The Elements of Magic

It is currently the second month of school. Today was an important event for all freshmen. Everyone was gathered at the open magic training field. They were all excited, not at the fact that this was the only class they had for the day, but that today, was the day they found out their elemental affinity.

Some of the extremely privileged aristocratic students had already known how to manifest their elements, not to mention affinity. They were able to skip this class while everyone else had to attend since the results would impact their future at the academy.

There were eight known elements to man as well as a couple exceptions. The four major elements were Earth, Wind, Water, and Fire. There were also the two sub elements; namely Lightning and Ice. The last two elements were Light and Darkness. These two elements were a bit special since they required an absolute affinity in order to cast Light or Dark spells.

There was also the mystic category, the fancy name for non-elements. This was the category for spells like Magic Missile and Barrier, both of which do not represent an element. The next known exception is Spacial and Time. These two types of magic weren't exactly categorized since they were extremely rare and also near impossible to master.

Everyone was gathered at the field waiting in line to be judged by the magic orb. The way the magic orb worked was really simple. When you input your mana, the orb would identify the numerous elements contained in the strand of mana and show percentages. A person with an affinity with all elements would show around a 12% for all eight elements; that signified that all the elements are equally balanced, so said person would be proficient at all eight elements equally.

Of course, such a case was hard to find since it was almost impossible for a person to have both Light and Dark affinity. Despite that, there were some people born with special body types that allowed them to harness those elements equally, albeit rare.

If one was shown to not have the slightest potential in any element, they were pretty much screwed since the non-elemental spells paled in comparison to the might of elemental spells. Though if someone was able to use Spacial or Time spells, they were pretty much destined to become great existences. Unlike the elements, there was no way of knowing whether you had an affinity with Spacial or Time, so many who had the potential but never discovered it would stay in the dirt their whole lives. That was also the reason why Spacial and Time spell casters were so heavily valued and rare.

In other words, if you had no affinity to an element, it was likely that you were destined to be garbage your whole life with your only hope being Spacial or Time spells. Without the Elemental, Spacial, and Time spells, you couldn't even be considered a magician. That was the cold hard truth.

...

I was next in line after Sam so I waited patiently.

Me being the nosy guy I was, tried to listen in on his results.

After a couple seconds of having his hand on the orb, the professor in charge said the results.

"12% Earth affinity, 12% Wind affinity, 12% Water affinity, 12%...What in the world? Is this thing broken? Wait a moment here for me."

I knew it probably wasn't broken since heroes are supposed to be at least this overpowered. Of course, from what I knew, the information about Sam being the hero has yet to be released by the Holy Church so that reaction was anticipated.

He took the orb off the pedestal and went back into the academy building. After three minutes, he returned with a new orb.

"Excuse me for the inconvenience. Alright, try again."

Again, Sam placed his hand on the orb for a couple seconds until the orb had fully inspected it.

"12% Earth affinity, 12% Wind affinity, 12% Water affinity." As the professor continued on, his previous serious and profound vibe turned into that of a man lost for words.

"12% Fire affinity, 12% Lightning affinity... 12% Ice affinity, 12% Light affinity, 12% Darkness affinity. Holy Mother load! You... You said your name was Sam? It's a pleasure to meet you! It looks like you have an affinity with all elements. Congratulations! The only people ever recorded to have an equal affinity could only be counted on two hands. I expect great things from you Sam. Come to me if you ever need any help. Remember me as Professor Theo." The professor's attitude had made a complete 360. His previous nonchalance had shifted to the attitude of confronting a superior.

"Next!"

I walked up to the orb and placed my hand on it. I felt the mana in my body getting sucked out gradually. It didn't hurt or anything—it was just a strange feeling, similar to goosebumps.

As I was in front of the orb, I could clearly see what was in it. It was mana, except it was blood red in color. A tinge of grey was added into the clear orb as well. The result was something that looked like a crimson moon. The orb was completely filled to the brim as if the mana was going to escape any moment.

The professor also had a rather befuddled expression on his face.

"This... I've heard of this phenomenon before and I can't believe I'm seeing it with my own pair of eyes! In the entire history of humans, this has only happened two—no, three times if you include the first hero."

"1000% Fire affinity, 100% Darkness affinity."

"What was your name again? Ahh yes, Daniel. This phenomena is called Overdrive. Normal spellcasters would not know about this, but as I have experience in this field, I happen to be very knowledgeable. This phenomena is supposed to only be found in the elves of Yggdrasil but there were a couple cases of it in humans as well. Almost all elves possess a state of Overdrive once in their lives but for humans... What happens is that the affinity for an element becomes so strong, that it becomes extremely hard to control. Other than the first hero and two others, no one else has been able to handle the harm Overdrive does on the body. What I find peculiar here though, is that you have an affinity with another element as well. Normally, Overdrive can only happen when there is a single elemental affinity."

"Additionally, most patients with this condition die at an early age. By early, I mean as a fetus. You will be able to master Fire spells at an extreme pace, but keep in mind to not overexert yourself. I don't know how you managed to survive, kid, but be careful."

'This guy is too much of a drama queen.'

Either way, I already knew that I did not have Overdrive since I knew my Fire affinity was a direct result of the skill, Heart of a Dragon.

I went over to Sam who was waiting for me and we went to find Robert and grab some lunch.