Tou No Madoushi

After the entrance ceremony ended, the students were moved to a different room where they received a final information briefing, summarised as follows .

The tuition fee for being an apprentice at the Academy is 500,000 Legika . However students are able to receive a scholarship loan at a low interest rate . Aside from the tuition fee, students are able to apply for funding to cover the expenses of other necessities such as textbooks and tools .

It’s important to be mindful when enrolling in cla.s.ses, because some require an extra fee to attend the lectures .

In order to graduate, students must have at least 20 credits from the foundational magic subjects . Therefore it is recommended to take such subjects as much as possible .

On the whole, it was mostly information that Theo and Lynn had already heard from Elios and his friends .

“So is that clear? Please make sure you fill out the forms that were handed out, fill in the subjects you wish to take, and hand it in to the Wizard’s a.s.sociation by next week . I’ve been over the method of how you will submit those forms . Simply awake the fairy that lives within the paper via the incantation, and send it to the designated bookshelf within the a.s.sociation . The exact shelf will be detailed on your forms, so all you have to do is recite the incantation to arouse the fairy, who will read the address and deliver the form for you . If you don’t understand anything about the form or the method of submission, please direct your questions to the a.s.sociation . Although considering you all pa.s.sed the exam, I’m sure none of you will have any problems…” .

Plucking the form out of the air that floated up from the magic circle engraved in his desk and putting it in his bag, Lynn stood up and left the cla.s.sroom .

As Lin exited the cla.s.sroom he noticed there were many wizards, dressed in black robes, who were standing in a line outside the cla.s.sroom . At first he didn’t quite know what to make of these wizards in black, or why they were waiting outside the cla.s.sroom, but then the other students began exiting the cla.s.sroom and linking up with them . Seeing pairs form between the students and the older wizards, Lynn realized they were masters who had come to collect their apprentices .

As the students filed out of the cla.s.sroom, the master-apprentice pairs formed one by one . Walking side by side, each pair would walk down the corridor together towards the elevator . It seemed that like Yuven, Aristocratic students were having their masters come to the Academy for them, to pick them up .

It was easy to tell the social cla.s.s of a student by whether or not they were attended by their master . For a while Lynn watched them from a distance . He overheard a conversation from one master-apprentice pair .

“You don’t have to come and pick me up all the time . I’m not a kid anymore” .

“You can’t think like that… I’m instructed by your father to watch over and protect you” .

The student snorted, clearly frustrated . “How depressing! I had thought that being away from family, I would finally get a bit of freedom” .

They continued their back and forth as they walked down the corridor together .

Lynn turned around and made for the place he and Theo agreed to meet at . By convention, students who had masters were to meet with their masters straight away after the entrance ceremony, and discuss what cla.s.ses they might take . Lynn and Theo too were required to do so, and so had to go to the Wizard a.s.sociation in Allfrid .

Feeling his chest tighten, Lynn ran down the corridor and away from the voices of students and their masters . Unlike the aristocrat children, he had never experienced having an adult come pick him up from anything . Not even once . If he watched them any longer, he felt he might burst into tears .

After meeting Theo at the entrance to the Academy, together they made for the Alfrid’s local branch of the Wizard a.s.sociation .

Theo noticed that Lynn wasn’t his usual self, but tactful as always, didn’t probe him as to why .

Lynn was relieved . He was certain that he couldn’t share this feeling with anyone- not even with Theo .

All the way to the a.s.sociation, Theo rambled on about random topics, carrying the conversation for Lynn . Thanks to this, by the time Lynn met with Yuin he had somewhat calmed down and felt more or less like himself again . He was grateful he had Theo’s support .

When Lynn opened the door to the waiting room, he saw that Yuin was already there . He was sitting comfortably on a sofa, relaxing .

“I’m surprised . I never thought you’d pa.s.s the exam this quickly” .

Yuin spoke to Lynn in his usual, flat voice . It was impossible to read any emotion from it .

I really worked diligently . My roommate’s really smart . He taught me all about how to live by myself, and how to study effectively” .

“Hmm . Is that so? Well I thought you’d be getting along just fine”, Yuin said indifferently .

Unperturbed, Lynn carried on talking . “How have things been for master? Have you made progress with your research?” .

“Yeah it’s going well, though it keeps me busy . The thing is, like I antic.i.p.ated, I don’t really have the time to discuss your cla.s.ses with you . I’m sorry Lynn, but you’ll have to choose by yourself” .

Shoot, I’ve lost the initiative .

Lynn had been waiting for the right moment to ask Yuin for advice on what cla.s.ses to enroll in, but now Yuin had made it impossible to even ask .

Despite his indifference, master really is something else .

Talking to Yuin again after so long, Lynn was impressed by the depth of his master’s magical power . He spoke the language of magic more fluently than any wizard he had so far met in either Renryll or Allfrid . His words rang clear in his ears, and the intent he conveyed entered his mind easily, without any confusion or inaccuracy .

His power as a wizard certainly was befitting of the t.i.tle master . However, this only made Lynn feel sad .

Perhaps master Yuin only saw Lynn as a commodity to sell, after all [1] .

Was he lying when he had told Lynn that he had magical talent?

“Well anyway, I should get going”, Yuin said and made to stand up from the sofa .

“Ah, hold on!” .

“Huh? What is it?” . Having almost stood up entirely, Yuin didn’t sit back down on the sofa, but instead maintained the half standing posture .

Lynn tripped over his words at first, but managed to speak clearly . “The thing is, I’ve worked really hard to pa.s.s the exam . And to an extent I’m now able to read and write magic . I wonder if, maybe, there’s some way I can be of use to master? Would you let me help you in your research?” .

He knew that to ask Yuin to accompany him to the Academy for anything at all was too much to ask, but at the very least he wanted to feel valued, or needed .

“I don’t need anything from you”, Yuin said plainly .

Irritated, Yuin said impatiently “You say you’ve pa.s.sed the entrance exam, and you can read and write magic, but so what? Do you know just how many others in the Tower are the same as you? .

“To be blunt with you, even meeting with you like this is a regrettable use of my time . So if there’s nothing else you’d like to ask, then I’m afraid I’ll have to be going” .

Trudging along dejectedly, Lynn returned to the reception lobby where he and Theo would meet . He was feeling disheartened .

Seeing as he had managed to pa.s.s the exam and enter the academy, he had let himself look forward to at least being praised for his efforts . However Yuin’s att.i.tude towards Lynn hadn’t changed a bit . He treated him exactly the same as before .

When Lynn entered the Lobby he found Theo already waiting there, reading over the criteria for selecting cla.s.ses .

“Hey, you finished? Let’s go” .

Lynn was surprised . His meeting with his master had been fairly short, but Theo’s meeting with his master must have been even shorter .

“Theo, have you already met with your master?” .

“Huh?  No, I didn’t see him” . Theo answered with a blank expression .

“What? You mean you didn’t meet with him at all?” .

“d.a.m.n right I didn’t . It’s a waste of time” Theo declared nonchalantly .

“Right about now, that piece of s.h.i.t master is in a room all by himself, waiting in vain . He’ll be waiting a long time, but his apprentice won’t show . I wonder how he likes that” .

Lynn laughed . “You’re amazing Theo, standing up your master like that” . To Lynn, such a thing was unthinkable .

“Maybe I should do the same from now on too” .

“Please, by all means do! It’s a waste of time anyway” .

I’m glad I’m friends with him .

Lynn was sincerely grateful to have Theo as his friend . Even after disappointment, or misfortune, as long as he was with Theo he felt he was able to hold his head high .

TRANSLATION NOTES

[1] This isn’t really a translation note, but I wanted to remind anyone who may have forgotten; in a previous chapter Theo told Lynn that the Wizard a.s.sociation offers monetary rewards for masters who recruit apprentices .

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