Prologue Story

Winter was not my favorite season.

It was cold.

I shivered, keeping my hands in my pockets.

But it wasn’t that I hated it—if it snowed just the right amount, winter could be quite nice.

Still, I couldn’t stand the cold.

To think it had already gotten this chilly.

With a sigh, I opened the classroom door and stepped inside.

I could see kids in bright yellow outfits huddled together, chatting away.

Most of them were talking about schools.

“Where are you planning to go?”

“I’m just going to a local school. I still can’t feel magic yet.”

“I’m going to a magic academy! I’ll become a powerful magician!”

“Me too, me too!”

The kids passionately declared their intent to enter prestigious schools, and it felt like a miniature version of the college or national entrance exams.

Normally, there wouldn’t be any choice in which elementary school to attend.

Most kids would automatically go to the nearest school.

At least, that would have been the case in the South Korea I lived in back in the 21st century.

But this world was different.

Here, everything revolved around magic.

Magician talents often blossomed at a young age, even though some people developed their abilities later.

To nurture these talents, this world had prestigious “magic academies” that catered to elementary school students.

These magic academies were dedicated to specialized magic training.

They were schools for young talents whose magical abilities had shown early promise.

Naturally, a certain level of talent was required to enter these schools.

The specific requirements varied depending on the school and the educational level (elementary, middle, high school), but for elementary-level academies, one prerequisite was essential: the ability to “sense magic,” even at the most basic level.

Of course, not many prospective elementary students could feel magic.

So, this “minimum requirement” held a bit of leeway.

Instead of sensing the surrounding magic, they could just sense the magic contained in a special item—this was typically the entry test for many magic schools.

‘Well, usually, anyway.’

I sat at my desk, a little lost in thought.

But there was always a clear difference in levels.

The requirement I mentioned was standard for most magic schools, but truly elite schools required students to fully sense magic to gain admission.

The reason I hesitated was that Inha and I not only met these requirements but exceeded them.

Naturally—both of us had already created magic.

With that in mind, was there any school we couldn’t get into?

We could go anywhere, even the most famous schools, not only in this country but also overseas, or even… a perfectly ordinary school with nothing special at all.

And I preferred something ordinary.

I didn’t want to stand out too much, nor did I want to disappear into the background.

There were exceptions, of course, but overall, I liked that ordinary life.

Like Mom had said, I didn’t want to be dragged here and there.

If I went to a specialized school, I’d inevitably have to demonstrate my skills to some extent.

But I also had a desire to learn magic.

I couldn’t explain the excitement I’d felt when I first sensed magic, or when I created magic for the first time.

Even now, I loved my magic.

So it was only natural for me to want to develop it further.

Honestly, I still hadn’t decided which school I wanted to go to.

It was already November.

By the end of December, I would have to decide on a school.

Otherwise, I’d automatically be enrolled in a nearby school.

Once I chose a school, I’d be there for six years, so I had no choice but to be cautious.

It made sense to be a bit conflicted.

I sighed as I pondered my options.

When I looked up, I saw Yumi entering the classroom in a hurry.

Our eyes met, and she smiled brightly.

“Hi, Eunha!”

“Hey, Yumi.”

“Have you decided on a school yet?”

“No, not yet. How about you?”

“N-not yet. There’s a school I want to go to, but… it’s kind of famous.”

“Which one?”

“It’s a secret. It’s pretty amazing. If I don’t get in, I’ll be so embarrassed.”

Blushing, Yumi said that and turned away.

Hmm, it seemed like she had applied to a well-known school.

I just nodded in response.

“I see.”

I didn’t ask Yumi any more questions about her school choice.

We simply laughed and chatted as usual, then I started reading a book.

As I checked the clock to see how much time was left until the end of class, the teacher called my name.

“Eunha, can you come here for a moment?”

I stood up.

The teacher led me to the staff room and handed me a paper bag from the desk.

The bag was pretty heavy, filled with thin booklets.

“Uh, teacher, what is this…?”

“They’re school pamphlets. You haven’t decided on a school yet, right? Well, since you can get into most places, I bet you’re thinking it over.”

The teacher smiled, patting her cheek.

I gave an awkward smile.

“There are pamphlets, and oh, there’s also information about school information sessions in there. Go to one with your parents, okay? And once you decide, let me know.”

Since this world gave students more decision-making power about schools—and since kindergarten wasn’t mandatory—there was no need to inform the kindergarten teacher about which school we’d choose.

School notifications were sent to individuals only.

I nodded with an awkward smile again.

“Yes, I’ll do that.”

It didn’t hurt to look at these, after all.

Hugging the paper bag from my teacher, I returned to the classroom.

I felt grateful for the thoughtfulness.

Soon, classes ended, and I took the kindergarten bus home.

As I got off at my usual stop, I saw Inha waiting to greet me.

We held hands and headed home together.

“So, you got this?”

“Yeah. There’s one nearby on Saturday. Do you want to go?”

Inha nodded as if it was a given.

“Yeah, let’s go.”

Inha’s face lit up a bit.

Ah, I thought, Inha must be really interested in things like this.

Well, that made sense—most kids would be.

“Of course, Inha wants to go to a prestigious school.”

It made sense; she had talent and could go anywhere, so the only thing left to do was choose the right school.

I simply watched her flip through the pamphlet with excitement.

When she caught me looking, I just smiled.

On Saturday, we went to the information session as planned, with our parents.

Since Aunt Suna and Uncle Jungmin were busy, it was just us and my mom and dad.

But Mom didn’t seem very keen on it.

“Seongju Elementary School… I’m not too fond of it.”

“Why?”

“It just has a bit of a bad reputation. They have partnerships with several organizations, and while they provide support, they also borrow students in return—like a training program to cultivate talent… Anyway, that’s the gist of it. Basically, they make the kids assist in combat from a young age.”

“Ew… I don’t like that.”

“Well, I guess if they want to be combat magicians, it wouldn’t be too bad. But getting involved in combat at an elementary level… Even if they plan to recruit kids from middle school, that’s still a bit much.”

“Yeah, getting them into combat so young is way too dangerous.”

Dad nodded with concern, and Mom agreed.

“Right. Usually, they start recruiting in middle school. Most schools avoid recruiting elementary students, even if they’re talented… Anyway, Seongju has a pretty bad reputation….”

Hmm.

I frowned slightly and replied.

“It’s fine. We’re only here to gather information.”

“True. We wouldn’t send you or Inha anywhere with a bad reputation.”

Mom smiled and patted both of our heads.

“Anyway, when you choose a school, put a lot of thought into it. Think about things like the school’s atmosphere, and do your research. Although, Suna will probably be helpful with that.”

“Yes, she’s already recommended some great options.”

“Right? Suna’s really knowledgeable about that stuff.”

Listening to Inha and Mom chat, I exhaled into the cold air.

I felt chilly, but not enough for my breath to fog up.

The information session wasn’t bad.

The hall was quite warm, and we received various explanations through videos and a PowerPoint presentation.

Mom’s concerns about the school’s connections to certain organizations didn’t seem baseless, as they did emphasize these ties a bit.

In my mind, I crossed Seongju off the list.

Still, it wasn’t a bad experience.

Afterward, we even went out for some jajangmyeon.

After lunch, Inha and I went back to my house.

Both of her parents were out, though she often spent weekends sleeping over at my place anyway.

After practicing magic for a bit, I watched Inha as she focused on the school pamphlets, lying on the bed.

Eventually, I asked her.

“You haven’t chosen a school yet, have you, Inha?”

Inha, who had been staring intently at the pamphlet, turned to look at me and nodded.

“No. Have you, Eunha?”

“Me neither.”

I looked at Inha and gave an awkward smile.

“But honestly, I’m not too fond of magic academies.”

“Why?”

“Um, I don’t know how to say it? I like ordinary things. Besides, it’s not like regular schools don’t teach magic, right?”

“Hmm….”

“What about you? Do you want to be stronger than everyone else?”

But magic academies were specialized schools that provided in-depth magic education.

It was true that attending a magic academy would make it easier to become a competent magician.

If we went to a regular school, our growth might fall behind compared to others.

Sure, we were ahead of other kids now, but without effort, we could easily fall behind.

And after all, even prestigious schools didn’t have students practicing magic all day every day.

So, here I was, pondering my options.

Inha looked at me, silent for a moment, then nodded with determination.

“…Yes. I want to be stronger than everyone else.”

“I see….”

Of course, she did.

I hesitated, my thoughts still jumbled.

Inha continued, looking at me.

“But if you go to a regular school, I’ll go there, too.”

…Huh? What was that supposed to mean?

I looked up, startled.

“What do you mean? You just said you want to be strong. So you should go to a magic academy.”

“I want to go to the same school as you.”

“But still… We’d still be neighbors even if we went to different schools… You should make your choices based on what you want, not on other people. It’s your life, after all.”

At times like this, Inha still showed her age.

We were both seven years old, so it wasn’t exactly the right age for this conversation, but still, it seemed that I would need to choose a magic academy for Inha’s sake.

Well, here I was, unable to decide and hesitating, so I wasn’t really in a position to give her advice.

Our parents didn’t have any specific school preferences for us, so it was entirely up to us.

But we were both stuck in indecision.

We couldn’t even decide whether to attend a regular school or a magic academy… How frustrating.

I wanted an ordinary life.

But I didn’t want to fall behind in magic.

I wanted to live normally.

But I loved magic so much.

Looking at Inha, who had turned away with a sullen expression, I let out a bitter smile.

“…If you choose something for my sake and it doesn’t work out, don’t blame me.”

“I won’t.”

“I know, but still.”

I was also weighing whether to pick a magic academy for Inha’s sake or stick with a regular school, but this was different.

Inha had a clear goal.

There was still time until the application deadline at the end of December, but… I could only sigh.

“Just choose what feels right for you.”

That’s how it should be.

If you don’t choose for yourself, you might regret it in the future.

Inha just turned her head away and stayed silent.