Episode 5
Jericho Isaac awakened his mana when he was twelve.
He was proud to have done it earlier than others and looked at Raphael. Raphael acted like he didn’t care, but deep down, he felt inferior.
Jericho was two years younger than Raphael. So when they fought with wooden swords, Raphael usually won because he was taller and stronger. But Jericho was sure that soon the tables would turn. He believed his sword skills were better and that once he grew up, he would win easily.
Their parents died just two years later.
Raphael became the new lord.
After that, Raphael avoided dueling with Jericho and still hadn’t awakened mana. He gave up on the sword and on mana altogether.
“He’s not fit to be lord,” Jericho thought. According to family rules, he should have become lord, not Raphael.
Raphael becoming lord was a mistake caused by an accident. Watching his brother do nothing right only made Jericho more determined to take the title away. He even joined hands with their younger brother.
“Even if he changes now, it won’t matter.”
Raphael was now being kind to the people of the estate, training his body, and had awakened his mana.
It was a big change in a short time.
But even if Raphael now acted like a good lord, it wouldn’t be enough to win people back.
Even if he worked hard and trained at the academy, he was still far behind Jericho.
“Still… this is surprising.” Jericho sighed.
“This kind of celebration is for kids. I’m too old for this.”
“Don’t say that! You awakened mana! That’s worth celebrating! Come on!”
Koromang called the important people in the house and arranged a gathering to celebrate Raphael’s mana awakening.
Raphael felt embarrassed but followed quietly. He released mana from his hand, and it shimmered and gathered in the air.
It was quite a large amount.
Even if he awakened it late, the amount of mana he had was amazing. Jericho felt jealous.
He had worked so hard to take the lord’s title. This was the first time he felt truly worried.
He whispered to Evelyn next to him, “Isn’t this bad for us?”
Evelyn laughed a little. “Are you scared? Think you’ll lose?”
“No, it’s not that. But just in case…”
“Forget it. Don’t worry. He’ll leave for the academy in a few days. Once he’s gone, he won’t be able to gain influence. Just focus on training. As long as you’re stronger than him, there’s nothing to worry about.”
“Okay. I trust you.”
“Yeah, you’ve never been good with plans anyway. Leave that to me.”
“Good morning!”
“Good morning.”
“Congratulations on awakening your mana.”
“Thanks.”
The servant who used to avoid Raphael now smiled and talked easily. It felt strange. Raphael scratched his head, feeling awkward. He was sad that he’d be leaving tomorrow.
He woke up early, trained like always, and ate breakfast.
Then Koromang called him to the study. When he arrived, she looked very tired.
“You came? There’s something I need to tell you.”
“Why the serious tone?”
“I thought it might be too early to say this, but we don’t have much time… You shouldn’t go to the academy.”
“What?”
Raphael had said for a long time that he planned to go. It was strange for her to suddenly oppose it.
“Why now?”
“If you leave, your position as lord might be in danger. Your younger brother…”
“Oh, that? Don’t worry. I know. I have a plan.”
Jericho was strong—stronger than his role in the original story—but that was it.
As long as Raphael followed the original plot, he could surpass him.
“Haha.”
Raphael laughed. Koromang giving him advice meant she was starting to side with him.
The original story was starting to change.
Time passed, and the day of the academy entrance exam came.
Koromang sniffled and said, “At first, I thought you were going just because of Lady Bishot. I thought you were following her like a fool. But I guess I was wrong.”
“I’ll miss seeing you. Thanks for everything.”
“It was my job. Good luck. And no quitting halfway.”
With her farewell, Raphael left for the academy.
The academy accepted anyone with talent. There were lots of applicants at the gate, crowding around before the exam began. It felt like a noisy market.
Ugh. Raphael already disliked crowds.
Still, the swordsmanship department was better than most.
Since everyone had to duel, they had at least some idea of their skills.
The pure academic departments were packed even tighter.
Raphael felt bad for the exam supervisors.
Looking around, he saw some really skinny and small applicants in the swordsmanship section.
Strange.
Were they learning some special type of sword technique?
But watching them nervously glance around, Raphael realized they weren’t sword users at all. They were low-level mages.
Because the swordsmanship department had lower entry requirements, they were trying to enter the academy that way and later transfer to the magic department.
Raphael was relieved—he’d have it easy.
That’s when a calm but clear voice rang out in the crowd.
“What are you doing here?”
It was Jeffrin, glaring at Raphael.
“You’re a noble. You could have entered through special admission. Why take the exam?”
“Didn’t feel like using it.”
“What?”
“I could get in without it.”
Jeffrin then noticed the sword on Raphael’s waist and asked, “Did you apply to the swordsmanship department?”
“Yeah. What’s the problem?”
“I heard you haven’t used a sword in a long time.”
“Well, now I’m going to work hard.”
“Such foolishness.”
Jeffrin turned away, speaking coldly.
“I believe everyone should be equal before the sword. I hope you fight fairly.”
He meant: Don’t expect mercy. I’ll crush you.
“Ha.”
Raphael snorted. He didn’t need mercy. He could win without it.
The swordsmanship exam had two parts: first, showing mana; second, demonstrating sword skills.
Showing mana was easy. You grabbed a special mana stone and filled it with your energy. If it changed color, you passed.
But for some reason, magic department applicants were there too.
Now Raphael understood why mages applied for swordsmanship. In the magic exam, you needed to show not just mana but how much and how well you controlled it.
Blue meant “pass” for swordsmen. Red was needed for mages. Green meant the mana stone was full.
It was a boring test until—
“W-what?!”
A green light flashed brightly.
It meant someone filled the mana stone completely.
It shook and glowed like crazy.
The person holding it was…
Ian Roadbreaker.
Future master of the Magic Tower—and one of Raphael’s future killers.
Boom!
The stone exploded.
Ian calmly brushed the dust off his hand and walked away.
Wow. That was something.
Then it was Raphael’s turn.
Because Ian broke the last stone, he got a new one. Raphael poured mana in slowly.
“Oooh.”
The stone turned from blue to red, and finally green. Not as bright as Ian’s, but still impressive.
People nearby started whispering.
“Did you see that? Pretty good.”
“Maybe he trained at a magic tower too?”
But because Ian’s display had been so crazy, Raphael didn’t get too much attention.
“Did I pass?” he asked the supervisor.
The man nodded. “Lots of talented people this year. You’re applying for the swordsmanship department, right?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t want to switch to magic?”
“No thanks.”
The supervisor looked disappointed, but Raphael walked off to the second test.
The second part was sparring under Katarina’s supervision.
Each applicant had to duel twice. Raphael won both easily.
The first opponent was probably a weak mage pretending to be a swordsman. He shook as soon as he stepped in the ring, and Raphael won with one swing.
The second was stronger and confident, but he didn’t appear in the original story, so Raphael knew he wasn’t important. He won easily again.
“Come back in the afternoon,” Katarina said flatly.
She wasn’t interested in him. She kept secretly watching Jeffrin instead.
Jeffrin, unlike the others, finished his fights in one move. His speed was unreal.
No student in the academy’s history could beat him. Just lasting more than a second against him deserved applause.
“I’m hungry.”
Raphael wandered off looking for food.
That’s when Jeffrin walked up again.
“You seem serious now.”
He always started conversations like that—half talking to himself, expecting Raphael to understand.
“What are you talking about?”
“I remember your swordsmanship was awful.”
“Well yeah. Compared to you, anyone would look bad. What, bragging now?”
Jeffrin shook his head. “I’m not here to mock you. Back then, you ignored basics and only used flashy moves. But today, you stuck to the basics.”
He was right—but not because Raphael wanted to. He couldn’t use flashy moves yet. His body wasn’t ready, and he hadn’t fully learned the sword techniques.
Jeffrin’s eyes scanned Raphael’s earrings, necklace, fingers.
“You even removed all your jewelry. I assume it was to help with your sword movement.”
“Yeah, exactly.”
“You told me to avoid you if we fought. I take that back. Give it your all. I will too.”
Ugh. That’s really not necessary.
