Chapter 368: The High-Rank Certification Exam Begins

Southwest of the Himril Main Continent.

Amidst a stretch of crumbling ruins, two figures appeared.

“It’s unfathomable how far the people of Gulos have sunk into madness.”

Gazing at the apocalyptic scene before him, Holstin spoke in a heavy tone.

Not long ago, this place had been a peaceful kingdom. Now, it lay in utter ruin.

Broken walls, shattered stone pillars, and the lingering tracks and claw marks of magical beasts dotted the landscape.

The area was deathly silent—and yet, it silently told the visitors of the tragedy that had befallen it here.

“Meow.”

A shadowy mass transformed into a black cat, appearing at their feet.

Grisa knelt down and picked up the cat.

“Well? What did you find?”

“Meow... meow......”

As Sphinger kept meowing,

Grisa’s expression grew increasingly grave.

After a long while, he set Sphinger down.

“Go scout further afield.”

“Meow.”

With a soft cry, Sphinger dissolved into a puddle of shadow once more, vanishing on the spot.

Grisa turned to Holstin and said, “Dean, it’s confirmed—there are no survivors left in this entire kingdom.”

“......”

Holstin fell silent.

After a long pause, he whispered, “......We can no longer allow Gulos to run amok unchecked.”

“Professor Grisa, send word to the Allied Forces. Tell them to hasten their advance. The two of us will continue the pursuit.”

“Understood.”

Grisa nodded and turned to leave the desolate place.

Holstin, however, remained standing there for a long time, staring at the shattered kingdom before him. His eyes were filled with sorrow and rage.

......

......

More than a week had passed since Hulim Heyerar arrived in Bongisto.

Though anomalies had been discovered in the dungeons earlier, Bongisto itself had not undergone any major changes because of it.

If there was any difference at all,

it was that the guild had recently raised the purchase prices for dungeon materials and issued a flood of dungeon-related quests. Particularly for the more obscure dungeons, the number of quests available was unusually high.

As a result, adventurers’ enthusiasm for delving into dungeons reached an unprecedented peak. Rumor had it that many adventurers from other regions had even flocked to Bongisto because of this.

The entire city had only grown more prosperous and bustling.

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“Ms. Hulim—you have a letter from the guild.”

One day, as Hulim returned to her inn after being out, the front desk clerk handed her an envelope.

“Thank you.”

Hulim tore open the letter.

Inside was a notice stating that the High-Rank Certification Exam was about to commence.

“Report to the guild headquarters tomorrow morning to receive the exam details, huh?”

Hulim folded the letter and put it away.

“A little over a week—it’s been just enough time to rest. I’d better hurry up and get this exam over with.”

Time flew by quickly, and the next day arrived.

Following the instructions in the letter, Hulim made her way to the Adventurer's Guild Headquarters.

Under the guidance of a guild staff member, she was led to a room.

When she entered, three other people were already waiting inside.

They were a dwarf male clad head to toe in heavy plate armor, clutching a massive shield; a human female with flowing crimson hair, wearing a red mage’s robe and holding a fire-element wand; and a middle-aged man with his arms crossed, exuding the aura of a Rank A Powerhouse—though his magical fluctuations felt somewhat irregular.

“It seems everyone’s here.”

The middle-aged Rank A Powerhouse spoke first.

“Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Dimik, and I will be your chief examiner for this High-Rank Certification Exam.”

“Dimik? Are you the ‘Dragon Swordsman’ Dimik?”

The red-haired mage spoke up, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.

“I’ve heard rumors that you possess dragon blood and can wield the power of dragons. I’m dying to know—how did you come to acquire such a bloodline?”

Dimik shot her a sidelong glance.

“You certainly know your fair share of gossip. But yes—that’s me, and the rumors are true. However, I won’t give you the answer. If you want to know, you’ll have to uncover it with your own abilities. Should you succeed, I’ll gladly acknowledge your prowess.”

“Hmph~......”

The red-haired mage didn’t say anything more, but it was clear that she’d taken a keen interest in the matter. Perhaps she really would go out of her way to investigate Dimik later.

“Alright, enough idle chatter. Let’s get down to business.”

“First, regarding the candidates for this exam. I should explain that there were originally four of you. Unfortunately, one candidate encountered some unexpected trouble at the last minute and won’t be able to make it in time. Their exam eligibility has therefore been revoked.”

“As such, only the three of you will be taking the exam this time. While I already know who each of you are, I think it’s only fitting that you introduce yourselves to your fellow candidates.”

“I don’t mind.”

The red-haired mage waved a hand dismissively, then said, “Farna Kegris—a mage who commands fire-element magic.”

After her introduction, the heavily armored dwarf rumbled out his own name in a deep, resonant voice, “Terrag Undo—as you can see, a heavy armor swordsman.”

“......”

At this introduction, the other three stared at Terrag in surprise.

So this guy wasn’t a shield warrior or something similar after all......

“Hulim Heyerar...... I’m decent at a little bit of everything.”

Hulim introduced herself in her usual calm, understated tone.

Once all three had finished their introductions,

Dimik glanced around at them and said, “Even though only three of you are taking the exam this time, that doesn’t mean the difficulty will be lowered. If anything, it’s quite the opposite. So you’d better be mentally prepared.”

To Dimik’s words, the three candidates remained completely unfazed.

Instead of displeasing him, this reaction actually elicited a hint of admiration from Dimik.

“Now, I hereby declare your exam officially underway. The first task you must complete is to arrive at the exam location punctually by noon tomorrow. Anyone who arrives late or fails to show up will be deemed to have failed the exam immediately.”

“That’s all for now. You may leave.”

“Wait a minute—you didn’t tell us where the exam location is!”

Farna called out in protest.

“Heh heh,” Dimik chuckled. “Didn’t I just say it? The exam has already begun.”

With that, he turned on his heel and strode toward the door.

Before exiting, he tossed one last remark over his shoulder.

“Remember—don’t be late tomorrow.”

Then, he left the room without a backward glance.

“Right,” Farna nodded slowly, a faint smile tugging at her lips. “Rather than lingering here, we’d better go find some clues.”

With that, she too left the room.

Hulim did not depart immediately. Instead, she stood there, deep in thought, going over Dimik’s words.

It was clear that his so-called first exam task was to make them figure out the location of the exam through their own investigation.

In recent years, all the High-Rank Adventurer Certification tasks had been dungeon-related. It was highly unlikely that this time would be any different.

Dimik had instructed them to reach a specific location—which meant they needed to identify which dungeon it was.

First, she could rule out ordinary dungeons. The specific time he’d mentioned—noon tomorrow—was an obvious clue.

Ordinary dungeons were open every day, so they didn’t have any special time-sensitive characteristics.

This narrowed down the possibilities significantly.

She could conclude that Dimik must be referring to a dungeon with specific entry conditions. Moreover, this dungeon would most likely open around noon tomorrow and remain closed most of the time on other days.

Having thought this through, Hulim knew exactly where she needed to go to find her clues......