Book 4 Chapter 8
Episode 82
The first place the audience's cheers gathered was towards Caden's magic paper.
“Oh…?”
“The magic circle is just like…”
“It looks like sheet music…!”
Professor Caroline stroked her chin.
‘As expected…’
The way Legwind-type mages activate their abilities is different from other mages, so their method of constructing magic circles is also different.
‘He’s already captivated the audience with that uniqueness.’
Because Kyle’s clairvoyance (千里眼) was magnifying and projecting the situation, everyone could see the magic circle in detail.
“The magic he prepared is 4th-tier magic… Is that guy planning to compose a symphony?!”
Logan muttered with a sigh.
A symphony usually refers to a musical composition consisting of four movements, but when a Legwind type handles it, the meaning changes slightly.
Professor Owen nodded.
“It seems he’s aiming for that! That damn rich timbre when four movements don’t just play sequentially but resound simultaneously…”
It was nothing short of a concerto created by the finest orchestra. At that, Ilyin, a student of Chaihakh, tilted her head slightly.
“But that means four timbres come out at the same time, wouldn’t it just be complicated and noisy unless you’re exceptionally skilled?”
“Hmm, you’ve thought quite well for someone with only shit in their head. That’s certainly true. If you lack skill, it could even be called an all-or-nothing gamble.”
Marhena, sitting in the judges’ seats, was thinking something similar.
“High risk, high return. Since the third-place spot is already practically decided no matter what, is he trying to seize the top spot with a hidden move… Interesting.”
No, that’s not it.
Lorelei, a young elder of the Harimun School who was in the audience, shook her head at those who thought like Marhena.
‘Caden is a musical genius.’
Would it be right to say he was born to make music, or that he lost his voice for music?
“Caden, hang in there! Hwaiting!”
At that moment, a middle-aged man with a plump face and body cheered enthusiastically, and those who seemed to be with him loudly shouted.
Lorelei turned to look that way and smiled gently, bowing her head slightly.
“Father, you’ve come.”
“Oh dear, Elder! It’s really been a long time. You are as beautiful as ever, hahaha!”
Then the middle-aged man made an even greater fuss, energetically folding his body, making his belly fat jiggle.
Their connection was deeper than expected.
Caden’s father was a well-known merchant in the southern empire. If there was one problem in his life, it was that his son, who had just been weaned, was mute.
- Master, how can the young master become a merchant if he cannot speak?
- Pass the family business to a child yet to be born, and let the eldest grandson find another path.
He was afraid his son would get hurt if he raised him as a swordsman, and he disliked the idea of pushing him into priesthood, fearing his son’s future would be devoured by religion.
While he was idly passing the time, the Harimun School came to the city for a touring performance, so he attended to soothe his troubled mind…
The performance was far more splendid than he expected, so he went backstage to express his gratitude and promised a sponsorship. It was then.
- Caden, no! If you carelessly touch these people’s instruments…?!
What on earth happened?
His five-year-old son perfectly imitated the song the Harimun students had played, right there on the spot?
The most excited person there was none other than Lorelei, who was the Grand Senior Disciple of Harimun at the time.
- Oh, Father… would you not give your son to me?
- Huh?
- Your son, your son is a genius! A musical genius! He must be made to do music! If you entrust him to me, I will definitely take responsibility and raise him into a mage and musician who will leave his name in history, please!
That’s how Caden entered the Eight Great Schools as Lorelei’s disciple.
His growth was truly steep, and by the time he was thirteen, he was recognized by everyone in the school as an exceptional talent among the younger generation.
Caden became not only Lorelei’s favorite disciple but also a source of pride more cherished than her own child.
‘Our school originally pursues the beauty of magic. No mage of his age can surpass Caden in this subject.’
However, as if to refute Lorelei’s conviction, gasps of admiration flowed from various places, directed elsewhere. They were for Krista Warden.
“The magic circle is just like some sort of…”
“It’s like a painting…”
“That’s the Bloodline Limit magic circle…!”
The magic Krista chose was 3rd-tier magic.
Though it was 3rd-tier magic, the uniqueness of the Bloodline Limit and the girl’s elegant handwriting created a strange harmony, making the magic circle appear like art.
“Then what about Rain Ludwig?”
And when Rain’s magic paper was projected… the reactions were divided. Some gasped, while others blinked their eyes.
“Five magic circles…?”
“Does that mean…?”
“5th-tier magic…?”
Even for a genius, it was natural for the computation speed to be considerably slower with 5th-tier magic, as the number of mathematical equations to solve increased exponentially.
‘Even for me, who is equivalent to Glados (4th-tier), 5th-tier magic is still too much… He’s no longer at a student level.’
Madellia Page looked at Rain with a mix of surprise and concern, and Cassena, who was next to her, asked about the meaning of her expression.
“Why? Isn’t it good to use high-tier magic? Rain is using the strongest magic, so he’ll naturally win, right?!”
“No, it’s not that simple of a problem. That could actually be a self-inflicted wound.”
“What? Why?!”
5th-tier magic requires calculations that are incomparable in precision to 1st and 2nd-tier magic, no, even to 4th-tier magic.
“Coordinate calculation, power adjustment… I doubt there’ll be enough room to add aesthetic beauty.”
“…!”
“This exam isn’t one where you get high scores just by using big and grand magic. That’s why I’m worried.”
Rain Ludwig…
Even with your skill, did you have no choice but to be pushed into a corner this time?
“Perhaps there was no other way.”
Lillian Carain, watching the match with her classmates from the Rivendell School, spoke up.
“To stand against Warden and Harimun, that is.”
Elin Ludwig, in the VIP room on the opposite side, thought so too.
“Rain’s strength that differentiates him from those two is his magical skill, unsuited for his age… That was the only way to maximize it.”
But even so, it’s 5th-tier magic. Can he really incorporate all the aesthetic effects he intended and designed and finish it within 60 minutes?
“Are you serious about that?”
Krista, who couldn’t help but harbor the same doubt, frowned. Rain Ludwig didn’t answer, though.
More precisely, he couldn’t.
In a state of extreme concentration, he recalled and drew out… the scene he had witnessed that day, there, vividly, most vividly.
* * *
“The first to complete the magic is the Harimun School’s prodigy!”
Caden, having finished constructing the magic circle and computations, approached the judges’ seats.
The judging panel consisted of Marhena as the head, along with 10 senior professors responsible for 2nd and 3rd-year students.
Each professor could award a minimum of 0 points and a maximum of 10 points, so the closer the total sum was to the perfect score of 100, the closer one was to the top position.
“Oh-ho?”
“This magic circle itself is no less than a work of art.”
The judges’ eyes shone with interest.
The magic circle was a form where four attributes unfolded in each direction, precisely interlocked.
Professor Kyle looked closely at the magic circle and nodded.
“North is square, East is circular, South is fan-shaped, West is triangular… In terms of attributes, it’s Earth, Water, Wind, Fire in that order.”
Is there any meaning to the order? Or is it merely an aesthetic effect… Just then, Marhena placed her hand on the magic circle.
“Then, let’s see what you’ve got, eh?”
And as magic flowed from her fingertips, and light spread along the inked lines staining the paper, the thoughts of all audience members paused for a moment.
A heavenly sight descended upon this earth.
As the square magic circle was dyed with light, the earth elegantly rippled, and a tranquil flute sound was heard, drawing the pattern of spring in their ears.
‘Spring…’
‘I hear the sound of spring…’
As the circular magic circle was dyed with light, a new current of sound rose from the end of the flute sound.
‘Stars shining as if pouring down from the summer sky…’
‘And the quiet breathing of the river where those stars are reflected upside down…’
When the fan-shaped magic circle shone, the wind and string sounds evoked the loneliness of autumn.
Finally, when the triangle shone, the quiet crackling of a bonfire amidst the fiercely raging blizzards came to their hearts like drumbeats.
Until all the sounds of that season ended, no one in the audience dared to open their mouths.
“What was that…?”
“Lingering impression…?”
Only after a long time had passed after everything ended, quiet applause was heard from various parts of the audience, and then a storm of cheers erupted, as if the stadium would collapse.
“Waaah!”
“Amazing! That’s done with magic? Not an orchestra?”
“I want to hear it again!”
Lorelei proudly looked at Caden amidst the commotion, barely suppressing the swelling emotion in her chest.
‘Caden can’t speak.’
He couldn’t speak, but from a young age, he could express his emotions through music.
No.
That’s not it.
Because he couldn’t speak, he was able to express his emotions, the world he saw, heard, and felt, all through music.
“It’s truly incredible. Most Legwind types use music to draw out magic, but to draw out music so perfectly with magic…”
“The runes and mathematical equations used to create this melody are so precise that even as a professor, I cannot properly evaluate them…”
“It was truly a harmony! The harmony of the world!”
Head Professor Marhena carefully examined the magic circle once more.
The rune expressing spring was ‘殘’ (chan).
The rune expressing summer was ‘褘’ (wi).
Autumn was ‘逝’ (seo), winter was ‘沄’ (un).
For spring and summer, advanced mathematical equations were used to create a light feeling, and for autumn, elementary equations were extended to properly bring out the feeling of loneliness.
“And for winter, the formula was separated and the operations were forcibly increased to find a middle ground between those two tempos… The runes and mathematical knowledge are quite simply perfect.”
“That’s right, Master. It was truly a magnum opus that achieved the harmony of magic and music.”
“That’s right, Associate Professor! That could be taken directly by an orchestra and used right away!”
Amidst such high praise, the professors wrote down their scores for Caden on the magic paper and raised them simultaneously.
[8]
[9]
[9]
[10]
[10]
[10]
[9]
[9]
[10]
[10]
The total score was a whopping 94 points.
Cheers erupted from the excited audience.
“That’s an incredibly high score! Even the head professor, famous for not giving high scores, gave a whole 8 points!”
“Haven’t 95 points been the highest in this exam so far?”
“That’s the all-time highest! Most students who got 94 points also ended up as the top student!”
As expected, the Harimun School is taking this win, isn’t the match already over… such murmuring filled the venue.
But undeterred by the murmuring, not at all yielding, a courageous woman strode past Caden and stood before the professors.
It was the young lady of the Warden family, Krista.
‘I’ve fought against those with overwhelming talent many times before.’
And I won every time.
With my own weapon.
Except for one person. Today, I, Krista Warden, will defeat even that person and stand at the pinnacle.
“Are you ready to see the magic that will leave you no choice but to give me the top spot?”