Chapter 21: An Invitation (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 21: An Invitation (2)
“Mr. Kim Do-jin, have you ever considered learning magic?”
It was a completely unexpected offer.
Only one thought came to mind.
Talk about a lucky break.
But I didn’t let it show.
“Magic? What, are you offering to enroll me in an academy or something?”
“That’s correct.”
“……?”
The difficulty of magic is divided into four levels.
Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, and Sage.
The places and conditions for learning magic differ for each level.
For the beginner level, you can take courses at a basic magic academy authorized by a government agency.
Any Awakened being can enroll, but the monthly tuition starts in the millions.
So this woman is offering to enroll me in one of those academies?
For someone as broke as me, even that is something to be grateful for… but that’s not quite what I was hoping for.
“Of course, I didn’t come all this way just to enroll you in an academy.”
“Then?”
Phew.
I breathed an inward sigh of relief.
For a second, I was dizzy with the thought that she’d really come all this way just to sign me up for an academy.
She took another envelope from her inner pocket and showed it to me.
It didn’t look like money. What was it?
“It’s a special admission request for Korea University.”
Korea University.
A Hunter training institution established after the Great War in Yeouido twenty years ago.
It’s the place that young people who've become Awakened beings strive desperately to get into.
Why?
Because if you just graduate, you get a Hunter license right away without any separate exam.
The problem, of course, is that the difficulty of graduating is on par with the Hunter license exam itself.
“The Magic Department at Korea University makes a rare exception, allowing special admissions even in the second semester.”
I’d heard about that.
Something about how there were so few promising mages that they were always looking to increase their numbers.
I remember it was a unanimous decision, with no complaints from the other departments.
They must have been annoyed, having gone through a hellishly difficult exam to get in, but even for them, having one more mage in the back line dishing out tons of damage was a good thing.
Now I finally understood what Yoon Ji-an was getting at.
“So… learn the basics at an academy, then get special admission starting in the second semester. Is that it?”
“Yes, that’s exactly right.”
“Hmm.”
I started stroking my chin, pretending to think it over.
Literally, an act.
My mind was already made up.
But if I jumped at it, it would seem like I was indebted to them for getting in. I had to accept the offer in a way that felt like a win-win for both of us.
As my feigned deliberation dragged on, a hint of impatience crept into Yoon Ji-an’s expressionless face.
Finally, after waiting in silence, she spoke.
“I heard that the magic you used to defeat the orc was self-taught.”
“That’s right.”
To be precise, I learned it from watching Mitube.
Occasionally, wandering mages with no affiliation or guys with a serious case of attention-seeking disorder will post videos of themselves demonstrating magic on Mitube.
What was the title of the video I saw again?
Ah.
I think it was [Never Underestimate Earth Magic Again].
He seemed to be trying to promote the greatness of earth-attribute magic, but the spells he actually demonstrated were the most basic of the beginner level, so the comments were full of ridicule.
“Are you aware that the number of people who succeed in learning magic through self-study is very small?”
“I didn’t know that.”
Of course it’s difficult.
The guys who post demonstration videos on places like Mitube all have the same goal.
Showing off.
They fill their videos with difficult jargon instead of simple explanations, then manifest the magic.
It’s all to show off how cool and amazing of a mage they are.
So how could it be easy?
The ones who succeed after watching those videos are either people who’ve already learned it, or they’re budding talents who were different from the start.
And here I was, having killed an orc with self-taught magic not long after Awakening.
To them, I must have been a very promising sprout.
“We believe that the starting point is also crucial for a talent to fully blossom. That’s why…”
So they were trying to sway me with the rather tasty bait of special admission.
Even without it, if I just waited until next year’s entrance exam and showed off a few spells, I’d pass instantly.
They knew full well that a talent who could learn magic on their own would grow just fine even if left alone.
There was only one reason they were doing this despite knowing that.
To put me in their debt.
Their plan was to put a future mage in their debt and use that leverage later.
Something like, “We took such good care of you when you were a newbie, you can’t do this to us.”
Maybe they’d even try to coax me into becoming a Hunter affiliated with the Association later on.
“S-So, what do you think?”
She was rattling on excitedly about something, but I tuned most of it out.
It was obvious what she’d say anyway.
The gist of it was probably a 5,700-character essay on why I had to accept this offer.
I pretended to think it over.
Then I shook my head.
“Ah, no, that seems a bit much. I don’t like the feeling of being in someone’s debt…”
I expressed a gentle refusal.
At that, Yoon Ji-an’s face grew a little more urgent.
She even started waving the hands that had been resting calmly on her knees, denying it.
“Y-You don’t have to think that way! We simply wish to help talented Awakened beings grow. We have no other intentions whatsoever.”
As she spoke, trying to change my mind, her expression darkened in real-time.
She must have gotten an earful from her superiors before coming here.
Make him feel indebted to us, in any way possible.
But now she herself was telling me I didn’t need to feel indebted in the slightest. How ironic.
“Oh… is that really all there is to it?”
I asked again, even though I already knew.
A wide smile played on my lips.
She nodded, her face crestfallen.
“That’s right…”
Her words said yes, but her expression seemed to be screaming no.
The contradiction added a touch of cuteness to her stiff impression.
“Well then, I see no reason to refuse.”
After getting confirmation and shaking off any sense of obligation, I snatched up the offer.
In truth, I’d been thinking about learning magic for a while now.
My ability to mold mana into something resembling magic using only my innate talent.
This ability, better described as sorcery (魔術) than magic (魔法), was still imperfect.
“Y-You’ve made a wise choice.”
Her face brightened a little.
She may not have succeeded in making me feel indebted, but it was an undeniable fact that I would be learning basic magic and getting special admission with their help, so they’d surely try to use that.
Not that it would work.
“We’re currently looking for a nearby academy, so I will visit again soon.”
“Alright, take care on your way out.”
With a somewhat unsatisfied expression, she gave a slight bow and turned to leave.
I watched her go before returning to my room.
Two white envelopes sat on the folding table.
“Hehehehehe.”
Just looking at them made me laugh.
Ten million won added to my broke household, free basic magic lessons, and special admission to Korea University.
“Talk about a windfall!”
As I said before, my current ability is incomplete.
As long as my mana allows, my ability lets me do anything I will.
In essence, every single spell is an original magic created just for me.
That certainly sounds nice, but it has a huge blind spot.
Are my original creations stronger and more efficient than existing magic?
The answer to that question is uncertain.
The way I see it, my ability right now is like rolling a die.
If I happen to get the mana distribution, arrangement, and form perfect, I roll a six. But if even one thing is off and the efficiency is a complete mess, I roll a one.
There are only two ways to solve this.
One is to use my mana like crazy from now on and figure out the most efficient methods for each situation through trial and error.
The other is to just copy existing magic.
“If I have to choose between the two, it’s obviously the latter.”
Of course.
One is like having to draw up blueprints and build a new house on an empty lot. The other is like moving into a well-built house and just changing the interior to my liking.
Magic is the culmination of efficiency, refined over decades by talented mages.
If I can just copy it, there’s no need to bang my head against a wall.
And I have more than enough ability to copy it.
Why?
Because my eyes can see the mana that others can’t.
I can see how a spell manifesting before me moves and uses mana.
All I have to do is copy it exactly and make a few minor tweaks to make it easier for me to manifest.
“I was just wondering how I was going to enroll in a magic academy anyway.”
The only reason I knew about the problem but hadn’t thought of fixing it was simply because I had no money.
The more popular magic academies charge almost one to two million a month for tuition.
For someone whose entire fortune was three million, it was an unthinkable price.
“But now that money’s no longer an issue…”
All that’s left is to copy their decades of accumulated know-how, solve my problem, and become flawless.