So sleepy...
Casting Magic so intensely is also draining on the Spirit.
I've been up since about 6 a.m., and I walked almost all the way around Raine Town.
Then in the afternoon, I focused on cramming common knowledge from books.
And at night, I practiced Magic like crazy.
I should have been dead tired by now.
But in reality... Lu Cang actually felt okay so far.
He was definitely sleepy.
But he didn't feel that sense of extreme mental exhaustion.
'Is this the boost that comes from being a Mage?'
'I'm a Mage now, after all.'
'It's only natural that my spiritual strength has improved.'
'But... I'm really, really sleepy. The kind of sleepy where you could just have a wonderful, comfortable sleep.'
The Promotion Hall wasn't open at night. Although Kumironi could also preside over the promotion, knocking on someone's door in the middle of the night would be too rude.
He was certainly looking forward to becoming a Level 2 Mage.
But it wasn't something that had to happen this very instant.
'Anyway, I'll just go to sleep first.'
'I'll deal with it after I wake up.'
...
When he woke up, everything was calm and peaceful.
Nothing unexpected had happened, and Lu Cang breathed a small sigh of relief as he got out of bed.
He'd seen plenty of movies and read plenty of novels in his past life.
Whenever there was unfinished business, it always felt like some unexpected trouble would inexplicably pop up.
'Looks like I was worrying for nothing.'
It was his fifth day in this world, and as he climbed out of bed today, he finally felt like he was starting to blend in.
Lu Cang looked in the mirror, a confident smile on his face as he psyched himself up. 'A Level 2 Mage, huh? Excellent!'
He washed up, straightened his clothes, and went downstairs.
Izparut was in the main hall again.
It was like he'd respawn in the hall whenever Lu Cang was about to go out.
'What is he, a stationary NPC?'
"Yo, Iz! Morning!"
Iz's breakfast today was a pomegranate...
'A weird breakfast,'
but Lu Cang respected that everyone in this Otherworld had different eating habits.
Lu Cang himself chose soy milk and crackers.
This world didn't have any fried dough sticks...
So Lu Cang chose crackers as a substitute.
"Are you going to the Promotion Hall today?"
Kumironi appeared out of nowhere, as if she'd just respawned, and very naturally joined them at the table.
'Hmm...'
'A Level 5 Healer—the Life Reconstructor.'
Having crammed on common knowledge, Lu Cang now had a deeper understanding of the different Professions.
"Haha, kid, you're already about to hit Level 2 so soon!"
"Even faster than Iz!"
Chi Cheng had also popped up out of nowhere.
He definitely wasn't there a moment ago.
And this guy just sat right next to him, acting as if they were old friends.
'Did he drink someone else's liquor only to show up the next morning to say hi?'
Kumironi said, "If Lu Cang is going for his promotion, I should go with him."
Chi Cheng eagerly played along. "Ooh, are you going to preside over the Ritual yourself, Kumironi?"
Kumironi spread her hands slightly. "Well, it can only be me."
"Kid, you're really lucky!" Chi Cheng said, slapping Lu Cang on the back.
The slap was so hard that Lu Cang coughed up the cracker he had just swallowed.
But suddenly, Chi Cheng froze.
"Wait... if both of you are going with him for his promotion today, who's going to fight the Dark Sub-Dragon?"
Kumironi and Izparut both looked at Chi Cheng in perfect unison.
Chi Cheng blinked.
He sighed, then rolled up his sleeves.
"Fine, fine. I guess the invincible War Emperor will have to solo the Dark Sub-Dragon."
Kumironi gave a faint, wry smile. "Well, it's not exactly a solo mission. Obades will go with you, you know."
"With Obades there, there shouldn't be any problems."
'A Level 5 Warrior—the War Emperor.'
'Usually, the strongest Warrior in a Kingdom is Level 5.'
'As for a Level 6 War Saint, there might not even be one on the entire continent.'
'This team's lineup really is unexpectedly stacked.'
Chi Cheng complained, "Speaking of which, you guys said you'd come kill the Sky Sub-Dragon with me yesterday, but you never showed up."
Kumironi picked at her cheek, her gaze drifting away, a look of apology on her face.
'Ooh~'
Lu Cang observed their expressions.
'So, Kumironi, in your eyes, is helping an old lady harvest her vegetables more important than killing a Sky Sub-Dragon?'
'Speaking of which...'
'This Warrior named Chi Cheng is looking for a Sub-Dragon to kill every single day.'
"It's one thing if you don't come, Kumironi, but Iz didn't show up either!"
"That was a Sky Sub-Dragon! The kind that flies in the sky! Are you really going to make a Warrior go chop down a flying Sub-Dragon all by himself?"
As Chi Cheng spoke, his expression grew more and more arrogant.
As if he had some dirt on them, he leaned on the table and interrogated the two.
Iz's gaze also started to drift away...
"Magic... I made a new discovery..."
"Huh?"
"A very important discovery..."
Lu Cang bit into a cracker soaked in soy milk and watched everything with a placid expression.
'Iz, even an eight-year-old kid like me can tell you're lying, you know.'
'It's obvious you stood him up for some completely unimportant reason.'
'I never thought you were this kind of person, Iz.'
"Alright, if it was an important discovery, then it can't be helped."
'Huh?'
'Did he actually get away with that?'
'Chi Cheng! That guy is lying! He's not even looking at you!'
'He definitely wasn't researching Magic yesterday!'
"Alright, then I'll just go kill the Dark Sub-Dragon by myself today."
'No, there's still Obades.'
'Even though he never talks and has no presence, he's still a member of your team, you know.'
Lu Cang really wanted to say it out loud.
But in the end, he just watched Chi Cheng's retreating back and kept the words to himself.
Lu Cang started, "Um..."
"It's fine. Obades will follow him, so don't worry about him."
"He's an idiot, but he's very strong."
"If it's just a Dark Sub-Dragon, he'll be fine even on his own."
'Huh... Is he really that strong?'
'Then again, I have no idea how tough a Dark Sub-Dragon is.'
"Let's go."
"The Promotion Hall should be open by now."
Only then did Lu Cang realize they had already finished eating.
'They eat so fast.'
Lu Cang hurriedly finished his soy milk and went with them.
...
「Promotion Hall」
It was also unexpectedly crowded.
"Is that... Izparut?"
"No way! What's he doing at the Promotion Hall?"
"Is he going to promote to a Level 6 Mage?"
"A Magic Saint?"
"Izparut is promoting to a Magic Saint?!"
Izparut's arrival was accompanied by shrieks from the surrounding crowd.
It seemed like Izparut promoting to a Magic Saint would be a terrifying event.
"No... the Promotion Hall here shouldn't have the facilities for Iz to promote to Level 6."
"It might not be him who's promoting."
"But Kumironi is with him."
"Uh..."
The person who had just said it might not be Izparut promoting froze for a moment, then shouted in terror, "Holy crap! Izparut is promoting to a Level 6 Magic Saint!"
'You're really famous, Izparut...'
Iz gave Lu Cang a helpless smile.
Iz led Lu Cang to the Ritual staff.
The staff member nervously wrung his hands, looking rather intimidated by Izparut's presence.
"Please prepare the promotion Ritual for a Level 2 Mage for the child beside me."
The person Iz was speaking to was an old man, who appeared to be the highest-ranking person there.
But even he seemed apprehensive in front of Iz.
"You mean..."
"Him?"
The old man looked at Lu Cang.
"Yes, him."
The old man, trembling, seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, but also seemed regretful.
Perhaps he was lamenting the lost opportunity to preside over Izparut's promotion Ritual to Magic Saint.
"Please come this way..."
When the surrounding crowd heard it wasn't Iz promoting, they all seemed to heave a sigh of relief, but at the same time, Lu Cang could also sense a great deal of disappointment from them.
'Is Iz's promotion really that terrifying?'
Lu Cang followed the old man to a glowing Crystal Ball.
"Place your hand on it."
'Hmm... As soon as I saw this Crystal Ball, I figured I'd have to put my hand on it.'
'Just as I expected.'
Lu Cang did as he was told. After he placed his hand on it, the Crystal Ball reflected a verdant green color.
But the old man gasped.
He looked at Iz and asked, "When did he promote to a Level 1 Mage?"
Iz replied, "The day before yesterday."
'The day before yesterday?'
'Are you saying this child is about to promote to Level 2 after only three days?'