Master Of Astral Summoner-Chapter 159: Before the second Examination
"That's right. The three of them live here," Dr. Marshal nodded slowly as he stood at the doorway. "So, what brings you here?"
"Madam Yashina sent us to deliver these envelopes to them," said one of the officers with glasses as he handed the envelopes over. "According to Madam Yashina, these envelopes contain important information related to the Daemon Hunt Rite, and all of them need to know about it."
"Ah, I see." Dr. Marshal nodded again and accepted the envelopes from the officer. "I will pass them on to them." 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚
"In that case, we'll take our leave. We apologize for disturbing your rest, Dr. Marshal."
Dr. Marshal slowly closed the front door. Moments later, the officers' footsteps faded into the distance, and their presence vanished from the area.
"Shaan, Miss Nalira, Miss Chelsie. I have something for you." Dr. Marshall handed each of them an envelope. "Try opening them and see what's inside."
"We understand," they replied in unison.
Shaan hesitated for a brief moment before stepping forward. As soon as the envelope touched his hand, an inexplicable heaviness settled in his chest—not a physical weight, but something far harder to describe. They opened their envelopes almost at the same time.
"So... what's inside?" Dr. Marshall's expression looked increasingly curious.
"Uhm... This... This is about..."
"Room assignments for the second test," Nalira showed them the contents of her letter. "I got room number 5. What are your numbers?"
"Uhm... I'm number 3." Chelsie slowly turned her gaze to the side. "Uhm... Shaan, what about you?"
"Number 2," Shaan stroked his chin, looking at Dr. Marshal. "Dr. Marshal, do you know anything about this?"
Dr. Marshal shook his head. "No. During the second meeting, there was no mention of room assignments like this."
"Then why—"
"Perhaps this is a special instruction," Dr. Marshal interrupted Nalira. "It likely came from the leader of Twilight Sanctum to Madam Yashina."
"Uhm... Okay." Chelsie nodded slowly. "That makes sense."
"Dr. Marshal, who exactly is the leader of Twilight Sanctum?" Shaan asked, curiosity clear on his face. "Since we arrived here, we've never seen them at all."
"Hm…" Dr. Marshal crossed his arms calmly. "The leader of Twilight Sanctum doesn't like appearing in public. He prefers to work quietly, without anyone tracking his movements."
'The leader of Twilight Sanctum seems extremely cautious,' Shaan thought.
"Uhm… but have you ever met him?" Nalira asked.
"I can count it on one hand. Maybe two—no, wait… probably three times," Dr. Marshal said as he scratched his head, confusion showing on his face. "Damn it. I can't remember clearly."
'Dr. Marshal really never changes,' Shaan thought.
"The important point is that I have met him before," Dr. Marshal said calmly. "However, the leader has never shown his face to anyone—not even to the other seven faction council members."
"Huh?" A frown appeared on Shaan's forehead. "What do you mean by that?"
"Every time the leader of Twilight Sanctum appears, he always wears a white lion-shaped mask," Dr. Marshal said as he shrugged. "I don't know why he chose that mask, nor why he still refuses to reveal his face."
'Hmm… so that's how it is. Interesting.'
"There are rumors that the leader of the faction deliberately wears such a mask to cover up scars or something like that," Mr. Courier shrugged. "No one knows the reason at all. Everything is still a mystery until now."
'That sounds weird,' Shaan thought as he stroked his chin. 'There must be a reason behind all of this… but what?'
"Now," Dr. Marshal continued, "I think it's best if I explain a bit about the second-stage examination. That way, none of you will do anything reckless or foolish when the test begins."
"…Yes, that's a good idea," Nalira replied.
"During the second examination, the staff will focus on checking your physical condition—especially the latest status of your Insameter," Dr. Marshal explained briefly. "Based on your Insameter status, they will evaluate whether you qualify as a participant with dangerous potential that could disrupt the Daemon Hunt Rite."
'Damn… Insameter status?' Shaan's expression immediately stiffened. 'This is bad. Last time, my Insameter turned red because I used Aspira Ignis too many times. What should I do?'
"Then what about participants who show potential danger to the event?" Nalira asked curiously. "Will they immediately ban them from joining the Daemon Hunt Rite?"
Dr. Marshal quickly shook his head. "No. They can still participate, but the staff may conduct a brief additional inspection and provide a special item to suppress excessive power that causes a massive increase in the Insameter," he said while adjusting his hair. "You can think of it as an additional Insameter. It prevents the daemonist from causing chaos."
"Ah, I see." Shaan sighed deeply. "Thank goodness."
"So don't panic if your inspection takes longer than others," Mr. Courier added. "The staff only want to make sure nothing dangerous happens during the event."
"What courier 020 said is absolutely right."
"Wow, I had no idea that the leader of Twilight Sanctum had planned everything so well."
"That's right, Miss Chelsie."
"If I'm not mistaken, the leader of Twilight Sanctum seems to have learned from the mistakes made during the previous Daemon Hunt Rite event. That's why he introduced many new things that weren't in the previous Daemon Hunt Rite event to prevent the same mistakes from happening again," said Mr. Courier, sharing his analysis. "The leader of Twilight Sanctum is indeed someone who never tires of improving things."
"... a hardworking figure."
"Alright, I think you should all get some rest early today," suggested Dr. Marshall. "Because the second day of testing will definitely be quite exhausting."
"Yes, Dr. Marshall," they all said in unison for the umpteenth time.
***
'Why hasn't this door opened yet?'
Shaan kept shifting his feet without pause, his eyes fixed on the door marked with the number "2" standing clearly before him. For some reason, the door showed no sign of movement—unlike the others, which had already opened.
Mixed emotions filled Shaan's chest: excitement and unease tangled together. He felt happy because he had reached this stage without suffering any serious injuries. However, anxiety gnawed at him at the same time. Chelsie and Nalira had already entered their respective rooms and seemed to be undergoing their examinations, while he still had to wait—without any idea how long the wait would last.
'What exactly is—'
'Click!'
"Mr. Shaan Devansh, please enter," a voice said from inside. "It's time for your examination."
