Chapter 65: Act 1 – The Burning City
The Arcana School can undoubtedly claim that the “cards” they use are the most peculiar among the numerous catalysts of magic.
The deck is one, but the cards are many.
An astonishing form that transcends singular and plural.
Thus, although difficult to handle, once mastered, it is more versatile than any other catalyst.
For this reason, it is the school with the highest proportion of Warmages.
In unpredictable situations known as “war,” high versatility and efficiency are certainly excellent weapons.
Moreover, depending on how dozens of cards are drawn, connected, and arranged, one can adjust magic to respond to almost all types of situations and even glimpse “fate” by weaving constellations into the cards.
Although the accuracy varies greatly depending on individual ability, it is said that, aside from the saint who directly hears the future from the goddess, the future predictions of the Arcana School are the most reliable.
However, why is it that the Arcana School can no longer be found?
The reason is simple.
It was a form that deviated significantly from the general circle system.
For the cards to function as a magical aid, a circle suitable for the Arcana School had to exist, and unlike other catalysts, it took an extraordinarily long time just to handle the cards. Furthermore, very few people could teach this card technique properly.
Additionally, the magic system that developed thoroughly around “use” was not particularly suitable for exploring knowledge and establishing new concepts.
As a result, the magic of the Arcana School evolved not towards “research” or “knowledge” but towards a strict emphasis on “practicality.”
Extreme pragmatism focused on showing immediate results rather than understanding phenomena and acquiring authority.
Thus, in the past, the Arcana School did not receive proper recognition as legitimate mages.
However, their will has been revived in modern times.
By the hands of a man.
“Now, will you turn it over and see if the card you thought of is correct?”
Luke swallowed nervously and turned over the card he had covered.
“Oh my gosh, how did this happen? How did this card appear here?”
It was astonishing.
When did he switch it?
He hadn’t noticed at all.
He never once took his hands off the card.
How could such a trick be possible without using magic?
However, Shirud rolled his eyes as he watched Luke fussing over the performer’s card tricks.
Here was a guy who could manipulate circles and mana and even create firebirds flying in the air with a Shadow Blade, yet he acted like this just because he saw some card tricks.
From Shirud’s perspective, Luke’s magic seemed far more impressive.
Shirud whispered in a low voice so only Luke could hear.
“Why on earth is that fascinating to you? You lift fire just with a flick of your finger.”
“That’s completely different; that is pure ‘technique’ that doesn’t use any mana at all.”
“Still….”
Yet Luke, regardless of Shirud’s judgment, answered as he placed the cards back down.
“It’s so amazing! Can you show me once more?”
“Hmm, it’d be boring to show you the same thing again, so let’s try a different method this time. What do you think?”
Luke immediately replied to his words.
“Sure! Let’s do that!”
In the past, the sleight of hand of the Arcana School was something that could not be observed up close.
They each had their unique ways of handling the cards, and they were extremely reluctant to let others know; therefore, they never handled the cards in a manner that would be shown to others.
The knowledge was discreetly passed on only to their apprentices.
Because of this, details on how the cards were handled, shuffled, and drawn were things Luke couldn’t easily learn.
Moreover, since their skills were not always necessary when using magic, they did not go out of their way to learn them, making it quite natural that they knew nothing about those skills.
However, there was no reason to miss the opportunity that had come to him.
————
It was at that time when Shirud was sitting alone, sipping on a carbonated fruit-flavored drink.
“Shirud, why are you all alone? Where’s Luke?”
At Mary’s question, Shirud pointed in one direction.
“Luke is over there.”
“What is he doing over there?”
“You can see, he’s watching card tricks.”
“Card tricks?”
As Mary turned her head following Shirud’s finger, she saw Luke looking up at the magician, hands together, pleading, “Please.”
“Could you show me just a few more? I still don’t quite understand… or could you at least tell me how you did that?”
“My dear girl, this is not something you can just tell others about….”
“I realize it’s an awkward request, but could you just teach me one thing? Please….”
“Well, no, not with those eyes….”
“I apologize; I was lacking in decorum while making a request.”
As the performer continued to show a stubborn reaction, Luke decided to sacrifice a bit of his pride for the sake of his purpose.
“Brother? Could you please teach me just one trick? Then I won’t bother you anymore, okay?”
Luke spoke in a charming manner typical of a thoroughly vetted child.
Honestly, it was quite embarrassing, but… there wasn’t much he could do about it.
The card techniques from 5000 years ago were basic trash compared to the level of skill needed today.
If he could simply witness this modern card technique, even if the Arcana school appeared again, they would likely have the same reaction as Luke.
So why not take advantage of the current appearance a little?
It wasn’t like it would cost anything.
Moreover, a child could be forgiven for such shamelessness!
When else would he get a chance to make use of the advantages of being a child?
“Ugh, alright. Just one thing….”
“Wow! Thank you! You’re bound to be blessed!”
The flabbergasted performer ultimately raised his hand.
As he took out the deck of cards again to teach Luke card tricks, Luke cheered.
Mary found that sight rather strange.
‘Luke, you really use that expression well.’
Though it was certainly something she had taught him, was he overusing it?
Shirud, watching from a distance, sighed and said,
“Maybe I should learn some magic too.”
He had promised himself, “If you become better at magic than me, I’ll call you,” but here he was, casually calling the performer “big brother.”
It felt a little unfair.
Today, the drink tastes very sweet.
———
Shortly after, Luke walked toward Shirud, looking a bit tired, as if he had learned all the card tricks.
Shirud, somewhat irritated, asked him,
“Did you learn the card techniques?”
“I did learn, but… well, it wasn’t what I expected.”
“What do you mean?”
“Want to see?”
Luke took out the deck of cards he received from the performer and asked Shirud.
“Now, think of a card in your mind.”
Was he trying to use the trick he just learned?
Shirud took a sip of his drink and replied.
“Yeah, I’ve got it.”
“Okay, then just say any number from one to ten.”
“Seven.”
“Alright, then one, two, three, four, five, six….”
Luke counted while flipping over one card at a time.
Finally, when the seventh card was revealed, it was precisely the card Shirud had been thinking of.
Shirud, slightly impressed, said,
“Oh, that’s right. What’s going on? It seems you learned it well. This is kind of amazing.”
‘Seeing Luke do it is indeed fascinating. But it doesn’t seem like he’s using any trick. What on earth did he do?’
However, Luke shook his head with an awkward smile.
“No, this isn’t something I actually learned. What I learned was a magic trick where you flip the card back and ask what card it was and then switch it with that card.”
“What? So how did you get it right?”
“I don’t know. I just got lucky.”
“Lucky?”
“Yeah, lucky.”
Luke sighed and continued.
“It seems like luck was so good that I kept getting the right card at once, so there was no need to use what I learned… The performer was really angry, pretending he couldn’t do magic while making fun of me. In fact, he wanted to learn from me… It was quite awkward. I didn’t know any of those methods.”
“……What?”
“Yeah, so I’m on my way back to apologize. I took the cards because he said he wouldn’t do card tricks anymore….”
After all that charm, there was no room for the tricks or sleight of hand he had learned.
He simply shuffled and drew a card, and out popped the card he wanted right away. What was he supposed to do about that?
He hadn’t manipulated anything at all, yet the card was drawn.
The performer must have been losing his mind seeing that.
Even he, who drew the card, was surprised.
“……That’s a talent in itself.”
Shirud let out a hollow laugh as if he couldn’t believe it.
As he took another sip of his drink, Luke looked at him with a puzzled expression.
“By the way, where did you get that drink?”
“Over there; it was in a glass bottle. If you’re interested, go get some. It’s pretty good.”
“Is that so? Hmm, thanks for telling me, I’ll go right away. I’ve been wanting some fruit wine lately.”
Since he had occasionally drunk beer or fruit wine in the past, Luke recalled old memories as he headed toward the drink.
However, at Luke’s words, Shirud suddenly panicked and grabbed Luke’s arm as he walked toward the drink.
“Luke, wait a minute. What was that? Just now, what was it…?”
Turning to Shirud, Luke began to explain once again, carefully.
“It’s fruit wine. Brewed in elven style. It’s quite fresh and has a wonderful aroma. Seems like it’s high-quality fruit wine.”
“Wine? So this is alcohol? I just drank alcohol?”
No wonder he felt heat on his face earlier!
Now that he thought about it, he felt a little dizzy.
He drank half of it thinking it was a soft drink…!
No wonder there were only adults around the drinks.
He wanted to be careful not to attract attention, and no one told him it was alcohol!
“What am I going to do? I drank alcohol…!”
Shirud went into a panic.
But Luke tilted his head, as if that were a problem.
“Yeah, what’s the problem? Can’t a child drink alcohol at a party?”
Isn’t ten years old an age when it’s not a big deal to drink a little?
Isn’t this usually when children first learn about alcohol?
Shirud was a year older than ten, so it shouldn’t really matter…
“Of course it shouldn’t! If my mom finds out, I’ll be in trouble!”
“What? Really?”
Luke just wondered why there were so many things children shouldn’t do in this era, looking down at his wrist.
At that moment, Shirud realized he was gripping Luke’s wrist quite hard.
Surprised, he pulled his hand away like he was burned, and Luke shrugged it off, looking unconcerned.
He then noticed Py in the scene walking up onto the stage.
Luke murmured in a questioning voice.
“By the way, what is Py doing right now?”
She seemed a little flushed, as if something was up.
