Indeed the weeks that remained flew by really fast. They had all recovered quite quickly and been able to return to their regular college life. The time was spent training and preparing the organization that was being built.
Samuel struggled a few times with his newfound power, but he quickly learned how to detect when it was happening. It often started with his right arm twitching, and every time he was able to use chronomancy to put an end to it.
"El Nore El Asta Kalazant!" The students were chanting their spells in the large training hall, trying to learn a reconstruction spell on the 5th circle. Samuel was quiet however and was slowly casting the spell silently in a distant corner of the hall.
Samuel truly understood how much of an advantage it was to be able to control Mana, able to mold and shape it into whatever he needed. He almost felt pity for all the other students that couldn't see mana in its raw form.
At best they could only see magic for magic, they were able to detect different schools and sense magic being used after being exposed to it for so long, but a Child of Mana could sense it coming miles ahead of regular mages.
"Slacking off like always I see!" Professor Leipeg startled Samuel as he spoke from behind him. The two exchanged a look and then Leipeg chuckled. "Mastered it already!" He threw his hands in the air. "I give up on your extraordinary talent with magic!"
Samuel shrugged and tilted his head, "To each their own unique strength, there are plenty of other talented people here after all!" His words were not a lie, although some struggled. The people in his class was filled with talented people, that quickly learned how to use magic more advanced than most other students of regular classes.
Where most wizards and mages would spend about ten years to master magic, this class was dedicated to those that could do that in half the time.
"I would reccomend for you to continue studying after you graduate, become an associate of the college and maybe even assistant teacher, then you would be given opportunity and chance to use the more advanced libraries and learn even more advanced spells." Leipeg casually remarked as if he was talking into thin air.
"But I heard that you only plan to graduate and then be done with it." The old man shrugged, "Who am I to stop you, although the college could definitely need young people of your caliber!"
"Even the Dawnkeepers do." Leipeg's words made Samuel sigh, "I have no interest in serving or following an organization like that, instead I am going to create my own... One that isn't afraid to hunt down cultists and the like."
Leipeg nodded, "This nation has failed so many of its young over the course of several years now, only after the recent failures have we started seeing improvements. So I understand your skepticism to joining any other organization!" Then he turned around and put a hand on Samuels shoulder.
"But I am glad that you will walk a path not too far from what the Dawnkeepers do already." Then the professor turned to the rest of the class still working on their spells. "I see in this room, potential for greatness. Mages that work to better the lives of many, but I also see lives that could have been saved."
"As a teacher it is my primary job to teach you how to defend yourselves, but history is something I prefer. Because what we take from history and what we learn so we can never repeat the same mistakes over and over again, is what will lead to the best of futures!"
"So few, ever become rogue mages after studying here, but that might be because of the vast majority of career choices one is given after, mages are pretty useful in all works of civilization."
Leipeg started pacing back and forth ever so slightly as if he was giving a grand lesson, "But then again, gauging your current amount of magic shows that you already have the capability to use magic of the 7th circle if you just learned their spells. I have no doubt in my mind that you will learn how to cast such high level magic without actually staying in the college!"
"I already have access to everything I might need to advance further!" Samuel stated happily and instantly finished up the spell everyone was practicing. All he was lacking was time to do everything he wanted to do.
That class like many others were passed with flying colors, Samuel was easily able to pass everything that remained, while spending all the free time he had to spare after everything was said and done - to train all he could.
The day of the final exams had come around the corner and with all the safety regulations it was all held within the college. The faction tourney being cancelled and all things were judged and counted in different ways. Samuel's faction was one of the top holders for most progress and tasks completed.
But alas his faction did not win the overall, not that they needed to either. Since the organization he was building was going to become a creation outside of the college they didn't need much more.
Funding came from many sources planned by the Gelger Family members in his faction, and Samuel who wasn't a big spender had saved a lot of personal funds from House Gillfall to also aid in the creation of the organization that they had decided to name: The Primal Star.
Written exams, practical exams, everything was passed with ease for Samuel. He even shocked the spell examineers by casting a teleportation spell of the 6th circle, it had taken him a while to wrap his head around teleportation.
It had a lot to do with the magic of space and gravity, once understood it became super easy but learning it was difficult. Once he had learned it the hard way of casting it as magic he easily understood how to manipulate mana to make the spell even more efficient and faster.
But since he was trying to keep a lower profile he casted it like a regular mage would. It was really quite a dull period where nothing of interest happened and life just went on.
Samuel was happy to finally be done with the college, ever since he had lost his first team it had become less and less of a home and more of a place of work. Now he was finally free, to an extent.
He said his farewells and took the first step on his new journey, because this is where the big journey really begins, this was simply the end of the prologue.