After the practical training session ended, Jenny-sensei shuffled out of the training grounds, her head hanging low in dejection.
"Is class over already?" I asked.
It was only 11:00 AM...
"A bit early, but yeah," Frank replied. "Well, there are only about ten of us in this class, so things move fast. We’re allowed to use this place however we like until noon. What do you want to do?"
"Hmm. What about those robots?"
"I'm sure she’d lend them to you if you asked."
I highly doubted she’d be willing to lend anything to the guy who just pulverized one.
"Hey, don't I have to pay for that? The teacher looked pretty devastated..."
"They’re school equipment, so there’s no personal liability," Cedric explained. "I think she was just shocked that her magic was broken so easily."
Wait, wasn't she shouting about how expensive they were the whole time?
"You guys didn't break yours, did you?" I asked.
"The Reinforcement Magic on those things is quite formidable," Cedric said. "Only a select few can actually shatter them."
"Like Toko... I mean, La Forge-san?"
"Well, yeah. Aside from her, maybe Yuika could do it?"
I see...
"Toko-san was using advanced magic, which is rare for her..." Noelle remarked.
"She was just trying to compete with you," Ilmera added. "Toko is a bundle of pride. She had to show off her prestigious family status."
No, it was just a classic 'mounting' battle between twins. We fight over the most trivial things imaginable. It’s just the nature of being twins...
"Heh... well, whatever. It’s the first day, so let’s just head back."
"Works for me."
We left the training grounds and hiked up the hill toward the dormitories. We parted ways with the two girls along the way and returned to the boys' dormitory. Once there, Frank and Cedric started trying to teach me about something called Space Magic in the second-floor lounge.
"See the spell formula written here? Just follow this. It’s not that hard, right?"
Frank showed me a magic textbook, but it was filled with complex mathematical-looking formulas that made absolutely no sense to me.
"I don't get it..."
"Wait... Tsukasa, do you seriously not even know how to read a spell formula?"
"Spell formula...?" I blinked. "Is this not math?"
"This guy is for real..." Frank muttered.
"How did you even pass the entrance exam?" Cedric asked, looking exasperated.
"Backdoor connections..."
"Ah, so it’s like that."
"I wonder how much your parents had to shell out."
It was the La Forge family connections. I’m sure they put up a fair amount of cash, too.
"Is that a problem?" I asked.
"No, everyone knows it happens," Frank said.
"It’s a tacit understanding," Cedric added. "Actually, I suspect my family might have paid something as well. I believe I would have passed on my own merits, but as the next head of my house, I couldn't afford to fail."
I see.
"Fine then. In that case, teach me about these 'spell formulas.' I didn't understand a single word of today's academic lectures."
"I guess we’ll have to start from the very beginning."
"This is going to be a long afternoon," Cedric sighed.
The two of them spent the next few hours walking me through the basics of spell formulas. They were surprisingly thorough and patient teachers.
"I think I have a vague idea of what a spell formula is now, but I still don't feel like I can actually use one," I admitted.
"Why not? You can use Reinforcement Magic, can't you?"
"Reinforcement Magic is just about controlling magic power inside my own body. I’m good at that, but I’ve always been terrible at projecting it outward. That’s why I never had any intention of becoming a mage until now."
I couldn't even manage Toko's lighter-flick Fire Magic.
"Ah, so you’re that type... You see them every now and then," Frank noted.
"Yeah," Cedric agreed. "People with massive amounts of magic power who can't cast a single spell."
"Isn't that rare, though? Doesn't that make me a dropout?"
"How can you be a dropout when you have that much magic power?" Frank countered.
"Well, academically you might be a dropout," Cedric teased. "But look, Tsukasa, there are all kinds of mages. From our perspective, we’re incredibly envious of your raw power."
And I’m incredibly envious of your utility.
"The grass is always greener, I guess."
"I suppose so. You say you can’t use magic, but if you can use Reinforcement Magic that effectively, it’s more than enough."
More than enough, huh...?
"Tsukasa, what kind of mage do you actually want to become?" Frank asked.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean your future career path. For example, my family is a military family, so I focus on combat techniques."
"I'm the family head," Cedric said, "so I don't really specialize. I'm a jack of all trades, master of none."
Hmm...
"Maybe Dispel?"
"Dispel?"
"Why that?"
I couldn't exactly tell them the real reason.
"One of my parents is a specialist in that kind of magic."
I wasn't lying. I'm pretty sure Mom is an expert.
"Heh... Dispel is difficult, you know," Frank said.
"That was an incredibly unexpected answer," Cedric added. "I honestly thought you’d be better suited for the front lines of combat."
I tended to agree with him.
"Is it impossible?"
"I wouldn't say impossible. It’s certainly difficult, though."
"At the very least, you’re going to need academic skills," Cedric warned. "Dispel spell formulas are notoriously complex."
Academic skills...
"So... studying, then?"
"Some big shot once said that magic is a field of science and academia," Frank said. "Anyway, if you want to learn Dispel, you have to memorize spell formulas."
"How many?"
"For starters, every single basic spell formula in this textbook."
I flipped through the book. It felt like there were an astronomical number of formulas listed, and yet these were supposedly just the "basics."
"All of them...? By the way, do you guys actually have all these memorized?"
"Of course."
"Naturally."
They were incredible.
"I’m an idiot, so this feels impossible for me..."
"Hey, I’m more on your side of the fence than Cedric is," Frank said. "I only know them because they’ve been drilled into my head since before I could walk."
"Exactly," Cedric agreed. "It’s not like we memorized these in an instant. I hated every second of it when I was a kid."
It was a difference in experience. We were the same age, but while I had thrown it all away as a child, these guys had put in the work.
"I see..."
"Anyway, just memorize them," Frank insisted. "It’s all just rote memorization."
"Actually, you’re in trouble if you don’t," Cedric added. "We have tests coming up."
Tests... A word I truly despised.
"Are the tests written exams? Isn't there a practical training portion?"
"There's basically no practical component for the foundation courses."
No practicals...
"Is there no option to pass by just blowing the teacher away?"
"Stop trying to blow away the teacher!" Frank shouted. "Seriously, I never thought I’d have to say that to someone in my entire life."
"You really are a musclehead," Cedric sighed. "Your way of thinking is medieval."
Great. So I actually have to study.