Chapter 38

◈ Chapter 38: Elemental Attribute Class (3)

I looked down at the dejected Eidan, feeling quite flustered.

'Why is he like this?'

At first, I thought he was rebelling against me.

Was he harboring resentment over the incident where I told him to stop and he threw something?

'But from his reaction, it doesn’t seem like that.'

He looks genuinely sorry and at a loss, which can’t be an act.

In other words, Eidan really doesn’t know how to release his elemental attribute, which is the foundation of elemental magic.

I can’t believe it.

The owner of the rare [Unique] magic can’t do something this basic?

It’s like a kid who can do backflips can’t walk properly.

'What should I do about this?'

I thought he was a promising student, but if he’s stuck on something like this, maybe he’s not.

Perhaps he only got into Seorin because of his unique magic.

'I could just ignore it.'

There’s no need to pay special attention to a student who can’t even keep up with the basics.

The more I do, the more I’ll be wasting the precious time of other students.

Didn’t I say when I decided to have the first and second years take the same class that I wouldn’t cater to those who can’t keep up?

Not knowing my secret, Eidan might actually be doing me a favor by falling behind in class.

Right.

There’s no need to show him any special kindness.

The world is inherently a cold place, after all.

* * *

"Eidan. What are you trying to do?"

Eidan closed his eyes tightly, as if the inevitable had finally arrived.

"Well, um..."

"To not even manifest an element. Are you trying to defy me?"

All the students turned their attention to Eidan and Rudger.

Rudger frowned and looked around at the students.

"Are the students who are paying attention to this side already perfect in their manifestation, so they can afford to be distracted? If so, I’ll have to remember and check them myself."

Eek!

The students quickly turned their heads back to focus on their elements.

Eidan, sweating profusely, didn’t know what to do.

Rudger, with his hands behind his back, asked.

"Eidan."

"Y-Yes."

"Have you still not managed to properly manifest an element?"

"Y-Yes. I’m ashamed."

Eidan wished he could hide in a mouse hole.

All the other students who entered this place were following the class content excellently, but he felt like he was holding everyone back.

Since Eidan’s admission to Seorin was a kind of 'special case,' he was still weak in the basic areas that others could do easily.

"What elemental attributes can you use? You know that, right?"

"Fire, water, and wind."

"Three. Quite ordinary."

I thought someone who could handle unique magic would be specialized in more elements, but that wasn’t the case.

The more talented a person is, the more elements they can handle, which is common knowledge.

"Then let’s start with fire."

"Y-Yes?"

Eidan thought he must have heard Rudger wrong. The same went for Leo, who was sitting next to him, and Taeji, who was behind him.

"I’ll teach you. I can’t just let a student fall behind from the first lesson."

"B-But I—"

"I detest the very existence of such a student in my class. No objections. Focus."

"A-Yes!"

"Focus your mana. You can do basic manifestation, right?"

"Yes."

Eidan nodded and formed a sphere of mana.

It was a basic step that anyone could do when they first started learning magic, not even a 1st-tier spell.

"Think about changing that mana into an attribute. As I said, fire."

"I’ll try."

Eidan stared intently at his sphere of mana, as if it were all he could do.

Taeji and Leo silently gave him encouraging looks.

"Ugh."

However, no matter how hard Eidan concentrated, he found it difficult to properly manifest the attribute of fire.

Just when he thought it wasn’t going to work, Rudger, who had been watching silently, spoke.

"Don’t overthink it. Relax your mind. No matter how hard you try to imagine fire in your head, it’s difficult at first. So, don’t just think with your head, feel it with your senses."

"Senses...?"

"Match the characteristics of fire to your senses one by one. First, your vision. Imagine the shape of burning fire. Close your eyes and focus."

"Yes."

Following Rudger’s advice, Eidan concentrated on imagining the image of fire in his mind.

But it wasn’t easy to keep the flickering shape of fire in his head.

"Focus. Think of the moment when fire was most vivid in your memory."

"Yes, yes."

As he said this, something clicked.

Eidan slowly managed to recall the most memorable moment from his memory.

─The sensation of burning firewood in a rural house.

The fire burning in the fireplace.

His family watching it.

The crimson flames inside the fireplace swayed and danced.

Rudger’s voice echoed in his ear.

"Now, imagine the sound of fire."

Eidan, instead of answering, followed Rudger’s instructions.

Whoosh.

The sound of fire rising with the wind and the crackling of burning logs.

The sparks flying and cooling in the cold air, bringing a sense of calm.

Puzzle pieces began to fit together in Eidan’s mind.

Rudger’s voice came again.

"Next, your sense of smell."

No, it was more like guiding him deep into his inner self.

Eidan delved into the depths of his subconscious.

The smoky smell of burning logs. At the same time, the subtle scent of charcoal.

Eidan’s family would cook stews over such a fire.

"Since there’s no taste, lastly, think of your sense of touch. Recall the sensation you felt on your skin when you faced the fire."

Following Rudger’s guidance, Eidan recreated a past memory like a picture.

Each sense he pieced together vividly brought back the memory.

And he could recall it.

Eight years ago.

A cold winter with snow falling.

Outside, a blizzard raged behind the deep blue glass.

To escape the cold, he was bundled up in thick clothes, adding logs to the fireplace to keep the fire from going out.

His two younger sisters clung to him, complaining about the cold.

The whole family gathered around the fireplace, eating together.

The sisters chattered, his mother nagged, and his father smiled softly at the scene.

They didn’t have fancy food, and cold wind blew through the gaps in their clothes, but the memory was as vivid as what he had just felt.

The fire wasn’t hot.

It wasn’t scary.

It was just so warm.

The warmth of the fire he felt back then.

It made the cold winter cozy.

"Exactly."

"Ah."

Like ripples on a calm surface, Eidan opened his eyes at Rudger’s voice.

And he saw it.

A small sphere of fire burning in front of him.

"…!"

Eidan’s eyes widened in disbelief.

It was as if he had brought the warm fire from his memory to life.

It was warm rather than hot, and gentle rather than destructive.

Did I really manifest this?

"Good job."

Rudger’s praise left Eidan feeling dazed.

Rudger, who only criticized the so-called genius students and never praised them, had finally spoken words of praise.

Can this be called praise? But it was the first time Rudger had said something positive.

The other students, who had been pretending not to care, were also shocked by Rudger’s words.

"That fire is not just a common element but your own unique fire. You didn’t just copy someone else’s or blindly manifest what you were taught. You showed the element of fire as you felt it. Eidan, that’s your own magic."

"Is this my own magic?"

Eidan stared at the sphere of fire he had created, as if his soul had left his body.

Perhaps because his concentration had waned.

Whoosh.

The fire disappeared like a mirage, leaving no trace.

But the afterimage still lingered in front of his eyes.

"Eidan."

"Yes, teacher."

"Don’t forget that sensation."

Rudger left those words and moved on to the next student.

Eidan still felt like he was in a dream.

Leo and Taeji, who had been watching anxiously, tapped Eidan’s arm.

"Eidan, you’re amazing!"

"How did you do that?"

"Eh, eh?"

Rudger’s praise for Eidan boosted the enthusiasm of the other students who hadn’t been evaluated yet.

Rudger, looking at the students, said.

"I’m sure you’ve all noticed, but the method I was about to explain before this lesson is exactly this."

The students perked up their ears.

"Using your senses through experience."

The students waited for the next explanation at the mention of using senses.

"Understanding the basic characteristics of an element is essential. A three-year-old knows that fire is hot and ice is cold. But a true magician must add something special to it."

"Something special?"

"Imagine the element you want to manifest not just as a vague memory but as a vivid moment you actually experienced. Feel the element with all your senses, not just visually."

Don’t just follow with your eyes.

Feel the element with all your senses.

Following this advice, joyful reactions erupted from the students.

"Eh, eh? It works!"

"Wow! It’s much better than before!"

The students, feeling the joy of learning magic, focused even more to remember this lesson.

Rudger’s words were not false.

By recalling