10 Age Ten – Red, White, Black, and Scruffy part 2

The academy's lecture rooms were designed such that from the front row, facing the instructor and the blackboard, the students' seats were placed on meter-wide platforms ascending step by step towards the back row. Although the seats available were enough to accommodate about thirty students in one room, the number of students assigned to one class usually wasn't enough to fill the rooms.

Mandatory exams taken by enrolees during the enrolment period were designed to test their affinity for the elements and their aptitude for magic. The results would be the basis for the segregation of the new students. Those with an average aptitude for magic would be placed in a general class while those with a high enough aptitude would be placed into an advanced class.

The only exceptions to this are the three Houses of Loeth, Vinney, and Perid. They were given the privilege to go directly to the advanced class without having to take exams since almost every child born from their household would have a high aptitude for magic.

—The first day at the academy!

The first day of academy classes entailed nothing more than a few introductions, yet Urie was jotting down notes with pen and paper although there really was no need. At first, he wasn't so thrilled at the thought of investing a few years but once he was actually here, he couldn't help but want to soak in what the academy had to offer.

“From their 2nd year up to their 5th year, the General classes would move on to learning how to use magic for jobs suited to the managing or the development of the city while your Advanced classes, on the other hand, would learn to manipulate your mana for actual combat. From your 3rd year onwards, you will have the option to continue your studies here or to graduate early and enlist as Trainee Adepts at the northern wall.”

—Should I aim for early graduation...?

Urie was reminded of something as the instructor in front mentioned graduation.

As a result of his mother, Rivelle's persistence, both of Urie's older siblings had stayed at the academy for two more years before applying for graduation and enlisting at the northern wall. He could remember how his mother would cry on command every time his eldest brother mentioned graduating early.

As for his second older brother, he didn't bother to say anything and just went along with their mother's wishes. Only for a moment did Urie think about graduating early before deciding to follow his second older brother's example.

“Those who opt not to enlist at the northern wall would remain at the academy until graduation. Although you might not be there, a majority of the requirements for you to graduate would involve taking tests and requests that would require you to venture into Erden's Tower, so you would still be able to gain ample experience with the magic creatures there.”

—Ah, Erden's Tower! Eldest brother had described it to me before.

Incredibly deceiving, the space in its interior was incomparably vast compared to what could be observed outside. There was a forest, a small wasteland, and inside, daylight never seemed to retreat. Urie looked forward to seeing it himself, as the exams the academy gives require them to venture around the vicinity of the lush forest inside of the tower.

A few minutes later, the instructor finished his long introduction and began another topic, “Magic. What is magic? Does anyone know?” He took a quick look around the room to check if any of the students would volunteer to answer his question. The lazying students perked up at the inquiry as the lesson had finally gone to a topic of interest.

The instructor's eyes shifted from one student to another, deliberately looking past a pretentious-looking girl with bob-cut black hair before resting his gaze on Urie. Both of the students were raising their hands but between the two children, the instructor chose to ask Urie to answer. The girl lowered her hand before letting out a snort and directed a sharp glance towards Urie's seat.

"Ah! I know it, I do!" Oblivious to the attitude of the black-haired girl, Urie stood up and spoke, “Magic is what happens when the mana is manipulated with the help of the spirits to manifest any of the elements." Hearing his answer, the black-haired girl smirked.

The instructor nodded and gestured for Urie to take a seat, “Correct, but that would be the abridged explanation. The Harvest Festival, do you recall why we hold the ceremony every year?”

“To allow contact with the spirits and form our mana roots?” Urie replied with an unsure answer.

The instructor continued, “Indeed, magic itself is a system— without forming your mana roots, you can't be called Magic Adepts and you won't have access to that system.”

—Magic Adepts...

The instructor added, “With mana roots formed, Adepts should be able to perform four things with regards to mana; sense, gather, absorb, and release. The entire process is what we call mana circulation. After every circulation, some of the mana you absorb would compress within your mana seed and allow it to grow, eventually being able to hold vast amounts of mana.”

The instructor paused and made a gesture with his hand, ”As you are now, your seed should be just about this size.“

Urie, as well as some children who listened, were intrigued. Following the instructor's action, they curled their fingers enough to leave a tiny hole and peered through it. The gap was just enough to imitate a grain of wheat.

The instructor then drew notice to a diagram on the board behind him, “The strength of the type of magic you can utilize is proportionate to the size of your seed while the speed at which you can recover the mana you used would be determined by the thickness of your mana roots.“

“Ah! My mana roots...” Urie mumbled to himself, and for a short moment, his thoughts had drifted back to his irregular mana seed awakening.

—My roots have a different problem entirely. I don't think the instructor would have an answer to it even if I asked.

Soon, contemplation about another subject showed on Urie's face before he curiously raised his hand, “Instructor, aside from the time Adepts eat and sleep, wouldn't just repeating mana circulation allow their mana seed to grow indefinitely?”

The other students, as well as the black-haired girl, all paid attention as they thought the same thing.

With a smile of approval, the instructor answered, “Excessive mana circulation would put a lot of strain on any Adept's physical and mental strength, so they would need to rest before they would be able to fully utilize mana again. The thicker your mana roots, however, the lesser the strain you would be put under. That is how we determine an Adept's magic aptitude.”

—Ah, could mana circulation be like watering an actual plant?

Urie would often join the maids in watering the plants in the garden. He'd asked if the smaller ones would grow faster if he gave them more water, to which Patty replied, "Y-Young master, you can't do that. They would drown, you see? Especially these little ones. They've just begun to sprout and grow roots so you have to water them just enough.”

—Would excessive mana drown my mana roots?

Urie continued wracking his brain over a few more of the lecture's discussions before the loud ding of a bell interrupted his train of thought.

“Alright everyone, head to the courtyard for your practical magic class.” The instructor closed the current lecture and proceeded outside of the room.

"Ah, magic class?" Urie held excitement with a certain amount of unease, unable to tell which weighed heavier. One by one the students left the room until he found himself being the only student left or so he thought, before being startled by voice appearing behind him.

“Ya! You, what's your name?” Chestnut-amber eyes were staring him down from a platform higher by one step. With arms crossed and her head slightly raised, Urie could tell it was a clumsy act of putting on airs.

“My name is Urie Loeth,” he politely bowed, and while raising his head, he continued with a charming smile, “You should introduce yourself first before asking for someone else's name, young miss.”

The girl felt speechless for a moment before abruptly stuttering, “Elicia, Elicia Perid!”

Urie was left with a puzzled expression as he was about to reply with a “Nice to meet you,” but the black-haired young girl interrupted him with a curt stomp. After she had given her name, she swiftly disappeared from the room.

“I didn't get to say it...” Urie mumbled, and got the uncanny sensation that this situation had happened before.

For some reason, he mused, the girl looked oddly familiar.