MTLNOVEL Chapter 14
“Phew… finally made it.”
A tired sigh escaped my lips.
“Finally? You’ve just arrived in the capital.”
I could hear Eve’s voice, tinged with a hint of disbelief.
“Shut up. There’s been a lot going on, alright?”
We were at the train station in the capital.
In this world, there are magical vehicles powered by mana, such as the magic-powered trains and cars.
The magic cars are used for relatively short-distance travel, while the magic trains are for long-distance travel, transporting large amounts of goods.
There are also teleportation magic circles available, but they can only be used by the wealthy.
I had come to the capital to take an exam, but the station was so complicated with all the transfers and connections that I ended up getting lost.
In the end, I had to ask a kind passerby for directions, and fortunately, everything was fine…
“As expected of the capital. I can really feel the presence of dungeons.”
Meanwhile, Eve was cheerfully scanning the surroundings of the capital.
“So dungeons are more likely to form in places with a lot of people, huh?”
There’s a theory that the more people gather in one area, the more likely a dungeon is to form there.
In this world, dungeons are constantly appearing somewhere.
Dungeons provide various blessings to humans.
Of course, high-level dungeons can be dangerous, with monsters spawning, but the resources obtained from dungeons are essential for both the country and humanity.
For that reason, one of the reasons I decided to come to the capital was because of the dungeons.
“So, shall we dive into a dungeon right away? I recommend the newly-formed earth and wind dungeons.”
“As tempting as that sounds, I don’t have the time for that today.”
It had only been two days since I agreed to take the exam, and the reason I hurried to the capital was because the exam was the next day.
Normally, once you awaken your blessing, you choose a school to attend, but since my abilities were unknown, I had to change the school I was planning to go to.
“For now, I need to get ready for the exam and secure a place to stay for the night.”
The paperwork I had been given clearly stated that I needed to prepare all the necessary equipment for the exam, along with food and other supplies.
I scolded Eve, who seemed reluctant to give up on her dungeon exploration ideas, and left the station.
“Excuse me. I’d like to sell something.”
I entered an alchemy shop and was greeted by an elderly woman.
“Oh? A cute young customer. What have you got to sell?”
“I’m almost 16, you know?”
“Ah, I see. So you’re a student at the Academy, then?”
“No, actually, I’m about to take the entrance exam.”
“Ah, my apologies. That exam has been getting harder every year. Don’t let it get you down if you fail.”
Her assumption that I might fail was a little awkward to respond to, but she didn’t seem like a bad person at all.
“So, I want to sell some dungeon water.”
“Do you know the dungeon’s grade?”
“Huh?”
I didn’t understand what the old woman meant.
(Eve, what’s a dungeon grade?)
“I don’t know about the grading system for dungeons in the human world. But judging by the core of this water, I don’t think it’s very high-ranking.”
Even Eve didn’t know. Though I felt like asking might embarrass me, I realized that if I didn’t ask now, I might never have the chance to learn.
“Sorry, what exactly is a grade?”
I decided to ask openly.
“The grade is the classification of the dungeon. The quality of the water you collect changes depending on the grade. There are seven grades, from I to VII, with VII being the highest.”
I see. I hadn’t known this, probably because as a country kid, I had limited access to information.
“If I don’t know the grade, you won’t buy it, right?”
“This time, I’ll check it for you. So the purchase will be based on the results of my appraisal.”
“That works for me.”
“Alright, come with me.”
With that, the elderly woman headed further into the shop.