A Hospital in Another World? C.193

The meeting dispersed without much enthusiasm.

The grand mages each returned to their own quarters. Armed with prepared documents, they sought out their respective mentors, senior colleagues, and mages interested in taking on apprentices. The Mage Council’s assessment meetings occurred every ten days unless there was an emergency, and the next one was scheduled for early March, giving almost ten days’ time.

After all, the mages at levels 13 and 14 were either busy researching magic or striving to break through to level 15. Summoning them together every ten days was already quite disruptive to their work.

If the meetings became any more frequent, it was likely that these gentlemen of the assessment meetings would prefer to stay far away from the Mage Council headquarters to rid themselves of this burden.

Within these ten days, invitations (or rather, recruitment messages) from various schools and magic organizations continuously arrived in the hands of the trainees.

"Corinne Franz? Are you willing to join the ’Unity in Diversity’ organization? If so, please sign here and report to Master Lawrence’s research team on the eleventh floor of the Transmutation Mage Tower on the mountaintop at three o’clock tomorrow afternoon."

"That’s fantastic!... uh, I mean, I’m willing!"

"Anthony Valentine? Thunderhorn is interested in recruiting you. If you’re also interested, take this badge and go to the twenty-third floor of the Conjuration Mage Tower on the mountaintop at two o’clock tomorrow afternoon to find Archmage Edgar."

"Miss Catherine? Lady Laura Baselford of the Illusion Gate is interested in taking you as her disciple."

Each invitation, each offer, triggered waves of cheers and envy among the trainees. Garrett looked around and noticed that almost all of the students who received invitations were among the top students in the class, ranked from best to worst.

So far, he had received eleven offers, eight of which had already advanced to level two mages, and the remaining three had at least one A- in their previous assessments. Whether ranked by level or by performance, they were the most outstanding group in the training class.

Huh?

Then why doesn’t anyone want me?

I’m already a level two mage! I got an A+ in one of my assessments! I even published a paper on "Arcane"!

On the first day, Garrett remained calm despite receiving three offers.

On the second day, two more came, and Garrett shrugged it off, continuing his work at the infirmary after class.

On the third day... the fourth day...

It was evident that the vacancies in the eight auxiliary towers on the mountaintop had already been filled. The next round of recruitment was being conducted by the Bridge Magic Academy, Whetton Magic Academy, Chaos Magic Academy, and mage towers belonging to mages above level ten in the vicinity of Nevis City...

Oh no!

These individual mage towers and those belonging to schools or magic academies had vastly different research conditions! At the very least, Garrett had never seen thunder constrained by force fields or secret magic eyes forming light screens at the Bridge Magic Academy...

The highest-ranking teachers in the academy were only level five mages!

"Garrett, don’t worry," Mage Anthony kindly came over to console him. "You already have a paper on ’Arcane’; everyone wants you!"

But my paper focuses on the necromancy faction, and I’ve already declined Black Crow Swamp...

"Maybe... maybe they’re still recruiting?"

Corinne also came over with a notice from the Transmutation faction to comfort Garrett. Garrett barely managed to force a smile. Recruit? Isn’t the usual procedure for each faction to send offers and let me choose based on their conditions?

"That’s right! It must be because you’re late, Garrett!" Miles, the short mage, received his offer in the second round and missed out on his preferred "Light of the Stars," ultimately being recruited by a mage from the Illusion school. Direct discipleship was out of the question, but joining a research team at the mage tower to assist level five mages was still feasible...

At least it’s not completely departing from frontline research.

He forcefully put forth his viewpoint. Garrett pondered for a moment and found it quite reasonable. "Garrett, you’re late, you didn’t participate in the first assessment, you scored lower than others, and you have fewer papers...

Who knows how they ranked us? If they’re adding up all the scores from each assessment, aren’t you at a disadvantage, Garrett? How about... submitting a few more papers?"

That makes sense!

Garrett’s eyes lit up.

Publish papers, churn out papers, inflate papers for promotion evaluations—this was something he was familiar with! The big shots inflate papers for Zone 1, the mid-level and low-level mages inflate papers for Zones 2 and 3. In recent years, even graduate students have begun mass-producing SCI papers... Whether it’s advancing from resident doctor to attending physician, from attending physician to deputy director, or from deputy director to director, don’t they all pump out a few more papers at each step?

Furthermore, he wasn’t lacking in papers and such. From Hartland City to the Council headquarters, he had accumulated quite a few!

It was just a matter of always being busy. Either he hadn’t duplicated them or he hadn’t finished copying those diagrams, and he simply hadn’t submitted them yet...

Now, during the recruitment season, the best units were still delaying their offers. Even if it was a last-minute attempt, he should make his presence known!

Garrett thanked them and hurried back to his own territory. Continuing his habit from his previous life, after completing a research project, he would casually write a paper to summarize it. So far, the papers he had saved had gradually filled half a box:

"An analysis on the sterilization effects of various basic magic and divine arts, compared with high-temperature and high-pressure sterilization, and the necessity of sterile principles in different scenarios in the operating room."

"Several records of observing cork, onions, meat, and blood using a homemade microscope."

"Records of observing the Bacillus dysenteriae using a homemade microscope."

"Demonstrating the nature of combustion using heated mercury."

"Isolation and treatment during a large-scale outbreak of dysentery."

"The production of a simple thermometer and the role of temperature measurement in healthcare."

"Considerations on assessing injuries and distinguishing treatments in battlefield medical care under the premise of limited healing power"...

Should he throw them all out?

Or just a few?

Garrett rubbed his chin in thought. Well, he might as well throw them all out. Keeping them in his hands wouldn’t hatch anything... No, he couldn’t save them for the next round to help with his promotion. Anyway, that little magic creature named "Gold Coin" had recently helped him make a second microscope, so he wouldn’t be left with just words and no physical items, inexplicably rejected by others...

Garrett stepped into the White Tower once again. Once again, it was the Magic Audit Center, the flower elves leading the way, the beautiful young ladies smiling at him, and once again, in the specialized office for submitting magic, the flat mechanical voice repeated over and over:

"To submit magic, please press 1; to inquire about feedback on papers, please press 2; to receive paper rewards, please press 3; to replay, please press 4; for human assistance, please press 0..."

"1! 1! 111111!"

Garrett pressed the keys until his hand felt like it would break. In the room, the automatic feedback device repeated incessantly:

"Please place the paper into the teleportation magic array—"

"Excuse me! Sir inside! Do you need help? Is the paper teleportation platform broken?"

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