"Good news. You all pass," Markus said with a bright smile.

"About time," Lucretia snorted coldly, making Markus smile wryly.

"Does that mean we can use the third-level area?" Christian immediately asked.

"It's a little late," Markus replied as he glanced at the waning sun. "However, tomorrow, you indeed can access the Third Class Apprentice Area. Let me update your identification cards."

Christian had a gleeful smile on the corner of his mouth as he held the card. He finally had a concrete hint on how to return home. Although this hint might not lead anywhere, Christian chose to be hopeful.

"You look so adorable when you smile with pure joy," Kallista commented, looking at him with a smile in her eyes. Christian blushed briefly before responding:

"Adorable? You call this face blessed by the gods, adorable? What a crime."

"I didn't take you for someone with an ego," Kallista chuckled.

"It's my only flaw, but can you blame me? Look at me," Christian smiled. The two looked at each other before bursting into laughter, clearly enjoying themselves. Xin'er looked at them curiously, while Lucretia had the eyes of a beast whose territory was invaded.

"Hmm," Markus said, shifting the attention to himself. "Your belongings are in the barracks over there. I reckon some of you must be tired. Our library has a dormitory if you wish to stay, along with a cafeteria that makes some of the best meals in the kingdom."

"There is nothing I want more in the world now than a cold shower, a hot meal, and a good night's rest," Kallista sighed.

"I couldn't agree more," Christian nodded.

"I want to share the news with my mother," Xin'er said.

"I must return to the clan," Lucretia said in a low voice.

"So, it's just you and me then?"

"It seems so," Kallista smiled.

"In that case, let's go. Oh, wait, before I forget," Christian said as he summoned the contract he forced his team to sign. With a thought, the contract burned into ashes.

"Once again, I apologize for how I acted in the trial. I did what I had to."

Lucretia snorted coldly at him, but Xin'er reassured him that she understood. Kallista had no problem since she felt this was what a leader needed to do to get things done. The two then went to the barracks to get their stuff.

Christian was ecstatic to get his original bag of holding back. He immediately checked if he was missing anything and felt relieved after confirming everything was where it was supposed to be.

As he walked out of the barracks, he noticed Kallista had only come out with a new ring on her left finger. "Did they misplace your bag of holding?"

"Bag of holding?"

"You know, to hold all your clothes, magical herbs, and other things."

Kallista looked at him for a moment: "I already moved my things into the dormitory after the first test. And do you think I could afford a bag of holding?"

Christian was quiet for a few seconds. "Are they expensive?"

"What do you think?"

"The Extension Charm is a difficult spell, but not to the level that bags of holding are a high-end commodity. The only way this would happen is if someone, or people, have purposely controlled the spread of the spell to create an artificial market to make money from."

"You're quite sharp," Kallista said. "The royal family, the blood crest, and bloodline clans have formed a monopoly on almost everything in the world, including knowledge."

Christian sighed deeply.

"You sound disappointed?"

"A little. I expected the library or the Curator to deal with these issues. Or at the very least, not allow them to get this bad."

"I think you may have the wrong view of the Curator. He spent most of his time out of sight, sometimes spending decades before someone saw him. He is not deeply involved in the management of the library, and the other two legendary wizards behave the same," Kallista explained.

"Is that so? Well, let's not talk about this anymore. Here, this is for you," he said as he handed her the bag of holding he used during the test.

"You're giving it to me?"

"I have no need for it."

"No, no, I can't accept this. It's too valuable."

"It's really not. I can make as many as needed."

"Even so."

"When is your birthday?" Christian suddenly asked.

"It's not for another five months."

"Then, consider this an early present."

"I have never heard of someone giving early gifts."

"In five months, I may have found a way home and left already. If I'm not here to celebrate with you, consider this an early present."

Kallista hesitated briefly before taking the bag. "When is your birthday?"

"Not for another nine months," Christian replied. He arrived in mid-September of the year 205 BCE, so his birthday was technically next year.

"In that case, I'll also give you an early present. Just give me time to think of something."

"I look forward to it," Christian smiled, showing his perfectly aligned white teeth. "Now, do you know how to get to the dormitories?"

"You can access a map with your identification card. It will even directly show you the room you've been assigned. You only need to say the word map in any of the recognized languages, and it will appear."

"Talk about multipurposes," Christian praised. He uttered the incantation, and a map with a red dot manifested before him like a hologram. He looked at the complicated pathways, and his lips twitched.

"Can you do me a little favor?"

"Sure."

"Can you lead me to my dormitory?"

Kallista immediately looked at him strangely.

"No, it's not like this. To be honest, I have a terrible sense of direction. It's so bad that it's kind of embarrassing. If you can show me the way, I can memorize the route and should have no issue navigating to my destination."

Kallista immediately giggled: "Is that why you always put Lucretia at the front of our formations?" Christian smiled in embarrassment.

"And here I thought I had found the perfect man: handsome, well-spoken, great hair, compassionate, and extremely gifted. Now, I know he's directionally challenged."

"What can I say? It's my only flaw."

"How many 'only flaw' do you have?"

"Stick around and you'll find out."

"Is that a promise?" Kallista asked, staring at him with her beautiful eyes.

Christian immediately wanted to say yes, but stopped himself. "On second thought, this may not be a good idea."

Kallista looked him in the eyes, not hiding her disappointment. She sighed deeply. "Men are the same. They are either lustful and possessive, or they cannot commit."

Christian had no words, so he said nothing.

"Come. I have a chivalrous heart, so I will keep my word and show you around."

"Thank you," Christian muttered softly. Kallista showed him the cafeteria first. Many people were eating, including wizards, Muggles, and individuals from diverse ethnic backgrounds. Christian learned that one of the privileges of being a Third Class Apprentice is that he can order food to be brought to his dormitory room.

Christian was intrigued and asked what power a [Novice] has, which is the next level. The cook told him that Novices have access to magical food with numerous benefits, including increased focus, reduced tiredness, improved meditation, and more. So, Christian ordered food to be delivered to his room before leaving with Kallista.

She then showed him the library's third area, followed by other training facilities, the Healing Hall, Alchemist Lab (for potions and others), and many other areas. Lastly, Kallista brought him to his dormitory before returning to hers.

Christian's room was of decent size, with one sleeping room, one bathroom, a small living room with a table for food, and a small library. The bathroom was not nearly as luxurious as the one from the trial, but Christian saw the bubbles used to wash clothes. Sadly, it also did not contain that lavender shampoo he desperately wanted.

After a deep shower and eating some lamb with soft bread, Christian lay on his comfortable bed, with a small harp playing relaxing music. Tomorrow will be an essential day for him. He will finally find a way home.