Alchemist or Cultivator?

Chapter 5

Rayn was startled by the conclusion he had reached.

“No, that can’t be right…”

He instinctively wanted to reject the thought. Skyrim Academy recruited apprentices from across the entire Plane every five years. Even with its strict requirements, every class still contained thousands of students. If only a hundred students from one cohort survived, how terrifying must the death rate at the frontline be? The number was so small that Rayn found it difficult to accept. Thousands had entered the academy together, full of ambition and hope, yet almost all of them had eventually disappeared from the world.

The thought settled over him like a dark cloud, and he could not push it away. The more he considered it, the more disturbing the academy’s current arrangement became.

He glanced toward the Combat Element’s area. Their promotional session had already reached the Q&A phase. Several confident returning wizards were answering questions from the apprentices and recounting experiences from the battlefield. The atmosphere was lively, almost festive. Every answer seemed to make the surrounding apprentices more excited, and the returning wizards clearly knew how to present themselves as examples worth following.

“…It’s almost like a fan meeting.”

Rayn muttered to himself before turning toward the opposite side of the hall.

A small group of wizards stood there, looking much more tired than their Combat Element counterparts. There was a trace of age on their faces, and their standard robes were those used by the academy’s logistics departments. Crucibles representing Alchemy, flasks for Magic Potion, and Runes for Array Magic were embroidered across their chests. Their positions were easy enough to identify, yet there was little of the glory surrounding the Combat Element.

They looked far less impressive. Some robes were visibly worn, and most of the wizards were only First Level Official Wizards. Two were even Third Level Wizard Apprentices. Compared with the powerful Combat Wizards across the hall, they could easily be overlooked by an apprentice searching for the most promising career.

Their eyes lacked the sharp confidence of the Combat Wizards. Instead, there was a quiet steadiness in them, the sort that seemed to come from years of experience rather than strength or achievement. They did not appear eager to impress anyone. If anything, they seemed accustomed to being ignored.

The difference between the two groups was obvious. The Combat Wizards from the same cohort all seemed accomplished, with impressive records to their names. The logistics wizards, on the other hand, looked ordinary and far less celebrated.

Rayn suddenly understood why the academy had arranged things this way. The returning Combat Wizards were there to inspire the new apprentices, while these logistics wizards provided a useful contrast. It was almost as if the academy wanted the new students to see what they could gain by choosing the Combat Element and what they might lose by choosing another path.

Almost as soon as Rayn turned around, several of them noticed him.

He approached calmly and lowered his voice. “Excuse me, seniors, I am a new apprentice this year, considering which direction to major in. May I ask some questions?”

The wizards exchanged glances. There was a hint of amusement in their expressions. They had probably dealt with many curious apprentices before, but Rayn’s approach seemed to interest them.

An Alchemy Wizard answered first. “A newcomer? Thinking about the Logistics Element, huh… Why not consider a career in the Combat Element? The benefits there are genuinely better than in Logistics.”

Rayn could feel the pressure from standing among wizards far stronger than himself, even though none of them were intentionally releasing their aura. Their strength alone was enough to make him cautious. Fortunately, years of cultivation had strengthened his willpower enough for him to remain composed.

He shook his head honestly. “I have little interest in fighting and killing, and… to be honest, I’m somewhat afraid of those battlefields.”

“It’s normal to fear the battlefield; you’re a newcomer, after all,” a Magic Potion Wizard said. “But in Logistics… how should I put it, promotion is indeed not as fast as in the Combat Element, and you’ll have to obtain resources yourself.”

Another wizard interrupted, studying Rayn with curiosity. “I want to know why you think we would answer your questions.”

“Wizards value knowledge in equal exchange; you don’t seem to have anything to offer in return for our answers, do you?”

“Because…”

Rayn did not answer immediately. Instead, his eyes moved toward the stage, where the Combat Element wizards were still talking with the new apprentices. He deliberately let the scene speak for itself. The returning Combat Wizards were surrounded by students, receiving questions and admiration, while the logistics wizards had been left in a quieter corner.

The logistics wizards followed his gaze. A moment later, they understood what he meant and laughed among themselves.

“You’re quite right; we’ve all been assigned the task of cooperating with the academy’s propaganda,” the Alchemy Wizard said, looking at Rayn with open admiration.

“The task does include an obligation to answer new apprentices’ questions. However, due to contractual restrictions, each new apprentice only gets one chance to ask, and I can only answer what is already known or forthcoming knowledge that isn’t contractually restricted. If your question exceeds these limits, I’m entitled not to answer.”

“Now… what do you want to ask?”

Rayn answered without hesitation. “I want to know why there are only ninety-seven returning wizards in the Combat Element aiding the propaganda?”

The laughter stopped.

For a brief moment, the logistics wizards said nothing. Their expressions changed as they looked at Rayn, and the sudden attention made him slightly uncomfortable. He had expected his question to reveal something, but he had not expected such an immediate reaction.

Then a Mechanical Engineering Wizard burst out laughing.

“Hahaha… this kid is much smarter than I was back then!”

Another wizard immediately extended an invitation. “Kid, come to Rune Science; with your intellect, you could become someone great!”

“Shoo, shoo, shoo, aren’t you afraid of violating the contract by directly recruiting? And you guys, lower your voices, lest other students hear!” the Alchemy Wizard admonished, waving at them.

The others paid little attention to him. One Mechanical Engineering Wizard even pointed upward with a smug smile.

“Relax, Wizard Kane, this kid would definitely have seen through the trap of this promotion already. As for those apprentices outside… I’ve already set up an Illusionary Barrier; those kids outside won’t notice what’s happening here.”

Rayn looked up in surprise.

At some point, a frosted glass-like curtain of light had appeared around him and the wizards, completely enclosing their group. From outside, the barrier made the area look no different from the rest of the hall, yet nothing they said should be able to reach the apprentices beyond it.

So this was the Illusionary Barrier the wizard had mentioned.

Rayn had been alert since approaching them, yet he had not sensed when it had been created. If the wizard had not pointed it out, he might never have realized that anything had changed. That realization made him more cautious. A wizard capable of hiding the formation of such a barrier right beside him was clearly far more skilled than his appearance suggested.

“Don’t be too surprised; once you get to the battlefield, you’ll gradually learn these things to survive.”

Kane noticed Rayn’s reaction but did not think much of it. Judging from Rayn’s clothes and manner, he seemed to have come from an ordinary background. It was only natural that some things would surprise him.

Kane ignored the teasing from the others and turned his attention back to Rayn, his expression becoming more pleased.

“Didn’t expect you to discover the issue from this angle; it did surprise us a bit. Indeed! It’s just as you think, or rather, the frontline is even more dangerous than you imagined!”

Kane’s smile disappeared as he continued.

“I can tell you clearly, whether it’s the Combat Element or the Logistics Element, what you see here are the only surviving members from our cohort.”

“Wha…” Rayn couldn’t help but widen his eyes.

He instinctively scanned the hall. The returning Combat Wizards were easy to identify because they were gathered on the stage. The returning logistics wizards were scattered throughout this section, so Rayn counted them one by one. He had already suspected that the number was abnormal, but seeing the surviving logistics wizards gathered around him made the truth much harder to dismiss.

It did not take long for him to arrive at the final number.

“One hundred and fifty-three…”

“Our cohort had over five thousand students, with a fifty-to-one ratio between Combat and Logistics students. Now all 153 survivors are here.”