Professionally speaking, club guilds were undoubtedly more professional, yet the advantage of a free guild lay in its flexibility, which was also one of its long-term strengths.

The Tabopolis Oak Knights were also a significant free guild, certainly not comparable to the likes of the top ten guilds, but domestically, they were considered a second-tier guild.

The way Fang Hong distinguished between first and second-tier guilds was quite simple, it depended on whether he had heard of them or not — admittedly, while this method was rudimentary, it sometimes proved exceptionally reasonable.

As for Tianlan's background, it was 'noble' to a much greater extent; she claimed her real name was Fuli, and although she did not talk much about being a trainee, Fang Hong deduced from bits of information that her guild was likely the Twelve-Colored Iris Guild.

This was no mere name —

The Twelve-Colored Iris Guild was backed by a club, Secret, which was one of the three traditional powerhouses of Europe and the oldest among them, its origins traceable even back to the dawn of the electronic sports era at the century's start; after several reorganizations, it joined the Super Competitive League following the Stargate Era and was still among the leading four guilds in Europe.

However, what surprised Fang Hong was the girl's nonchalant attitude toward her own guild.

Trainees from second-tier guilds like Luo Yu and Gita usually wouldn't dare to openly defy orders from the Tabopolis Oak Knights or even acquiesce to the guild's demands regarding their trainee evaluations.

This was actually against the rules, because the "Suva Declaration" annex stipulated that the general assessment for Invoker trainees was to completely earn three hundred points, with the individual from the same assessment batch who finished first deemed the winner; no more than three assistants were allowed during the assessment process, and ranks could not exceed two, thereby essentially ensuring fair competition.

This annex was no mere lip service; in most cases, it was one of the basic behavioral guidelines for Invokers in Eteliria, and also a form of extension of human laws in the New World. Invokers even referred to it as the "Super Competitive League Charter," which highlighted its significant status.

However, even the 'Charter' had to give way to reality in some cases.

The reality was, since the Stargate Era, Earth had seen nearly two generations born, yet the number of Invokers still hovered around twenty million, with their proportion in the total population showing a downward trend rather than rising.

This was because the production of Glow Material was always limited, thereby allowing only the best among the best. In such a context, the competition for Invoker slots was incredibly fierce, sometimes becoming not just a contest of talent and effort, but also a battlefield for wealth, status, and power.

If not for this, Fang Hong would not have chosen smuggling as his last resort.

It was the same among the trainees; being a trainee didn't necessarily mean becoming an Invoker, at most it was akin to obtaining a ticket. However, those who got this ticket were often more ambitious than most to become Invokers, with their fierce competitions easily imaginable.

For a guild having the authority to decide the allocation of these slots, it held an absolute advantage over the trainees — fairness was hardly a concern here, as the commercial nature of super competitive activities decided that only the guild itself had the right to determine who was more beneficial for the guild's progress.

This was something even the 'Charter' couldn't change —

It even created some grey areas outside of the law. Having tried various methods before deciding to smuggle himself, Fang Hong was relatively clear about these inner workings, aware that presentations like those of Luo Yu and Gita were what could be considered normal for trainees.

There wasn't a trainee who didn't feel anxious about their future.

But this French girl was clearly an exception.

She had even come to Colin-Ishurian to complete her trainee final examination, where it was generally considered that Colin-Ishurian and the Ancient Tower area represented the influence zone of Chinese Invokers, while the EU had actual control over the southwestern part of Rota.

This was practically a joke; anyway, after hearing Tianlan's serious description, Fang Hong felt that rather than coming here to take an exam, she seemed more like she was here on vacation...

However, the professions of these trainees were quite standard.

Since trainees were in the status of tourists, they were basically insulated from combat professionals; all three were Life Profession Practitioners. Among them, Fuli was relatively adept at negotiation—she said so herself, though Fang Hong simply thought of this lively chatterbox as just that.

Anyway, she learned some business skills and appraisal methods, taking on the team's logistical work.

Of course, by her own admission, she aspired to be a Bard—but that would be after becoming an Official Summoner. However, from her demeanor, it appeared she never harbored any doubts about whether she could become an Invoker.

Even Fang Hong felt that this French girl was perhaps a bit too optimistic.

As for Gita, the very shy, introverted youngest trainee, Tianlan had initially said that the other party wanted to become a Natural Historian—although this profession sounded a bit like those scholarly types who deal all day with scrolls, various rarities, and specimens, Fang Hong was well aware that this was actually a rather powerful combat profession.

Natural Historians mainly fought using Magic Guided Books, their books being ancient legacies, very similar in principle to Alchemy's Magic Guided Conductors, both utilizing a medium (Core Crystal) to transform and utilize Ether Magic Power—because the human body could not directly withstand Magic Power.

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