Although his eyes were an average brown, they held a calmness, like lotus petals on still water.
That was the first thing I noticed about him.
The guy by the door. He was the most important character in this world. And I wasn't being philosophical or metaphorical. It was a literal statement. The important events that would occur in this world, the incidents that would happen, all of them were woven into a single story with him at its centre.
For some reason, seeing him felt like I knew him…as if from another time, some other life. There was an unplaceable knowing that flickered at the edge of my thoughts... there, and then not. Gone before I could catch it.
Gasps rippled through the girls seated behind me, and I... well, even I couldn’t help but feel surprised, though for a different reason.
Aeravat's gaze moved over the main cast in passing—Takahashi, intense and unblinking; Aurora, calm but unreadable; and Emily, with a faint frown, just enough to reveal what she tried to hide.
The entire main cast of the Manuscript was here now.
Note to self: Don't forget to apply for the transfer.
Yes, maybe I was overreacting. But as they say, ‘Better to be an overreactive bitch than a dead one.'
Besides… sad deaths were waiting to happen here. It was best not to get attached.
Like those adventurers… I sighed in my heart.
* * *
“Everyone, to the workshop.” Professor Date’s voice cut through the room, directing us out.
Some chatter piped up from the side.
-“What’s Professor Date’s affinity?” one voice mused.
-"Dunno, but she mostly uses ice magic. Probably water affinity?" came the reply.
They were curious about Professor Date's elemental affinity.
It was natural for them to be curious. After all, today was the Affinity Test.
The beginning of each first year started with the Affinity Test.
The ‘Affinity Test’ was a magical ritual used to identify a person’s natural affinity towards one of the seven primary elements of nature.
The seven primary elements of nature were fire, water, wind, lightning, darkness, light, and earth.
Elemental affinity refers to a person's inherent connection to one of the seven elements of nature. This ‘connection’ is exclusive, meaning that a person is limited to casting spells within their own elemental domain. Not everyone can just cast whatever elemental spells they want.
For example, a person with water affinity can only cast water and its related spells, like ‘ice’, ‘mist’, ‘blood’, etc. But casting fire-based spells, like a ‘Fireball’ will be outside their domain.
Similarly, a person with wind affinity simply cannot cast an earth-related spell. It won't work.
A person’s elemental affinity is visually represented by the color of their mana core.
Since there were seven primary elements of nature, there were seven different-coloured mana cores to represent them.
A gold-coloured mana core represented affinity for light, a violet-coloured mana core represented affinity for darkness, a blue-coloured mana core represented affinity for water, a green-coloured mana core represented affinity for air, a yellow-coloured mana core represented affinity for fire, an orange-coloured mana core represented affinity for earth, and a red-coloured mana core represented affinity for lightning.
Rarely were individuals born with more than one affinity. Such individuals were capable of combining different elements to produce ‘composite spells’, such as the "Steam-Jet" spell, achieved through the fusion of water, air, and fire.
But most of the world's population only had single affinities.
And it seemed Professor Advika Date—according to the chit-chat—had a blue mana core, signifying water affinity.
As I left the classroom, I noticed groups of students rushing toward the workshop. I was not a part of any group, so I was behind them, feeling a little left out.
And just as I was on my way—Thud!
A sudden jolt from behind sent me reeling—some idiot had bumped into me.
I turned around, ready to give the culprit a piece of my mind, only to find a girl standing there, looking slightly embarrassed.
"Oops, my bad. Wasn't paying attention!" she said apologetically. Her smile, radiant enough to outshine the sun. With her smile, my annoyance melted away.
Naturally, I didn’t know her.
Just because I had the Manuscript of the world, didn't mean I knew every NPC.
"No worries, accidents happen," I excused her, waving my hand dismissively. I was about to continue walking when— "You seem alone, want some company?" The girl asked.
I was alone? What the fuck did that mean?
Before I could ask, however, another girl stormed over and grabbed her shoulder. "I'm sure he doesn't need any company," she said.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
She was Freya Fretel, and obviously didn't like me.
"But-" "Let's go, Mist," Freya cut Mist’s sentence off, dragging her by the hand.
And then, they were gone.
I was dumbfounded and it took a few seconds for me to properly process what happened.
Did she just…?
Huh.
“I'm not mentally prepared to handle this sort of bullshit if it is to happen every day,”I sighed, shaking my head.
Note to self: Apply for the transfer ASAP.
* * *
At the moment, our class was being led to section 1A2, the Wizard's Workshop. Section A itself was huge, so it took us some time before we arrived.
I personally never saw any difference between terms like mage, warlock, wizard, and sorcerer and just used to think of them as people who did magic: interchangeable titles. But after inheriting the memories and knowledge of the other Noah, my perception had changed a bit.
It turned out that wizards were more academic in nature compared to mages. They needed to study far more often. Wizards required things like a tome or a wand, while mages didn’t. Also, only a diviner could be granted the title of a wizard. A diviner was someone who could foresee events.
Soon, our class was led to a room. One by one, the students entered, exhaling in amusement. I couldn't understand why until I stepped inside myself and saw a middle-aged man perched on the shoulders of a large, humanoid figure made from a mix of wood and metal. He held a small tool, adjusting the cogwheel of the figure beneath him. The gizmo was bulky and powerful in appearance, with strong, segmented limbs and glowing eyes that gave it a vigilant presence. Its wooden legs were clad in soft, greyish mud, yet to dry.
What is this?
"It's a golem," someone said, perhaps noticing the confused look on my face.
I turned to find James Reeves smiling back at me.
I nodded. "I see. Honestly, I've never seen a golem before. Kind of overwhelming," I admitted.
"It is," he replied, sharing my awe.
At this point, Professor Date stepped forward and addressed the man on the golem. “Sir Doschit, the new batch has arrived.”
The man atop the gizmo nodded casually before effortlessly leaping down from the fifteen-foot golem with a thud.
"Give me a few minutes; I need to wash my hands," Doschit Voss said with a smile, showing his clay-covered hands before walking off.
Professor Date sighed before looking back at us.
* * *
.
.
.
"Rank 1, Aeravat Indrath, step forward and place your palm on the crystal ball," instructed Doschit Voss, his voice echoing due to the high ceiling of the room.
Doschit Voss.
He was a researcher in ancient magic who worked at Arcanum for the good pay. He held a side role as the golemancy researcher for the second-year Fusion club. The Manuscript provided some information about him. He's what I'd have to call a ‘minor side character’. Although no blue box hovered above his head, I was able to deduce that he's akin to a side character of a story, based on the events that will happen in the future and his involvements in them.
Anyway.
The ritual to test the affinity of mana cores was typically conducted by shamans and ancient mages in the past. However, with the passing of time, shamans ceased to exist, and the knowledge of ancient mages was lost.
There is a famous myth about the ritual. It is said that during the ritual, if pleased with a person, the deity Virios would mark their cores, which would enhance their ability to grow.
No one had ever received such blessings, so most people believed it to be a myth. But it wasn’t a myth…according to the Manuscript.
There were indeed a few people who had been bestowed with this blessing.
One such person was going to be the Hero of Light on the Revati continent.
Currently, Rune Valtari—who would be chosen as the Hero of Light in the future—should be around 18 years old. Later, he would be chosen as the Hero of Light.
Aeravat, the protagonist of this world, deviates from traditional Hero of Light archetypes usually shown in fiction.
Unlike the Hero of Light, who—according to the Manuscript—had access to a cheat system that exponentially boosted his abilities, Aeravat had no such advantages.
As Aeravat approached the ball, his confident demeanor never faltered, and he slowly placed his right hand on the crystal.
Some of the people in the room held their breaths.
Just then.
Woprrr!
Following the small whistling sound, a burst of blinding light erupted from the crystal, causing the entire room to gasp in shock.
“Ksh!” I had to shield my eyes from the sudden burst of light. As expected! I thought, instinctively taking a step back.
Others nearby leaned away, blinking against the glow. There were exclamations of shock in the room. It was not the intensity of the light that shocked them, no.
It was the colour of it.
White.
Doschit Voss’s mouth opened slightly, while Professor Date smiled, clearly pleased.
Some of the students exclaimed:
- "White light. He has a white mana core!"
-"White core? Isn't that supposed to be extremely rare?"
- "It's so unfair! First he gets a category I, and now he gets five affinities?!"
Having a white mana core was extremely rare. It allowed affinity over any five of the seven elements of nature.
There was a frown etched on Emily's face as she stared at the scene.
I already knew this was going to happen. I wasn’t surprised, but the brightness was stinging my eyes.
From the corner of my eye, I noticed Professor Date's expression shift from a smile to a frown as her eyes darted from the crystal ball to Aeravat. Compared to the onlookers' excitement and surprise, Aeravat… was impassive. No joy or satisfaction. There was only indifference in his posture.
Advika’s look said it all. Aeravat's calm reaction to his rare white core was a bit unsettling to her.
Aeravat lifted his hand from the crystal, stepped back, and walked over to finish the formalities, his part done. Professor Date followed him, frown still in place.
—"Next, Rank 2, Takahashi Aoi. Step forward and place your hand on the crystal." Doschit Voss called out, breaking the room's reverie.
Takahashi stepped forth and placed his hand on the crystal just like Aeravat. Soon, it began to shine with a violet light.
Students present in the room saw the scene and were left awestruck once again.
The reason for their reaction was simple.
Violet light indicated affinity for 'darkness', an extremely rare element.
Light and darkness were among the rarest affinities afterall.
Doschit Voss stood silently, watching Takahashi with a smile on his face.
Takahashi himself looked smug as he surveyed the room, taking in the wide-eyed expressions of his fellow classmates.
With a smirk, he removed his hand from the crystal and left the room as well.
.
.
.
Doschit Voss glanced at the list, his finger pausing over a name before calling out, “Rank 20, Noah Grey.”
Hearing my name being called, I found myself standing before the crystal ball. The crystal rested on an elegant, luxurious-looking end table.
Just like those who had done before me, I placed my hand on the crystal ball.
"Channel your mana into it," Doschit Voss instructed from the side while jotting something down on the paper list in his hand.
I nodded in acknowledgment and began to direct my mana into the crystal ball.
But nothing happened. It was as if the crystal ball wasn’t there at all. A wave of unease swept over me, and I tried again. But... nothing happened.
I turned towards Doschit, who regarded me with a look of confusion as he peered over my shoulder.
Is it because of my mana capacity? I wondered.
"Is everything alright?" Doschit questioned with a frown.
I don’t think so….
Without answering him directly, I put my palm on the crystal again, but once again, nothing happened. It felt like there was a void in the crystal.
“Hmph!” Doschit Voss scoffed, crossing his arms, disappointment evident on his face.
Rolling his eyes, he glanced once more at the crystal ball, checking for something.
He confirmed that the device was indeed in working order.
Once again, I was told to channel my mana into the crystal ball, and I did.
Or at least…I thought I did. At that point, I realised I didn’t know how to channel mana outside my body.
— "Looks like we've got a dud in the class," someone soon commented.
Doschit Voss glanced at the crystal, silently assessing something before making a note on the paper list he held. He told me to go and then he called out another name: “Rank 21, Anastasia Smirnova.”