Chapter 23: Test of the Royal Magicians
As soon as they arrived at the black tower, they came back out to the front again.
This time, about twenty people, young and old, men and women, came together.
Kunon couldn’t see them, but from the magical power he could feel and somehow distinguish between men and women, old and young.
The older they were, the more concentrated their magic power was, or rather, the less expansive it seemed to be.
This is probably because their magic control techniques have improved with the age.
To be precise, it is in proportion to their age-based magic training.
A Royal Court Magician never misses a day of training, study, and research.
The power of magic is the difference.
All of them were veterans in Kunon’s eyes and pioneers in the history of magic in the Kingdom of Huglia, with many years of knowledge.
All of these people are concentrating on Kunon without even wasting time talking.
Even if I didn’t like it I could feel their eyes on me with a strong feeling of interest.
It didn’t matter to them that he was blind or that he was a child.
They just want to be able to see the magic they don’t know. That’s why they are paying attention to Kunon.
Kunon was both nervous and excited at the same time.
No matter which one of the sorcerers there would become his teacher, he would be able to lead Kunon into the depths of magic.
“So, shall we begin?”
The commissioner Rondimond, who united all royal court magicians, announced the start of the test.
Kunon bowed his head, “I look forward to working with you.”
“First, Kunon. How many spells do you have?”
“Two.”
It may not seem a lot, but Kunon answered honestly.
No matter how hard I try to look good, it doesn’t change the fact that I can only use two.
But no one reacted in the slightest.
No mockery, no disappointment.
They looked at Kunon as if nothing had changed.
“Good. Your teacher, Genie Course, followed your father’s instructions, didn’t she?”
“Yes. My father decided that it was too early for me to learn any magic that could be used for offense.”
“What do you think of that decision, by the way?”
“I thought it was reasonable. Once you know, you inevitably want to try things out. I may have even hurt people or animals in that process.
If I may say so, I think highly aggressive magic is a toy beyond the reach of children.”
“I see.”
He wasn’t sure if these questions were part of the test, and since Rondimond’s tone and behavior hadn’t changed, he wasn’t sure if he liked it or not.
Kunon was a bit worried.
“And by two, you mean ‘Water Ball-A-Ori’ and ‘Wash Bubble-A-Rub’?”
“Yes.”
“Water Sphere-A-Ori” creates water.
The “Water Ball-A-Ori” creates water bubbles, and the “Wash Bubble-A-Rub” removes dirt.
That’s the water magic Kunon can use.
However, since the characteristic change of “Water Ball-A-Ori” can reproduce the same look and effect of “Washing Bubbles-A-Rub”, the latter is not used much anymore.
“Victor. Can you make “Water Ball-A-Ori”?”
“Yes.”
As instructed by Rondimond, one of the sorcerers watching Kunon… a young man, chanted “Water Ball-A-Ori”.
And then – more than thirty “water balls” were created and floated around.
“Mr. Kunon. Can you seize this ‘water ball’ with ‘Water Ball-A-Ori’?”
“…!”
I was surprised.
I’ve never thought of taking away someone’s magic before.
The ‘Water Ball-A-Ori is a magic that creates and manipulates water, but it can actually be used in another way too.
It was a “Water Ball-A-Ori” using existing water.
In this case, it only manipulates the water that is there already, it does not create new ones.
It only has the “manipulate” effect of the “create and manipulate” feature.
It may seem like the same thing, but in reality, it is a completely different effect.
However, Genie said that she rarely had a chance to use this one because it needs the same amount of magic power.
Kunon had thought so too, but it was a blind spot.
Does “use the water that’s there” also apply to water created by water magicians?
The scales seemed to fall from his eyes.
Kunon was surprised about how easy it was to come up with ideas that he had never thought of before.
He suddenly felt motivated.
He would be satisfied with what he got if he went home, but Kunon’s desire was getting the better out of him.
He really wants to pass the test and get involved with the royal sorcerers.
“That’s enough.”
Kunon fell to his knees when Rondimond’s voice came to him.
For the first time in a long time, he was out of breath from using his magic so hard.
“That’s great, Kunon. I like it.”
But Kunon himself was not convinced.
There are more than thirty “water balls” that have been created.
I’ve been able to take control of only two of them.
I tried my best, but I could only manage two.
It was natural for me to be able to control water, but this was the first time I had ever seen “resisting water”. It was quite a struggle.
The power of the royal court magicians is still far superior to Kunon.
“How was it, Viktor?”
“I was surprised. I didn’t think that even one of them could be taken away. I had a hard time controlling it when I was little… Can I have the boy?”
“….. Don’t be silly.”
“….. Don’t be stupid, you idiot.”
“….. You’re a loser.”
“Who do you think you’re taking care of? You can’t even take care of yourself.”
The male sorcerer named Viktor, who had dealt with Kunon, was raggedly accused by his colleagues around him.
“Hahahaha. That’s because you all want him. Let’s take our time to discuss who will get him.”
Kunon looked up from his kneeling position with his hands on his head.
“Did I pass the test by any chance?”
They were discussing about their rights of ownership now.
Rondimond’s statement was particularly decisive.
I’m unwilling to do this, but it doesn’t matter as long as we can coalesce… Because Victor will surely overtake us someday, I’m willing to let him loose for now.
“No, no, no. Since we’re here, let’s do a little more.”
…..
Somehow, it seems as if the test has already been passed.
But we’re still going to continue.
– I’m not complaining.
At this point, it was just a question of the sorcerer Victor getting the best out of me.
It’s a good opportunity for Kunon to show off his skills a little bit.
“… Whoa-ha-ha-ha! Wohooo! This is fun!”
The result was a potentially disgusting appearance of a very old Rondimond getting very excited.
When Kunon was asked to try something, he used the “Water Ball-A-Ori”, which was a single giant water ball.
It is a super-soft and super-stretchy membrane that surrounds water, and it has the ability to sink deeply into anything that weighs a certain amount, whether it is a person or an object.
When Kunon said, “You can swim in this,” Rondimond jumped in happily.
And then he drowned in the super-soft bubble.
He was so excited that he forgot his age while swimming, rolling, and bouncing.
Kunon was a little shocked by his excitement.
When he was with Milica, he was having a great time and didn’t feel any discomfort, but as expected, an old man’s excitement was a little different.
It’s like something that a child should not see. That’s how it feels. Well, I can’t see it anyway.
However, despite Kunon’s feelings, the royal court magicians, who can see it properly, were making a lot of comments such as, “Hey Commissioner, that's not fair,” “Take over,” and “Hurry up and take over, old man.”
It seems that they are more interested in the fat man than the excited old man.
… Afterwards, Rondimond said, “It’s been twenty years since I’ve had this much fun.”
This incident will forever be engraved in the historical records of the Black Tower as “the incident of the four-star Commissioner playing like a child.”