Chapter 21: Tangled Story I (part 1)

“Ha ha.”

It was a spacious office.

Portraits of various people hung on the walls, and countless books filled the shelves.

Anyone entering the room would instinctively lower their voice.

But the man placed in the chair disrupted that solemn atmosphere.

He was an old man, his white hair and beard exuding a profound and dignified aura.

“Whoa.”

The old man rubbed his throbbing forehead with one hand.

Yet, his expression wasn’t one of concern—on the contrary, there was a trace of quiet delight in his features.

“Is this… the golden generation?”

Ender Arcana, Dean of Arcana Academy and Lord of Reinen, smiled faintly.

Before him lay this year’s freshman register—seven names, seven faces.

“How far can we make them bloom?”

Most Arcana students were nobles, destined to serve the Empire with their talents.

Everyone understood this: Arcana was the Empire’s premier academy—a place where the more gifted you were, the more favor you received.

In the Empire, nobility meant talent.

To shine even among nobles meant one was truly exceptional.

This year, seven such exceptional students had entered Arcana.

An unusual number.

Even during Ender’s forty years as dean and lord, students of such caliber could be counted on one hand.

First Place: Crown Prince Leon Aegis Astraia—widely considered the greatest genius in the Empire’s history.

Second Place: Reina Rogelia, daughter of the Duke Rogelia, gifted in all four elemental magics.

Third Place: Atal, a candidate for the papacy of the Central Church, possessor of rare light magic.

Fourth Place: Helen of House Oberon, recently distinguished in several fields.

Fifth Place: Damus Menners, a former merchant and now special student, with uncanny insight into market trends.

Seventh Place: Ike Axux, of House Axus. Although known only to the few in the upper echelons—he had defeated the Crown Prince in the Heros’ Knight Competition.

Thirteenth Place: Sophia Eris, a special student whose affinity for light magic surpasses even Atal’s.

All of them carried talent potent enough to shape an era.

Just seeing their names was enough to stir excitement among Arcana’s faculty.

“Hmm…”

Yet, none of them were perfect.

Even Leon, the so-called greatest genius in imperial history, had his flaws.

But among the seven, two in particular caught Ender’s eye.

The first was the seventh place: Ike Axus.

Could he be included in the golden generation?

It was a subject of debate among professors.

Those who supported him trusted Duke Addos’s claim that Ike had overcome the barrier of talent through sheer effort. But from another perspective, Ike had yet to prove himself.

He had shown no clear results.

Skeptical professors made this point.

Even if his grades were subpar, it was hard to place him in the same league as Sophia, whose magical brilliance was undeniable.

The harshest critics referred to his old nickname: “The Burden of Duke Axus.” 

A shame to the family name.

Expecting too much from such a person, they warned, might backfire.

Yet Ender leaned toward the minority opinion.

Even if it was by luck, Ike had defeated Leon.

When a knight fights a beast, luck is never discounted.

And if luck played a role—then that, too, is a kind of skill.

To defeat the Empire’s greatest genius, even by luck, meant potential.

Potential that Arcana existed to cultivate.

The second was the second place: Reina Rogelia.

His concern with Reina was not institutional.

It was personal.

Her talent was undeniable.

Unlike Leon, who boasted balanced excellence, Reina was more narrowly focused—but in magic, she was unmatched.

Her mana pool and path capacity were average.

But everything else—her speed in attribute conversion, spell formation, understanding of magic theory—all were leagues above.

Even Ender, once hailed in the Tower of Mages as an archmage, was impressed.

If that were all, it would simply be a matter of careful mentorship—perhaps even Ender guiding her personally.

But that wasn’t the issue.

“Something happened to that girl…”

Ender remembered Reina’s nickname: “Ice Princess.”

When he had first seen her, he thought the name fitting.

But when she reappeared for the entrance exams, she was a different person entirely.

Most people were fooled by her cheerful facade.

Her smile appeared genuine.

But Ender, who had observed countless people in his lifetime, could see through it.

Her eyes told a different story.

They had already given up.

No light remained in them—only darkness.

“What should I do?”

He didn’t want to imagine the consequences if such talent fell to ruin. To let it rot would betray Arcana’s very mission.

Could Reina’s darkness be lifted, her talent brought to bloom?