Mana.
The ambient energy of this realm.
The source of all magical phenomena.
There were no documents that could perfectly explain the origin of mana or how exactly it is created.
Different things have been learned and unlearned concerning this very concept.
Mana takes varying shapes and forms depending on what a person crafts it to be.
And today, we were going to test for the nature of our mana.
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A large field in the Zenith Academy For Warlock & Witches.
— Emerald Class, Second Year —
We, as the second-year students of the Emerald class were gathered outside, in the large green field of the academy.
Miss Dorian Dandelion stood in front of us, waiting.
Who she was waiting for, we didn't know.
The whole class were abuzz with anticipation except the few who already knew what to expect.
It was time to test what we have been learning within the four walls of the classroom for a year now.
It was time to test and know the nature of our magic.
"Sorry I'm late," an unfamiliar echoed from afar.
"Who's that?" the students murmured among themselves.
It was a man in a black cloak. He ran frantically, trying to reach where the students were.
He stopped when he finally got there, panting from exhaustion.
The scholars looked at him with confused look on their faces.
"Who the hell is this guy?" I thought to myself.
Miss Double D walked up to the man and whispered into his ear.
The cloaked man laughed out loud and rubbed his belly.
We felt stupid being left in the dark and confused.
"Don't worry about it, Dorian. I'm alright," he said, "I should run more often, you know, lose this belly fat."
He paused and turned his attention towards us.
"Are these all of them?" he asked Miss Dorian.
Miss Dorian answered him with a reverent bow, "Yes."
Who was this man?
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I figured from Miss Double D's reactions towards him that he was neither an ordinary man nor an ordinary mage.
"Ahem! Alright, then! Let's get to it."
He snapped his finger in the air, stirring up a feeling within us that anticipated something to happen but nothing did.
"Gather around, my young apprentices! Today, you are going to discover yourself even more. Today, you will learn what type of magic you are born with."
This man was quite an enthusiastic one but I wasn't looking forward to that.
I already knew what kind of powers I had. My capabilities would be unfathomable to them if I ever revealed them.
I didn't need the test and the same would apply to the children of the high noble families, who could afford to do the tests on their own.
"I am Vesta Sevarion—"
Miss Double D cleared her throat, interrupting Vesta as he yet spoke.
"Allow me to introduce Vesta Sevarion, a warlock of the Silver City's Mage Society. He will be conducting the magic paper test today."
Our general view of the cloaked man changed in an instant. I speak for everyone when I say that he appeared like a confused homeless man earlier.
That changed after his introduction by Miss Dorian. Now, most of the scholars admired him.
"Did she say Mage Society?"
"He's from the Mage Society?"
"That's so cool!"
Everyone had their rhetorical questions, born from awe, to ask.
"I was right. Vesta wasn't just an ordinary man."
Vesta scratched his scruffy hair and chuckled.
The mage stuck his hand into his cloak and took out a pack of papers.
Each sheet of these papers was intricately designed and rippled with an otherworldly glow.
"This right here is a special paper," Vesta said, raising one up, "...a magic paper."
"It will give different outcomes depending on what your magic is when you infuse your mana into it."
Elizabeth leaned into my ear. "Do you think it works?"
"There's only one way to find out, Liz?"
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We formed a line, most of us eagerly awaiting our turn to interact with the magical paper.
Vesta shuffled the papers and stood in front of us. "Don't mind this, it won't change anything."
"Tch! Then why shuffle it in the first place?" I wondered.
He continued. "I want each and every one of you to step forward and pick a paper from my hand. What you will do afterwards is to infuse your mana into it.
"Once that is done, it will reveal your true magic, the essence that courses through your veins."
As always, the first person to step out was Gregory Broomborn.
Greg approached Vesta but hesitated momentarily to pick a paper.
With his eyes fixed on the radiant papers, Greg took a deep breath and took another step forward, placing his hand upon the pack of papers.
He took out the one on top and looked at it, turning the front and back.
"Now, channel your magical energy into it," Vesta instructed.
Greg took deep breaths, shut his eyes and focused, the muscles of his face tensed and his eyes twitched intermittently.
In a moment, I could see Greg's mana flowing through his hands into the paper but it was not yet enough to elicit an effect.
I smirked. "That's some magic you have, Greg."
I could tell that Greg possessed a wonderful magic from what I saw if only he would drill himself to master it.
Greg continued until the paper emitted a gentle, verdant light.
The mana he infused was just enough to elicit an effect — the bare minimum.
The emitted light swirled around Gregory, stunning him and striking both fear and admiration in his heart.
Finally, the light coalesced into a symbol of a white clover leaf that appeared on the paper.
"Wow," Greg muttered, his jaws agape as he watched tiny leaves form around the edges of the paper.
"Ah, a nature warlock! That's splendid!" Vesta exclaimed.
Vesta pat Greg on the shoulder.
"May the whispers of the forests and the whispers of your heart guide your path."
"Yes!" Greg shouted, punching the air.
Meanwhile, I was at the back of the line, wondering what type of magic the said magic paper would pick up when it gets to my turn.
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— Ruby Class, Second Year —
The students of the Ruby class had also been gathered in another field within the academy's premises.
All four classes of the second-year scholars were doing their magic paper test at the same time.
"Next," the witch from the Mage Society that oversees theirs instructed.
Her name was Violet Levoline.
It was James Melbourne's turn to pick a paper.
James stepped forward and took a paper from the heap she placed on a table.
He started to infuse his mana into the paper.
Even as experienced as she was, the witch — Violet Levoline — shuddered at what she saw.
Her eyes widened and her lips parted as she watched what was happening between James and the magic paper.
"W-What the hell? How is that even possible?"