Chapter Ch58.1 - Divination

translator: xiin

editors: apricot & juurensha

“What the hell? What crowning? What unveiled destiny? Little Witch, did you figure it out yet? …”

Early the next morning, Wu Jin and Caesar walked out of the twin towers, hurried to the canteen to pick up breakfast, and then rushed into the classroom just as the bell rang.

Caesar was holding a bag full of chopped pork buns when he came through the door. The aroma spread in all directions, attracting the gaze of many trainees.

Zoe and Wen Lin had already reserved seats for both of them in the front row––

After two elimination matches, only 300 of the original 500 trainees were left. The classroom that had previously been crowded was finally spacious enough for people to stretch out their shoulders and move their arms.

The trainees’ eyes all followed the aroma of meat and soon locked on Wu Jin.

The bright-colored badge that represented their grade was stuck to the waist of his training jacket, the gilded ‘A’ shining brightly.

The champion of the second elimination match, and the c-position for the Crosson Show theme song performance. Nobody had expected that the trainee who had been admitted into the program group due to his looks would gain such great popularity over the past two months and even threaten Wei Yan’s position in the rankings.

“… from White Moonlight Entertainment, he’s good at reasoning… but his dynamic shooting is only at seven rings…”

“… He can advance to S level if he wins the championship again, but R-Code Entertainment…”

The whispers of discussion came from the back of the room, but the low sounds of conversation dissipated in the air with the smell of the chopped pork buns.

Wu Jin didn’t listen carefully. His gaze swept across the classroom, pausing slightly when it arrived at several A-level trainees.

At this time, the 300 remaining contestants had been ranked again according to the results of the round. Wei Yan was still the only one in the S-level, with 22 people in the A-level. Amongst them, the top 10 contestants were considered to have one foot in the door to their debut position––their letter badges were gilded, distinguishing them from the silver badges of the other trainees.

Amongst the top ten in the refreshed rankings––

R-Code Entertainment had one person, White Moonlight had both Wu Jin and Zoe, Dolma Entertainment had two people, Jingyi Entertainment had two people, Azure People’s Entertainment had two, and there was also a contestant from a small budget company who had originally been ranked D.

Wu Jin made some rough calculations. The spread was much grimmer than he’d originally imagined.

The rules of the cellular automata in the previous round had been complex, and most of the contestants had relied more on luck. Some of the powerful generals who could have stepped on the road to their debut had been excluded from the top ten at this time. This included the two mutually destructive Thin Fire and Caesar, and the poisoned Qin Jinbao.

Silver Thread Roll had been wiped out. Dolma and Jingyi Entertainment were still holding steady, and their numbers remained unchanged. Dolma had lost one Qin Jinbao from the top ten, but the position had been quickly filled by another trainee from the same company.

As for Azure People’s Entertainment––

The name of this investment company was extremely conspicuous and seemed to be more in line with the year 2018 than 3018. Wu Jin clearly remembered that in the previous match, only one trainee from this ‘People’s Entertainment’ group had entered the shortlist, but now the number had increased to two.

Adding on the big boss’s hidden strength, big boss’s little follower Red, as well Wen Lin, whose rankings were rising steadily, the competition for the final debut positions would become increasingly fierce.

Caesar was big and tall. When he saw Zoe in the crowd, he immediately dragged Wu Jin through the walkway and headed over, “Also, there’s that Golden Dawn Association––”

Wu Jin tried hard to swallow down the last small bite of his fritter and said vaguely, “The clue can’t be solved yet. It’s a bit like a spell or a guide for divination… but information could be found on the Golden Dawn Association.”

Caesar was instantly happy.

Wu Jin: “Golden Dawn is a witchcraft association established in London, England in 1888. It practiced Western mysticism and religious teachings and was famous for astrological, tarot card reading, and alchemy. Famous members include Edward Waite…”

Caesar slapped his thigh and asked blankly, “What planet is England?”

Wu Jin’s eyes dimmed, “……”

The two of them quickly made it through the aisle and reached Zoe.

The White Moonlight sniper had taken up two additional spots near the wall, and another seat was still empty. Caesar didn’t hesitate at all before pushing Wu Jin to Zoe’s side––just in case Zoe suddenly wanted to check on his class notes.

The topic for the class was projected onto the light screen in front of the platform.

“Divination of Mysteries.”

The instructor for the course hadn’t shown up yet, but Blood Pigeon, who had gone home to see his wife and children over the holidays, was standing and speaking with them at the front entrance to the classroom.

Blood Pigeon’s physical characteristics were very consistent with other professional players in survival shows––his bones were big and blocked their view of the other party, leaving only the corner of a white robe and mottled white hair visible.

Wu Jin’s attention was drawn by the item placed on the desk.

Each trainee, including Zoe and Caesar, had a cardboard box about the size of their palm in front of them. It was the teaching aids for this class.

The cardboard box in front of Zoe had already been opened, revealing dozens of cards that were neatly ordered. A delicate and complicated pattern decorated the back of the cards, and a manual had been included in the box.

“Edward Waite, Golden Dawn Association.”

Caesar inhaled the chopped pork bun in a few bites, then tore open the teaching aid in front of him with greasy hands. “Hey, Little Witch, isn’t this the person you mentioned––”

Wu Jin nodded, then supplemented, “Edward Waite, the founder of tarot card divination.”

There were about seventy to eighty cards in the box. The paintings on the cards were primitive, yet elaborate, and the front and back of each card was vivid, almost lifelike.

Wu Jin randomly pulled out a card––four winged, exotic beasts had their wings spread as they flew and dipped in the clouds. At the center of the card was a rotating compass, and the line of small text beneath it read: ‘Wheel of Fortune’.

He then flipped open each of the rest of the cards. There were cards such as ‘The Empress’, ‘The Hanged Man’, ‘Death’, as well as other less important cards with roman numerals. The meaning of some cards could be inferred from the artwork, while others remained obscure.

Zoe asked quietly, “Can you tell anything from this?”

Wu Jin, who was currently counting the cards, shook his head and paused for a while before saying, “78 cards. I’m thinking about… why the divination class is the first one in the schedule, and not the last one just before the game.”

Zoe was stunned.

Wu Jin thought out loud, “It might be… so that we have enough time to memorize all 78 cards. If nothing unexpected happens, round three will be related to tarot cards.”

Outside the entrance, the person who’d been speaking to Blood Pigeon smiled and nodded, then walked slowly into the classroom.

At the same time, the tardy Red snuck in from the back entrance––Caesar patted the back of a chair and offered a warm welcome, waving an enthusiastic hand for Red to join him in the empty seat beside him.

Wu Jin raised his head to greet Red, but his gaze turned a little lost after he glanced over. The big boss had obviously followed his usual style of truancy and continued his trend of being absent until the end.

Red understood without any words being spoken and laughed tacitly.

It wasn’t until the instructor stood up on the podium––that everyone in the crowd suddenly realized that this person wasn’t an old man with graying hair at all, but rather a young man with a head of granny-white hair.

To Wu Jin, his robe seemed to be both cunning and strange. The overall cut was like that of a church priest, but there was a swath of cloth wrapped around it, and the buckles at the shoulders were all different, seeming to imitate the sages from ancient Greece. The logo of the ‘Centaurus Society of Metaphysics, Numerology, and Astrologists’ sparkled and flashed from his chest.

In contrast to his flashy appearance, this divination master’s voice was soft when he spoke, like a trickle of water that could soothe people’s hearts.

“My name is Sinra. I’m from the Centaurus System, and my major is ancient Western astrology.”

“It’s very nice to meet everyone and be able to take you on a journey through the mysterious practice of tarot. From when I entered the classroom, I could feel your energies, which is generated from the heart. It is vigorous and full of vitality.”

“Let me take a closer look… 300 students.” He reached out gently, as though sensing the mysterious energy in the air, “I can vaguely see that there will be 22 people competing in the final stage, six of whom will enter the Star League in the future.”

The entire classroom abruptly stilled. The students who had originally still been doubtful suddenly turned serious and began to listen carefully.

Sinra continued in an ethereal tone, “I’m looking at the mysterious astral images behind you… ah, 45 brave little lions, followed by 32 wise scorpions, and 30 enthusiastic archers…”

Caesar was shocked, “There are more than 30 snipers sitting here!”

Zoe: “… Shut up. He’s talking about star signs.”

Caesar suddenly understood, “Oh, I’m a Leo!”

Zoe was beside himself with irritation. He lowered his head to whisper with Wu Jin instead, “It’s quite impressive… He’s able to calculate 300 trainees’ star signs with a glance?”

Wu Jin hesitated, “I think… that it should be that Instructor Blood Pigeon showed him the application forms just now. Everyone’s birthday is registered on it.”

“……” Zoe finally spoke with difficulty, “So this is all some mystical scam? First draw everyone’s attention with predictions about their future, then put on a know-it-all act after…”

Wu Jin tried to reply in a soothing tone, “It’s very impressive anyway, since everyone is falling for it.”