"Anti-magic, huh? What do you think?" Headmaster Im Ilseong rubbed his goatee, asking as Jung Seoyeon paused the display of the concluded Dungeon raid exam of party thirty. He was an aged but able man whose suit couldn't do well to hide the muscles he possessed, and his presence stood out in the room where the rest of the instructors of Prestige Academy sat before a round table.
"Deficient Mages are completely different from the rest of the Classes of Mages, headmaster," replied Jung Seoyeon, seated to the right of Headmaster Im Ilseong. "What we know about them isn't much. There's a high possibility that this could well be an ability that they may all come to possess later on."
"Or it could be an ability that only he possesses," interjected Dmitri Volkov, a spindly man with slicked back salt and pepper hair, nudging at the edge of his round glasses. "I say we report this to the Consortium and hand him over to them. We don't understand anything about him to bring him onto the Academy grounds. And besides, this is a school of magic, what good is someone who disturbs that resonance here?"
"You seem to be forgetting that Deficient Mages are Mages as well," the man of panache known as Dr. Elias Namgoong argued, his square face and full beard, as well as his unusual combination of a frock coat and cravat, considering the era he was in, made him a man unmissable. "We have an obligation to teach them in the case of the cataclysm's return."
"Teach them what exactly?" Dimitri Volkov didn't sit back. "We teach how to shape mana and cast spells here. They have no use in this Academy, and they definitely won't be useful in the cataclysm as they weren't twenty years ago."
"They do, and they will," Dr. Elias Namgoong argued. "They are allowed to learn about magic and its usage just like the rest of their mates, because they too are in possession of mana. I'll have you know that it is impossible to fight against what you do not know, Professor Dmitri. As long as they are impacted with the knowledge of how magic functions, then they can take up arms and fight if the need arises."
"And what arms would that be exactly?"
"Attuned weapons and artifacts exist," Dr. Elias Namgoong snorted. "Don't let your distaste for Deficient Mages cloud your judgement. And besides, this Merlin kid is not just a simple Deficient Mage. I say we grant him admission and watch over him and what he might become."
"Absurd!"
"He's the bane of magic, headmaster." Dr. Elias Namgoong shifted his attention to the one who had the final say. "Don't you get what that means? Magical Academies were created to train Mages in the case of the cataclysm's return. This boy could prove to be our greatest weapon."
The argument slowly got heated, and even though there were nine people seated in the room, it was all from the mouths of only two individuals. At least until a hand went up.
"Can I say something, headmaster?" Park Minjee started, her dainty body, pink hair tied into twin ponytails, and her glamorous makeup making her look more like an idol than an instructor. Headmaster Im Ilseong nodded in response. "I think Dmitri—"
"It's Professor Dmitri to you, Instructor Park Minjee."
She cleared her throat at the correction. "I think Professor Dmitri and Dr. Namgoong are both right in their own ways. I can't seem to think of any reason why granting a Deficient Mage Academy would be of any good. Yes, I know it's not uncommon, but we're the second ranked Mage Academy in the world. A Deficient Mage should really have no place here. But, Dr. Namgoong is right. This kid isn't just any Deficient Mage. And if we have someone like him at our Academy, it could bolster our standing."
Dmitri Volkov tilted his head. "How so, if I may?"
"Anti-magic has never been heard of before," Park Minjee answered. "We'll be the first Magic Academy in the world to have trained a Mage with the power to cancel out magic. It'll bring us more recognition than Crown Academy. They are only number one because they have produced more S-Classes than us. This way we can have something to compete."
Dmitri Volkov clicked his tongue. "Such nonsense. You think one singular, it hurts me to say, Mage, who can't cast magic, but has some weird ability, will make us stand toe to toe with Crown Academy? You must still be watching too many dramas, Instructor Park. I suggest you stop. And I suggest we hand him over to the Consortium right this instant."
Park Minjee reddened, offended. "You do not get to badmouth my hobbies."
The ruckus increased in pitch, and the rest of the instructors who had been silent joined in. Things got heated far too quickly.
"That's enough!" Jung Seoyeon cut through the argument fiercely. "You've all made your points. Do not shift the discussion to external things that are not needed here." She sighed and turned to Headmaster Im Ilseong who was just rubbing his mustache as though without a care in the world. "What is your decision, headmaster?"
"Hmmm…" Headmaster Im Ilseong hummed. "A Mage with the ability to cancel out magic. Truly fascinating. However, is that the only basis for admission into Prestige Academy? I'm quite sure magic itself isn't the only thing that takes central stage, if my memory serves me correctly."
Jung Seoyeon smiled. "It isn't, headmaster. We also take into consideration their teamwork, calmness in the face of danger, drive, and Dungeon clearance time."
Headmaster Im Ilseong nodded. "And how do you think party thirty did in all these?" He knew how they did, he had watched the display; however, he was interested in knowing what the professor who had been in charge of this year's exam thought, and based on her words, he would make his decisions.
"They ranked first in the Dungeon clearance time, with fifty minutes out of the one hour allocated. Their teamwork was also one of the best witnessed amongst this year's examinees, if not the best. And their calmness in the face of danger was notable, though at the start it was a bit iffy. They did not for once consider leaving the Dungeon too, despite all the traps, so I must say that their drive is on point. I say they scored top marks in all aspects."
"And individually?"
Jung Seoyeon pressed the display screen's remote, bringing the face of a young girl with black hair and blue eyes onto the screen.
"Nora Tyrrell. Scored ninety-six percent, the highest, in the theory exam. An A-Class Mage. And from what we witnessed during the Dungeon clearance, already up to Novice Tier II, and can channel her mana outwards onto a foreign object or another person."
"She's shortlisted already, isn't she?" Headmaster Im Ilseong asked.
"Certainly," replied Jung Seoyeon, nudging at her rectangular glasses. The headmaster nodded and she went on, switching from Nora Tyrrell's image to that of a dark skinned boy with a taper-fade cut. "Anozie Chima Ken. He's an A-Class Mage as well. Can cast up to two spells, though at Novice, Tier I. Scored eighty-five percent in the theory exam. And in the Dungeon clearance took the vanguard for his team, showing his grit and resilience in the face of danger."
Headmaster Im Ilseong nodded. "Shortlist him."
"Already did." Jung Seoyeon switched the image from Chima Ken to that of a smiling girl with short black hair and cerulean eyes. "Kim Minji. Scored eighty percent in the theory exam, a C-Class Mage at Novice, Tier I, and can cast a single spell. Took on a support role for her party during the Dungeon clearance, and even though she had nothing notable going for her, she did her job well."
Headmaster Im Ilseong hesitated, staring intently at the display of the girl on the screen. "How many parties passed the Dungeon Clearance?"
"Sixty," replied Jung Seoyeon.
Headmaster Im Ilseong bobbed his head up and down briefly. "Did you shortlist her?"
"No, headmaster," said Jung Seoyeon.
"Keep her aside for now. If the shortlist isn't filled up by the time we're done, then we will consider her."
"Understood." Jung Seoyeon tapped on the remote and the display shifted to the one who had brought about the heated discussion a moment ago, a boy with brown hair and eyes that looked the most mundane she had ever seen. "Merlin Tyrrell, twin brother of Nora Tyrrell. Deficient Mage. Scored sixty-five percent in the theory exam, just barely passing the sixty-percent average score." Dmitri Volkov scoffed at that moment, deciding in his mind that the boy would never be admitted with such an atrocious score. Jung Seoyeon went on, unbothered. "Took the role of leader during the Dungeon clearance, figured out where all the traps of the Dungeon were located, created the plan to defeat the Necromancer, and dealt the final blow himself. And, as we all know, seems to have the ability to nullify magic."
Headmaster Im Ilseong fell into his thoughts for a good minute. "How did he manage to figure out all the traps in the Dungeon if he scored so low in theory? For someone who claimed to have studied Dungeons, wasn't fifty percent of the questions set on Dungeons?"
"That's right," Jung Seoyeon replied.
"Hmmm… Is he not good at exams but better at practicals, that sort of thing? This is a tricky one."
Dmitri Volkov frowned. "It really isn't, headmaster. We have to report this to the Consortium."
"Oh, I definitely will. What is tricky is whether we should offer him admission or not."
Dmitri Volkov looked as though he had just heard tragic news concerning a family member of his.
"You can't really be considering it, headmaster," said Dmitri Volkov.
"I am. We both watched the same display, right, and heard Ms. Jung Seoyeon's words? Without him, their party most definitely wouldn't have cleared the Dungeon the fastest, if they even would have at all. It was him who got them through the traps, made up the plans, and defeated the Necromancer. If anything, he definitely knows his stuff, Deficient Mage and anti-magic aside. This is also the first time we've had a Deficient Mage take the exam in eight years, and, most of all, succeed in getting through the Dungeon raid. Furthermore, Dr. Elias Namgoong is right. The cataclysm is bound by the laws of magic. If this boy really is an anomaly to that law, then he will only be of use to us—economically as well. He's a special case."
"Headmaster!"
"I'll contact Kim Hyeonki and tell him of the boy's existence," Headmaster Im Ilseong said, then turned to Jung Seoyeon pushing Dmitri Volkov's protests aside. "Shortlist him."