As classes began, the days passed in a whirlwind of activity. The halls of the Yamato Arcane Institute echoed with the sound of hurried footsteps and whispered conversations, as the second and third year students kept their distance from the freshmen, as if there was an invisible barrier between them. Despite the initial incident between Ryu and Lee Min-Jae, the atmosphere was strangely calm, like the silence before a storm. But as the students focused on their own routines, a subtle and unsettling change began to unfold, just out of sight.
Tokyo upper city.
"Son, when are you going to leave this room?" The mother's voice, full of sadness. "I know how much you wanted to be a wizard, but you didn't. I've been there too, you know?"
He was sitting on a cushion in the center of the room, his eyes closed in deep concentration. Sunlight streamed in through the window, highlighting her pale face and disheveled brown hair that fell across her forehead.
"Don't worry, Mom. I won't give up," her voice full of determination. "I'm meditating. That machine helped me understand the process. If I can channel the elementals into my core again, this time, I won't fail." Determined, he sat back down, concentrating as hard as he could to relive his experience.
Tears streamed silently down the mother's face as she watched her son meditating, her heart squeezed by the anguish of seeing him so dedicated and, at the same time, so frustrated. Every line of worry on his face was a reflection of his love and desire to see his son achieve his dream of becoming a wizard. She remembered her own longings and disappointments and felt a mixture of empathy and helplessness, wishing she could ease the pain he carried.
As time passed, the room became chaotic. Magic books were stacked haphazardly across the floor, and the door was now locked to prevent interruptions. The books around him became a blur, the sound of his mother's voice a distant echo. The only real thing was the frantic pulsing of mana in his body. Day after day, he dedicated himself tirelessly, pushing himself beyond his limits. Even when the hunger was unbearable, he persisted.
Waking up suddenly he asks himself. I accidentally fell asleep again... how long have I been here? Am I really not going to make it? Looking in the mirror you can see your face, haggard and your dark circles were huge. And I have no other goal. Ever since that man saved me, I promised I would be a wizard .
Returning to meditate on one last thought that ran through his mind. If I fail, I think it's better to give up everything. "Just a little more" he said in a week, tearful voice.
These words were repeated day after day, and soon almost three weeks had passed, one day an intense light flooded the room. A tremor ran through his body. The energy, once a thin thread, was now a raging river, flooding his senses. He opened his eyes, sunlight bathing the room, and a triumphant smile spread across his face. Letting out a cry of happiness, he realized. His dream was being realized.
Ryuji Takeshi's vision
"I'm almost out of mana, Hana. But we need to try one last time." A small, intense flame began to form in her hand, reflecting her determination. "Focus. Let's make it count." I mumbled, more to myself than to her, trying to stay calm as exhaustion weighed on every word.
I prepared myself, trying to feel the flow of elementals transforming the environment. Unfortunately, from the moment they leave my body, I lose control. I try until the last second, when Hana's attack is almost hitting me, but to no avail. In the end, even without understanding how, I always manage to put up this wall to protect myself.
"This isn't going anywhere," I complained to Hana, who was approaching.
"Are you sure you can't continue? I think I can still throw two or three more attacks like that," she replied, panting.
Hana was breathing raggedly, and sweat was dripping from her forehead. "Even though you say that, you're also exhausted," I said, noticing her condition. "Apparently, my amount of mana is less than yours. Recovering takes too long, I can't do long training sessions like that."
The silence that followed was heavy, interrupted only by Hana's footsteps. She sat next to me, hesitating before finally speaking. Unable to bear that climate, I took the initiative.
"Hana, you can talk. We're friends. I don't know what you mean, but if it's something delicate I think you already know me well enough to know that I won't react badly."
She turned her face and spoke. "Aren't you too obsessed with this duel?" This question took me by surprise.
"Why do you think that?" I was confused.
"Ryu, you're obsessed with this fight. Professor Tanaka has already called your attention several times in the element manipulation class. You only care about improving your skills with earth and fire. And the rest? You're going to continue ignoring the rest of the elements ?"
"Right now my duel is the most important, this will define how our squad will be seen, that's why I'm only training these elements, they are the ones I have the most affinity with besides being strong in fights, you know the teacher wants you to I improve darkness, but now it's useless besides me having a hard time with it." I didn't understand why Hana thought it was bad that I wanted to win, since this is one of the ways to become the strongest.
"That's the problem, you're the leader, but you're only thinking about yourself, every day you finish class and you come running here to the training field, you use all the magic in your body and you're too tired to really talk." with us." She seemed a little irritated.
"You know why I have to win, it was your idea for the two of us to be the strongest and I'm doing what's necessary."
Suddenly she stood up and, still with her back to me, said again "Ryu, understand, you are our leader, you cannot think only of yourself, having so many complaints from teachers about you is also harmful to our image and that is what you have done in the last two weeks." His tone of voice was rising.
Also getting up, I say again "You talk as if it happened in every class, whereas it was only in the theoretical ones and Professor Tanaka's complaint is just about one element, it's not a big deal. Besides, whenever you need me as a leader I am there."
"And Kenji, you're there for him."
I racked my brain trying to notice something strange about him. He's just a little quiet, he just needs some time. "I don't understand, he seems to be completely normal, he said himself that he doesn't like to talk so much."
A deep sigh filled the room. "If you think he's normal, that's okay, leader, if something happens it will be your fault." Hana starts to walk to the exit. "And please care more about classes, it's not just your image that's at stake." It seemed like she had calmed down.
"I will continue to do things my way, if our image is a little tarnished when I win they will forget everything, that's for sure." It could even be true that they were getting my attention, whether by not paying attention or Professor Tanaka complaining that my ability with darkness wasn't improving, but they'll forget if I win.
"What if you lose?" Those words hit me like a punch. I thought she would support me.
"If you keep training like now I won't. You should support me, after all this fight will only happen because you wanted to show off in the classroom?"
For the first time Hana looked at me, an angry look on her face. "This fight will happen because you wanted it," she said, coming towards me. "When did I ask you to protect me? You just stepped in front and challenged him" he said in a threatening tone.
"I only did what a leader should do, and you were one of the ones who put me in that position." I felt a wave of heat envelop my body, causing sweat to instantly break out on my forehead and my hands to start shaking.
"I don't want to hear that from someone weaker than me." His words cut like blades, and I felt my heart speed up, my chest tighten with irrational anger.
"I only did it because you're the type to stop when something real happens, it wasn't like that against the boars, that's why I'm your superior." I was slightly panting when I finished.
She moved closer until she was inches away from me, raising her hand with a dangerous gleam in her eyes. "If you wanted to impress me by protecting me, it didn't work at all." An explosion threw me backwards, and searing pain spread through my body, as if a thousand red-hot needles were piercing my skin. I only saw her back as she entered the portal. I lay there, trying to recover. "I can't believe she did that," I thought as I looked at the burn on my chest. A few minutes later I managed to get up and go to the portal to the dorms.
Arriving home, every step seemed like torment. I ran to the bathtub, filled with water sparkling with healing magic. As I dived, I saw my burned skin slowly regenerate, yet the pain was excruciating, every fiber of my body burned. After a few minutes of spasms I could finally really relax, only a small mark was left on my chest.
"Why did I say that?" I asked myself, a long sigh escaping. I relived every word, every reaction, and the sharp pain in my chest was replaced by a crushing weight of regret.
The first two weeks passed in the blink of an eye. Between exhausting training and theoretical classes, time seemed to slip through my fingers, always with the feeling that I wasn't doing enough. My classmates and I had to dedicate ourselves completely to studying, because in normal school there was nothing about magic, making everything new.
Although I wasn't facing great difficulties in the matter of controlling elementals, my ability to manipulate darkness was limited. Because of this lack of progress, Professor Tanaka always picked on me. Fortunately, classes are divided into groups, which prevented my weakness from being exposed.
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The history of magic class, held on Fridays, always left me exhausted, and I ended up sleeping. Professor Jung woke me up twice using his water magic. In this case, Hana was right, I decided I needed to adapt and avoid sleeping in class again.
I'll have to listen to Professor Tanaka's complaints for a while yet, but I don't see how improving my dark skill will help me against Lee Min. Winning this fight is the only thing on my mind. I'm heading straight from class to the training field, where I only leave when my mana core is completely depleted. I don't understand why she got angry over a complaint that only happens within the group. Anyway, I'll have to talk to her tomorrow.
The only question was where, it's disconcerting how the older students watch us, as if we were an exhibition. They keep a respectful distance, but it's still uncomfortable. Except for the incident with Lee Min-Jae, interactions between the classes were minimal. This made me realize something: there are a lot more students in second and third year than there are in ours. There are only 19 of us, but there seem to be more than fifty in each of these classes.
Coming out of the shower with difficulty walking, I got dressed and went to the bedroom. "What an exhausting Sunday," I thought, reflecting on the need to adjust my attitude toward the team. With nothing else on my mind, I fell asleep, preparing myself for the next day.
When I woke up, I tried sending her a few messages, but I didn't get a response. I decided the best option would be to talk to her in person in class, so I hurried to get there early.
After having a hearty breakfast, I chose not to train as usual and went straight to the classroom.
I arrived around 7:30 and, finding the room empty, decided to take the time to refine my mana core. I focused on circulating the flow of elementals in and out of my mana core, a laborious and slow process. I stayed in that state until the door opened.
"Good morning, Takeshi! What a surprise to see you here so early." I immediately recognized the voice, it was King Suzuki. I opened my eyes to confirm his presence.
"I didn't know you were here so early, Rei." In fact, I hadn't had many interactions with her until then.
"It's not that early, it's already 8:30. The other students usually arrive in about 15 minutes." She replied as she sat down in her usual spot, a little away.
"I was trying to refine my core and ended up losing track of time. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to do much good." After that silence fell in the room, when I was getting ready to go back to meditating she started walking towards me and when she was next to me she spoke.
"Ryuji, as group leader, I would like to ask for your advice."
"Sure, if I can help." I was a little curious to know what it was about.
"How did you manage to unite your group? It seems like you guys get along really well."
I was a little confused by the question, I don't usually pay much attention to the dynamics of other groups, but I think she was referring to the way we interact. "Could you explain better?"
"Your group is the only one different, Lee Min-Jae looks like a dictator, Haruki's group barely spends time together, and mine isn't on good terms either. Ever since the teacher scolded us on the first day of school and I chickened out , I feel like they have a back seat to me as a leader." I saw his face tighten when he mentioned the first day of school, it was clearly a difficult memory.
She seemed to be in a difficult situation, her hesitant voice and worried expression made me realize that I needed to take this seriously.
"To be honest, the dynamic in my group was happening little by little. It wasn't something I planned. But it's clear that their lack of trust in you is the weak point. You need to show yourself strong. It's the beginning of the year, You can still change their perception of you."
"I already tried to convey confidence, I told them it was just a slip because I had never been pressured like that before." His gaze turned to the ground, his clenched fists showed his frustration "It won't happen again, I need..." taking this pause I could see his look full of determination. "I'm going to excel. I'm going to show them I can lead."
"I understand your objective, but your colleagues don't seem convinced, perhaps because everyone here says the same thing. You'll have to win them over with actions, I think that's why my colleagues trusted me." A hopeful look appeared on his face.
"And how do I do that?"
"That's something you need to figure out." To be honest, I don't have a clear answer myself.
She remained silent, placing her hand on her chin, her eyes fixed on the floor as if she were searching for a solution. His eyes, once filled with doubt, now shone with a new determination. He shook my hand firmly, a genuine smile forming on his lips. "Thank you, Ryuji. You've given me a new perspective. I'll be rooting for you to win your duel. I think we need to help each other." She turned and went to her seat, leaving me with a feeling of complicity and camaraderie.
A few minutes passed, and students began to arrive, but none of my classmates were in sight. When the clock struck 9 o'clock, I saw them entering with Professor Takeda. Quickly, they headed towards where I was. Aiko looked at me with an expression of dissatisfaction, while Hana avoided my gaze. The two sat at the back table. I saw Kenji sitting at the other end of my table, and only Daisuke sat next to me.
"You have to adapt, boss," he said, but before I could say anything Takeda started his class.
"Today will be an important day. Since classes started, you have rapidly improved your mana control. From talking to the other teachers, I know you are doing well in your other subjects as well. Therefore, a new concept will be taught today." Several murmurs echoed around the room. I was curious myself, if it was something combat-oriented, there would be one more thing to weigh me down.
"However, we cannot start this class if all the students are not here." A slight confusion ensued, and the others began to look for the lost student, but all 19 were present in the room.
"Who would it be, professor?" asked King.
"You can come in." The teacher said, looking at the door.
After a few seconds it opened, a boy started walking towards the teacher. Dressed in the institute's uniform, I noticed that he was relatively short, with striking, spiky gray hair. When he finally reached the teacher and looked around the room, I was doubtful, thinking I knew him. Professor Takeda waves, asking him to introduce himself.
"I am Katsu Yamamoto, the man who will become a spear." An unforgettable smile appeared on his face.
My eyes widened. Katsu Yamamoto? It couldn't be. The boy who had been in tears during the exam was now there, smiling as if nothing had happened.
"Do you know him, Ryu?" Daisuke asked, noticing my surprise, I don't think he can hide it.
"Yes, he took the exam with me..." My voice trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.
"Silence." After waiting for everyone to be quiet, Takeda spoke again. "You must be wondering, why is he entering so late? The answer is that until 3 days ago he was not a wizard, what happened to him was a late awakening." I felt confusion turn to anger, my blood boiled. Like this? Why didn't anyone tell us this before? I raised my hand, decided to confront the teacher.
"If this possibility always existed, why didn't anyone warn those who failed the exam about this? You were in the same room as me and you saw that when Katsu failed, the atmosphere became unbearable." Even though I wasn't as close to my colleagues at that time, it was still painful to see their reactions to the failure.
"This is going to be a long conversation. Katsu, you can sit over there." He pointed to an empty table at the front of the room. I wanted to talk to him as soon as possible, but I knew that what the professor had to say was very important.
With a serious expression on his face, Takeda began to speak. "Before explaining why we didn't warn you, I'm going to tell you how this exam works around the world."
He touched the table, and a hologram of the continent appeared, the four nations highlighted by the mighty rivers that divided them in an X shape.
"In all nations the exam is carried out on the first day of February, with the aim of having equality, that is why you all receive vaccines every year that regulate the growth of your nuclei so that you are ready for that day, generally 700 to 800 people awaken, this average has been maintained for almost 100 years, but the majority of them do not make it past the solid blue core and in those same 100 years, only around 300 reached the red."
"Teacher, isn't it normal that so few people reach such a high level?" asked King.
"Of course it is, but a wizard who has just reached the red core must be equivalent to between 1000 and 2000 who have the blue core. It is a worldwide consensus that quality is much better than quantity in this case. Now to answer your question, Ryuji, we didn't warn you because we had to be more difficult"
"So that's why other years have a lot more students than us." I was a little perplexed.
"Exactly, based on the information that the mental state of a magician can affect his ability to use his elements, a study was carried out worldwide and found that this also happens at the moment of first awakening, so the question was raised that if people that awakening with this pressure would be better, but no one wanted to lose potentially hundreds of mages to test something that couldn't be proven, so after 10 years the world finally achieved stability in the war against mana beasts and this proposal came back to the surface." He paused slightly, perhaps expecting questions, but most of us were still trying to understand.
"Then the exams changed, before the rooms were individual and those who had failed had no contact with those who had not yet taken the exam, in the end the number of new magicians in the entire world, counting those awakened late, was 183, and in the Union Asian there were only 50, with 5 waking up late."
"So, the others went to the Boreal Arcane Institute , professor?" This was the northernmost school in the Eastern Union.
"About late awakening: This is because the user's core is not fully formed at the time of the scan. However, when the elementals force their way through the core, it begins to develop rapidly. Within two weeks, all late awakenings will occur. After that, by July, the mana cores of everyone who did not become mages will naturally disappear from the body." He paused and watched us.
"The expectation is that everyone here will reach at least the green or yellow core. You are an elite group, hand-picked. Let me introduce myself again: I'm General Takeda, and I'm here to make you the best."
The room fell silent, surprise on everyone's faces. A general? He held the second highest position in the army. Although I wasn't as surprised as others, a doubt surrounded me.
"Teacher, if you wanted to train elite students, why didn't you separate the most talented from those who seemed weaker?" I asked, intrigued. "It doesn't make sense to end these people's dreams. Even if they didn't become the strongest, they could be divided into separate classes."
"Good question, Ryuji. Theory says that being surrounded by high-level people increases your magical capabilities, as the average comparison will be higher. Furthermore, most of the awakened are children of wizards. Among you, only Katsu and Haruki do not. They have wizard parents."
"Since the exam, we selected students with not fully developed cores first, knowing that they failed. If this failure affected you, you could not be soldiers. Thank your parents, who guided you to this path, even without saying anything about the magical world ."
I already suspected that some of my colleagues were children or relatives of wizards, but finding out that only two weren't was a surprise.
"Now that you know this, I hope you don't disappoint. The world committee decided to do this just once. If the results are not effective, this selection will never happen again."
A heavy silence fell over the room. The students looked at each other, surprise turning into a mix of shock and apprehension. Some exchanged nervous glances, while others tried to digest the information.
"Since there are no questions, let's move on to the next topic. Katsu?"
"Yes." the boy exclaimed, standing up.
"As I explained to you, from today onwards your new leader will be King Suzuki." While pointing at her, the King stood up smoothly and with a smile on his face said.
"Welcome, Katsu. You can count on me."
"Lucky me, she's really pretty." Before he could finish his sentence, Takeda punched him in the head, knocking him to the ground.
"Have respect, she is your superior." Takeda quickly took his eyes off Katsu and looked directly at me, then looked past me. He definitely knew about my falling out with Hana. I didn't want things to have gotten to this point.
After Katsu sat down next to his new leader, Takeda resumed speaking.
"Let's start the class. As I mentioned before, your manipulation capacity is impressive. Therefore, I think we can now introduce the concept of pure mana."
Hearing this, my heart skipped a beat. I had given up trying to understand what my grandfather mentioned I had used, but eventually, I would learn about it. This will be the key to winning my fight.