Zuri was registered as a student of basic magic.The place where the magic classes would take place was a training field near the walls of Milena's castle.
He received a card with his personal information that qualified him as an official student.
He would begin classes the day after registration, and the boy was thrilled. He eagerly wanted to use magic like an experienced person. Having power in the palms of his hands was something he could only imagine in fantasy back in his old world.
He already knew the basics of fire magic, the fireball (Ignis Pila), and a bit of gravitational magic, but he still had no control over that skill.
Zuri showed up to class. Unlike his old world, classes were held in open fields and did not use paper or books, reminding him that he was in a rudimentary world.
Upon arriving at the location, he had to introduce himself to the class, as he was starting in the middle of the school year. His tutor was Damon, a mage with a mediocre physical build, but seemingly agile enough for dodging and running skills. He was young, only 26 years old.
Damon introduced Zuri to everyone:
—"This boy, 7 years old, is Zuri, and from now on, he'll be part of your class."
Everyone looked at him without much excitement. To them, he was just another classmate.
Zuri had expected a lukewarm reception, but soon his name would be on everyone's lips once they discovered he had a connection to Master Alex.
Damon asked Zuri:
—"What do you know about magic?"
—"I know the basics, the fireball spell."
—"Alright, that's a start. I'll just ask you to show me what you can do."
He was then invited to cast a spell at the training targets in the field.
Zuri remembered Alex's request to be modest with his magic, as it was very powerful and contained immense magical energy. Standing out too much could draw the attention of Governor Milena. Without a doubt, she would make him one of her soldiers—or worse, a leader of a legion.
And so, the new student moved to the training area. A bench separated the students from the targets, which were 15 meters away. The targets were mannequins hanging from wooden posts, simulating adult bodies.
He aimed at the target, with his right hand open and his other hand holding his wrist.
After a minute of concentration, he sighed and said loudly: Ignis Pila.
A large fireball formed in his hand and forcefully shot toward the target. The mannequin exploded in a matter of seconds.
Closing his eyes and waiting for the crowd's reaction, Zuri heard his tutor say:
—"That was a fireball? You've got to be kidding me." With a smile, he replied:
—"I believe that's proof of Alex's skill. He must have taught you some secret to become that strong."
—"Looks like it, huh?" Zuri replied with a light smile. He made it seem like his power was due to Alex's teachings, but that was a lie—it was his own ability.
Damon continued:—"Well, that was quite a spell, but it still doesn't surpass the best students in our class. I'm not as skilled a teacher as Alex, but I have a feeling you'll become a great soldier under my guidance."
Zuri realized he had overdone the spell. He concluded that he needed to try harder not to draw so much attention.
The whole class was impressed by Zuri's display of power and the fact that Alex had trained him.
They said the class now had a "deadly trio." This group included Thaís, an 8-year-old girl with brown hair, and Denis, a 9-year-old boy with dark blue hair. Zuri was added to this group.
The other two children were children of generals and had received training before starting school, which explained their skill.
Thaís greeted Zuri normally—she didn't feel threatened by his presence. Fame wasn't her main goal. But Denis desperately wanted to be the best in class in every way, and so he saw Zuri as a rival.
After that event, the students moved to the area for oral lessons.
As the students sat in their respective spots, Damon privately asked Denis to teach Zuri what had already been covered in previous classes, as he wouldn't have time to dedicate to tutoring Zuri.
Denis frowned for a moment and answered:
—"I accept, professor. But I won't insist if he's not good at learning. I'll teach just the basics of the basics."
Damon noticed the rivalry and thanked Denis, then turned back to the class.
Damon's class was highly theoretical.
He taught students how magic was classified into two branches: light magic and dark magic.
Dark magic manipulates the elements of fire, earth, and darkness.
Meanwhile, light magic controls water, wind, and light, the tutor explained.
He also taught about mana—how it's through the mana present in living beings that magic can be performed.
At that moment, Zuri asked:
—"Excuse me, professor, but did you say 'present in living beings'? So any creature can perform magic?"
—"Yes, exactly. The most classic examples are, for instance, the fearsome dragons."
Zuri was surprised to hear about dragons. Later, he sought more information and confirmed that they were the same as those from the folklore of his old world.
The class was also taught the language of magical incantations, geography of Epiria, basic lessons in economy and politics of the continent, as well as some codes of conduct for the city of Demetris.
There would also be basic math lessons, but only at the end of the course.
And so went Zuri's daily school life. From time to time, tests were conducted to assess the students' knowledge, and Zuri came in first in almost all evaluations—earning admiration from some and envy from others.
…
In his free time, Denis updated Zuri on previous class teachings. Zuri's attention was the same as in class—he wasn't bothered by Denis's intimidating attitude and focused only on learning.
Denis taught him how to perform basic earth spells, a bit of the magic language, and some history of the continent and cities of Epiria.
When Denis began to talk about the Nibiras—what he had learned from tutor Damon—Zuri's expression grew somber. He realized how others looked down on his people with disdain.
Upon noticing that Zuri's expression changed when he heard talk about the Níbiras, Denis, being a bit intrusive, asked:
—Zuri, have you ever been close to a Níbira?
Not wanting to hide the truth, Zuri replied: —Yes.
—But you weren't attacked by them?
Without going into detail, Zuri revealed: —They tried to kill me, but I survived.
Denis continued:
—Seriously? You got involved with a Níbira and survived? I can't believe it.
—Alex is the one who saved me from the Níbiras. Zuri wasn't trying to share too much about his life, but he felt like venting a little.
—So that's how you met Alex. I'm not really into admiring Alex's feats, but I actually admire the Níbiras more. My family is devoted to Eassed, and we believe they are the people chosen by God.
Denis went on:
—And the things I told you about the Níbiras—are they true?
—Yes, they have fair skin, blond hair, and only use light magic. I didn't get to see them fight, but from the little magic I saw them use, they are extremely skilled from a young age. And, of course, what everyone knows—they see any Epírian as a demon.
—That's going to change, I'm sure of it. Milena is going to change history. She says she will fight for equality for all in Epíria.
—But that's not enough! he shouted angrily.
—I'm sorry if I provoked you. Your experience must not have been a good one with them. But Milena said that if their territory is returned and they're allowed to govern their former land again, they'll treat all Epírians equally. Like I said, when they were expelled from their lands, their wrath against us rose. But that will change, I'm sure of it.
After learning more about Zuri's story, Denis began to see him as a real classmate.
…
In Zuri's day-to-day life outside the classroom, he secretly trained gravitational, fire, and earth magic alongside Ícaro.
Ícaro, who was already a teenager, could leave the city to train without problems. Zuri took advantage of this and asked Ícaro to take him somewhere isolated where no one would be around to watch.
When they began training in secret, Ícaro was astonished by Zuri's magic. His spells weren't as powerful as the one he had shown during his first class demonstration. During training, Zuri would find targets to launch his fireballs at—they were now much milder, just as he wanted. Meanwhile, Ícaro focused on earth magic, his specialty.
It was also common for Zuri to jump from tree to tree using gravitational magic. When Ícaro first saw Zuri doing this, he didn't realize it was magic. When he asked, Zuri revealed he had learned gravitational magic from Alex.
Zuri's routine consisted of classes and training with Ícaro. It didn't take long for Ícaro to get used to his new brother. What he enjoyed most was competing with Zuri. Once again, he assumed Zuri's abilities came from being trained by Alex.
Zuri was also training mana control, meditating to expand his mana. When Ícaro saw him releasing mana, he asked what he was doing. Zuri explained that he learned it from his former family and that it helped him learn gravitational magic and better control his spells.
Ícaro asked Zuri to do it again, and as Zuri's mana began to flow outside his body, Ícaro tried to touch the essence of the released mana and realized he could feel it when he got close. Then he had an idea:
—Zuri, teach me how to do this. Maybe we can use it in battle.
—In battle? How would that even be possible?
—First teach me, and I'll try. If it works, I'll show you.
After Zuri explained how to find the essence of mana through meditation, Ícaro started practicing.
It took several days, but eventually he succeeded. Zuri noticed Ícaro's mana aura was brown and concluded that each person must have a different aura.
After more days of training, Ícaro had mastered mana control effectively.
The two went again to their private training spot, which by now they considered their own—a small training field.
Ícaro decided to reveal his plan to Zuri: to release mana in a way that its aura could cause damage in close-combat attacks.
After much training, Ícaro's plan succeeded. The two boys now had a secret technique that had never been taught to them in class. It could be a magical innovation, as Ícaro had almost completed his studies and had never heard anyone mention releasing mana aura as a weapon.
Time passed, and Zuri's adoptive parents followed his progress. From time to time, they sent messages to Alex through ravens, which were used as messengers in Epíria. Alex was always grateful in his replies for their care of Zuri and was happy to hear that Ícaro and Zuri were training together. He concluded: "They will be excellent pupils." Upon hearing Alex's messages, Ícaro got even more excited to train with Zuri.
After several years, Zuri completed his basic magic course. At the age of 12, he was already fit for battle. On graduation day, Damon, Zuri's tutor, asked if he would agree to present a duel between him and Ícaro. Damon had discovered that the two were training in secret and wanted everyone to see the top students battle each other—especially Milena, who had already heard rumors about Zuri.
Upon hearing about the upcoming duel, which would be part of the graduation ceremony, Alex decided to attend in person. He wanted to prevent his two future pupils from becoming soldiers under Milena's command.