After arranging a meeting time, Doctor Schneider handed Xia De a file bag containing the college's information. He then hurried out of the room, seemingly having something important to do.
After the doctor left, Xia De didn't open the file bag. Instead, he leaned back on the sofa, staring at the ceiling. Just as he said, he couldn't make a decision immediately. He summarized the day's events in his mind, recalling every detail from his memory:
“Worst case scenario, everything is a scam, and the doctor is actually a Cultist who wants to sacrifice me. But that's unlikely...”
He thought to himself, patting his head:
“What do you think?”
“You can believe him.”
“But can I believe you? For example, can you tell me who you really are?”
“I am you.”
“You are definitely not another me from a Ring術士's inner self; I'm quite sure of that.”
Xia De looked melancholically at the ceiling pattern, composed of color blocks and geometric shapes, then at the rather nice crystal chandelier. He guessed at Mr. Bill Schneider's income, then realized what a large sum of pounds that would be.
“In any case, there's still too little information at hand, or rather, no information channels at all, so I can only listen to what others say.”
In Xia De's own opinion, the doctor could be trusted. All the information from this morning until now had no contradictions or logical inconsistencies.
Moreover, what the doctor said made sense. It wasn't easy to encounter forces willing to guide ordinary people into contact with the extraordinary and the mysterious. Xia De had a basic understanding of this epoch; the extraordinary and the mysterious were not prominent, and the fire of human civilization allowed the steam industry to flourish. Mystery and the extraordinary were only a small part of civilization's shadows.
From this perspective, Xia De should instead thank the doctor. He didn't ask for any money but revealed that valuable Knowledge.
Xia De knew he was tempted by Saint Byron's Comprehensive College, and he wouldn't deny that. The Three Great Arcane Academies and the five Orthodox Churches were the only legitimate ways to train Ring術士, and he would only consider these methods.
Colleges and churches each had their pros and cons, and now the college had contacted him first. Furthermore, Xia De was also concerned about his Time Traveler identity. Compared to the more loosely managed Ring術士, the church had a greater chance of discerning his identity, especially since the doctor had explicitly stated that God truly existed.
He didn't know the power of the deities for now, but he didn't rule out the possibility of them being “omniscient.”
“I can accept Saint Byron's Comprehensive College, but I still need to see the information that the so-called relic can provide first.”
He made up his mind, knowing that this choice might not be the best, but Xia De would not regret it; it was his own decision.
“Then let's take a look at this.”
Thinking this, he was about to open the file bag. But the door suddenly opened. Since it opened without a knock, Xia De thought the doctor had returned early. But it was a young woman who opened the door, and she was also very surprised to see Xia De sitting there.
“Excuse me, I thought Doctor Schneider...”
She looked to be around 20 years old, the prettiest girl Xia De had seen since arriving in this world. She had long golden hair and green eyes, a genuine “blonde with green eyes.” She seemed to have a quiet demeanor, like a student or a teacher. She wore a very ordinary dark blue dress, and her only accessory was a butterfly-shaped hair ornament in her hair.
“I apologize.”
The blonde lady said, immediately apologizing after her surprise. She wanted to close the door again but suddenly paused, her emerald eyes looking at Xia De with some confusion, which made Xia De feel a bit awkward.
“This glow is... Are you a talented person who is awakening?”
Now Xia De understood why the doctor had spotted him at the newspaper office yesterday. He assumed a Ring術士's vision was different from an ordinary person's.
“Is he really a talented person?”
Despite her surprise, the blonde lady remained sufficiently calm. She surveyed Xia De with her pretty eyes, a slight curve to her lips:
“Bill actually found a talented person? When did he get so lucky? Did he use a strange relic to advance his luck?”
“I...”
Xia De wanted to say something, but she shook her head at him:
“I'm sorry, in our group, only the fifth-year doctor has the qualification to recruit students, so before you officially enroll, I cannot disclose any information to you. This is part of the contract with the college; we must abide by the rules.”
She stepped back, her hand on the doorknob, a slight, friendly smile on her face:
“But Saint Byron's Comprehensive College's conditions are really good. It's also very lucky that you happened to meet the doctor within 72 hours. You can consider it carefully. Oh, and also, if you really join Saint Byron's, remember, don't choose the Chemistry College major.”
After saying that, she nodded slightly in farewell and closed the door from the outside.
“One of the four members of Doctor Bill Schneider's Letter-based Ring術士 group... Did she really just happen to run into me, or was she putting on an act for me?”
Sometimes Xia De thought he was paranoid, but coming to a completely unfamiliar world, he believed this approach would help him live better.
“However, a school that teaches mysticism actually has a Chemistry major?”
He unwound the string of the file bag and saw the more detailed college materials. On top was the promotional paper the doctor had given him this morning, followed by the college's actual enrollment documents.
Xia De flipped through the thick stack of materials and then understood. Saint Byron's Comprehensive College had 10 specialized colleges, and different colleges had different learning methods and specialized Knowledge—
Chemistry College, specializing in herbs and potion making;
Mechanical College, skilled in psychic abilities, cultivating alchemy abilities;
Astronomical Academy, a training ground for diviners and stargazers;
College of Ancient Literature, a college for Ling Rune interpretation and ancient language inheritance;
College of Mathematics, a college for rituals, incantations, and Miracles;
College of Folklore, researching history before the sixth epoch, collecting ancient and modern literature, proficient in the “inspiration” element;
History Academy, training investigators, time reversers, proficient in the “blasphemy” element;
Library Management College, a training college for Keepers and custodians, with the containment of relics as its primary responsibility, and also the strongest major in Saint Byron's Comprehensive College, proficient in the “whisper” element;
College of Theology, teaching theology, researching the history of Old Gods, proficient in the “Miracle” element, and cooperation with the Orthodox Church is usually handled by the College of Theology;
College of Political Economy, not open to Letter-based Ring術士, thus no information.
The reason for using ordinary academic names to refer to the various specialized colleges under Saint Byron's, instead of simply “Containment College” or “Miracle College,” was to allow Letter-based Ring術士 to reasonably talk about their study life in the ordinary world, reducing the possibility of the college being exposed to ordinary people.
It was also through these materials that Xia De realized that the Ring術士 system explained by the doctor actually omitted some important content.
For example, once a Ring術士 fully awakens, a Ling Rune belonging to the soul, also known as the “Core Rune,” will be generated based on the soul's characteristics.
The Core Rune is engraved in the central hollow of the Destiny Ring, not on the Destiny Ring itself, and this relates to the Ring術士's advancement. The content of the Core Rune is also the basis for the college's recommendation for joining a specialized college.
For example, Xia De guessed that Doctor Schneider's Core Rune was most likely related to “psychic,” so the doctor should belong to the Mechanical College.
“So, before becoming a Ring術士, I can't decide what I will study. But, can one actually travel through time?”
He shook his head, once again feeling the culture and systems of this steam epoch through these enrollment documents.
He carefully flipped through them, diligently noting down important information, then put the reviewed documents back into the bag and stood up to place it on the desk in the room.
This reception room was only for important guests. The desk was cluttered with many papers, which the doctor probably hadn't had time to tidy up. He also wasn't afraid of Xia De peeking, as most of them were about the clinic's operations, and a small portion wasn't even in the common language of the Northern Kingdom.
Unfortunately, for some reason, Xia De actually understood those strange texts; he indeed possessed the special ability to comprehend all languages.
