Turning all resentment into tears, Olos returned to his pitch-black, cramped little shack.
This house isn't big, and it's still pretty run-down; the creaking roof seems like it could be blown away easily by a two-level spell, Wind Gale. The rotten boards let in the wind everywhere, and sleeping inside would be uncomfortable, but Olos liked it.
Not for anything else, just because it's tucked away in a relatively remote spot, so few people pass by.
Olos didn't like interacting with others, and he wasn't eager to talk to people, because that would only bring mockery.
Olos returned to his room, closed the door, leaned against it, and let out a long breath toward the ceiling.
The events at the Magic Guild were fresh in his mind; Olos fell silent, his eyes hidden beneath those long-untrimmed bangs.
"Ha ha ha ha…!"
Suddenly, he let out a laugh, sinister and terrifying, unlike the way he had behaved at the Magic Guild—he seemed to have changed into a different person.
"What a bunch of fools—do you really think I'd hand over everything I've researched?"
Olos's lips curved into a sly smile, his eyes glittering with a playful relish, as if today's unfair treatment hadn't happened.
A fifteen-year-old boy can't help but feel furious under endless insults, right? Yes, Olos had been angry too, but that's the past now; he'd long since seen through this world's coldness.
However, in front of others he must "put on" an unwilling, despondent look, or else it would raise suspicions. Especially those crafty old foxes at the Magic Guild; if Olos hadn't kept a trick up his sleeve, they'd probably have emptied his family fortune.
Olos looked around his messy room, especially at the desk; many documents on it were missing, though he couldn't even be bothered to wonder why.
"Just some seventh- and eighth-level trash magic, You can take it if you want."
Seventh- and eighth-level big magic! Those are spells that only wizards and Sorcerers can wield! Not to mention ordinary people; even in the eyes of Sorcerers they're treasured, yet in Olos's mouth they're junk.
But that's the truth—Olos had already achieved the mastery of Saint-level magic, so seventh- and eighth-level magic were nothing but trash.
"And yet, truly good things never leave traces so easily."
Olos chuckled—his smile was sly.
He slowly laid his hand on his forehead, closed his eyes, and whispered a few words; instantly his mind filled with countless knowledge.
Ten-level spells, Saint-level magic, forbidden spells, even divine incantations! Elf Magic, Biomancy, Ancient Magic, and so on! Whichever of these would cause a sensation in the world sprang into his mind all at once.
"If those crafty old foxes knew I still possessed lots of magic they don't know, their faces would turn green, I bet."
Olos's mind flashed with amusement at the thought, and he marveled at how he'd already seen through the Magic Guild's faces; otherwise he'd truly have nothing.
Memory Seal—a magic that requires no mana and can be used by anyone, but it's Ancient Magic; in this world there probably isn't a second person besides Olos who could wield it. Because of Memory Seal, when those old foxes secretly probed his memories, they didn't discover any traces of advanced magical knowledge.
"But really, it's a pity that Saint-level magic knowledge can only fetch a Mage Apprentice; I thought I might get the Senior Mage title—what a loss."
Olos gave another sly chuckle and shrugged it off: Mage Apprentice is Mage Apprentice; the process might be a bit more troublesome, but it could still be achieved.
"I need mana; since I don't have mana, I've got to approach this from another angle."
Olos scanned the knowledge in his mind; he had sealed all of it away before, so fully integrating it would take some time, but retrieving it would be fairly easy.
"Got it!"
Biomancy—"Mana Furnace," an ancient, forbidden spell, is a particularly inhumane, despicable method.
That is, building the human body into a mana furnace, and by injecting a small amount of mana, you can produce more mana through the body's reactions, finally feeding it back to the user!
But this method was mostly used by evil mages; after the ancient evil mages were purged, Mana Furnace faded from memory.
Olos had, by chance, cracked the theory of Mana Furnace in some literature; in ancient times, many Mages liked to write their knowledge in strange patterns in messy books, and thanks to that, Olos could amass such a vast store of knowledge.
Of course, Olos wasn't going to experiment on ordinary people; that would bring trouble from disappearances, big trouble. But if the subjects were slaves without rights, he wouldn't bother.
Becoming a Mage is to gain the right to buy slaves; although Mage Apprentice can only buy one slave, that's enough.
But if discovered, you'd be branded an "evil mage," and you'd be despised by the whole world.
"Evil mage… If those Mages are righteous, I'd rather be an evil mage."
A sly smile crept across Olos's face.
"But buying slaves would cost a lot of money, and I'm about to starve."
Olos pulled out his money pouch—a tattered bag containing only a few silver coins and a dozen copper coins; that's all he had, enough for a month's meals.
"I've got to come up with a way to make some money first."
Knock, knock
Just as Olos pondered how to break out of this poverty, there came a knock at his door.
In a place as desolate as this, only that person would come.
"Olos! You in there? Open up!"
The sweet voice at the door made Olos's forehead throb a little; with her sharp senses, even if he stayed silent, he knew she was inside.
"Tina, what are you doing here?"
Opening the door, a striking sight flashed before his eyes, bringing a glimmer of light to his gray life.
Tina, a cute girl who dressed simply, but compared with those with flashy gold or silver hair, his heart was drawn to her flaxen hair.
Her radiant, sun-bright smile was Olos's sole salvation; just looking at that smile filled him with a indescribable sense of relief.
"Hey hey, weren't you at the Mage ranks evaluation today? I came to congratulate you~"
Tina lifted a bamboo basket, though it was covered with cloth, Olos could already smell the inviting aroma.
"I'm just a Mage Apprentice—there's nothing to celebrate."
"Mage Apprentice is also a kind of Mage; since you've become a Mage, of course there's something to celebrate. Isn't that your long-time dream?"
Tina teased as she squeezed into Olos's room; Olos could only let her in.