Free Web NovelChapter 27: Chapter 27: Someone Died
Mo Ning straightened his collar one last time and pushed the door open.
The moment the door opened, a tide of noise washed over him.
It was a mix of shrieks, urgent questions, overlapping retellings, and hushed whispers that failed to conceal their terror.
Mo Ning’s steps faltered slightly.
"...Gavin is dead!"
"I heard he tried to sneak into the Secluded Forest alone last night. He ended up dead at the entrance to the path."
"Serial number 024! He had at least a ninety percent chance of becoming an Apprentice. What a shame!"
"Is the Secluded Forest that dangerous? I was planning to look into it after a while, see if I could get in. Good thing I didn’t take the risk."
Standing by the door, Mo Ning showed little surprise.
This was to be expected.
Previously, the Second Level Apprentice Lai Te had deliberately portrayed the Secluded Forest as mysterious and alluring. He kept repeating that "the last person who entered is now a Second Level Wizard," yet he never mentioned a word about the danger.
He knew back then that this kind of tragedy would happen sooner or later.
An impatient, brainless guy like Gavin was just the first unlucky victim.
’How many other hidden dangers are there in this academy?’
He didn’t know.
But based on the average death rate of one-quarter for each new class, more than sixty people would be laid to rest forever in this land saturated with the power of Witchcraft.
Mo Ning listened to the discussions for a moment, piecing together the scattered fragments of information into a coherent narrative.
Sometime late at night.
Gavin left the dormitory area alone and snuck into the Secluded Forest.
An invisible barrier existed between the path and the forest. No one knew how Gavin managed to break through it and enter the forest.
It wasn’t until this morning that two newcomers, who were up early practicing their Body Refining Technique, discovered a figure lying prone at the entrance of the Secluded Path, its head facing the dormitories.
According to the eyewitnesses, the corpse was covered in colorful mushrooms, some as large as fists, others as small as peas.
The bizarre sight had given the two newcomers quite a scare.
No one dared to touch the body.
The two newcomers immediately used their Guiding Rings to report the incident to the academy.
Before long, an Apprentice arrived at the scene with two Hardwood Puppets.
The Apprentice gave a cursory check, confirmed the deceased was Gavin, and then ordered the puppets to place the body in a Corpse Bag and take it away.
The whole process took less than a minute.
Standing at the edge of the crowd, Mo Ning could clearly see the fear deep in the eyes of the new students.
It was obvious that Gavin’s strange death had been a major shock to many of them.
Back at Lakefront Manor, everyone had heard that the academy harbored many dangers, but none of them had experienced it firsthand.
The death of one of their own today finally brought the reality home to the new students.
A question suddenly occurred to Mo Ning. ’Why did the academy just stand by and do nothing?’
’Since the Guiding Rings are the academy’s tools for monitoring new students, Gavin’s solo venture into the Secluded Forest last night must have been detected as an abnormal movement.’
’So why didn’t the academy intervene when Gavin was in danger?’
The answer came to Mo Ning naturally. ’The academy has no obligation to bail anyone out.’
’If every act of recklessness was met with a rescue, then recklessness would become the norm.’
’If someone breaks into the Secluded Forest today, someone else will challenge an even more dangerous area tomorrow. They would constantly be testing the limits and courting death. The academy couldn’t, and wouldn’t, pour its resources into such a bottomless, profitless pit.’
’Bail someone out once, and you’ll have to bail them out endlessly!’
’So—no rescue!’
As Mo Ning listened to the discussions, a cold glint flashed in the depths of his eyes. ’Sooner or later, I’m going to kill Lai Te!’
He wasn’t related to Gavin, nor was he a friend, so he had no intention of avenging him. He simply found Lai Te to be an eyesore.
’So—just kill him and be done with it!’
Ultimately, the new students didn’t talk for too long.
Neither fear nor sighs of regret could outweigh the next event on their schedule.
In twos and threes, the blue-robed figures began to move, stepping onto the path leading to the Secluded Forest.
Starting today, their lives as new students had truly begun.
As usual, Mo Ning lagged behind at the rear of the group, his pace unhurried.
His gaze swept over the tense backs in front of him, and the corner of his mouth curved up unconsciously.
The newcomers were all treading carefully, afraid that the hems of their robes might brush against the branches at the side of the path, as if the leaves and twigs were coated with a deadly poison that killed on contact.
Experience is the best teacher, and a swift one at that.
The words were crude, but the logic was sound.
Soon, the Mysterious Secret Hall of the Quiet Forest appeared at the end of the path.
Just as Mo Ning stepped inside, he noticed a striking change.
A black banner, dozens of meters long and five meters wide, hung silently from the center of the dome.
It wasn’t suspended by anything—its upper end seemed to be frozen in the void, as if nailed in mid-air by some invisible force.
Compared to the academy’s other Witchcraft constructs that could twist space and invert the senses at a moment’s notice, this scene wasn’t particularly strange.
Therefore, no one commented on it.
Without any prompting, all the new students understood: something was about to happen with this black banner.
A buzzing of discussion drifted through the hall.
"Today is the third day. The academy should be announcing the schedule now."
"I heard the first month’s classes are almost all mandatory."
"I hope the classes aren’t too expensive."
The serial number 001 newcomer, Sitt, stood at the very front, naturally taking his place as the leader.
He was less than two meters from the black banner, his posture erect and his gaze intense, as if silently declaring, ’This spot is rightfully mine.’
Mo Ning glanced at him, then his eyes scanned through the crowd to find Vino—serial number 014, the dark horse who had bested Sitt in yesterday’s cafeteria assessment.
She was currently standing quietly in the second row on the left, her expression calm. She didn’t even spare Sitt a glance.
Mo Ning keenly sensed the undercurrent in the crowd—Sitt and Vino seemed to be secretly competing with each other.
The new students spontaneously arranged themselves according to their serial numbers, like an unspoken ritual.
「Five seconds later.」
The change happened right on schedule.
WHOOSH!
A current of air appeared out of nowhere.
The black banner billowed, fluttering with a rustling sound.
A few bright red threads, which appeared to be made of metal, materialized on the banner’s surface.
At first, there were only three or five of them, as thin as hairs, slithering across the surface like living streaks of blood.
In the blink of an eye, the red threads split, spread, and intertwined, outlining massive, red Secret Spirit Texts.
The course schedule had finally been revealed.
[Today at 8:00 AM, Mandatory Course: "The Art of Meditation - Deep Connections between Spirit Rings, Spiritual, and Soul."]
[Lecturer: Lv Mei (First Level Wizard)]
[Fee: 20 Black Tower Points]
[Three days from now at 8:00 AM, Mandatory Course: "Epic of Witchcraft (First Chapter) - The Evolutionary Torrent from the Primitive Era of Witchcraft to the Era of Secret Divination."]
[Lecturer: Stone Soul (Third Level Apprentice)]
[Course Fee: 3 Black Tower Points]
The course schedule was announced once every six days, with a two-day gap between classes. This was one of the pieces of information the new students had received at Lakefront Castle.
After all, the newcomers’ foundational knowledge was extremely weak. If the courses were scheduled too densely, the rookies wouldn’t be able to keep up.
The moment the information for the first day’s class solidified on the black banner, the crowd erupted like boiling water.
The combination of words like "Meditation," "Spirit," and "Spirit Ring" all pointed to the most important thing for a new student—the [Basic Meditation Technique].
To condense the first Spirit Ring, one had to cultivate the [Basic Meditation Technique]; otherwise, they would have to pack up and leave in disgrace in two years.
The main content of this class was clearly an explanation of the core principles of the [Basic Meditation Technique].
And the expensive course fee immediately triggered a wave of outcry from the crowd.
"HISS! So expensive!"
"Didn’t the rumors at Lakefront Castle say that Meditation Classes usually fluctuated between 8 and 10 Black Tower Points, depending on the lecturer’s level?"
"Even if the lecturer is a First Level Wizard, isn’t this price too ridiculous?!"
"My stipend is only 85 Black Tower Points. I used 15 points at the shop yesterday. If another 20 is taken out for the Basic Meditation Technique class, I won’t even have enough for food."
The faces of the newcomers with later serial numbers all changed.
Many of the rookies had a total net worth of less than 100 Black Tower Points. This single class would cost them one-fifth of their fortune, meaning their already tight budgets would become even more strained.
Mo Ning put on a show of frowning, looking as if he were worried about his Black Tower Points.
In reality, he felt not the slightest ripple of concern.
Being a "top student" of the highest caliber, his perception of "expensive" had been dulled considerably.
Just then, a chill emanated from everyone’s Guiding Ring at the same time.
[The Lecture Hall is now open. Please proceed to the cafeteria for breakfast and enter the Lecture Hall on time.]
The crowd fell silent for a moment.
Some of the new students began to look around.
They immediately noticed a problem—the Guiding Ring announced that the Lecture Hall was open, but where exactly was the Lecture Hall?
"That’s weird! Why didn’t the message specify the location?"
"If they don’t tell us the location, where are we supposed to go for class?"
Mo Ning narrowed his eyes, his mind beginning to race.
’They say over seventy percent of the academy’s daily affairs are managed by the Witch Spirit. It’s a Wizard’s version of a super-AI; it couldn’t possibly make such a low-level mistake.’
A flash of insight sparked in the depths of his mind, and the answer appeared. ’I get it. This academy is full of tricks.’
Mo Ning turned his head slightly, his gaze sweeping over every corner of the Secret Hall, searching for any suspicious locations.
