Remembering the events from earlier, Solomon realized Apollo hadn't shared which branch of magic he was studying under. For it to be Sorcery, Solomon couldn't believe his rotten luck. The absolute worst of the bunch from his dormitory was in the exact same class as him.
"You can sit next to me. This is the only remaining seat here," Apollo teased with a fake smile.
Solomon decided to remain quiet. Thanks to Apollo's influence, every single person in the class was staring at him with intense interest. Such heavy gazes were something he didn't want to handle this early in the morning.
He glanced around the room, desperately searching for an empty seat. The classroom rose in elevation the further back it went, making it easy to scan the rows. But despite this, he couldn't find a single vacancy.
Apollo was telling the truth. Whether the prince had planned it or not, Solomon had no other choice. He sat down next to Apollo, making sure to ignore both him and the whispering students as best as he could.
Thankfully, a middle-aged man entered the room just a few minutes later, stopping Apollo from trying any further antics.
Unlike the average academic in the School of Magic, the middle-aged man had a burly, imposing physique, with faint scars peeking out from beneath his formal uniform. If not for his round, scholarly glasses and the thick book tucked under his arm, Solomon would have thought the man in front of him was a street thug.
"Good morning, everyone. I'm Jarius Allflame, a sorcerer, and also your professor for this class," he greeted the room formally. His monotone voice made it glaringly obvious that he was completely bored of repeating the exact same line every year.
"I know all of you, and most of you already know each other. If not, you will as time passes. Thus, we will start immediately." He placed his book on the wooden lectern sitting atop the raised stage at the front of the classroom.
"In this class, we will tackle the deeper implications of being a sorcerer. Although this is a familiar topic to some of you, I've received information about newly awakened individuals in this batch. Regardless of whether you already know this or not, take this opportunity to learn and improve your creativity in controlling your supernatural abilities," Jarius explained.
He then closed his book, grabbed a wand from the bag resting next to the lectern, and stepped forward.
"Due to the presence of emblems..." He pointed to a mark on his wrist—a simplistic figure of a red bird with four distinct wings, resembling a seraphim. "...a clear separation between those who are gifted and those who are not was born."
"Unlike the average human, sorcerers are granted supernatural abilities that would normally require the manipulation of mana or aura." Jarius extended his left hand forward. His right hand, which held the wand, remained completely still. "In simple terms, instead of borrowing the world's energy, you can essentially perform magic using your own physical stamina. It operates on the same principles as working out."
In that instant, flames sparked out of thin air above his palm, quickly condensing into a fireball the size of a fist.
"That is why, unlike wizards, spiritualists, or magic engineers, sorcerers naturally develop superior physiques, comparable to the endurance-focused warriors from the School of Arms."
With a flick of his wrist, the fireball extinguished.
"However, I say you are gifted not simply because others cannot do what you do, but because you can do what they do." With a sudden wave of his right hand, the wand thrummed with energy before releasing a brilliant flash of light, temporarily blinding almost everyone inside the classroom.
"You can still choose to cultivate an energy core—whether it be mana or aura—to supplement what you already possess. Take me, for example; I am a sorcerer, but I also pursued the path of wizardry. There is also Phar Jeanson, the strongest man alive, who was born with the Emblem of Might but still trains his aura," Jarius elaborated.
Although some of the noble students were barely paying attention, a few, including Solomon, listened intently.
"Sir Jarius, what is the Emblem of Might?" A brown-haired male student raised his hand and blurted out the question, not even giving Jarius a chance to breathe.
"The 'Emblem of Might' is a moniker given to the elephant-like mark uniquely found within the Jeanson family. It grants its user immense physical strength and durability, providing them with an overwhelming edge over other warriors."
"If emblems have specific classifications, wouldn't there be thousands of different names?" the student added.
"Well, of course. Considering the abundant number of sorcerers in Eclipse alone, let alone in Auritus and the other kingdoms, it wouldn't make sense to formally name every new minor emblem that appears. Because of this, society essentially only names the strongest and most prominent ones. Such as this." Jarius pointed to the seraphim emblem embedded on his wrist.
"The Emblem of Power. Something that one of your current classmates also holds," he boasted, briefly glancing in Apollo's direction.
"Although I share the same emblem as him, his potential is on an entirely different level. I hope you all use him as a target to chase and surpass. I'm certain he would enjoy the challenge." Jarius smirked.
"But how could someone have higher potential at wielding an emblem if it's the exact same mark?" This time, a different student raised a question.
"That is due to slight mutations present in each individual who possesses the mark. Within a sorcery lineage that lets you conjure flames, one person might have a naturally higher degree of temperature control, while another might conjure blue flames capable of burning even underwater. That is exactly why you're taking this class in the first place: to figure out the true depths of the emblem you own," Jarius explained.
"But for now, we will be analyzing each of your emblems and classifying what next steps you should take." With his small demonstration out of the way, Jarius walked back to his belongings. He stored his wand in his bag before resting both arms heavily on the lectern.
"Popular belief dictates that sorcerers hold the most flexibility compared to the other branches. To some extent, this is technically true; you have an innate, extra tool in your arsenal. However, this exact same trait essentially makes your optimal path far more rigid than the other choices.
"Take me, for example. I have the power to manifest flames. So, what should I do? Should I learn spiritualism? Magic engineering? Should I study wizardry and further amplify my pyrokinesis with traditional fire magic? Or should I use my flames to enhance fire-based martial arts?" he asked, causing several heads to nod in understanding throughout the room.
"Exactly. Your optimal path is essentially paved out right in front of you from birth. Nonetheless, that is also a blessing. Not everyone can find their purpose in life as quickly as a sorcerer."
Solomon, who was trying his best to listen attentively despite his complete inability to relate to the topic, suddenly fell into deep thought.
'Not everyone can find their path in life.' The sentence echoed heavily in his mind.
"Alright, with that out of the way. Hael Allflame, you can start with the introductions." Jarius stood up from his leaning position and walked forward once more. He shifted his gaze toward the upper right corner of the room, staring at a blonde boy in the back row. Although it was subtle, Jarius visibly grimaced the moment he said the boy's name.
"That's him. The only dud of the Allflame family..." Immediately after the boy was called out, Solomon heard the students sitting behind him begin to gossip in hushed tones.
"Wait, the child of the servant?"
"Yeah... keep your voice down. He's still a child of the Emperor."
Listening to the whispers, Solomon wondered how they could be so confident talking behind someone's back when the boy's own brother was sitting right in front of them. Curious about Apollo's reaction, Solomon subtly glanced at the prince's expression.
Expecting a sour or defensive look, he was surprised to see Apollo simply maintaining his casual, lazy smile.
From what Solomon had gathered so far, Apollo wasn't the type of person to hold his tongue for the sake of keeping the peace.
'Maybe they aren't close?' he thought to himself, noting Apollo's completely unaffected demeanor.
Solomon then turned to look at the blonde boy in the back row.
At that moment, the boy stood up from his seat to introduce himself.
"Hael Allflame, the Third Prince of Eclipse. As for my emblem, I think most of you know already. That's all." He immediately sat back down, not even sparing a glance at Jarius or the rest of the class.
Many students looked at him with odd, disdainful expressions. It seemed incredibly arrogant to have such a lazy attitude when he was notoriously useless. Given his behavior, it looked as if he didn't possess any sense of shame whatsoever.
However, Solomon didn't agree. Staring at Hael, he could only think of one thing.
This was the exact same boy he had seen relentlessly practicing in the training grounds back at the dormitory, swinging his sword despite the freezing temperatures and the early morning hour.
Was he really the lazy, shameless prince he was portraying himself to be right now?