Red brick buildings stood tall and solemn, representing the ancient engineering and wisdom of the School of Magic Engineering.
The two walked along a campus path.
Beside them, a clear brook wound its way through the grounds, reflecting the emerald leaves of overhanging branches and bringing an exceptional tranquility to the early morning. Looking farther into the distance across the water, flower fields formed part of the School of Alchemy's botanical garden system, serving simultaneously as a teaching and research base for biological engineering.
Once they passed through this shaded lane, they would reach the School of Sages' campus grounds.
"If you want to challenge the Shadow World as soon as possible, you ought to give some thought to joining a team—looking into options, doing some research. Choosing a suitable team will bring you plenty of benefits and support."
After a moment's consideration, Vivian decided against scolding Lanqi, opting instead to guide him properly.
Since Lanqi had humbly asked her about the difficulty of a Tier 3 Shadow World, he was clearly no reckless fool.
He merely possessed a degree of self-confidence commensurate with his talent.
For a young person, that was entirely normal.
Besides, even if she spoke harshly to him, he would almost certainly keep that same mild-mannered expression. What Vivian hated most was hurting genuinely good-natured people; rebuking someone like that only left her feeling guilty.
"..."
Lanqi fell into a brief silence at Vivian's words.
After passing the exam, once he finished his conversation with Hyperion on the steps of the Learning and Education Building, he had indeed done some research into the academy's Shadow World expeditions.
There were indeed several top teams on campus widely recognized and spoken of among the students.
Some had been formed in recent years.
Others had been established long ago—their captaincies passing down through generations while retaining the original team name to this day.
What earned these teams the title of the strongest was not just their experienced Gold-rank leaders, but also the fact that a few of the oldest teams boasted Platinum-rank fourth-years or students from the part-time system backing them.
Though these top Platinum-rank figures served mostly in an honorary capacity, never interfering with the captain's decisions and rarely grouping with ordinary students, their occasional guidance was still an invaluable boon to newcomers!
What was more, every Platinum-rank challenger belonged to an elite permanent party registered with the Association.
If one were fortunate enough to catch their eye, they might eventually receive a recommendation—once strong enough—into a squad standing at the very pinnacle of the Southern Continent!
That was a true shortcut to rising into the Platinum rank.
None of that, however, was something Lanqi needed to concern himself with in the near term.
He still had quite a way to go before reaching Bronze rank or Silver rank.
Just today, Lanqi had received notice from the Southern Continent Shadow World Management Association. The academy had submitted all the paperwork required for his registration exam waiver; all he had to do was visit the Association to complete the final formalities and become an Iron-rank registered challenger.
"Sigh, I'm not really sure what kind of team suits me either," Lanqi finally answered.
He had virtually no connections in the royal capital. Much of what he knew now had been kindly explained to him by Hyperion and Vivian.
"Don't worry. Once classes start, you'll have plenty of ways to find out. Some teams might even seek you out on their own," Vivian said evenly.
To say Vivian felt no envy toward Lanqi's top placement would be a lie.
Initially, she had believed herself to be a fierce contender for the top spot in the School of Sages.
She never imagined her overall score would be left so far behind by the refined, gentle youth before her.
Over the years, freshmen who achieved exceptional scores on the entrance exam had always been prime prospects coveted by numerous teams.
Pausing, she added, "Even though your true capabilities remain a mystery to all the upperclassmen, having the top entrance score in the School of Sages alone is enough to make people want to recruit you."
Lanqi's performance in the third exam had been sealed personally by Dean Loren of the School of Sages, so not even Vivian could dig up the slightest rumor.
Consequently, there was currently a great deal of skepticism surrounding Lanqi.
Some claimed he and Hyperion had merely gotten lucky because Examiner Ferrat suffered a sudden cardiovascular incident during the third round, allowing them to breeze through on a technicality.
The School of Sages had offered no official statement, and the prominent figures backing Ferrat's faction—even if they might know something—kept entirely mum about the circumstances of the examination.
"Is that so?"
Lanqi had not expected that he might actually be actively recruited once the term began.
Still, picking a team—and turning down enthusiastic invitations—sounded like a painful ordeal.
He had no idea what team suited him best, or if there were better alternatives.
Finding out would cost time and energy.
"You don't like the idea of being popular?" Vivian asked curiously, noticing Lanqi's slightly glazed expression.
She wondered why he showed so little excitement, looking instead rather troubled.
"Having people you don't even know place their hopes and expectations on you... doesn't that just bring immense pressure?" Lanqi offered a modest smile, turning his head toward Vivian.
Although Vivian's interpretation of his thoughts was slightly off the mark, Lanqi could easily see through what was on her mind.
"...That's true." After a short silence, Vivian nodded.
"Just like being a princess, constantly burdened with everyone's expectations—it must be terribly exhausting, right?" Lanqi spoke with an easy expression and a gentle voice.
"Ah... it really is," Vivian sighed.
Although, as royalty carrying immense responsibilities, she ought not to endorse such self-centered and detached notions, deep down she wholeheartedly agreed.
She desperately wanted to just lie on the grass and take a nap, rather than running herself ragged every day trying to be a dignified, noble princess.
Wait.
Vivian caught herself almost immediately.
Wasn't she supposed to be questioning Lanqi? How on earth had this turned into a philosophical chat about life?
And the longer they talked, the more she felt like giving in to her inner desires and slacking off entirely.
This fellow was merely speaking in a natural, casual manner, yet it sounded just like the whispers of a devil, effortlessly stirring up the indolence she had kept suppressed in her heart.
Vivian shook her head briskly, stopping herself from drifting further down this irrelevant tangent with Lanqi.
"Lanqi, if you don't have any specific preferences, you could consider the team I'm joining. I can introduce you. Most of the members are from the School of Sages and the School of Magic Engineering, so ordering custom cards is quite convenient. Plus, we have a Platinum-rank challenger—the strongest machinist among the fourth-years in the School of Magic Engineering."
Vivian had secured her team long ago. Having grown up in the royal capital and holding a position of power, she naturally had plenty of acquaintances.
She also believed this team was genuinely compelling, not a reckless recommendation she was tossing at Lanqi.
As one of the academy's strongest teams, its greatest advantage over others was its exceptionally comprehensive logistical support.
For instance, if one went to the Card Makers Association to commission an outstanding card maker, the process was fraught with headaches—running into frauds, facing outrageous price-gouging, enduring absurdly long waiting lists, or getting flat-out rejected.
Within the team, however, requests were easy to arrange, and making friends with card makers was simple.
"The School of Magic Engineering has combat classes too?" Lanqi asked in surprise.
His focus was clearly not on the team itself.
This left Vivian feeling somewhat stifled. She had made the offer sound so appealing!
Lanqi probably had no inkling of how valuable it was to befriend promising card makers from the School of Magic Engineering!
As expected of a boy from the frontier, his understanding of the Shadow World was still far too shallow.
Vivian let out a helpless sigh, but took the trouble to explain:
"Students from the School of Magic Engineering who enter the Shadow World aren't necessarily battlefield card makers. When truly formidable magic artificers fight, they aren't any weaker than students from the schools of sages or knights."
"And don't underestimate the School of Alchemy either. Getting on the bad side of certain troublesome people there will cause you serious problems."
Vivian added this last remark as if recalling something unpleasant.
"Huh?" Lanqi made a puzzled sound.
He knew the School of Alchemy had an abundance of scholars, doctors, apothecaries, and alchemists, leaning heavily toward research. Yet going by Vivian's words, there were bound to be a rare few who excelled at combat.
Still, what kind of people could qualify as major trouble?
Vivian shook her head in agony, as if speaking from personal suffering. "The Information Studies major in the School of Alchemy... I don't know who started it, but in recent years it's begun turning into a breeding ground for unscrupulous journalists... The Hutton Times was actually founded and published by the School of Alchemy in the beginning. Now it's grown bigger and stronger by the day. If you cross them, they're likely to smear you into the dirt."
As a highly scrutinized princess, Vivian lived in constant dread of having some slip in decorum caught red-handed.
"Hssss—"
Lanqi drew in a sharp breath.
Somehow, rather than joining a team, he felt an urge to join the press.
In a society governed by law, wasn't controlling public opinion vastly more terrifying than brute force and bloodshed?!
Chapter 37