***Hyperion Empire***

***Imperial Academy***

Mr. Strain dived straight into instruction. “Every single mage throughout Aramin will have a different opinion on what magic is, and more importantly, where mana comes from. I will first start by introducing you all to a culmination of the most popular ideas on what exactly magic encompasses.”

“To even address the question of the magic, must one define the existence of mana. Where exactly does mana come from? Why does everyone in the world have at least some capability to use mana? Why do magical beasts exists? You see, there is no one solid answer to all these questions, but there is a theory based on thousands of years of collected research by thousands of mages and scholars throughout the world.”

He then turned to a girl with brown hair and green eyes sitting in the second row. “Ms. Wickes. What year is it?”

The girl instantly responded. “977 OE.”

“Correct. Now tell me, Ms. Wickes, what does OE represent?”

The girl now scowled and remained silent, eventually taking a guess to save herself. “Origin Expedition?”

Mr. Strain frowned. “Incorrect Ms. Wickes. The answer is Origin Establishment.” He then gazed at the entire class. “I will remind you all that you are in class 1-A now, recognized the most gifted and exceptional out of your peers, Origin Theory should be less than a review to you. Do not limit yourselves.”

Turning back to the board Mr. Strain continued his speech. “Where exactly does mana come from? The most commonly accepted answer is the Origin Theory. You will find that many countries throughout multiple continents follow the theory. Even here in Mavaos, all powers save the Elven Kingdom practice under its guidelines.”

“The Origin Theory was officially established by Archmage Brent during the Mavaos Warring Era. Said to be the the founder of what we know as the Mages Union today, the man revolutionized common knowledge of mana. You see, one of the greatest causes of political war is ideological differences, and Archmage Brent sought to change that. Although conflict arose due to multiple factors, the Archmage surely saved the lives of hundreds of thousands by producing a theory that mana did not come from the ethereal powers that be, but just the opposite. Leaders of the time placed more faith in their gods, goddesses, and titans than anything else, because that’s all they knew. Archmage Brent’s Origin Theory removed the omnipotent powers of what we know to be god’s today. All beings are formed by the world, god's included. No one’s personal beliefs are any greater than the rest, and thousands of mages and scholars from multiple factions could not argue with the evidence presented by Brent. Everyone had long grown tired of war, and were looking for something to believe in.”

Mr. Strain continued writing in shorthand as he called out Reann. “Ms. Arshan, I couldn’t help but notice the juvenile magical beast on your shoulder, tell me, is it your bonded companion?”

The man wasn’t looking at him so Reann was forced to speak. “Y-yes.”

“I see. So Ms. Arshan, I would assume you were required to venture to meet the Arachnid Queen. Am I correct in making that assumption?”

“Yes.”

“You can avoid specifics, but in a broad sense where does the Queen live?” The older man asked.

The Arachnid Nest was a better kept secret in the Arshan Family. The girl answered as broadly as possible to avoid potential disaster befalling her. “Un-underground.”

“Would you say it was deep underground?” The man queried, now looking straight at the girl.

Reann just lightly nodded, refusing to release any more details on the subject.

“I thank you for answering my questions, Ms. Arshan.” The balding man said, he then turned to Max. The boy had sort of been listening, but he knew Origin Theory already. At the moment he was writing possible ideas in improving his light-bending technique to disguise his sword. “Mr. Soltain.” The man called. Max then looked up from his notes and stopped writing.

“Could you care to enlighten the class on where the Elotl Griffins reside?”

Max shrugged, it was blatantly obvious. “They live high up in the mountains.” He then decided to brag a little. “I climbed all the way up ten-thousand steps alone to reach the top, it was even above the clouds. Pretty easy if you ask me.” The Ryzalon boy a few seats to his right snorted in disbelief while the rest of the class entertained his boasting with mild chatter.

Mr. Strain ignored his comment and focused on the location. “So we have two powerful clans of magical beasts, one living deep underground, and the other living as high on land as possible. Next I will ask, can anyone tell me where dungeons are located? New or old, it doesn’t matter.”

Kana and Juliet both rose their hands yet Mr. Strain chose the fox girl this time. “Underground.” She answered.

The man wrote that down, drawing a physical representation of powerful magical beasts such as dragons and griffins living in extremely high altitudes, and arachnids and basilisks living in extremely low altitudes. He then drew a box and labeled it Dungeon, and had an arrow pointing down beside the box.

“Can anyone tell me what the rule of thumb is when exploring a dungeon in the Adventurer's Guild?” The instructor asked.

This time it was the only elf in the class whose hand shot up. Mr. Strain gestured to the white-haired girl. “Ms. Holt, if you would.”

“The deeper the dungeon goes underground, the more dangerous it get’s.” Kathryn recited.

The man smiled and drew and X at the end of the arrow pointing downward. “That is correct.”

He then circled his entire altitude sketch. “I am not an artist, but I find this diagram to be just as useful in understanding the first part of Origin Theory as in essay or argument.” The board was filled with his scribbles and shorthand, so the man brushed his hands and walked to the podium. He then opened his book and turned to a marked page.

“The Origin Theory is as follows, all mana is a type of energy, a power that can be neither created nor destroyed. The only true measure that could be made of mana is its concentration. Concentration throughout the world constantly fluctuates, but there are two places known to humanoids in which mana is unceasing. Places in which mana originates, the first a power everyone sees everyday, and that is the sun. The sun is both a cause and effect of magic and releases just as much mana as it absorbs. The second is what we call the ‘Aramin’s Core’, it is a power we will never see, yet is far closer to us than the sun, and as Brent puts it ‘The internal blaze’. Mana is at it’s most dense in these two positions, and all mana cycles through the world to begin and end at the same points. The most powerful of magical beasts reside at the extremes of the world because that is where mana is thickest, and natural dungeons form underground from both the mutation and evolutions of magical beasts and the landscape itself. Every sentient being today is a mutation and by-product of the fluctuations of mana density, all are different evolutions from the progenitors.”

“This leads to the second part of the Origin Theory. Who and what are the gods, goddesses, and titans? And how are these existences truly affiliated to what we know as bloodline families?” Mr. Strain asked, and before Kana or Juliet could raise their hands, he called the red-eyed boy. “Mr. Ryzalon, as a member of the Ryzalon family who does your family claim relation to?”

The boy smiled. “We of House Ryzalon are descendants of the Great Phoenix Titan, a being who has long passed consciousness into the ethereal and watches and guides over us. The Grea-”

Mr. Strain continued, he had gotten the answer he wanted. “Right. Mr. Fafnir and who does your family claim relation to?”

The wolfkin scratched the back of his head. “I was told we were related to both the Goddess of the Hunt and the Wolf Titan.”

“Thank you.” The older man nodded at the short answer.

“I am sure most of you have at least seen some connection by now. What we consider gods, goddesses, and titans, were sentient beings that lived long ago. They were people and magical beasts just like us, yet we have no evidence to their true appearances. Though one conclusion can be made from their existences, they were not omnipotent existences as some of the more religiously inclined would chose to believe. No, they were progenitors. They were beings with an extremely strong connection to mana, a connection that strengthened themselves in all capacities. A link that caused a racial evolution, marking the beginnings of what we know to be bloodline clans. All bloodline families are blessed with a deeper mana infusion and absorption abilities. But why do these clans have larger mana pools than most? Why do the possess such unyielding longevity? The answer is quite simple. The primary difference between bloodline families and other mortals is the fact that their bodies passively channel mana, thus already reinforcing all parts of themselves without drawing from their own mana pools. They are both assisted and replenished by the environment around them, always in a resting state.”

Mr. Strain took a breath and glanced out the window, there was a patrol of guards passing by and their bright armor glared inside. “Who could tell me what mana channeling is?”

Kana and Juliet both shot up their hands. Mr. Strain scratched the podium with his finger, who did he choose last? “Ms. Granitas.”

“Everyone has the ability to channel mana, yet some are naturally more talented at it than others. To channel mana is to utilise the mana stored inside ourselves for internal and external applications. Channeling mana is a large part of magic.”

“What are the types of magic?” The man asked.

Both’s girls hands went up. “Ms. Kumio.”

“The categories of magic are as follows: devastation, alteration, summoning, rejuvenation, and delusion.”

“Do these categories cover all forms of magic, Ms. Kumio?”

Kana shook her head. “No sir. Magic is too extensive to be cemented in any categories, there are things we as a society will never fully understand, and magic tops that list. The five categories just help for mages to identify mana manipulation.”

“Astute answers from both Ms. Granitas and Ms. Kumio, thank you for your contribution to the discussion. Now... let us have some physical demonstrations of magic, shall we? Who among the class can give your fellow students an example of devastation magic?”

Most of the boys in the room raised their hands, yet Arthur was asleep and Max was too busy working on his light-sword ideas. Mr. Strain chose a blonde hair boy right next to him in front. “Mr. Bristol, please stand in the front of the class and show us your abilities.”

The boy was obviously excited to finally get up from his chair, and he practically skipped next to the podium. Putting his right hand in front of him, he started mumbling under his breath the incantation of his planned spell. “Bless me God of Lightning, for I beseech you a sliver of your might.” He channeled a ‘Lightning Spark’ and a small ball of blue lightning moved around his hand. The boy was smiling and proud of his spell, and some in the class were clapping.

Max grimaced. Gods know how far ahead he was from that kid.

Mr. Strain directed the boy back to his seat. “Thank you, Mr. Bristol. As I am sure you all know, devastation magic is the most commonly seen form of magic in the world. Channeling mana from ourselves into a physical form, one can easily form spells related to their affinity. Also, through the use of much more mana, can create physical spells of other elements. Now I will ask, can anyone in class present a demonstration of a rejuvenation spell?”

The young Soltain was pseudo-surprised to see two other students in class with the ability to cast rejuvenation spells. A brown haired girl who sat in front of him, and the red-eyed Ryzalon boy. Mr. Strain pointed at the Ryzalon heir and waved him over. “Mr. Ryzalon, if you would.” He then stabbed himself in the palm with his own pen. A slight trickle of blood ran down his hand, and a few of the more squeamish girls in class looked away.

The red-eyed boy hurried down the stairs. Unlike the previous boy, he didn’t say anything as a golden ball of fire appeared in his hand. Max observed the fire’s abnormality, it was weird enough that it looked very similar to his own light magic in coloring, yet that’s where the similarities ended. Where Max’s light magic was unrelenting and direct, this boy’s flames danced in his hand with little control. There were also specks of crimson dots floating around inside the flames, vanishing almost as soon as they appeared. Ignoring the complexion, the small flame in the boy’s hand looked like any other.

The Ryzalon heir placed his flame right on Mr. Strain’s hand, and for just a moment Max thought he was about to burn their teachers skin. Yet the flame did the opposite, the small hole in the teacher’s palm practically vanished, leaving no evidence of the previous injury. A good portion of the class were clapping at the phenomenon, but Max was questioning the limits of that golden fire. Was it only a rejuvenation ability? Or could the Ryzalon boy also have the flame work like the fire it appeared to be?

Mr. Strain clapped once and silenced the rowdy children. The red-eyed boy even bowed to the rest of the class and returned to his seat. “Very impressive Mr. Ryzalon. Your manipulation of your family's bloodline was an excellent example of rejuvenation magic. So students, as you can see, rejuvenation magic is far more uncommon amongst mages. A large part of this is because rejuvenation can only be used with certain affinities and blessings. Advanced water mages can heal some injuries, while other mages have spent their lives in practicing the manipulation of the light element. What Mr. Ryzalon just presented was a family ability only his progeny can use, the ‘Flames of the Phoenix’ if I recall correctly.”

“Moving on, is anyone in class proficient in summoning magic?”

Max doubted that. Summoning magic was the rarest in the world, and the most common form required a contract with a spirit. A being of pure mana with it’s own consciousness. He supposed there was also necromancy, but it was largely frowned upon art and a very inefficient use of mana, even for bloodline mages. Imagine the boy’s shock when Reann Arshan timidly raised her hand.

The whole class turned to the girl and Mr. Strain raised an eyebrow. “Really? Then, by all means.” The man said, gesturing for her to show the class.

The girl silently scooted behind Juliet and stood in the front of the class. Her raven bangs were covering most of her face, yet Max could see the same ruby like eye from peering between her locks. There were no words, but one of the shadow’s below the window extended next to the girl. A dark and fuzzy outline of a humanoid could be seen standing next to the girl, one almost six feet in height. “I-it’s not q-quite c-complete.”

Mr. Strain walked around the figure with his hand cupping his chin. “Fascinating.” He then stretched his hand out and it went right through the shadow. “Not a conscious apparition, but more of a combination between summoning and delusion. You see class, not only this an example of magic, it also shows how magic will never be placed concretely in one category. Magic is limitless. Can it follow basic commands Ms. Arshan?”

The small girl nodded. Pointing at the door, the class watched with interest as it slicked across the room. The man then started clapping lightly and the class followed. Max even clapped, impressed by the obedient shadow. Although darkness was the opposite of light, they were also very alike, could he somehow replicate a spell or produce something similar? He made a quick note to test that theory, it may have it’s own uses.

“Well, Ms. Arshan was kind enough to give us examples of both summoning and delusion magic, but I have to say that spell leans far more towards delusion. Summoning magic is highly debated and usually involves invocation of spirits. It is also extremely rare. I have only met one mage throughout my entire life with a contracted spirit. As for delusion, this is magic of perception and awareness. A magic that involves the effects of the senses, most humanoids rely on sight the most. So the most common delusion spells usually work to trick the eyes, but they are certainly not limited to that.”

“Last but not least can I ha-” The man did not get to finish when the bells began to ring throughout the buildings halls. He sighed and started clearing the board of his writing and sketches.

“As I alluded to beforehand, there are no true restrictions to magic. But all magic comes at a price, and the difference between a good mage and an archmage is the manipulation of magic’s current limits. Will you allow yourselves to controlled by that price, or will you push beyond it? That’s it for today. You all are dismissed.”