Geometric Mage: First Spell, Circle

After taking a shower, Lian dressed and sat at the chair. In front of him was a desk with various papers scribbled with strange shapes.

Since becoming a Mage, Lian had done nothing but draw geometric shapes. He dreamed of them at night, drew them during the day, and practiced with them.

"This all makes no sense!" Between one circle and another, Lian carefully recalled what had happened.

Master Corvan had sent him away, saying it was time to relax and that he needed to take things slowly. After a failure, in fact, the likelihood of the next creation resulting in another failure was greater.

"But I want to continue with rune creation… damn Corvan! Since when did he become my master?" The circle drawn by Lian reflected his mood. Crooked, deformed, and with spikes everywhere.

Knock Knock—

Just as he was about to continue cursing, someone knocked on his door.

"Lian, it is I, Rick!"

Rick? Lian thought of the familiar name as a boy with black hair and black eyes appeared in his mind. "Ah, it is Rick!" he whispered, getting up from the chair and approaching the door.

Without worrying about anything, the boy entered the room and lay on the bed, his head sinking into the pillow where Lian had slept that night.

"So fragrant!" he murmured while taking an extra breath.

"Umh…" Lian observed him, speechless. He did not expect the boy to behave this way. "How did the classes go?" he said with irritation, his brow furrowed. Rick's academy robes were all dirty!

"Not bad, not bad!" Rick got up from the bed and sat, leaving a slight stain of dirt on the sheets and pillow. Lian gritted his teeth in anger, his eyes closed. He did not want to get mad over something so trivial. He had to stay calm.

"Today, Professor Guill taught us something new about talents. Did you know that to find out if you have a talent or not, the best thing to do is to constantly face life-or-death challenges?! It is absurd, no one had ever said that before!"

Listening to the boy's words, Lian tilted his head slightly. He had no idea about this. Was it even true? What correlations were there between putting oneself in danger and discovering a new talent?

But he could not say anything. How could he contradict a professor's words without any basis as proof? Besides, the things said by Professor Guill could very well be true.

"And that is why the professor, in agreement with the academy, has organized a battle against monsters for all of us!"

Rick was too excited as he waved his hands and feet, not noticing the frown on Lian's face at all.

Something is off… Lian's thoughts began to drift as he recalled the headmaster's words about deploying boys like them to fight against monsters.

I understand… so they are starting to send us to war. They want to train us, create war machines. Extreme situations require extreme rules—

"Hey Lian, are you listening to me? Did you understand what I said? We will be sent to destroy hordes of monsters!"

"Oh yes, it is great—"

"Friend, you do not seem enthusiastic. Oh, I had forgotten… you told me you were fed up with facing monsters after being trapped in a Gate for weeks, killing monsters every day…"

"…but I know what might change your mind!"

Lian's expression shifted from attentive to curious, then excited when Rick spoke of the prizes.

"Exactly, brother! Whoever reaches first place in monster kills will receive a custom-made artifact from one of the best Rune Masters in the academy!"

Rick stood up, already imagining using a dagger to assassinate all the monsters in one blow.

Lian's enthusiasm was no less, but he did not show it like Rick.

"How does one participate in this… challenge?"

A laugh left Rick's mouth as he approached Lian, his arm tightly around the boy's neck.

"My friend, it is very simple. You just have to sign up. But there is time, the battle will take place in two weeks from today. However, it is better to sign up right away. What do you say we go now? You do not have anything to do, do you?"

"To do? Well, in theory, I would like to meditate a bit—"

"Nonsense! What are you talking about? Two weeks of uninterrupted meditation will not change anything! The only way to gain strength is by buying some low-level artifacts. Unfortunately, those are the only ones we can afford. And then—"

Rick removed his hand from Lian's shoulder as he approached the desk. "What the hell are these scribbles supposed to be? Were you not supposed to meditate? So what were you doing here before I came? No excuses, come with me, let us go sign up!"

Rick grabbed Lian by the arm and dragged him out of the academy.

I do not need years to advance, Rick. Two weeks are more than enough to become a Bronze 5 and a successful Rune Master. Believe me, I will amaze you!

However, these were only his thoughts. He could not say it aloud, otherwise he would expose his talent, if it could be called that.

"Rick, can I ask you a question?"

Rick seemed offended by Lian's polite tone. "Do not be so formal. Ask me anything you want."

"Oh, nothing much. I was wondering, do you by chance know the identity of the Rune Master who will create the artifact for us?"

"Of course I know, who does not? It is the great Master Corvan, a legend in this academy. Imagine, most of the artifacts sold in the academy were created by him!"

Rick continued to talk, describing how incredible and spirited the Rune Master was, but Lian stopped listening to the boy the moment he mentioned the name Corvan.

Wow! So he is a big deal!

Lian recalled his meeting with him that morning. His disheveled appearance as he introduced himself to Lian and explained everything there was to know about Rune Masters, until his return with his partner, appearing as a completely different person.

"How small the world is…" he murmured, shaking his head, listening to Rick's words. Then, Lian began to recount his day and how he had met Master Corvan, receiving Rick's shocked and amazed looks.