Chapter 9 – The Tenth Year, The Hardest Test (Part 2: Magic)
Not all tests can be completed with muscle and steadfastness. There are tests that are far quieter... subtler... yet leave far deeper wounds.
The magic test.
After successfully passing the physical test that left my body nearly collapsed, I thought a break would be given. It wasn't. The next day, I was taken to one of the tallest towers in the Argwager territory. A tower that had only ever been used by the family's grand mages. A tower only opened for high-level testing—a test that, according to family history, had only been held three times in two centuries.
"Your test is different from others, Alex," Magistra Elaira said. "Because your magic is unusual. Because your soul... is unusual." I just stared at my hands. There were still scars from the previous fight. But I knew, these wounds were just the beginning. Elaira pointed to a large magic circle carved into the white marble floor. "You are given one month. You may return to your room only to sleep. Food will be delivered. Supervision will be non-interfering. There will be no help. There will be no guidance." I nodded slowly. "Your goal is simple," she continued. "Create one self-sustaining magic circuit, capable of controlling three different elements simultaneously. Not just igniting fire or blowing wind, but unifying, controlling, and balancing them."
I was silent. That wasn't basic magic. That was a test for professional mages. "This... isn't a test for a ten-year-old."
"You are no ordinary ten-year-old."
And so it began.
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Day one: I started with the element I knew best—fire. Forming basic runes, connecting them to the energy circle on the floor. But for some reason, my flame flickered. Unstable. I was exhausted before noon. Not because of the magic, but because of the mental pressure. My eyes ached. My chest felt tight.
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Day two: tried again. Still failed.
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Day three: changed approach. Re-studied mana conduction theory and connected two binding symbols. A slight success. The flame began to burn steadily for five seconds.
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Day four to tenth: solely focused on stabilizing one element.
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Day eleven: I started adding the second element—wind. And this is where despair began to creep in. One wrong step, and the fire turned into an explosion. Two symbols didn't match, and the wind extinguished the flame instead. Every night I slept with a pounding head. Sometimes nightmares. Sometimes just emptiness.
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Day fifteen: I lost consciousness from mental exhaustion. Elaira visited, just watching. Said nothing. But that gaze was enough to make me get up again.
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Day sixteen to twentieth: tried again. Again. Again. Every combination was noted. Every failure was evaluated. I started to feel like a machine. But I knew... only this way could I get through it.
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Day twenty-one: wind and fire finally merged in the first circuit. For five seconds. Then it cracked.
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Day twenty-two: learned from failure. Corrected the 12th symbol. The result? Ten seconds.
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Day twenty-three to twenty-six: repeated hundreds of times. I barely spoke. My hair was tangled. My fingers calloused.
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Day twenty-seven: began to arrange the third element—water. And here... I found my limit. Water was too subtle. Too flowing. It didn't like being confined in a circle. Every time I tried to connect it to fire and wind, the circuit cracked. Failed.
I punched the table. Cried. Not because of exhaustion... but because I was afraid. Afraid of failing. Afraid of disappointing them. Afraid that I truly wasn't strong enough.
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Day twenty-eight: I wanted to give up. But as night fell, I remembered a quote my father had once whispered to me: "A leader is not one who never falls. But one who still rises, even when his legs can no longer stand." I stood up again. With trembling hands, I re-arranged the basic symbols. Completely dismantled the scheme. No longer trying to force the water to join... but creating a path for it to naturally merge.
...
And on the twenty-ninth day...
I sat in the middle of the circle. Took a breath. Regulated the flow of mana. My body trembled. But my mind was calm. I began. One by one the symbols lit up. The fire element appeared on the right side. Wind swirled on the left side. And water... gently appeared before me, forming floating droplets. I chanted the merging spell. A soft voice. But its meaning was deep. Light glowed. Symbols merged. The elements did not repel each other—they accepted each other. And in the middle of that circle... A magical vortex was created. Fire that did not burn, wind that did not strike, water that did not melt. All revolved around me. Not wild. But balanced. Like a miniature universe.
Elaira entered. Her eyes widened. "This... is natural harmonic magic." I opened my eyes. And when I spoke, my voice was different. Deeper. Calmer. "I didn't force them. I just... gave them space." The last symbol merged. And the tower—for the first time in its history—trembled.
Silvery-blue light enveloped the room. Windows opened. Wind floated. Water flowed down the walls. Fire danced in the air. None caused harm. Elaira smiled. Slowly. "You surpassed expectations, Alex." And I fell into her embrace. Not because I lost. But because finally... I truly passed.
Haha...