[Congratulations, your team is ranked 9th]

[You will return to the arena in a few minutes]

Seeing the notification, Julian couldn't help but exclaim loudly, "We made it to the top 10! Wow…"

"To be honest, I still can't believe that we really have what it takes to be in the top 10" Julian added in disbelief, after he calmed down.

Even though their entire bodies were aching and screaming in pain, the five young teenagers were still in hysterical ecstasy, in a good way.

The fact they not only managed to make it past the first stage, but even reached the 9th rank out of the 121 teams really made them happy and proud. That was the top 10 for God's sake!

The whole team was very excited thinking about the reward they will receive and the acknowledgment they will earn. Lastly, the most important thing was the face of those acolytes from Kaleos would make when the result was announced.

After laughing until their stomachs hurt and consuming all of their excitement, they looked into each other's eyes, they all realized the ordeal they had experienced together had further strengthened the bond between them. Despite the fact they wouldn't die for real in the virtual arena, each of them tried their very best to make sure no one got killed.

The valiant yet rash Thrax, the calm-headed leader Julian, the swift and decisive Chumo, the adept yet charismatic Klea, and the last but not least the enigmatic and versatile Emery. The five of them were the Earth Magi.

A few minutes later, another notification appeared in front of them.

[All teams have finished the first stage of the Magus Games]

The five of them immediately closed their eyes when a flash of piercing light suddenly appeared and drowned the bridge. The next thing they knew, they were already in some sort of open space that looked like an arena.

The arena looked similar to the one the Combat Institute had, but it was bigger and more exquisite. The ground was covered by engraved quartz slabs that gave an aesthetic feeling to the place, while Emery could see many gates standing in grandeur on the arena walls.

As he threw his gaze to the surroundings, Emery found out there was enough space to let hundreds of thousands of spectators sit here. Currently, most of the seats in the arena were not filled. However, there were at least more than a thousand acolytes and magus watching.

Emery could see all around him there were almost all ten thousand 2nd year acolytes, who had completed the first stage too, just like his group. However, he noticed the acolytes seemed to be divided.

There were only around a third of them standing at the center of the arena, forming a circular formation, while the rest were standing outside, making another circle around them, while facing them. It was easy to assume the people who were in the center were the top 50 teams of chosen acolytes from all 10 groups.

When he was busy observing the situation, Emery suddenly realized all the wounds he had suffered and those of his friends were all gone. Checking his bag, he was even more surprised that all of his strength paste and acid potions were there, as if he never used them. Experiencing this, Emery couldn't help but think, "This virtual arena can actually be a very valuable tool for conducting tests with items and skills."

A moment later, the familiar blonde haired magus, Serena, walked towards their location. When the acolytes saw her, the previously boisterous and chaotic arena immediately turned so silent, that one could even hear the sound of a pin dropping to the ground. When Magus Serena saw how the acolytes were behaving, she smiled and then announced the results.

"from all 10 groups, there are 1274 teams that participated in the first stage of the Magus Games, only 500 teams are eligible to enter the second stage, with a total number of 3178 acolytes." Selena calmly said. She then continued, "The second stage of the Magus Game will be held 10 days from now."

Hearing that, the successful acolytes excitedly shouted, while clenching their fists in the air, while those who failed were seen lowering their heads with a crestfallen expression. Looking at the clamorous arena, Selena quickly calmed them down and then continued announcing the results.

"Out of the top 500 teams, 98 teams managed to defend the orb to the last second but only 55 of them managed to kill the Ogre"

When he heard the details of the rank, Emery was genuinely satisfied with the result they got. Not only were there only five of them in the team, while the other teams were filled with 7 to 8 people, but he and his group also joined without knowing much about the game beforehand.

A moment later, the crest on his hand provided another piece of information.

[You are part of Team 99 of group 7]

[Personal points: 114]

[Team points: 150]

[Receiving 200 points for successfully defending the orb]

[Receiving 200 points for killing the final boss]

[Receiving 100 points for managing to survive until the end]

[Receiving 200 points for ranking in the top 10]

[Calculating total points… ]

[You received 964 points]

[Converting points into contribution points…]

[You received 9640 contribution points]

After that notification, the arena became rowdy once again, as the acolytes became chaotic.

Seeing the large amount of contribution points he received, Thrax couldn't hold himself from shouting loudly, "WOHOO!!! That's a lot of contribution points! Thank you, Magus Academy!!!"

Emery and his friends all received almost the same amount of points, with a few differences here and there. Judging from the way of rewarding in the notification, Emery could deduct there was a huge difference between those who managed to complete the next stage and those who didn't.

The 100 points they received just for managing to survive until the end were converted into 1000 contribution points, which could be exchanged for a full day of access to an origin stone room. With this arrangement, the contrast between the acolytes would become even more visible. The strong would get stronger, while the weak would be left behind.

Realizing that, Emery quickly fell into deep thoughts, as he dwelt on the motives and plans behind the method used in selecting acolytes in the Magus Academy.

On the main podium overlooking the arena, the headmaster, Altus Dresden was accompanied by the academy's official magus. He then got up and stomped his staff again, attracting the attention of those in the arena.

"Congratulations, acolytes! The first trial was a way to see your basic foundation, your teamwork ability and your willpower when faced with an endless challenge. The results have been spoken and those of you who made it will go to the second trial."

The headmaster then looked at one of the arena gates that had just opened.

"As for the second trial that will be held in 10 days, those people will be your opponent."

From behind that gate, groups of acolytes started coming out. When they stopped coming out, Emery saw there were at least 500 people there. And then, in the middle of those acolytes, Emery spotted a familiar figure.

"Silva!"

Author's Note

Dear Reader, I hope the first game was satisfactory to read

I apologize there is one sentence in chapter 141 that I really need to change, don't worry it doesn't change the story much.

Before:

Apparently, ever since the beginning, the acolytes were already separated into different castes. Class 31 to 100 were called the lucky class, classes 11 to 30 were the elite class, and classes 1 to 10 were the privileged class.

After:

Apparently, when the second year started, talented acolytes were moved to an elite or privileged class. Klea know there are about 500 acolytes in the elite class, but the privileged class is a mystery

Reason: the first option really gave me a headache with the mathematic of the game for top 50 top 500, and stuff. I apologize for the changes. To be clear what change is that there are actually 12 groups of classes. The regular (lucky) acolytes have 10 groups of 10 classes each. the number from 1-10, 11-20, and so on. while the elites and privilege were put in a separate group.

Thank you for your continuous support.