Chapter 193: The Visiting Mages

Recently, the Tower of Time seems to have become much busier; figures of Mages passing by can be seen from time to time in the aisles, corridors, and on the elevators.

If in the past an Apprentice could see an Official Mage at most three times a day, then nowadays, they can see one at least ten times a day.

Because of Aiboke's advancement celebration and the Arcane Competition, the Mages have all received quite a few tasks, and even Xia Duo, a contestant who is going to participate in the Arcane Competition, is no exception.

The Tower of Time arranged for him to receive two Mages who came from the core area of the Empire, take them to browse the public level of the Tower of Time, introduce the situation of the Territory, and then send them to their accommodation on the sixth floor.

These two pointed and gestured along the way; in their words, only this Mage Tower in the Savile Territory was worth looking at, and as for the Mages, they were already out of touch with the core of the Empire.

"Mage Xia Duo, have you ever seen an Elf?" one of the tall Mages asked suddenly.

Xia Duo really wanted to say he had seen one with his own eyes, but the other party did not give him a chance to speak at all, "Elves are exceptionally handsome; you will never forget them once you see one. Back then, I once chatted and laughed with an Elf at the Arcane Association in Seventon."

As he spoke, he even licked his lips as if reminiscing, while his companion, a slightly shorter Mage, nudged him; it seemed his companion also felt it was too exaggerated.

The tall Mage quickly reacted, gave a feigned hearty laugh, and said again, "Let's not talk about Elves, keep a low profile, keep a low profile! Mage Xia Duo, have you ever been to an Other Plane?"

This time, Xia Duo truly had not been, but the place he came from could perhaps also be counted as an Other Plane, so he did not answer, and this tall Mage began to recount his experiences of adventuring in Other Planes.

It was just that to Xia Duo, it sounded a bit like a "Dragon Proud Heaven" novel—meeting a Great Arcanist and receiving praise, being gifted items, encountering danger in an Other Plane, and then the gift allowing him to turn danger into safety.

Could it be that someone in Netheril also writes novels? Or is the power of imagination of this Primary Mage truly so powerful that it could actually influence a Great Arcanist?

To tell the truth, Xia Duo was somewhat disappointed with the performance of these two visiting Mages; he had originally thought everyone was a talent, but he didn't expect it to be just "lip service."

He became a bit impatient, "You two, there will be plenty of opportunities to tell stories of Other Planes later. Let me take you to your resting place first!"

"Mage Xia Duo, don't you want to go and venture into the core area of the Empire?"

"……"

Xia Duo rolled his eyes. The task he received was named "reception," but in reality, it was to win over visiting Mages to join the Territory and join the Tower of Time. He didn't expect the others to actually want to poach people!

"You two, I am a Formal Member of the Tower of Time. Let me take you two to your resting place first!" Xia Duo made a "please" gesture.

Since he was a Formal Member of the Tower of Time, naturally he could not be easily won over by them. These two visiting Mages were also somewhat dejected, and they spoke much less along the way.

After arranging the accommodation for the two, Xia Duo immediately went to the Task Management Office to report the process of receiving the two visiting Mages.

Xia Duo felt that the Tower of Time might arrange for others to make contact later, but that had nothing to do with him. Having handed over the task, Xia Duo was lighthearted and free.

……

The Arcane Garden is bright as day all year round.

After dinner, in the Arcane Garden orchard, under the apple tree where Xia Duo often stays, dozens of Apprentices formed a circle, waiting for the four people in the middle who looked like leaders to speak.

But those four people clearly did not want to speak, turning a blind eye to the crowd that was already somewhat restless. At this moment, a little blond fatty emerged from the crowd and came to the middle of the open space surrounded by everyone.

He leaned over to the four people who looked like leaders and whispered, "It's almost 6 o'clock. It seems Xia Duo won't come. Why don't we start first?"

"No, wait a little longer!" The one speaking was Dien.

Although in terms of influence within the Mage Tower, he is far inferior to Aideliqi, and even Sami and Dewan are better than him, his right to speak within the organization is the highest.

The reason is naturally because of Xia Duo, and he is also very clear about this point, insisting that if Xia Duo does not come, the Apprentice Competition will not start.

And Aideliqi, Sami, and the others also approved of Dien's words. Although the little fatty Donald was accepted as a member of the organization, it was clear he was only at the bottom.

As for the dozens of Apprentices surrounding them, they were just potential members who identified with the organization's philosophy; they were the contestants for this Apprentice Competition.

The original plan for Dien, Aideliqi, and others to participate together was eventually abandoned; they no longer needed to gain recognition through this Apprentice Competition.

After all, they already represented the organization; it should be others who need to gain the organization's recognition and join the organization.

……

On the other side, Xia Duo was not intentionally delaying, but he had been too busy recently, and the format of the Apprentice Competition had changed several times, so he did not think of the Arcane Garden at the first moment.

His first stop was actually the Spell Practice Room on the Library Layer. It was only when he got there that he remembered the first round of the Apprentice Competition was in the Arcane Garden, and only the second round had actual Spellcasting competitions.

Realizing he might be late, Xia Duo rushed to the Arcane Garden without stopping. When he arrived, he happened to see Dien and the others comforting the crowd of Apprentices.

From afar, Xia Duo shouted, "Dien, Aideliqi, I'm here!"

"Mage Xia Duo is here!"

The crowd became restless, with a tendency to crowd toward Xia Duo. Aideliqi immediately maintained order at the scene. Fortunately, there were only twenty or thirty people, and under Aideliqi's command, everyone immediately formed a welcoming array.

Dien and the others came up to meet him, "Xia Duo, you finally came!"

"Yeah, I've been busy lately and got delayed. Why didn't you start first? You didn't have to wait for me."

"How could we not wait for you!" Dien pulled Xia Duo under the apple tree and signaled for Aideliqi to begin.

Aideliqi once opened a shop in the Transcription Room of the Library and is a celebrity in the Mage Tower. He is now considered the face of the organization, and in the eyes of the Apprentices, his prestige is greater than Dien's.

Aideliqi put a lot of effort into organizing the Apprentice Competition.

"Everyone, you all came here holding the same philosophy; you are all companions and friends. Competition requires rivalry, but please remember, friendship first, competition second."

Then, Aideliqi had everyone stand apart to conduct the first round of the Apprentice Competition—a written exam. Sami, Dewan, and Donald distributed the prepared test papers to everyone's hands.

Under the apple tree, Dien was busy flattering Xia Duo, "Xia Duo, how did you think of using this form of competition? And that phrase 'friendship first, competition second' was said so well!"

The person being praised didn't feel much, but the person being praised felt a bit embarrassed. Xia Duo didn't even remember when he mentioned that one could screen some people through a written exam and also see how everyone's foundation was.

And that "friendship first, competition second"—saying it in the Mage Tower was truly a bit out of place. If it weren't for the fact that everyone was a young person who had just been sent to the Mage Tower upon reaching adulthood, they probably would have been immune to it directly.

Looking at the crowd of Apprentices busy writing their answers, Xia Duo asked Dien, "Who do you think can be absorbed into the organization?"

Most of the Apprentices here were Xia Duo's former coworkers in the Arcane Garden, but there were also some new faces. However, he had left the Arcane Garden for a while, and coupled with being very busy during this time, he did not know the specific progress.

"Most of these Apprentices identify with the organization's philosophy, I think—"