156 Candidates

Wallace was now standing in front of the large red gate separating the huge manor from the outside. Behind this gate was the home of the Grand Arcanist as well as the site for the apprenticeship examination.

It seems that he had to fall in line seeing that there's about four hundred young magicians that has arrived earlier than him. It was a bit noisy due to the crowded place.

A few minutes had passed and a small door opened from the large gate. A man, probably a butler due to his attire, went out to meet with the applicants.

"Everyone... I'm Clyne Troyard the representative of the Grand Arcanist living in this Cloud Hawk Manor, Sir Slaine Allusia."

After everyone went silent, he was satisfied and continued.

"We will only accept those who have applied online. Before you enter, I will check your names and records to confirm that you have truly passed the qualifications to take the exams."

The stern middle-aged man announced to the to all the magicians.

"May I ask what kind of examination we have to pass in the first part of the apprenticeship?"

A brave 18 years old young magician asked to the middle aged man that was about to take the names of the people that was in line. He didn't get offended and instead answer for everyone to hear.

"Mhm... The first part is a medical examination. Those magicians who used prohibited drugs even if only once during their entire lives will be detected. These prohibited drugs that we meant were those enhancements drugs to improve mana affinity, genes, and other drugs to enhance your body."

Many of the line up magicians gasped upon hearing this. But there were still a lot more magicians who had confident expressions on their faces. Seeing their reaction, the middle-aged man added.

"Don't worry, it doesn't mean that you won't pass if we've detected these. It will only help us to properly gauge your potential. There's still a lot more for medical exams but it will be explained once we confirmed all of your qualifications. Now, don't bother me."

Clyne said as he proceeded to confirm the names of the students in front and their application status online. Some had actually regretted not taking drugs to improve their capabilities. If they have consumed some, their potential might actually increase more.

Wallace only nodded at this as he went at the back of the line and noticed that the same 13 years old young magician he saw from the New Era's Magic Shop was also lining up. He was 10 students apart from the front since the young magician arrived earlier than him with a service.

"Hey, look. Wasn't he the guy who won the championship in the previous TMAC, probably 3 years ago?"

"What?! You're right! That's Jared Faust III..."

"Tsk.Then this means that there will only be four spots remaining." The young man shakes his head as he felt the difficulty of this apprenticeship.

"Sigh... I heard that he was about to undergo   Magic Engineer Licensure Examination this month. I also heard that he had about 5-7 original Mana Artifacts published already. Why did he have to go here?"

"Of course, even if it's me, I would ditch the examination just try my chances here. As long as you have a Grand Arcanist as a master, you can easily get a Magic Engineer license. It's just a matter of time. He can't lose this opportunity."

"That makes sense. Anyway, he should be an alumni of the Mystic Gate Academy. It's no wonder he had such an amazing achievements."

Wallace heard the two candidates chatting behind him. It seems that they recognized several prominent individuals.

"This... Look at the one in front. That's Rhine Wimbledon, another 18 years old. That guy had his Magic Engineer License last year. He's one of the youngest licensed engineer in the history! He's already working at the Congress right?" This young teen was utterly surprised seeing one of the most prominent individual within the younger generation in this country.

"That's right. He should be under Czarina of Armory Division. Sigh~ It seems that our chances of getting a slot was getting lower and lower."

"Urgh... Not again. That's Merlin Hermes, he's the only son of the Skywalker's current headmaster. What a badluck..."

"At the very least, he just reached 13 years old a month ago, barely passing the qualifications. He might be here just for experience, right?"

"No way, remember that everyone here has registered their original Mana Artifacts. He was only 13 years old and had created an original artifact when he was 10. I think that with his potential, there's a high chance that he would be selected."

Wallace continued listening to other gossiping candidates as he learned some of the remarkable magicians that will join the examinations.

Wallace had realized that there seems to be a lot more pressure now that he will be competing to those graduates of an academy, licensed Magic Engineers, previous champions of TMAC, and other individuals that has prominent backgrounds within the country. There were also those magicians who came from another country just to try their luck.

"That's Ren Tao, from Virgan right? Another 18 years old, huh. This one even officially competed in the international competition."

"Virgan should have two Grand Arcanists if I remember correctly, right?"

"That's correct. Unfortunately, the two Grand Arcanists were husband and wife of a prestigious clan in Virgan. They will only accept disciples or apprentices that has their bloodline. So it's impossible even for him who has incredible talent in crafting to reach his peak. Those in the prestigious clans would surely not like to have a commoner amidst them. He doesn't have any powerful background supporting him after all."

"Huh? Why would their government allow him to be unsupported all these years? If he's here, our Congress, Ministry, NMTI, and military who love talents would surely not leave him alone."

"Well, I heard that he refused to submit and be tied as a government worker for his whole life in Virgan. He doesn't want to limit his potential growth as an everyday worker there. It quite difficult to establish your name in Virgan as the country was mostly controlled or shared by powerful clans."

"Then that should be the reason why he's trying to apply here. After all, our Grand Arcanist was popular for not having a very strict bindings on his apprentices. Probably the harshest condition in being his apprentice was that you have to remain single until you reached the level of an Arcanist."

"Urgh.. Now that you reminded me that... Anyway, as long as you reached the rank of an Arcanist, it wouldn't be a problem."

Wallace, who was listening all this time was amazed not only about the information about the several candidates but also to the knowledge of the two behind him. They were clearly aware of events not just in this country but also in other country's news.

As Wallace absorbed all the information he was hearing around, he suddenly realized that it was almost his turn.

A man walked next to Clyne and showed his information using his mobile device.

"Get in. Next." Clyne said after taking a glance at the information in his own device.

Another man approached him. He looks like 17 or 18 years old.

"Scram. Next." Clyne said with a blank expression. But the young magician didn't found it very pleasant.

"Why?! I passed all the qualifications!"

He wasn't the first one to be rejected but he was the first one to raise his voice after hearing Clyne's decision. Some didn't even asked question and just left silently but this guy seems to be very confident that he really passed the qualifications or he wouldn't raise his voice. This made the other magicians waiting on the line to anticipate Clyne's next actions.

But Clyne only gazed at the man without any words. This put a lot more pressure to him.

The young magician tried to be tough at first but he couldn't take it anymore as the gaze of the middle-aged man lasted for half a minute.

"C-can't you just tell me why I didn't qualify?"

As his voice became softer after asking the question, Clyne grinned and answered the young magician.

"You've married someone just a year an a half ago-"

"We're already divorced." The young man interrupted as he was well aware that they can easily find this information.

"You have a son. We don't need single parent. Get out of my sight." Clyne said coldly.

"Urgh..." The man could only grit his teeth and clenched his fist as he walked away.

"Next." As if nothing has happened, Clyne called out for the next person.

After three more calls,  it was now Wallace's turn.

He gave his mobile device to confirm his application online. After Clyne validated Wallace's record, he looked at the young man's face as if to confirm something before making an announcement.

"Scram. Next."

Wallace stood frozen on his spot.