Childhood Friend (2)
On the way to class, the hallway was bizarrely rowdy. Was it because the subject was magic? Everyone had this mix of excitement and tension on their faces, buzzing with anticipation. Except for me, of course. I couldn't care less about the basics of magic we were supposed to learn today—my every nerve was focused on who was teaching the class.
The Tower Master. A madman by the original story's standards, and by my survival standards, someone I absolutely had to avoid at all costs. The type who leaves manners and common sense buried in the grave before facing talent. His tomb must be overflowing with the grudges and curses of his disciples—the magic scholars with their PhDs and all. In short, he was priority target number one: avoid standing out and steer clear completely.
"Hey."
Lena, walking beside me, poked my elbow.
"Why do you look so pissed off?"
"It's number one on my 'classes I least want to attend' list."
"Why? The Tower Master's lectures aren't something you get to hear easily. Look at their reactions."
At the direction Lena pointed, a cluster of magic department cadets walked together, their faces brimming with expectation.
Do they have a taste for walking into their own graves? Incomprehensible tastes.
I clicked my tongue inwardly and lifted my head. That's when...
"...Huh?"
I stopped in my tracks upon seeing our destination. The imposing building before us was the annex grand hall—the very place where I'd crawled on the floor during the entrance aptitude test a few days ago.
"Lena, I think you gave me the wrong directions."
"What're you talking about?"
"This is class, right? So why the grand hall? Are we taking another test or something?"
Lena looked at me like I was pathetic.
"You think the empire's youngest Tower Master is gonna teach cadets one-on-one in some cramped classroom? Obviously, they'd gather everyone in a big place like this. Newbies split into Class A and B together."
"Oh."
Makes sense when you put it that way. Then, an unpleasant murmur came from behind us.
"Exactly. There's no way the Tower Master would teach trash like that."
"It's the perfect 'Imperial Waste.'"
"Pfft. Imperial Waste. That phrasing hits just right."
"Imperial Waste, Imperial Waste... hahaha!"
Imperial Waste. The noble brats latched onto the term hard, cackling among themselves and openly picking a fight.
"More than that, doesn't that guy's mere existence waste resources?"
"Even the air he breathes is wasted."
"...Those bastards."
Lena's voice turned icy cold. A glance sideways showed her fingertips trembling with suppressed rage. I just smirked and muttered low.
"Ignore 'em, Lena."
"Aren't you pissed? Don't you have any pride? Why ignore crap like that?"
"The person involved is already ignoring it."
That's just how those types are. They get a cheap sense of superiority by putting down extras who look easier than them. And according to my vast subculture big data from back home, reacting only makes them rampage more.
"It's what they call 'sicko bait'."
"Sicko bait?"
"Sick... ahem. It's pro lingo for not reacting to those kinds of idiots."
Lena stared at me with a look of utter disbelief.
"You've changed lately."
Yeah, a lot. The core person inside is totally different now. The old Ian Ashy probably acted like a wimp around his only friend—and only peer girl, Lena—but from my perspective, she's just bro-tier at best.
Right then.
Flick—!
The massive marble lights illuminating the grand hall all shut off at once.
"Huh?"
"W-What's going on?!"
"Why'd the lights go out?!"
Darkness swallowed the surroundings in an instant.
A neutral yet intellectual voice, cold and sharp as an ice blade. In that instant, every sound in the hall fell silent.
...He's here.
The genius of the Firebird Outburst. The empire's youngest Tower Master.
Excited whispers began spreading around us.
The kids acting like his fan club. Meanwhile, warning sirens blared in my head. The fact that this jerk booked such a huge space meant he had zero intention of doing a proper lecture.
The chilling voice echoed through the darkness once more.
Yup. There it is.
In the center of the darkness, a single spark bloomed in midair. It was tiny—a crimson dot the size of a needle's tip. But in the blink of an eye, it swelled.
Whoosh, drawing a tail as it rose, the flame split into dozens, hundreds of branches, filling the entire hall like a Milky Way in the night sky.
"Whoa..."
Someone let out a dazed gasp of admiration. Even I, on high alert, nearly got captivated by the spectacle.
"Lena."
"...Y-Yeah?"
"Run."
"W-Why all of a suddeneee?!"
I grabbed her hand and bolted. The flames had already morphed into birds soaring through the air, bloomed into flower buds, then scattered like red rain. They burned without heat, dazzled without vulgarity—an overwhelming display of mana control. As expected of a genius.
The problem comes next, though.
If I were the Tower Master—if I were that lunatic—how would I screw over the cadets?
Probably—
Fire raining from the sky.
In that case...
"Behind the pillar!"
I shoved Lena in first, then ducked in myself.
"Ian—what the hell are you—"
Before Lena could complain,
The Tower Master's voice cut in sharply.
Right after, the hundreds of firebirds gracefully swimming in the air all wheeled around at once. Tracing the most dazzling arcs, straight toward the cluster of cadets gaping in awe at the center.
"That crazy bastard—!"
Y-You psycho!
I cursed involuntarily, but luckily, the hall was already a cacophony of screams and panic. The firebird flock swept through the grand hall.
"Kyaaah!"
"It's hot!"
"Crazy, he's actually attacking!"
One of the guys who'd been snickering about "Imperial Waste" behind me earlier tripped over his own ankle, tumbling to the floor.
"Aaaagh! My clothes are burning! It's on fire!"
The hall turned into utter pandemonium. Amid it all, only Lena and I leisurely watched from behind the pillar. From out there, the flames weren't that powerful—just enough to singe clothes or scorch hair tips.
Lena looked up at me in disbelief.
"How the hell did you know to dodge?"
"When dealing with a mad dog, the best policy is to get out of the way."
"Calling the Tower Master a mad dog..."
Lena started to retort but glanced around and suddenly shut her mouth. See? Pretty face or not, he's a nutjob.
The firebirds swept the hall a few more times, and the noble kids who flailed without proper response ended up with charred uniform hems or embarrassing pratfalls, their dignity in tatters.
Of course.
The test wouldn't end there.
"W-Water!"
Someone pointed at the air. The second trial began immediately.
Where the flames had vanished, a single transparent droplet formed in midair.
Plop. The droplet hit the floor, sending ripples unnaturally clear in the silence. From that tiny drop, a vast water surface unfurled across the grand hall's distant ceiling. Like a massive lake defying gravity, hanging overhead. Silvery-blue waves rippled in the dark, shadows of luminous fish swimming through.
"Whoa... insane."
Honestly, I was impressed this time. The Tower Master—lunatic though he is—has skills, no doubt. And this wasn't even illusion magic; it was real water element manipulation.
Of course.
"That's gonna fall."
Shhhhoooo—!
The ceiling lake poured down in a torrent.
Fire, water, wind, earth. By the end of the four elemental trials, the grand hall was hell itself. Scorched by fire, tortured by water, threshed by wind, and finally buried in earth. For these delicately raised noble sprouts, it must've been their first real march through hardship.
"I... I'm gonna die."
"I wanna go home. Sebastian? Heat up my bath."
Some were even hallucinating. Ah, that last one was the "Imperial Waste" guy.
"Pfft."
A snicker slipped out. Lena snapped at me.
"You think this is funny?! Hurry and push! I'm exhausted!"
In my current state, about three-quarters of my body was buried in dirt. Yeah, I couldn't overcome the final earth ordeal and got buried. Still, dodging three out of four trials? Pretty good for a talentless nobody like me.
Lena, on the other hand, was fine.
"Lena, turns out you have magic talent."
A blue ring swirled around her, protecting her.
During the second trial when the water crashed down, she somehow stayed dry. Looks like high affinity with an element creates one of those rings to shield you.
A few other talented kids nearby had them too.
...Poor bastards.
You guys just got marked by the Tower Master. To me, those look like slave chains.
Finally, Lena succeeded in digging me out.
Pat, pat.
I calmly brushed the dirt off my pants. No big deal, considering I didn't get one of those Tower Master-certified slave rings.
By the way.
Was that crystal ball from before glitching after all?
No resonance with any of the four elements, so yeah, it must've been a misread.
Worried for nothing.
I let out a relieved sigh—right as the Tower Master's voice rang out again.
...Huh? What the hell does that mean? Isn't your world's lore built on four elements?
Before I could even think to argue.
Snap—
A finger flick echoed. At the same time, the brilliant light filling the hall contracted into a single point, like sucked into a black hole. All light narrowed to a needle-thin beam, then—
Pop—snuffed out like a switch flipped.
That was it.
But then.
"Huh?"
"What's this?"
"Dizzy..."
Sounds of people collapsing one by one nearby.
"...Ian."
Lena's pained groan from beside me. I frantically reached toward her voice, but felt nothing. Finally, the sound of her collapsing too.
How many minutes passed?
The grand hall fell eerily silent.
Step, step.
In the pitch black, the clear sound of shoes echoed. Steady strides, approaching straight ahead.
And right before my eyes.
Slicing through the inky darkness, a human silhouette halted. Somewhat long snow-white hair for a man. Eyes sharp and intellectual like a cat's, gleaming unnaturally bright even without a speck of light—piercing blue. Not handsome, but beautiful; an androgynous beauty suited to the term "stunner."
The Tower Master.
My name slipped from his lips.