Like usual, on their work break Lynn and Theo were at the cheap cafeteria for lunch. The Kitchen Gumorie- Renryll’s cheapest place to grab a bite to eat- was packed as usual.
Lynn and Theo were looking for a table to sit at, but try as they might they couldn’t find one. It seemed as though they had completely missed the mad lunch time scramble to find seating.
“Lynn! Theo! Over here!”.
From the corner of the cafeteria, where a group of three apprentice wizards in crimson robes sat, came the sound of a voice calling their names. One of them, a boy who was quite tall, was waving.
“Agul San!” [1].
Lynn quickly rushed over to the group of three. Aside from their own seats, they had saved two extra spaces- seemingly for Lynn and Theo; ever since the two boys had passed the entrance exam, they had started having lunch with these three apprentice wizards who, for some reason or other, were very affectionate towards them.
Having passed the entrance exam, Lynn and Theo had little else to do, aside from work, until April when the Academy classes would start. And so the two were for the moment enjoying a slower pace of life.
One day Lynn had taken the initiative to approach and strike up conversation with the three wizard apprentices- who often came down from the academy district to have lunch in the Kitchen Gumorie- whom he had for a while been curious about.
“Umm, you guys are apprentices in the academy, right? I’ll be attending classes too, starting from April. Would you like to have lunch together?”.
And so just like that, the apprentice wizards wholeheartedly welcomed Lynn and Theo and took them under their care. Today too it seemed, they were again making their lives just a little bit easier by saving two seats for them.
“Lynn, please sit over here. Theo… Over there”.
“Ok”.
Of the three apprentices, one was a girl in her late teenage years, who had long dark hair and a slim body. It was her, Shila, who ordered Lynn to sit beside her and Theo across from her. The two boys did as she said.
The apprentice named Agul, who was of a solid build, said admiringly, “But, you guys are amazing! To have passed the entrance exam on your first attempt…”.
“Nah. It’s not such a big deal”, Theo said, skillfully shrugging off the flattery.
“Both me and Shila failed the exam twice. To pass on your first attempt… Elios is just about the only other person able to do that. Right, Elios?”.
“I was just lucky”, answered the apprentice wizard named Elios, as if troubled by Agul’s comment.
He had a collected, calm demeanour, and was the leader of the small band of three. Lynn felt himself drawn to one attribute about Elios in particular- that despite being the big gun, the one with the power and influence out of the three, he didn’t make a show of it. Instead he had a quiet confidence.
“Anyway, the difficulty lies ahead. The academy classes aren’t exactly straight forward”.
As if to poke light fun at Elios, Agul said jokingly, “He says that as if even he has trouble, but c’mon now Elios, you’re a leading honours student within the academy”.
“Exactly. I’ve never seen you struggle in any class. We’re struggling just to scrape by with a passing grade, but you don’t seem to have any trouble at all”, Shila said, looking almost annoyed.
“Don’t flatter me too much. I understand more than anyone that I have a long, long way to go. There’s always going to be someone better than you, so no one should ever get complacent. Lynn, Theo… You two will understand this as well, once you enter the academy”.
“Ah, yeah. The academy is full of incredible people. You guys better prepare yourselves”, Agul added, affirming Elios’s message to the younger boys.
Agul had a tendency to change his opinion at the drop of a hat. Paired with Elios’s composure however, this actually struck a complimentary sort of balance between the two apprentice wizards.
Theo gave Lynn a look, as if to say ‘hurry up and ask the question’.
“Umm, I looked into it myself, but in the academy we choose our classes ourselves, right?”.
“Yeah, if you don’t choose wisely you could have a rough time”.
It was no surprise that Agul, who always dove head first into anything, readily sank his teeth into the topic.
“Shila here chose the wrong subjects for herself in her first year, and boy was it a mess…”.
“Enough, I’m really trying my best to put those memories behind me…”.
“In particular, you should be cautious of the subjects that require fees” Elios explained, cutting straight to the chase. Efficient as always.
“Charges? Are there classes that charge fees other than the tuition fees?”, Theo asked dubiously.
“Yeah. As far as academy classes go, there are many different types. Among them there are subjects that, aside from tuition fees, require additional fees in order to attend. It’s a pain. There are also a lot of classes that aren’t very good for how much they cost”.
“Hmmm”.
“For now, I would suggest taking only classes that don’t have any extra fees, at least for your first year”.
Agul bulldozed back in. “You say that, but even the free classes can sometimes be horrible. Shila here, for the second year running now, has chosen some downright horrible classes”.
“Theo! I said enough already…”. Shila hit Agul’s shoulder.
Elios, quickly getting the conversation back on track, summarised “It’s good to take all the foundational magic courses as early as you can”.
“You bet, foundations are important you know” Agul confirmed.
Lynn, eyes full of curiosity, asked, “Foundational magic? What’s that?”.
“Foundational magic consists of the most elementary, five systems of magic that govern modern magic. There’s light magic, mechanical magic, magical beasts, Metal magic, and spirit magic. It’s best to take these classes as early as you can. They’re mostly free, and if you grasp the fundamental principles of each it’ll make your life easier with other subjects. As for classes that pertain to any of these types of magic… I think in your first year, you’re able to take Ring Magic, Fairy Magic, Metal Magic, and Mass Magic”.
“That’s quite a lot to take in”.
Lynn had thought that upon gaining entrance to the academy, all that was left to do was take a fixed set of classes. However it looked like things wouldn’t be so straightforward.
Injecting some cheer into the group, Shila suddenly spoke up. “Lynn, this is delicious. Eat more, don’t be shy! Theo… Haven’t you eaten enough already?”.
In one quick motion, Shila grabbed Theo’s plate that was still piled high with food, and deftly loaded some of Theo’s food onto Lynn’s plate.
“Ah, thanks”, said Lynn.
“Oh, Lynn” Shila says, shaking her head. “You’ve got sauce on your mouth. Here, I’ll wipe it for you. Theo… You can wipe your own dirty mouth”.
Shila wiped Lynn’s mouth carefully with her handkerchief.
While being embarrassed at this treatment, Lynn couldn’t help but give in to Shila’s kindness, although he felt a little bad for Theo..
Seeing Shila’s frank nature, Agul just shrugged his shoulders in dismay. “Shila, aren’t you a little harsh on Theo?”.
“And a little sweet on Lynn, you could also say” added Elios, pointedly.
“Well, nothing about Theo is adorable. But Lynn’s just so… Lovable!”.
Shila takes Lynn’s head in her hands and brought him close to her chest, hugging him. Lynn felt something soft press against his head and blushed.
Shila may have been a girl in her late teenage years, but to Lynn she looked like a fully grown woman.
“Hey hey, c’mon, what’s that. I’m feeling a little discriminated against here”, Theo protested light heartedly.
Rallying to Theo’s protests, Agul said “He’s right. Besides, shouldn’t you act a bit more grown up in front of the younger ones?”.
As if challenging him, or perhaps simply figure him out, Shila stared at Theo with narrowed eyes.
“Young boys are usually adorably cute, but you must be the exception to the rule . You may be able to deceive the other two, but my eyes won’t be fooled. I see through to your cheeky, crafty, true nature. You think you’re better than us, don’t you?”.
“It’s not like that at all. I really have a lot of respect for you, Shila” Theo said, and tried showing a smile. However there was something defiant about his expression.
“Hmmm. You’re a suspicious one, Theo”. Shila wasn’t quite convinced.
While he watched their exchange, Lynn’s pulse quickened a little. Shila’s remarks about Theo were right on the mark. Lynn, being younger than the three apprentice wizards, looked up to them and had a lot of respect for them, without condition. Theo on the other hand didn’t seem the least bit bothered by the age difference.
Theo spent time hanging out with the three mainly to ask about the academy, credits, and how to progress through as efficiently and advantageously as possible.
When the three weren’t around, Theo often said things like ‘those guys are nothing special’, so Lynn knew that Shila’s assessment of Theo’s attitude was correct.
“He’s just cheeky and straight forward. That makes him trustworthy! As if a junior who hasn’t even entered the academy yet would look down on us”, said Agul sincerely, and gave a hearty laugh.
“Hmm. Whatever you say, it doesn’t matter anyway”.
To Lynn’s relief, Shila turned away her suspicious gaze that she had been directing at Theo. Theo, nonchalantly, continued eating what remained on his plate.
In truth, the possibility that Lynn might be being used by Theo had crossed his mind several times before. But if that were indeed the case, he didn’t particularly mind.
Theo could ask the three senior apprentices about academy credits, and Lynn could enjoy being fussed over, and the seniors seemed to enjoy being looked up to.
All in all, it was a nice arrangement. Everyone was happy. And so, Lynn didn’t care if, in some way, he himself too was actually being used by Theo.
“It’s almost time”, said Elios, after chanting a spell and conjuring a magic clock face.
It appeared that afternoon classes were about to begin.
The five of them stood up from their chairs, then Elios asked “You guys have your entrance ceremony soon, right?”.
“Yeah. We need to go pick up our robes from the wizard association”.
“Then how about we walk together? We have to pass there anyway”.
And so Lynn and Theo walked with their seniors until they reached the association, where they parted ways. The apprentices seemed to require a different elevator from the one Lynn and Theo would later ride after collecting their robes..
“Lynn, this is goodbye for now. I’ll miss you”.
As Shila gave Lynn a hug goodbye, she looked reluctant to let him go. Apparently the reason Shila was so affectionate towards Lynn, was because he reminded her of her younger brother.
Lynn too felt a warm familiarity with Shila, and so he didn’t shy away from her kindness. He returned her hug.
After seperating from the embrace, for a while Shila kept her eyes on Lynn with a sad look on her face. As usual however, she didn’t seem bothered about Theo in the slightest, and so paid him no attention.
“Don’t let her get to you, Theo. I’m sure Shila likes you too”. Agul clapped Theo on the back.
“Huh? Ah, yes.” Theo however didn’t seem as though he particularly cared either way.
“I guess this is where we better be going. Lynn, Theo, the next time we see you will be in the Academy”.
Elios bid the two younger boys farewell, and the three of them turned and left for their afternoon classes.
Lynn watched as the three disappeared into the distance. After they were out of sight, Theo turned to Lynn and said “See? Not so special, right?”.
Lynn, looking troubled, managed a weak smile.
Lynn didn’t quite understand what Theo meant whenever he said that they ‘weren’t anything special’, but decided it was easier to just agree with him.
At the Wizard’s Association, Lynn and Theo received their apprentice robes at reception. The dark crimson robes would serve as proof of their ascent to official wizard apprentices.
The two boys immediately donned the robes, and snapped shut the gold fasteners.
Despite it being the first time they had worn therobes, they fit perfectly, as if they had been tailor made- no doubt some kind of magic was at play.
Now dressed in his apprentice robe, Lynn felt in some way that he had made a step towards adulthood.
From now on, they would both be allowed to embark on their journeys up the tower. Lynn had at last made his first step towards becoming a wizard.
“So then, shall we?”, Theo said.
Lynn and Theo bundled into an elevator they had never been in before. The one they often rode when visiting the city of Renryll was cage-like, but this elevator had four solid walls, and was more spacious.
Upon presenting his hand to the magic slate affixed to one of the walls, the back of Lynn’s hand started to glow. This was a sign that the elevator had confirmed that Lynn was indeed a wizard apprentice.
“To the fiftieth floor, the Wizard Academy!”. Lynn recited the incantation, the elevator shook, and they began soaring upwards at increasing speed.
His heart thumped powerfully in his chest at the thrill of what awaited him. Lynn stood firmly as he patiently waited for the elevator to arrive at its destination, the Wizard Academy, where his new life was waiting for him.
“Tssk. Why is there a staircase instead of an elevator beyond this point?”.
Having left the elevator, the two boys had found that they had to ascend a staircase leading to the entrance of the academy.
Theo dragged himself up, one step at a time, and cursed the long staircase.
It really was a long staircase, long enough to make just about anyone groan in protest.
The entrance to the academy was reminiscent of that to a temple, and so naturally you had to climb a long staircase to reach it.
Up and up, the two boys climbed, and before long their breathing became ragged.
Lynn lifted his gaze upwards, towards the end of the staircase, where he saw the temple style entrance and, awaiting their arrival, a large stone statue of the famous wizard Gaelias.
The statue was identical to the one Lynn saw in the small street off to the side of the plaza. It’s stern expression greeted any soul who would pass by.
For some reason Lynn remembered Atorea.
When Lynn was about to reach the top, he turned back to look at Theo, and to encourage him called out “We’re almost there now, Theo. Keep going!”.
“Look what we have here. I suppose you’ve managed to make it this far, rat”.
Lynn was taken aback by the voice which called down from above. The source of the voice was a young girl who was standing in front of the statue of Gaelias.
Atorea?
Thinking the girl above them was Atorea, Lynn fixed his gaze on her.
However, the girl standing above them had platinum hair, and like Lynn and Theo she was dressed in a dark crimson robe- though instead of gold her clasps were silver. On her face she wore a cold, faint smile.
This girl… She must be an aristocrat.
Having noticed the girl’s silver clasps, Lynn intuited her social status.
“Well I suppose for a commoner like yourself, you’ve worked pretty hard to get this far. But from this point onward things won’t be so easy”.
Next time… Chapter 12, ‘Entrance Ceremony’.
TRANSLATION NOTES
[1] I expect many readers will already be familiar with Japanese name suffixes. ‘San’ is often added to the end of a person’s name to add respect. In this case, our young aspiring wizards Lynn and Theo aren’t that close to their seniors, Agul, Shila, and Elios, so it isn’t a surprise to see ‘san’ being used here. I chose to include it in my translation to help keep the relationships between characters clear.
Because Japanese is a high context language, often times pronouns are omitted in both spoken and written language. Therefor suffixes such as ‘san’ may not pop up all that much, but I’ll point these things out at least once for anyone who may not be familiar with Japanese culture.
I’ll only make a single note for each unique suffix that comes up; don’t worry, there won’t be any more ‘san’ translation notes from now on!
Like usual, on their work break Lynn and Theo were at the cheap cafeteria for lunch. The Kitchen Gumorie- Renryll’s cheapest place to grab a bite to eat- was packed as usual.
Lynn and Theo were looking for a table to sit at, but try as they might they couldn’t find one. It seemed as though they had completely missed the mad lunch time scramble to find seating.
“Lynn! Theo! Over here!”.
From the corner of the cafeteria, where a group of three apprentice wizards in crimson robes sat, came the sound of a voice calling their names. One of them, a boy who was quite tall, was waving.
“Agul San!” [1].
Lynn quickly rushed over to the group of three. Aside from their own seats, they had saved two extra spaces- seemingly for Lynn and Theo; ever since the two boys had passed the entrance exam, they had started having lunch with these three apprentice wizards who, for some reason or other, were very affectionate towards them.
Having passed the entrance exam, Lynn and Theo had little else to do, aside from work, until April when the Academy classes would start. And so the two were for the moment enjoying a slower pace of life.
One day Lynn had taken the initiative to approach and strike up conversation with the three wizard apprentices- who often came down from the academy district to have lunch in the Kitchen Gumorie- whom he had for a while been curious about.
“Umm, you guys are apprentices in the academy, right? I’ll be attending classes too, starting from April. Would you like to have lunch together?”.
And so just like that, the apprentice wizards wholeheartedly welcomed Lynn and Theo and took them under their care. Today too it seemed, they were again making their lives just a little bit easier by saving two seats for them.
“Lynn, please sit over here. Theo… Over there”.
“Ok”.
Of the three apprentices, one was a girl in her late teenage years, who had long dark hair and a slim body. It was her, Shila, who ordered Lynn to sit beside her and Theo across from her. The two boys did as she said.
The apprentice named Agul, who was of a solid build, said admiringly, “But, you guys are amazing! To have passed the entrance exam on your first attempt…”.
“Nah. It’s not such a big deal”, Theo said, skillfully shrugging off the flattery.
“Both me and Shila failed the exam twice. To pass on your first attempt… Elios is just about the only other person able to do that. Right, Elios?”.
“I was just lucky”, answered the apprentice wizard named Elios, as if troubled by Agul’s comment.
He had a collected, calm demeanour, and was the leader of the small band of three. Lynn felt himself drawn to one attribute about Elios in particular- that despite being the big gun, the one with the power and influence out of the three, he didn’t make a show of it. Instead he had a quiet confidence.
“Anyway, the difficulty lies ahead. The academy classes aren’t exactly straight forward”.
As if to poke light fun at Elios, Agul said jokingly, “He says that as if even he has trouble, but c’mon now Elios, you’re a leading honours student within the academy”.
“Exactly. I’ve never seen you struggle in any class. We’re struggling just to scrape by with a passing grade, but you don’t seem to have any trouble at all”, Shila said, looking almost annoyed.
“Don’t flatter me too much. I understand more than anyone that I have a long, long way to go. There’s always going to be someone better than you, so no one should ever get complacent. Lynn, Theo… You two will understand this as well, once you enter the academy”.
“Ah, yeah. The academy is full of incredible people. You guys better prepare yourselves”, Agul added, affirming Elios’s message to the younger boys.
Agul had a tendency to change his opinion at the drop of a hat. Paired with Elios’s composure however, this actually struck a complimentary sort of balance between the two apprentice wizards.
Theo gave Lynn a look, as if to say ‘hurry up and ask the question’.
“Umm, I looked into it myself, but in the academy we choose our classes ourselves, right?”.
“Yeah, if you don’t choose wisely you could have a rough time”.
It was no surprise that Agul, who always dove head first into anything, readily sank his teeth into the topic.
“Shila here chose the wrong subjects for herself in her first year, and boy was it a mess…”.
“Enough, I’m really trying my best to put those memories behind me…”.
“In particular, you should be cautious of the subjects that require fees” Elios explained, cutting straight to the chase. Efficient as always.
“Charges? Are there classes that charge fees other than the tuition fees?”, Theo asked dubiously.
“Yeah. As far as academy classes go, there are many different types. Among them there are subjects that, aside from tuition fees, require additional fees in order to attend. It’s a pain. There are also a lot of classes that aren’t very good for how much they cost”.
“Hmmm”.
“For now, I would suggest taking only classes that don’t have any extra fees, at least for your first year”.
Agul bulldozed back in. “You say that, but even the free classes can sometimes be horrible. Shila here, for the second year running now, has chosen some downright horrible classes”.
“Theo! I said enough already…”. Shila hit Agul’s shoulder.
Elios, quickly getting the conversation back on track, summarised “It’s good to take all the foundational magic courses as early as you can”.
“You bet, foundations are important you know” Agul confirmed.
Lynn, eyes full of curiosity, asked, “Foundational magic? What’s that?”.
“Foundational magic consists of the most elementary, five systems of magic that govern modern magic. There’s light magic, mechanical magic, magical beasts, Metal magic, and spirit magic. It’s best to take these classes as early as you can. They’re mostly free, and if you grasp the fundamental principles of each it’ll make your life easier with other subjects. As for classes that pertain to any of these types of magic… I think in your first year, you’re able to take Ring Magic, Fairy Magic, Metal Magic, and Mass Magic”.
“That’s quite a lot to take in”.
Lynn had thought that upon gaining entrance to the academy, all that was left to do was take a fixed set of classes. However it looked like things wouldn’t be so straightforward.
Injecting some cheer into the group, Shila suddenly spoke up. “Lynn, this is delicious. Eat more, don’t be shy! Theo… Haven’t you eaten enough already?”.
In one quick motion, Shila grabbed Theo’s plate that was still piled high with food, and deftly loaded some of Theo’s food onto Lynn’s plate.
“Ah, thanks”, said Lynn.
“Oh, Lynn” Shila says, shaking her head. “You’ve got sauce on your mouth. Here, I’ll wipe it for you. Theo… You can wipe your own dirty mouth”.
Shila wiped Lynn’s mouth carefully with her handkerchief.
While being embarrassed at this treatment, Lynn couldn’t help but give in to Shila’s kindness, although he felt a little bad for Theo..
Seeing Shila’s frank nature, Agul just shrugged his shoulders in dismay. “Shila, aren’t you a little harsh on Theo?”.
“And a little sweet on Lynn, you could also say” added Elios, pointedly.
“Well, nothing about Theo is adorable. But Lynn’s just so… Lovable!”.
Shila takes Lynn’s head in her hands and brought him close to her chest, hugging him. Lynn felt something soft press against his head and blushed.
Shila may have been a girl in her late teenage years, but to Lynn she looked like a fully grown woman.
“Hey hey, c’mon, what’s that. I’m feeling a little discriminated against here”, Theo protested light heartedly.
Rallying to Theo’s protests, Agul said “He’s right. Besides, shouldn’t you act a bit more grown up in front of the younger ones?”.
As if challenging him, or perhaps simply figure him out, Shila stared at Theo with narrowed eyes.
“Young boys are usually adorably cute, but you must be the exception to the rule . You may be able to deceive the other two, but my eyes won’t be fooled. I see through to your cheeky, crafty, true nature. You think you’re better than us, don’t you?”.
“It’s not like that at all. I really have a lot of respect for you, Shila” Theo said, and tried showing a smile. However there was something defiant about his expression.
“Hmmm. You’re a suspicious one, Theo”. Shila wasn’t quite convinced.
While he watched their exchange, Lynn’s pulse quickened a little. Shila’s remarks about Theo were right on the mark. Lynn, being younger than the three apprentice wizards, looked up to them and had a lot of respect for them, without condition. Theo on the other hand didn’t seem the least bit bothered by the age difference.
Theo spent time hanging out with the three mainly to ask about the academy, credits, and how to progress through as efficiently and advantageously as possible.
When the three weren’t around, Theo often said things like ‘those guys are nothing special’, so Lynn knew that Shila’s assessment of Theo’s attitude was correct.
“He’s just cheeky and straight forward. That makes him trustworthy! As if a junior who hasn’t even entered the academy yet would look down on us”, said Agul sincerely, and gave a hearty laugh.
“Hmm. Whatever you say, it doesn’t matter anyway”.
To Lynn’s relief, Shila turned away her suspicious gaze that she had been directing at Theo. Theo, nonchalantly, continued eating what remained on his plate.
In truth, the possibility that Lynn might be being used by Theo had crossed his mind several times before. But if that were indeed the case, he didn’t particularly mind.
Theo could ask the three senior apprentices about academy credits, and Lynn could enjoy being fussed over, and the seniors seemed to enjoy being looked up to.
All in all, it was a nice arrangement. Everyone was happy. And so, Lynn didn’t care if, in some way, he himself too was actually being used by Theo.
“It’s almost time”, said Elios, after chanting a spell and conjuring a magic clock face.
It appeared that afternoon classes were about to begin.
The five of them stood up from their chairs, then Elios asked “You guys have your entrance ceremony soon, right?”.
“Yeah. We need to go pick up our robes from the wizard association”.
“Then how about we walk together? We have to pass there anyway”.
And so Lynn and Theo walked with their seniors until they reached the association, where they parted ways. The apprentices seemed to require a different elevator from the one Lynn and Theo would later ride after collecting their robes..
“Lynn, this is goodbye for now. I’ll miss you”.
As Shila gave Lynn a hug goodbye, she looked reluctant to let him go. Apparently the reason Shila was so affectionate towards Lynn, was because he reminded her of her younger brother.
Lynn too felt a warm familiarity with Shila, and so he didn’t shy away from her kindness. He returned her hug.
After seperating from the embrace, for a while Shila kept her eyes on Lynn with a sad look on her face. As usual however, she didn’t seem bothered about Theo in the slightest, and so paid him no attention.
“Don’t let her get to you, Theo. I’m sure Shila likes you too”. Agul clapped Theo on the back.
“Huh? Ah, yes.” Theo however didn’t seem as though he particularly cared either way.
“I guess this is where we better be going. Lynn, Theo, the next time we see you will be in the Academy”.
Elios bid the two younger boys farewell, and the three of them turned and left for their afternoon classes.
Lynn watched as the three disappeared into the distance. After they were out of sight, Theo turned to Lynn and said “See? Not so special, right?”.
Lynn, looking troubled, managed a weak smile.
Lynn didn’t quite understand what Theo meant whenever he said that they ‘weren’t anything special’, but decided it was easier to just agree with him.
At the Wizard’s Association, Lynn and Theo received their apprentice robes at reception. The dark crimson robes would serve as proof of their ascent to official wizard apprentices.
The two boys immediately donned the robes, and snapped shut the gold fasteners.
Despite it being the first time they had worn therobes, they fit perfectly, as if they had been tailor made- no doubt some kind of magic was at play.
Now dressed in his apprentice robe, Lynn felt in some way that he had made a step towards adulthood.
From now on, they would both be allowed to embark on their journeys up the tower. Lynn had at last made his first step towards becoming a wizard.
“So then, shall we?”, Theo said.
Lynn and Theo bundled into an elevator they had never been in before. The one they often rode when visiting the city of Renryll was cage-like, but this elevator had four solid walls, and was more spacious.
Upon presenting his hand to the magic slate affixed to one of the walls, the back of Lynn’s hand started to glow. This was a sign that the elevator had confirmed that Lynn was indeed a wizard apprentice.
“To the fiftieth floor, the Wizard Academy!”. Lynn recited the incantation, the elevator shook, and they began soaring upwards at increasing speed.
His heart thumped powerfully in his chest at the thrill of what awaited him. Lynn stood firmly as he patiently waited for the elevator to arrive at its destination, the Wizard Academy, where his new life was waiting for him.
“Tssk. Why is there a staircase instead of an elevator beyond this point?”.
Having left the elevator, the two boys had found that they had to ascend a staircase leading to the entrance of the academy.
Theo dragged himself up, one step at a time, and cursed the long staircase.
It really was a long staircase, long enough to make just about anyone groan in protest.
The entrance to the academy was reminiscent of that to a temple, and so naturally you had to climb a long staircase to reach it.
Up and up, the two boys climbed, and before long their breathing became ragged.
Lynn lifted his gaze upwards, towards the end of the staircase, where he saw the temple style entrance and, awaiting their arrival, a large stone statue of the famous wizard Gaelias.
The statue was identical to the one Lynn saw in the small street off to the side of the plaza. It’s stern expression greeted any soul who would pass by.
For some reason Lynn remembered Atorea.
When Lynn was about to reach the top, he turned back to look at Theo, and to encourage him called out “We’re almost there now, Theo. Keep going!”.
“Look what we have here. I suppose you’ve managed to make it this far, rat”.
Lynn was taken aback by the voice which called down from above. The source of the voice was a young girl who was standing in front of the statue of Gaelias.
Atorea?
Thinking the girl above them was Atorea, Lynn fixed his gaze on her.
However, the girl standing above them had platinum hair, and like Lynn and Theo she was dressed in a dark crimson robe- though instead of gold her clasps were silver. On her face she wore a cold, faint smile.
This girl… She must be an aristocrat.
Having noticed the girl’s silver clasps, Lynn intuited her social status.
“Well I suppose for a commoner like yourself, you’ve worked pretty hard to get this far. But from this point onward things won’t be so easy”.
Next time… Chapter 12, ‘Entrance Ceremony’.
TRANSLATION NOTES
[1] I expect many readers will already be familiar with Japanese name suffixes. ‘San’ is often added to the end of a person’s name to add respect. In this case, our young aspiring wizards Lynn and Theo aren’t that close to their seniors, Agul, Shila, and Elios, so it isn’t a surprise to see ‘san’ being used here. I chose to include it in my translation to help keep the relationships between characters clear.
Because Japanese is a high context language, often times pronouns are omitted in both spoken and written language. Therefor suffixes such as ‘san’ may not pop up all that much, but I’ll point these things out at least once for anyone who may not be familiar with Japanese culture.
I’ll only make a single note for each unique suffix that comes up; don’t worry, there won’t be any more ‘san’ translation notes from now on!
