NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 8 Part 2
New Year’s Eve—the day of the Grand Magic Ceremony—had finally arrived.
After seeing my master off early in the morning as she left for the event, I rubbed my sleepy eyes and watched as Inori groggily emerged from her room.
“Mornin’.”
“Mmm… I slept well. That bed’s actually pretty comfortable.”
“Well, I take good care of it every day, after all. I’ll make some tea now.”
“Oh, do you have coffee instead? I can’t seem to wake up without caffeine in the morning.”
“Sure thing.”
As I gave a half-hearted reply and switched on the TV, I saw my master on the news.
The topic was none other than the Grand Magic Ceremony.
Curious, I flipped through a few channels—only to find that every single one was covering the event.
“Wow, it’s all about the ceremony. Even though it’s New Year’s Eve.”
“Of course. It’s a massive event that gathers magic users from all over the world. Honestly, I don’t know how you, a witch, could be so clueless about it.”
“This is insane… It’s almost like the Olympics. But still, holding it only once every twenty years? That’s a crazy long gap.”
“There are plenty of smaller conferences and research presentations happening all the time, but the Grand Magic Ceremony is in a league of its own. There’s a reason it’s only held once every twenty years.”
“A reason?”
“You’ll understand once you get there.”
“Huh…?”
Her words piqued my curiosity, but it seemed she had no intention of explaining further.
Seeing no other choice, I focused on finishing my breakfast—until the sudden chime of the doorbell echoed through the house.
“Who could that be? This early in the morning?”
“Ah, right on time. Meg, could you get that?”
“Roger that, fried rice.”
Throwing out a random response, I opened the door—only to freeze in shock.
Standing there was none other than Sophie Hayter, one of the Seven Sages, known as the “Witch of Blessings.”
“Sophie?!”
“It’s been a while.”
“Since the Otherworld Festival, right?! How’ve you been?”
“Well enough.”
She answered my question in her usual composed tone.
Something about that made me unexpectedly happy, and a smile naturally crept onto my face.
“What brings you here? Work?”
“Today is a special day for witches. There’s no way I’d miss it.”
“Wait… you’re coming to the ceremony too?”
“I invited her.”
Before I knew it, Inori had appeared behind me.
She greeted Sophie casually with a simple, “Yo.”
“It’s been a while, Inori.”
“Since the last Sages’ Council meeting, huh? Glad you could make it.”
Two of the Seven Sages, right here in my tiny, rundown house.
Thinking about it rationally, this was an absurd situation.
There were only seven of these legendary witches in the entire world, and now two of them were gathered in this remote corner of nowhere.
…This had to be thanks to my incredible charisma as the future hope of the magic world.
“Ahh, what a burden it is to be so popular! Hahahaha!”
“What are you laughing about by yourself? You’re creeping me out.”
“Zuberi has lost her mind.”
“She always has.”
“Wow, you ladies sure don’t hold back.”
After finishing our preparations, the three of us—Inori, Sophie, and I—gathered outside the house, ready to head to the ceremony.
But for some reason, Inori was wearing ridiculously light clothing for the season.
“Uh, Inori-san? If you dress like that in this weather, won’t you, like… die? Not to be rude, but it kinda looks like you’re trying way too hard to look young.”
“I’ll kill you.”
She glared at me before sighing. “I’ll be fine. Our travel will only take a moment.”
“A moment? I thought we were flying on brooms?”
“Idiot. If we flew on brooms in this freezing weather, we’d get frostbite.”
“Then how are we getting there…?”
Unlike the others, I couldn’t teleport like my master.
As I frowned, wondering how we’d travel, Sophie took a step forward.
“That’s why I’m here.”
She pointed at the ground, and I followed her gaze.
At some point, a magic circle had formed beneath her feet.
It was rare to see Sophie, who usually traced her magic circles in the air, draw one directly on the ground like this.
“What’s this?”
“A teleportation spell. We’ll transfer to another magic circle set up at the ceremony venue.”
“They have those?”
“It’s an advanced spell, but Sophie’s an expert in magic circles. That’s why I asked her to be our ride.”
“Magic circles are an extension of phenomenon-based magic. If you study them, you naturally learn to use them.”
“Huh. Must be nice to be a genius.”
Sophie, radiating sheer talent with every word, calmly infused the magic circle with her energy.
“Step onto it.”
“O-okay…”
I hesitated for a second and glanced at Inori, who simply gave me a reassuring smile and a nod.
Taking a deep breath, I stepped onto the circle.
Right after me, my white owl familiar, my Carbuncle, Inori, and Sophie all moved into position as well.
“Here we go.”
“Wait, already?! Hold on a sec—”
Before I could finish, Sophie snapped her fingers.
And in an instant—
The world changed.
A blink. Not even a second.
Within that fleeting moment, my entire view transformed.
It felt like being transported to another world.
“We’ve arrived.”
“That was so fast!!”
Still recovering from the sudden shift, I turned to take in my surroundings—
And was left speechless.
Because the scene before me was simply breathtaking.
The sky, which had been a bright blue just moments ago, had turned into a deep night, dotted with shimmering stars.
Stalls lined the streets, fireworks burst overhead, and dazzling decorations adorned every corner.
A lively crowd filled the space, laughter and music blending into the vibrant atmosphere.
This—
This was the Grand Magic Ceremony.