My System Just Exploded, And You Ask Me to Become a God?-Chapter 27 --The Gathering of All Factions

Joad never imagined...

That the life he had dreamed of was actually so close at hand!

Now that Lena had the Pyrothian Kingdom backing her, and Ivy and Leit were about to tie the knot,

he figured that whenever they had a bit of spare money, they might send some his way.

What a promising future!

Just as Joad was basking in joyful thoughts,

he suddenly sensed a strong magical fluctuation coming from the distant Ilan Royal Academy.

"Boom!!"

Along with the deep chime of the magical clock, Joad had a rough idea of what was happening.

"It's Ilan's Study Hall!"

Ilan's Study Hall was said to be the place where a mage god named Ilan had once lived in seclusion for many years.

He supposedly recorded all his lifelong insights into magic in a legendary tome called Ilan's Notes.

Five hundred years later, the first Grand Duke Ilan stumbled across this bit of history.

So, he changed his own title to "Ilan" and began searching for the Study Hall.

By some stroke of luck, he actually found it—and that location became what is now Ilan Royal Academy.

The problem was, the famed Ilan's Notes had never been found.

Rumor had it that the tome didn't just contain powerful spells and the reflections of a mage god—

but that the notebook itself was a rare magical artifact.

But...

Wasn't this year's opening of Ilan's Study Hall a bit too early?

As Joad pondered this, he noticed that a huge crowd had already gathered near Ilan Royal Academy.

Bachelor Geoffrey's expression had turned serious as well.

"If the Ilan Manuscript truly appears this time, I hope our academy can obtain it."

Ivy, too, snapped out of her daze and looked at Joad strangely.

She had just seen him stash away all his mana stones.

Of course, she didn't care about that—those mana stones were trivial to her.

What intrigued her more was how different this "Senior Joad" was from the rumors.

It was like... he had a completely hidden side.

After a moment of silence, she asked,

"Senior Joad, what exactly is the Ilan Manuscript? It sounds pretty valuable."

Joad shook his head, answering uncertainly,

"Probably a lost magical artifact from the academy or something... I'm not really sure."

"Could be elite rank? Maybe even archmage rank? Who knows!"

It was clear that Joad didn't really care about the Ilan Manuscript.

In his eyes, nothing was more important than mana stones.

Besides, he had to get ready.

Every student at Ilan Royal Academy was required to take part in the Study Hall trials.

According to the headmaster, the more people that entered, the better the odds—

What if someone actually managed to find the Ilan Manuscript?

Ivy nodded and quietly watched Joad's figure walk away.

Elsewhere, the plaza at Ilan Royal Academy was bustling with activity.

Not only students from Ilan Royal Academy but many others—

even those from other duchies—had arrived.

After all, this was a legendary site tied to a mage god.

Who wouldn't want a piece of that?

Even the Mington and Ironchain Principalities had sent their best students.

Judging by magical rank alone, some of them seemed to rival Senior Leit.

According to long-standing custom,

as long as these outsiders bought an entry pass from Ilan Royal Academy,

they were allowed to participate. It had always been this way.

Even a core student from the Pyrothian Kingdom named Harlan,

who was on the verge of reaching elite mage rank,

was planning to take part in this year's Ilan's Study Hall.

It was obvious most of them were here for the Ilan Manuscript.

According to ancient legends, the Manuscript had always been slumbering inside the Study Hall—

awaiting a true genius to awaken it.

If it had never appeared until now, perhaps that meant...

no one worthy had ever entered.

Joad didn't care about any of that.

He had already made up his mind: once inside, he'd find a spot rich in magical elements and meditate

until the whole thing was over.

In the meantime, he also reassembled the puppet he'd taken apart before.

This time, he even made improvements—

its strength was now on a whole new level.

An elite-rank puppet could be a deadly weapon—great for both offense and looting.

And when it was no longer useful? He could just sell it for a pile of mana stones.

A few days later,

the plaza at Ilan Royal Academy was overflowing with people—

all waiting patiently for the opening of Ilan's Study Hall.

But amid the swelling crowd, Headmaster Simar grew increasingly uneasy.

On that quiet night, he summoned everyone at the academy.

With somber expressions all around, Simar brought up the name "Rogue Thief Kid."

Over the years, this so-called Rogue Thief Kid had "bullied" countless people in the academy—

even the headmaster and grand scholars had been "pummeled" by him.

So, Simar felt it necessary to issue a special warning.

Everyone looked worried. Everyone except Joad, who frowned deeply.

Was his reputation really that bad?

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He had just been trying to help them get stronger...

That's why he had to beat them up!

Two days later,

A powerful, bone-deep magical surge rocked the plaza.

A massive portal appeared before everyone's eyes, drawing gasps from the crowd.

Joad stood behind Harvey,

while Headmaster Simar took the stage and addressed the crowd:

"Students, the opening of Ilan's Study Hall is a rare opportunity. What you gain inside depends on your luck.

But remember this: only those under thirty may enter. Anyone older will be erased by the laws of the realm."

Though it was common knowledge, he still repeated it to make sure no one got reckless and lost their lives.

Everyone's eyes shone with confidence.

As Joad scanned the crowd with his mind power, he couldn't help but feel surprised.

There were a lot of people entering Ilan's Study Hall this time—

and many of them were renowned talents!

Archido from Mington Principality, Harlan from the Pyrothian Kingdom—

both were near-elite rank mages.

On top of that, there were so many mid-rank mages they seemed to outnumber the stars.

But what truly caught Joad off guard... was a girl.

She wore a pale-blue mage's gown, her golden curls fluttering in the wind.

Her curvaceous figure left quite the impression.

She's here?!

Joad's expression turned to surprise.

The girl was none other than Mary from the Twisting Bird Tavern.

Her background wasn't simple, and her origins were mysterious—

yet here she was, joining the trial too.

Just then, another question popped into Joad's mind:

Where was Leit? Why hadn't he shown up yet?

Harvey seemed to notice and answered casually,

"Senior Leit will enter shortly."

Joad nodded.

As Headmaster Simar lifted the restrictions on the portal,

participants began stepping in one by one.

Just as Joad was about to walk in,

a flirtatious voice whispered in his ear:

"Junior Joad, if you run into any danger, make sure you come find me, alright? I'll protect you~"

It was none other than elite student Elsa.

"Thanks, Senior!"

Joad gave her a grateful look.

Harvey chuckled,

"You're pretty popular."

"Oh, and here—take this magic scroll.

It can sense where Leit and I are. If you get into trouble, just activate it—we'll get the distress signal."

Joad nodded and stashed the scroll.

After entering the Study Hall, everyone's positions would be randomized.

As more and more people stepped into the portal,

Joad finally moved forward—

Unaware that Archido had been watching him the entire time.

Only after Joad vanished into the portal...

did Archido follow, eyes burning with hatred.