Flashback: The Dragon Assault on Farmedas
That night, the forest at the foot of Mount Farmedas was wrapped in a thin veil of mist. The wind carried the scent of damp earth and rustling leaves. In the midst of the silence, a lone girl walked forward, occasionally glancing left and right.
"It's quiet here… no one around," she murmured softly.
With a light motion, dark violet magic swirled around her body. In an instant, a long black cloak draped over her form, and a thin veil covered her mouth—making her identity difficult to discern.
From between the trees, a pair of eyes followed her movements carefully.
"Could she be… a Meyer?" Rada whispered, his gaze narrowing.
He continued to trail her from a distance. Several times, he watched her stop and cast magic without hesitation—once even with a simple flick of her finger, without a single chant. The demon that confronted her collapsed so quickly that Rada almost missed the moment it happened.
One thing was certain: her magic was anything but ordinary.
"So this is… Meyer magic," Rada murmured in awe. "Beautiful. No wonder the Kingdom of Alcarius wants the Meyer lineage back."
He held his breath, unable to believe it. "Even… without incantations."
The girl continued upward until she reached a small hill. From there, Rada was met with a horrifying sight: colossal dragons raging across the skies of Farmedas, reducing buildings to rubble and swallowing the city in flames.
From afar, the girl stood tall. Her cloak fluttered in the scorching wind. After drawing a deep breath, she drove her staff into the ground.
Rada blinked. The flow of magic around her changed—heavier, more sacred, like an ancient voice resonating from the land itself.
Then the girl spoke a name that made his eyes widen.
"In the name of one of the Meyer descendants…
I, Luna Altheria Meyer, mage of the void, command you."
She raised her staff.
"O Thunder Vein… emerge."
The sky trembled.
A gigantic magic circle formed in the air, radiating blue-golden light. Cracks of energy surged through the heavens, and slowly—a massive crystal emerged from within the light, as though something was piercing through the very world itself.
Rada froze.
Summoning Thunder Vein was not merely high-level magic. It was a ritual beyond all supreme magic. Even though Luna could cast countless spells without chants, there were certain spells that still demanded words.
Those words were not mere incantations.
They were absolute commands—an inheritance from the first Meyer hero, Celis Meyer.
A chant spoken only when one offered their power to the magic entity itself.
Rada felt goosebumps crawl across his entire body.
"So beautiful…" he whispered, his voice trembling. "Is this… true magic?"
He could not look away.
Before his eyes, a Meyer descendant once again echoed a power that had vanished two centuries ago.
---
Back to the Present
Inside the classroom, the atmosphere suddenly grew strange as Luna's classmates noticed the Prince's gaze fixed firmly on her. Quiet whispers spread.
The Prince stepped closer. His eyes dropped to Luna's neck—now bare.
"Luna, where is your necklace? Did you take it off?"
The entire class gasped.
"Eh? The Prince gave Luna a necklace?" one student whispered, half-shouting.
"Wait—she even took it off?" another exclaimed, eyes wide.
Luna instantly turned pale, as if drenched in ice water. Without thinking, she grabbed the Prince's arm and dragged him out of the classroom, through the hallway, and into a quiet back courtyard.
"What's wrong, Luna?" the Prince asked gently, though confusion was clear on his face.
Luna stood a few steps away from him. Her hands clenched tightly at the hem of her skirt, fingers trembling slightly. She bowed her head deeply, her hair hiding part of her face. Her breathing was uneven—as if she were holding something back.
She took a long breath, trying to steady herself. But when she spoke, her voice still shook.
"I want to become someone great… and I don't want to be bound by you or by the kingdom. I truly wished we could stand together and laugh—just as friends like that. But it seems… that's impossible. So I'm giving up on that hope… from now on."
The words came slowly, yet every syllable felt heavy against her chest. Luna bit her lip, holding back emotions that threatened to spill over. Her shoulders trembled—she was clearly forcing herself to remain composed.
The Prince stood frozen. His expression shifted—shock, hurt, and confusion intertwined. His lips parted, but no words came out. He did not even raise a hand to stop her.
Luna closed her eyes briefly, as if trying to erase the chaos in her heart. Then she bowed slightly—not as a greeting, but as an unspoken apology.
Without waiting for a response, she turned and walked away. Her steps were quick yet unsteady, like someone fleeing before her feelings could collapse completely.
The Prince remained standing there alone. He did not chase her. He did not speak. He simply watched Luna's retreating figure with a gaze that held loss, regret, and something even he did not yet understand.
The morning wind blew softly, carrying a silence more painful than any scream.
---
Kingdom of Alcarius — Royal Magic Academy
At the Royal Magic Academy of Alcarius, a morning that should have been peaceful suddenly turned chaotic when the Headmaster received a letter sealed in red—the official seal of the kingdom.
The moment he read it, his face turned deathly pale.
"W-WHAT!?" he shouted, sending birds outside the window scattering.
A teacher passing by jumped in shock. "What happened, Headmaster!? Why are you yelling like a dragon just walked into class?"
The Headmaster raised the letter with trembling hands. "The King wants us to prepare our best students! Because… the Alcarius Academy will be visiting the Farmedas Magic School to participate in an inter-academy mage tournament!"
The teacher paused, then nodded calmly. "That sounds like good news. But… why are you reacting like this?"
The Headmaster let out a long sigh, his face resembling someone who had already given up on life.
"Because our students… seem to be hopeless across the board."
The teacher glanced out the window. What they saw made both of them rub their faces in unison.
In the courtyard below, two students were already arguing.
One was Zuna—a first-year overflowing with confidence, but whose brain occasionally seemed to wander off somewhere else.
The other was Sir, a senior student with a blank expression and a tongue sharper than any sword.
"I'm not stupid, okay!?" Zuna shouted, hands on her hips.
Sir raised an eyebrow, his face as flat as a board. "Ara~ is that so?"
"I can prove it! I memorized the multiplication table!" Zuna puffed out her chest proudly.
"Oh. Impressive." Sir smiled faintly—a smile containing not a shred of sincerity.
Zuna immediately began her self-test. "One times one… two. Two times one… three. Three times—four…"
She frowned. "Eh… wait…"
Sir closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. "She can't even handle the ones…" he muttered flatly.
Then, without mercy, he added, "Your stupidity truly defies reason."
Zuna exploded. "Only a real idiot keeps calling people idiots!"
Sir looked at her for a moment, then replied calmly, "Ah. Then we're on the same level."
"YOU THINK THAT'S A COMPLIMENT!?" Zuna screamed.
At the window, the Headmaster and teacher could only force bitter smiles.
"How are we supposed to compete in a tournament with students like this…" the Headmaster sighed, looking ready to collapse.
The teacher nodded sympathetically. "I believe… victory is not part of our destiny this year."
The Headmaster raised the royal letter with a defeated air. "Your Majesty… my apologies. These are the students we have."
From outside, Zuna and Sir's arguing voices continued unabated.
That day, the Royal Magic Academy of Alcarius once again questioned the future of their own nation.