An Unexpected Meeting

---Magic is not an innate ability, but rather, a learned skill one must dedicate their life to in case they wanted to learn it.

Being forced to delve deeper into the world of Magic, I was surprised to learn that it was far more interesting than I first thought. Since I was relying on my knowledge from novels and games in my past life, I never really thought too much about it, but it was quite different from what I first thought.

First of all, there are four types of magic: The one I knew of the most was Elemental Magic, which is all about controlling things like fire, water, wind, and earth. Illusory, which I sorta knew what it was about purely by the name. And Divine/Holy, which was completely new to me.

Apparently, Healing Magic is derived from Divine/Holy Magic and is only one out of many things it can do. Whereas Elemental Magic uses the natural elements of the world, like fire, water, earth, and wind, Divine Magic borrowed the powers of the gods and cast them upon the world.

As to what that means, I could only imagine. I've never had a god let me borrow their powers for a bit, so I couldn't possibly understand.

There was also ''Bloodfire Sorcery'' and ''Dark Magic'', but there wasn't much information on them, only that they were taboo and disgraceful to the magician's society.

''...W-What the hell does this word mean?''

I squinted my eyes at the word that was plastered on the page of the book.

''Which one?''

''This...''

I pointed at the extremely small word at the bottom of the page. The woman, Elisa, stood up from her seat and looked at the word I was pointing at.

''Iacere? It means 'to imagine a spell and cast it'.''

''...Whoever designed this language is fucked in the head.''

In what universe is it practical to encapsulate an entire sentence into a word?

Elisa returned to her seat and went back to reading her novel. From what I could make out of the title, it seemed to be a mystery story set in London during the 1800s. I instinctively frowned at it. I guess there really was nothing new I could bring to this world.

I sighed and dropped my head on the wooden table.

''Is this really worth it...?''

I asked in a tired voice, to which Elisa turned toward me with her brows furrowed.

''What?''

''I mean, even if I do retire, I'll still have to somehow feed my family. If I'm correct, your rank is decided based on how well you do on both the physical and written exam, right?''

''Yes, although you can't get any higher than B-Rank even if you do really well.''

''Then I'm probably gonna get C or D rank, and the quests you get from those ranks don't pay too well, right...?''

She stared at me for a few seconds, before returning to her book.

''Well, it's up to you, I'm only helping you out.''

...Well, I'll just think about it while we study. I have two months left, it's not like I have to reach an answer now.

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When we finally left the library, the sky had already been dyed red, and the sun was setting on the horizon.

I rubbed my eyes wearily. After hours of straining them and scratching my brain trying to read the flowery languages of the books, I've grown terribly tired. All I wanted to do was lay down on the bed and sleep until my body hurt from sleeping.

''Well then, we'll meet again in probably around a week. Make sure you study thoroughly.''

Elisa, who was right next to me, spoke with a tired voice. She stretched her arms and legs, which had grown strained from sitting down for too long.

''Yeah, sure, thanks...''

I looked inside the brown bag I was holding and grimaced at the sight of the thick books inside it.

''I'll head back to my house, thank you for everything...''

''Sure.''

With a nod, I bid her farewell. Whereas she walked up towards the noble district, I walked down through the winding streets. Since I had nothing better to do, I decided to admire the beautiful stone buildings.

Unlike the library, they weren't as towering, but they still felt imposing. Built with utmost detail and intricate carvings.

Even though it was pretty late, one could still see people laughing and chattering through the streets. Students and scholars could be seen walking to their lodgings, with exhaustion on their faces.

As I went further down the streets, the buildings became smaller and smaller, and the sight of people walking around became rare. The further away from the center of the city, the more rundown everything became.

I walked past the gate, the street vendors selling fruits and vegetables, the stray dogs scavenging for any food they could find, and the children playing in the dirt. And finally, I arrived at my house.

I took out the key from my pocket and turned the handle of the door, which creaked as I pushed it open.

''I'm back...''

''You sure were out for a long time, do friendly meetings really take this long?''

My father, who sat in the same spot at the table as yesterday, spoke in a mocking tone.

''Sadly so. Don't even entertain the idea of me getting a girlfriend or a wife, be realistic.''

''Tsk.''

He clicked his tongue and looked away.

As soon as I closed the door, I felt small hands tugging at my sleeves. I looked down and saw my two younger brothers looking at me with glee.

''Isaac, let's play!''

''W-Wha--?''

''Come on, only for a while!''

What are we even going to play in this house?!

''I-I'm sorry, but I'm tired, so---''

''Come on, Isaac, play with them for a bit.''

My mother's voice came from the kitchen. Although she spoke in a happy tone, I felt like she was giving me an order.

''B-But I...''

I tried to refuse, but the words didn't come out of my mouth as I looked down at my brother's smiling faces.

'''Haah... sure.''

I sighed and just gave up. I couldn't possibly tell them no, so I just accepted the fact that I'll have to go to sleep much later than I expected.

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''It is believed that Bloodfire Sorcery uses one's own blood to draw upon energy from hell, where the vilest of monsters reside...''

I read the large book carefully, straining my eyes and checking the dictionary every now and then when a word too complicated for me appeared.

Because my house was just too chaotic, I decided to instead use the grand reading room of the library to study. I've been here for about an hour now, trying to get everything through my head. That's what I've been doing these past few days.

I didn't trust my mind too much, so I re-read everything twice to make sure I got it through my head.

''Rema ventore acoturem... is this some kind of curse? Shit, context clues don't help me at all, I'll have to look through the dictionary.''

I gritted my teeth and scratched my head in anger. This shit was too frustrating.

I grabbed the thick dictionary and turned the pages in a frenzy, looking for the words written in the book.

To be completely honest, I thought this whole thing was kind of futile. I don't think I'm strong enough to go any further than D Rank if I'm being realistic, so it's kind of frustrating to be doing this in spite of knowing that.

However, one must keep a positive attitude at all moments! Otherwise, I would've broken down a long time ago.

''A sea of sharp wind...? Is it talking about a wind spell?''

I muttered under my breath while looking back and forth at the two books.

''---Haha, come on, don't be stupid!''

The sound of a high-pitched voice snapped me out of my reading. One so familiar, I could almost guess who it belonged to.

I looked toward the entrance of the grand reading room and my eyes met with a familiar-looking girl.

Her face was heart-shaped, with high cheekbones and a small, straight nose, she had an almost regal appearance. Her black hair flowed down in loose waves to her hips, the lustrous strands of hair reflecting the light like a dark pool.

However, what caught my attention was her eyes. A deep, beautiful, and lush green that seemed to glow. They were large but sharp and adorned with long lashes that flutter whenever she blinked. Flawless skin free of any imperfections, and white skin with just a hint of pink on her cheeks.

The woman looked extremely familiar. No, not just familiar, I knew who she was. Not just by her appearance, not just by her voice, but by the white, long robes she wore. The uniform of Belica's Magic Academy.

---The woman who sat down with her friends at the table nearest to the entrance was none other than Martha Brenton, my younger sister.