The bus ride back was quiet. Sunset spilled golden streaks across the windows, bathing everything in warm light. Cael sat with his head against the glass, eyes distant. His thoughts drifted back to the hidden wonders of Diagon Alley—floating spellbooks, enchanted brooms, goblin-run banks.
It was real.
He had seen it.
He had felt it.
Magic now coursed faintly through him—fragile, like a spark waiting to catch.
When the bus stopped, he stepped off just down the road from Vale Orphanage. The sound of laughter drew his eyes to the garden. A small group of children—no more than thirteen—chased each other around in the dying light. Most were little more than toddlers, their giggles echoing across the yard.
Cael smiled faintly. Despite everything, this place was still home.
The reason he was still here was simple: he was too old. At eleven, he'd outgrown the window of easy adoption. While younger children came and went quickly—thanks to Mama Linda's sterling reputation—Cael had lingered for three quiet years.
He waved to the kids as he passed by, earning a few shy grins. Then he slipped inside, made for the bathroom to freshen up, and finally collapsed onto his creaky bed.
"Alright," he muttered, staring up at the ceiling. "Hit me, System. What's the next step?"
DING!
[New Quest Issued]
🎯 Quest Name: The Math of Integrals
🧠 Objective: Solve 1,000 Integral Calculus Problems
⏳ Time Limit: 2 Months
Rewards Upon Completion:
– 🧠 Trait: Perfect Recall (Basic)
– ✨ +3 Magic Power
– 📈 INT +5
– 🎁 Bonus: "Nothing" (No, really. You get nothing else.)
Failure Penalty: None. But you'll miss out on becoming smarter, sharper—and less of a magical disappointment.
Cael stared blankly at the glowing interface.
"…You're trying to kill me. That's it, right? I survived death and now you're planning my academic assassination."
"Calm down, drama queen. It's just integrals."
"I don't know how to solve integrals!"
"Then learn. It's still easier than mastering rune-based spell matrices."
Cael groaned and rolled over. "I died debugging code. Now I'm being punished with math? I feel betrayed."
"Not punishment—training. You said you wanted to become a real wizard. Magic and memory go hand in hand. If you want to develop photographic recall, earn it."
Cael glared at the air. "Fine. But if I'm solving integrals like a lunatic, I expect more than just magical brain sweat."
"Oh don't worry, I'll throw in a sticker too. 'World's #1 Nerd.'"
"Remind me why I keep you around again?"
"Because without me, you'd still be a dead virgin with no wand."
Cael sighed. "Touché."
And with that, he drifted into sleep.
The Next Morning
The sky was gray, the air crisp. A weekend—no school.
Cael dressed quickly, grabbed a half-stale biscuit from the pantry, and headed straight to the town library. When he pushed open the door, the familiar chime above jingled.
Behind the front desk, the elderly librarian looked up, surprised.
"Oh, Cael! You haven't come by in a while—I thought you'd given up on books."
He offered her a sheepish smile. "Sorry, Madam. School stuff kept me busy. I'm back now though… and ready to drown in equations."
"Well," she chuckled, "I suppose that's better than drowning in trouble. Math section's on the left—there's a sign marked Mathematics."
"Thank you."
He found the shelf, fingers trailing across dusty spines. Eventually, he pulled out a thick, battered volume titled Advanced Calculus and Integral Theory. The contents looked like Greek at first—long chains of symbols and alien notations—but he buckled down.
And began to learn.
Day by day, he built his foundation from the basics: derivatives, limits, Riemann sums—until eventually, the symbols started to make sense. It took him a full month to understand what he was doing.
Only then did the real challenge begin.
1,000 integrals.
The Final Week
Cael had nearly lost his mind. His notebook was a battlefield of ink. Pages curled from erasure and corrections. Mistakes were frequent—but he pushed through.
Then finally, one day before the deadline, he slammed his pencil down and leaned back with a victorious gasp.
"I'm done. I'm officially a lunatic."
"Are you though?" the System asked lazily.
"…Don't you dare."
"Because you got 203 problems wrong."
Cael shot upright. "WHAT?! You—you son of—"
"Chill. Chill, dude. I'm messing with you."
"You passed. Congratulations. No heart attacks today, please."
Cael collapsed onto the desk and groaned. "You are such an asshole, System. I nearly had a panic attack!"
"I mean… after what happened to you and code errors, I figured you'd be used to emotional damage. Pfffft—"
Cael couldn't help but laugh despite himself. "You're lucky I'm too tired to argue."
DING!
[Quest Complete – Math of Integrals]
✅ Trait Gained: Perfect Recall (Basic)
✅ Magic Power: +3 → Now 6
✅ INT: +5 → Now 18
✅ Bonus Unlocked: Math Precision (nothing more, just learned Mathematics )
"Still," the System added smugly, "you took nearly the entire two months to solve just 1,000 integrals. If you were a normal genius, you'd have done it in a week."
Cael rolled his eyes. "Normal geniuses didn't die from coding-induced laptop explosions, alright?"
"Fair point. Welcome to the mildly gifted club."
Cael leaned back in his chair, a small, tired smile on his lips.
One quest down. One step closer to magic.