NOVPUBAt the third-floor conference area of the Ichrite Cardmaker’s Association.
Even indoors, one could hear the sonorous chime of the bell tower from the Hutton Pedestrian Square ringing twelve times.
The deep-brown wooden floor glistened in the bright noon sun, the towering ceiling constructed from raw wood beams giving off a natural and primitive feeling unique to the Hutton Kingdom.
On the carpet, the leather sofa and coffee table were in the distance, the cylindrical wall that separated the conference area displayed scenes from the Cardmaker’s Qualification Exam.
Two and a half hours had passed since the start of the exam.
Some candidates had already used up their five chances and unfortunately left the venue.
Others had already produced two or three finished cards, still trying to create higher quality Magic Cards to boost their score.
Near the coffee table, Sofia, the Countess’s daughter, was still sitting with Prince Aynor, their relationship remained the same as always, though they seemed a bit closer than before.
On the other side, Hyperion was sitting on a single sofa, looking peaceful and content.
The three of them were watching the Cardmaker’s Qualification Exam.
As it was being broadcast live, Lanci’s scene was only shown occasionally.
The crew members from the Cardmaker’s Association would switch to a candidiate’s feed at crucial moments when they were about to finish making a card.
After all, the most exciting moment, is when the card is formed or when it explodes.
"If one aims for a high success rate, making three cards out of five attempts, they could make only White Ordinary cards,"
Sofia, watching a card that had just exploded on the screen, couldn’t help but shake her head.
"Yes, even though one would end up with an iron-level grade, at least they would pass the exam," Hyperion also sighed.
Soon, the screen switched to a member of the Holy Education Society who was just about to encase a Magic Card. The end of his process was drawing near.
He was making a composite Magic Card that mixed light and holy attributes and was about to finish the penultimate step.
Under the gaze of the people, it was clear that this young Cardmaker, clad as a Probationary Priest, had already meticulously engraved the magic carrier on the smooth card base, stamped the glowing stone powder that activated the light attribute magic, and the framework formed was like a shackle that firmly trapped the magic power within the Magic Card.
Next, he began the final, and most important step, which was the final debugging and machining.
His gaze focused, his brush incessantly dancing, skillfully connecting several magic inscriptions to form a complete magic energy loop that allows the Magic Card to recharge after depleting its magic power, allowing it to be reused.
In this process, he needed to ensure the correct operation of each magic structure during start-up while avoiding conflicts with other structures. If there is an error, the card will collapse directly, and under some non-standard operations, it may even cause the card to explode violently.
His brow furrowed, his full attention devoted.
Finally, in this tense moment, a Magic Card successfully stabilized under the light, and people could clearly see the azure halo continuously circling on the card.
The noisy floor was immediately filled with praises.
A blue halo emanated from the card, proving that his craftsmanship was quite solid.
Because making cards during the exam is not the same as making cards at other times.
During normal card-making, there is plenty of time to select and prepare materials, and there’s no need to consider the success rate.
To abandon the safest goal of producing White Ordinary grade cards, and pursue higher-quality cards, is in itself a great confidence in one’s own skills.
"This guy’s skill is up to par; if he produces three Blue Precious cards, or a combination of purple, blue, and white, he would receive a copper-level grade," Aynor commented.
Although his research direction at the Magic Engineering College was not card-making, his frequent visits to the Cardmaker’s Association allowed him to know almost all types of Magic Cards and which grades they belonged to.
The better the quality of all the cards made in the exam, the higher the surplus promotion points, even if they are rated to the same level.
At the same time, the screen also showcased the finished card:
[Holy Light Judgement]
[Category: Magic Card]
[Grade: Blue Preciousness]
[Tier: 3]
[Effect: Deals group damage of Light attribute. Inflicts an additional 100% Holy Spirit Judgement damage on creatures in the evil deity camp. Cooldown time: 30 seconds.]
[Remark: The holy light will purify your soul!]
Sometimes, through such displays, candidates could quickly sell their made and unused cards after the exam, and some outstanding candidates even received orders and commissions on the spot.
"If one is fully equipped with this kind of Magic Card, it would be very useful for specifically exterminating evil spirits, it’s effective enough to deal with Resurrectionist who have fallen deeply into sin, and it’s even more effective against the majority of the Demon Race and the Blood Clan"
"It’s effective against the Demon Race, but it’s tough to deal with the Blood Clan, because you can’t kill the Blood Clan, but we won’t encounter it anyway"
Even in the conference area, one can still hear the conversations of passers-by in the corridor.
There are few of the Demon Race in the South Continent. The Demon Tribe Kingdom was originally in the Northern Continent before it fell, and the Blood Clan is elusive.
To fight against the Blood Clan, one can almost only seal them but not kill them.
Their only weakness is being weakened during the day.
At night, they rule over everything, and can’t be defeated.
Which is why Hyperion understands why when the Purgatory Corridor College opened, the background of that era was that humans were slaves of the Blood Clan at night, because even the Demon Race dared not clash with the Blood Clan at night.
At their zenith, the Blood Clan were invincible to every race.
"Well, not bad. It’s just that these cards are not very useful for us who live in the Capital of Hutton all year round."
Aynor sometimes buys some cards, but he was not very interested in this one.
He neither sees the Blood Clan nor would he go to fight the Demon Race. As for heretics, they wouldn’t dare to cause trouble in the capital where High Priest Loren resides.
"Then, you won’t need to look at this guy’s cards. The same series of ’Holy Light Warhammer’ and ’Holy Light Angel Envoy’ have similar effects."
Sofia had already figured out the purpose of the candidate’s card-making. He must be preparing to make three of the same series in order to maintain his touch and stability while pushing his skills to the extreme, ensuring a swift ascend to copper-level.
"Actually, I still prefer the cards Lanci makes..."
As Aynor spoke, he once again couldn’t help but express his admiration for Lanci.
The voice had barely finished speaking when the camera once again switched to Lanci, the focus of their attention for the day.
Perhaps due to the director’s judgment of card quality priority, the main screen had been focused on the examinee who had completed the Blue Preciousness magic card. When it switched to Lanci’s side, he had already finished making his magic card.
The screen displayed the result of his appraisal—
[Cartoon Mask]
[Category: Equipment Card]
[Grade: White Ordinary]
[Rank: 3]
[Effect: Equip to a summoned creature to soften its fierce image and make it look adorable.]
[Remark: The illustration has been adjusted for you.]
"What kind of odd card is this?"
"Never seen before, I guess the Cardmaker’s Association will record it as his patent."
Often, some examinees would produce new types of magic cards in the registration exam that the Association hadn’t recorded yet.
Although Lanci’s card is of low grade, its unusual effect always triggers some minor discussions.
"This is truly a captivating card!"
Prince Aynor couldn’t help but praise, seemingly eager to buy it for his own summoned creatures and those of his friends to try.
This caused Sofia and Hyperion to exchange a look, both of them almost speechless.
Other people’s Blue Preciousness can’t hide their decline, while Lanci’s White Ordinary reveals a master’s demeanor.
The prince is too biased. If he becomes the king in the future, he might bring about an iron-blooded Bao Lan Sect.
However, the meaning of the card that Lanci made is indeed somewhat unclear.
It might be more for use as a living magic or entertainment magic card.
Of course, sometimes it might disturb the opponent’s mindset if it forcibly turned their fierce and handsome dragon into a cute-style baby dragon.
At this point.
Lanci has already made three out of three cards.
Although the magic cards he made were all White Ordinary and rather unremarkable cards of the sealing system, luck did play a part in it.
But it can be seen that this guy’s adaptability to sealing techniques has reached a terrifying level. 𝒏𝒐𝒗𝒑𝒖𝒃.𝙘𝒐𝒎
Among the two cards he made earlier, there was one that Prince Aynor was very interested in.
[Small Love Doll]
[Category: Summon Card]
[Grade: White Ordinary]
[Rank: 3]
[Effect: Calms the target by weakly sealing and reducing their emotions through its song, bringing peace to their mind.]
[Remark: Little Love will heal you.]
The adorable version of the Great Love Poet’s doll.
In any case, it’s quite lovely, making people want to buy one to keep at home and listen to her singing.
Even Hyperion was contemplating how to approach Lanci to buy one. She also wanted one.
In contrast, Lanci’s spell card, which he excels at, was made rather casually, as if he just wanted to get approval as a safety net.
[Are You Praying]
[Category: Magic Card]
[Grade: White Ordinary]
[Rank: 3]
[Effect: Seals the target’s eyes for 1 second, with a cooldown of 30 seconds.]
[Remark: Darling, guess who I am.]
Apart from the peculiar name and remark, it’s a common sealing magic card that can be found in the market.
But it seems a bit different from "Sealing Vision for 1 second", as it seemed to seal other people’s pupil techniques directly as well.
Many examinees would end the exam immediately after successfully creating three cards.
Making cards on the spot in an examination environment is not as good as taking a moment they’ve prepared for to concentrate on making magic cards.
Yet, in the fleeting shot from the screen, it appeared that Lanci had no intention of quitting.
It seemed that Lanci was planning to keep making cards.
"Did he plan from the start to make three White Ordinary cards as a backup, then try to make higher-quality cards to boost his score?"
Sofia asked uncertainly.
This strategy is seldom used.
Because for card makers with a success rate of four out of five or five out of five, there’s no need for three White Ordinary cards as a backup.
Natural card making based on skills would also produce more excellent magic cards.
"I don’t know."
Hyperion shook her head.
Lanci had previously told her during their conversation that he planned to make a White Ordinary card for equipment to be safe, and then try for a higher grade on summon cards and spell cards.
However, Lanci temporarily changed his cardmaking strategy in reality, so Hyperion didn’t know why he had a new idea.
