Prologue Story

When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was a room—or perhaps a living room—brightly and warmly decorated like sunshine.

One long wall was entirely made of glass, and beyond it stretched a golden terrace.

Sunlight poured in through the wide and tall glass windows.

In the spot where the sunlight shone down like a spotlight, there was a golden table and chairs.

A woman with an elegant aura was sitting at the table.

She was wearing a pink, vintage-style dress, the lace flowing in a way that wasn’t too childish.

Her hair, tied with a ribbon edged with lace, was brown and fell in graceful waves.

Her earrings dangled by her ears, making a faint metallic sound, and her haughty expression gave her an overall air of a noble young lady.

She cast a sharp and aloof gaze at me, casually scanning me up and down.

“Certainly, your magical presence is exceptional for someone your age.

That aside, you’re quite late. Did the chairman hold you up for a long time?”

The woman rose from her chair.

She stood a short distance from me and placed her hand over her chest.

“I suppose I should introduce myself first.

My name is Jung Min-ah.

I am an A-rank magician of Daehyun, serving as the association’s guide, or perhaps more specifically, the leader of the defense and communication team, as well as an advisor.

What is your name?”

At those words, I quickly erased my blank expression and bowed my head politely.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Yoo Eun-ha, a third-grader at Daehyun Elementary School.”

She gave a faint smile upon hearing my introduction.

“You’re quite different from the other children I’ve met so far.

You’re neither noisy nor arrogant, and you’re polite as well.

Take a seat here.”

She pointed to a spot at the edge of the desk.

I approached as quietly as I could and pulled out the chair to sit down.

She, too, sat back down across from me.

“Before we begin the lesson, I’d like to understand your magic in more detail.

I’ve heard a little about it in my capacity as a personal teacher, but because of the confidentiality policy, I couldn’t get the full picture.

Above all, when it comes to unique magic, hearing directly from the person is best.

Would that be alright?”

“…….”

“Although I’ve seen a bit of information in advance under my teaching credentials, the confidentiality policy applies strictly to us as well, so you don’t have to worry.

It’s a rather severe policy, actually.”

“…….”

I couldn’t immediately respond and nervously studied her.

Even though she was my teacher, it felt burdensome and uncomfortable to discuss my magic with someone I was meeting for the first time.

Gradually, her emotional flow seeped into my vision.

Lately, I had been focusing on the flow of magical energy tied to emotions, and I had started seeing the colors and streams of those emotions.

Of course, like any detection ability, there were limits when it came to sensing someone stronger than me.

Still, I decided to give it a try.

Her magic flowed calmly, without a trace of disturbance.

After a moment, I cautiously nodded my head.

“Let’s start with your Illusion Magic, then.”

I nodded again.

She flipped through some papers on the desk and picked up a pen.

“Do you have a specific goal in mind for your Illusion Magic?”

I nodded and carefully answered this time.

“Yes. Both in reality and in the mind.

In reality, I want to reach the level where illusions can be materialized…

And in the mind, hmm, maybe the ability to freely show dreams?”

“‘Dreams’ rather than the ‘mind’… not a bad direction.”

In fact, I had set another ultimate goal, but it felt so unrealistic and dangerous that I decided to keep my mouth shut about it.

She listened attentively and jotted something down on her paper.

Then, she raised her head again and looked at me.

“You do realize that pursuing both paths will be incredibly challenging?”

“Yes.”

“And yet, it’s what you want to do?”

“Yes.”

“Additionally… you’ve set your goal for illusions to be ‘materialization’ in reality…

In that case, ‘Realization Magic’ might actually suit you better.

Why did you choose Illusion Magic as your path?”

“Because I thought it aligned best with what I wanted to achieve.”

“And why is that?”

She persistently questioned my thoughts and reasoning, to an almost obsessive degree.

I convinced myself this was all part of the teaching process and slowly expressed my thoughts.

“I don’t want to ‘create’ something in reality, like how Realization Magic works.

What I want is to ‘show’ things.

If the goal is to show things, Realization Magic feels inefficient…

And to support that, I already have another magic that’s similar in nature to Realization Magic.”

“You mean ‘Written Magic.’”

“Yes.”

She nodded calmly.

“Then let’s move on to ‘Written Magic.’

What is your goal for that?”

“Hmm, Written Magic is…

It feels like it’s about ‘executing exactly what’s written,’ so…

Maybe something like Word Magic?”

“Word Magic…”

“Uh, yes. I don’t have a specific goal in mind, but…

I just hope what I write can come to life.

And… also…”

“Have you ever thought of a specific spell or use for your Written Magic?”

“Well… let’s say I write a book.

When you open that book, its contents come alive as illusions.

I’d like to try creating illusions like that.

I want to build my own world of stories, you could say.

And to support Illusion Magic, if I draw something, it can manifest…

Basically, I want to make everything I write come to life.”

“Word Magic and storytelling…”

Her previously emotionless eyes began to show interest as they curved into an intrigued gaze.

She smiled faintly and murmured.

Storytelling, huh, that might be accurate.

My magic is fundamentally connected to Word Magic and, more deeply, to my own ‘heart as a writer.’

“Recently… I’ve even tried using Written Magic to perform Spell Magic.

And for True Magic as well, by writing the spell’s name…

It’s a bit simpler than drawing diagrams, after all…”

“Not bad. It’s a magic with enormous potential.”

I agreed.

Illusion Magic, depending on the quality of the manifestation, had its own versatility, but Written Magic exceeded that.

Above all, it was rooted in Word Magic.

For someone like me, who wanted to achieve so much through magic, this level of flexibility was perfect.

“Finally, let’s talk about Barrier Magic…

What is your goal for that?”

I could answer with confidence this time.

“Space-time Magic.”

“Space-time Magic…”

Her expression turned serious.

“Explain it in more detail.”

“Um, so… by creating a barrier, I can control the space within it.

If I can manipulate the space contained in the barrier freely… then I should be able to control the time within it as well.

And there are also pathways.

You could call them gates that allow you to go anywhere.

So, the basic techniques of my Space-time Magic are these two:

First, a barrier that defines the boundaries or area of my magic.

Second, pathways—or gates—that allow me to freely travel through dimensional rifts or similar spaces.

I actually developed Barrier Magic with the intent of creating Space-time Magic from the very beginning.”

As I explained, I found myself growing serious without realizing it.

The goal of Barrier Magic isn’t to become Space-time Magic.

Rather, the first step to achieving Space-time Magic is creating a barrier.

Because the goal of this magic is so ambitious, its progress is slow.

Even so, I am improving step by step.

Now, the width of the gate has grown wide enough for a child to pass through.

Although the distance I can connect the pathways remains extremely short, it will improve with time.

I carefully observed the inside of the pathways I created, ensuring they were free of danger.

I also experimented a few times using my hand.

The pathways I create come in two types.

For example, doors and tunnels.

With the door-like pathway, the two gates are directly connected, so if you put your hand into one gate, it immediately comes out of the other.

With the tunnel-like pathway, you have to pass through a pitch-black space before emerging at the exit.

Both types were exactly as I had imagined them long ago.

When I finished speaking, she tapped the paper with her pen, her expression serious.

After a moment, she looked at me with a calm but piercing gaze.

“Do you realize how difficult these goals are to achieve?

From what I’ve heard so far, none of your magics are ordinary.”

“…”

I pressed my lips tightly together.

The nervousness that had vanished earlier suddenly gripped my chest again.

“The goal of your Illusion Magic is materialization and dream manipulation.

Your Written Magic starts from Word Magic and leads to storytelling.

And your Barrier Magic is essentially Space-time Magic…

I thought you were a very quiet and docile child, but I might have been mistaken.

So, how exactly do you plan to use these three magics together?”

Her eyes quietly burned with intensity.

Overwhelmed by her presence, I hesitantly began to explain the best combination I had come up with for those three magics.

“With a barrier… I’d create an area to use illusions…

And with written words… I’d add detailed settings to that barrier or illusion…”

The barrier would strengthen the area for illusions.

The written words would add intricate settings.

Hearing my explanation, she let out a small chuckle.

“So, you want to create your own world…

Using such a complicated method, but one that’s stronger and more perfect.

You remind me of a child who loves toys.

Wanting to play with an entire world as if it were your own…

Do you want to become a god or something?”

I closed my mouth.

A god… perhaps.

Writers all create their own worlds.

In that world, I was a god.

This magic, too, was ultimately designed to show others my stories.

In the end, I couldn’t escape the frame of ‘stories.’

As a writer, what I wanted to do was clear.

I wanted to show my stories… to as many people as possible.

I wanted someone to cry after reading my novel.

To laugh because of it.

I am the god of my stories.

That’s what it all comes down to.

But… had this been a cruel story to others?

Was it strange and self-centered?

For the first time, I wondered about such things.

No, maybe it wasn’t the first time.

At some point, I’d felt sorry for it, crying desperately at someone…

But who was that person?

A sharp static of fragmented memories blurred in my mind like noise.

My head throbbed.

My chest tightened.

Then, at that moment, she smiled.

“Haha… I’m not scolding you.

For magicians, their domain is very important.

I’m just impressed by your wisdom in choosing that domain.

If you want to do it, then do it.

Even if you can’t succeed, even if it’s nearly impossible, choosing and creating your magic is entirely up to you.

Your magic is quite interesting.

It’s a magic that will become your absolute ally.”

At her words, I lifted my head and widened my eyes.

The noise in my memory faded and disappeared.

Her smiling face filled my vision.

“And now I understand why I was chosen as your mentor.

Those people seemed unusually eager to recommend me.

After all, my magic is similar to yours.”

Those people? Similar?

Her words piqued my curiosity.

She smiled and introduced her magic.

“My magic is ‘Game’ Magic.”

“Game…?”

It sounded like a magic completely unrelated to her noble, elegant demeanor.

She continued her explanation.

“I’ve loved games ever since I was little.

So, I based my magic on games.

While this magic is very useful for creating games…

Its true power is displayed in the real world.

Of course, I mean in magical battles.”

“…”

“I am the Game Master.

And I can turn my surroundings into a ‘game world.’

In that world, all magic is quantified, transformed into skills, and becomes part of the game.

Although this only works within the limits of my magic power…

As the administrator, I hold the ultimate authority.

With administrator privileges, I can do anything I want.

See? It’s similar to yours, isn’t it?”

I was at a loss for words.

She was absolutely right.

“Within the game world, I become the game system itself.

And even that system can be created however I want.

Like you, my magic is about creating a world.

I never imagined I’d meet someone with magic so similar to mine.”

I felt the same way.

Beyond Word Magic, beyond Barrier Magic, I never imagined I’d meet someone with magic so similar to mine.

Game Magic.

From the name alone, I never would’ve guessed how similar her magic was to mine.

When you hear Game Magic, you’d usually think of magic that raises levels or stats.

But she was the Game Master.

And she was also the creator of the game.

The game world was essentially her world.

I wondered if she could even use typical game-like skills.

As my thoughts reached that point, I realized just how incredible her magic was.

In battle, it was a magic capable of decisively overwhelming her opponents.