Book 4 Chapter 9
Episode 83
I had no magical talent whatsoever.
It wasn't like the stories of many sages or archmages, where I'd mastered equations at six or become a 4-star mage at thirteen…
It was clear to anyone that I lacked the talent even to dream of such grand things.
“Hello, Miss Warden. My name is Caroline. I will be your magic teacher starting today.”
When I decided to pursue magic, my father sought out a woman named Caroline in the magic world and invited her to be my magic teacher.
Her resume was brilliant.
She had received magic education in her childhood from Madellia Page, who was renowned as a genius, and had graduated top of her class from <Delighten> last year.
“Now, Christa. You must greet your teacher.”
I didn't want to exchange meaningless pleasantries. I had a more important question to ask then.
“Excuse me…”
“Yes?”
“Can someone without talent become a genius mage respected by everyone…?”
Then Caroline, who had been smiling brightly, gave Christa several math problems and told her to solve them.
“There are some reference books with formulas here for whenever you get stuck, so feel free to look at them as you go.”
“All by myself?”
“You have to solve them all by yourself. No matter how long it takes. Then I will answer the question Christa asked.”
The problems were far beyond basic content, the kind that would typically be covered in advanced classes. I spent a grueling two months on them.
Cutting down on sleep, I studied the foundational formulas on my own, repeatedly attempting university-level problems.
I didn't give up.
Nor did I get discouraged.
I knew I had no talent, so it was purely stubborn determination to solve all of them, even out of spite.
During that time, Caroline just read a book or trained her own magic, offering no advice whatsoever.
“Heehee, it took you a total of 72 days.”
“…”
“Your solution method is interesting, but all five problems are wrong.”
I had been expecting a surprised expression and praise from the teacher, but for a moment, it felt as if my vision went dark.
“Now that I’m in a position to be your master, I won’t give you false hope and will tell you clearly. Christa, you cannot become a genius mage. Because you are not a genius to begin with.”
“…?!”
“You cannot live like the geniuses who left their mark on history. It would be quicker to give up.”
And when I heard those words, it felt like being hit on the head with a tool. For a moment, I couldn't think of anything, and then my eyes welled up.
I felt wronged.
And more than that, I was sad.
I turned my body to hide my tears and tried to run away, but Caroline grabbed my shoulder with an expression completely devoid of her usual amusement.
“But what if you're not a genius?”
Then she approached the stopped Christa, knelt on one knee, and met her gaze sincerely.
“In these 72 days, I saw more infinite potential in Christa than genius.”
The contradiction in her words left me dumbfounded. A tearful shout burst out.
“You said I’m not a genius! Then what potential are you talking about?!”
“It’s courage.”
“Courage?”
“The courage not to give up, the courage to keep challenging… some call it perseverance, others call it effort.”
“…Is that better than being a genius?”
“It’s not. But it can catch up to a genius.”
If a genius travels ten li a day and rests, we just need to travel ten li without resting. What if a genius crosses the sea in a sailing ship? We just need to row a raft to follow them.
“Ultimately, the destination is set. It will surely be difficult and arduous, but we can catch up someday.”
“…Really?”
“Of course. I am the proof. I also heard my master scold me for being a hopeless dullard over a hundred times.”
Caroline, who had been watching Christa's wry laugh, suddenly hugged the girl's small body tightly and patted her back.
“It’s okay, even if you’re not a genius. You might not become a genius mage, but you will certainly become the best mage. I will help you become that.”
It's okay.
You can do it.
The best mage whom everyone looks up to. And the path of your life will shine a light in the despair of future mages.
Ah, we can do it too… such a light.
A light of longing flickered in Caroline's eyes as she briefly recalled the distant past.
Not in that dark and despairing past, but in the present, the evaluation of the fruits of the girl's efforts was in full swing.
“Christa Warden’s magic is 3-star, isn’t it?”
Chief Professor Marhena first looked at the magic circle, then handed the *hwaseonji* (Korean paper) to the other professors so they could see it.
“Student Christa’s magic circle is quite beautiful too. What should I say, it's overflowing with dignity.”
“A combination of squares, circles, and octagons, a triple attribute mixing Earth, Water, and Steel attributes.”
“But its foundation is 3-star… Can it really beat Student Caden’s 4-star magic? There’s bound to be a difference in sheer volume.”
That was a valid point.
Elin Ludwig (who was excluded from judgment due to kinship) also nodded her head.
“It’s not necessarily a disadvantage to use higher-ranked magic.”
It's a disadvantage because it's hard to perfectly achieve the aesthetic effect like Caden, but if successful, it can create a difference in class that lower-ranked magic simply cannot match.
‘If Harimoon’s little kid made a mistake challenging a high-ranked magic, there would have been a flaw, but now that he's succeeded like that…’
It was then.
“No, this is not a simple 3-star magic.”
Sub-Professor Kyle, who had been meticulously examining the magic circle with interest, said that, then infused magic into the circle as if it was quicker to see for himself.
“…?!”
“…?!”
“…?!”
First, an iron-colored ripple spread across the ground, and countless steel frames rose like snakes, creating a foundation.
As if flesh were being laid upon it, golden and blue curtains intertwined chaotically, dancing.
And when that dizzying light show ended, a magnificent mansion suddenly appeared in the Dragon Blood Arena.
“I tried to conjure my family’s mansion with magic.”
The spectators stared blankly at the mansion, then let out gasps of awe that threatened to take their breath away.
“It’s grand, it’s grand!”
“Even from a distance, you can tell it’s incredible!”
“That can be created with magic?!”
Even the late disciples of the Eight Great Schools, who had a thorough understanding of magic and were Christa Warden's peers, were equally surprised.
“What detail… I’d believe it was a real mansion?”
Elegant curves spread throughout every corner of the fortress-like mansion with five square towers, showcasing aristocratic beauty to its fullest.
A large hall with a high ceiling, opened to receive the energy of the mountains and rivers, brilliantly reflected the sunlight, and the wisteria vines covering the mansion's exterior glowed with fresh, vibrant green as if alive.
And at key locations, the Warden family crest, a fortress, was intricately engraved, scattering golden light. The professors poured out lavish praise.
“This is no longer merely the realm of magic. It rivals the realm of architecture!”
“The mathematical equations used are planar coordinates, rational functions, and… Lin's infinite function? Is that masterpiece derived from such advanced mathematical equations?”
Lin's infinite function, they said…
A wave of gasps of admiration spread through the audience. Was she able to use that formula, which was not just abstruse but also said to drive people mad?
The preface of a famous book dealing with Lin's infinite function even stated:
[Hunis, who studied Lin's infinite function his entire life, committed suicide in 1268. Willa Blado, who took over from him, died young at 36 from a nervous disorder. Now it is your turn, who opens this book.]
But amidst that wave of exclamations, only one person voiced a different opinion.
“No. The mathematical equations are important, but they are not the core. What needs to be noted here are the runes.”
It was Sub-Professor Kyle.
As everyone's attention focused on him, he floated glowing characters in the air using his specialty magic.
[Joo (呪), Seon (嬗), Go (錮)]
The professors who recognized the meaning of these runes opened their mouths one by one. Kyle nodded.
“All the runes Student Christa used in this magic are double runes.”
“You’ve noticed it well. That’s right. First, for the steel attribute magic, I used the Joo (呪) rune. With its two properties of ‘wishing’ and ‘cursing’, it can simultaneously control the strength and durability of the steel bars.”
As Christa explained with an arrogant expression, the students began to murmur.
“That, that rune…”
“Certainly in the preliminary round…”
The one most enraged (?) by this was none other than Kasena Page.
“What! That’s the rune Rein taught me! That hateful person copied it!”
Professor Caroline smiled, *heehee*.
‘Don’t get so heated. That’s how ordinary people like us fight.’
Unlike geniuses who are born with everything, ordinary people have nothing. They have no choice but to desperately find weapons to fight with in their surroundings.
‘That piece of sh*t… has she absorbed every performance Rein Ludwig showed since coming to school as a driving force for her growth?’
Professor Owen’s lips twitched as if he found it truly amusing.
‘At the beginning of the semester, the importance of compatibility between runes and magic circles, and for the final exam, the infinite applications of double runes…!’
Does this mean she didn't waste a single experience of failure? That instead of getting frustrated, she learned from those failures?
‘What a truly amazing subject. That simpleton will also soon become one of the great leaders of the magic world.’
Christa continued her explanation.
“And the Seon (嬗) rune used in Earth magic has two properties, ‘connecting’ and ‘changing’, which became the key to elevating such qualitative and quantitative details with a single attribute magic.”
And Chief Professor Marhena completed the final explanation.
“The Go (錮) rune used in Water attribute magic has the properties of ‘soldering’ and ‘binding’… with this, you filled water only in the necessary parts, didn’t you?”
“Yes. And Lin’s infinite function, true to a formula that handles infinite numbers, can be extended and used as much as one desires. I used that to complete the details.”
I see, so that’s it.
All the visual beauty visible to the eye is a product derived from the caster’s overwhelming mathematical and magical knowledge, truly a treasure trove of thought.
‘Is this the potential the young heroine, who will be responsible for the future of the Warden family, is showing us…?’
It’s natural that the volume of this magic is rich. Double runes in all three attributes… it’s like using two 3-star magics.
Finally, Marhena nodded to the professors.
The professors each picked up their brushes, scribbled scores on the *hwaseonji*, and raised them simultaneously.
[9]
[9]
[10]
[10]
[10]
[10]
[9]
[10]
[9]
[9]
The professors' final judgment scores… a total of 95 points. A frantic roar erupted from the audience.
“The Chief Professor gave a 9! It’s an unprecedented event!”
“She beat 4-star magic with 3-star magic and reached the highest score ever?!”
“Doesn’t this just mean Warden wins?!”
Lorelei of the Harimoon faction slumped down, looking disheartened, but it wasn't an incomprehensible result.
‘Art inherently involves personal taste… and Lady Warden’s was excellent enough to compare to Caden’s.’
Christa couldn’t hide her excitement either, her face flushed red, but she soon bit her lip to calm herself.
‘It’s not that easy… as long as that person is still there.’
Since entering <Delighten>, Christa had always showcased her best performance.
But.
However.
Each time, there was a genius who overtook her as if to show off. That was.
‘Rein Ludwig…!’
Will I beat you this time?
Or will I follow behind again?
As if to answer that question, a black-haired handsome boy walked between Christa and Caden and stood before the judges.
“I’m not confident as I lack artistic sense, but I still tried my best to prepare.”
And as if a child was showing off a hidden treasure, he concealed a shy smile with a cough and presented his *hwaseonji*.
“This is what I consider beautiful.”