Bahyun only realized how many unnecessary steps he had taken after they sat down in the in the meeting room and exchanged information peacefully and calmly. Almandine, in fact had a legal identity almost ten years ago; it was just a matter of obtaining her picture and thumbprint to initiate the process. If he had placed more trust in this world or in the authorities, he could have received help long before make futile plans to hide Almandine away. Only now did he truly realize that this was a world with MahoShojo, a symbol of light and positivity where everybody looked forward to, and not the cruel world full of unknown dangers that he had perceived. The criminals in this world had seeds of light planted since the day MahoShojo existed; they were not as deadly as those in his previous world.
Thanks to this conversation, he discovered that there were missing memories in Almandine’s mind. She remembered being killed by the Precaria Gem Squad, together with her comrades, but according to the evidence provided by the Special Mage Armed Force, they were killed by their enraged master...In other words, she had lost part of her memories, and it was natural to assume that those memories were contained within the halved FayOra torn away from her.
This further proved that Almandine’s circuit was incomplete; she needed the stone to sustain it. Though it might not guarantee her life span beyond the default setting, it could help Bahyun understand the circuit and perhaps adjust the settings for her to have a lifespan similar to Morganite’s, with the assistance of the scientists associated with the authorities, of course.
The atmosphere in the Special Mage Armed Force’s dimmed when they realized that Almandine might die on the same day Morganite retired as a Mage. They were unwilling to let the chance of adding an extra Mages to the team slip away from their grasp, and Morganite was particularly opposed to the the idea of losing Almandine again.
“So, where is the halved FayOra? You said it was kept in a very easily found location. I need it, fast, so that after merging it with Almandine, I can analyze her circuit and rewrite the necessary parts. We don’t have much time now. Where is it?” Bahyun looked at his sister, who remained in her girl form among all the Mages with shinny and fluffy battle gear. He wondered why she was the only one who hadn’t transformed into Earth Dragon mode, but he could ask later; Almandine’s matters came first.
“It is indeed a very easily found location. Let me explain.” Otmeen replied on behalf of the Mages, “Whenever a Mage retires, other Mages scout for candidates suitable for FayOra, and each stone will have at least three candidates. There are five stones being released soon, so there shall be fifteen candidates attending the test, where the stone shall choose its future Mage. The test takes place in a secret realm constructed by the First Mage and wizards of that era. Stones are tossed into the realm where challenges were set, and the challenges for each person differ. Some undergo many tough challenges to be chosen by the stone, while others might just hit by the stone on their head right at the moment they set their foot into the realm. There’s one instance in the record where we scouted for five batched of candidates to finally find the suitable Mage. I believe we have this information on our official website since it is the standard procedure; you should have seen it if you visited the website.”
This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.
Bahyun recalled the pastel-colored website that looked like a dreamy fangirl diary, full of many ridiculous design. He couldn’t remember where this information located. When he finally looked at the webpage after the meeting, he did find that piece of information...buried within the lines of the T&C with the smallest font, which he had to dig out using the search function. Who on earth would read the T&C of a website? He couldn’t even blame himself for not seeing this information because it was too subtle!
“When the stone stops answering Mages’ summon, it is time for the Mages to retire, and other Mages shall bring to stone to the room where the test shall begin and activate the realm. The stone shall be tossed in, and candidates shall enter for their test,” Otmeen looked at Almandine, “We’ve put the halved stone into the realm as well, but none of the candidates ever see the stone. While Mages could take a look at the stone, they can’t lay their fingers on it. So, it’s up to you to retrieve it.”
A secret realm belonging to the Special Mage Armed Force...Bahyun pondered and asked, “Almandine functions by dark energy. Could she enter the realm too?”
“To be honest, I’m not sure.” Otmeen replied after a moment of silence, “The battle between humans and dark beasts was intense back in those ages. Mages hated dark beasts to their core. Though the First Mage reflected upon her actions during her old age and took a more gentle approach, I can’t guarantee that this realm created by them from that era would have good intentions toward anyone who holds dark energy in their hands.”
Bahyun furrowed his brow. If Almandine were not accepted into the realm, then he would be the only one who could get in and have a try...but he wasn’t a teenager and definitely not a teenage girl. Would he be chosen by the halved stone?
He sighed and said, “Well, I’ll see what I can do when Almandine and I enter the realm.”
“Okay then, let’s move to the Big Hospital.” Otmeen and the Mages all stood up, ready to go, while Bahyun went blank at the location they mentioned.
“Wait, The Big Hospital? You mean, the secret realm is located in the hospital built thousand years ago? A tourist spot where tons of people come and go?”
Bahryn nodded, “Yup, it’s there alright.”
The test to choose a Mage took place in such an area, but no one ever noticed it. Not a single journalist captured such a picture and made a headline out of it...Bahyun started to worry because this doesn’t sound like a simple place.