An hour later, Freya was gasping for breath, hands on her knees, and sweat dripping down her forehead, "Alright, you two have a minute to rest, then I'll start my lesson."
Freya scowled as she looked up at Fenrir, who was energetically bouncing from foot to foot as if they hadn't been running for the last hour, "How are you not out of breath?"
"I'm light on my feet," Fenrir said simply, which did nothing to answer Freya's question. Before she could scold him, Mordecai clapped his hands, ending the conversation, "For the next forty-five minutes, I will give a rudimentary explanation of the history of magic and how the Academy came to be. If you have a question, raise your hand, then ask, and I will do my best to answer your query. Nod if you understand."
Both Freya and Fenrir nodded, and Mordecai smiled before clearing his throat and began to speak, "Over five hundred years ago, during a time known as the Endless Blood Letting, humanity was into individual tribes that were constantly at war with each other for land. But one thing these tribes shared was their hatred of anything magical in nature, as they believed it stemmed from demons and evil gods. And though it is scarce as of today, during the Blood Letting, it wasn't unheard of for a child to be born with strange powers such as summoning fire or being able to talk with animals.
Today, this phenomenon is called innate magic aptitude, a term reserved for people who are born with a high enough magical aptitude to use abilities or spells without undergoing an awakening ritual.
But the tribes saw these children as cursed and a taint that needed to be wiped clean. These cleansings would sometimes even target entire families, considering their bloodlines cursed and a conduit for demonic influence to creep into the world.
However, some of these children were able to escape, vanishing into the wilderness where they could practice their magic in safety. That was the case for a man called Magnus Verilian, a powerful magic practitioner who is recognized as the first Magus.
Wanting to create a world where people like him could be free of persecution, Magnus used his immense power to perform an awakening ritual so powerful that it affected the world as a whole. Every man, woman, and child had their magic awakened, although to varying levels. It was precisely as Magnus had dreamed of, but the reality was not so romantic.
Those who awakened powerful magic abilities quickly found their way to the front lines, becoming weapons of mass destruction. Their spells could wipe out entire armies in a matter of seconds, reaping thousands of lives. But the consequences of Magnus' actions didn't end there. His ritual had not only awakened the magical potential in humans but animals as well. What we know as monsters are the offspring of the creatures that had their magic potential awakened.
With the very fate of humanity at stake, countless tribes and clans began to group, forming the various Kingdoms and Empires we know today. Still, the threat proved too daunting, so the most powerful mages from those kingdoms banded together to create the Adventurer Society, an international organization dedicated to facilitating the extermination of the monster threat.
Those same mages also pooled their collective experience and knowledge to teach the next generation, creating the Heros Academy."
For a short moment, both Freya and Fenrir were silent as they stared at Mordecai, "So you're telling me."
Freya started with an incredulous look on her face, "That magic used to be taboo, but now it's a sign of nobility?"
Mordecai's orange eyes shone brighter as he regarded Freya, "That is what written history tells us. But Scholars have argued for years about which specific events occurred first or if they occurred at all."
That night, Freya lay on her back, looking up through a gap in the thick forest canopy to stare at the stars far above. After their first lesson, the rest of the day had passed in a relative blur as Freya's mind was distracted from the marathon they had run before making camp.
A gust of wind passed through the forest, and Freya pulled her cloak tighter around her. Mordecai had shot down the idea, explaining that fire could attract unwanted guests. Freya didn't know what a powerful mage could possibly be afraid of on a frequently traveled road, but she had worked on a farm long enough to recognize the smell of bullshit a mile away.
Trying to get comfortable on the hard-packed ground, Freya twisted and turned to no relief, "You having trouble sleeping?"
Looking up at the tree above her, Freya scowled at Fenrir, who was sitting on a branch high above the ground and resting against the tree trunk, "You'd think I would drop dead with how much running we did today."
Fenrir laughed dryly, "You're thinking about what Mordecai taught us, about the history of magic and everything."
"How could I not," Freya whispered, "I grew up believing that magic was reserved for the world's elites. But it was seen as a curse only a few hundred years ago."
"Does it really matter that much?" Fenrir said casually as he peered down at Freya, who propped herself up, "Of course it does. I don't know about you, but I've seen how Adventurers act around people like us. They think we're beneath them, and people accept that. But maybe if they knew the truth, things could change."
Fenrir didn't speak for a long moment as he stared down at Freya, who stared right back up at him, "Change is a dangerous thing."
Then, without another word, Fenrir leaned back against the tree, breaking eye contact with Freya, "We should go to sleep. I'm sure tomorrow is going to be just as exhausting."
Staring at Fenrir for a moment longer, Freya didn't bother arguing with him, but a spark ignited within her as she laid back on the ground, 'So is living in a world where you are considered lesser.'