#1286 Junior’s Adventure – The Institution that Governs Magic 

“The Royal Capital’s Magic Academy was only built a few years ago. Before that, the idea of teaching magic wasn’t even a thing.” 
“What?! Really?! I thought it had been around forever!” 

To learn about the Magic Academy, I was first given an explanation starting from its very origins. 

“Basically, humans only recently learned how to use magic. Was it ten years ago? Anything over a decade ago feels like ancient history from our point of view, but if you compare that to the thousands of years humans spent unable to use magic, then yeah, it’s pretty recent.” 
“For me, even last year feels like ancient history.” 
“That just means you’re either forgetful or young.” 

I’ve heard about that before too. 

But in that case, the kind of magic humans couldn’t use before must’ve been the kind demons use, right? 

“Huh? Really?” 

Even Shaldot didn’t know that. 
...I guess I’ll have to fill them in myself. 

There are three main branches of magic in this world: 

Alchemy, thaumaturgy, and pharmacology.  

There are also rare types like Nature Magic used by elves, Dragon Magic used by dragons, and solmization magic forbidden by the gods, but we can skip those for now. 
Magical Pharmacology, mainly practiced by merfolk, is a well-established field with its own traditions, but since we’re talking about the land, not the sea, we’ll leave that out too. 

The big players here are alchemy, used by demons, and thaumaturgy, used by humans. 
Some people even say that the two together make up what we call “magic.” 

“O-Oh...!” 
“Junyaa sounds like an actual teacher…!” 

They’re both totally overwhelmed by the information dump?! 
But I’ve started explaining—there’s no turning back now! 

The magic that humans couldn’t use until recently was alchemy. 
It’s the kind that calls upon gods or spirits for aid to produce mysterious effects. 

Alchemy belongs to demons. 
They’re the children of the earth gods... A.K.A. the underworld deities, so they have an easier time communicating with spirits. 

That’s why other races like humans couldn’t use it. 
And that went on for thousands of years. 

“So humans couldn’t connect with spirits? But why? Aren’t we all living on the same land?” 

Humans are descendants of the celestial gods. 
Those gods created and sent humans down to earth to take the land from the underworld gods. 
From the earth’s point of view, humans were invaders, so it’s no wonder they couldn’t communicate with spirits. 

“We were invaders…?!” 

Shaldot’s face twists in disbelief. 

Of course, that has nothing to do with modern humans. 
The great Human-Demon War also started because of the gods’ schemes, but that ended more than ten years ago. 

The celestial gods’ ambitions were crushed, and their leader, Zeus, was sealed away. 
Because of that, humans were finally freed from divine manipulation and could live on their own. 

“Wait, what?! Zeus was sealed?!” 

You didn’t know? 
It’s kind of common knowledge back on the farm. Maybe it was supposed to be classified? 
Eh, whatever. 

Anyway, after that, relations between humans and demons started to improve. 
And as part of that peace, the gods said, “Sure, humans can now use alchemy too.” 

Thus, humans finally got permission to use it. 

“So magic was on a permit system…” 
“And this all loops back around, huh? You start talking about gods and wars, and suddenly it all connects again. I didn’t think the story was gonna get this big!” 

Sorry for the detour…! 
But you’ve gotta start from the beginning if you want the whole picture! 

According to the gods: 
“Humans are part of the world now. Let’s tear down those old barriers.” 

They even allowed cross-species marriages, humans with demons, merfolk, and so on. So, yeah, they probably realized they’d need to loosen up the magic restrictions too. 

“Wow… the gods actually think about stuff like that…?!” 

That's why human alchemy is still a baby compared to the demons’. 
They’ve been at it way longer, so they’re much more experienced. 

And the Magic Academy we’re talking about is the place that teaches alchemy. 
If the “recently usable” magic they mentioned refers to that, then it’s clearly not about thaumaturgy, the one humans originally used. 

“Okay, sensei, a question!” 

Hibina raises her hand like a student. 
This is turning into a full-on class. 
And please don’t call me “sensei.” In this world, that title belongs to one person only! 

“So what is that thaumaturgy thing anyway? I’ve never heard of it!” 
“Yeah, same! I thought humans couldn’t use any kind of magic before!” 

That’s understandable. 
Thaumaturgy magic was a forbidden gift from the celestial gods to humans. 
It drew upon the mana of the land to power enormous spells. 

Things like Hero Summoning and Divine Barriers came from it. 

But thaumaturgy had a major flaw: it drained the earth’s mana, stealing its life force and leaving the land barren. 
That’s why, during the war, the Human Kingdom constantly plagued by famine and poverty. 

After the war ended, the situation finally began to improve. 
That was before I was born. 

“What?! Then thaumaturgy’s a bad kind of magic!” 

Pretty much. 
The celestial gods only gave it to humans to help them conquer the demons and claim the land. 
It was never meant for peaceful, everyday use. 

That’s why it’s barely known now and why it died out after the war. 

“Ugh, I’m exhausted. Dealing with loudmouths is tiring…” 

The Guildmaster returns, visibly worn out. 

“Welcome back, Guildmaster! What happened with those Magic Academy people?” 
“Worried about my work? No need. I sent them packing. You think a bunch of flunkies could out-argue me?” 

Of course he handled it perfectly. He always does. 

“So what’ve you three been up to? Did you explain the Academy stuff to Junior?” 
“Actually, it was the other way around, he gave us a whole lecture on magic! It was surprisingly interesting!” 
“Oh? Now I’m curious.” 

Right, the Magic Academy. 
We kind of got lost in the history lesson there. 

The Guildmaster gives a resigned sigh before continuing. 

“The Magic Academy was founded to teach and spread magic among humans. Most of its teachers are demon mages sent from the Demon Kingdom. Graduating gives you status, so it’s popular among the nobility.” 

I see. 
Given that alchemy came from the demons, that makes sense. 

“But their behavior’s been getting suspicious lately. They’ve been pushing this ‘magic-users are superior’ nonsense, trying to boost their own influence. It’s all emotional.” 
“Oh, I know! They act like ‘If you’re not a mage, you’re not even human!’ It’s so annoying!” 

Apparently, Hibina’s had some personal experience with that. 

“Exactly. They’ve even started pressuring the Adventurer’s Guild, saying things like magic is essential for every adventurer. Some even claim we should require Academy training for guild membership.” 
“What?! That’s ridiculous!” 

Hibina explodes in outrage. 

Making every adventurer attend the Magic Academy? 
What’s the point of that? 

“It’s all about power. They want control over the Adventurer’s Guild.” 
“The Guild operates worldwide. If they can tie magic education directly to adventuring, the Academy gains massive influence and profit. They want a piece of that pie.” 

The Guildmaster’s voice turns grim. 

“Just recently, they even claimed that the Guildmaster must be a skilled mage and tried to replace me with one of their own graduates.” 
“What?! What did you do?!” 
“Knocked them flat, of course. Then told them, ‘With that level of power, you couldn’t lead a pack of chickens, let alone adventurers.’” 

Savage... 
But that’s what makes the Guildmaster so dependable, he backs up her authority with strength. 

“But the very fact that they made such a demand proves something. The Magic Academy sees the Adventurer’s Guild as a juicy pool of profit. And the trouble with people like that is they never give up until they get what they want.” 

Because they already know there’s something sweet waiting for them. 
Once they sink their teeth in, they’ll never let go. They’ll keep circling, trying every roundabout method they can think of until they finally reach their goal. 
A tenaciousness that would almost be admirable, if it weren’t so disgusting. 

“Actually, we’ve been seeing a few new adventurer applicants who happen to be Magic Academy graduates lately. If their numbers keep growing, it’s only a matter of time before they hold enough sway inside the Guild to start making decisions in the Academy’s favor.” 
“That’s terrible! We have to stop that before it’s too late!” 
“That’s why I’ve been sending those Academy types off to the mountains for ‘special training’ under the head instructor. Once she starts drilling them, there’s no end to the pain. Let’s see how many come back in one piece…” 

The head instructor... that would be the retired Golden Bat, wouldn’t it? 
Still, who would’ve thought the Adventurer’s Guild was on the verge of being infiltrated by such an unexpected threat? 

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ive fixed an error in c1283 that was made clear in this chapter. current members shouldve been notified by it