"Alright, children, we've arrived!
From today onwards, you will begin your journey as Warlock Apprentices in this quarry.
If you can advance to intermediate and then to advanced levels, you might even become true Wizards!
That would truly change your fate, elevate your status, so work hard!"
The middle-aged man leading them spoke with fervor, giving them a few words of advice.
Then, he promptly left the scene.
...
The apprentices walked up the steps, embarking on this arduous journey to become Wizards.
"There are so many statues here..."
"It feels like these statues are watching us, it's really creepy!"
The young boys discussed among themselves.
To them, everything here seemed mysterious and unfamiliar.
After finally climbing the long staircase, a wide square came into view.
At the entrance of the quarry, on either side, stood lifelike centaur statues.
They were more detailed and exquisitely crafted than the ones they had seen before.
For some reason, the group once again felt as if they were being watched.
At that moment, a mature female apprentice in a green robe, with a striking figure, stepped forward.
"Are you the new apprentices who were sent here?"
She was Olinda.
Looking at the bewildered faces before her, she couldn't help but think of her own past.
She smiled inwardly, "I never thought we'd be the ones mentoring apprentices now."
After receiving an affirmative answer, she said to them, "Follow me, let's go meet Lord Roy!"
...
The group didn't catch her muttering, but they clearly heard the subsequent command and followed her inside.
Not far in, their attention was drawn to a massive centaur statue in the center of the square.
"Wow!"
The boys couldn't help but exclaim in awe, looking up at the majestic centaur statue that seemed ready to stomp down with a "War Stomp."
The overwhelming presence of the statue evoked an inexplicable sense of reverence.
"Hey, kid, had enough of staring?"
Just then, a boy with freckles named Novich heard a faint voice coming from beneath his feet.
Looking down, he was startled to find that the 60×60 cm stone tile he was standing on had a lifelike human face emerging from it.
The face, resembling a panda's head but with distinct human features, looked at him with disdain.
"Get your stinky feet off me, don't block my sunlight!"
"S-sorry!"
Novich was so startled that he quickly stepped aside.
But the adjacent tile was also an Animated Stone Slab.
However, unlike the one that had scolded Novich, this one had a blissful expression and moaned, "Oh, dear apprentice, please step on me properly!"
"Step on me too!"
"Step on me!"
"Lie down and lick me!"
The tiles clamored one after another.
Novich broke into a sweat, clenched his small fists, and with a flushed face, hurriedly left the strange square.
The other new apprentices also encountered similar pranks, so nervous they didn't know where to step.
After a while, they stumbled through a corridor and saw some peculiar objects wandering around.
"What are these..."
"Wow!"
Amid their exclamations, some stone tiles, wooden blocks, and stools were moving about aimlessly.
They were like the fairies in fairy tales, each possessing their own life.
Moments later, a group of colorful, oval-shaped, ball-like creatures came bouncing over.
They were crafted with adorable big eyes and cute faces, resembling children's leather toys, making a "boing boing" sound as they moved.
The apprentices' eyes lit up. At the age of eleven or twelve, their childlike hearts were still captivated by such cute things.
But Olinda suddenly warned, "Don't block the way. These are 'Pipits,' filled with demonized explosives inside.
If their enemy-seeking mechanism is triggered, they'll jump up, cling to your face, and self-destruct!
Each 'Pipit' contains an Alchemy Bomb inside, and some even have acid or poison gas...
If anyone makes a wrong move, all of us here could be wiped out!"
Ah!
The boys were startled, trembling and unsure of what to say.
Novich also looked frightened, staring at these seemingly adorable creatures.
"Olinda, stop scaring them. They're just kids!"
On one side of the passage, another team member, the female apprentice Peri, stepped forward.
Beside her were Winter and others.
"Don't be afraid. These 'Pipits' are Alchemical Lifeforms created by Lord Roy. Under normal circumstances, they won't harm anyone..."
The children shivered, even more terrified.
Winter and the others couldn't help but laugh, stopping Peri from explaining further.
"Alright, we mustn't keep Lord Roy waiting. Let's go in."
...
Soon after, the boys walked in and finally met the master of this place.
First-level Wizard, Lord Roy.
In a stone hall as vast as a royal palace, a figure clad in Silver Battle Armor, wearing a diamond-shaped helmet, sat upright.
Sunlight streamed in through the windows on both sides, illuminating his figure.
Subtly, the interplay of light and shadow created a radiant, silver-like aura, resembling flowing ribbons of light.
The boys couldn't help but feel a deep sense of awe. Some even thought of the angels or demons they had read about in books.
The centaur Atedia stood by his side, watching as everyone below bowed in greeting.
"Lord Roy, these are the apprentices sent from Scarto City and the nearby county.
They are descendants of fifth-generation immigrants, but their Bloodline has been confirmed as pure Vizel humans."
Olinda bowed and briefly introduced the situation.
"A total of 30 individuals, with a certain level of general knowledge, able to read and write, and proficient in basic arithmetic and geometry..."
Roy nodded.
As his thoughts flowed, his gaze swept around, passing over the team members.
Except for Ivent, who was on a mission, and Celine, almost all the team members he had brought from the homeland were gathered here.
Now, they were all full of vitality and spirit.
Everyone had reached the advanced stage.
However, their individual talents and growth limits were also evident here.
Most of them expressed that they had encountered significant obstacles in the stage of Spiritual Materialization, unlike how smoothly it had gone for him.
They didn't have the soul of a traveler, nor any mutated special talents.
In the end, they remained stuck at this stage.
"Winter, Ottoli, Greet, Olinda, Peri...
Each of you will take charge of six apprentices and assist me in supervising and nurturing them!"
Winter and the others had long anticipated such a task, so they did not resist upon hearing the order and simply complied respectfully.
Novich and the others bowed their heads humbly, listening to Lord Roy's arrangements.
Afterward, they followed the senior apprentices who came to select them and departed.