NOVPUBEven the students who had been chatting in their little cliques fell silent.
Whenever Ludger Cherish stood on the lectern, the entire class would go quiet. That unspoken rule had long since become a standard in his classroom.
‘Still dead silent today.’
Ludger, for his part, always felt a little disappointed seeing the students shut their mouths the moment he entered.
He’d heard that other instructors were greeted with bright smiles and warm welcomes when they stepped into their classrooms. That only made the contrast feel sharper.
‘Did I do something to make them dislike me?’
Nope. He taught his lessons diligently and had even agonized over the test questions to make sure they were fair.
He’d even promised to teach his trademark spell system, [Source Code], to students who ranked in the top tier.
Okay, maybe he wasn’t ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) exactly a tree that gave endlessly, but he was pretty damn sure he offered more benefits than any other instructor.
And yet this heavy atmosphere?
‘I didn’t expect them to react so stiffly just from hearing that I’d be announcing the test results.’
Maybe it was the first impression that ruined things.
He had started teaching quite suddenly after being unexpectedly hired, so he hadn’t really had time to prepare for a softer entrance.
‘Frustrating, but it is what it is.’
Still, he had no intention of slacking off during his tenure. With that in mind, Ludger began the class, as thoroughly as ever.
“As I mentioned before, I’ll be announcing the results of your first test before we begin today’s lesson.”
The results of the first test.
That meant the scores from their first official exam since entering Seorn had finally come out—and those scores would determine their place going forward.
Even so, none of the students reacted rashly.
That might fly in other classes, but in Ludger’s classroom, making a fuss meant getting sliced apart by his blade-like glare.
“The full rankings will be posted on the bulletin board after class by Assistant Sedina. But I know that’s not what most of you are dying to hear right now.”
At that, a faint spark lit up in the students’ eyes.
Most of them stared at him with barely restrained anticipation.
Ludger decided to meet that anticipation head-on.
“I’ll now announce the top five ranks for the first test. And as promised earlier, the top five students will be rewarded with a framework of Source Code magic.”
The students stared at Ludger in silence.
If their earlier silence had been driven by fear and tension, now it was complete focus and excitement—they didn’t even dare speak.
“Let’s begin with the top scorer. I’m sure many of you are already guessing who it is, and you’re probably right.”
Some of the students glanced over at a particular female student.
Because if anyone was first place, it had to be Seorn’s resident prodigy—Flora Lumos.
“Hmph.”
Flora Lumos, the target of those glances, remained upright and composed, as if the attention was no big deal.
She had no doubt she’d landed the top spot.
“First place: Flora Lumos.”
Just as expected, her name was the first to be called.
The students murmured as if to say, of course, and Flora tilted her chin with subtle pride.
Sure, she’d made a few recent slip-ups, but this was her natural state.
“And Julia Plumehart.”
...!
The second name shocked the room.
All heads turned toward the white-haired girl sitting to the side of the classroom.
She still wore that mysterious smile.
“Both scored a perfect 100 out of 100. They share first place.”
When Ludger announced the scores as well, the students had no choice but to accept it.
If both had scored full marks, then a tie for first made sense.
“Damn. She’s on the same level as Flora Lumos? That’s nuts.”
“She was the top scorer at entrance, remember? Mage Tower’s backing her. Makes sense.”
Looking back, it wasn’t all that strange. Julia Plumehart had ranked first among the new applicants.
Still, to be on par with Flora Lumos? It made them wonder if another genius had just appeared at Seorn.
“Since there are two tied for first, there’s no second place. Moving on to third.”
Ludger turned his gaze to a corner of the classroom.
Aidan, Taishy, and Leo—the trio in that corner—each swallowed nervously.
Why’s the professor looking over here? Did we do something wrong?
“Third place: Taishy Friad. 98.7 out of 100.”
Huh?
Aidan and Leo both whipped their heads around to stare at Taishy.
She blinked in a daze for a moment, then clenched her fist.
“Whoa! Taishy, congrats! Third place is amazing!”
“Not bad.”
Aidan, seated beside her, and Leo, seated in front, offered their congratulations.
“H-hmph. I told you, didn’t I? This is who I’ve always been.”
Some of the noble students were now shooting daggers at her with their eyes—clearly not expecting a fallen noble like her to place so high.
Normally, her fiery personality might have made her shoot that glare right back, but she was too satisfied with her results to bother picking a fight.
“That’s really great, Taishy. All that hard studying paid off.”
“Hmph. Aidan, if you want... I could tutor you. What do you think? Want me to help?”
Taishy turned a little red and shyly offered.
Aidan beamed.
“Eh, I’m good. I don’t wanna get in the way of your studying or anything.”
“...”
“W-wait, Taishy? What are you doing?”
“Shut up, idiot!”
She suddenly started pounding her fists against his arm, leaving Aidan totally flustered.
Did I say something wrong...?
Just as he was about to apologize, Ludger spoke again.
“Now for fourth place.”
The room went still.
Third place wasn’t too surprising—everyone mentioned so far had already made a name for themselves.
Taishy had even placed second behind Julia on the entrance exam. A high score now was only natural.
But with those three out of the way, tension gripped the classroom over the remaining two names.
Fourth and fifth place were completely unpredictable territory.
Who could it be? Me? Or that guy? Ugh, anyone but him.
Students fixated on Ludger, trying not to miss a single movement of his lips or shift of his eyes.
Anyone else would’ve buckled under that pressure, but Ludger didn’t so much as blink.
He was, as always, a man of steel.
Then, Ludger’s gaze landed on one student.
The one sitting right there.
Erendir von Exilion—the Third Princess of the Exilion Empire.
The students made their assumptions.
Ah, so Her Highness the Third Princess is fourth, huh.
That was the prevailing thought among the first-years, though the second-years looked a bit confused.
Huh? She got fourth place?
They knew she was royalty, and yes, she was talented in magic, but wasn’t that mostly from actual combat?
As far as they could recall, she hadn’t even made the top half of the rankings last year.
“Fourth place: Rine. 98 out of 100.”
“...What?!”
“You’re kidding me.”
And then came the real shocker.
All eyes turned to Rine, seated beside Erendir.
Up until now, all the top scorers had been nobles.
Taishy might’ve been from a fallen noble house, but that distinction made it easier for the others to digest her achievement.
But Rine? She didn’t even have a surname. A commoner.
“M-me?”
Even Rine looked stunned.
She hadn’t been aiming for a top score. She’d just done her best in the moment, that was all.
Ludger nodded silently.
There was no chance he was lying about this. It was official—Rine was fourth overall.
She felt like her soul was floating above her body. She hadn’t even hoped for this, so getting the best possible result felt surreal.
“Rine... that’s incredible.”
“N-no, not really...”
Erendir looked visibly flustered, clearly not expecting Rine to earn such an outstanding score.
As a senior, she’d wanted to set a respectable example—to be someone admirable. But to fall behind in theoretical test rankings like this?
She was happy for Rine, yes—but it also stung.
The rest of the students were no less unsettled. Especially the nobles.
Many of them were shooting side-eyes full of hostility toward Rine.
It wasn’t just about anything else—they simply couldn’t stomach the fact that a commoner had beaten them.
And it didn’t help that Rine had already made a scene earlier due to a run-in with a noble student.
Even though she hadn’t been at fault in the slightest back then, the noble students had already branded her as an insolent commoner who dared to challenge her betters.
So now, even though she’d earned a top score, the looks thrown her way were anything but kind.
“Silence.”
Ludger’s voice immediately crushed the rising buzz in the lecture hall.
“If you have a problem with the results, come speak to me directly.”
No one objected. You’d have to be insane to look Ludger Cherish in the eye and complain about your score.
And so, the noble students begrudgingly swallowed their pride about the commoner taking fourth place.
But even then—
At the very least, fifth place had to go to a noble. It was the only way to salvage their wounded pride.
“I will now announce fifth place.”
Noble students gulped.
Some clenched their fists so hard that cold sweat formed.
“Fifth place: Leo. 94.3 out of 100.”
Contrary to their hopes, it was yet another commoner—Leo—who took the fifth slot.
Aidan’s eyes went wide as he turned to look at Leo.
The sharp-tongued boy with sky-blue hair didn’t even look excited. He just wore his usual blank expression, as if this result was no big deal.
Even Taishy stammered in surprise, clearly not expecting it.
“Y-you—what the heck? You actually did pretty well?”
“Eh. I just did what I had to.”
“Hmph. Well, I’m third place. Got it? That’s way better than your fifth.”
“Did I say it wasn’t?”
The two bickered as usual.
But the rest of the classroom couldn’t match their relaxed mood.
Two of the top five scorers were commoners.
In other words, the noble students who didn’t make the cut had been outdone by those two.
Only three of the top five spots had gone to nobles. And one of them was from a fallen house that barely even counted as nobility anymore.
Being ranked below a commoner—there was nothing more humiliating for a noble.
They’re really glaring.
Leo could feel the hostile stares aimed in his direction.
All of them came from nobles brimming with self-entitlement.
Even their eyes seemed to scream, How dare a filthy commoner...
Leo was unimpressed.
They’re mad at me when they’re the ones who didn’t study hard enough? What a joke.
Tch. This is why I can’t stand nobles.
Leo wasn’t the type to bow his head just because someone had a title. If anything, he only pushed back harder.
So he gave a mocking grin to the students who looked like they wanted to kill him with their eyes.
Tch!
Some of the nobles flinched and nearly lashed out—but their last scraps of self-restraint reminded them they were still in class.
Ludger Cherish was standing on the platform, after all.
A man who didn’t even blink at noble status. A figure who struck genuine fear into the hearts of noble students.
“That concludes the top five. Those I named should visit the faculty office after class to receive their framework. You don’t have to come immediately, but you must receive it before the second test.”
With that, Ludger turned to his assistant, Sedina, who had been quietly standing beside him the whole time. He gave her a small nod.
Sedina promptly began distributing papers to the students—today’s lesson materials.
“Let’s begin. Today’s topic is <Magic Emission>–based magic circles.”
Magic circles were considered the most basic of magical studies.
Modern spellcraft used ritual formations drawn in three-dimensional space using mana, but long before that, magic circles were drawn by hand.
Magic circles?
That’s a surprisingly normal topic for today.
Magic circles were still widely used.
Talisman crafting and the creation of artifacts required etched or inscribed magic, where magic circles were a necessity.
Three-dimensional spells were hard to imprint on solid materials like items or paper. Magic circles, which could be drawn on a flat surface, were still preferred in such cases.
More importantly, magic circles had a longer lifespan.
A ritual spell cast into the air was one-and-done—activated and gone. But a magic circle, once engraved, could remain intact and functional until physically erased.
That’s why magic circles were still treated as both foundational and crucial in the study of magic.
“Observe.”
Ludger turned and drew a large circle on the magic board.
It was perfect—an immaculate circle at the center of the board.
“Most magic circles are drawn using a circular base. That’s a very old tradition, but one with a proper reason behind it.”
The use of circles in magic represented the universe itself.
And a circle symbolized protection—an unbroken shape believed to shield the caster from external forces.
So magic circles traditionally began with a base circle, then built additional shapes or symbols inside it.
“But that’s something everyone already knows. I don’t feel like wasting time repeating outdated basics.”
With that, Ludger erased the circle he’d drawn.
Then, he sketched a new shape on the board.
“This is the magic circle I’m going to teach you.”
The students stared, confused.
And rightfully so—what Ludger had drawn wasn’t a circle at all.
“...What the hell is that?”
“That’s supposed to be a magic circle?”
It was a shape that defied all previous assumptions.
A perfect square.
