Chapter 18: Mischievous Housesprite
Inside a spacious yet somewhat dilapidated office, furnished only with old wooden furniture, a shelf of books, and a small pile of documents, a young man and a white-haired old man around the age of sixty sat face to face.
"I'm Erold, Greyfen Town's mayor. Nice to meet you, young wizard," greeted the mayor with a slight bow, which Hal unhesitatingly returned. "You... look younger than I expected. How old are you again?"
"I just turned eighteen, sir," Hal responded honestly.
Erold fell silent, then decided to confront the young man with his thoughts:
"I'm... gonna be honest. I didn't expect the academy to send us a new recruit. Are you sure you're up to the task, young wizard?"
Mana doesn't awaken in one's body until one turns eighteen, so the young man before him could only be someone from the same generation as the youngsters who had left Greyfen Town a few weeks ago.
Hal naturally understood the mayor's worries.
"Yes, Mayor Erold. The academy tested my capabilities before sending me. The mission was assigned under my name after I passed their assessment."
The old town leader fell silent once more, now gazing at Hal with renewed interest.
If what the young wizard said was true, then he could be looking at one of the most talented wizards, not only of this year's batch but possibly in the academy's history.
It wasn't easy—almost impossible, even—to be recognized as combat-capable by the academy after less than two weeks of training.