"There's one thing I should tell you," Kanzaki Rei said calmly. "Kumironi didn't awaken for me because she thought I had talent."
The moment he finished speaking—
A violent burst of lightning exploded beside him.
Thunder roared across the battlefield.
Montier—defeated.
So this… was the so-called Level 2 mage who claimed he had begun to comprehend Origin Magic.
Rei felt genuine disappointment from the bottom of his heart.
After that, he continued matching into battles.
Still, he encountered no opponent capable of challenging him.
He breezed through another series of fights, casually securing a 50-win streak.
A radiant crystal descended from the sky.
[Amplified Mana Crystal]
An item that increases the maximum Mana capacity.
It was the reward for the win streak.
Fifty matches had taken just over twenty minutes.
With an average of six seconds per battle, how could it not be fast?
Ironically, the most time-consuming part was the matchmaking itself. As the win streak grew, the system required longer to find opponents.
Rei glanced at the rankings.
To his surprise, he had already climbed into the Top 50.
The rankings used a point-based system.
The longer the win streak, the more points awarded.
Normally:
Win: +1 point
Loss: –1 point
After 5 consecutive wins, a victory became +2 points.
After 10 consecutive wins, a victory became +4 points.
After 100 consecutive wins, every win granted +20 points.
Therefore, if your streak never exceeded five wins, maintaining a 50% win rate would keep you hovering around 0 points.
There were also additional coefficients based on battle performance and the score difference between opponents, slightly adjusting the final score.
Rei's current coefficient: 1.2
His base score: 178
Final score: 213.6
Among Level 2 professions, he ranked #44.
Among Level 2 mages, he ranked #3.
Rei took a pocket watch from his spatial ring and checked the time.
Still early.
Might as well grind a bit longer.
The next fifty matches went exactly the same.
No real opponents appeared.
He did encounter the #9 ranked assassin, but unfortunately for that player, he couldn't even break Rei's shield.
The entire arena was instantly covered in a sea of fire, and the assassin burned to death.
[100 WIN STREAK]
Total score: 567
Rank #1 among Level 2 mages.Overall Rank: #3.
Of course, the person in first place had fought over 4,000 battles, losing only 16 times.
Even ignoring streak bonuses, that alone would give them more than 4,000 points.
And someone who had only lost sixteen times surely had many win streaks as well.
"Whatever."
Rei had no intention of reaching Rank #1 in a single day.
Today's battles hadn't given him much inspiration…
Was it because he was killing opponents too quickly?
Akase had said that experiencing many battles might trigger inspiration related to Origin Magic.
But it seemed… more difficult than expected.
Rei had only decided to try the arena after seeing Montier's promotional flyer, hoping to find some inspiration.
Still—
At least he had obtained the win-streak rewards.
100-Win Reward:"Notes of an Ancient Origin Mage"
Rei opened the notebook and skimmed through it.
Then he realized something.
He couldn't even read the text.
Apparently, being transported to this world didn't automatically grant him mastery over every written language.
After reaching this ranking, he also began to feel a little hungry.
Might as well grab something to eat first.
Leaving the Gate of Battle, Rei stopped by the front desk to officially record his match results.
Just over an hour ago, he had registered as a new arena competitor.
One hour later—
He had achieved a 100-win streak and climbed to Rank #3 in the City of the Circle.
The receptionist's lips twitched uncontrollably.
Kid…
Don't you think your record is a little too terrifying?
The City of the Circle was enormous.
Compared to a small town like Rain Town, where you could see the town limits at a glance, the scale here was incomparably larger.
It was said that the city's population was fifty million.
Even Chongqing—one of the most populous cities in China—had only around thirty million people.
By comparison, the population here was truly staggering.
Yet despite the huge population, the city didn't feel crowded at all.
That alone proved just how vast it was.
For dinner, Rei tried a local specialty of the City of the Circle—
Charred Fragrant Beast Roast.
The flavor was genuinely good.
The only downside was the price.
25 copper coins.
Still, the portion wasn't meant for one person.
He packed the leftovers to take back.
If the others wanted some, they could eat it.
If not, it could serve as his midnight snack.
By the time Rei returned to the hotel, night had already fallen.
After thinking for a moment, he decided to visit the library.
The library in Rain Town had been clearly outdated.
Many of the books were editions from the previous century.
The collection here should be much newer.
With that thought, he headed up to the 30th floor library.
The moment he arrived—
He saw a young girl sitting behind the front desk, quietly reading a book.
"…."
Rei made no sound.
But a staff had already appeared in his hand.
"How are you here?"
"They were hiring a Level 4 Scholar as a librarian here. So I came."
Pali.
The librarian from Rain Town.
She had appeared here.
Given that she possessed the Diviner profession, and possibly a high-level one, Rei absolutely refused to believe this was just coincidence.
He turned around and walked away immediately.
"Iz."
"Pali has appeared. She's in the 30th floor library of our hotel."
Rei spoke quietly to the air.
Iz had once said that as long as Rei called his name within his perception range, he would be able to sense it.
BOOM!
Almost instantly—
Iz appeared beside him.
Iz, your existence is truly reassuring.
Even though this behavior felt a little like calling a parent to complain, dealing with a mysterious class like Diviner was not something Rei wanted to do with his limited experience.
However—
When Iz arrived and saw the girl reading in front of him, his expression suddenly became complicated.
"Biddy?"
"You two… know each other?"
Pali closed her book and calmly looked at Iz Parult.
Iz Parult took a deep breath, as if suppressing his emotions.
Then he turned to Rei.
"This… is the friend I told you I was looking for."
Friend.
The word was practically gritted through clenched teeth.
Rei had rarely seen Iz show such emotion.
Iz's face darkened slightly as he recalled the events earlier.
When he had gone to her residence—
There was a note on the door:
"Out right now. If you're looking for me, go to 1224 Moonplain Street."
He teleported there instantly.
Another note on the door:
"If you're still looking for me, go to 52 Old Harbor Street."
Heh…
He chased location after location.
Just when he was about to give up—
Another note appeared:
"If you stop looking now, you'll never see me."
And the final note said:
"This really is the last one."
No address.
And then suddenly—
He heard Rei calling him.
When he arrived beside Rei—
The person he had been chasing was standing right here.
Pali waved casually.
"Yo, Paru."
Iz Parult: "Can I blow you into the sky?"
Pali: "Probably not. This is a library."
They clearly seemed very familiar with each other.
Iz took a deep breath.
"So you were in Rain Town from the beginning."
Pali nodded.
"You knew Messer would go after Rei."
She nodded again.
"Why didn't you warn me?"
Pali replied calmly:
"A Diviner is merely a spectator of fate."
"You didn't come looking for me, so naturally I wouldn't go looking for you."
Diviners do not interfere with the fate of others.
Unless someone actively requests their help.
Once someone makes the request, that action itself becomes part of their fate.
Iz sighed.
He really couldn't argue with that.
It was indeed the code of conduct for Diviners.
"Fine. I need a divination."
A slip of paper appeared in Iz's hand.
"Help me locate Messer."
The paper was the note Messer had left for Rei.
"Fifty million gold," Pali said.
The outrageous price even shocked Rei.
Fifty million?
Are you trying to buy the entire City of the Circle?
Yet Iz paid without hesitation.
He tossed out a pouch.
The pouch was clearly a spatial magic item.
Pali caught it, weighed it briefly, then took the note from Iz.
She glanced at it.
Without using a crystal ball, tarot cards, turtle shells, or any ritual tools—
She returned the note.
"Northwest direction. Valley of Dusklight."
"Follow that path directly. Eventually you'll encounter him in the Secret Sea at the western edge of the Ruilen Continent."
She looked up.
"Do you want to know how the fight will end?"
Iz chuckled softly and shook his head.
"No need."
Pali shrugged.
"Too bad. That's lost income."
"He's probably already realized he's been divined. If you wait any longer before chasing him, the pursuit will take much longer."
Iz nodded.
Then he looked at Rei.
"Akase and Kumironi will protect your safety."
"I'll be leaving first."
This time, Iz departed in a hurry.
At last, Rei understood Pali's identity.
A Level 6 Diviner.
So the "friend" Iz had mentioned earlier… had been Pali.
His plan had been to find her, locate Messer, and eliminate him.
Normally, finding Messer would be extremely difficult.
There were no objects strongly connected to him.
Even a Diviner would struggle to track him.
But now—
Rei possessed the note Messer had personally written.
It even contained traces of his Origin Magic.
The connection was extremely strong.
That gave divination a clear channel.
So in the future…
If Rei didn't want to be easily located, he would have to make sure that items strongly connected to him never fell into someone else's hands.
No… perhaps he shouldn't call her Pali anymore.
Her real name was probably Biddy.
Though just as Rei was about to say something—
"Just keep calling me Pali," she said.
"That's the name I'm using right now. And I'm not aligned with anyone."
"Low-level Diviners might have personal biases, but at my level, a Diviner must remain neutral."
"Those who know fate can only observe it. If they step onto the stage… like a butterfly flapping its wings, the known becomes unknown."
But helping Iz find Messer—isn't that disadvantageous for Messer?
Rei thought this, preparing to ask.
Before he could speak—
Pali answered.
"Being found is simply his original fate."
Rei frowned.
If it weren't for you, how would Messer be found?
Before he could say it—
Pali continued.
"Diviners are not beings outside of fate."
"We are also part of this world."
Rei had to admit—
Everything she said sounded ridiculously pretentious.
Like speaking entirely in riddles.
So… you can hear everything I'm thinking?
Rei didn't say it out loud.
Pali replied anyway:
"I only know the things you intend to say out loud."
Not having to speak really was convenient.
Rei thought of asking:
If I request a divination, will you answer?
Pali said calmly:
"I never refuse a divination."
"As long as you can pay the price."
"When will I become a Level 3 mage?" Rei asked.
"Five thousand gold."
"…."
Forget it.
Too expensive.
And knowing the timing wouldn't change much anyway.
"What will my next profession advancement be?"
"Five thousand gold."
…
Rei's mouth twitched.
Back when she told him about the monster tide and the secret scroll, she hadn't charged anything.
"Fine."
Rei paid 5,000 gold.
Pali answered:
"Cipher Scholar."
Rei instantly felt like he had wasted his money.
Now he finally understood why people hated Diviners.
"What if I insist on not advancing into Cipher Scholar?"
"Then my divination was wrong."
…
For a moment, Rei was speechless.
He had expected some explanation about destiny or inevitability.
Instead—
The divination was wrong?
"Then do I get a refund?"
"No."
Diviners…
This profession really deserved to be cursed.
"Want to ask something meaningful?" Pali asked.
Rei nodded.
"Knowing the exact answer to something isn't as meaningless as you think."
Rei understood that.
Now that he knew he would become a Cipher Scholar, he had many questions.
For example—
Why had Messer prepared all those things for him?
But still…
It felt like a loss.
"Don't you want to ask about your future?"
"Or… your homeland?"
Thump.
That single sentence struck Rei's heart like a hammer.
His homeland…
"…That can be asked?"
"Of course."
"But the price isn't the same."
"How much?"
Pali replied calmly:
"1.5 billion gold."
You've got to be kidding me.
"You think I'm joking?" Pali said lightly.
"That's the price of knowing your own fate."
"In other words—the cost."
Rei carefully considered the questions he wanted to ask.
He did have many doubts about this world.
But when he thought about it carefully…
There wasn't actually much he wanted answered.
As for the mysteries surrounding Origin Magic—
She probably couldn't answer those anyway.
And even if she could, the price would probably be astronomical.
In the end, Rei asked the question he cared about most.
"Why did Messer choose me?"
"Fifty thousand."
…Your mother…
Do you think earning money is easy?
Rei suddenly felt tempted to switch professions and become a Diviner.
Just sit here all day talking and money would pour in.
Fifty million here.
Fifty thousand there.
Rei remembered what Loth had said—
Learning legitimate divination cost 10,000 gold.
Now he understood.
There was a reason it was so expensive.
No combat risks.
Just open your mouth and money appears.
Even more outrageous—
No refunds if the divination is wrong.
Is that even reasonable?!
Could Iz get these answers after catching Messer?
Maybe.
Maybe not.
Even if he killed Messer, the man might never reveal the truth.
Iz might have spells capable of uncovering the truth.
But—
This "neutral" Diviner standing in front of him…
Was far more likely to give the real answer.
"I might be traveling to another city soon," Pali said casually.
"You might not find me again."
Rei's eyelid twitched.
Are you a dog?
Now you're doing artificial scarcity marketing too?
You don't look like a spectator of fate.
You look like a fortune-telling scammer.
"Fifty thousand…" Rei handed over the gold.
His heart was bleeding.
The fortune he had earned that morning at the magic item shop was disappearing just like this.
Pali accepted the payment.
She even checked the gold to verify it.
Then she spoke in a comforting tone.
"Don't be sad. Your money hasn't disappeared."
"It's simply changed its form to accompany you."
"Just give me the answer," Rei said flatly.
Pali didn't perform any visible divination.
She simply answered:
"Messer doesn't have much time left."
"His path has already reached its end."
"He wants to find someone to inherit his legacy."
"So he chose you."
Rei frowned.
"That unforgivable criminal… would really act out of kindness?"
Pali shook her head.
"You misunderstand something."
"He doesn't kill people for the sake of killing."
"He kills in pursuit of Origin."
"If random slaughter could lead to Origin, this world would have already fallen into chaos."
"If he wanted to pass down his legacy… why not choose Iz?"
"Iz's magical talent is publicly recognized as the strongest, isn't it?"
Pali spoke slowly.
"Who said… he didn't intend to?"
That single sentence jolted Rei awake.
Rei turned and looked toward the northwest.
"…And that's worth 50,000 gold?"
"Isn't it?"
Rei felt speechless.
After all—
This was only the Diviner's word.
He had no way to verify whether it was true.
No wonder Iz had said that Diviners' words should usually be ignored.
"I also want to know the fastest way for me to earn money."
"And how to obtain large quantities of monster souls."
Pali paused.
"These two questions—I can answer for free."
Rei looked puzzled.
"Didn't you say divination has a price?"
"These fall under the domain of a Scholar," she replied.
"No divination required."
"Consider them a bonus for the divination you just paid for."
Ah.
Right.
Besides being a Diviner, she was also a Scholar.
"As for making money," she said, "there's currently no better method for you than farming dungeons."
"I suspect you already know that better than I do."
"And regarding souls…"
"To the east of the City of the Circle lies a region called the Thousand Hollow Expanse."
"It frequently spawns large numbers of ant-type monsters."
Rei suddenly remembered something.
"By the way—if you're not supposed to interfere with fate, why did you tell me about the monsters back then?"
Pali looked up.
"A Scholar observing those celestial signs would naturally know that monsters were approaching."
"As for the warning afterward—didn't you ask me?"
"If you ask, I can divine for you."
"For small matters like predicting good or bad fortune, charging a fee isn't necessary."