The Wise Magician: Chapter 1

In 2050, a new power source was discovered by chance. Nobody knows where this power came from but this power source grants humans the ability to control nature as they pleased. They could generate heat from their hands allowing them to control fire at will, create a sharp wind that can cut steel, or release a strong water blast that can dig a hole in a large rock. Those who are capable of utilizing this power could create mountains large enough to destroy a city if thrown at it. Those four elements are just basic. In other words, it's just the beginning of human evolution… No, not just human, but the evolution of the world itself. This new power already had its name before it was officially discovered. This is because before 2050, this new power source is just a fantasy that can only be seen in movies and games. That's why, the moment this source discovered people instantly knew the exact name for this power source. That's right, people naturally call it Mana as if it existed long before they discovered.. Thus, from mana, magic was introduced. So naturally, those who can use magic are known as magicians.

This phenomenal discovery is the whistle that starts the race. A race to develop this new power ahead of other countries. Years after years, technology advanced at the speed that has never been seen before and the area that advanced the most is military technology. Thus, the power balance between countries starts to crumble. Those who can keep up with the race and those who can't. Of course, with uncontrollable human's greed, it didn't take long for wars to break down not only between countries but also within countries, the internal dispute. Those who can't keep up with the race become a stepping stone. After almost 100 years of wars, the military prowess reached its peak for most countries. What emerges after that is, the individual with the power that defies everything. In front of them, every technology and weapon they develop for decades becomes null. The S-Rank Magician, a human weapon that replaced nuclear weapons as the most dangerous weapon in the world. With their emergence, the flow of wars changed drastically. Even a country that used to be a stepping stone became a leading country if they have even one S-Rank Magician. Their power to mow down anything that comes in their way cannot be denied. When several countries possess S-Rank Magician, the wars take the downturn, afraid for the mass destruction that will happen if S-Rank Magician clashes between them. Until 2200, there were only four S-Rank Magicians recognized in the world maintaining the power balance.

In Japan, the Asakura Household, one of the four families that stand at the top of magic in Japan, had a long history of magic and tradition even before magic was discovered. In the year 2200, the second son of Asakura was born. The one who would soon come to carve his name in the world of magic as The Wise Magician. His name is Kazuhiko Asakura.

*5 years later*

"Sorry I did not congratulate you when your son was born. However, please accept my congratulations, late as they may be." Yoshimura Tousaka, Second in Command of the Magic Division in the Military.

"Don't worry about it, you haven't been in this country for years. So, how is the current situation?" Asakura Hiroki began to converse about the conflict between neighboring countries with his old comrade.

"Honestly, we are at a disadvantage because we've been fighting for centuries now. Many of our best magicians have perished on the battlefield and the number of new recruits has plummeted since most of the well-known families' households refuse to send their children to the Magic Division." Tousaka sighed. He knew all too well that the strength of the Magic Division became weaker with every fallen comrade.

"It's tragic, but it's not like I can't understand them for not sending such outstanding children to the battlefield," Hiroki said, feeling immense sympathy for his best friend.

Tousaka sighed, trying to forget all the problems he has, "Enough about that. I don't want to use my reunion to talk about displeasing matters. So, where is this son of yours? Did he take after you or his mother?" Tousaka interrogated Hiroki, anxious to see the son he'd heard so much about.

"Hahaha. About that… You'll see, this one is quite odd. You will be surprised when you see him," said Hiroki, who couldn't describe his 5 years old son.

"Hmm? For you who is his own father to say that… Now I'm curious. I can't wait to see him." Tousaka's imagination became more and more curious by the second.

"Kenji! Where is your brother? Can you call him?" Hiroki asked his eldest son Kenji, who was diligently practicing by swinging his wooden sword.

"I think he is in the storage room again. That bookworm, never drilling sword or magic," Kenji complained while sprinting to the storage room.

"Hmm? Storage room?" Tousaka was astonished to hear that a 5-year-old child was hanging out in the storage room.

"I told you, this one is quite the oddity." Hiroki laughed, leaving his best friend to interpret that for himself.

A few minutes later, Kenji came bringing his little brother together with him. When Tousaka sees Kazuhiko, he's stunned. Unable to utter a single word to describe the sight of Kazuhiko. The calmness and harmonious atmosphere which surrounded him, no word could perfectly describe the sight. Just from the look alone, Tousaka knew that this 5 years old boy was different from any other child or any other adult. He was in his own league.

"Nice to meet you, Yoshimura-sama. I'm known as Asakura Kazuhiko," Kazuhiko introduced himself, with the proper manner and humbleness. It was a greeting befitting for his father's friend as well as one that befitted an elder.

"H-huh? Oh, nice to meet you. I'm known as Yoshimura Tousaka," Tousaka instinctively answered with his utmost respect. It was something he couldn't explain but he instinctively knew that that 5-year-old boy deserved his respect. Witnessing it, Hiroki wasn't surprised at all because this isn't the first time something like this had happened.

"Heh. That aside, did you read old books in the storage room again?" Hiroki asked Kazuhiko, grinning at Tousaka.

"Yes, father," answered Kazuhiko.

"Kazu! You always skip sword and magic practice. At this rate, you will be a mere weakling and everyone will look down on you as a member of the Asakura household!" Kenji groaned at his younger brothers' truancy.

Kazuhiko looked calmly at Kenji's face and an unwavering voice, "Brother… why do you keep swinging your wooden sword every day?"

"To become stronger, of course!" Kenji answered with confidence.

"Then, why do you want to become stronger?" Kazuhiko implored Kenji.

"So that other people will not look down on the Asakura household," replied Kenji, with pride befitting of the eldest son of the Asakura household.

"Is that your only reason for why you strive for strength?" The way Kazuhiko led Kenji was as if he was trying to help him in some way.

"T-the… o-other reason is… umm… I know! To protect our family as the oldest son of the Asakura family," Kenji answered gleefully, as he had found another reason to become stronger.

"Now that you know who you want to protect, let me ask again…. Ken nii-sama, how much stronger would you need to get to defeat your enemy and protect the Asakura family? What about your enemy? How strong are they? What strategy will they use? And most importantly," Kazuhiko raised his right hand, floating a dried leaf onto his hand. "How much do you know about yourself? Your power, your strength, your weaknesses, and… your mana."

The dried leaf on Kazuhiko's hand slowly turned green as if it was given a new breath of life. Seeing what is happening in front of them, Tousaka and even Hiroki himself were amazed by what they had just witnessed. Kenji had no idea what his father and Tousaka were amazed about. All he saw was just a dried, orange leaf transform into a new leaf, a simple trick.

As Hiroki had seen similar miracles before and was still amazed, Tousaka was especially bewildered. (Wh-what just happened? That leaf… restored to its previous state… as if it was still fresh on the tree. I've never seen such magic as this. Did he just turn back time or…)

"Kazuhiko, h-how… did you do that?" Tousaka couldn't contain his curiosity any longer. Of course, Hiroki was also brimming with curiosity to know what his son did.

"Mana... it was formally discovered in 2050 and many countries thoroughly conducted research over mana manipulation, turning it into a tool of mass destruction; but little did they know that mana existed long before that. Although its existence is not written directly in historical books, there have been signs of it being used in more extraordinary ways than the people nowadays use. Such as… strengthening the life force of living beings," said Kazuhiko as he showed the leaf that he enhanced with life force.

"L-life force!? You gotta be kidding right? Controlling life force is the power of god! Are you saying that we, humans, are capable of controlling life-… No, sorry," Tousaka stopped himself when he saw Kazuhiko's calm eyes glaring at him as if he knew what Tousaka was thinking. As a soldier, Tousaka can't help but instinctively turn it into military tools that could assist in the war effort.

"Heh. No matter what you do, you always put me in awe. I can see that manner and knowledge always followed in every little thing you did. Is this why you cooped up in the storeroom reading old books?" asked Hiroki, proud of and at the same time beginning to admire his son.

"The old books… history tells us the life of people of the past. The way they lead their life with honour, knowledge, manner, and determination to plow their way into achieving their goals. Should we put ourselves in their place, contemplate their way of thinking word by word, we can at least push our minds to mature as the people of the past… people who've engraved their names in human history. The past is there for us to learn from it, the present is there for us to work for, and the future is for those who work towards it. That's why, to know myself as a human, I need to start with the past, work on the present, and grasp the future." Kazuhiko's answer leaves Hiroki and Tousaka in astonishment. They never thought a 5 years old boy could come up with such an answer. A deep and philosophical answer which put even a professor in deep thought. As for Kenji, he was still puzzled trying to understand his young brother's answer.

"Hiroki! I know this is shameless for me to say this but… OUR COUNTRY WILL HAVE A BETTER FUTURE WITH KAZUHIKO LEADING US!" After facing so many shortcomings in the war, his comrades were sacrificed one by one. Tousaka finally found hope for his country, a 5 years old boy, known as Asakura Kazuhiko.

14 years after that fateful encounter, Kazuhiko is now 19 years old. With the 'past' engraved into his body and mind, he now started working on 'present', to grasp the 'future'.

To be continued…