Upon seeing the towering light pillars appear in the secret realm, everyone inside understood what it meant: the secret realm was about to end.
If they spotted any rare materials, they needed to harvest them quickly; time was running out.
None of the students from Crossbridge Academy wanted to leave early.
They were all making their final efforts to gather as many materials as possible, as the next opportunity to enter might not come to them.
Outside the secret realm, the crowd watching was even larger than when they had entered.
Previously, the crowd had only gathered to watch which individuals from each faction entered the secret realm, which was somewhat uninteresting.
Today, however, was the real spectacle—deciding which faction would hold sway in Riverside City and influence its true interests.
Even if they didn’t witness the event firsthand, they could receive updates about the happenings inside the secret realm.
After all, others were there to see it, so they could boast about it later over drinks, recounting how they saw someone from a certain family receive special rewards from the secret realm.
Most people were eagerly awaiting the results, with crowds packed around, except for the areas designated for the three major families.
The watchers included not only locals from Riverside City but also outsiders curious about the grand event.
The heads of House Windwhisper and House Lunastone were particularly anxious, like giraffes straining to see.
They hoped their family members would return from the secret realm soon to report on what had happened inside.
Each family had designated people responsible for leaving the secret realm first to relay the general situation back home.
Naturally, the talented members of their families would not leave early; they intended to stay until the very last moment to secure the special rewards.
However, there seemed to be a problem.
The secret realm could have been exited, so why hadn’t any of their family members left?
Could it be that they all encountered some extremely precious materials to harvest?
Both heads independently entertained this thought since it was the only plausible explanation.
After all, it was unlikely that both were eliminated by a spell beast inside the secret realm.
As messengers, they would be acutely aware of their responsibilities and would prioritize their safety.
Even if it meant receiving fewer rewards, they would still have to leave at the first opportunity to report back to their families and confirm who received the special rewards.
Moreover, this time, there was an even more critical task: to inform them of the extent of Crossbridge Academy’s losses.
But right now, they had not seen a single person from their families assigned to this task. What on earth had happened inside the secret realm?
For now, they could only wait until everyone emerged to inquire what had transpired.
Even if there had been an accident, it couldn’t be that every member of their two families encountered trouble.
Such a scenario would be less believable than the possibility of all their members being killed by a powerful spell beast in the secret realm.
As the two heads waited anxiously, Daniel seemed completely unconcerned. He sat there quietly, revealing no signs of agitation.
In contrast, Rowan behind him wore a worried frown, looking quite anxious.
As time passed, people began to leave the secret realm one by one. The first to exit was a student from Crossbridge Academy.
Upon leaving, the student immediately rushed over to Daniel. Rowan hurried forward, concerned, asking if the student had encountered any dangers and quickly checking for injuries.
This flustered the student, who stepped back a bit.
Only when he confirmed that the student was unharmed did Rowan let out a sigh of relief and promptly ask about the happenings inside the secret realm.
“I didn’t encounter any dangers, and I couldn’t find any rare materials, so I left early,” the student replied. “I think Rose will be the one to receive the special reward since she’s quite formidable.”
Upon hearing this, Rowan’s expression became strange as he glanced at the heads of House Windwhisper and House Lunastone.
Did this mean his earlier assumptions were wrong? Were the two families not planning to attack Crossbridge Academy?
What could they possibly be up to? Were they planning to relocate?
Rowan couldn’t make sense of it all.
The two heads, being mages, naturally heard what the Crossbridge Academy student had said.
Their confusion grew as they wondered why the young members of their families hadn’t attacked those from Crossbridge Academy.
The secret realm couldn’t be that vast.
While the area inside was considerable, it certainly wasn’t enormous.
Even if this Crossbridge Academy student was lucky and didn’t run into members from the two families, it was hard to believe he hadn’t encountered any at all.
Could it be that their family members were trapped somewhere, having never crossed paths with anyone from Crossbridge Academy throughout their time in the secret realm?
A slew of hypotheses flooded the heads of both leaders.
They had invested substantial resources in this endeavor to completely obliterate Crossbridge Academy.
Was it possible that this first secret realm would end in failure?
Both heads continued to wait anxiously.
Daniel advised the student to take some time to rest. freewebnoveℓ.com
After spending three days in the secret realm, the accommodations were far inferior to those at Crossbridge Academy.
Just being able to leave the secret realm safely was a good outcome; after all, some people didn’t have the luxury of such a choice.
Daniel glanced at the two anxious leaders, revealing a faint smile, then turned his attention back to the secret realm.
He had always been curious about the rewards of the secret realm and wondered if they truly fulfilled the legendary promise of granting a wish.
As time ticked on, more and more students from Crossbridge Academy exited the secret realm.
With each student that emerged, Rowan rushed forward to inquire about their experiences.
The questions he posed were nearly identical to those he asked the first student. Each student reported no dangers inside, allowing Rowan to finally relax.
It was good that they hadn’t faced any danger.
As for the students’ guesses on who would receive the special rewards, the answers varied widely.
However, most speculation pointed to Rose, Reed, or Green.
Interestingly, the students from Crossbridge Academy seemed to neglect mentioning the members of House Windwhisper and House Lunastone, as if those two families had never entered the secret realm at all.
This peculiar situation left the two heads even more puzzled. How could this be?
But as they watched one after another of the Crossbridge Academy students exit the secret realm, it became clear: over a dozen had safely returned.
Each faction could only send two or three people into the secret realm.
So, it appeared that most of Crossbridge Academy’s students had already left safely, and some had even received Daniel’s approval to return to the academy for rest.
But what about the young members of the two families? Where were they?