidied up in time.

“You can wait here. Brenna will bring you your bedding later.”

Denise gave the instruction and turned to leave, as if staying a second longer would make her uncomfortable.

After she left, Blake finally had time to properly survey his uncle’s backyard.

The courtyard was quite large, shaded by green trees, and even had a small pond.

Behind the courtyard wall was a dense forest.

The yard was also filled with flowers of various colors, making it very beautiful.

To own such a piece of land and residence in Servia showed that Uncle Victor had indeed made a lot of money over the years.

He had established a firm foothold in Servia.

Blake took a brief tour and found the environment to be elegant and quiet, and the edge of the pond was an excellent spot for fishing.

He couldn’t help but think of his Pirate skill, [Never Return Empty-Handed Angler], and wondered what surprises he might be able to fish out of this pond.

When he returned to the small wooden cabin, Brenna was already there waiting with clean, soft bedding.

This cousin of his had a quiet and gentle personality.

When alone with Blake, she seemed rather shy, her cheeks slightly flushed.

To break the awkward silence, Blake took the initiative to start a conversation, asking her.

“Brenna, are you also a student at Dragonheart Academy?”

Brenna nodded lightly.

“Yes, I’m a second-year student in Class A.”

Blake was a little surprised and praised her.

“That’s quite an impressive achievement!”

He remembered that Dragonheart Academy divided each year into four levels—S, A, B, and C—based on talent, strength, and annual academic performance.

To be in Class A already meant being among the best of the students.

Of course, a genius like Jianye was in the second-year S-Class, and Kristine was in the third-year S-Class.

And Alice, it seemed, was also in the second-year A-Class.

Although members of the imperial family could enroll unconditionally, they still needed to rely on their own strength to get into the advanced classes.

Brenna then added.

“I’m also a member of the academy’s Volunteer Corps. The day after tomorrow, I need to help proctor the new student entrance exams.”

Hearing the words “new student entrance exam” and “volunteer,” Blake’s brow furrowed imperceptibly.

A sense of foreboding rose in his heart.

He pressed further.

“Which area are you assisting in?”

“Area A,” Brenna replied.

Area A?!

Blake’s heart sank, and he cursed inwardly.

In the game’s plot, the malicious incident that caused Kristine’s mental trauma occurred in Area A of the entrance exam!

At that time, there were indeed volunteer students responsible for assisting who were unfortunately caught up in it.

One student died, which had an extremely negative impact.

The game had no specific plotline concerning his uncle’s family, so Blake couldn’t be sure if Brenna was that unfortunate victim.

But no matter what, he absolutely could not take that risk.

It seemed his trip to Dragonheart Academy the day after tomorrow was truly a must.

But before that, tomorrow he had another crucial thing to try.

The next day, Blake found some dry straw in the backyard.

Relying on his memory, he bundled it into a humanoid puppet.

His goal was clear.

Just like he had unlocked the Swordsman and Knight classes by attacking a training dummy on the Hordier, he would try attacking the puppet to unlock the Sorcerer class.

He was so eager to unlock the Sorcerer class because he had a premonition that he would face even more severe challenges in the future.

One more class meant countless more tactical combinations and possibilities for breaking stalemates.

The agility of the Swordsman, the power of the Knight, the summons of the Summoner, and even the most useless Pirate class had all played important roles at critical moments.

Therefore, he was desperate to unlock the Sorcerer, the strongest of the magic-based classes.

However, his previous classes had basically been unlocked by accident.

When Blake actually tried to figure out the unlocking conditions for a class on his own, the difficulty was absurdly high.

After all, this damn system really didn’t give a single hint.

Blake made various spellcasting gestures at the puppet.

But it was completely useless.

‘Could it be that I need a staff?’

Magic-based classes could cast spells with their hands or with the aid of a staff.

A high-star staff could significantly increase a spell’s power, but it couldn’t match the flexibility and casting speed of using one’s hands.

Blake borrowed a staff from Brenna and spent a long time tapping and hitting the scarecrow with it.

The puppet was starting to fall apart from the blows, but the system panel showed no reaction.

‘Does it have to be a magical attack?’

Blake thought.

So he used his Summoner skill, summoned the Sea Lion Dragon, and had it spew water arrows at the puppet.

After the attack, the puppet was soaked, but the unlocking progress remained at zero.

Damn it!

What the hell are the unlocking conditions for this blasted class?!

Completely out of ideas, Blake collapsed among the flowers in a daze.

‘Could it be that a Summoner’s spells don’t count as a Sorcerer’s magic?’

‘Would I have a higher chance of success if I used the elemental magic of a Sorcerer?’

Blake considered this possibility.

He felt he should buy a few magic scrolls to try.

But then came the problem: where would the money come from?

Magic scrolls were not cheap, and his pockets were completely empty.

‘Forget it, I’ll borrow money!’

The first person Blake thought of was his cousin Leán.

In his view, his uncle’s family was well-off, so as the son, Leán should have a decent amount of pocket money.

The reason he didn’t ask Victor was that he was afraid his aunt would find out.

A poor relative who had just arrived in the city asking for money on the second day would probably be labeled a bloodsucker!

However, when he found Leán and broached the subject of borrowing money.

Leán, however, said with a mournful face that he was currently penniless.

To show that he wasn’t unwilling to lend, Leán hesitantly explained the reason.

He had been immature before, made many bad friends, and often went out to indulge in debauchery.

Later, he was even brazen enough to go to “Drunken Breeze,” Servia’s most famous pleasure house, and didn’t return for a whole night.

That really stirred up a hornet’s nest!

Denise, a classic overprotective parent, was frantic like an ant on a hot pan.

She used all her connections to search the entire city overnight.

Finally, an insider revealed that Leán had been seen at “Drunken Breeze.”