"…Mana can be divided into thirteen forms within each type. Among them, we currently recognize two common kinds. The first is elemental mana, which depends on the flow of mana in the world. The second is distinct mana, a type created by altering the surrounding mana flow and selecting a host as an anchor."
Miss Wellay wrote the lesson on the blackboard using ancient rune script disguised as ordinary writing.
"For example, light mana is a form of distinct mana. It is generated when a source of light becomes the center that shapes the surrounding mana…"
She paused briefly before continuing.
"Besides these, there is another type of mana. However, it is not considered a separate form. It is known as mana writing."
The moment I heard those words, I immediately placed my notebook on the desk that had been empty since the beginning of class.
Knowledge about mana writing, or the language of mana, was extremely difficult to obtain from books.
Any record of it required mana to function, and maintaining the mana necessary to preserve such texts was incredibly expensive. After all, most people would never read them in their entire lives.
Because of that, only the heavily protected libraries of major noble houses or royal families possessed such books.
And I certainly wasn't insane enough to mobilize an entire team just to steal one.
"The mana used in mana writing is drawn from the laws of this world," Miss Wellay continued. "When used correctly, it allows the caster to impose the world's laws onto a target. This can include reinforcing those laws."
I carefully recorded every word without bothering to look anywhere else.
"…It contains many unknown rules, hidden mysteries within it. In some cases, it can even be extremely dangerous…"
Normally, mana always operates around a core or a source. That source could be a person's body, an object, or even nature itself.
But the language of mana was different.
It was a binding system. One that traded existing mana in exchange for partial interference with the very essence of a mana core.
It was complicated.
Unlike magical languages in games or ordinary books, the language of mana was deeply tied to the world itself in mysterious ways.
In some ways, it resembled another mana type known as Exchange.
And yet it wasn't quite the same.
Lost in thought, I continued writing without paying attention to anything else.
…
I was currently taking one of the four final examinations of the semester.
The theory exam.
While everyone else struggled nervously over their papers, Ron's hand moved like a machine.
The exam was designed to last an hour.
Ron finished it in thirty minutes.
That was the result of two consecutive days without sleep. Mana users could accelerate their learning and writing speed far beyond ordinary people, so the test itself was packed with information.
Even so, I still deserved the title of a learning genius.
A cheating kind of genius.
I glanced at the sleeve of my black uniform. It was covered with faint ink marks that were almost impossible to notice unless examined closely.
Emma sat in front of me.
She was a high ranking member of Red Oval, and the daughter of the Marquis Crystal family. Her family was famous for inventions, and she had grown accustomed to rigorous academic training.
Naturally, she also completed the exam very quickly.
While waiting for the test period to end, my thoughts drifted toward the historical materials I had read.
I took out a sheet of scrap paper and began writing down fragments of information I remembered, trying to arrange them into a coherent structure.
But it didn't work.
The pieces simply refused to connect.
This continued until the bell rang.
"Time's up. Everyone submit your papers."
"You have thirty minutes before the physical condition examination."
I let out a quiet sigh.
Ever since arriving in this world, I had been obsessively driven to understand its history.
It was connected to mythology and historical records.
Because if you wanted to conquer a land, you first needed to understand its past.
But there was another reason.
In the novel I wrote, I barely described that part.
I wondered what would fill the gap I had left behind.
If it's related to the apocalypse… it's still better to know.
And far beyond what I expected, even among common history books and noble archives, there remained blank spaces.
Entire sections that seemed to have been erased from history itself.
But I couldn't keep chasing that mystery right now.
This wasn't the time to obsess over the past.
I needed to focus on the present and the future.
I walked down the hallway toward the next examination area.
The academy corridors were built in a minimalist style. The floors were made of polished quartz stone, and the white pillars were bathed in the golden light of the morning sun.
A few leaves lay scattered across the floor.
One leaf drifted gently in the wind before landing on my head.
I slowly raised my hand and removed it.
For a moment, I stared at the leaf.
The heavy pressure of chasing that thing seemed to fade slightly.
For once, I felt a small sense of peace in this world.
As I walked, I took the academy issued spatial ring and retrieved a small transparent bottle. Inside were several white pills.
Without hesitation, I poured them all into my mouth and swallowed them as if it were something completely routine.
I sat down on a marble bench in the corridor, watching people hurry past beneath the sunlight.
Then I took a sandwich from my spatial ring.
Slowly, I enjoyed it during this rare moment of calm.