Inside the cylindrical grimoire tower, sunlight streamed through the clover kingdom's 'Plum Blossom' emblem, a hollowed-out design at the top. Due to a long period of neglect and no one entering, the accumulated dust inside the tower caused the sunlight to exhibit the Tyndall effect.
Beams of light illuminated the vast open space within the tower, where sparse clusters of people, like scattered black dots, and bookshelves stretching from the ground to the ceiling created a picturesque and awe-inspiring scene.
Among the ant-like crowd, Asta exclaimed in wonder at the countless grimoires of varying sizes lining the shelves: "Woah! Bai En, Yuno, look, so many grimoires!"
"I wonder which one will be my grimoire? I'm really looking forward to it."
Bai En listened to Asta and gazed upwards. The bookshelves leaning against the walls, filled with a dazzling array of books, and the expansive architecture combined with the numerous grimoires, filled him with shock.
Suddenly, a soft whooshing sound echoed from behind the crowd.
A Mage, with a white beard and a pointed hat, riding a magic broom, sped in from outside the door. The grimoire tower's large door instantly closed after he entered. He flew over the crowd and landed steadily on the observation platform in mid-air.
The green magic light slowly dissipated from the floating broom.
An amplifying magic tool materialized in the air beside his mouth: "Ahem... I am the master of this grimoire tower. Welcome, all recipients—"
"From today onwards, as you embark on different paths, may 'honesty,' 'hope,' and 'love' always be by your side!"
After delivering his symbolic opening remarks, the white-bearded old grimoire tower master's expression changed, and his widened eyes showed great excitement: "Everyone, no one who has come from here has ever become a Wizard King, or even achieved any significant accomplishments after joining the Magic Knights."
"I hope one of you can become the Wizard King!"
"...I'm not kidding, I'm serious!!"
His impassioned speech didn't attract much attention until the words "grimoire bestowal" appeared, at which point the crowd erupted in thunderous exclamations.
Amidst the exclamations, the bookshelves filled with grimoires emitted a faint hum. Fiery red, light cyan, thick gold... one by one, grimoires glowing with different lights flew from the shelves, suspended in the air.
The dazzling books in the sky began to disperse, rushing directly towards the crowd, and were then caught by their outstretched hands, as boys and girls watched with anticipation.
The people who received their grimoires became restless.
"...This is my grimoire...!"
Those who received their grimoires began excitedly comparing them. "How about it, isn't my grimoire big?"
"Why are you showing off? Mine is thicker!"
Bai En gazed at the grimoire floating in front of him, glowing with a soft white light. He reached out his hands, and after a fleeting moment of an unusual sensation, the grimoire settled into his hands, its soft white light dissolving into countless tiny particles that scattered around.
"A clover?"
He stroked the cover of his grimoire. The white, specially made paper-like material gave no clue as to its origin; it could have been animal skin or plant fiber... As for the pattern, the central part was a three-leaf clover, surrounded by a few scattered weapons—knives and swords.
The total number of knives and swords was "seven."
"Are there also seven?"
Lost in thought, Bai En opened his grimoire. It was very thin, with not many pages. After turning past the pages already filled with magic script, he turned three more pages and saw the back cover.
Three magic pages plus three blank pages, a total of... only six pages, one less than the number of knives and swords on the cover.
"Isn't that a bit too few?"
Disappointed?
More or less, a little. He had considered a very bad situation, but now... the situation was worse than imagined. The number of pages represented the number of spells that could be cast. The more pages, the more spells that could be cast.
In other words, the number of spells Bai En could cast was extremely limited.
Before he could ponder further, a loud shout came from beside him, its immense decibel attracting everyone's attention: "Uh... my grimoire didn't come?!"
With almost everyone else having received a grimoire, Asta stood dumbfounded, hands outstretched, with nothing in front of him.
The grimoire tower master on the observation platform seemed to be encountering this situation for the first time. He tugged at his beard and mumbled, "Eh, how can that be—then you'll have to come back next year..."
"Eh eh eh eh eh!!?"
Laughter erupted from the crowd. "Something like this can happen?"
"What is this—it's too funny!!"
A young man with long golden hair looked at Asta and couldn't help but laugh mockingly: "As expected of a commoner, his uselessness far exceeds our imagination..."
A young man from the same village behind him chimed in: "I didn't think there would be someone who couldn't even get a grimoire. How pathetic."
Amidst the widespread mockery, an unexpected event occurred.
A pervasive wind swept through the crowd, then vibrated outwards with astonishing power. Looking back at the very center, a grimoire emitting a dazzling golden light hovered in front of Yuno, and an invisible surge of energy lingered for a long time.
When the golden light faded, a light cyan magic power swirled around the grimoire. People clearly saw the grimoire's cover—it was a four-leaf clover grimoire, unlike the usual three-leaf clover grimoires!
A shocked voice suddenly rang out, "That's... a four-leaf grimoire!"
The grimoire tower master, who had been standing on the observation platform with narrowed eyes, widened his eyes a bit more, staring intently at Yuno, an expression of disbelief on his wrinkled face.
He recalled a legend: the three-leaf clovers engraved on all grimoires in the Clover Kingdom represent "honesty, hope, and love," while a four-leaf clover represents "luck"—that was the same kind of grimoire as the First Magic Emperor!
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Bai En did not witness the scene of Yuno shining brightly and being envied by the crowd after receiving the four-leaf clover grimoire. As soon as he saw Asta shouting that he hadn't received a grimoire, he had already slipped out of the grimoire tower.
Surpassing his limits in the toilet!
Well, he actually found a quiet place to understand the changes after obtaining his grimoire... As for Yuno and Asta, Bai En, familiar with the manga plot, already knew what was coming next.
Why not comfort Asta, who was currently being mocked, and get closer to the protagonist?
Please, if he had received a four-leaf clover grimoire, he would have spared no effort to cheer Asta on. But now... all Bai En had in front of him was a six-page three-leaf clover grimoire.
Also, Asta would soon receive that five-leaf clover grimoire inhabited by a devil, gaining Anti-Magic, which was practically a cheat.
For now, he should focus on himself. Bai En didn't want to be the weakest of the three, or even fail the Magic Knights selection half a year later... This was a world where the strong preyed on the weak and class divisions were clear!
Behind the grimoire tower, an umbrella-shaped tree cast a shady shadow, and white dandelion fluff drifted in the air.
Bai En sat on the grass, spreading open the grimoire he had just received, examining the magic script on it. There were many donated books in the church in Hage Village, and he had studied with the priest for some time, enabling him to recognize most of the world's writing.
Just like in the original story, grimoires are bound to the soul. A grimoire's dissipation signifies a person's death.
In addition, due to the soul binding, he had an invisible connection with the grimoire, and it was like an extended arm, allowing him to freely control the grimoire's pages and its suspension.
However, controlling the grimoire subtly consumed a tiny amount of magic power.
Speaking of magic power, after obtaining the grimoire, Bai En sensed his magic power. The misty amount of magic power had increased, and it was denser than before.
This feeling was good, at least much better than the years of hard work in magic training, then drinking the bitter sap of blood-red leaves, only for his magic power to transform from scattered dust to its current flourishing misty state.
If he could do it another ten or twenty times, he might even be able to compare to ordinary nobles or royalty.
Bai En suddenly thought of Yuno. If he, having received an ordinary three-leaf clover grimoire, had experienced such an improvement, then for Yuno, who already possessed immense magic power, receiving a four-leaf clover grimoire, the improvement... was unimaginable.
It's truly maddening how people compare themselves.
Forget it, forget it.
It's better to focus on himself.
Coming back to his senses, Bai En focused his attention on the grimoire that had been open all this time.
Hiss... As the saying goes, when the road comes to an end, a new path opens. Heaven never seals off all exits.
Looking at the spells in the grimoire, the two spells he had been researching and conceptualizing were prominently displayed within it. Bai En felt that his bleak life seemed, perhaps, to have found a turning point...