Chapter 109: Establishment of the Study Group

When Xia Duo brought Aideliqi to the 15th Spell Laboratory, what he saw was the three of them speaking freely. Dien, in particular, was quite active, making Xia Duo think the three had already established the Study Group in advance. "Dien, Sami, Dewan!" Xia Duo called out.

"Xia Duo, and—Aideliqi!"

Aideliqi was considered a well-known figure among the Apprentices; Dien and the others were no strangers to Aideliqi, but they had never imagined that Aideliqi would appear here.

Could it be that Aideliqi was very close with Xia Duo? Or had Xia Duo pulled Aideliqi into the Study Group as well?

Regardless, Dien's confidence in Xia Duo grew even stronger because of this, and the mindset of Sami and Dewan also began to shift; even Aideliqi had come, so perhaps the Study Group really had potential!

Dien and the others knew Aideliqi, but Aideliqi did not necessarily know them, so Xia Duo introduced them one by one; these were all the members of the Study Group for the initial stage.

"Dien—promoted to Official Apprentice just last month; Sami, Dewan—my coworkers at the Arcane Garden. From now on, everyone is a member of the same group."

Xia Duo's introduction was simple, but it basically stated the most obvious characteristics of Dien and the others: just promoted, working at the Arcane Garden—all implying they were at the bottom of the Official Apprentices.

However, Aideliqi did not feel any contempt because of this; he still possessed the basic qualities of a Merchant. He greeted Dien and the others warmly, and after telling a few little-known anecdotes about the Mage Tower, he quickly hit it off with the three of them.

The atmosphere was quite harmonious.

But Xia Duo had to interrupt them, "Alright everyone, now that Aideliqi will also be joining the Study Group, what is your decision?"

"I join!"

Dien barely gave it any thought and immediately stated his position. He had already been at the Mage Tower for three years; although he had barely managed to obtain the status of an Official Apprentice, he knew his own situation clearly—without a miracle, it was almost impossible to become a true Mage.

Perhaps it was the addition of Aideliqi that allowed them to see greater hope; Sami and Dewan finally gave up the opportunity to adjust their work and focused on participating in Xia Duo's Study Group.

"We join too!"

"Good! Then we are now people of the same organization!"

Xia Duo wore a happy expression, but no organization could be maintained without rules, so some things had to be said upfront, "I have formulated a few rules for our Study Group; everyone can discuss them together."

As the organizer of the Study Group, Xia Duo took on the role of leader without hesitation.

With the number of people being small, and everyone having been personally sought out by Xia Duo, his status was naturally defaulted. Dien even said sycophantically, "Xia Duo, whatever you say, I will do!"

Xia Duo glanced at the performance of the few, especially that Aideliqi did not show any signs of resistance, though Xia Duo would not go too far either.

"The rules are very simple. First, try to keep it confidential; my personal energy is limited, and it is impossible for me to answer questions and solve problems for everyone."

"That's no problem, it's only right; we will be careful to keep it confidential!" The four of them immediately agreed.

Xia Duo continued, "Then the number of people in the Study Group cannot be too large. Any person who wants to join the Study Group later must obtain the consent of everyone, and I have the final decision-making power!"

This point, unsurprisingly, was also agreed upon by everyone. After all, the current Study Group relied to a large extent on Xia Duo providing them with guidance; they could not yet completely break away from Xia Duo, the key figure who connected everyone.

The next point involved the core of the Study Group, but this was something Xia Duo had to push for, "Any group member must be honest in the exchange of Magic and Spells; one cannot refuse others' questions or exchanges."

"I agree!" Dien was the first to express his stance again.

Immediately following, Aideliqi also expressed his agreement. He was already interested in this Study Group, and the unreserved exchange made him feel a sense of novelty and being needed.

"Sami, Dewan, what about you?"

Xia Duo did not force them. In reality, by this time, Sami and Dewan were no longer important; if he wanted, there were plenty of Apprentices who would want to join. Xia Duo just felt that his relationship with them was decent enough to give them a chance.

"I agree!"

"I agree too!"

"Good! Then our Mutual Aid Study Group is officially established!"

A small circle with him at the core and relatively close connections was established. Xia Duo felt joyful in his heart; as the Study Group developed and grew, this might become an important means for him to influence the Mage Tower, and even the entire world of Magic.

"Everyone, since the Study Group has been established, in order for everyone to become a true Mage as soon as possible, I hope everyone can be honest about their learning progress. I will formulate a study plan that fits your progress. Who will go first?"

Don't look at how quickly they agreed before; when it came to the real deal, they hesitated again. Xia Duo did not urge them; without going through this hurdle, the Study Group would not be able to continue.

Only by truly sharing their own secrets, then sharing in others' secrets, and thereby obtaining improvement, could this small organization be considered truly open for business.

This reminded Xia Duo of certain societies or groups on Earth, where everyone would recount their past in front of other members after joining. Only after opening their hearts completely and then accepting the Baptism of the organization's rules would they treat the organization as their home.

It was a good thing Xia Duo didn't make them write reports every day; after all, it was just a fairly loose Study Group.

Inside the 15th Spell Laboratory, everyone was silent. This time, even Dien was a bit hesitant. Xia Duo naturally knew this stemmed from the inherent mindset of Mages, not wanting others to know their true strength.

Although Dien and the others were not yet Official Mages, they had always been influenced by such an environment and had passively accepted this concept; breaking it was not an easy task.

After a long while, it was actually Aideliqi who took the first step, "I'll go first. I have studied all dozen or so courses in the Apprentice stage, I can understand most of them, and I have mastered a total of 4 Ring Spells."

Then Aideliqi stated the parts he felt he didn't understand or found difficult, as well as the Ring Spells he had mastered.

Xia Duo was somewhat dumbfounded, "You don't need to tell us specifically what Spells you have mastered; you only need to introduce your learning progress."

Upon hearing this, the others no longer hesitated and spoke out their learning progress one after another. They had misunderstood earlier, thinking Xia Duo wanted them to be honest about all their secrets regarding Magic! "I have a general understanding of your situations. Now I have two choices for you: one is that I give you intensive training, and you can become an Official Mage within a year; the other is to follow the study plan I have formulated and learn step-by-step, but I cannot guarantee that you can become an Official Mage within a year."

"This—"

Of the two choices, the first was obviously more attractive, but these four people were also very curious about that mysterious study plan; being able to be mentioned in the same breath as becoming a Mage, it surely wasn't that simple.

Aideliqi suddenly added, "Xia Duo, can we choose both?"

"..."

(End of chapter)