"Not that bad, but not that good either," Valiance replied softly, his voice uncertain.
Blackrose stared at him for a moment, making him shrink in his seat, unsure of what to do or how to handle such an intense gaze. After a few moments, she finally spoke.
"Don't worry, this place will grow on you."
"Yeah," he muttered.
Even though what had happened earlier was extremely troublesome, Valiance was fairly confident he would be able to adapt easily after a few days. After all, that was what he always did whenever he and Kalli traveled to foreign places vastly different from what he was used to.
"Well, enough with the greetings for now," Blackrose said with a smile, shifting her attention to the chalkboard. She picked up a piece of chalk and wrote one word: "Origin."
"Okay, class," she said, turning back to face them. "What do you know about the Origin?"
The entire classroom fell silent. Valiance took the opportunity to raise his hand while glancing at Eira, who was simply staring straight ahead.
"Alright, Mr. Esteban," Blackrose said.
Valiance stood up confidently and answered, "The Origin, as its name implies, is where everything originated. In simpler words, it is the source. It is said that the first mage actually stumbled upon the Origin, granting him magic, which eventually spread across the world."
"Correct!" Blackrose remarked, as Valiance received a few approving nods from his classmates. "As you all know, we humans acquired magic not by sheer coincidence, but because of one brilliant person who discovered the Origin. When he touched it, he was granted the ability to manipulate nature and the laws of the world—that is, magic.
"So, why am I asking you about the Origin?"
Valiance was about to raise his hand again when Eira raised hers and stood up, even though the professor hadn't called on her yet.
"Yes, Eira…?" Blackrose's lips twitched slightly, but she didn't comment on her behavior.
"That is because the Origin is similar to our magical core," Eira answered. "It's also the reason some scholars refer to it as a 'mini core.'"
"That's exactly right!" Blackrose said enthusiastically. "This week, we're going to learn how our magical core works and the mechanisms behind it."
Valiance leaned slightly forward, perking up his ears, ready to absorb whatever Blackrose was about to discuss. While his old man had taught him the "correct" way of understanding magic, he was still curious about how conventional magic worked and the theories and principles behind it. Expanding his knowledge in this way would only benefit him further.
The lesson began with Professor Blackrose explaining the basic structure of magic. She stated that, in this world, magic was built upon four main elements: fire, water, wind, and earth. Every human, as long as they possessed a magical core, was inherently attuned to one or more elements from the moment of birth. This was new information to Valiance; Kalli had never mentioned this before.
Beyond the four primary elements, Blackrose introduced the two supreme laws that upheld the stability of the world: time and space.
"Time and space must coexist at all times and in all locations to maintain the balance of our dimension," Blackrose explained. "If one is missing, our world will collapse. Let's consider a scenario—what do you think would happen if space ceased to exist?"
"Our dimension would become a void," a student answered without hesitation.
"Exactly!" Blackrose nodded approvingly. "Without space, our dimension would completely collapse as all matter would cease to exist. The same applies vice versa. Without time, our world would freeze and eventually collapse into a void. Why? Because when time stops, space cannot function. For a dimension to be stable, it requires a moving timeline to allow space within it to operate properly."
Blackrose scanned her students and noticed their silence, with confusion clearly plastered on some of their faces. She chuckled softly and shook her head. "I understand your confusion—this is a more advanced topic. You'll delve deeper into it in your second year."
"Anyway, where were we? Oh, right. Since we live in a dimension where space and time govern everything, they are considered the supreme laws of our world. These laws are the fundamental reason why everything we see and touch exists. Naturally, there are also mages proficient in manipulating space and time magic."
Valiance nodded slightly as a flicker of understanding appeared in his eyes. He had encountered a few of these mages before. While he had yet to meet a chrono mage, he had crossed paths with nearly a dozen space mages. Come to think of it, why were space mages more common than time mages? What was the reasoning behind this imbalance?
"Since the time of the first mage," Blackrose continued, "many theories have emerged, but only one has been consistently proven over and over again. As you all know, having a magical core of higher quality translates to greater talent. In other words, it allows mages to improve faster. This isn't just a theory anymore—time has repeatedly proven it true.
"But is there another way to enhance magic? There might be, if we explore and research the different theories and hypotheses made throughout history. Take, for example, the Lunzbergztok Theory—"
Valiance sighed as Blackrose continued her lecture. While the class had started off with a few tidbits of new knowledge, like the four main elements, much of what followed didn't feel particularly noteworthy to him. Though some of the theories Blackrose explained sounded interesting, she often circled back to the idea of talent and magical core quality. Why even call this a theory class if most of what was being taught were established facts?
Maybe she'd dive into more theories later on? Valiance shook his head in mild exasperation and returned his attention to the lecture, though his mind was already beginning to wander out of boredom.
Before he knew it, today's class had come to an end, and it was time to return to his dorm. Valiance briefly glanced at Eira before stepping out of the room.