Chapter 11: Taking a Quick Nap
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The boy checking the registrations felt that there was something off about the expression the newly arrived participant was giving him.
'Bastard, what's with that look? Why are you staring at me like I'm some beggar on the side of the road?'
Zhu Rong didn't care about the boy's expression and walked away after taking the badge with his number.
In the waiting room, all the participants were anxiously waiting for their turn.
Some of them were quietly talking among themselves, while others seemed to be reading through various documents.
Since it was already evening, the number of participants signing up at this time of day was much lower compared to the morning and afternoon.
Each participant had 10 minutes to take the test, after which the next one would be called immediately.
Considering the level of this exam, the results were almost always given on the spot before leaving the testing room.
Pretty much anyone could tell whether a person had passed or not based on the expression they wore when coming out.
And judging by the faces of the last five who had just finished, Zhu Rong could tell that none of them had passed.
'How do you fail such a simple exam? It's basically all theory, and you just have to pass level one to be considered qualified.
Did these guys seriously come here without even learning the basics?' he thought, baffled by the situation.
It should be known that the test to become a rune engraving apprentice was a theoretical test divided into 3 difficulty levels.
You'd move from level 1 to the next level after completing the previous one.
To pass the test, you only needed to clear level 1, so many people thought becoming an apprentice would be easy,
yet seeing the current situation, it seemed even that wasn't enough.
He could only shake his head.
In his past life, he'd taken the apprentice rune engraver test and passed it on his first try, though with the total of 10 minutes available, he had only managed to clear level one.
Back then, he had decided to raise his blacksmith profession as high as possible despite his mediocre talent, so he didn't neglect any field that could help him reach that goal.
In the end, he simply shook his head and got ready to take a quick nap while waiting for his turn.
He was one of the last to arrive, so there were still plenty of people ahead of him
With a quick estimate, it would be at least an hour and half before his turn came up, so he might as well take a little nap.
Since his reincarnation, he had been busy jumping from one thing to the next without giving himself any time to rest.
Especially after finishing his hammer, he had worn his body out too much, and even now he could still feel the muscles in his right arm aching from all the effort he'd put in earlier, so he decided to rest.
He found a secluded corner in the waiting room, then sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes.
Time passed, and little by little the waiting room grew less crowded as participants were called in without pause.
In the corner next to Zhu Rong, a group of four participants was quietly chatting among themselves.
They had arrived right after him, so just like him, they still had to wait a while.
Relaxed looks on their faces, they chatted as if they didn't have a care in the world.
It was clear that each of them was absolutely confident they would pass the test.
A boy in the group with neatly combed short hair and the manner of a scholar couldn't help but gave Zhu Rong a disdainful look as he spoke.
"Look at him, sleeping so comfortably, no one would think he came here to take a test," he said, clearly displeased with Zhu Rong's attitude.
"He probably already gave up and decided to just take it easy while waiting for his turn.
If I were him, I'd just leave, at least that way I'd save some face," said another boy from the group.
"Stop worrying about that guy and focus on yourselves.
It won't be long before our turn comes up.
I don't know about you, but I plan to pass at least with level 2 difficulty," said a girl with long pink hair, clearly unhappy with her friends' attitude.
"Lian, you're aiming too low, you need to do like me and pass with at least level 3.
The other two levels are just for beginners," said another girl with short black hair.
"Exactly, Sister Lian, level 1 and 2 are too low, we need to aim for level 3," added the scholarly looking boy, his expression making it clear he wouldn't accept anything less than the highest result.
Mei Lian, hearing her friends, could only shake her head as she waited for her turn.
Taking the test in 10 minutes wasn't hard for her, but aiming for level three with that amount of time wasn't doable in her opinion.
Time passed, and finally, after almost an hour and a half, it was Zhu Rong's turn.
"The next one."
The boy at the counter called the next candidate and waited for them to come forward, but waited and no one stepped up.
'Hm?'
"Number 17, it's your turn," he called again, but still no one showed up.
'Did he leave? He could have at least let us know before going,' he thought, shaking his head as he got ready to call the next name on the list.
But just at that moment, he saw someone approaching and handing him their badge.
He looked at the badge with the number 17 on it before glancing up at the person, who was still half-asleep and yawning like he had just woken up.
"..."
'Kid, did you come here to sleep or to take the test?
Could you at least pretend to be a little serious?' he thought as a vein popped on his forehead.
"Kid, stop wasting time and get in there.
If you delay any longer, minutes will be deducted from your test time," he said, deciding not to waste time arguing with the guy in front of him.
Hearing what he said, young Zhu Rong didn't waste any time and walked into the testing room.
'Tch, can't even take a little nap these days,' he thought irritably as he went inside.