As he contemplated magic, Kanzaki Rei inevitably found his thoughts drifting toward death magic. And when thinking about death magic, it was only natural that his mind would wander further—to the nature of the soul.
Moreover, his class as a Death Priest was inherently tied to the manipulation of souls. Because of that, Rei's study of the soul could be considered fairly deep.
Still, compared to his mastery of combat techniques and magic, his understanding of souls was ultimately lacking.
[Please explain the relationship between the soul and the physical body.]
Just the first question was already this difficult.
Of course, difficulty was always relative. Someone knowledgeable might find it simple—but for Rei, this question was far from easy.
It lacked the effortless ease he had enjoyed in the earlier subjects.
After a moment of thought, Rei began answering:
[The soul resides within the body, driving consciousness. It serves as the vessel that awakens spiritual awareness…]
In any case—
He finished answering the first question while practically drenched in sweat. Still, Rei believed his explanation shouldn't have any major problems.
It was only after encountering a field outside his strongest expertise that he truly experienced, firsthand, just how terrifying the White Tower's examination questions were.
And that realization also implied something else:
The people within the White Tower were truly scholars of extraordinary knowledge.
[How can a soul that does not match its physical body be separated?]
When he saw the question, Rei fell silent.
If I said this was something I could do casually, would you believe me?
After thinking for a moment, Rei remembered that the answering format here wasn't restricted to writing. Practical demonstrations were also acceptable.
So he raised a hand.
A slime zombie instantly appeared before him.
Hopefully the other examinees nearby don't notice…
If someone happened to see it, there was nothing he could do about it.
Still, anyone taking the Soul examination probably had some exposure to this kind of knowledge. Seeing a slime zombie shouldn't be too strange.
After all—
Rei had personally created this zombie himself.
The slime zombie shuffled forward two steps.
Rei then reached out—
And yanked the soul straight out of it, extracting it completely.
That was his answer.
The question paused briefly.
Then the panel shifted to the next one.
Apparently, it counted as passing.
[Please explain the relationship between the soul and reincarnation.]
When Rei saw the question, he froze for a moment.
Then he turned around and walked straight out.
Reincarnation?
What was that supposed to mean?
He had heard the term before—but only in passing. As for theoretical research on the topic, he had never studied it at all.
Let alone answer such a question.
Rei had no intention of wasting time, so he exited the room immediately.
He glanced at the scoreboard.
[Kanzaki Rei: 340 points (Magic, Riddles, Combat Techniques, Soul)][Yuna: 336 points (Oceanography, Astrology, Monsters, Lunar Phases)]
Heh.
Looks like she ran into something she wasn't good at too.
Rei immediately turned and charged into the Door of Death Studies.
The little girl froze for a second, then quickly turned and rushed toward the Door of Mathematics.
Both of them kept entering and exiting rooms.
Their scores continued to rise.
However, the speed of their score increases was gradually slowing down.
At first, they could still answer two questions.
Later, they could only answer the first question.
Eventually, even answering the first question became difficult.
By now, Rei had also figured out the scoring system.
First question: 10 points
Second question: 30 points
Third question: 60 points
As for the fourth question…
Who knew.
The fourth question clearly wasn't meant to be answered at all. It likely asked about the most fundamental truth within that field.
When Rei answered the magic section earlier, he had even explained his understanding of the source of magic.
And yet—
He received zero points.
Apparently, the question demanded the true, absolute essence.
Not merely one's personal interpretation of that essence.
Ding— Ding— Ding— Dong
At last—
With the ringing of a bell, the White Tower's examination came to an end.
[Participants who obtained more than 60 points may receive the title of White Tower Scholar.]
Rei looked toward the final rankings.
[Kanzaki Rei: 393 points(Magic, Riddles, Combat Techniques, Soul, Death, Rituals, Monsters, Dungeons, Nests, Spirit, Divination, Enchantment)]
[Yuna: 388 points(Oceanography, Astrology, Monsters, Lunar Phases, Mathematics, History, Divination, Future Studies, Psychology)]
In truth, after the Soul subject—
Rei mostly entered each room, glanced at the first question, scribbled down a quick guess, and left.
He couldn't answer the second question in most cases.
When Yuna saw the final ranking—
Her legs suddenly gave out.
She collapsed to the floor, staring blankly at Rei's name.
Rei let out a long sigh.
A lingering chill crept into his heart.
Thank goodness… I won.
Where did so many geniuses come from in this world?
He had nearly lost.
If she had been older, that would be one thing.
But she looked about the same age as him.
That alone made Rei unwilling to lose to her.
His figure flickered slightly—
Using Flash Step, he instantly appeared in front of her.
"Your name is Yuna, right?"
"You're amazing. You know so much."
Rei extended his hand in a friendly gesture.
Only now did he carefully examine her appearance.
She really was a beautiful little girl.
Long black hair hung loosely around her shoulders. Her refined features gave off a calm, almost aloof air—like the type of literary girl who would spend her entire life quietly inside a bookstore.
Completely different from a certain short-haired, lavender-haired fortune-teller with a nasty personality.
If anything—
She resembled a younger version of an icy school idol.
Yet at the moment, Yuna stared at the ranking board with an expression of confusion… and faint despair.
So she lost.
Well, losing was losing.
At worst, she could go home, hide under the blankets, and cry quietly.
There was no need to look that devastated.
Unless—
Her parents were the kind who would beat her brutally if she didn't get first place?
If that were the case…
Rei might have seriously caused her trouble.
Rei kept his hand extended.
But she didn't respond.
Still, Rei didn't feel awkward.
Given the atmosphere around them, many examinees looked dejected—while others behaved like Fan Jin after passing the imperial exam, celebrating wildly.
He had even seen a man in his sixties screaming in excitement.
There were actually elderly people taking the exam?
Compared to that spectacle, the two little kids here drew almost no attention.
Then—
Rei suddenly felt a cold touch in his palm.
Yuna had grabbed his hand and pulled herself to her feet.
"Yuna," she introduced herself.
"I'm—" Rei began to introduce himself again.
But she interrupted him.
"Kanzaki Rei. I know who you are."
"The genius mage. The Chief Mage of the Kingdom of Loren. The prodigy who changed classes early at the age of eight."
Ah.
So she knew quite a bit about him.
Meanwhile—
Rei had never heard of her at all.
Despite how exceptional she was.
Did that mean his information network was terrible?
Come to think of it, the other early-class-change assassin prodigy under Kumironi's supervision—
Rei still hadn't even met that person.
He hadn't even asked their name.
Maybe…
He shouldn't spend every day locked inside the Forbidden Archive and the palace.
He should probably go out more.
But honestly—
Just studying forbidden knowledge, researching bizarre rituals, contemplating the Second Origin, and developing his own combat techniques already consumed almost every hour of the day.
If he didn't have to teach a class at Loinz Magic Academy, Rei would probably spend every day holed up in the Forbidden Archive and his house, rarely going outside at all.
Did Iz deliberately arrange those two months of teaching at Loinz Academy for that reason?
Still—
Research like this truly devoured time.
If you wanted to grow stronger, there was hardly any time left for anything else.
"Yes, I'm Kanzaki Rei."
"What about you? I don't know anything about you yet."
Rei asked with a bright, cheerful smile.
Yuna tilted her head slightly.
"You're curious about me?"
Rei answered honestly.
"Of course I'm curious."
A child around the same age as him—
Yet capable of achieving such an absurd score.
The third-place candidate only had 104 points.
Her knowledge clearly exceeded what someone her age should possess.
Naturally, Rei wanted to know someone like that.
"My name is Yuna."
Then—
Silence.
The two of them stared at each other.
After waiting for a moment, Rei finally realized—
She had finished speaking.
He laughed awkwardly.
"That's it?"
"That's it."
Rei asked, "Have you already changed classes?"
Yuna answered directly.
"No."
Not a class-changer?
If she hadn't even changed classes, she probably hadn't even awakened her spiritual power yet.
So how could she possibly know so much?
Even Rei relied on three class paths—
Mage, Puzzle Scholar, and Warrior—
to achieve three perfect 100-point scores.
At that moment—
A man dressed in white stepped into the center of the hall.
"All candidates who failed the examination, please leave."
"Those who passed—follow me."
Rei still wanted to ask Yuna something.
But she had already turned and walked toward the man.
Rei could only follow helplessly.
She's such a mysterious kid.
He intended to figure out what exactly was going on with her.
Rei wasn't the type who needed to understand everything.
If something seemed dangerous, he would definitely suppress his curiosity.
But here—
They were inside the White Tower, within Kronoria City.
At the moment, Iz Obades and the others were also in the city.
That gave Rei plenty of confidence.
Besides—
By now, Rei should already be invincible among class-changers below Level 6.
And the warrior's new talent granted extremely powerful survival capabilities.
So what was wrong with being curious about a little girl?
Rei followed behind Yuna.
Maintaining a very steady distance.
Every now and then, Yuna would glance back.
Each time she saw Rei still behind her, she quickly turned her head forward again.
Rei, on the other hand, stared directly at her without blinking.
His perception remained firmly locked onto her presence, ensuring she didn't suddenly vanish.
He was just too curious…
A child who hasn't even changed classes… yet can rival me?
Though he constantly reminded himself to stay humble, Rei knew very well that his spiritual potential was far beyond ordinary people.
"From today onward, you are members of the White Tower."
"May the blessing of scholarship guide you to the far shores of knowledge."
"Collect your uniforms and badges. After that, you may explore the White Tower freely."
Only upon reaching the second floor did they arrive at the true entrance.
A pristine white door stood before them.
Passing through it—
They entered a space filled with scholars moving back and forth.
Joining the White Tower involved no complicated ceremony.
"Yuna. Kanzaki Rei. Come with me."
Rei glanced at the guide, then at Yuna beside him.
He nodded and followed.
After they moved away from the crowd, the man finally spoke.
"Kanzaki Rei, I've already heard about you."
"Iz Parut also told me you would participate in this examination. Judging by today's results, you truly live up to your reputation."
"Just as the king said—you are the most dazzling genius in the history of the Kingdom of Loren."
Tch. I'm really famous, huh.
King Lottan had truly spread his name everywhere.
As if afraid someone might not know Loren had produced a prodigy named Kanzaki Rei.
Rei was starting to worry.
Would assassins from enemy nations try to kill him?
After all, assassins existed openly and legally in this world.
But if he really encountered one now—
Rei wasn't particularly afraid.
He had already scattered corpse specimens all over the place.
There were spare bodies stored at:
Loinz Magic Academy
Iz, Kumironi, and Obades' residences
Even the royal palace, which once displayed statues of magical beasts to symbolize royal power—
Now displayed Rei's monster specimens, after he had donated two massive and ferocious creatures.
On top of that—
His "Ultimate Perception" ability couldn't be blocked.
Combined with his powerful danger premonition, and the warrior talent "Absolute War Body."
If, with all these layers of defense—
As the Chief Mage of his nation, inside his country's own heartland—
He still got assassinated?
Then honestly, Rei would have nothing to say.
If he died under those circumstances, he'd deserve it.
"You flatter me, senior."
Rei didn't know who this man was, so calling him senior felt safest.
"Just call me Bota," the man said with a smile.
"I'm nothing compared to geniuses like you. In the White Tower, knowledge is what commands respect."
"Your future achievements will certainly surpass mine."
"If you must use an honorific, you may call me Teacher instead."
Rei didn't argue further.
Instead, he seized the chance to ask:
"Teacher Bota, do you know Yuna?"
Bota chuckled and gently patted Yuna's head.
"Of course. Yuna is one of the White Tower's experimental subjects."
"She's a child participating in the Precognizer Project."
"Precognizer?"
Bota smiled.
"Yes. The White Tower conducts many research projects. The Precognizer Project is one of them."
"The details are quite complex. If I tried explaining verbally, it might cause unnecessary misunderstandings, so I won't go into it."
"But I can assure you—the experiments are conducted under strictly safe and controlled conditions."
"The project is public. If you're interested, you can read about it on the third floor. Your current access level allows it."
Although Bota spoke casually—
To Rei, it sounded suspiciously like inhumane experimentation on children.
It reminded him of scenes from manga and anime in his previous life.
Secret organizations imprisoning children and performing bizarre experiments on them.
An organization like the White Tower…
Especially one that even possessed rituals like the "Pure White Descent Ritual."
Rei had the feeling—
This place was definitely not as simple as it appeared on the surface.
He would need to stay cautious.
They followed Bota into a room.
He handed them each a custom white high-collared robe—the uniform of White Tower scholars.
The sizes were specially tailored for them.
In addition—
They also received the White Tower scholar badge.
"With your examination results, you can skip directly to Second-Tier Scholar status."
"This is the Second-Tier badge, which grants you second-tier access privileges."
"As for what those privileges include—you can explore that yourselves."
"If you wish to rise further within the White Tower, there are many paths."
"But the primary one is submitting valuable research reports or presenting new discoveries."
"The White Tower is a global organization. The title of White Tower Scholar is recognized anywhere in the world."
Rei examined the badge in his hand.
Anywhere in the world, huh?
Even though no one had yet figured out how large the world actually was.
"I've done everything I can to help the two of you," Bota said.
"The White Tower recognizes no external status or privilege."
"Regardless of age or level—inside the White Tower, knowledge is everything."
"If your knowledge is profound enough, even a Level 9 Grand Scholar will step aside for you."
"I still have research to attend to."
"Yuna, why don't you show Kanzaki Rei around the White Tower?"
Yuna glanced at Bota.
Then at Rei beside her.
She nodded.
"Mm."