Chapter Summaries

Saine sent Earl Grant a letter through the Azure Source Holy Tower’s Magic Messenger and began attending its free public courses. His studies led him to Formal Magician Lan Qi’s unpopular Alien Creature Anatomy class, where he found a small group of mostly Intermediate Apprentices and two other Advanced Apprentices.

• Saine chose the Magic Messenger to deliver a letter to Earl Grant, learning that Magic Coins and High-Level Energy Crystals exchanged at a one-to-one rate.
• Saine learned that many Holy Tower apprentices worked jobs around the academy to pay for their studies and expenses.
• Saine attended free foundational courses, including Introductory Light Magic and Basic Lectures on Alien Planes, which the Black Wizard Academy had not offered.
• Saine reflected on the dangerous training he had endured at the Black Wizard Academy while watching younger apprentices study at the Holy Tower.
• Saine attended Formal Magician Lan Qi’s sparsely attended Alien Creature Anatomy course, where Lan Qi taught using an alien humanoid’s corpse.

Saine attended Magician Lanqi’s Alien Creature Anatomy class and impressed him with his precise dissection skills. Lanqi hired Saine to dissect a rare juvenile Sub-Dragon specimen, giving Saine an opportunity to earn rewards and seek knowledge about Alien Planes.

• Magician Lanqi taught the apprentices about Alien Creatures and shared accounts of the eleven Alien Planes he had explored.
• Saine dissected a Homeland Being specimen with exceptional precision, catching Lanqi’s attention.
• Lanqi asked Saine to help perfectly dissect an alien creature skeleton in exchange for Academy Points and rewards.
• Saine accepted Lanqi’s request, hoping to learn more about Alien Planes.
• Lanqi revealed that the specimen was a rare juvenile Sub-Dragon with an early Rank One life level.

After helping Magician Lan Qi dissect an Alien Subdragon Creature, Saine traded his coin reward for lessons on alien planes. Lan Qi’s instruction clarified how Plane Will affected travelers, and he explained that the Wizard World’s own Plane Will was especially strong.

• Magician Lan Qi rewarded Saine with a Mental Strength-enhancing drink and five Academy Points after Saine declined five Magic Coins in exchange for lessons.
• Magician Lan Qi taught Saine about alien planes over twelve lessons across two weeks.
• Lan Qi explained that a plane’s Plane Will could suppress visitors from the Wizard World, especially during a hostile plane’s war against them.
• Lan Qi told Saine that only Complete Rule Planes possessed Plane Will, while Demiplanes and Broken Planes did not.
• Lan Qi confirmed that the Wizard World had an even stronger Plane Will and said its harsh environment shortened the lifespans of many low-level Alien Creatures.

Saine spent two years at Azure Source Holy Tower Academy mastering foundational knowledge and more than ten Low-Level spells, then enrolled in a Fire Element Transformation Course. When several Advanced Apprentices entered the classroom, trouble came for him.

• Saine received Earl Grant’s brief reply confirming his arrival and mentioning that the border war between the Lisia Alliance and the Ok Empire was still ongoing.
• Saine continued his demanding routine of classes and study, avoiding the academy’s social gatherings and seldom meeting other apprentices.
• Over two years, Saine filled gaps in his foundational knowledge and mastered more than ten Low-Level spells.
• Saine entered a Fire Element Transformation Course and took the middle seat in the first row, drawing sidelong glances from the apprentices already present.
• A group of three Advanced Apprentices entered the classroom, and trouble came for Saine.

Saine refused to give up his usual seat when Flame Hand Mark confronted him, and the two apprentices briefly clashed with their magic. Mark challenged Saine to a match at the academy’s Challenge Stage, but Formal Magician Irene arrived before Saine answered.

• A red-robed apprentice demanded that Saine leave his seat, while two Advanced Apprentices stood behind him.
• Saine stayed seated, and the red-robed apprentice gathered Fire Element power as Saine remained unafraid of a confrontation.
• Saine recognized the apprentice as Flame Hand Mark, ranked seventeenth in the academy’s Combat Power Ranking, and revealed the blazing aura of his advanced spell Sun’s Eye.
• Saine told Mark he always sat in the front row and challenged him to find another seat, making Mark furious.
• Mark challenged Saine to a match at the Challenge Stage, but Formal Magician Irene entered the classroom before Saine replied.

Mage Irene taught Saine and the other apprentices how she improved Fire Element spells, demonstrating the power and efficiency of her Thousand Birds Group Burst Spell. Saine compared it with his own Sun's Eye Magic and wondered whether he could improve its coverage.

• Advanced Apprentice Mark glared at Saine before sitting with his companions, and Mage Irene began the lesson without commenting on their earlier dispute.
• Mage Irene explained how she modified the Fireball Spell into more efficient Firebird and Group Burst Spells with greater power.
• Saine considered how his Sun's Eye Magic compared with Mage Irene's Group Burst Spell and wondered if he could improve its coverage.
• Mage Irene showed a projection of her Thousand Birds Group Burst Spell destroying dozens of targets across a training ground.
• Mage Irene declared that the Holy Tower's Arcane Light recognized her Thousand Birds Group Burst Spell as a formal spell and praised its strength among spells of its level.

Saine finished Magician Irene’s Fire Element Transformation class and declined to buy the advanced Group Burst Spell model, having already set his research priorities. After Mark mocked him in the classroom, Saine agreed to meet him at the Challenge Stage.

• Magician Irene offered to sell the Spell Models for the improved Firebird Spell and Group Burst Spell, but warned the apprentices that modifying magic was dangerous and best left to Formal-Ranked Magicians.
• Saine decided not to spend Magic Coins or time learning the Group Burst Spell, and he looked forward to the remaining classes in Irene’s course.
• After Irene left, Mark challenged Saine to practice on the Challenge Stage and mocked him when Saine initially refused.
• Saine suppressed his anger, then accepted Mark’s challenge, unsettling Mark with his cold expression.

Saine faced the Advanced Apprentice Mark on the Holy Tower Academy's Challenge Stage, where Mark opened with powerful fire magic and enchanted equipment. Saine blocked Mark's attack and began casting Sun's Eye, leaving the battle poised as Magician Irene and the watching Formal Magician observed.

• Saine and Mark arrived at the Challenge Stage, where their arrival ended a pair of Low-Level Apprentices' sparring match.
• Mark and Saine exchanged threats before beginning their duel with killing blows.
• Mark activated his protective necklace, Sky Soaring Boots, and Elemental Ring, then attacked Saine with his advanced Flame Hand.
• Saine blocked Mark's Flame Hand with a concealed yellow barrier and began forming Sun's Eye.
• Magician Irene arrived and watched Mark's fight while the Yellow-Robed Formal Magician wondered who Saine was.

Saine and Mark fought on the Challenge Stage, where Saine’s improved Sun’s Eye magic damaged Mark’s shield bracer before Mark answered with Group Burst Spell. As Mark’s firebirds overwhelmed Saine’s shield, Saine’s golden beam forced Mark to dodge, and an Azure Flame Blade suddenly appeared behind him.

• Saine’s Sun’s Eye beam pierced Mark’s Fire Wall and damaged his water-vapor shield bracer, so Mark used his Sky Soaring Boots to take to the air.
• Irene explained that Saine’s Sun’s Eye was an improved advanced magic capable of two attacks, though its Array Diagram was beginning to collapse.
• Mark completed Group Burst Spell and sent dozens of firebirds crashing into Saine’s Earth Elemental Shield, shattering it.
• Saine fired the remaining golden beam, and Mark dodged it but suffered a burn on his arm.
• An Azure Flame Blade appeared behind Mark, making his expression turn pale.

Saine defeated Mark in the Challenge Stage after exploiting a gap in Mark’s Group Burst Spell, earning seventeenth place on the academy ranking and the Yellow-Robed Magician’s praise. The chapter ended with Saine leaving to treat his burns while Irene rebuked Mark for failing to grasp how close he had come to defeat.

• The Yellow-Robed Magician declared Saine the winner after blocking Saine’s Flame Blade and praised his dangerous charge through Mark’s Group Burst Spell.
• Saine explained that he had judged the spell’s brief blind spot and chosen the route with the lowest risk, leaving Mark dismayed by his defeat in both tactics and courage.
• Irene teased Mark about his loss reaching their duchy, and Saine realized that she was Mark’s grandmother and that they came from the same Duchy Family.
• Saine thanked Irene for saving him, declined her offer to treat his burns, and left the Challenge Stage with his own healing supplies.
• Mark complained that Irene’s intervention had spared Saine, but Irene scolded him for underestimating the danger of the battle.

After defeating Mark, Saine returned to class and focused on studying while the other apprentices watched him warily. He collected his monthly Challenge Stage reward but decided to prioritize his studies and let others take his ranking.

• Saine occupied the front-row seat in class, and Mark arrived with his arm bandaged but avoided challenging him again.
• Irene began the Fire Element Transformation Course, and Saine ignored the apprentices' attention to study.
• Saine received a High-Level Energy Crystal, an Awakening Potion, and two stalks of Ailan Grass as his monthly Challenge Stage reward.
• Saine decided to focus on increasing his Magic Power and Mental Strength, studying spells, and pursuing alchemy and potion-making.
• Saine concluded that he had no time to defend his Challenge Stage ranking and would yield it to anyone who wanted it.

Saine continued focusing on his studies at Azure Source Holy Tower Academy while Mark remained frustrated that Saine had stopped challenging apprentices. Three years later, Saine met his friend Green in the library, where they discussed Green’s research into combining ice and fire magic.

• Saine received Academy Rewards for three consecutive months because the apprentice rankings had few active challengers, while Mark returned to nineteenth place in the Combat Power Ranking.
• Irene scolded Mark for obsessing over Saine and pursuing a new girlfriend instead of studying.
• Over the next three years, Saine continued deepening his magical knowledge by attending lectures and spending long hours in the library.
• Saine found the Atlas of Light on the library’s seventh floor and spoke with Green, who was researching the fusion of ice and fire elements.
• Saine and Green’s friendship was rooted in their shared bookish routines, and Green had become an Advanced Apprentice through years of hard work.

Saine reflected on why the Azure Source Holy Tower recruited commoner apprentices and listened as Green explained his nearly mature Ice-Fire Magic research. The chapter ended with Green learning that Saine had recently reached the Quasi-Magician threshold of 70 Mental Strength and magic power.

• The Azure Source Holy Tower recruited commoner apprentices after a director proposed searching among them for talented candidates, using the academy's surplus funds to support them.
• Green joined the academy as a commoner apprentice, receiving free admission and an annual subsidy in exchange for a longer service commitment.
• Saine considered his friendship with Green an investment but noted that Green had never asked him for money despite knowing Saine borrowed books often.
• Green explained his Ice-Fire Magic research to Saine in the library, and Saine recognized that the theory seemed close to maturity.
• Saine said he planned to return to his dormitory to study a Light Magic book and consolidate his recent breakthrough beyond 70 Mental Strength and magic power.
• Green expressed envy when Saine confirmed he had reached the Quasi-Magician threshold a few days earlier.

Saine reflected on the divide between apprentices and Level 1 magicians and reaffirmed that he wanted to pursue magic rather than inherit the earldom. When he returned to his residence, the academy's Magic Messenger delivered him a sealed letter.

• Saine considered how Formal Magicians could harness the Element Power of the natural world and why the Wizard World sent only Level 1 experts into Plane Wars.
• Saine recalled that Solon had married, had a son, and was expected to inherit the earldom after Saine declined his place as first heir.
• Saine resolved to join the society of Level 1 creatures and remain indifferent to noble titles and ordinary life.
• A black crow delivered Saine a letter whose Element Power seal showed whether it had been opened.

Saine learned that his grandfather had died and that his cousin Serena would come to Azure Source Holy Tower seeking his help. Six months later, while Saine was conducting experiments to transform Sun's Eye Magic, Formal Magician Irene interrupted him to say a relative was looking for him.

• Earl Grant wrote to Saine that Saine's grandfather had died suddenly, and that Serena had grieved deeply.
• Earl Grant told Saine that Serena would come to Azure Source Holy Tower after arranging their grandfather's funeral, likely at the Ferrell Family's suggestion.
• Saine considered how to help Serena enter Azure Source Holy Tower Academy outside its enrollment period, then returned to stabilizing his Mental Strength.
• Six months later, Saine's experiments showed progress toward transforming Sun's Eye Magic into powerful Light-Fire Dual Element Magic.
• Formal Magician Irene contacted Saine through the Crystal Ball and told him that a relative was looking for him.

Saine met his cousin Serena outside the Holy Tower Academy after Magician Irene tracked him down to tell him she had arrived. Recognizing their blood relation, he asked Irene to help Serena enter the academy, and she led them inside.

• Magician Irene confronted Saine for blocking his Crystal Ball and explained that Serena had come to the academy looking for him.
• Saine and Serena recognized their blood relation through his Bloodline Tracing Magic and the family tokens she carried.
• Serena’s grandfather’s cane stirred Saine’s sorrow and memories, and Saine asked Irene to recommend Serena to the academy.
• Irene agreed to help and led Saine and Serena into the Holy Tower Academy, where Serena marveled at its scenery and tower.

Saine helped Serena complete her enrollment at Holy Tower Academy, and when they realized she had nowhere to stay, he offered to take her in temporarily. Serena had also been sent with the hope of strengthening her ties with Saine, whom her family elders considered a possible marriage partner.

• Formal Magician Irene introduced Serena and completed her enrollment, putting the two Level-1 Energy Crystal fee on Director Johnny's tab.
• Irene left before Saine could thank her, and Serena praised her as a good person.
• Saine learned that Serena was eighteen and, after realizing she had no dormitory, invited her to stay with him for the time being.
• Serena recalled that her family elders had urged her to build a relationship with Saine, and Ancestor Ze Lato had suggested they could marry.

Saine and Serena settled into a quiet routine at his residence while she studied at the Holy Tower and helped with the household. As Saine’s Sun’s Eye Magic research neared completion, he invited Serena to assist in his laboratory, where her studies in light and fire magic could benefit from the work.

• Saine arranged rooms on the first floor of his residence for Serena, and Little Seven moved from its former territory.
• Serena began attending public courses and exploring the academy while preparing meals and cleaning for Saine.
• Saine focused on perfecting Sun’s Eye Magic, spending much of his time in the laboratory and library.
• Saine learned that Serena studied light magic with fire magic as a supplement, and he asked her to help record experimental data in his laboratory.
• Serena agreed to help, and Saine offered to pay her.

Saine completed his improved Sun's Eye Magic experiment with Serena's help, producing a version nearly four times as powerful as the original. He rewarded Serena and confirmed that he was a thirty-one-year-old Quasi-Magician.

• Serena assisted Saine with his complex Sun's Eye Magic experiment and learned the Light-element spell Scorching Ray during the month and a half of work.
• Saine completed the improved Sun's Eye, which preliminary calculations showed was nearly four times as powerful as the original.
• Saine gave Serena Fire Attribute Energy Crystals as payment for her help, insisting she accept them.
• Serena asked Saine whether he was a Quasi-Magician, and he confirmed his rank and told her he was thirty-one.
• Saine encouraged Serena to believe that she could reach the same level in the future.

Saine tested his improved Sun's Eye Magic at the Azure Source Holy Tower's Training Ground and discovered it could destroy targets and break through the grounds' Energy Shield. He fled after an angry Second-Level Magician called out, leaving the damage and his experiment behind.

• Saine rented a private area at the Training Ground to test his improved Sun's Eye Magic, which could absorb natural Element Power and fire six volleys of six beams.
• Saine fired two volleys at the distant slope, obliterating the targets and blasting away a third of the slope.
• Saine directed a volley at the Training Ground's Energy Shield, weakening the section without realizing it.
• Saine fired the remaining three volleys at the same spot, blasting a huge hole through the shield.
• Saine began recording the damage, but an angry Second-Level Magician shouted about a Formal Magician testing magic in the Apprentice Zone, so Saine put away his Crystal Ball and left.