One Hours Ago.
'Huuuu. That was a good acting,' Damien exhaled calmly after leaving the orphanage. He was no longer the goofy kid everyone thought he was. But still, he had to perform a perfect illusion for those who knew him to avoid unnecessary problems.
'I have two goals in this lifetime. Getting my revenge and becoming the Sorcerer King. Now then...' Damien suddenly stopped running mid-track as a cold shiver ran down his spine. Something felt wrong.
Attached to his left leg was a sachet specifically made for holding grimoires—a sachet that was supposed to be empty. But now, the Black Book, the very same one he had thrown away earlier, was inside it.
"What the actual fuck," he said under his breath. He slowly brought out the black book, fingers trembling slightly.
'It's definitely the same book I threw away. How the hell did it end up in my supposedly empty sachet?' His mind raced, heart pounding. As he gazed at the book, it was as if the black tome was ominously drawing him in, its red Seven Star symbol pulsing with an otherworldly energy.
"is there a problem" Giovanni asked, noticing Damien's sudden halt.
Damien blinked, shaking his head. "No… It's nothing." He hesitated, then held up the book. "Hey, have you ever seen this before? Maybe back at the orphanage?"
Giovanni leaned in for a closer look, then shook his head dismissively. "Come on, we're already running late," he urged, resuming his pace.
With a sigh, Damien put the book back inside his sachet. He had more important things to worry about.
They finally arrived at the village square, where nestled between two crumbling stone pillars stood an old, weathered altar-like pavement. In the center of the pavement lay a 3rd-tier magic teleportation circle that glowed faintly, its intricate runes barely visible beneath years of wear.
"You're late" one of the four knights gathered there whose job were to teleport them to the magic tower said, frowning. Damien's gaze flickered to the knight's wrist, he had Four black circle shaped tattoos around his wrist.
'Damn, a fourth circle mage' Damien exclaimed. Back before his regression, no matter how much he trained, no matter how many battles he fought, he never managed to break into the Second Circle.
The Black Circle Tattoos on every mage signified their magical prowess. Even Giovanni, who stood beside him, was a rare second-circle mage, a feat not easily achieved without a grimoire.
"Great, another lowly commoner," another knight sneered, his voice dripping with disdain.
Giovanni quickly bowed. "We're sorry for the delay, Sir. We promise it won't happen again." He shot Damien a sharp glance, clearly blaming him for their lateness.
The knight sneered. "Don't bother apologizing. You can try again next year. We're done for the day."
"Huh?! But—"
Before Giovanni could argue, Damien placed a hand on his shoulder, stopping him.
"We're very sorry, noble knights. You may be on your way now," Damien said, offering a polite—albeit forced—smile.
"Tsk…At least your friend here have some manners left in him." The fourth-circle knight said as the four turned around and stood on top of the teleportation pavement, ready to teleport themselves.
"Oi, what are you doing. You know even if we run, we won't be able to make it there in time" Giovanni whispered urgently to Damien.
'We're really lucky I stopped Gio in time' Giovanni was too busy worrying about not being late that he didn't sense the danger lurking within. One of the four knights who stood there was ready to draw his blade against them if they persisted.
And in an isolated place like this, killing two commoner brats and covering up their death—making it look like an accident would be a piece of cake, so they were really lucky.
"Don't worry Gio, I have a plan" he said. That caught Giovanni by surprise. The brainless Damien actually thought of a plan.
"Teleport to the Magic Tower" one of the knights commanded and immediately, the runes on the teleportation circle flared to life, and in the blink of an eye, they vanish.
They knights arrived at the magic tower hall, but they weren't alone, Damien and Giovanni was with them. Seconds before the had been teleported, Damien dragged Giovanni's hand and dove into the teleportation circle—a move that royally pissed off the knights.
"Why, you little—!" One of them reached for his sword, but another knight grabbed his wrist, stopping him.
"Hey, look around" he whispered.
The knight froze. The place was filled with almost two hundred students from different backgrounds, all participating in the magic Knight entrance exam. If they caused a scene now, things could get messy.
"Tch… I won't forget your face, you peasant filth," the knight growled before storming off with the others.
'phew, that was way too close' Damien exhaled.
Giovanni slightly gaze at Damien with suspicion, he wasn't the kind to act like this. Something was definitely off about him.
Damien looked around. It was the same place he had once stood and received his pathetic one-leaf clover grimoire in his past life—a piece of crap grimoire that barely contained any spells.
But not this time.
Grimoires were ranked from one to four-leaf clovers. The fourth leaf clover was the strongest of them all, but hardly appears once every hundred years.
Suddenly, a burst of Mana erupted from the back, making every student flinch as they turned.
"Right now, if I was an enemy, you'd all be dead. Never turn your back to the unknown," a man with grey hair and a long grey beard said as his energy calmed down. Damien recognized the voice—Vicinus Sanchez, the guardian of the magic tower and one of the strongest and oldest mages in the Kingdom of Avalon.
'Hmm... I guess there are some promising ones,' Vicinus mused, his gaze flickering to Damien, Giovanni, and seven others who had sensed his presence seconds before he'd shown himself.
Damien, although didn't have any Mana, has an incredible talent of sensing Mana energy. He never understood how it was possible but he could, even before he regressed.
"Well then, all of you stretch out your hands and receive your very own grimoire!" Vicinus's voice echoed through the hall.
The students did as they were told. One by one, grimoires materialized from thin air, descending upon their rightful owners.
Suddenly, a golden glow erupted from behind Damien.
Gasps filled the chamber.
A grimoire bathed in brilliant light floated into Giovanni's outstretched hands.
A Four-Leaf Clover Grimoire.
A ripple of shock and envy spread through the crowd.
"A four-leaf clover?! That's impossible!"
"That guy's just a commoner! How the hell does he have a four-leaf and I a noble with the three leaf clover?!"
Eyes widened in disbelief, even Vicinus Sanchez looked taken aback. He had guided the magic tower for fifty long years and had never witnessed anyone receive a four-leaf clover.
Damien's jaw nearly dropped. In his previous life, Giovanni had only received a three-leaf clover with a wind attribute.
After receiving a grimoire, mages typically discovered their magical attributes—elemental powers like fire and water or non-elemental abilities like sealing or shielding magic. Elemental attributes were generally considered more powerful.
'But now, a fucking four-leaf clover with a flame attribute,' a smirk twisted at Damien's lips. He wouldn't expect anything less from his rival
But something was wrong. His hands had been stretched out for quite a while now, and nothing—no book seemed to be appearing his way.
"Umm, excuse me....is my Grimoire running late or something?" He asked. Vicinus gaze flickered to him.
'Poor kid. It appears he doesn't possess any mana within him. But how in the world did he sense me before anyone could.' Vicinus pondered.
"Hahaha. Don't tell me this kid doesn't have any Mana within him," the students laughed.
'Don't tell me I don't have a grimoire in this lifetime. Then how the hell am I supposed to get stronger, how will I get my revenge?' Damien's mind raced. But all he could hear were the insults from other students. Even Gio just took a glance at him—a glance of pure disappointment.
Damien's face twisted into unbearable rage.
'It's all because of this damn seal on me,' he thought, but just then, he felt a vibration against his leg.
It came from the Black Book.