Ethan is a high school senior who's about to embark on his journey to university. For him, university is where dreams become reality, and opportunities are like bright stars in the night sky waiting to be reached. He was hopeful of the future because of his views and worked hard to make them come true.
However, he worked himself too hard to reach his expectations. He often drank too much coffee, and he naturally developed a caffeine intolerance because of this. He would get heartburn and restlessness. This was counterintuitive because the heartburn and restlessness would distract him from doing work.
Last night was no different. He drank more than 4 cups of coffee to stay awake for his new computer science project but ended up falling asleep anyway. This project was too important for him, and he was constantly thinking about how it would affect his future.
With renewed hope and determination for his future, his mind was awake. He hadn't opened his eyes yet but he felt that something was wrong. He couldn't feel the familiar keyboard he was supposed to be sleeping on. Neither could he hear the annoying fans of his desktop computer, nor the buzzing of the cicadas which haunted their house throughout the year.
He opened his eyes, only to see a foreign wooden table on which a book was placed. The book read "An Introduction to Arcane Magic: Chapter 0". Arcane magic? Is this a fantasy book? He thought. He knew many fantasy books which had titles like this to catch people's attention. But before that, where in the heck was he?
He looked around to see that he was in a wooden shack, in contrast to his room which had concrete walls. A bed stood not far from him, which had old linen sheets. There were many patches and stains on the sheets and the pillow. A feeling of poverty permeated the room.
When he looked at the desk in front of him, he saw that the book had inscriptions on its cover. These inscriptions were circles decorated by many symbols which resembled the elements. There were other symbols on the inner circle which resembled a language. He could also sense some kind of power emanating from the book which made him feel somewhat uncomfortable.
He also found a pen, a glowing sphere which emitted a similar aura to the book and a notebook which seemed to be 'his' diary.
Before he proceeded any further, where the hell was this place? How did he end up here? More importantly, why did he end up here? Wasn't he supposed to be woken up by his alarm and rush to school?
Ethan needed to calm down and he managed to do so. He had an interest in web novels, therefore he had read about situations like these. He knew he had to figure out what was going on in this foreign place first and plot a future course of action for himself. He wanted to get back to his previous world and continue his life; on the other hand, it seemed magic existed in this place and this interested him to no end.
As he searched his mind for any information that could have merged with him upon coming to this world, he found nothing. It was as if he had never left Earth. He had to explore the world to learn more about it and he decided to start from what was in front of him.
He scrutinized the Arcane magic book in front of him before opening it. The first page had the title written, and when he flipped the page, the book read "Arcane magic is all around us, ever-present in nature. Arcane magic is embedded in the natural laws of the world and brought about by the world itself. To have a grasp of arcane magic requires not only a good understanding of the natural world but a strong talent…". As a passionate student he was immediately enthralled by the contents of the book.
The book talked about the magic system and introduced the basic rune knowledge required for becoming an arcane sorcerer. This book was also an introduction to the potential of magic and the recent progress made by Magi, who are high-level sorcerers with frightening power. For example, the book said that some magic can be used to eradicate entire countries, control thousands of minds at will, or even form gigantic meteors.
However, all was not as it seemed. The arcane magic system had harsh requirements and it was rare for someone to have the qualifications to become a real sorcerer. There were regional testing facilities for sorcery talent. Tomorrow, he decided he would go there to measure his talent. Today, he would do his best to collect as much information about this world as he can. He had to avoid being suspected at all costs because he didn't know what those legendary Magi were capable of.