Leonardo's eyes gleamed with interest. "Teammates, huh?"
Seath's gaze remained impassive. "Yes. Grauzauberer doesn't operate alone. You'll need to learn how to work with others."
Lavinia leaned toward him, her blue eyes sparkling. "I think it'll be fun! Working with other people might be nice."
Leonardo's smiled. "Might be, even though I'd rather prefer to work alone."
Seath turned, his robe swaying behind him as he started down the hallway. "Come on. They're waiting."
"he reminds me of a greasy old bat" Leonardo muttered under his breath.
"did you say something" Lavinia asked as she didn't hear what he said clearly.
"nothing" Leonardo shook his head before following behind Seath.
As they approached a large door at the end of the hall, Leonardo's eyes glinted with curiosity. the door was similar to their dorm rooms.
Seath placed a card against the door, and it slid open without a sound.
Inside was a classroom just like a classroom from jujutsu kaisen but slightly futuristic. Tall windows lined the walls, allowing pale light to filter through. two figures sat inside, talking quietly among themselves.
Leonardo's gaze flicked over them with mild interest.
The first was a girl with long purple hair, dressed in a fitted gray combat uniform similar to Lavinia's. She wore a sleek purple eye cover—reminding Leonardo of a certain white-haired Kit-Kat. Her head drifted toward them for a brief moment before looking away, her posture relaxed yet calculating.
The second was a boy with messy black hair and piercing blue eyes. He was sitting on the desk by the window—ahh, the protagonist's seat—with his gaze turned toward the sky outside. His expression was calm, almost detached, but there was a faint smile on his lips when he spotted them.
'May God give him the troubles of a seinen protagonist,' Leonardo prayed silently, resisting the urge to sigh. 'oh! I forgot that god is dead in this world.'
Seath's voice cut through the silence. "These are your teammates."
The black-haired boy stepped forward, offering a gentle smile. "So, you guys are our new members."
He placed a hand on his chest in a casual yet polite gesture. "I'm Kael. Lucas Kael. Nice to meet you."
"Oh! I'm Lavinia Reni, and this is Leo—"
Lavinia, practically bouncing with excitement at meeting others her age, was abruptly cut off. Leonardo, however, was staring at Lucas with a serious expression.
"I am Leon. Leon Kennedy."
Lucas blinked, momentarily caught off guard by the gravity in Leonardo's tone. Then, realization dawned.
A slow grin spread across his face. "I understood that reference."
A shared chuckle passed between them before Leonardo casually shrugged. "I'm Leonardo, but you can call me whatever you like."
"Idiot," Lavinia muttered under her breath.
"Except that." Leonardo and Lucas both smirked at her.
Lucas extended his hand. "Yeah, got it! It's nice to have people like you around."
His gaze flickered briefly toward the purple-haired girl and Seath, both of whom remained expressionless.
Leonardo took the offered hand, his smirk widening. "Well, I think we'll get along just fine."
"And the brooding lady over there is Medusa," Lucas introduced, gesturing toward the purple-haired girl. She merely gave a small nod in acknowledgment.
Leonardo tilted his head. "Oh? Like the one from mythology? Is that why you're covering your eyes?"
Lucas let out an awkward chuckle, while Medusa's expression remained unreadable.
Seath, however, was done with the pleasantries. His eyes narrowed. "Enough. Introductions are over."
He turned toward the blackboard. "You'll have plenty of time to socialize after I'm done with you all today. Now, take your seats."
Lucas strolled over to his protagonist's seat by the window, sinking into it with a relaxed ease. Lavinia, after a brief moment of thought, plopped into the seat beside Medusa, offering a cheerful sigh.
Leonardo glanced around and found only one seat left—right by the door.
"Well, beggars can't be choosers," he muttered under his breath before sliding into the chair.
His violet eyes flicked toward Seath, who now stood at the front of the room, his sharp gaze sweeping over them like a predator assessing its prey.
"I am Seath Tannin, one of Grauzauberer's High Magicians—and for the time being, your mentor."
He paused, his sharp gaze settling on Leonardo.
"Oh, and I'm also a dragon."
Leonardo gave an innocent smile like he hadn't called Seath a lizardman earlier.
Seath's eye twitched ever so slightly but he decided to ignore that and moved on.
"All alright, can someone tell what human magic is?"
The room fell silent for a moment before Lavinia eagerly raised her hand. "Oh! Oh! I know!"
Seath sighed. "Yes, Lavinia?"
Lavinia, beaming, eagerly answered, "Magic is a power that every supernatural being can use, and it relies on mana as its primary energy source."
Seath nodded. "Yes, that's the basic definition of magic. But what's the difference between human magic and the magic of other supernatural beings?"
He glanced around the room. No one responded, their silence prompting him to continue.
"While almost every supernatural being can use magic, they are not limited to it like humans. Most races have an innate power unique to their species. Devils have demonic power, Angels and Fallen Angels wield light or holy power, and Dragons possess draconic energy."
Seath's gaze flickered over to Medusa. "For example, even beings like Medusa here, a descend of the original Medusa, even though she is human, she has awakened her ancestral racial traits. While humans can use light magic, it's incomparable to the natural light power of Angels."
He turned back to the board and continued.
"The magic system that most human magicians use today actually originates from the demonic power of Devils. It was created by the legendary magician Merlin Ambrosius, who adapted the principles of demonic power into a structured formula-based system for human use."
Leonardo raised an eyebrow. "Wait… if human magic comes from demonic power, wouldn't that mean they're basically the same thing?"
Seath shook his head. "Not quite. While they may seem similar, the fundamental difference lies in their application. Demonic power is fueled by the imagination of the user. A Devil simply envisions a spell's effect, and their demonic power shapes it into reality."
"Human magic, however, requires formulas, memorization, and calculations. Human magicians must learn complex magical theories, construct spell structures, and precisely manipulate mana for their spells to work. It's a much more rigid system."
Lucas frowned, his fingers tapping on the desk. "Doesn't that put humans at a huge disadvantage compared to other supernatural races?"
Seath gave a small smirk. "Yes, it does. That's why the Biblical God created the Sacred Gears—giving humans the power to even kill gods. And Devils, in turn, developed the Reincarnation System, turning talented humans into Devils and adding them to their peerage to strengthen their forces."
Leonardo raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that just a glorified way of saying 'you're a slave'?"
Seath's expression remained neutral. "You could say that. But that's a subjective view. What you see as a cage, others might see as an opportunity. After all, not everyone is as fortunate as you."
Leonardo blinked. 'Fortunate? Me? Sure, I guess getting transmigrated counts… but no need to say it to my face like that.'
His smirk widened as a thought crossed his mind. 'How petty. Mr. 'I-Am-a-Dragon' is still salty about the lizardman comment, huh?'
Still, he had to admit—Ajuka Beelzebub was a damn genius for creating the Evil Piece system. Even if he personally didn't like the idea of being bound to someone, that didn't mean he hated the system itself.
If he were a Devil, having a glorified group of subordinates wouldn't sound so bad.
But now that he was on the other side of it? Yeah, he didn't like it one bit.
Hypocritical? Absolutely.
But who wasn't a hypocrite? Anyone who claimed otherwise was hypocrisy at its finest.
"Moving on," Seath continued, his voice firm, "humans are comparatively the weakest race among the supernatural. And I'm not saying this to demotivate you—I'm saying it because it's the truth."
The room fell silent as his words sank in.
"But… there is something humans have that no other race does—adaptability. Humans are the only race with an affinity for every type of magic. Unlike Devils, who cannot learn light magic, or Angels, who cannot learn dark magic, humans have no such restrictions."
Seath's gaze swept over the group, making sure they were paying attention.
"Furthermore, humans are the only race without a specific inherent weakness. Dragons have dragon-slaying magic, vampires have their weakness to sunlight, and nearly every other species has a fatal flaw. But humans? They don't have any… because they are the weakest."
He let that hang in the air for a moment before continuing.
"What I mean by all of this is that while humans may start as the weakest, they have the potential to be the strongest. The road to that power, however, is not an easy one."
Seath crossed his arms, his piercing gaze settling on the four students.
"And you four… have the potential to become the strongest humans of this era."
The weight of his words lingered before he clapped his hands together.
"Now that you understand what magic is, we'll move on to practical application. But before that, any questions?"
Leonardo raised his hand lazily. "Yeah, I've got one."
Seath nodded. "Go ahead, Leonardo."
"Does every human have mana? And if they do, can they all learn magic?"
The others perked up at the question. It wasn't something they had thought of, but it was intriguing. If every human could use magic, even if they lacked individual talent, sheer numbers could make humanity a force to be reckoned with.
Seath gave a thoughtful hum before answering.
"Yes and no. Mana is derived from life force—just like Ki. That's why, when a magician overuses their mana reserves, they start drawing on their life force as a last resort."
"Wait, so if mana comes from the life force, doesn't that mean everyone should have it?" Lucas asked.
"Not exactly." Seath shook his head. "While mana originates from life force, the two are inherently different. Just because someone has a life force doesn't mean they can access mana. They need the talent and affinity for it."
He glanced back at Leonardo. "I hope that answers your question."
Leonardo grinned. "One more thing—if someone doesn't have the talent or can't awaken their mana, is there still a chance that mana exists somewhere within their life force?"
Seath raised an eyebrow. "There's no definitive answer to that… but it is a possibility."
Leonardo's grin widened, his mind already racing with ideas. 'Interesting…'