By Zephyria 
The remaining vacation days were spent appeasing two little ones who were furious with their useless older siblings for being away for a fortnight, even after coming all the way to the capital.
For her younger siblings, who were sulking because they hadn’t been allowed to see their Debutante, she once again dressed them up from head to toe.
They spun around the townhouse’s banquet hall together, and they danced to music. At first, they held hands while dancing, but later, they ended up with arms draped over shoulders, bouncing around.
She played with the children until they were thoroughly exhausted and panting, barely earning their forgiveness.
She also handed Marianne, who had come to return a dress, several Artifacts. These were some of the items with warming or cold-proofing spells, from the ring and necklace she had received as birthday gifts, which she gave with her parents’ permission.
Marianne earnestly promised to repay this kindness several times, earning her Mother’s favor. I felt that it was enough as long as the child didn’t get hurt, but I didn’t refuse it outright.
January quickly passed, and the new semester began.
Since the timetable had already been set the previous semester, it was a more relaxed start than ever before. It felt empty without Rubel coming to meddle with my schedule.
I sat with the children as they decided on their timetables, looking through the course syllabi together.
I had already arranged to take Advanced Swordsmanship on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, and private lessons with Maelo Sanson on Mondays and Tuesdays, and with Douglas Mustang on Thursdays and Fridays.
The children expressed great disappointment upon hearing that I had scheduled Professor Calypse Agrigent’s Imperial Genealogy class as usual on Wednesday afternoons, followed by time with Wilton Roberts.
“Are there no classes we can take together in the mornings? Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays are open.”
“Usually, we take major courses in the morning and non-major courses in the afternoon. Besides, I can’t exactly tell Mikael to take a class from the Academic Department. There is a lecture on poetry on Monday, but…”
“Hmm.”
Poetry. I had no talent for memorizing Sijo. I shook my head, thinking it was absurd. However, Ivan quickly picked up on Jenny’s words.
“It might be alright… How about a Business Department class? On Wednesdays and Fridays mornings, there’s a class on store management. You learn ledger calculation and hiring methods needed to manage multiple stores.”
“No, thank you.”
“How about a Law Department class, Mikael? Shierun’s Criminal Law is on Mondays and Wednesdays…”
“What use would I have for learning that?”
“It would be very helpful in life if you knew. What if you suddenly get involved in a criminal case?”
“No, you have to make sense.”
Taken aback, I narrowed my eyes and looked around at the children who were teasing me.
They all laughed mischievously, as if they had just said it for fun. Amidst them, Marianne thrust a piece of paper in front of my nose. Her excited eyes sparkled like a puppy seeing snow for the first time.
“Understanding Circles! Do you want to take this? You learned how to deploy the Freezing Magic Formula in your first year, Mikael. This seems like a good one, doesn’t it?”
“…Yes?”
It wasn’t an entirely nonsensical suggestion.
I took the paper she handed me and read it. It was a class taught by Professor Angela Sting. Monday, Wednesday, Friday mornings. The timing was perfect.
The Freezing Magic Formula, which I had learned under her guidance, was now so familiar that I could deploy it within five seconds. Noticing my interest, Marianne smiled brightly and acted cute.
“It’s a basic class, but I’m taking it because it’s Professor Angela Sting’s class. I’ll have to go back and forth to the Department of Magic, but if my afternoon classes are private lessons, I can set aside time for lunch, right? Surely Professor Sanson and Professor Mustang wouldn’t deny me mealtime?”
“…Hmm. What kind of class is it?”
“It’s about the reasons and principles behind rotating circles, and the types of spells you can learn and master according to each circle’s stage. It’s theory-only, no practical application.”
“…”
“You want to take it, right? You’re drawn to it, aren’t you? Curious?”
“…Mmm.”
“It’s something you can only learn at Shierun Academy. When else will you get to take something like this? It seems like it would be incredibly useful when sparring with wizards, doesn’t it? And when I become an Archmage, you’ll have to spar with me too.”
She chattered on and on. Finally, I let out a wry laugh and nodded.
“Yes. I’ll take it.”
Ivan, who had been watching from the side, clicked his tongue and asked, “Are you really dreaming of becoming a sword mage?”
“That’s not it… I’m curious about the similarities and differences between Mana and Aura. I think it might help me reach the next realm.”
Jenny, who had been observing the situation, whined regretfully, and Damian added a playful taunt.
“Aww~! That’s unfair! We can’t take it!”
“This is an outrage, an outrage. I will lodge a formal protest.”
“You should have learned some magic beforehand then.”
“What?”
Laughter erupted. I laughed too. It really was a good decision to keep wizards close.
As I looked over the children’s timetables together, I chimed in on discussions about how to study for exams and when to meet for assignments.
❖ ❖ ❖
Monday of the first week of February.
As soon as I entered the classroom, Professor Angela Sting, who had been staring at me for a long time before I could even greet her, hid her expression behind a handout she was holding, then peeked out again.
A faint smile spread across her face. Feeling awkward and embarrassed, I smiled back quietly.
Some of the children filling the classroom covered their laughter with coughs.
“…Ah, it’s really… been a while… Young Master Ernhardt…”
“Yes, Professor. I will do my best.”
“Mmm… Seeing you after so long… is truly… a pleasure… It’s wonderful that a student from the Swordsmanship Department shows such enthusiasm for my class…”
“Thank you.”
“…”
…Is this really a class I’m allowed to take?
The professor’s reaction was very strange, so I looked back at Marianne in the next seat, but she was just smiling brightly. I decided to trust her lips, which seemed to be saying, “It’s okay, it’s okay.”
After a moment, Angela Sting, alternating her gaze between the blackboard and the handout, calmly took her place at the lectern.
Angela Sting clapped her thumb and index finger together, and a handout appeared on the desk. I felt a sense of delight at the miraculous technique, experienced after a long time.
“Then, first… let’s learn about the concept of Circles…?”
I opened my notebook and picked up my pen.
A Circle was a concentric circle drawn around the Middle Dantian, centered on the heart.
All magic was activated by drawing Mana from afar, using the heart as an axis to form a concentric circle, then infusing Mana into the spell formula drawn with the fingertips, and finally expelling it outside the body through the Circle.
I had just followed the instructions without thinking, but now I finally understood the reason.
“…Once Mana is used like this, unlike pure Mana, its properties are transformed, giving it repulsive force… Mana whose properties have been transformed like this is called Contaminated Mana…”
Professor Angela Sting projected a bluish human model. Green smoke entered the person’s chest, circled once, moved to the arms, turned red, and returned to the chest, spinning around.
“…This Contaminated Mana undergoes a reverse transformation process to return to nature, and if this process is handled incorrectly, Mana reflux occurs… We practice sending Mana far away to conduct the reverse transformation process outside the body.”
It was like washing clothes with water; if you don’t discard the dirty lye promptly, you’ll be left with it. The explanation, delivered in a calm voice, was detailed and gentle, making it easy to understand.
In addition, we learned about the structural principles of Circles and the types of spells that could be learned and mastered at each Circle stage, and how they corresponded to the realms of Swordsmanship.
Magic was a discipline that could only be practiced after sufficient study and training enabled one to see the immaterial realm. Upon starting, one immediately became a 1st Circle, which was equivalent to the realm of a Second-rate Warrior.
2nd Circle was the level of a Second-rate Warrior, and 3rd and 4th Circles were equivalent to a First-rate Warrior. 5th Circle was the highest level of Sword Expert, equivalent to Edwin Kiadris when we sparred, meaning the Peak realm, and 6th Circle was on par with a Sword Master, considered the Transcendent Peak.
I remembered hearing that Marianne was a 1st Circle Master and at the beginning of 2nd Circle throughout her first year. Curious, I asked her current realm through written notes, and she smiled and wrote the number 3.
3rd Circle. That meant she had become a First-rate Warrior in the meantime. I smiled fondly at the girl who was boasting about memorizing 4th Circle Magic Formulas these days. I was very pleased to learn that Marianne had cultivated her magic diligently and steadily, more so than I had realized.
We learned in detail about each Circle stage and heard explanations of the structure and principles of Circles. Some parts were vague, while others were things I knew from personal experience. The class was fascinating and enjoyable throughout.
However, I was dumbfounded when Professor Angela Sting handed me a separate printout after the first class.
“…This is…”
“Since this is your graduation year… I can’t look over it for you like before… I’d like you to memorize this many spells beforehand, Young Master Ernhardt…”
“…Yes. Thank you.”
I calmly accepted the printout.
It was filled with things like Op-Zeinon, which I had briefly seen before but could no longer remember. I found myself watching Professor Angela’s retreating back, who left with a gentle smile, for quite some time.
Was she asking me to memorize a thousand words?
Marianne, who glanced at the printout in my hand, smiled brightly.
“Ah, it really only has basic words. Words for 2nd Circle and below have three or fewer syllables, so they’re relatively easy to pronounce and memorize. You’ll do it quickly, don’t worry.”
“…”
I fought the urge to pinch her arm and scold her, as she always did to me.
The thought of being happy that there would be almost no exams this semester felt like a distant memory.