Florida Man in Magus World: Unleashing Liberty and Freedom

"Are they…?"

"Those are the children who went inside?"

"T-That boy has encountered a monster!"

"N-No! T-That child is about to be killed!"

The crowd's reactions varied. With no sound accompanying the live streams, the spectators could only guess at what each of the 778 participants was experiencing. The overwhelming number of screens made it hard for first-timers to focus on any one in particular.

The only people who managed to concentrate on a single screen were the family members of the participants. Among them, Jane was fixated solely on Valley's monitor.

Fortunately, all the monitors in the sky were large enough for the observers to see. Jane had no trouble watching the theater-sized screen from afar.

On the screen, Valley was with the shadow of her grandfather, who had ordered her to clean the mansion using a maid's tools. The girl, on the verge of tears from exhaustion, continued to sweep the floors and wipe the windows.

Valley had done well so far. This was her second trial, and she had already earned a white orb. At this rate, she might earn another one.

Jane glanced at the other contestants' monitors. Most of them had initiated combat with shadowy silhouettes of themselves or their family members, resulting in black orbs. She scoffed at their approach.

But then, out of the corner of her eye, Jane noticed a teenager with a strangely familiar, handsome face. She couldn't shake the feeling that she had seen him somewhere before. Curiosity piqued, Jane switched her focus to his monitor.

"Huh?"

The teenager had just finished fixing a water pipe. He wiped his drenched face with his wet shirt sleeve, then removed his shirt, revealing a defined chest, abs, and side muscles—an ideal physique for a fighter or a model.

Several middle-aged women in the crowd, who had come to support their children, couldn't help but gawk at the teen's chiseled body. Jane, however, was immediately struck by recognition.

That was Felix!

She couldn't believe her eyes. After rubbing them, she stared intently at his face and skin, searching for any discrepancy. But when Felix swiped his wet hair back, the familiar eyes, nose, and jawline confirmed it.

Jane had remembered every detail of his face. That was really him!

"Felix? Wait, how did he get over there?!"

.

.

"Do you see that?" Tanaka nudged his colleague with his elbow, a smirk on his face as he pointed at Rosaline's scene.

The priestess had effortlessly overcome three trials, claiming three white orbs, while the other examinees had at least one or two black orbs.

"I have eyes. You don't need to tell me," the man in a hooded cloak replied, his gaze also fixed on Rosaline. He stroked his chin thoughtfully before glancing at the elder nun. "As expected of the Ocean Tower. This is what happens when you join hands with the Eleanor Church."

"We can't blame Elder Zen for this," Tanaka remarked with a laugh. "Those perverted nobles have been harassing Ocean Tower's members for ages. Now that the Ocean Tower is affiliated with the church, they can't bully their students or priestesses anymore."

While speaking, Tanaka secretly ogled Rosaline's figure beneath her tight priestess gown, licking his lips in appreciation.

The hooded man promptly slapped the back of Tanaka's head. He warned the pervert, "If you touch her, I'll kill you myself."

"Hey, I'm not that low!" Tanaka glared at his colleague and protested even though his mind was set on making Rosaline a new member to his harem.

Frustrated by his colleague's warning, Tanaka shifted his attention elsewhere. His eyes landed on a naive-looking girl who seemed to be purposely lingering on the second stage.

The girl encountered the shadows of her family members, but instead of hostility, they doted on her. They even taught her the skills she lacked, and she earnestly studied under them. At that moment, she successfully completed a golem summoning spell, a feat requiring the magic power of a second-circle mage or stronger. Yet, she succeeded.

'Meh, just an NPC with a good girl attitude. A bit plain,' Tanaka thought, dismissing Valley and moving on to check the other candidates. However, aside from Rosaline, he couldn't find another attractive girl that fit his taste, leaving him disappointed.

'I guess I'll try to recruit that priestess first. If it doesn't work out, I'll give up on this year's students. I'd rather smash those Lamia bitches than deal with these plain-looking girls,' he mused, his focus solely on the female participants, completely disregarding Felix and the other male candidates.

Meanwhile, the emperor had a different perspective. He meticulously took note of those who received black marks, paying little attention to those who showed signs of virtue.

The first teenager to catch his eye was Veetee. He had immediately launched an assault on a village filled with shadow entities, using lightning bolts to ignite flames that burned everything to ash. This earned him a mark of wrath.

Veetee's second test ended just as quickly. He discovered a city full of happy, wealthy merchants who had earned their money through honest work. Despite the harmless appearance of the entities, Veetee slaughtered everyone, earning himself a mark of envy.

The third test was filled with the shadows of attractive women. Veetee succumbed to temptation, engaging with every shadow entity. Hours passed since he entered the stage, and he didn't seem to be interested in leaving this place soon.

The emperor snorted in disdain and mentally crossed Veetee's name off the list.

'Another scum of society. He has no place in my academy!' he thought, shifting his attention to another candidate, Envick.

Like Veetee, Envick found a village in the midst of a celebration. He joined in, indulging in the endless feast provided. However, the stage punished his actions by creating a mark of gluttony inside his stomach, forcing him to vomit everything out.

Despite the punishment, Envick refused to move on to the next stage. He wanted to stay and continue eating. However, the mysterious world eventually vanished, forcing him out of the stage and into the second test.

In this stage, Envick discovered a pair of lovers on an intimate beach date. Ignoring their privacy, he attacked and killed the male shadow, then violated the helpless female shadow.

Witnessing Envick's actions, the emperor glanced at the Nature Tower's headmaster, whose face had turned ashen. Her eyes met the emperor's, and she bowed.

"I will take responsibility for this child," the elf admitted.

"Elizabeth, he's no different from a lowlife savage. Someone like him should not be here in the first place."

"B-But he has talent! He can use both aura and magic!"

"That's precisely why he will not advance to the next round. We will NOT be raising that monster! If better, kill him now when you have a chance! I want to see his head on a pole within this week, got it?!"

"…"

Elizabeth, the Nature Tower's headmaster, bitterly accepted the mandate. She sympathized the teenager, who had grown up alone on a mountain. She planned to disobey the emperor's order and take him as her successor to correct his behavior. But now, his future at the academy was sealed.

The emperor crossed Envick's name off the list of potential students and turned his attention to the next rising star. He was intrigued by the mysterious woman who had barged into the exam earlier.

To his surprise, the woman had crossed into another teenager's test ground, and they met. Coincidentally, this male teenager was someone the emperor had taken an interest in.

He turned to the headmaster of the Storm Tower and asked, "Garudeer, what's your disciple's name again?"

Garudeer quickly approached and whispered, "He calls himself 'Florida Man,' but his real name is Felix Ariel."

"Ariel? I've never heard of this family. Is he from another country?"

"…I don't know, Your Majesty. He appeared in Terra City during the Lamia Outbreak. He possesses mysterious powers, though."

The emperor silently took notes, his gaze fixed on Felix's screen in the sky, captivated by the unfolding events.

.

.

Felix, still drenched, scanned his surroundings and found himself encircled by an army of shadowy Lamia figures. They hissed, brandishing their tridents at him, ready for combat.

Remembering past mistakes, Felix raised his hands in a gesture of peace. "I've come in peace! I have no weapons!"

The black Lamia silhouettes continued to hiss at him, though several snorted and lowered their weapons as requested. Slowly, more entities followed suit, setting aside their tridents and spears, yet maintaining their formation around Felix, blocking any escape routes.

Felix bitterly smiled and glanced at his system map. It displayed a thousand yellow dots representing entities in the area. Among them, a lone green dot appeared at the corner of the map, slowly moving toward him.

"Jessica, what is this stage? Which virtue is being tested? I don't get it."

<Keep waiting. Something is happening.>

"???"

Felix scanned the area again. Moments later, a silhouette of a sultry woman emerged from the crowd. The Lamia soldiers parted to let her through as she strode toward Felix. Based on her height, figure, hairstyle, and face, Felix suspected she was Zhu Xin Ci's shadow. However, her next action caught him off guard.

Four Lamia shadow entities carried a makeshift leaf bed and placed it nearby. Their leader then removed her clothes and gestured for Felix to join her on the bed.

Felix understood the gesture but felt puzzled. "Didn't we go through the trial of lust earlier? Why am I being tested again?"

<True. But this one seems different. I don't think you can decline.>

As soon as Jessica warned him, two Lamias prodded Felix's back with their spears, forcing him toward the humanoid shadow.

With no other option, Felix complied. He removed his shoes and socks and climbed onto the bed. As soon as he did, Zhu Xin Ci's shadow began stripping his clothes and teasingly licked his chest, caressing him all over.