There was also a female contestant who specialized in Illusion Techniques, originally hovering on the edge of the top thousand.
When she saw her name irrevocably dimming, she instead gave a bitter smile of relief.
She shook her head lightly, her gaze complex as she looked at the few companions beside her who had successfully advanced, and whispered:
"I was still a little short... But, in a way, it's a relief to be free from this pressure."
It wasn't that she didn't work hard. It was just that on this stage, which had gathered the most monstrous geniuses of the entire Alka Empire, the gaps in talent, foundation, and opportunity were sometimes not something that could be overcome by hard work alone.
When the last name below the top one thousand had completely faded from the stone monument, it was as if some kind of signal had been triggered.
BZZZZ—!
