Vol 1 Chapter 5 – Magic

Lidia Linstar, eldest daughter of the Duke Linstar family, guardian of the kingdom’s southern region and my fated, exasperating acquaintance, is undoubtedly a genius.

She’s generally known as the ‘Sword Princess,’ leading many to believe her skills are limited to swordsmanship. However, by the age of seventeen, she had also mastered ‘Fire Phoenix,’ the pinnacle of fire-attribute magic and the symbol of the Linstar family.

In academics, too, she skipped a year at the Royal Academy and graduated as valedictorian. She’s also on track to graduate from the four-year university in three years (her enrollment was extended due to a national plea)—naturally, at the top of her class again.

I try not to praise her too much, as it tends to go to her head, but—she’s also strikingly beautiful. I must admit, I was unconsciously captivated the one time I saw her in a dress.

…Well, her attitude towards me is so abysmal that, in the end, my overall assessment of her plummets. But I digress.

As for Lidia and Her Highness’s aptitude—from my perspective, they’re evenly matched in academics.

Even if Lidia were to tackle the mock exam I prepared this time, I doubt she’d produce a better result than Her Highness did.

The Royal Academy’s entrance exam questions cover a wide range of subjects.

Magic, languages, history, economics, politics, ecology, meteorology… It’s no wonder prospective students give up on trying to prepare for it all.

However, the actual amount of knowledge one has isn’t that much of an issue.

Of course, you need to have the fundamentals down. You can score a certain number of points that way, after all.

However, there’s only one thing that ridiculously long-lived (I once asked, and he said, “I stopped counting after 300”) and utterly twisted Headmaster truly wants to know.

“Why do you want to enroll in this academy? And what will you show us after you graduate?”

That’s all it is. He’s merely asking this while camouflaging it with questions from various fields.

How do I know that, you ask?

…Because my answer based on that understanding got me in. Even though I made some dumb mistakes on the knowledge-based questions. The Headmaster even came out himself to assess me during the practical exam. Ah, the nostalgia.

Now then, regarding the mock exam this time, Her Highness answered nearly all the knowledge-based questions correctly.

That’s astounding at this stage. How many thirteen-year-olds in the entire kingdom can read Ancient Elvish (which was totally the Headmaster’s way of messing with people)?

And her essay, designed to counter the Headmaster’s question, was flawless. I can see why the Duke would want to keep her by his side.

…What should I do? My assignment is to make her give up, but seeing these results, I think it would be better for her to go to the Royal Capital and experience the wider world.

For now—I’ll decide after seeing her magic in action. Yes.

“I’ll return yesterday’s exam now. After that, I’ll explain a few things, and then we’ll practice magic.”

“Y-Yes!”

It’s all right. You don’t need to be so nervous.

When I handed back her paper with a flower mark drawn on it, her cheeks gradually flushed red. Apparently pleased, her hair started to move cutely.Twitch, twitch.

I sneakily recorded it with my recording orb.

“As you can see, Tina, you’re currently at a level where you’d pass the written exam—no, I’d say you could achieve a top-class score. Your essay, in particular, is outstanding. It’s a caliber you rarely see even in the Royal Capital.”

“Ah, um, thank you very much.”

“Minimal preparation should be fine for the written exam. So, from today, I think we’ll focus on practicing practical skills, especially magic.”

“Magic, you say…”

The cheerful movement of her hair stopped dead, and it seemed to droop dejectedly.

She must really lack confidence in it.

“First, let’s confirm the basics. Tina, please tell me the fundamental magical attributes.”

“Y-Yes. Magic is divided into the fundamental attributes of Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, and Lightning. Additionally, a very small number of people can manifest the special attributes of Light and Dark. From birth, people are largely aligned with one of these seven attributes, which determines their natural strengths and weaknesses.”

“And what about the Howard ducal family?”

“Our family line is strong in Water and Wind. The first Duke Howard specialized in those two, manifested the Ice attribute, and contributed to the founding of the nation.”

“That’s half correct. Well done.”

“Only half?”

If we’re going by what’s in the textbooks, it’s a perfect answer. But—the reality is a little different.

“First, this is just my own theory. It’s not in any textbooks, so please don’t go telling anyone else, okay?”

“Y-Yes.”

“You mentioned ‘fundamental attributes,’ Tina—but what exactly are they?”

“Huh? Aren’t they things that have been defined by research conducted since ancient times?”

“True. But then, what attribute would the temperature control I showed you in the carriage fall under?”

“I can only think of it as a combination of Fire, Water, and Wind attribute magic…”

“According to current theories, Fire and Water are opposing attributes, so they should be incredibly difficult to wield together.”

“Th-That’s because you’re amazing, sensei.”

“I’m not amazing at all. If we’re talking about magical power capacity alone, I’d probably rank among the lowest. I can’t even use high-level magic.”

My own magical power capacity is less than that of an average person. I can’t count the number of times my fated, exasperating acquaintance has tormented me over that… The only reason someone like me managed to graduate second in my class from the Royal Academy, despite everything, was probably because I did something completely out of left field.

“Please discard the idea of ‘attributes that suit you.'”

“Th-That’s…”

Well, I can understand why you’d be shocked.

After all, the idea that everyone has magical attributes they excel at is common knowledge. Being told to discard that isn’t something one can easily do.

…But what I’m about to say will probably be even harder to accept.

“When I was little, I once had a simple thought: ‘Why can people use magic?'”

“Th-That’s because people possess magical power, and they’ve strived since ancient times to master its use!”

“Really?”

“Y-Yes, really!”

Her Highness retorted defensively.

She reminds me a bit of my younger sister when she was little. She used to be so cute back then…

“My theory is this: ‘Magic is simply something people borrow, using their magical power as collateral.'”