The Nightmare Wizard
Chapter 118 — The First Legendary Mage J. Thompson

Chapter 118: Chapter 118 — The First Legendary Mage J. Thompson

The professor’s voice still echoed in William and Lia’s minds after discovering the true history of magic and the life of the first mage, Akeron.

"What you just heard isn’t just an ancient story... it’s the beginning of everything. Akeron was the first mage, yes, but also the first Mythic Mage."

William raised an eyebrow, intrigued, while Lia tilted her head before asking:

"Mythic level? I thought the highest level was calamity."

The professor smiled with a mix of compassion and superiority.

"That’s what the ignorant believe. Above the calamity level, there exists a plane that only a few in history have reached. Akeron was the first. A man who rose beyond conventional magic... a true Level 8 mage."

The professor walked slowly around the classroom, as if searching for the right words, her gaze fixed upwards as if she wanted to see through the ceiling.

"His power was so great that humans began to consider him their leader. Akeron not only survived the beasts but dominated them, traveling all over the world, hunting and subduing all human tribes. According to records, he created the first Empire that stretched across the entire world. For 500,000 years, he ruled with an iron fist. Throughout that time, his knowledge only extended to his descendants and his closest circle, strengthening only them, while humanity as a whole remained stagnant."

"Every great mage who came after him kept their best secrets for their lineage, creating powerful magical dynasties. United, humans exterminated almost all magical species in the world. The dominion was so absolute and devastating, giving way to what became known as the Era of Human Hegemony."

William and Lia remained silent, shocked. These revelations were impressive, showing the terrifying power humanity achieved under Akeron. As they both pondered all this, the teacher continued speaking.

"But like every empire in history, his also fell. With his death, the great magical houses took the opportunity to rebel. Akeron had too many children throughout that time, and each of them had many families backing them. All pretended to support an heir, declaring him the true ruler. Thousands of unrecognized children emerged from all corners of the world claiming to be Akeron’s favorite son."

"These internal struggles fractured the empire, which finally split. The world was divided into great family dynasties, but not everything was easy for them. Many houses that had been hidden, accumulating power, suddenly emerged, declaring that they were the original inhabitants before Akeron and demanding the return of the lands. This caused even more wars, but in general terms, there was a balance within all that chaos."

"For millions of years, this structure was maintained. But ambition knows no bounds... and with no enemies to face, the dynasties began to fragment again, giving way to even smaller families to take part in the wars."

The professor paused and looked at them intently, checking that they were paying attention.

"The minor families, humiliated for centuries, rebelled. This caused an endless war to erupt that eventually became known as... the Dark Era. Battlefields became mass graves. Billions died. Humanity, which once reigned supreme, fell into disgrace. More than 70% of the world’s population was killed, and the rest had to fight just to live one more day. At this point, when they were weakest... the beasts returned."

William frowned. Lia held her breath.

"Intelligent, cunning beasts... who had hidden, waiting for the opportune moment. They attacked mercilessly. In a short time, the balance was reversed. Humanity, unprepared to face the beasts, underestimated them. For a long time, there were signs; thousands of people sacrificed themselves to warn the world that the beasts were planning something, but their pride forced them to keep their ears closed. They had grown accustomed to facing beasts that were easy to kill. All this pushed humanity to the brink of extinction."

The professor returned to the desk and gently caressed the book’s cover. William and Lia held their breath, completely immersed in the story the professor was telling. With a satisfied smile, the professor continued her lesson.

"But then, a man changed history again. His name was J. Thompson."

William looked up, surprised. He had read that name in more than one book; during his time in the library, that name appeared in every book as an author or a reference. His name was repeated more than anything else in the library.

"The author of Fundamentals of Magic?" he asked, incredulous.

"Yes," the professor nodded. "But that’s barely a fraction of who he was. Thompson was not only a sage... he was a visionary. The first to see magic as a science. The first to study every spell, to create a meditation system, to transform magical practice into something methodical, replicable. He fought against the beasts not only with power... but with knowledge."

The admiration in her voice was palpable.

"Before J. Thompson, humanity suffered a great decline, as they had brought beasts to the brink of extermination, so they could no longer obtain powerful spells, or at least that’s what they believed. This decline caused a very marked bias; there were mages who had a lot of power and others who could do absolutely nothing."

"J. Thompson started from the bottom, creating spells step by step. He created an army by teaching his discoveries. In the southern continent, he established a resistance against the sea beasts that were trying to force their way onto land. During this war, he and his army became famous as mages who had no special bloodlines and did not depend on any life gem to become strong."

"Unfortunately, this did not continue for too long. J. Thompson lost everything: his family, his friends, his wife. During the combat against the beasts, they never received support from the other continents, causing everyone to eventually collapse and be exterminated. J. Thompson was the only survivor; it was a miracle that he managed to escape the continent to a small desert island in the middle of the sea."