"Lee Kiwook, wake up! We're going to be late for the entrance ceremony!"
Elarion bent over and grabbed Lee Kiwook's thin shoulders while shaking him with all his might.
A tuft of golden cowlick on top of his head swayed along with the intensity of the shaking, reflecting just how anxious he currently was.
But after only a few seconds of shaking, Elarion was already exhausted and collapsed right onto the edge of Lee Kiwook's bed.
He braced himself with both hands while gasping on breath on his equally thin knees and frowned at his utterly unresponsive roommate.
His eyes that was as blue and clear as the sky were filled with worry.
Why was this guy so carefree? One more year of repeating and he'd be expelled... Didn't he care at all about ending up as a commoner for the rest of his life?
Elarion thought of the vacant stares of the commoners on the street, those blank, aimless eyes and the predictable, stagnant futures they faced.
He couldn't help but shiver.
He had passed the entrance test for the Magic Academy as a commoner himself, so he understood better than anyone the malice this era directed at people like them.
The endless labor and the wages that was so meager that you couldn't even fill your belly.
The human rights and dignity that were practically nonexistent.
The only difference between a commoner and a slave was a missing contract.
That thought brought a trace of pity to Elarion's face.
He counted himself as one of the luckiest among commoners.
From an early age, he had tested positive for light magic aptitude and had followed the town priest, issuing divine teachings to fellow commoners.
Although it wasn't a luxurious life, compared to the misery he had witnessed among the lower class, it already felt like heaven.
So, when he received his admission letter at the age of sixteen, upon reaching adulthood, Elarion swore to the God of Light that he would devote himself to studying light magic.
If possible, he wanted to become a highly respected Arch Bishop someday, helping the commoners escape their lives of filth and suffering…
Elarion became lost in the daydream of being surrounded by devoted followers, he letting out the occasional silly laugh.
His cowlick trembled along with his chuckles.
He was the very image of a child blessed with extraordinary light magic talent, even his brain had seemingly been completely cleansed by the church.
Lee Kiwook awoke to that holy, brainwashing laughter.
He opened his eyes slowly a d his vacant gaze falling on the brown-gray stone ceiling above him.
There were no pristine white walls, no warm yellow ambient lights and no endlessly beeping heart monitors.
Ah, he was still in this world.
"Lee Kiwook! You're finally awake! Hurry up, hurry! We're going to be late!" Elarion snapped out of his fantasy and rushed to Lee Kiwook's side, nagging nonstop.
"Elarion? I'm sorry I overslept… Go on ahead, I'll catch up after I get ready," Lee Kiwook closed his eyes again for a moment.