“I can only twist and adjust task content within a certain range; I can’t fully replace the original task…”
Ximo knew changing the task from “go to the commercial street for a meal” to “have a good meal” was already System’s best effort. If it were still the original, she’d have no way to complete it at all—where would she find a restaurant?
Ximo vented her frustration by stretching and squishing System’s face like dough. Even the current task was tricky; she was in the exam area. Having a good meal now… wasn’t that a bit too relaxed?
“Whatever, at least this one’s doable. Better than impossible.”
She set aside reuniting with Xiliya for now. She didn’t want to complete this task in front of Xiliya… it’d be too embarrassing.
“Darling, figured out how to complete it yet?”
“Of course,” Ximo released System’s now-deformed little face. “Have you heard of survival in the wild?”
—
Meanwhile, elsewhere in Mist Forest, Xiliya summoned her staff the instant she opened her eyes.
As expected, even entering the same teleportation array didn’t land them together… Xiliya clenched her empty left hand and sighed.
Whatever. Better hurry and find Ximo.
Just as Xiliya prepared to move, rustling came from the bushes behind her. She instantly went on alert, pointing her staff backward.
A magic beast? Her luck was pretty good—to run into easy points right after landing.
A figure burst from the bushes, bowing low toward Xiliya and issuing throaty warning growls.
But it wasn’t a magic beast. Xiliya blinked. Before her was a leopard-like “creature” resembling the low-level Rift Sky Leopard, but its body was pieced together from hundreds of faintly glowing small cubes—like some kind of block toy.
Xiliya quickly realized: it was a magic puppet, a magitool specially deployed by the academy into Mist Forest, supposedly researched by Shasta.
Magic puppets could mimic other creatures’ magic fluctuations and traits… kind of like AI art generators, frantically copying other artists’ works and imitating them.
Xiliya recalled one exam rule: “Killing any creature in the forest earns points.” Clearly, the academy had released these puppets for the test.
The puppet-simulated Rift Sky Leopard roared and lunged at Xiliya, but its mimicked magic level was only beginner mid-grade—a mere appetizer for her.
After her magic barrier blocked the attack, Xiliya dispatched it with a basic magic beam. The clustered cubes scattered, their glow fading as they fell to the ground like a pile of Lego bricks.
Her student terminal displayed “Points +2.” Xiliya gave the cubes one last glance. Shasta truly was the academy’s most senior teacher; the puppet’s construction was exquisitely intricate at a glance.
Xiliya perched sideways on her long staff, which floated slightly under flight magic, carrying her into the air.
The simplest flight magic, requiring staff assistance, needed at least intermediate level. Xiliya had just mastered it fully, perfect for rushing to the barrier’s edge.
At the treetop level, Xiliya surveyed her surroundings. Her luck was good this time; through the thin mist, a faint blue barrier shimmered at vision’s end. She wasn’t far from the forest edge.
Observing the barrier, Xiliya noted its high grade and smooth operation. With it in place, she couldn’t fathom why exam students would be attacked by high-level magic beasts.
The barrier had two effects. First, reverse filtering: only magic beasts at elementary upper grade or below could pass through into the exam area, preventing high-level ones from intruding.
Second, suppression: all creatures originally inside the barrier had their levels forcibly capped at elementary upper grade—except students holding terminals, who were unaffected.
Logically, no high-level magic beasts beyond students’ capabilities should appear in the exam area.
Whatever. She’d check the forest thoroughly after reuniting with Ximo.
Xiliya was about to set off when more rustling came from the forest below.
Another magic beast? Was her luck this good?
Xiliya looked down—and saw it wasn’t a magic beast this time.
“Whoa, what’s this thing?”
Mira pushed through the bushes, tilting her head at the disassembled puppet on the ground, gripping her staff tightly. Though confident in her strength, this was her first time in such an exam format, so she was a bit tense.
“Oh right, these are magic puppets. The exam rules mentioned them… Whoa!”
Seeing Xiliya descend from the sky, Mira jumped in fright, nearly leaping on the spot.
“I-It’s you! You scared me to death…”
Mira patted her chest in lingering fear, only to find Xiliya expressionless, her gaze unusually… fierce.
Xiliya hadn’t expected to run into Mira here of all places. Talk about enemies on a narrow road.
Xiliya narrowed her eyes, saying nothing as she aimed her staff at Mira.
Come to think of it, this was a prime chance for revenge.
“W-Wait! What are you doing? You’re not thinking of attacking me, are you?”
Mira hadn’t expected this turn of events and felt somewhat panicked. She didn’t know why Xiliya harbored such strong hostility toward her. If anything, the two of them had only clashed a little at the auction house, and she had even apologized for it. Xiliya wouldn’t be so petty as to hold onto that grudge all this time, would she?
Of course, Xiliya couldn’t care less about what happened at the auction house. The grudge she wanted to settle was from her previous life.
In her previous life, some nobles had taken a dislike to her growing close to Melrose. Jealous of this disgraced young lady from a fallen family who had been chased out, they squeezed her out at every turn in daily life.
Mira wasn’t among the worst offenders, but Xiliya remembered all too clearly that in their few interactions, this overbearing young lady would always latch onto her like a little she-devil, mocking her relentlessly.
During that time, Melrose would always show up to speak on her behalf whenever she was bullied by the other noble students… Back then, she had been deeply grateful to Melrose. But looking back now, it was nothing more than leaping from one trap into another.
And for those noble students, Melrose’s interventions only deepened their loathing toward her.
