Chapter Summaries

After passing the practical combat assessment, Ang learned more about magical fighting and the academy’s rivalries, then resolved to catch up with his peers. He committed to becoming an official mage and earning a baronial title within three years while balancing magic studies with warrior training.

• Ang watched the practical combat matches, studied the mages’ different fighting styles, and passed his own assessment.
• Gao An told Ang he had held back his anger during his confrontation with Lindon, and Ang recognized the rivalries beneath the academy’s assessments.
• Angeli warned Ang that he needed to reach the intermediate class quickly if he hoped to become an official mage in his third year, and Ang vowed to work harder.
• Gao An and their friends encouraged Ang, while Ang resolved to preview intermediate coursework and keep studying Rune Crafting and alchemy.
• Ang continued his daily Qi force training alongside his magical studies and set his sights on becoming an official mage and a baron within three years.

After a long stretch of study and assessments, Ang accepted Gao An and his friends’ invitation to explore Akreli and unwind. The outing continued at the Moonlight Club, where Ang watched an illusionist’s performance and looked forward to seeing more magic.

• Ang agreed to join Gao An and the others on a day out after his assessments ended.
• Ang and his friends sampled magical cuisine, browsed the magic market, and visited a magical pet shop in Akreli.
• Gao An led Ang and the others to the Moonlight Club after dinner to experience how nobles entertained themselves.
• Ang watched a mage create vivid illusions of gardens, forests, and battling magic dragons on the club’s magic array platform.

Ang joined Gao An and the others in the mages’ card hall, where he cautiously observed the games and learned how Magic Cards offered both strategy and a social escape from academy life. He tried betting small amounts, won most of his wagers, and relaxed among his friends while remaining focused on his studies and training.

• Gao An and the others took Ang to the card hall, where Ang learned that Gao An and Lindon’s rivalry had begun during earlier card games.
• Ang felt out of place and worried the card hall could distract him, but Gao An reassured him that he did not have to play.
• Ang watched the Magic Card games and betting, learning the rules and studying the players’ strategies without joining a match.
• Ang began placing small bets and correctly picked the winner in three of four rounds, more than doubling his initial Gold Wacks.
• Gao An, Angeli, and Lulugard joked about their changing fortunes, and Ang loosened up while keeping his betting cautious.

Ang reflected on balancing study and leisure after a night out, then considered how to spend the academy’s three-month Winter Tour. He decided to stay at the academy and focus on magic and warrior training, leaving his feelings for Ilsa and longing for home unresolved.

• Ang dozed off during Teacher Belinda’s Imperial history class after a night of gambling, then forced himself to pay attention and resolved to manage his time better.
• Angeli told Ang that Winter Tour was the academy’s January-to-March break, and Gao An and Bonage invited him to ski in Agnis; Ang said he would think about it.
• As the holiday neared, Ang listened to classmates discuss family visits and travel, but ruled out returning to Oak Bay Village because the journey was too long.
• Ang received Ilsa’s letter and thought about how their correspondence had deepened his feelings and encouraged him to improve himself.
• Ang decided to stay at the academy during Winter Tour, study Magic Theory, conduct experiments, and continue cultivating his Qi force.

Ang chose to join Mentor Nicholas Pessens’s three-month study tour instead of traveling north with Gao An and their friends. After bidding them farewell, Ang set off with the group by airship for Phoniyagali Province, eager to gain practical experience and develop his magic.

• Gao An invited Ang to visit Agnis, but Ang explained that he had signed up for his mentor’s study tour.
• Ang and his friends prepared for their separate holidays and promised to share their experiences afterward.
• Five days after Gao An and the others departed, Mentor Nicholas Pessens gathered eleven students and began the study tour.
• The group boarded an airship bound for Phoniyagali Province, where Nicholas outlined plans to study natural magical energy and local resources.
• Ang spoke with the senior students, learned about their research interests, and grew more familiar with the group.
• As the airship neared Phoniyagali Province, Ang watched the mountains and lakes below and resolved to make the most of the tour.

Ang and Nicholas’s study-tour group arrived in Mandalay, where Owen welcomed them for an academic exchange. After settling in, Ang prepared for the first day of study and Parmonat returned from exploring Mandalay’s nightlife, promising to take part in the activities.

• Ang and Nicholas arrived in Mandalay and reunited with Nicholas’s old friend Owen, who introduced his own students.
• Owen brought the group to Mandalay’s magical academic exchange hall and outlined plans for lectures, practical exercises, competitions, and visits.
• Ang settled into the dormitory, read about local Magic Runes, shared dinner with senior students, and meditated before sleeping.
• Ang woke to find Parmonat’s bed untouched and went to breakfast without him, then prepared for the day’s academic exchanges.
• Parmonat arrived excitedly and told Ang about exploring Mandalay’s night market, then promised he would not be late for the exchange activities.

Ang attended a magical exchange between Nicholas’s and Owen’s students, where he discussed elemental magic with the senior student Carrol. After Ang proposed using heated water vapor to improve the Water Arrow Technique, Carrol created a Steam Arrow, and the mentors praised their innovation.

• Nicholas and Owen welcomed their students to the exchange and encouraged them to learn from one another despite the difference in numbers.
• Ang introduced himself to Owen’s students, then was paired with the senior student Carrol for a discussion of water- and fire-element magic.
• Ang suggested turning water into heated vapor before forming a Water Arrow, and Carrol used her magic to shape the vapor into a Steam Arrow.
• Carrol launched the Steam Arrow through a wooden target, leaving a scorched mark and impressing Ang with her control.
• Owen praised Carrol’s magic and Ang’s idea, while Nicholas encouraged Ang to keep pursuing new approaches to magic.

Ang learned from the exchange meeting and impressed the students and mentors with his magical knowledge, innovative ideas, and intense focus. Nicholas then led Ang and his students into the mountains near Mandalay to collect and analyze natural magical energy, where Ang began studying active water elements in a valley.

• Ang discussed magic with the exchange students, proposed a Lava Ball Spell, and demonstrated an improved Light Magic healing spell.
• Nicholas praised Ang’s learning and innovation, while Ailia became more enthusiastic about studying magic after seeing Ang’s dedication.
• Nicholas arranged a field expedition into the mountains near Mandalay to study natural magical energy and warned the students to stay vigilant.
• Nicholas led his students from Mendel City into the mountains, where Ang recorded rising elemental activity along the route.
• At the first collection site in a valley, Ang studied water elements by a stream and found that he could guide their energy smoothly.
• Over the following days, Ang and the other students collected and analyzed different elements throughout the valley.

Ang and the students explored deeper into the Mandalay Mountains with Nicholas, who ended their excursion when signs of dangerous magical beasts appeared. The group camped for the night, while Ang and Nicholas privately considered the possible presence of Armored Fire Lizards and the secrets of the mountains.

• Lilithija urged Nicholas to take the students deeper into the mountains, and he agreed to a cautious exploration that avoided areas frequented by high-level magical beasts.
• Ang observed increasingly active fire elements, and he found fragments of magic cores among battle traces that suggested high-level beasts had fought nearby.
• Nicholas ordered the students to finish collecting elements and retreat, then refused their later request to explore another direction.
• Nicholas led the students to camp, while Ang suspected the scorch marks came from Armored Fire Lizards and Nicholas considered how their materials could aid his fire-and-earth experiment.
• Ang and the students shared dinner and settled in for the night as Nicholas remained awake, gazing into the darkness.

Ang reflects on his progress and discusses dual cultivation with Nicholas, who advises him to balance warrior training and magic. The next morning, the group continues their expedition into the Mandalay Mountains, where they discover fresh traces of an Armored Fire Lizard and prepare to proceed cautiously.

• Unable to sleep, Ang reviews his growth in Qi force and magic power and considers seeking stronger Combat Techniques and a better Light Magic inheritance.
• Nicholas speaks with Ang about his late-discovered magical affinity and encourages him to balance warrior training with magic.
• After breakfast, Nicholas decides the group will continue exploring because he needs an Armored Fire Lizard's magic core and magical hide for an experiment.
• The group travels deeper into the Mandalay Mountains, where Nicholas senses stronger elemental fluctuations and warns everyone to stay alert.
• Nicholas identifies scorched ground and ruined trees as fresh traces of an Armored Fire Lizard and tells the group to observe it and avoid direct conflict if possible.
• Ang grips his hand axe and resolves to use his warrior experience to protect the group as they continue forward.

Ang and the students searched for signs of the Armored Fire Lizard, but Nicholas discovered that the traces belonged to a hatchling. After Ang skinned it for Nicholas’s experiments, the group finished the task and set out for Mendel City.

• Nicholas surveyed the area by broom and told the students not to venture deeper, while Lilithija and the others later explored a different route without him.
• Lilithija led the group in chasing a herd of Kexuolin Deer, but Ang urged everyone to turn back before they strayed too far.
• Nicholas returned with the corpse of an Armored Fire Lizard hatchling and explained that it had left the irregular traces while learning to control its power.
• Ang skinned the hatchling and gave Nicholas its hide, which Nicholas said he needed for his experiments.
• Nicholas declared the task complete, and the students packed up to return to Mendel City.

After Nicholas left, Ang explored Mandalay, registered as an adventurer, and accepted a quest to capture a live Kexuolin Deer. He overcame an initial failed attempt and trapped two healthy deer, preparing to return them to the quest issuer.

• Nicholas hurried away to find Owen for a magic experiment, while Ang later explored Mandalay's shops and learned that the Adventurer's Guild might offer Combat Technique inheritances.
• Ang visited the Adventurer's Guild, passed a warrior-level test at Mid-level 1 Warrior, and registered as an adventurer.
• Ang accepted a quest requiring a healthy, live Kexuolin Deer and bought hunting nets and fodder to capture one.
• Ang's first attempt failed when a Kexuolin Deer heard him and fled, so he moved to a new location and hid a net beneath the fodder.
• Ang waited for several deer to gather, then pulled the net shut and captured two without injuring them.
• Ang checked that the captured deer were healthy and prepared to take them to Mendel City for the quest issuer.

Ang returned to Mendel City with a live Kexuolin Deer, completed the Adventurer’s Guild mission, and earned money from the deer’s meat and magic core. After deciding to focus on studying magic rather than taking more hunting missions, he spoke with Lilithija, who had noticed his absence and encouraged his choice.

• Ang skinned and butchered one Kexuolin Deer, carried the other through the night, and reached Mendel City before the gates closed.
• Ang turned in the live deer at the Adventurer’s Guild and received two Magic Crystals as his reward.
• Ang found that Qatar and the others had not left the inn, processed a magic core, and sold 1,300 pounds of venison for 130 Gold Wack.
• Ang decided to stop taking guild missions for now and focus on becoming a Rank 1 Mage.
• Ang met Lilithija on the inn’s balcony, explained his absence, and discussed magic with her.

Ang attended Count Fetsi Yachadra’s ball with Qatar, where he met Beth and discussed magic, power, and Dark Magic. Beth, a member of Mandalay’s secret Black Magic Research Society, gave Ang an annotated Magic Book and resolved to guide him toward the organization; Ang left intrigued by her ideas and eager to study the book.

• Ang accepted Qatar’s invitation to Count Fetsi Yachadra’s ball and noticed that Kexuolin Deer meat strengthened his Qi force slightly.
• Ang met Beth, an unbadged magic apprentice, and talked with her about magic, his ambitions, and the nature of Dark Magic.
• Beth recognized Ang’s talent and hunger for power, then secretly considered him a promising recruit for Mandalay’s Black Magic Research Society.
• Beth gave Ang an annotated Magic Book, intending its insights to gradually lead him to question the boundaries of magic and morality.
• After the ball, Ang looked forward to studying the book while Beth believed she had finally found the right person to recruit.

Ang and his companions left Mandalay after Nicholas completed his experiment and traveled to Aktoobe in Pulitzer Province to study magical creatures in the Santa Cruz Rainforest. The chapter ended with Ang arriving at the rainforest’s edge, where abundant water elements strengthened his magic and promised new research opportunities.

• Ang declined Qatar’s invitation to a noblewoman’s late-night gathering and returned to the inn, where Qatar later recounted the evening’s hospitality.
• Qatar attended balls and cultivated connections with nobles while Nicholas completed a successful magical experiment and announced that the group would leave Mandalay for Pulitzer Province.
• Ang and the other students packed, said their farewells, and boarded an airship after Mage Owen came to see them off.
• Nicholas briefed the students on their journey to Aktoobe and warned them about the rainforest’s harsh climate, dangerous areas, and rare magical creatures.
• As the airship traveled south, Ang found that stronger water elements made his Water Arrow Technique faster and increased his Water Gathering Rune Board’s output.
• Ang arrived with the group in Aktoobe, where Nicholas welcomed them to their new experimental base at the edge of the Santa Cruz Rainforest.

Ang explored Aktoobe after arriving with Nicholas and the others, then bought several ores and an unidentified translucent stone from a market stall. He left wondering whether the unusual stone held some hidden value.

• Ang arrived in Aktoobe with Nicholas and the group, and Nicholas brought them to the Rainforest Journey inn where he arranged their rooms and planned a research meeting.
• Nicholas left to visit old friends, while Ang returned to his room and found Qatar still gloomy about leaving Mandalay.
• Ang went out alone to explore Aktoobe’s busy magical market and examined the goods at a stall selling ores.
• Ang bought Red Copper, black iron, and a fist-sized translucent stone the vendor could not identify, paying 4 Gold Wack.
• Ang left the stall with the ores and suspected the unusual stone might be more than an ordinary rock.

Ang explored Aktoobe and grew eager to investigate the Santa Cruz Rainforest and a mysterious translucent stone. After Mentor Nicholas led the group into the rainforest, the apprentices struggled with the heat and reached their first campsite, where Nicholas told them they would venture deeper the next day.

• Ang toured Aktoobe's marketplace and Temple Tower, admired the rainforest, and considered how its magical creatures and water-rich environment might aid his research.
• Mentor Nicholas told the apprentices they would enter the Santa Cruz Rainforest the next day to study magical creatures and might remain there until their research was complete.
• Nicholas reassured the uneasy senior girls that they would adapt gradually and could use ice or wind magic to cope with the heat.
• Ang teased Qatar about his romantic disappointments in Mandalay, and Qatar said he planned to prepare extra ice talismans for the rainforest.
• Nicholas led the group into the humid rainforest the next morning, where Ang helped the exhausted senior girls as they struggled through the hike.
• The group reached its first campsite after several hours; the senior girls went to bathe while Ang and Qatar sorted their equipment, and Nicholas announced they would go deeper into the rainforest the next day.

At the Santa Cruz Rainforest camp, Ang learned about the dangers and camps deeper in the forest while speaking with a guide named Ron. He climbed above the canopy, sensed the rainforest’s vast life, and went to sleep anticipating the next day’s expedition with Nicholas.

• Ang searched his Compendium of Materials and found little information about the rainforest’s trees.
• Ang spoke with Ron, who described the rainforest’s camps and warned that Level 6 Magical Beasts lived in its true depths.
• Ang explained that he was traveling with his mentor Nicholas and could not hire Ron, but promised to recommend him if an opportunity arose.
• Ang climbed to the canopy and took in the vast rainforest, reflecting on its life and the mysteries that might lie deeper within.
• Ang spotted distant lights that might belong to another adventurer camp or a hunters’ gathering place, then returned to his tent for the night.

Ang and the students traveled deeper into the Santa Cruz Rainforest, where Instructor Nicholas taught them to adapt to the environment by using magic and suitable equipment. After Ang carved runes to create cooling devices, the group reached a fortified camp where Nicholas said they would study rainforest plants and magical beast materials.

• Rain made the rainforest trail muddy, and Ang helped the exhausted senior girls reach a campsite where they rested and sought clean clothes.
• Nicholas explained that the rainforest journey was training and challenged the students to notice how his magical robe and boots kept him comfortable and clean.
• The students began using spells such as Solidification Spell and Ice Ball Spell to make travel and the heat more manageable.
• Ang carved Wind Gathering Rune and Freezing Rune Tablets while walking, then embedded Magic Crystals to produce cooling wind and frost.
• After a difficult day of travel, the group reached a large camp surrounded by a ten-meter stone wall, where Nicholas announced their upcoming study of plants and magical beast materials.

Ang arrived at a rainforest camp with Instructor Nicholas and learned that their expedition would search for flower elves while studying magical beasts. After teaching a vendor how to harvest white calamus, Ang planned a wooden Demon Sealing Box and waited for the vendor to find suitable oak.

• Ang and the students entered the camp, obtained Identity Tokens, and learned that Nicholas hoped to find flower elves while assigning each student a magical beast to study.
• Ang chose the Rainforest Wolf and explored the camp’s night market, where he found a vendor selling white calamus with damaged roots.
• Ang taught the vendor how to harvest white calamus properly, and the vendor agreed to seek an undamaged plant for him.
• Ang decided to make a wooden Demon Sealing Box from aged oak and asked the vendor to look for suitable timber near the camp.
• Ang sketched and refined the box’s design at the inn, then rose early to await news about the oak.