Throne of Magical Arcana

In the morning, the brilliant yet not scorching sun illuminated Donnie’s dormitory through the window, covering everything with gold.

Donnie was pacing back and forth with a pair of panda eyes. It seemed that he did not sleep at all last night.

Today was the day that the result of the College Entrance Exam of Advanced Magic would be announced. Even though he was quite confident about his performance, he was still ill at ease and could not go to sleep because there would be no way out for him if he failed.

“It’s alright. I’ve done the theoretical tests, the practical tests, and the additional tests well, unless all the distinguished apprentices applied for the Heidler Magic College this year…” Donnie comforted himself in a low voice.

At this moment, the bell rang with a pleasant voice. Donnie came to an abrupt halt and hurried to turn on the home TV embedded on the wall. He saw that the snowflake-like spots spread out ripples on the screen. Gradually, a beautiful elf with pointy ears showed up.

“Welcome to ‘Morning, Nature’. I believe you must be running out of patience. Hehe. I have in my hands the list of students admitted by the major magic colleges.” The elf on the TV waved the paper before her. It was covered in a red band with a magic seal.

It was the school channel of “Nature’s Heart School”. There was a one-hour program in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening. They mostly reported the major events in school or “shared” the bad or hilarious mistakes that the apprentices made.

Looking at the paper that was unbelievably thick, Donnie felt that his heart was beating faster and faster. Even though he was holding his breath, he could still sense its pounding.

The elf dropped the paper and smiled. “Our apprentices have performed well this year. The ratio of admittance is higher than before. But of course, somebody must be very close to success too. However, those people need not be upset. You can choose to go to the Stroop Forest and learn after the druids. After the arcanists’ years of work, the magic apprentices can be transformed into ‘Nature’s Guards’ or druid apprentices easily…”

Donnie felt that his veins were bulging. The most important thing right now was to announce the list. Why was she talking so much? To make everybody more anxious and uneasy?

Thankfully, the elven lady quickly removed the seal without further ado. She broke the band and unfolded the paper. “Now, I will announce the students admitted by the Holt Magic College. The apprentices whose names are on the list should go to the president’s office after nine to get your notice of enrollment and your rewards.”

Right now, there were only nine magic colleges, but there were almost four hundred magic schools worldwide. It was a glorious thing for both the apprentice and the school to be admitted. That was why the president of the magic school was giving the notices of enrollment in person. As long as the apprentices who were admitted by the magic colleges did not slack off and give up, they all had good chances to become official sorcerers.

“The Holt Magic College…” The more Donnie listened, the more anxious he became. The names that he was very familiar with made him feel even worse. As it happened, the elven anchor did not announce the list of the students admitted by the Heidler Magic College until the end.

Donnie held his breath and put his right hand on his left chest again, sensing the intense fluctuations that almost broke out of his chest.

“Gordian… Caroline… David…” The elven anchor read the names that Donnie was very familiar with. Right when he almost couldn’t handle his heartbeat and the terrible pressure anymore, the word “Donnie” finally came out of the loudspeaker of the home TV. It was so pleasant!

As if struck by lightning, Donnie felt numb and rigid. Then, he waved his arms hard, but his body collapsed without any strength.

He finally made it!

His life, as well as the lives of his family members, would be changed from today!

……

Inside the Knowledge Bookstore, Dollos looked at Donnie who had come late and observed the lingering excitement on his face. He smiled. “You’ve been admitted?”

“Yes, by the Heidler Magic College, on the studies of body structure and genetics.” Donnie smiled brilliantly at whomever he met today.

As the studies in the microscopic domain went deeper and more detailed, as the models on the nature of the world and magic were basically established, and as the influences spread out to all the major fields, the arcanists had discovered that the knowledge was too enormous for them to learn. They could not study the basics of every school before they chose their favorite field like before. They had to specify the direction that they would like to work on in order to build the foundation well. Those who were not geniuses could hardly learn anything more than the fundamental knowledge of their own fields.

Of course, after they became middle-rank or senior-rank sorcerers and their longevity was extended, the arcanists still had to go back and study the basics of astrology, elements, and necromancy because astrology involved prophecy and fate, and the microscopic domain in the school of elements reflected the essence of the world. If they did not know it at all, their future studies might be greatly affected.

The school of necromancy, on the other hand, was a necessity for life extension. They did not have to learn it well, but they had to grasp the basics.

Dollos nodded his head and closed the book before him. “Congratulations, Donnie. I hope that you will make remarkable achievements in the school of necromancy.”

“Thank you, Mr. Dollos,” Dollos replied with a smile.

Dollos looked around, and seeing that there was no guest at this moment, he said, “Donnie, the three greatest problems in necromancy that need addressing are the model of the soul structure, the model of genetic factors, and the real mechanism of the ‘Original Body’. If you can unveil the mysteries of genetics, you will definitely win an Evans Prize in Arcana and the Prize of Immortal Throne, and you may become a grand arcanist and a legendary sorcerer in the future. That’s what you should work on.”

Donnie scratched his head and felt rather embarrassed upon hearing Dollos’ encouragement. “They are not something that I can take care of. I do not know the first thing about them. Well, are you aware of the Original Body?”

He keenly sensed the unusual term and asked rather curiously.

Dollos lowered his eyes and looked at the book before him. “Have you heard about the Original Body before? Even in the school of necromancy, there are few arcanists who understand it and study it. I only happen to know it because one of my old friends has been working on it.”

“I learned it from a fellow student during the College Entrance Exam…” Donnie suddenly felt that his question could be dangerous, but he had no choice except to answer it.

Dollos nodded and smiled. “Since you have heard it before, I can talk to you about the details. It’s from the ancient Meshkate Empire…”

He introduced the beginning and evolution of the Original Body. Donnie listened very attentively. Although Karl had introduced it to him before in a much more detailed way, he wasn’t in the mood to listen to it at all at that time.

“The Life Traceback ritual features slanted tombstones and coffins that only have clothes but not bodies… All the bodies are filled in the wood puppet buried at the center…” As he talked, Dollos suddenly sighed. “I’m told that the Cemetery of Eternal Sleep outside of the Heidler Magic College contains the secret. It’s a shame that I’m not qualified to visit the most mysterious and unique magic college…”

Was the secret hidden right outside of the Heidler Magic College?

Donnie looked forward to his college life even more now. If he could find some files and cracked some of the mysteries from the Cemetery of Eternal Sleep, it was possible that his capabilities would soar.

Dollos coughed. Not talking about the Original Body anymore, he simply introduced the school of necromancy in general and asked Donnie to go to work.

……

Wu!

Clang! Clang!

The long magic steam train stopped at a dark and gloomy station. Donnie got off the train eagerly with his old black suitcase.

“So, is this Heidler?” Donnie looked around excitedly and curiously. He saw that the sky was gray and lackluster as if it were frozen, and that a vague mist was everywhere. Far away, the high, spiky magic towers that were in pitch black indicated the city’s style that was different from any other cities on the continent.

As expected of the camp of necromancy… Donnie was not intimidated. Having braced himself for this, he felt that only such an appearance befitted Heidler’s fame.

It was the middle of August, and the sunlight was burning hot outside. However, there was nothing but paleness and heartfelt chill when the sunlight got into Heidler.

Donnie moved his eyes back and searched for the signs in the station. After he finished Dollos’ contract, there was no time for him to go home. After all, Heidler was the college whose semester began earliest.

“The freshmen of the magic college will gather in 152, Ghoul Street…” Donnie soon found the announcement and read the content on it.

“How to reach Ghoul Street?” Donnie frowned at the map of Heidler that he bought from a small dealer on the train. It was full of zigzagging and dizzying twists and turns.

Looking around, Donnie picked up his suitcase and walked to a worker who was busy cleaning the station. “Hello, could I ask you the way? I am a freshman at the Heidler Magic College.”

The cleaner suddenly raised his head, only to reveal his rotten face, dim bones, and the two deep black holes in his eye sockets. Donnie was so scared that he almost cried out loud.

Although he had dissected cadavers, summoned zombies, and crafted stitched bodies before, it was still a horrifying experience to run into a decayed corpse in the middle of a day without any warning.

The “cleaner” struggled to shake his head. He then lowered his head as he continued to clean the station.

So, this is Heidler… Donnie’s tone had changed greatly.

“Donnie!” A familiar voice came from far away. Donnie turned around in surprise, only to discover that somebody was waving his arms at the entrance of the state. The ghost on his back was also waving its fuzzy hands. It was Sammy.