Chapter 5
CRASH! BANG!
I flinched at the booming noise echoing from afar.
I’m… really in the Magical Tower, right? This isn’t a construction site or something?
[Current coordinates of Benefactor: 41.40338, 2.17403! You are located precisely inside the Magical Tower!]
‘Y-yeah. Thanks for confirming.’
Thanks to synchronizing my mind with the chick before leaving, we could communicate without words.
If we got too far apart, the sync would break, which is why I kept the chick in my pocket.
If anyone noticed, I could just pretend it was my pet. After inspecting its structure thoroughly, I realized even a magician couldn’t uncover its true nature without dissecting it. Truly a clever and mysterious creature.
‘So this is what the inside of the Magical Tower looks like…’
Endless high ceilings, countless staircases spiraling like a labyrinth toward the sky.
The sight was both magical and majestic, leaving my mouth agape.
If I passed, I’d be working in a place like this… my heart raced.
“Please come this way. I will guide you to the testing area.”
“Ah, yes!”
I quickly followed the employee. The moment I stood, a group of people ran down the hallway, bawling.
“Waaah!”
“They said I don’t even know the number five elemental transformation formula! They want me to go back to kindergarten! Me, who graduated second in my class at the academy!”
“They made me write my name ten times with my butt! I have to relearn the alphabet! Waaah!”
That’s probably what they were saying about the Master of the Tower, huh?
‘Wow… the rumors about his personality are true.’
Coming here voluntarily to work as his secretary had been the right choice, right?
Though, I admit it was a bit surprising that even an academy’s second-place graduate didn’t know the elemental formula.
‘I’m pretty sure it was in the first-year curriculum, chapter three… Ah! The door opened.’
A neatly dressed young man entered. Thin glasses, tidy brown hair—he looked like the very embodiment of a civil servant.
I sat up straight, nerves jangling.
“You’re the applicant who responded to the secretary recruitment notice?”
“Yes, that’s me.”
[Don’t be afraid, Benefactor! I, with my ultra-fast computation ability, am here. You have an invincible cheat key that will never be discovered!]
D-Don’t say that. It sounds like cheating!
A law-abiding citizen like me, who’s never even thrown away trash improperly, felt guilt pounding in my chest.
“The written test must be passed with a score of at least 80 to qualify for an interview.”
The young man handed me a thick stack of papers and a pencil.
It looked like a test, but…
‘Why is it so thick…!’
“Good luck.”
The young man solemnly spoke, and I anxiously examined the test papers.
And then…
‘…Huh?’
My eyes widened.
An hour later.
‘Time’s up.’
Aaron, the young man who handed me the test, stood. It was time to collect the papers.
‘Most probably gave up before finishing.’
Four or five out of ten applicants couldn’t complete the exam and had already left, defeated by its difficulty.
But when he opened the door, I was still seated.
‘Unexpected.’
Messy hair, thick glasses, timid posture. I hadn’t expected much from such a frail-looking girl—but she seemed to have a little grit.
However, when he glanced at the test paper…
‘…Ah, that explains it.’
The paper was almost entirely blank.
Cayen had prepared incredibly complex problems requiring intricate calculations.
No way a test-taker could leave it so clean unless they barely touched it.
Aaron sighed and, hiding his frustration, spoke professionally.
“Time is up. I will collect the papers.”
“Oh, yes. Here you go.”
The girl’s hand trembled slightly as she handed over the paper.
With her timid personality, even if she miraculously passed, she’d never be able to serve our devilish master properly.
Suppressing his thoughts, Aaron said kindly,
“We’ll notify you of the results soon. Would you like to wait here?”
“Yes, I will.”
He returned to his office to start grading.
Judging by the state of the paper, it wouldn’t take long. He’d just cross out everything, maybe five minutes tops.
‘No way I’m getting a competent new hire today.’
I didn’t need someone extraordinary to survive this insane difficulty. I’d be grateful just for a subordinate to handle simple tasks!
‘I don’t even remember the last time I left work before sunset… Please, someone lower the difficulty of this exam!’
Aaron, grumbling, picked up a red pen. Then he froze.
“…Huh?”
The first question already had the correct answer written.
‘It’s multiple choice, so you could guess.’
Aaron moved to the next question. And then…
“……Whaaaat?”
His eyes nearly popped out.
“M-Master.”
Gasping, Aaron rushed in, almost tumbling. Cayen’s cold eyes bore into him.
“What’s all this commotion?”
“Th-The applicant for the secretary position… the test results are… unusual.”
“Unusually stupid?”
“No!”
Aaron waved the test paper in front of Cayen.
“Not that! Look at this!”
With every graded problem, Aaron’s chest swelled.
‘She got it right.’
‘She got this one too? Amazing.’
At first, the first few problems didn’t seem strange—they were the easiest ones, and some applicants had gotten them right.
But even top-tier students collapsed on the harder questions below.
Yet…
‘Insane.’
‘She got it right again.’
‘What?! How did she solve this?! I don’t even know!’
The girl hadn’t left the paper blank. She had solved nearly every problem mentally.
Problems that other candidates couldn’t crack even after scribbling endlessly!
Aaron waved the circle-filled paper around, face alight with excitement.
“Perfect score! Perfect score! The first perfect scorer! She solved every problem on a paper designed by a psycho with a personality disorder!”
“Psycho? Personality disorder?”
“I-I misspoke! Please kill me!”
Aaron prostrated himself. Cayen waved lazily and examined the paper.
A flick of his sharp gaze lingered over the answers.
“Hmm.”
He faintly curved his lips.
“Seems she has at least the average human intelligence.”
‘Average human intelligence?! Then most of the Empire must be below-human monkeys! This standard is absurd!’
Aaron swallowed his unspoken protest.
Cayen scanned the personal information section of the test paper and nodded.
“This applicant—record, please.”
Aaron’s eyes widened.
‘Gasp!’
It was the first time.
Cayen only requested personal information after a test to check for criminal records. If nothing major was found, the applicant essentially passed.
Hope flared in Aaron’s chest.
‘Finally, I’ll have a competent subordinate!’
He would finally have a kind, clever assistant instead of this ruthless master, starting a happy, harmonious work life.
“Yes. I’ll fetch it immediately!”
But Aaron’s hopes were soon dashed.
The applicant, Frisia Violet, had largely ordinary, unremarkable personal details.
All except one.
