I’m Not Becoming a Graduate Student! – Chapter 3

A glowing bird created by Professor Ronda Magret.

It swooped around the auditorium twice before being sucked back into the professor’s sleeve.

The eyes of the students watching the professor sparkled with life.

Thanks to that, the orientation wrapped up in a rather pleasant atmosphere.

It’s a universal rule that orientations should never last more than half the class time.

‘The orientation finished well… as expected, freshers are simple-minded.’

Professor Ronda Magret tidied her teaching materials placed on the podium.

All the students had already flowed out like a tide, leaving the classroom empty.

She secretly smiled, reminiscing about the situation she just had.

Simply showing high-tier magic changes the focus of the class.

It’s not effective for upperclassmen as the years go on, but for today’s freshers, it was a perfect hit.

However, there were two students who didn’t even bat an eye at the magic she exhibited.

She remembered their names.

‘Valedictorian Serenne Camileia.’

Serenne was seated in the front row, with sky-blue hair cascading down, looking at her with sleepy eyes.

Seemingly unfazed by the class, she only glanced once, despite witnessing the original magic.

Her reaction seemed more suited to upperclassmen nearing graduation rather than a freshman.

She had seen through the magic at once, realizing it was merely a show-off trick with no practical use.

No wonder she’s the top student, Ronda thought.

“…But what’s up with that guy?”

Ronda’s gaze shifted to the center.

In the very front row, a spot where even the most eager students rarely sat.

There sat the guy.

‘Sion. He must be a commoner, given the lack of a family name.’

The Byzantium Academy ostensibly aims for an academy where “nobles and commoners can attend equally.”

The professors repeatedly emphasize this to students.

However, such education cannot erase the class system that has been entrenched for centuries.

How could one ignore the class structures that openly exist outside the academy?

Not only students but even professors would unconsciously distinguish between nobles and commoners.

As the second daughter of the Magret Count family, Ronda naturally sided with the nobility.

That’s why Sion didn’t quite sit right with her.

Wasn’t he already showing a lack of readiness even during the attendance check?

– “Sorry! I’m Sion.”


– “…Tsk, focus on the class.”


– “Sorry….”

A commoner showing laziness even during the attendance check.

His face—sure, it was somewhat cute—but when it comes to students, magical ability is what truly matters.

Seeing him already acting so clueless, it was likely he got admitted through a donation.

That would have been the case.

‘But why didn’t he react to my magic?’

Even after witnessing Professor Ronda Magret’s original magic “Glowing Bird.”

His body positioned as if he was staring blankly into the void, was etched into her mind.

Much like how valedictorian Serenne Camileia had reacted.

‘Could it be that he possesses similar magical prowess to the valedictorian…?’

Ronda’s expression became serious.

If that was the case, it made sense.

Her magic was, after all, a mere show-off with no practical application.

It was a first-circle spell “Light,” manifested in the shape of a bird.

The bird mimicked movements as if flapping its wings repeatedly, and once it circled in the air, it was done.

One couldn’t share vision with a flying bird, nor could it attack by colliding.

It was a magic used to dazzle those who didn’t understand magic.

It made sense that the top student Serenne Camileia showed no reaction.

Just a show-off trick devoid of practicality or meaning.

But if even Sion, who wasn’t even the top freshman and was just a commoner, understood her magic…?

If his blank stare towards the void was because he was disappointed in her magic?

“…There’s no way.”

Ronda Magret shook her head.

He wasn’t the descendant of any outstanding sorcerers.

Just a commoner like anyone else.

She couldn’t accept the idea that Sion, merely a commoner and not a noble, might possess exceptional magical insight.

“Professor Magret, there you are.”

“…Hmm.”

“Class is about to start. Let’s hurry.”

Her teaching assistant came looking for her.

Ronda Magret stopped her wandering thoughts, gathered her materials, and left the classroom.

As she closed the door to the empty classroom, she momentarily gazed at the spot where Sion had sat.

“Professor?”

“…It’s nothing. Let’s go.”

“Alright, let’s.”

Feeling as if she had missed something somehow, Ronda Magret walked toward her next class.

*

“Thank goodness the orientation ended quickly. I was scared it would be a long one. Really….”

“…….”

“Sion? What’s wrong? You’ve been dazing out since earlier.”

“Uh?”

At Patrick’s words, Sion jolted up his head.

They were walking through the campus of Byzantium Academy.

During the entrance ceremony, they heard that it is the world’s top academy, and indeed, the surroundings looked beautiful and tidy.

Though it didn’t quite catch Sion’s eye.

“Hey, do you know about the magic Professor Magret showed earlier?”

“Eh? Ah… it was probably a spirit summoning spell? I’m not sure, though. It was the first magic I ever saw.”

“Spirit summoning….”

“Or she might have caught the glowing bird and trained it. There are creatures like that among magical beasts. But why? Did you get overwhelmed by the professor’s magic?”

Patrick chuckled, nudging Sion’s shoulder.

Overwhelmed by magic, huh…

‘If it hadn’t been for that transparent window, I surely would have been overwhelmed too.’

Seeing magic was a first in his life.

There had been no magic in his previous life in South Korea.

In fact, it was almost like seeing something for the first time in decades.

“…Could you show me some magic, maybe?”

“Eh? Ah, my magic? Of course I can show you… O mighty fire that is the power of the ancients, reveal yourself and incinerate my enemies!”

Unlike Professor Ronda Magret’s rather lengthy chant, Patrick’s was quite short.

Right after, something rose from Patrick’s palm.

It was a small flame, similar to a lighter’s flame.

The moment magic appeared before Sion’s eyes.

A transparent window popped up before him.

[Spell Name: Fire.]

[Attribute: Fire]

[Rank: 1st Circle]

[Description: Basic fire spell. Creates a flame. The power is determined by the user’s mana amount or skill level.]

[You’ve discovered a spell of the same circle!]

[A new spell has been registered in the spellbook.]

[You can now use the Fire spell.]

‘…What the heck.’

Once again, the transparent window appeared before him.

However, while he didn’t even get to see the name of the professor’s 4th circle magic properly.

He could see everything—name, attribute, and description—of Patrick’s 1st circle magic.

‘What is this spellbook?’

Just as he thought about that, a new window popped up right in front of him.

[Spellbook]

[Welcome to the spellbook!]

[You can check the spells you’ve witnessed or can use.]

[Currently Available Spell Types]

[1st Circle Spell: Fire]

[2nd Circle Spell: X]

[3rd Circle Spell: X]

[4th Circle… ]

‘Wait, there’s really something like a spellbook?’

It was a different window from the spell description.

Having two transparent windows before him made him dizzy.

As he wished they would just disappear, they suddenly vanished again.

It felt like something out of a game, and he was left in a daze.

“…Sion? Are you really okay?”

“Eh? Oh, I’m fine.”

“By the way, why did you want to see my magic?”

“…I wanted to give it a try too.”

Sion stared at his palm.

What Patrick had done was simply a trick to create a small flame on his palm.

In fact, considering it was something he was confident with, any other magic was likely to be worse than that.

A smile spread across Patrick’s face.

“Hey, hey, hold on. I just barely learned it. Especially, fire magic is pretty hard to learn compared to other elemental spells.”

“Could you repeat the chant you said earlier?”

“If you miss a single word, weird stuff happens. Got it? Listen closely. O mighty fire that is the power of the ancients, reveal yourself and incinerate my enemies. That’s the chant.”

Thanks to Patrick’s kind explanation, Sion could give it a shot.

Sion swallowed hard and stretched one arm forward.

“O mighty fire… reveal yourself and… ignite?”

“Hey! You messed up from the start. If you just fumble through it, the magic will… huh?”

Patrick was about to say something but suddenly stopped.

His gaze was fixated on Sion’s palm.

Whoosh.

A beautiful flame erupted from Sion’s palm.

Its size and the beautiful color were in a completely different league compared to Patrick’s.

Sion and Patrick felt as if time stood still as they gazed at the warm sensation akin to looking at a campfire.

‘…I did it. This is what using magic feels like.’

Even with a clumsy chant, Sion succeeded.

Although it was merely a 1st circle spell, it was his first use of magic in this lifetime.

The corners of his mouth lifted in a grin.

“W-what’s going on? If the chant isn’t correct, it could backfire or explode…”

“Thanks for teaching me the chant. Let’s head to the next class.”

“Uh… yeah, let’s do that.”

Sion walked ahead of Patrick, his footsteps now confident compared to the many worries of the previous day.

As a student of the Magic Department at Byzantium Academy, he had many concerns about how he would live on from now.

‘With the spellbook and the ability to see magic… as long as I have those two, everything will be fine.’

An innate ability to analyze spells automatically upon witnessing them.

And the ability to use spells he has witnessed, known as the “spellbook.”

With these two abilities, he would be able to thrive even in the world’s top academy, Byzantium Academy.

Thinking this, Sion found his next class—

“Greetings! I’m Heruj, the professor in charge of the essential course, ‘Swordsmanship for Protecting a Magician’!”

“…?”

In a dusty, earthy circular coliseum.

A cute beast resembling a squirrel awaited him with a sword in hand.

Her identity was Professor Heruj, tasked with teaching “Swordsmanship for Protecting a Magician.”

‘…An essential course?’

To survive in the Magic Department of the academy, one had to excel in magic as well.

But if there was something Sion had overlooked—

It was the fact that “the schedule is fixed for the first semester of the first year.”

Having never swung a sword in his life, a cold sweat ran down Sion’s spine.