"Do you realize just how absurd what you just said is?"
Shin Huzda asked with an incredulous expression.
"In the history of magic, only one mage has ever had an entire formula system as their unique magic."
"Yes, that would be Luna, the Founder of the Constellations."
The magical formulas currently in use were, in essence, the legacy of great mages who refined them over generations.
And in history, the only person to single-handedly achieve such a feat was Luna.
Claiming to create a new magic formula system was no different from declaring oneself equal to Luna.
"Do you think you're on the same level as the Founder of the Constellations?"
Lilda narrowed her eyes as she asked, and Leo shook his head.
"Of course not. Luna is a mage so great that I can’t even compare to her."
Leo, who understood Luna’s genius better than anyone, knew he couldn't even reach her shadow in terms of magic.
"But creating a formula system doesn’t require Luna’s level of genius."
Hearing that, Aideman chuckled.
"Then, can you show us this unique magic formula system of yours right now?"
At those words, Leo raised his palm.
Strands of gray mana extended outward, forming a structured formula.
The graduates, closely observing it, let out gasps of amazement.
"The basic structure is already established?"
"This isn’t just a simple copy."
Shin Huzda and Lilda analyzed the magic formula as they spoke.
The first-year students also tried to interpret Leo’s spell structure.
But soon, their heads started spinning.
'What kind of magic formula is this complicated?'
'Can something that complex even be activated?'
'I give up. I’m not even going to try to analyze it.'
The top-ranking students did their best to decipher Leo’s formula.
After a moment, Aideman spoke.
"You said your goal was to make a formula system that can harmonize with all elemental activation sequences?"
"Yes."
"Judging by the structure, it allows any magic to be used without penalties."
The first-years looked at Aideman in disbelief.
'Did he just figure out the entire formula structure at a glance?'
"That’s correct."
"That’s insane."
"Seeing it in action makes it even more ridiculous."
Lilda and Shin Huzda muttered.
But their eyes gleamed.
Magic was the art of making the impossible possible.
Attempts to overturn common sense always deserved recognition.
"Why did you create this magic system?"
"To be able to freely use all magic in existence."
"You really are out of your mind."
'But the core framework is complete. Is this what it means to be a genius?'
It was so outrageous that whether or not Leo could truly complete it remained uncertain.
But they liked it.
'A completely insane junior has appeared. Now I understand why the higher-ups have such high expectations for this class.'
A being that could use all spells.
Every mage had imagined it at least once.
But since it was an impossible dream, no one ever attempted it.
Yet now, a mage who dared to pursue that dream had appeared before them.
"What is the name of your unique magic?"
"Its name is Bible."
A magic system that only the great hero Kyle had used in history.
Hearing that, Aideman smirked.
"Leo Plov, A+."
***
"You actually got an A+ for that insane idea."
"The bigger the ambition, the better, right?"
"Even so, don’t you understand the concept of moderation?"
Karl clicked his tongue.
The Bible magic system wasn’t something Leo had developed from nothing—it had already been used by Kyle in the past.
'Right now, I can’t fully use it.'
Even in Kyle’s era, it had only been completed enough to be usable at his peak.
'And in the end, it remained incomplete.'
Because of its instability, Leo couldn’t wield it perfectly with his current abilities.
The magic formula he presented in this exam was merely the foundation of Bible.
'If I showed the original version, it would cause a complete uproar.'
Leo looked up at the podium.
Only one student remained.
"Presenter Chloe Muller. Please step forward."
Professor Ren called the final student.
"Ugh, now I feel nervous for no reason."
So far, only two students had received A+—Leo and Avad.
Both had presented grand-scale unique magic.
However, in terms of feasibility, Avad’s magic would naturally score higher.
In this situation, all eyes turned to Chloe, the top practical student of the first-year Magic Department.
Especially Karl, who had witnessed Chloe’s declaration of rivalry against Leo, felt even more tense.
"Hello, seniors."
Chloe gave a polite bow.
"Alright, Chloe. What have you prepared?"
"My unique magic is a fire-element spell."
At those words, murmurs erupted throughout the auditorium.
"Fire element?"
"Chloe is using fire magic?"
"That doesn’t make sense… Isn’t she an ice mage?"
"Why would she make her unique magic an opposing element?"
"Quiet! Quiet!"
As the auditorium grew noisy, Ren raised his voice to regain order.
Even Ren himself looked puzzled.
He, too, hadn’t expected Chloe’s unique magic to have this attribute.
"I will now demonstrate."
Chloe softly chanted a spell.
Whoosh—!
Crimson flames flickered into existence in midair.
"What kind of magic is this?"
Karl swallowed nervously as he focused.
Since it was Chloe’s magic, it had to be something incredible.
But the flames simply burned quietly without doing anything special.
"It’s… surprisingly normal?"
Lilda asked with a skeptical expression.
'I heard she was on par with Leo or Avad.'
Leo’s magic represented the dreams and ideals of a mage.
Avad’s magic represented the pinnacle of a mage’s strength.
Compared to those two, the spell Chloe was displaying seemed too ordinary.
"Why is this your unique magic?"
Aideman asked seriously, and Chloe responded.
"Now, I will show you its true nature."
Chloe smirked confidently and muttered something.
A mass of water formed in midair.
"Currently, this fire magic is receiving no mana supply. What do you think will happen if I pour water on it?"
"Obviously, it will be extinguished."
At Shin Huzda’s response, Chloe smiled and poured the water onto the flames.
Splash—!
The flames flickered out.
Whoosh—!
But instead of going out, they flared up even more fiercely.
"......!"
"......!"
Not only the graduates but also the students’ expressions changed drastically.
Leo’s face hardened instantly.
"How in the world did she do that?"
Lilda asked, still in shock, and Chloe answered.
"It’s my unique magic."
Proudly, Chloe extinguished the flames with her hand.
"Unless I want them to go out, these flames will never be extinguished."
"Wait! Wait! Chloe, are you saying… you’ve granted permanence to magic?"
Lilda’s eyes widened as she asked.
"Yes! Unless I will it, they will never go out!"
Magic was a system of structured formulas governed by laws.
As such, the concept of absolute permanence did not exist.
No matter what spell it was, if it lost its mana supply, it would eventually vanish.
But Chloe had created an unchanging structure within her magic formula.
She began explaining the structure of her magic.
Everyone focused intensely on her presentation.
'Impossible.'
As he listened, Leo muttered to himself.
He mentally reconstructed the formula Chloe described.
But no matter how he combined it, he couldn’t recreate an inextinguishable flame.
Even if it was a unique trait of Chloe’s mana, it was impossible.
As far as Leo knew, there was only one existence capable of producing flames that burned eternally.
'Erebus.'
That power could never be replicated through magic.
'Even Luna failed to accomplish it.'
"Chloe Muller, A+."
"Thank you!"
As the presentation wrapped up, Leo’s mind naturally drifted to the summoning practical exam.
"How did she even come up with that?"
Karl muttered in disbelief.
"Hey, Leo. Isn’t that insane?"
Karl turned to look at Leo.
"Leo?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah, it’s incredible."
"Why do you look so out of it?"
"It’s nothing."
Leo watched Chloe as she stepped down from the podium.
'I need to talk to her.'
***
That evening.
After finishing his meal, Leo left the boys’ dormitory and headed toward the girls’ dormitory.
"Huh? Leo? What brings you to the girls’ dorm?"
Celia, who was chatting with a friend on a bench near the entrance, approached him with a puzzled expression.
"Celia, sorry to trouble you, but could you call Chloe for me?"
"Chloe went to bed early today. She barely slept during the exam period."
"I see. Then can you tell her I’d like to see her before the exam tomorrow? I’ll be waiting at the entrance to the training grounds."
"Alright. But why do you need to see Chloe all of a sudden?"
"I just need to talk to her. Anyway, I’m heading back."
"Wait, Leo."
Celia stopped him.
"What is it?"
"Has something been going on with Chloe lately?"
"Why are you asking me? Shouldn’t you, as her classmate, know better?"
"She’s gotten into several fights with other students. At first, I thought it was just stress from exams, but it seems to be getting worse. And I also heard she’s been hanging around some shady people in the Magic Department lately."
'Chloe?'
Chloe had always been someone who looked out for others.
At the start of the semester, she had even helped Leo adjust to modern magic systems by studying with him after class.
Celia, too, had been frustrated at first when Chloe took the class leader position from her, but she had soon acknowledged Chloe’s leadership.
It was hard to imagine someone like her getting into frequent conflicts.
'First Karl, now Celia… Is something really going on?'
Deep in thought about Chloe, Leo returned to his dormitory.
He drew the curtain by the window, sat on his bed, and opened his palm.
Whoosh—!
A summoning circle made of flames appeared.
Piora peeked her head out of the summoning circle.
"Can you call your mother for me?"
Piora ducked back into the summoning circle.
A moment later, Pirina appeared.
"It’s been a while, Leo."
"Have you been well?"
Piora, perched on Pirina’s head in her human form, flapped her wings energetically.
Pirina watched her daughter with a loving expression.
"Ever since she was summoned by you, she won’t stop talking about how she grew bigger."
She gently set Piora down on Leo’s desk.
Piora waddled across the desk.
"So, Leo, why did you want to see me?"
"You know about the demonic beast that appeared during the summoning exam, right?"
"Yes, I heard a beast tamer tried to manipulate a Lumerne freshman."
Pirina’s expression turned sour.
As a spirit beast, Pirina found demonic beasts repulsive, and beast tamers even more so.
"You mentioned that you’re staying in Lumerne at the headmaster’s request, right? Could this be related?"
Pirina rested her chin on her hand.
Five years ago, Lumerne had suffered an attack.
The culprit had never been identified, and only a handful of people even knew the details.
The upper ranks of Lumerne were currently investigating whether the recent incident was connected to that past attack.
'I can’t tell a first-year student like Leo about this.'
"It’s too early to say if they’re related. And even if they are, I can’t tell you."
"I understand. I just need you to pass a message to the headmaster."
"What message?"
"Sen Liu might not be the only student targeted by Tartarus."
Pirina’s face darkened.
"Do you know something?"
"I’m not certain yet, so I can’t say for sure."
Just because Chloe had created an inextinguishable flame didn’t necessarily mean it was connected to Erebus.
Still, he had to report it to Lumerne’s upper ranks just in case.
After listening to Leo, Pirina, now deep in thought, picked up Piora and said,
"I will relay your message to Kalian."
End Of Chapter
