The world's magical ranking system measures the overall destructive potential, control, efficiency, and magical output of an individual.
A person's rank does not necessarily determine their talent. A mage with an unusual affinity or exceptional control may possess abilities far beyond what their numerical rank would normally suggest.
I. Ordinary — Ranks 1–2
The lowest recognized level of magical ability.
Rank 1
Magic manifests as little more than glowing embers, sparks, or faint elemental phenomena.
For ordinary people, these effects are mostly useless in combat and may serve little purpose beyond demonstration.
Rank 2
The embers become somewhat hotter, barely reaching the point where they can burn small amounts of material.
Most villagers and ordinary civilians fall within this range if they possess any measurable magical aptitude at all.
II. Beginner — Ranks 3–4
The first level at which an individual is officially recognized as a mage.
Rank 3
The user's fire can produce enough heat to burn simple materials and cause minor injuries.
Their spells remain weak and inefficient, but they are now capable of using magic for practical purposes.
Rank 4
Elemental output becomes considerably more stable. A beginner mage can reliably use offensive spells, although their destructive power remains limited.
This is generally regarded as the minimum level required for official recognition as a professional mage.
III. Expert — Ranks 5–6
The minimum level required to enter a formal Magic Academy.
Rank 5
A fireball roughly the size of a human head can easily punch through wooden structures.
Against stone or reinforced surfaces, however, its destructive effect is still limited.
Rank 6
The mage gains significantly greater output and control. Their spells can damage stone structures and produce enough force to become genuinely dangerous in combat.
Most trained academy students eventually reach this level.
IV. Master — Ranks 7–8
The standard combat rank of elite professionals.
Rank 7
A fireball can melt metal upon direct contact and pass through ordinary walls with ease.
A mage at this level is already a formidable combatant.
Rank 8
The mage possesses enough power and control to overwhelm conventional defenses with elemental magic.
This is the typical level of senior Magic Academy students, elite court mages, and trained knights of the kingdom.
A single Master is capable of turning the tide of an ordinary battlefield.
V. Grandmaster — Ranks 9–10
A level beyond the reach of the vast majority of the population.
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Rank 9
A fireball reaches extraordinarily high temperatures and can instantly erase or overpower the spells of anyone below the Master rank.
At this point, the difference between ranks becomes increasingly exponential rather than linear.
Rank 10
The mage's elemental output becomes overwhelming.
Their spells can devastate large sections of a battlefield, and conventional defenses become almost meaningless against them.
Only individuals with exceptional magical talent, extraordinary elemental affinity, or years of extreme training can reach this level.
Grandmasters are typically found among the captains of elite knightly orders, legendary court magicians, and the greatest magical prodigies of their generation.
VI. Legend — Ranks 11–12
The realm of heroes.
A Legendary mage is no longer simply a powerful human. Their magic begins to exhibit phenomena that should be impossible according to ordinary magical theory.
Rank 11
The elemental nature of the spell itself begins to change.
For example, fire may become blue as its temperature and magical density increase, allowing it to reach approximately 3,000°C or produce magical effects comparable to extreme cold.
Rank 12
The mage's elemental power approaches the limits of what the world can naturally withstand.
Their spells can alter the surrounding environment on a massive scale, overwhelm armies, and challenge creatures that ordinary humans could never hope to defeat.
Only the Chosen Heroes of each generation are normally capable of reaching this rank.
There may be exceptions, but such individuals are extraordinarily rare.
VII. God — Rank ???
The highest theoretical classification.
There are no confirmed records of anyone possessing this rank.
No surviving magical text provides a reliable description of what Rank God actually represents.
Some scholars believe it is simply the theoretical limit of Rank 12.
Others believe that reaching it would mean transcending the world's magical system entirely.
There is no evidence either way.
For this reason, God is not officially assigned a numerical value.
Elemental Magic
Every person possesses a natural affinity toward one or more elemental systems.
The ten recognized fundamental elements are:
Water
Wind
Fire
Lightning
Earth
Plant
Light
Darkness
Yin
Yang
The average person possesses an affinity for two elements.
However, affinity does not determine mastery. A person may possess several elemental affinities while being mediocre with all of them, while another individual may possess only one affinity and reach an extraordinary level of mastery.
The rarity and strength of an affinity can also vary dramatically between individuals.
Unique Magic
Unique Magic is an entirely different category from elemental magic.
It is traditionally associated with the Chosen Heroes and Saints.
A Unique Magic is believed to be the manifestation of the user's deepest desires, obsessions, beliefs, or ambitions, compressed into a single supernatural ability.
The ability does not simply reflect what the user wants.
It reflects what their soul fundamentally seeks.
For example:
An individual obsessed with time may awaken a Unique Magic related to temporal manipulation.
Someone whose greatest desire is combat may develop an ability focused on physical enhancement.
Someone obsessed with control may awaken an ability capable of manipulating others.
Someone who desires absolute freedom may develop an ability centered around movement, space, or restrictions.
Two people with similar personalities may therefore awaken completely different Unique Magics.
The ability is ultimately determined by the relationship between the individual's soul, desires, and magical nature.
Semi-Heroes
Semi-Heroes are individuals who possess a Unique Magic but are not recognized by the Church as true Heroes or Saints.
The Church traditionally considers them heretics, because their Unique Magics do not appear to originate directly from the divine system associated with the Chosen Heroes.
From the perspective of the kingdoms, however, Semi-Heroes are simply exceptionally talented individuals.
They are not inherently evil, nor are they automatically enemies of the Church.
A Semi-Hero can therefore live normally within most kingdoms, serve as a knight, mage, adventurer, noble, or even royal official.
The distinction is primarily religious rather than political.
To the kingdoms:
A Semi-Hero is a person with an extraordinary ability.
To the Church:
A Semi-Hero is someone who possesses a power they were never meant to have.