The Imperial Nine Universities Alliance

After greeting everyone, Lynch went to chat with the boss.

He wanted to gather some information first.

Asik pushed up the monocle on the bridge of his nose, shifting his gaze from the thick Basic Magical Engineering Theory in his hands to sneak a glance at Lynch, who was chatting with the boss not far away.

Just moments ago, he had witnessed with his own eyes this usually mild and low-profile pharmacist exude a suffocating Tier 2 magic fluctuation.

Although Lynch explained it away as having drunk a tonic soup, Asik didn't believe a single word of it.

Tonic soup? You've got to be kidding me.

Asik scoffed coldly in his heart, thinking sourly, What kind of tonic soup can cause magic to liquefy? This is clearly natural talent, or some unknown fortuitous encounter.

An emotion called jealousy grew wildly in his heart like weeds.

They were both young men from Buena Village, so why was Lynch able to quietly advance to Tier 2?

Furthermore...

The image of the silver-haired girl who often sunbathed in Lynch's courtyard surfaced in Asik's mind.

Although he had only seen her from a distance a few times, that breathtaking beauty and that aloof, noble temperament made her look exactly like a princess straight out of a fairy tale.

It's bad enough that he's stronger than me, but he actually married such a beautiful wife!

I heard that the woman named Felsy is not only beautiful but also dead set on Lynch. This is simply... outrageous!

Indignant, Asik grabbed the cheap fruit wine on the table and took a huge gulp.

As the only scholar in the village, he had always thought highly of himself, feeling that these villagers were all ignorant country bumpkins.

But now, the pharmacist he had considered a bumpkin had left him in the dust in both career and love.

This sense of disparity made Asik feel incredibly stifled.

Phew... calm down, Asik, you need to calm down.

He took a deep breath, forcefully soothing his restless mood, and refocused his gaze on the book in front of him.

He's just a country pharmacist with a bit of luck. So what if he's Tier 2? Without systematic theoretical knowledge and a noble academy inheritance, the peak of his life will just be a slightly more impressive adventurer.

But I am different.

Asik's eyes became firm and arrogant once more.

I am a man destined to test into a prestigious school. My future lies in the Royal Capital, in the heart of the Holy Central Kingdom! Once I graduate from a higher academy and become an esteemed court mage, what will this little gap amount to?

Thinking of this, Asik suddenly felt much better.

It was a unique sense of superiority—as long as I score high on my exams, I will have a bright future.

Thus, he took out his quill, unrolled a piece of parchment covered in complex lines, and began to tackle the difficult problem that had stumped him for three whole days.

It was a classic exercise regarding Magic Circuit Analysis.

The problem required calculating how to adjust the magical resistance at nodes within a bifurcated magical transmission structure to achieve maximum output power of the magic flow at the terminal end.

Assuming the magical pressure at the source is constant, and the loss rate at the first node is...

Asik chewed on the end of his quill, his brows tightly furrowed as he listed a large pile of tedious formulas on his scratch paper.

What's this? It looks quite interesting.

A gentle voice suddenly rang out beside his ear.

Asik jumped in fright, his hand trembling and causing a large blot of ink to spread across the paper. He looked up to see that Lynch had walked over at some point with a wine glass in hand, peering at the problem on his desk with great interest.

Mr. L-Lynch...

Asik instinctively tried to cover the unsolved problem, feeling a bit embarrassed, but on second thought, the other party was a pharmacist who definitely wouldn't understand such profound magical engineering, so he lowered his hand.

Just browsing casually. Asik adjusted his glasses with reserve. These are all theoretical derivations. They are quite dry; you probably wouldn't be interested.

It looks like drawing a maze.

Lynch pulled out the chair opposite him and sat down, saying casually, I heard from the villagers that you are the most educated young man in our village and have been preparing for the entrance exams?

Hearing the words most educated, Asik's vanity was greatly satisfied.

Tsk, this Lynch actually knows how to speak well.

The villagers always said this young pharmacist had high emotional intelligence, and it seemed the rumors were true.

Ahem, I've just read a few more books than everyone else.

Asik straightened his back, a hint of smugness appearing on his face. After all, my goals are quite high. I look down on ordinary academies. I'm preparing to challenge the unified examinations next spring.

Oh? Then what is your school of choice? Lynch asked curiously.

He really didn't know much about the education system in this world.

At the mention of this, the light in Asik's eyes instantly brightened.

My goal is that place.

He extended a finger, pointing piously toward the north, his tone becoming exceptionally solemn as if discussing some sort of faith:

The pride of the Holy Central Kingdom, the holy land for all young geniuses on the continent—the Royal Nine-School Alliance.

The Nine-School Alliance? Lynch raised an eyebrow. Sounds very impressive.

It's more than just impressive!

Asik seemed to have opened a floodgate, introducing it in a torrent of words:

Those are the nine absolute top-tier higher education institutions located in the Royal Capital circle! They represent the highest achievements of human civilization in various fields!

For example, the Lucalia Magic Academy. That is the palace for all mages, possessing the most complete collection of magic books on the continent and overseen by several Tier 9 legendary mages!

There's also the Ironblood Military War Academy, a cradle specifically for cultivating imperial generals and knight commanders; and the Holy Radiance Theological Academy, which is the holy land that clerics dream of...

Speaking up to this point, Asik's face was filled with yearning:

These nine academies not only have formidable faculty but also abundant resources. As long as you can test into them, even if you just become an adventurer afterward, you'll be an elite fought over by all the major guilds! If you are an outstanding graduate, you can even be directly awarded a kingdom title!

Lynch nodded repeatedly as he listened.

Wasn't this just the alternate world's equivalent of the Ivy League or the C9 League?

No wonder this kid was studying day and night; it turned out he was doing it to secure a cushy government job and a city residency.

You have ambition.

Lynch praised sincerely, Young people should strive for the top. With your diligence, I think you have a great chance.

This compliment was very well-received by Asik. He looked at Lynch and felt that this Tier 2 expert wasn't quite so annoying after all; at the very least, he had good judgment.

I'll borrow your good words.

However, obtaining this stepping stone is not easy. Just this final question on Multi-Node Magic Reflux Analysis has had me stuck for three days.

This is an actual entrance exam question from St. Lawrence last year. The magic rheology logic within it is extremely complex; slightly tweaking a single parameter will cause the entire model to collapse. It requires extremely high calculation talent and logical thinking...

As he spoke, he watched Lynch out of the corner of his eye, hoping to see a look of bewildered awe on his face.

Sure enough, Lynch leaned in for a quick glance before pulling back.

"It really makes my head spin just looking at it," Lynch admitted honestly. "Well, I won't bother you anymore. Take your time figuring it out."

Seeing Lynch back down, Asik's sense of superiority reached its absolute peak.

"See? This is the gap between us."

"So what if he is a Second Tier? Standing before the gates of truth without the key of knowledge, one can only stare in helpless despair."

Asik smiled faintly and buried his head back into his sea of calculations, leaving Lynch with nothing but his aloof back.

Lynch merely shrugged, turning around to head toward the bar.

He genuinely couldn't understand that magic circle, which looked like nothing more than incomprehensible scribbles to him, nor did he have any interest in solving it.

Right now, all he wanted to do was ask the tavern boss where the magical beasts were swarming lately so he could go grind some experience.