[London, England — July 2014]
The week dragged on at a snail's pace.
Richard spent most of it reconnecting with his parents and sister, though his mind often wandered elsewhere.
He found himself daydreaming about stumbling upon a dungeon or joining a hunting expedition and making up for lost time. But no matter how restless he felt, he kept those urges in check.
Without a hunter's licence, he couldn't participate in any expeditions—not legally, anyway—and the last thing he needed was to draw unwanted attention.
Which was precisely why Richard Blackwood, known to the world as Astralis, was actually looking forward to today:
His first official magic class.
With beginners.
Newbies who are probably still F-rank. Bloody hell. How low have I fallen?
But if training alongside rookies was the price for a hunter's licence, he'd pay it gladly.
And once I get my hands on that damned piece of plastic, I'll start grinding. Just wait for me, King. I'll catch up in no time.
The classroom Richard was directed to at the Mage Guild was brighter than he had anticipated. A dozen glowing orbs hovered overhead, bathing rows of polished desks in a warm, golden light. Chalkboards, slightly worn from repeated cleaning, lined the far wall, covered with complex diagrams and half-erased magical formulae.
Richard took a seat near the back, pulling the hood of his cloak forward to shield his face from casual scrutiny. A dozen other trainees were already milling about, chatting animatedly or exchanging nervous glances.
Are they even adults? he thought, though he wasn't much older himself.
What set him apart was his experience…
The instructor, a tall woman in her early twenties with stern features and an impeccably crisp mage's robe, strode confidently into the room, silencing the chatter with a single glance.
"Good morning, everyone," she began crisply. "My name is Meredith Blackwood, and I will be your instructor for the duration of this programme."
Richard's eyes widened slightly at the introduction. His sister hadn't mentioned she would be teaching the introductory class.
He caught Meredith's quick, subtle wink. What is she playing at?
"As you are all aware," Meredith continued, her voice ringing with authority, "this is the best introductory course for aspiring mages. Whether you manage to remain within these halls"—a faint smile tugged at her lips—"or not, that choice lies entirely with you."
A ripple of nervous energy passed through the class. Richard noticed a few students exchange anxious looks, clearly questioning their own resolve.
"Magic is humanity's most versatile weapon against monsters," Meredith went on. "But it demands discipline, sacrifice, and unwavering commitment. These lessons will only take a year—a year that will test you and push you beyond your limits. Those who succeed will stand leagues ahead of any average hunter. Those who don't… they will need to find somewhere else to learn."
She's pulling no punches, Richard mused, watching the darkening expressions all around him.
"All right," Meredith said, stepping away from the blackboard. Her gaze swept across the group, calm yet unyielding. "Let's address a few points straight away. First, many of you are whispering about the other class—yes, there is a second group about four months ahead. They started earlier this year, and of their original forty, only twenty remain."
Though the orbs lit the classroom in a welcoming glow, the mood felt anything but cosy. Most of the students had gone pale—her earlier warning about failing now seemed far more real.
Richard noticed the flicker of alarm on the face of a nearby student, a ginger-haired girl gripping her pencil so tightly her knuckles shone white. He understood the feeling; he, too, had once been a bright-eyed recruit thrown into the deep end. Though I was never quite this green.
Meredith folded her arms. "If you pass your exams in the first month, you'll be granted a Basic Mage's Licence—equivalent to an E-rank hunter's licence. That at least allows you to take on small contracts or join low-level expeditions. By the year's end, you'll have the chance to improve your standing—potentially rising to C-rank, or if you excel…" Her lips curved into a tight smile. "Perhaps even B-rank."
A hand shot up from the front row—belonging to a timid-looking lad with curly hair. "Excuse me, Instructor. What licence did you earn when you were a student here?"
Meredith paused, glancing briefly at Richard with an almost imperceptible grin, then focused on the student. "I obtained the Advanced Mage Licence. For those of you who don't know, it's equivalent to A-rank. It's exceptionally rare—so rare that no one else here has managed it."
A wave of admiration and apprehension spread through the trainees. Richard suppressed an amused snort. Show-off. Yet he couldn't deny a swell of pride at seeing how far his sister had come.
"Why is the programme so… intense?" another student ventured, brow furrowed. "Other institutions spend years training their mages, but here we're told we have only one year—or less, if we fail."
Meredith's gaze hardened. "Because this is the Mage Guild—the best magic academy in existence. Our head believes that if you can't meet our standards in one year, you'll never meet them. Harsh? Perhaps. But it works. Of every class, only those with true grit remain. And they go on to become the pioneers of our Class."
She let her words hang in the silence before continuing.
"We'll begin with basics," Meredith announced, drawing a rune in the air with deft fingers. A shimmering light lingered momentarily before fading. "This is Spark, an F-rank spell. By the end of today, you'll each have mastered it well enough to light your way. If not…"
She then proceeded to summon twenty dusty tomes from her inventory. "If you have another F-rank spell that you don't wish to exchange for Spark, that's fine. However, you'll have to show sufficient mastery over it."
In the end, everyone went to the table and consumed a tome for the Spark ability.
Everyone, that was, except Richard.
He received a few curious looks from his classmates, but he paid them no mind.
Meredith had everyone attempt the spell one by one, pointing out their mistakes with a surprising amount of patience. She took the time to correct their incantations.
"Remember," she said, "there are three ways to cast a magic ability. You can call out its name like a normal ability, say it silently in your mind, or draw its sigil—assuming it has one. I told you all to incant aloud because it's the easiest of the three."
Some of the young mages tried casting the spell with sigil movements, their faces scrunching in concentration as they attempted to replicate Meredith's motions. A few managed weak sparks, earning encouraging nods.
When Richard's turn came, he simply raised his hand, shaping it like a pistol. In the next instant, a small fireball shot from his index finger.
Meredith paused, eyebrow arched. "Impressive."
Richard merely gave a slight shrug and smiled back, ignoring the envious looks.
What did they expect? There was no way I'd lounge about all day at home when Meredith was close by and easy to convince to train me.
…
Name: Richard Blackwood
Class: Mage
Sub-class: Apprentice (3/5)
Sub-class: Astralis (Unique), Stars: 5/7 (+1)
Level: 88 (S Class)
Stats:
STR: 150 (+21) | DEX: 130 (+35) | INT: 100 (+25) | WIS: 90 (+28)