The day after Mordred's 5th birthday, Sofia took Mordred outside the palace for an outdoor lesson for the first time.
That day Mordred was taking a trip to finally learn Saint-ranked Magic!
When going out the palace's knight immediately offered to escort Sofia, but she refused them away. Only Julius accompanied the two of them in the name of being their bodyguard.
After leaving the palace, the trio rode horses through the capital.
Riding the same horse as Julius, Mordred admired the sights of the fantasy city he reincarnated in, seeing it directly for the first time.
The roads were very broad and the ground was paved everywhere, hard and clean. The walls of the palace were extremely tall and thick. They were even and strong, looking like they were made using Earth Magic just like the roads.
The long walls of the city itself in the distance also looked extravagantly large.
Merchants hawked their wares on the busy street and the buildings of the initial district outside the palace displayed wealth and prosperity.
This was the city of Wyvern, the capital of the Kingdragon Kingdom!
In the entire Central Continent only Asura Kingdom's Capital City of Ars might rival it in splendor, size and wealth.
Kingdragon Kingdom's true territory might only amount to ⅓ of the entire Asura Kingdom, but it was the most fertile land of the southern region and they also controlled four vassal states, including the Kingdom of Shirone, Kikka and Sanakia.
Their lands began at the furthest southern point of the continent, which started with a port connected to the Milis Continent, and ran along the narrow path leading to the more central lands and the north.
Apart from the Kingdragon Kingdom, in the southern region there were only small kingdoms, making them the overlord of a huge area.
Being situated at the very south of the continent, the capital city had a very warm climate which wasn't too dry during summer like the north-eastern vassal states like Shirone.
Mordred had never been there, but he could compare it to Florida; he liked the weather here very much.
As for the city itself, Wyvern was a very medieval-looking city in Mordred's eyes, one that was a picture of a typical medieval city in a western fantasy RPG, with a very western-type housing and culture.
Crossing the entire city on horseback took the group half an hour. After leaving the city proper, they then traveled through the suburbs and soon left the city.
Although Wyvern was said to be one of the three great cities of the world, alongside Ars and Milis, Mordred was left with feelings that it was quite small to have this title. It was likely because the current population of this world appeared to be simply too low compared to Earth's, so there was no point in building huge cities.
The entire Kingdragon Realm itself was expansive, but it only covered a small fraction of the southern region. The majority of the region were mountain ranges or dense forests filled with monsters. Even in the case of the Kingdragon Kingdoms, most of the land consisted of empty plains, forests, rivers and lakes, with some towns and villages sprinkled here and there.
So while the total landmass of that world seemed to be no smaller than Earth's, practically the world felt somewhat small because of the low population.
Leaving Wyvern completely, Mordred's group traveled north for a few more hours until they reached an empty and deserted plain that Sofia was satisfied with.
"This place will do," said Sofia. "We'll start with Water Magic and Cumulonimbus. You've learned the chant, right, boy?"
"Yes, I already memorized it."
Mordred already fully memorized the Incantations for all the Saint-ranked Magic spells that he could read up on.
Whether it was thanks to his brain being filled with huge amounts of Mana from the time he came out of the womb or thanks to his young age, he had a nearly photographic memory. As long as he put in enough effort, he could perfectly memorize information like this and not forget it.
Cumulonimbus is a spell that creates rain clouds with violent rain and frequent lightning strikes. He remembered that it was also the first Saint-ranked spell that Rudeus had learned and the only Saint-ranked spell Roxy had known in the beginning.
Thinking about it, Mordred recalled that at this time Rudues would be 3 years old; that's because Morgan told Mordred that he'd be 2 years older. It was just the time when Roxy would first begin teaching Rudeus Magic.
"Then go ahead, give it a try. But first we need to set up something to attract lightning, just in case."
Mordred silently watched as Sofia used the spell Earth Lance to create a several meters tall stone column next to them.
Sofia explained, "Lightning tends to strike objects closest to the clouds, like the trees or tall buildings. If there are no trees and it's an open plain, it would strike people instead."
"Ooh." Mordred was enlightened. Although he already knew about it, he just didn't think of a lightning rod being needed here.
He suddenly recalled the scene of a lightning strike from Roxy's Cumulonimbus striking Paul's poor horse after she had bound it to a tree. Trees attract lightning, but as long as a person stood right next to one they could receive a collateral shock. It's called flashover.
In essence, if you're not careful when casting Cumulonimbus, you might just accidentally kill yourself!
Sofia and Mordred moved slightly away from the Earth Lance while Julius did the same while handling the horses.
Mordred raised the Ashen Sage to the clouds and recited in one go: "Grand spirit of water and imperial prince of lightning who ascends the heavens, grant my wish and bring about a savage blessing… Display your might to insignificant beings. Strike awe with a blow of your divine hammer on the anvil, and cover the land in water! Ah, Rain! Sweep all else away and expel everything! Cumulonimbus!"
Throughout the chant, Magic Power surged out from his staff and traveled high up to the sky.
When the chanting ended, the surroundings immediately turned dark.
A few seconds later extremely heavy rain poured down from the sky.
Violent winds sprung up around Mordred, blowing his robes everywhere and nearly blowing him off his feet. He had to also quickly press down on his head with his free hand to not lose his hat.
Meanwhile in the sky, electric currents appeared in the midst of the dark clouds, running through the clouds and causing loud booms.
The electricity brewing in the clouds gradually grew stronger.
Bang!
A lightning strike suddenly shot down, striking the middle of the plains a good distance away with a loud sound.
'So after casting it I can direct most of the lightning where I want it, good!' Mordred thought.
Through the rain, Sofia shouted out: "Good! Now maintain it for ten minutes!"
Mordred heard it as he held his staff raised into the sky. Maintain it for ten minutes? Not a problem, but there was something else that he wanted to try.
He wanted to try using the same trick as Rudeus to make the spell maintain itself. Originally he didn't have full confidence in it because he only had shallow knowledge of clouds' formation like most people, but after casting Cumulonimbus he gained an understanding how it works - he only needed to make it so that the spell would keep on going by itself.
'I need warm air at the bottom and ensure the upper section is quickly cooled down…'
He utilized the spell's design to make it happen, strengthening certain parts enough to create a tornado.
When he tried to do this modification, a noticeable portion of his Mana was actually used up. Mordred didn't care.
'Good. It seems the storm holds itself together now!'
He observed what was happening and soon stopped pouring his Magic Power into his spell.
He did it!
Leaving the clouds to brew by themselves, he lowered his staff and looked at Sofia.
Sofia frowned. "What are you doing, boy? Maintain the spell, or it will collapse!"
"I made it so I don't need to maintain it," said Mordred.
"What?... Eh, what?" Looking up at the sky, Sofia seemed to have noticed something. She rubbed her eyes, then muttered, "You made a tornado bring the clouds upwards… And the spell maintains itself!"
The skies were filled with ever-growing clouds, not showing any signs of calming down.
Bang!
With a bright flash and a crashing sound, another lightning strike descended somewhere not far away.
Sofia looked at Mordred with disbelief. "You modified the Saint rank Cumulonimbus on your first attempt. Boy, did I still underestimate you?"
Julius was also shocked. He already expected Mordred to succeed in casting Saint ranked Magic, which would be a shocking accomplishment at 5 years old, but now he also felt that he might have underestimated the 16th Prince.
Effortlessly modifying a Saint ranked spell, this boy was simply an incarnation of the God of Magic! In regards to Magic, was there anything he couldn't accomplish?
Mordred didn't say anything.
Sofia said, "Now then, Cumulonimbus is used to call down clouds and rain, but if you reverse it, it can also be used to disperse naturally formed clouds and rain. I've done it once during a major flood. There might not be another Water Magician in this world who could also pull it off. Use Cumulonimbus to… Actually, nevermind, I'm sure you'll be able to do it. Disperse the tornado you just made and cast Tornado instead!"
There was only one Saint ranked spell for Water Magic - Cumulonimbus.
Tornado was a Saint ranked spell of Wind Magic. Its use was to create a tornado that can alter the weather by moving the clouds.
Mordred reversed what he did earlier and dispersed the tornado he created earlier.
The thunderstorm stopped brewing, but the dark clouds still remained and rain continued to fall from the sky.
Mordred then chanted the Incantation for Saint rank Tornado.
He had already created a tornado earlier, so casting this spell was easy.
Spiraling violent wind shot out from in front of his staff, forming a tornado which continuously grew in size and pierced into the clouds.
As he maintained this tornado and continued pouring his Mana into it, the dark clouds were soon chased away.
Unfortunately, it seemed that because of the way this spell worked, it could only be used to change the weather. It had no combat applications because it had to be aimed at the sky to take effect.
Following that, Mordred learned the other Saint-ranked spells of Attack Magic.
For Wind Magic there was one more Saint ranked spell - Violent Storm, which released a strong blast of wind over a wide area.
For Earth Magic, he learned the spell Sand Storm, which conjures a fierce torrent of sand and wind blanketing a wide area.
And finally for Fire Magic, there was Flash Over, a spell that rapidly spreads flames over a wide area.
In a matter of minutes, Mordred became a Saint ranked Magician in all four attack Magic types!
When it came to King-ranked Magic, Mordred believed that he could also learn it that day, but he simply didn't push for it and he might not have enough remaining Magic Power. Learning King-ranked Magic would not help him in anything and would only be pointless vanity.
In fact, if he wanted fame, it would be counterproductive. There is a limit to how monstrous his talent at Magic can be in the public's eyes, and if it gets too ridiculous, people would stop believing the rumors completely. A 5-year old Saint ranked Magician in all four Attack schools was ridiculous enough to make people doubt the truth.
After Mordred cast each of the Saint ranked spells once, the entire area was already in ruins. He took this chance to repeat the spells and attempt learning to do them silently.
To just trigger the spell briefly, relying on a staff, it didn't require as much energy.
As he cast the Saint ranked spells a few more times, Sofia and Julius watched this scene with listless expressions. What the hell was that? Casting all Saint ranked Magic spells in one go was not enough? He still had enough juice to keep on going?!
Although Mordred did not maintain the spells and only cast them briefly, it was still something ridiculous. It was as if he might be able to cast King ranked magic already!
Both Magicians felt as if they had lived a dog's life until now!
Near the end of the trip, Julius was more than fully convinced of his earlier decision. He addressed Mordred, saying, "Your Highness… In truth, there's something that I wanted to tell you for a while now."
Mordred looked at Julius. Looking at his expression, he began to have a premonition. It wasn't going to be a confession, was it? He tried to conceal an amused smile as he seriously said, "Mr. Julius… I'm not interested in men."
"... What?" Julius was stunned.
Sofia snorted and started laughing.
Julius frowned and ignored it. He collected himself and said, "Your Highness, it's something serious, at least for me. The truth is that for a while now I felt that you should aim to compete for the position of the Crown Prince! Although you don't have the succession rights, I doubt it would be difficult for you to gain the King's favor with your accomplishments. I think you're the most suitable person to become the future king, bare none!"
Julius said what had been weighing on his heart for a long time. Mordred had to compete for the position of the Crown Prince and then for the throne! Otherwise, if he only focused on researching Magic in his tower like Sofia, it would just be too much of a waste!
The 16 Prince had all the qualities of a great ruler. With his intellect and unparalleled talent at Magic, he could bring the Kingdragon Kingdom into a new golden era!
It was especially true because Magical research was currently the central focus of the kingdom. With a competent leader, the Kingdragon Kingdom might achieve hegemony over the Central Continent!
Not only this, but the Prince also had good morals and was not rotten and arrogant like other high-born noble children. He would be a capable and just king.
At the side, Sofia stayed silent, as if she had already expected this.
Mordred also saw it coming and didn't say anything. Trying to become the king? Not any time soon, but in the future a level of authority would certainly make accomplishing many things easier.
Once his strength reached a certain level, what would come next would be magical research; that's how he imagined his own future. Having many other people doing that for him would be ideal.
And in truth, ever since Mordred reincarnated, a wish began to bloom in his heart to create his own nation in this backwards world – a great eternal empire that would revolutionize many fields and bring this world into a new area!
At that moment, Julius Frostguard knelt down before Mordred.
Mordred raised his eyebrows. The first knight for his Round Table, was it? Bedivere?
"I wish to become Your Highness's Guardian Knight from now on, if you'll choose me. My talent in Magic might be lacking, but you'll still find a use for me," said Julius .
Looking at the kneeling Julius, Mordred said after a while, "I can't pay you."
"That's fine. I'm not taking up this job for money."
Next, Mordred wanted to say a line from a game he played before, saying directly: I'll use you as a human shield. But he felt it would be too much even as a joke.
After being silent for a while as if contemplating, Mordred said, "Alright. I'll compete for the throne in the future. I feel there are many things I could accomplish if I became the king. But I don't want to get involved in politics until I become an adult."
"... I understand. If that's what's required, I'll wait and support Your Highness until then!"
Becoming an adult meant Mordred passing his 15th birthday, which would happen in 10 years from now. It was a reasonable period of time to allow him to mature. Julius could accept that much.
But what he had no idea about was that 10 years from now it would be a completely different world for Mordred as he became entangled with people like Rudeus, Hitogami and Orsted, all the while Mordred already planned to leave the palace when he's still just 8 years old…