The Return of the EX-Class Wizard - Chapter 85

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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The Return of an EX-Rank Mage Episode 085
The clear rating was, once again, EX.
[Where are all the bastards who barked at Top One Tool? Haha]
└Tower X One-trick O
└I know grammar better than you, I wrote it that way on purpose, what’s your reading comprehension?
└All those people spouting off about Tower one-trick and whatnot have gone quiet
└The comment section is so clean now, it feels refreshing
[Breaking News: Special Stage Opened. Anyone Can Challenge It]
The entry requirement was clearing the 10th Floor.
Kang Hye immediately attempted the challenge.
[Will you challenge the Special Stage?]
Kang Hye looked around.
“Uh….”
Could this really be called a stage?
At first glance, it was nothing but ruins.
A shattered ancient ruin whose original form was impossible to discern.
A desolate, silent wasteland that seemed to have been abandoned for centuries.
It was difficult to determine what this space had originally looked like; only a vague estimation of what might have existed remained, standing alone in emptiness.
[The challenge objective has been destroyed.]
[Stage progression is impossible.]
[Exiting the Special Stage.]
Entry. And immediate exit.
Those were the only two things possible.
No challenge objective, no rewards—nothing remained.
Back at the An House, Kang Hye let out a hollow laugh.
“You destroyed the challenge objective?”
“That’s what happened.”
An unbreakable boulder, they said?
Yet it shattered far too easily.
“Honestly, I nearly died.”
Even with my Intellect raised by 5, I never expected the destruction to be this severe.
“But your expression looks good, oppa?”
Just by looking at Choi Kang-mok’s face, Kang Hye could make a rough guess.
He clearly failed to control his magic.
Yet the corners of his mouth were raised?
That meant something was there.
“Did you get an amazing reward?”
“Yeah.”
Choi Kang-mok grinned widely.
Though he had failed in magic control just now, an opportunity had emerged that could further contribute to his magical advancement.
It was thanks to the rewards from the Special Stage.
───────
[Outpost Facility Unlock Authority (Tier 2)]
Unlock outpost facilities to Tier 2.
※No currency required.
※Provides optimal unlocking.
───────
A full two tiers.
An opportunity had arrived to unlock the 3rd and 4th Floors of the Ayla Magic Research Institute.

* * *
Meanwhile, the Shenyang Lord Xi Yun met with the Beijing Lord in utmost secrecy.
Surprisingly, it was Beijing who bowed first.
“My apologies, Xi Yun.”
From Beijing’s perspective, Shenyang was too valuable a piece to discard.
A mage-specialized city where the system hub ‘Magic School’ existed.
It required careful handling and occasional appeasement.
“But how can you cast aside Shenyang like this?”
“I won’t bother with political excuses. You understand the reasoning well enough. Instead, let’s discuss the Magic School investment matter we spoke of before.”
“….”
The Shenyang Lord had much he wished to say, but held his tongue.
The deed was already done.
Now only concrete compensation and investment remained.
“Timing-wise, we have substantial Novaite reserves.”
By restricting mana barrier exports and reverse-importing some from Korea, Novaite inventory had become abundant.
Novaite. The hottest mineral in the crafting and magical fields these days.
Mixed into weapons, it increases power; mixed into armor, it strengthens durability.
Even used in enhancement, it raises success rates—earning it the title of magic’s universal cheat key.
“Seventy billion Novaite-synthesized Orbs.”
Novaite-synthesized Orbs are necessary for the recently researched concept of ‘higher-quality leveling.’
“Eighty billion Diamonds in facility investment. I’ll execute it today.”
“…Is this all you’re offering me to swallow and accept?”
“Think of it as proof of how important Shenyang is to China. We’re forgoing the growth of Beijing’s rankers and giving you Orbs instead. As long as the Magic School exists, Shenyang will always be China’s heart. That never changes.”
Xi Yun finally nodded.
Seventy billion Novaite-synthesized Orbs.
This was a quantity he could never have dreamed of under normal circumstances.
Eighty billion Diamonds as well—it would have taken a full year to acquire this ordinarily.
“…I understand.”
“Don’t take it too hard.”
“Yes, I understand.”
And not long after.
[Breaking News] Magic School’s ‘Graduate Program’ Officially Opens!
Under China’s leadership, news of the Magic School spread across the entire world.
[Just enrolling in the graduate program gives +3 Intelligence? lol]
└Wait, really? They just hand it out?
└Yeah, but it gets deducted if you desert
└Still, giving out stats at all is crazy
└The real insane part is something else
The Magic School became a hot topic among mages worldwide—but not simply because of the +3 Intelligence stat.
[Upon graduation: 70% chance of Awakening rank increase for mage-class abilities]
└Wait, 70% not 0.7%???
└Isn’t this a scam?
└That’s worth pouring years into
└The quest difficulty is brutal, but the rewards are legit
And one more shocking piece of news emerged.
A ‘professor-rank mage’ was stationed there.
“I heard the teaching assistant there is insane?”
“Spencer? He’s the one who created the mana barrier, right?”
Even Spencer looked like an elementary school student compared to this monster.
His specialty remained undisclosed, but rumors circulated that he excelled in Creation Magic and Pocket Dimensions.
[Someone said they Awakened just from one conversation with Professor Raymond?]
└Not even a conversation—just heard him say “Why can’t you do this?” and gained enlightenment lol
└Seriously a mage monster from another dimension
└Real Madrid is even sending mages to study abroad there
└Mages have lost their minds lolololol
Meeting a single ranker was already called a ‘fortunate encounter.’
But if that person was a ‘professor’?
[I’m packing my bags]
└Me too
└Me too222
└Me too333
Mages worldwide began booking tickets to Shenyang.
Shenyang, in an instant, rose to become the holy land of the mage world.
[I thought Shenyang was sinking, but guess not]
└Only you thought that
└The Magic School is insane lol
└But doesn’t this make Seoul kind of awkward?
└If you want to seriously raise mages, you’d have to at least pretend to make reforms
└Isn’t Seoul Guild at a turning point right now?
Seoul. More broadly, South Korea was a rather peculiar nation.
One of them was an off-the-charts World-Class mage.
The rest, however, still fell short of that standard.
Seoul and South Korea were acutely aware of this reality.
Thus, they were devising plans to invest heavily in cultivating new players.
Still, the outlook remained promising.
With the world’s finest Tower quality as a foundation from the lower floors (though they were no longer strictly lower floors anymore), promising talents would flourish within a few years.
Among them, mages would certainly emerge, and there was no institution more effective for nurturing them than the Magic School.
[Like it or not, Korea must maintain good relations with China]
└The Magic School is real
└But didn’t something happen in North Korea too?
└Just some research institute, but civilians still can’t enter
└The Magic School took over a year to prepare anyway
└The North Korean research institute’s scale is pathetic. It’ll take 3 years to officially open lol
└3 years? That’ll take forever~ If that happens in 3 years, I’ll give up my right hand
[Breaking News] Ayla Advanced Research Institute now open to all awakened mages!]
The Ayla Research Institute had officially opened its doors.

* * *
With the establishment of a ‘graduate program’ at Xiyang Magic School,
Shenyang had secured another springboard for advancement.
We had lost an assistant instructor, but gained a ‘professor’.
Mere enrollment granted +3 to magical power,
and the formal curriculum provided mage-exclusive quests and training assignments.
Diligent completion opened the possibility of promotion to assistant instructor.
“Go to China. That’s the path to securing mid-tier or higher status as a mage.”
This statement had begun circulating as an industry standard.
Shenyang launched an extensive promotional campaign, reestablishing its position as the world’s only magic-specialized city.
[Shenyang Lord Xi Yun: “The door of opportunity stands open to all.”]
Yet the world rarely flows so smoothly.

* * *
[By the authority of the Institute Director, the mage-exclusive passage and Ayla Advanced Research Institute are now fully open to the public.]
[Except in special circumstances, only Awakeners with mage-class professions are permitted entry.]
Countless mages visited the Advanced Research Institute, their curiosity piqued.
“Whoa, this is the mage-exclusive entrance?”
“Wow, they really built it separately….”
[Advanced Research Institute Visitation Benefits!]
[Mage-Exclusive First-Time Visitor Bonus!]
[Intelligence +3]
“Huh?”
“What?”
The mages couldn’t believe their ears.
“You too?”
“You as well?”
In cases of bad luck, it increased by 1.
In cases of good luck, it jumped by 3.
[Story: Entered Ayla Advanced Research Institute and Intelligence Went Up.txt]
└Don’t stir up drama~
└It really goes up? Are you insane?
I also went up 2. That’s insane profit.
The Magic School requires ‘enrollment’ for Intelligence +3.
Even then, it’s only confirmed after graduation.
But Ayla Research Institute?
Just entered the real game and my intelligence went up by 3 lol
└Click! Intelligence +3!
└Still attending grad school like some provincial? How gauche.
└LOL Look at the difference in Giyeon’s class.
That’s just a one-time thing lol. The real growth potential is the Magic School.
There’s nothing except admission compensation.
└In the end, you gotta go to Xiyang to attend professor lectures
└They don’t have professors at their place, right?
China, riding the wave of sentiment, intensified its promotional efforts.
[Fair learning grounds open to all vs. Biased research institute requiring specific person’s permission]
└Honestly, it’s a bit pretentious
“What the heck, suddenly closing borders and restricting entry lol”
└In the theme of the 3rd district country, you suddenly condescend to mention that there is an EX awakened person.
└They only open their borders to countries that suit their tastes. Is this an abuse of power?
Subtly mocking memes and posts about the EX began circulating, and Xiyang actively leveraged this public sentiment to emphasize the Magic School’s superiority.
Around that time, Choi Kang-mok pulled out a base facility unlock token.
[Will you use the Base Facility Unlock Token?]

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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