Chapter 033
Chapter Title: Original Magic
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"Whaaaat?! You saw the King of Wisdom!"
"Unbelievable! This is huge! Does that mean it was Sir Lisinas's Hero Record?"
The Heroics incident threw the entire first year into an uproar.
Every professor at the academy was summoned, and classes were replaced with self-study.
That's how significant this incident was.
Not many records of the Great Heroes, the first heroes documented in the Hero Records, have survived.
And now, a new fragment of a Hero Record page featuring Lisinas had been discovered.
It was no wonder Lumerne was in an uproar.
While the other students reacted with noisy excitement,
Leo was lost in deep thought.
'Why was my Hero Record the only one that was so messed up?'
The World of Heroes had likely been generated because Leo, who could be called the world's master, had touched the Hero Record.
But it was completely different from the entrance exam.
'When you enter a World of Heroes, a message tells the conqueror whose world it is. But in this case…'
[Hero Record Open. World of ■■. Chapter: ■■-■■■]
He couldn't tell whose world it was.
'I couldn't even hear my name when Lisinas said it.'
It was as if someone had intentionally erased Kyle's name.
'There must be a clear reason why my Hero Record hasn't survived.'
Leo narrowed his eyes.
'The Hero Record was originally one, wasn't it?'
The Hero Record, now split into five pieces, was once a single, complete record.
But long ago, due to some incident, it was split into five.
In the process, several pages were lost and scattered across the world.
'What if someone intentionally destroyed the Hero Record?'
The Hero Record was an object that passed down the power of heroes.
It was, quite literally, the power to nurture heroes.
'If it was someone who didn't want new heroes to be born…'
As the thought crossed his mind, a chill ran down Leo's spine.
'Erebos.'
"Leo?"
Leo snapped back to reality at Chelsea's call.
"Why are you making such a scary face?"
"It's nothing."
'I need to start by investigating why the Hero Record was split.'
***
A month passed after the Heroics incident.
The initial uproar had subsided.
The Hero Record related to Lisinas was certainly a huge issue.
But there was nothing the first-year students could do about it.
Many students asked the professors about Lisinas, but they received no answers.
On top of that, with midterms approaching, the Heroics incident naturally faded from the first-years' minds.
Professor Ren's Magic Theory class.
"As you all know, midterms are just around the corner."
The students' expressions tensed.
This was the first time Professor Ren had mentioned the midterms.
They knew instinctively.
'He's about to talk about the practical exam.'
Lumerne's exams consisted of written and practical tests.
For major subjects, in particular, the practical exams were weighted heavily.
Naturally, the students had been waiting for him to bring it up.
Professor Ren picked up a piece of chalk and stood before the blackboard.
The sound of chalk scratching echoed throughout the lecture hall.
At that, the students began to murmur among themselves.
"Originals. In other words, unique magic. That is your assignment for the midterm practical exam."
Tossing the chalk into its holder, Professor Ren strode to the center of the platform.
"Original magic is a spell that distinctly expresses a mage's individuality. In this era, where activation formulas are mainstream, mages tend not to pursue originals. They're inefficient."
Looking at the students, Professor Ren grinned.
"However, I believe original magic is essential for a mage. A unique spell that deviates from standardized formulas is difficult to counter. It can become a trump card to protect you in a critical situation."
At his words, the students' eyes lit up.
A trump card.
That one phrase was enough to excite the young mages.
"So, shall we talk about some historically famous unique spells? Any student want to name one they know?"
In response to the question, students raised their hands.
"Student Chelsea."
"Rubert Llewellyn's magic."
"Correct. The founder of the Llewellyn family certainly possessed powerful unique magic."
Chelsea sat down with a proud smile.
After that, students began volunteering one after another.
Normally, Professor Ren would have stopped after a few answers, but today he listened to an unusual number of them.
It was as if he was waiting for a specific answer.
The students noticed this and began to participate more eagerly.
Just then, Leo raised his hand.
"Student Leo! Go ahead and answer!"
Ren's tone of voice rose slightly.
Although Ren showed a keen interest in Leo, unlike Ren, Leo rarely answered the professor's questions.
Leo stood up from his seat and spoke.
"Star Magic."
At his words, the students looked puzzled.
Star Magic.
It referred to the elves' unique system of magic.
It was powerful, of course.
But every elf used Star Magic.
Such a spell could hardly be called unique magic.
But upon hearing Leo's answer, Chloe, Abad, and Chelsea froze.
Ren exhaled sharply through his nose.
"Correct! That's the very answer I was hoping for!"
He clapped enthusiastically as he explained.
"Star Magic, established as a system of magic that any elf can learn! But that is a modified version, designed so that any elven mage could learn it!"
Ren raised his voice.
"You are all well aware of the power of Star Magic!"
Star Magic.
It was a magic unique to the elven race, created to suit their mana affinity.
That was also why it was difficult for other races to use Star Magic.
It was, quite literally, a matter of sense and talent.
The entire Magic Department had been turned upside down when Leo used elven magic.
"However!"
Clenching his fist, Ren spoke seriously.
"The Star Magic used by elves today is nothing more than a minor copy of the original magic of Luna, the Progenitor of the Nebula. Throughout history, only one person has ever used the true Star Magic!"
'Actually, it was two people.'
Leo, resting his chin on his hand, smirked.
"That person was the creator of Star Magic, the [Progenitor of the Nebula], Lady Luna."
The magic students clenched their fists.
"Now, do you all understand why you must pursue original magic?"
To mages who dreamed of becoming heroes, Luna was an object of reverence.
The fact that the foundation of Luna's magic was an original was enough to impress upon the students the necessity of creating their own.
*Ding-dong, ding-dong.*
The bell rang, signaling the end of class.
"That's all for today's class."
The students gathered their belongings and stood up.
They were busy discussing original magic with their friends.
"Originals, huh? What a pain."
Karl scratched his head vigorously.
Original magic was, in a way, a domain of creation.
Creating a new spell from scratch was anything but easy.
"Leo, you have practical exams for three different departments, right? You're going to have a tough time preparing."
Karl said, looking at Leo with pity.
Leo just smiled in response.
"I'll just have to work hard."
'Well, I have plenty of unique spells.'
Leo had many unique spells he had created in his past life.
For Leo, this practical exam was a welcome one.
Just as Leo was leaving the lecture hall with Karl,
"Leo."
He turned his head at the voice calling from behind him.
Chloe was standing there, a grimoire cradled in her arms.
Leo, Karl, and Chloe used to attend magic class together.
But starting a month ago, Chloe had begun sitting separately from the two of them.
It wasn't because they had fought or were on bad terms.
They often talked and hung out after class.
But during class, she sat apart.
'She did say she felt a strong sense of rivalry with me, didn't she?'
"Want to get lunch together?"
As Leo asked with a smile, Chloe took a deep breath and walked up to him.
For a moment, the black grimoire in Chloe's arms caught Leo's eye.
'That's not a textbook. Is it a grimoire she's reading on her own?'
"Leo. I am definitely going to beat you in this practical exam."
Karl was taken aback by Chloe's forceful declaration.
"Hey, hey! There's no winning or losing between friends. And Leo's better? As a mage, your skills as the top student are..."
"No."
Chloe clutched the grimoire tightly.
"Leo is better than me when it comes to magic formulas. That's an undeniable fact."
As she said that, her gaze momentarily clouded over.
"When it comes to magic formulas, I must always be the best. So I absolutely cannot lose."
Gritting her teeth, Chloe looked Leo straight in the eye.
"That's why I'm going to beat you in this exam. Promise me. That you'll do your best as a mage, too. I won't forgive you if you neglect your magic because you're worried about your other majors."
"Alright. I will."
"Hey, Leo!"
"Don't worry, Karl. We're not fighting."
Leo wore a serious expression.
"If I backed down after she said all that, it would be rude to Chloe."
"Thanks, Leo. Well, I'll be going then."
Chloe smiled and left.
Watching her go, Karl clicked his tongue.
"Ah, youth. Such drama."
***
As midterms approached, the details of the first-year practical exams were revealed one by one.
Knight Studies had a dueling exam.
Duels would be held within the Knight Department during the midterm period.
Naturally, rankings would be determined by who earned the most victory points.
As such, it was the subject whose practical exam started the earliest.
On the day of the midterms, the top eight students would be selected to compete in a tournament.
Summoning Studies had two practical exams.
One was a race on flying familiars, and the other was a test of how freely one could control spirits.
Magic Studies would hold a presentation for the development of original magic, with judges invited from outside Lumerne.
Cramming was not an option.
It was a test that literally evaluated how diligently one had worked throughout the semester.
And for the long-awaited Combat and Heroics exams, it would be a joint test.
"Just as I thought."
Karl had a look on his face that said he knew it.
"The goal for the Heroics and Combat practical exam is to conquer a World of Heroes."
Karl pointed to the bulletin board at the front of the classroom.
"Looks like the test is to conquer a World of Heroes in randomly assigned teams on the day of the exam. What a huge pain!"
Teamwork was crucial for conquering a World of Heroes.
If the team members were decided in advance, they could plan their strategy and be much more efficient.
But if they didn't know who their teammates would be, they had to prepare for every possible situation.
It was a test to evaluate their comprehensive abilities as hero cadets.
"Guess I can't just get carried~"
"Hey! Who said anything about getting carried!"
"That's right. Karl's not someone who can be carried; he's just dead weight!"
"Chelsea, you...!"
*Ohohoho! Hahaha!* As Karl clutched his head while watching Iliana and Chelsea run away laughing,
"Karl, isn't this exam actually a good thing for you?"
"What?"
"You're aiming to be a supporter, right?"
Karl's eyes lit up.
"No matter what team you end up on, your role is already clearly defined, don't you think?"
"Right. I just need to prepare thoroughly so I can support any team!"
The difference between having a supporter in battle and not was immense.
Rather than clumsily trying to imitate a mage, Karl could create a much greater synergy by preparing thoroughly as a supporter.
"Thanks, Leo! You've shown me the way!"
"I don't really want Karl's support, though."
"I'm a little worried, too."
"Dade! Nella! You guys too!"
Met with his friends' distrust, Karl clutched his head and cried out in despair.