Chapter 12: Droplet’s End (1/2)

I stepped out into the cold morning air.

Everything I needed was packed into the body of my attendant doll.

In the distance, a massive gate stood, towering over 100 meters tall.

Even from the outer slums, that colossal gate was visible.

It was the entrance to the testing grounds, which opened only once a year.

On this day, the entire city, massive and sprawling, opened all its gates to receive visitors.

I continued walking toward the enormous gate.

It had been 11 years, and today marked the 11th time I had walked this path.

It was a road both awkward and familiar.

I walked slowly, for today, there were no wizards lying around on the ground.

Everyone was likely heading toward that gate.

The slum’s main street was crowded with people, despite the early hour.

“Hey, off to the test again today?”

It was a familiar voice.

The head of the sword-wielders, Evan.

I glanced at him with a side-eye.

‘Was he out here to watch the people heading to the test?’

He was holding a large amount of food in both hands.

Behind him, there were several swords slung over his back.

“Not this early, of all things.”

The smell of iron from his sword magic mixed with the air, an unpleasant metallic stench.

I conjured a wind barrier to block it.

“Get lost.”

“Hey, come on, don’t be like that. Want a bite? Just roasted lizard meat.”

He extended a skewer of some unknown meat toward me.

I glanced at it, but my attendant doll swatted it away.

Evan grinned and quickly pulled his hand back.

“Your doll seems different than before?”

He looked genuinely surprised.

After all, it had been 10 months since I last saw him.

Anger flared up again.

This guy had made me a sacrificial offering back then.

I felt a curse rising to my throat, but I kept it inside.

Looking back now, it could almost be considered a help.

It had given me a chance to learn from the professor.

I decided to bury any past grievances.

When it came to settling old scores, thoroughness was key.

And Evan was right to be surprised.

My doll had indeed changed.

In the past year, I had learned more than in the previous 20 years.

The attendant doll behind me was a product of that knowledge.

The only creations I had made that could surpass it were my butler and turtle.

I scoffed at him and continued down the road.

Evan, leaving behind his companions, followed me closely.

“Seriously not going to eat it?”

He kept extending his arm, but my doll swatted it away again.

Disappointed, Evan finally withdrew his hand.

“You really were such an innocent young man back then. Look at you now, all jaded by the world.”

It was mostly your fault.

I grumbled inwardly.

My composure faltered for a moment.

Taking a deep breath, I cleared my head.

All the solemn thoughts I had gathered earlier seemed meaningless now.

Well, perhaps it was better to loosen up and approach the test with ease.

“Did you learn something from the adventurer? You’re a different person from last year.”

‘Adventurer?’

Oh, he must be referring to Professor Irien.

‘He didn’t know she was a university professor, did he?’

‘Of course not.’

‘The time I spent learning from her had been the most fulfilling and rewarding of my magical life.’

‘The outer city walls began to come into view.’

‘It was the barrier that separated the slums from the city, fortified with powerful protective magic to prevent any wizard from intruding.’

The only passage, the city gate, was unusually wide open.

I walked through it, passing into the city.

Evan remained outside the walls, offering his strange skewers to the passersby.

I prayed for the souls of those who accepted them.

They were likely coated with something unpleasant.

Inside the city, the bustling atmosphere of civilization contrasted sharply with the slums.

But no one dared to stray from the road, not with the soldiers lining it.

These soldiers, each a wizard, stood as the guardians of the city.

Their magic acted as a subtle pressure, dampening the spirits of those heading inward.

I once dreamt of living here.

But without proper status or recommendations, entering was impossible.

Only those who had entered the university, those from noble families, or those who served the empire had the right to call themselves citizens.

At the center of the city stood a massive gate.

A teleportation gate, a mysterious door that could transcend space.

Once a year, many gathered here to pass through it for the test.

At first, I had thought I could use that gate to get to the university.

But no, the gate to the university was not that grand.

It was a small, shabby wooden door right next to the giant gate.

I had been shocked when I first saw it.

‘Could this really be the door to the university?’

It seemed too insignificant.

But the immense magical power emanating from it kept anyone from even attempting to approach it.

That door had existed long before the city and the empire itself.

When I first learned about the university, the wizard Ojo, who taught me, had said, “The university is another world created by the great wizards.

“It is a place for them to hone their skills.”

I had been drawn by that phrase and had come all this way.

That door was the only passage to that world.

And around it, this enormous university city had been built.

It was the pinnacle of world-building, a feat beyond imagination.

The flow of people, led by the soldiers, moved toward the teleportation gate.

I followed them, walking toward the immense portal.

Such gates existed across the continent.

In the empire, they opened only once a year to gather all the wizards for the university entrance exam.

Upon passing through the gate, a brief dizziness overcame me.

When I regained my senses, I found myself standing in a space painted entirely white.

In front of me was a massive face.

The exam registrar.

“Please submit your participation fee.”

The face, neither clearly male nor female, spoke.

My attendant doll pulled out a small pouch from its robes.

It contained 100 magic stones, worth about 100,000 gold coins.

Because of this fee, no matter how much I earned, it always felt insufficient.

I had been unable to attend the exam for 10 years after leaving the island, all because of this cost.

I tossed the fee into the face’s mouth.

Then I pulled out another piece of paper from my robe.

It was a recommendation letter from the professor.

‘How much hardship had I endured to obtain this letter?’

‘No, it wasn’t hardship.’

‘It was the professor’s grace.’

‘I was simply grateful for the professor’s blessing.’

‘I could never express how deeply moved I had been when I received it.’

I threw the letter into the face’s mouth as well.

The face swallowed it, then licked its lips before opening its mouth wide.

Inside, a thick darkness rippled.

Stepping inside, the darkness enveloped my body.

I closed my eyes and let myself be carried by it.

It felt as if my body were flowing somewhere.

Then, at some point, I felt the surroundings grow brighter.

When I opened my eyes, I saw a single water droplet.

I was inside it.

Looking through the droplet, I saw many others like me, trapped within their own droplets.

Below, there were even more droplets.

Slowly, I was falling toward them.

I looked up.

The gap in the vast space had opened.

The darkness I had passed through now floated inside it.

As a person emerged from the darkness, a droplet would envelop them and gently float down.

These droplets kept falling endlessly.

Droplets.

‘Was this test related to water somehow?’

I wasn’t sure yet.

The tests were always different, so it was too early to make assumptions.

But no matter the test, I was confident.

I had learned from the professor, and all my previous fixed notions had shattered.

There was no competition, no fighting.

It was about supporting others perfectly.

This was the attitude I would show during this test.

They, too, would understand my sincerity and not see me as an enemy.

The droplets kept falling, endlessly.

I had no idea how many there were.

Those wishing to enter the university had all gathered here, so the number must be enormous.

Suddenly, Evan’s words came to mind.