A Guide to the Great Path
"Yeah, they say it's also called the Elven tongue."
Guuung—
On a pitch-black night, Bayul and his friends sat huddled around the table, heads bowed together over a single book. Every one of their faces was furrowed with wrinkles.
But what good was a dictionary? Barely a few pages in, their minds had gone completely blank. They were known as some of the brightest in their year, yet in the face of Sanscain, they were illiterate.
"...Yeah. It's pretty hard to make anything out."
"Copying it down won't be easy either."
"Why would Professor Rothius hand us this at the worst possible time? We've got exams to study for, a golem to build—everyone's already dying busy here."
Aidan had drained his mental reserves after concentrating for so long that he now gulped down a glass of water in great swigs. Only then did Bayul realize what a nuisance he'd been.
"Oh, sorry. I got so wrapped up in my own thoughts. I was so excited that I might learn more about spirits that I forgot exams were right around the corner."
Truth be told, he'd been thrilled at the prospect of learning about spirits from a book, after hearing about them only from Quinn and Eli until now. His heart was still racing, but Bayul, too, was a student whose exams came first.
"I'll work on it alone for now, so don't worry about it. You can help me after exams are over!"
"Bayul, that wasn't me trying to take credit. I was just whining because Sanscain or whatever looks way too complicated. It's official—I have no talent for languages."
"And this comes out of the mouth of a guy who speaks three languages besides his native one?"
"...You scared me! When did you get here?"
The owner of the voice that had abruptly cut in was Eli. He swept into the cabin with a flamboyant crimson robe—unlike anything they'd seen him wear before—billowing behind him.
"My roommate keeps keeping me up all night talking again. Whether it's exam jitters or what, I don't know. Took forever to pry myself loose."
"Well, hurry up and take a seat. Some troubling news is waiting for you."
"Shame, thanks."
Offering his thanks to the small mound of earth bulging up at his feet, Eli walked toward the table. Shame had appointed himself their guide for the trips to and from the cabin, and thanks to him, they were crossing the Forest of Corruption as safely as if they were strolling through their own backyard.
"What news could be so troubling? Huh? A book written in Sanscain?"
Eli, settling absentmindedly into his seat, spotted the single book resting in the center of the table. He picked it up with an air of familiarity, turning it this way and that to examine it.
"Wow, it's really old, though. I guess it's an antique?"
"...Rai, how did you know that was Sanscain?"
"What kind of question is that? How did I know? Because I looked at it, obviously."
"...You can read Sanscain?"
"Yeah, it's Elvish. Why?"
Eli stared back at his friends' astonished faces as if there were something strange about them. His expression clearly said, Why wouldn't you know this?
When someone is flabbergasting enough, your brain briefly stops working. Aidan, a beat behind, confirmed it again, practically brimming with reverence.
"Of course. They say it takes the elves themselves ten years just to learn Sanscain. And I mastered it in one! Pretty impressive, right?"
At the old memory resurfacing, Eli felt prouder of himself all over again.
"...It's Elvish, and even the elves need ten years to learn it?"
"Yup!"
"And you finished it in one year?"
Nod, nod.
"...What are you?"
"Huh?"
"What are you, seriously! It takes the elves ten whole years, but you learned it in one? Are you even human? No, you're not. Are you actually a dragon playing around in a human disguise?"
"A d-dragon? Of all things! Jumping to dragons over one language is a bit of a stretch, don't you think?"
"Come on, there are dragons that occasionally sneak around pretending to be people. Later it turns out most of them became incredibly famous mages or swordmasters. Some kind of hero role-play? You know, that sort of thing!"
Aidan was the only one grilling Eli with such nonsense, but the rest of the friends were thinking much the same. Eyes wide, they couldn't tear their gazes away from him.
"Wh-why are you all looking at me like that? F-first time seeing a genius?"
"A genius?"
"That's right! I haven't exactly told you, but what can I do if I was born a genius? I've been so perfect from such a young age that I've been through this more times than I can count! That's why I've kept it under wraps—so why are you cornering me like some kind of freak? What did I do wrong?"
Unlike his earlier stammering confusion, Eli now protested as though he'd been gravely wronged.
"Since when is being smart a crime, huh?"
"No, it's not that... but then why are you getting so worked up? We were just surprised, that's all."
"Yeah, Rai. We're not saying anything bad about you. It just caught us completely off guard."
He should've given us a heads-up at dinner, at least. By the time Bayul had arrived at the dining hall, buzzing with excitement over the book from Professor Rothius, other students had been around and he hadn't been able to say a word. If he'd told Eli alone right away, they wouldn't have had to rack their brains like this.
"We were practically ready to give up—we couldn't decipher a thing even with the dictionary. Honestly, Rai, it's a godsend that you can read Sanscain."
"Fine, I'll admit it. You're a genius."
Quinn smiled at Eli as if seeing him in a new light.
"You must have learned it from the Chairman, right?"
"...Why do you want to know?"
Eli's brow slammed down into a scowl, as if the mere mention of Rayegar made his irritation spike.
"It's just that you don't seem to have anything you can't do. Sanscain now, a perfect-score top student in your department, and just last weekend you cast Fireball too, didn't you? That's probably 3rd-circle magic, right?"
"3rd circle...?"
"Whoa, Rai! You can use 3rd-circle magic?"
Given everything going on, there hadn't been a spare moment to think about it. But the memory was unmistakable. Eli had conjured a fireball, declaring he'd burn the chieftain to death.
The highest-circle mage among the Academy's current Magic Department professors was only at the 5th circle. 1st and 2nd circle mages were called apprentices; 3rd and 4th, junior mages; 5th and 6th, mid-level mages; and anything above the 7th circle earned the title of archmage.
Generally, 3rd circle or higher was the qualification required to teach magic—and Eli, a mere first-year student, had cast magic at that level.
Unless he was truly a genius, such a feat was impossible.
"...I might not be able to do it again if you asked me to!"
Eli offered an excuse that wasn't really an excuse, his eyes wavering.
"Every so often, it just happens without me meaning it to. It worked then because it was an emergency—I can't guarantee anything now. Besides, I never got to confirm the actual firepower. In the end, I didn't actually cast it. It might have just flown off and dissipated."
"...Is that so?"
"You're not mages, so I guess you wouldn't get this, but the boundaries in magic are kind of fuzzy. Your level fluctuates day to day depending on your physical and mental state. Come visit the Magic Department's training tower sometime and see for yourself! Then you'll understand what I mean."
"I get the gist, but why are you trying so hard to explain yourself?"
"...What?"
Quinn had merely paid him a compliment. On any ordinary day, Eli would have brushed it off with a scoff—that much is nothing—yet for some reason, he was now laboring through an elaborate defense, which felt oddly out of character for him.
"I only said that since the Chairman is a mage, maybe you picked it up from him. Nobody demanded an explanation."
"Wh-who's explaining? I was just making conversation!"
"Then why are you so flustered?"
"...Flustered? Me? When?"
With panic written plainly across his face for anyone to see, Eli shrieked in denial.
"Quinn, that's enough. You know Rai's been on edge lately."
"Yeah, let's not bring up the Chairman. Every time that topic comes up, this guy's head goes somewhere else entirely."
"You've had your fun—why not let it go and try deciphering this book instead?"
Logan gestured at the book, trying to turn the mood around.
"Rai, would you read it for us?"
Bayul quickly pushed the book toward Eli with the same request. Eli pulled a momentarily sour face, but he soon recovered his usual composure. If anything, he seemed relieved that the subject had changed.
"Hand it over."
Finally, the moment they'd all been waiting for. Eli lowered his gaze and began to examine the book in earnest.
"The title reads A Guide to the Great Path."
"A Guide to the Great Path? That title is killer!"
Bayul had already known it, so the reveal didn't stir him much—but even he couldn't dislike the sense of expectation and gravity the title carried.
"There's a subtitle underneath... 'Lecture II: The Grades of Spirits'?"
Eli's blood-red eyes widened in bewilderment.
"What is this? It's a book about spirits?"
"Yeah, Professor Rothius brought it from the imperial archives."
Bayul briefly explained his visit to the professor earlier that day.
"Professor Rothius is amazing. Going to such lengths for his students—what an incredible man. Did he say he's read it?"
"No, it sounds like he only managed to make out the title."
"Well, Sanscain is hard, after all."
Eli nodded to himself and opened the book to its first page.
Bayul's palms had somehow gone sweaty. Rubbing his hands against his thighs, he fixed his attention on Eli's voice.
"If the first lecture dealt with what spirits are, then in this volume I shall explain in depth the grades of spirits. Spirits—they are the holy creations and agents of the gods, who govern and harmonize nature. Where water was needed, they poured water; where earth belonged, they made earth; where the wind must blow, they raised the wind; and where fire was to burn, they kindled flame."
Rustle. Eli turned to the next page.
"The Four Great Spirits grew ever wearier. Each had far too many duties to shoulder. And so, after deliberation together, they each drew a portion of their own power from their bodies and created subordinates of their own. Thus were the High Spirits born."
"High Spirits?"
"So there are Intermediate and Lower ones too, then?"
"Let me keep reading."
Eli told them to wait and continued his recitation.
"Below the High Spirits came the Intermediate Spirits, and beneath them the Lower Spirits. Thus the ranks of spirits were established, each attending to its portion of the world's balance."
"Just like our own human world, huh? A king, then nobles beneath him, and below them the knights and officials. It's exactly like a country."
The very existence of spirit ranks was astonishing enough, but the fact that they'd originated from sheer work overload was almost funny.
"Okay, I have a question."
Suddenly, Aidan raised his hand.
"What grade are Innocent and Shame? Lower? Intermediate? Don't tell me they're actually High Spirits?"