NOVPUBChristina originally wanted to gamble for fun, but Rocky, the butler, recommended to go all-in on someone named Tata.
She asked Rocky why he would recommend a newcomer with hardly any record.
Rocky hesitated for a moment, then said it was because Tata was good-looking, which completely dumbfounded Christina.
What use is being attractive? Can attractiveness be eaten as food, or grant wish fulfillment and make everything go as desired?
Christina never expected Rocky to be such a superficial man.
After much thought, Christina still placed a bet of three hundred pounds on Tata’s qualification test; after all, Rocky had some uncanny intuition.
If Tata really did pass, Christina would be able to receive more than sixty times the prize money, which would be enough to accumulate fifty thousand pounds and fire the butler Rocky.
At this moment within the Shadow World, the circular steps in the center of the auditorium spiraled upward, ultimately reaching the main seat. 𝔫𝖔𝖛𝖕𝖚𝔟.𝖈𝖔𝔪
This assessment’s Artificial Shadow World simulation was set in Aiford’s Home at the Colmpton Library on the third floor of Parriet Art University.
The spacious seminar classroom was quiet and solemn, with thick old oak floors inlaid with red carpets, and deep brown wooden bookshelves stuffed with books lined the walls.
In the middle of the classroom sat a long, ancient bronze table over ten meters in length, flanked by several classical Poson-style armchairs. The Immortal Crystal chandeliers on the ceiling glittered faintly under magical illumination, and a fireplace at the back was still burning wood.
Under the protection of the Barrier, only the rustling sound of feather pens on parchment paper could be heard.
Six assistants from the association sat at the end of the long table, concentrating intently, some with their chin in hand contemplating, others sketching on paper.
They wouldn’t make a noise. It was only when the examiners needed their help and commanded them that they would respond.
"Alright, let the exam begin. Mr. Vice Examiner, please proceed to discuss the eight drawn questions with the examinees," the chief examiner announced.
The chief examiner sitting in the main seat was a middle-aged man, around fifty years old.
His brown-black hair was streaked with white, but he still exuded a scholarly and undiminished valiant demeanor, dressed in a burgundy suit, his eyes peering over the half-moon glasses towards the long table.
He was Bruden Yizainha, a Platinum Level Card Maker from the Arolan Kingdom, who also happened to be a Master of Magical Engineering.
Today, he was responsible for scoring each candidate’s discussion content and would later discuss with the vice examiner to set the average difficulty and passing score line based on the vice examiner’s assessment.
"Now it’s your time," the chief examiner said and transferred the judging authority of the Artificial Shadow World to the vice examiner sitting at the side, in the secondary seat at the long table.
"So Carlen, are you ready? According to the drawn questions, we will start with a discussion on the exploratory research of the thermal furnace," he said.
In contrast, the young vice examiner radiated a completely different sense of mystery.
He appeared to be in his early twenties, tall and straight, dressed in a night-blue, form-fitting long robe.
Oddly enough, he wore a silver metallic mask that completely obscured his face, the only visible features being a pair of indifferent, water-like blue eyes.
Even the color of his eyes was presumably part of the disguise.
Still, his voice sounded gentle and enchanting, akin to a warm spring flowing melodiously.
"No problem," Carlen assured, sitting opposite him like a lady, nodding her head.
"Our first topic of discussion—how can we achieve the most efficient magical energy conversion with the least loss in the thermal furnace activation system? Please demonstrate a scheme based on your own expertise, and here are a few basic construction modules available for your quick use," the vice examiner said methodically, projecting a semi-transparent 3D magical mechanical device in front of Carlen.
Without much hesitation, Carlen lifted her hands and began reconfiguring the projection of the magical mechanical device with her own magic power.
"First, the Magic Energy Induction Coil collects the free natural magic particles in the environment, synchronizes them to form a highly efficient and highly ordered magic flow; then, through a specially made Curvature Convergence Array, the magic flow is arched to focus, substantially increasing the energy density," she murmured.
"The arch-shaped focusing array you are using now reminds me of the technique for achieving high magical energy concentration in the Energy Storage Pool; but how can we prevent too much thermal noise when magic particles are overloaded?" the vice examiner asked kindly while watching her demonstration.
"The Swirl Ion Cooling Technology that I excel in and have developed myself is meant to solve this thermal noise problem," she explained, as the inner workings of the mechanical components were magnified in another perspective window, transformed into several circulating vortices.
"By applying centrifugal force and introducing a specific magical field, the particle flow forms a helical vortex, effectively separating high-energy dense areas from low-heat dispersal zones. This allows for enhanced magical power output in the high-energy areas during the next step of magic amplification," Carlen detailed effortlessly to the vice examiner.
Compared to fire, she, who excelled in Wind-attribute, could still direct the discussion towards her area of expertise even when it came to Fire-attribute questions.
By this point, the vice examiner had no significant doubts.
He didn’t understand wind well, but he had some insight into fire.
"It’s clear that you have unique insights into both theoretical and practical applications, but in the magic amplification step, simply magnifying it cannot achieve zero heat loss and would violate the conservation of magical energy. What are your thoughts on this?"
