Return of The 8th Class Mage

Description

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Humanity’s first 8th Class Mage.

Betrayed, he traveled back 30 years into the past.

The story follows Ian Page, archmage and the first man to break through the 6th class, then through the 7th and become the most powerful mage, an 8th class mage.

After a lifetime of war and killing, the continent was finally unified thanks to his efforts. Now, old, his wish is to live the rest of his life in peace and try to find salvation for all the blood he spilled. However, his old friend, maddened by paranoia, couldn’t tolerate someone so powerful, so he betrayed Ian and killed him.

In his last breath, he cast a time magic that allowed him to travel back to when he was a young boy. With all the knowledge he previously had, he decided to do things better so he could end with less regrets.

Associated Names
One entry per line
8 keullaeseu mabeobsaui hoegwi
8클래스 마법사의 회귀
REM
Revolution of the 8th Class Mage
The Return of the 8th Class Magician
Related Series
N/A
Recommendations
I am the Monarch (16)
The King of the Battlefield (11)
Seoul Station’s Necromancer (6)
Dungeon Hunter (5)
The Book Eating Magician (3)
The Lazy Swordmaster (3)
Recommendation Lists
  1. Korean Novel
  2. Novel's I Have Read
  3. Fantasy NO romance
  4. Op Mc / simulation systems
  5. KR Novels with Manhwa (ML Version)

Latest Release

Date Group Release
09/26/23 Asian Hobbyist v2c31
09/26/23 Asian Hobbyist v2c30
09/19/22 Asian Hobbyist v2c29
09/17/22 Asian Hobbyist v2c28
09/14/22 Asian Hobbyist v2c27
09/12/22 Asian Hobbyist v2c26
09/05/22 Asian Hobbyist v2c25
09/01/22 Asian Hobbyist v2c24
08/18/22 Asian Hobbyist v2c23
08/05/22 Asian Hobbyist v2c22
07/13/22 Asian Hobbyist v2c21
07/02/22 Asian Hobbyist v2c20
06/13/22 Asian Hobbyist v2c18
05/15/22 Asian Hobbyist v2c17
05/11/22 Asian Hobbyist v2c16
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49 Reviews sorted by


OfficePony
OfficePony rated it
November 16, 2016
Status: c6
Grammar: 2.5/5
Story: 3/5
Writing: 3.5/5

Nothing really new, but it's entertaining. Grammar-wise, it's close to being unreadable for my tastes. Frequent awkward wording/phrasing, misspellings, and some rather confusing syntax at times. The story is your average rebirth/time travel story revolving around self-gratification through changing personal history and self-improvement. The writing, while I can't judge them too harshly, seems to be mostly a problem on the side of the translation team. I know it's very difficult to translate from one language to another, but they should have used Proof-Readers who were... more>> proficient with the English language to do some quality control. Other than that, I'm enjoying this series and will continue to read this until the author/translators give up or the story quality takes a dive off a steep cliff into the Void. <<less
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ResidentialPsycho
ResidentialPsycho rated it
July 22, 2018
Status: c78
This is a fun read about an OP MC who has clear goals in mind with a logical thought process. He's not overly cruel or wicked and actually stays true to his morals and upholding the rules. He's a respectable MC. The side-characters have depth, and the plot is interesting. Although the MC has memories of the future, his choices change everything so dramatically that even he doesn't know what's going to happen next. The changes are interesting.

That said, there are some weaknesses. Limited attention is given to the side-characters... more>> and their development, for instance. As an action junky, I was disappointed by how little attention is given to the combat scenes. This series could definitely be written in a way that is more exciting.

Although this series has definite weaknesses, the moral integrity and likeability of the MC balances them out to some degree. <<less
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kavinh
kavinh rated it
June 3, 2017
Status: c53
so far a great "reincarnation" story where the MC is sent back in time after being betrayed by his long time friend.

The story telling's quite good and the MC acts like a real person, he'll get his revenge on people who threaten his mom, has pride as a mage but simultaneously knows when to use force or when he needs to talk things out.

The main characters are pretty well fleshed out and the contrast between the first timeline and the 2nd and the MC's actions that change it either knowingly... more>> or not is actually really well done but also doesn't establish an easy way out for the MC regarding the main plot.

Spoiler

he was betrayed by the 5th prince so simple solution is to just not side with him right?, except the crown prince whose the other candidate for the throne is utterly incompetent at the role.

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The MC is also OP but not in a way like other series, he doesn't for example have secret powers nor are his spells overwhelmingly more powerful, the only advantage he really has is his past life knowledge which allows him to find more efficient training methods/items to power up. <<less
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edytor
edytor rated it
April 11, 2017
Status: c24
Characters are nothing to write home about. There's no interesting villains, and the only antagonists that have shown up have been painfully boring cannon fodder. MC is the standard power fantasy MC and comes with the standard revenge personality you'd find in any cliche reincarnation-time-travel-type novels themed with revenge.

World building is okay. Author's taken the cookie-cutter western fantasy world with some slight variation. Not a problem if it's delivered and executed well but the author hasn't done such. As mentioned in other reviews as well there is alot of plot... more>> convenience which screams poor writing.

Translation is in need of more work. Needs localization work as there's plenty of awkward phrasing and sentence structure as well as awkward wording. Grammar mistakes and spelling mistakes are scattered throughout as well.

If you're looking for a well executed revenge with no expectations on the story and plot, search elsewhere, this isn't the novel for you. <<less
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Flufflebutter
Flufflebutter rated it
February 8, 2017
Status: c44 part2
It's typical as you'd expect from the synopsis, not to mention the MC is powering up by leaps and bounds.
He easily gains powerful artefacts, and is the centre of attention in the entire story. So it seems as if there are red flags all around, but here's why I like it.
... more>>
Spoiler

1. The side characters aren't pieces of cardboard! Ok, maybe cannon fodder #1 is, and maybe his mother (a little). Everyone has little secrets, flaws, and plans which really add to the story. The crown prince comes off as a dumb dog, but ends up growing on you as he goes through his own "mini" character development, becoming more confident and less arrogant. You actually wonder how the side characters will further contribute to the story, and (hopefully) aren't just chucked away after making an appearance in one part of the story.
2. The story revolves around the main character... Wait, shouldn't stories normally do that? Well yeah, but rather than being given an OP plot device that pushes the MC along on a set path, instead the MC is guiding the story, and the events happening are heavily influenced by his prior actions. Not gonna name any names, but this MC actually has a goal in mind (even though its a rather basic one).
3. Familial Love! It seems to be a recurring theme here. You can tell the MC loves his mom, and it shows. (Unlike other stories...*cough* Coiling Dragon *cough* Alchemy dude loves his kid, Emperor dude loves his first son. I really found it heartwarming, and you can see how it plays into the decision making in the story.
4. There's no harem! At least not yet. No girls having fallen for the MC (yet). No useless pandering to the readers to try to make the MC seem more masculine and alpha, not that I would mind that all too much. But I'm ok with not having a "best girl" immediately shoved into my face with every story.
5. We're still in the beginning stages of the story! There's still so much to happen, and I'm already enjoying it immensely. There's already a setup for a war arc, and those are always fun... unless the writer gets sloppy and just has him nuking everything to oblivion. Ragnar is already being set up as a smart, capable individual, and he's the enemy! I'll put my money on this story being more than just a fight-> train -> fight some more type novel.
6. Oliver. No real explanation. He just seems cool, and it feels like he's gonna have some badass moments in the story to come. Again, redirect back to point 1.

Is it a masterpiece? No. But it's very good considering the overall quality of the novels here.

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mario1994
mario1994 rated it
August 22, 2020
Status: c6
Utter garbage of a web novel. To this chapter all characters have no life of their own. They exist only to show how awesome is MC. If only Ian reacted better with more emotions than a terminator programmed to accomplish greatness in shortest time possible. He lacks empathy. He is very likely a sociopath if not a psychopath. If only he had any eeason to be like that but it appears that he just likes to feel superior to others.
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2Girls1Cupcake
2Girls1Cupcake rated it
July 14, 2018
Status: c43
TL;DR: Nothing special, rather dull and uninspiring.

I really don't mind the convenient things that happen early on in the story.

... more>>
Spoiler

The s*xual harassment of his mother, while cliché, is there to first show the status of mages in the world (although this could be info dumped and is more of just a bonus from this event than its intended purpose imo), the decisiveness of the MC and his care for his mother as a contrast to the ruthlessness he shows to his enemies, this situation in itself isn't much, but there's more later and it piles up, it's a stroke of genius by the author and it gives us a MC that most people would like. Lastly it shows us how he'll act differently in this timeline which leads us to the second thing people complain about, the Lord getting captured by goblins, sure, it seems convenient, but it also shows us how the resolve of the MC to act differently will change history, which in turn forces him to act.

By acting he receives the item he wanted, while convenient it is also shown that that's the result the MC was aiming for by manipulating the situation, this shows us a MC who doesn't just have the IQ of a fence post, which we all like.

This first example of how the MC changes history isn't really shown in a negative light since he's there to correct it while gaining something from it, yet it also reminds us of how his actions could have devastating consequences to not only the MC but other people as well if handled poorly, this brings us to the last one, the alchemist, this in turn shows us how his actions can change the life of other people for the better and unlike the first one which is generally inconsequential and only effects himself because it would have worked out in the original timeline as well, this last one is different, effecting not only himself but others.

SPOILER ALERT (This part contains spoilers for both "I am the Monarch" and "Tales of the Reincarnated Lord")

This novel eventually went down the same route as "I am the Monarch" did when he started getting involved with the succession and imo that's when "I am the Monarch" went from brilliant to dog shit, and the reason is simple, nobility is interesting to many and great in novels, but most modern people hate seeing a MC lowering their head to some SOB that doesn't deserve the throne and would rather the MC goes his own way, in "I am the Monarch" it's clear that he'll do that eventually but in this one it's different. You could make a case that that's normal in a feudal society, but they could have stayed out of succession and kept contact with these people to a minimum until they'll show up as enemies. That's also the problem with the latest translated chapters of "Tales of the Reincarnated Lord", it's infuriating to me and I'm guessing other people feel the same way

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My problem is instead with the world building, sure.. Info dumps are annoying, but we have no information what so ever, you could say that the reason is that delving into these topics would be too extensive considering the length of the novel, yet I just see it as lazy writing or maybe less competent writing.

Aside from that I'm really not into the whole revenge against someone who hasn't done anything, yea, they might have done it in a different timeline, but that isn't the same as them having done it in the new one, the main antagonist might have been considered scum then, but now he's just a child and the MC seems to just go against him for revenge, not considering the consequences it might have on anyone but himself. He seems to be siding with someone he didn't like in his last life and it's insinuated that the MC can change him, but why couldn't he just change the other guy? It seems petty to me. Then again, this is my personal opinion and will not influence my rating. <<less
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Kefi
Kefi rated it
April 29, 2018
Status: c12
This is an average do-over time-traveling story with some potential.

But, the writing is not good, the translation is approximative (which is to say very bad) and the grammar and spellcheck non-existant.

The potential of the story doesn't balance out all of these flaws.
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Teleclast
Teleclast rated it
January 5, 2018
Status: c61 part2
Pretty good story, it's clear that there's a limit to how far in the future the OP can see, and his profession is certainly one that can benefit the most from the experience in the previous future, he does a good job benefiting from it, but some turns certainly force him on his toes, still a long way to go still for this story to see how good it gets.
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Zefelina
Zefelina rated it
October 2, 2016
Status: c14
While the translation could be better, this novel is still readable and understandable. I find that it has some potential. The MC got killed by the emperor who was actually his friend and went back in time to when he was 10 years old. He decides not to hide his talent for magic (which is great because I hate when MC is underestimated by various low-lifes and hides his powers just because) and from what I have read so far (14 chapters) it seems there will be a lot of... more>> politics, some fighting and ass-kicking. The novel is kind of similar to the 'I am the Monarch' in concept so far and I would recommend to those who liked it. <<less
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Zaravo
Zaravo rated it
July 4, 2021
Status: c80
I read the novel, and I was dying of boredom even before reaching the chapter 100.

It has an ok/good writing and has interesting characters, but that's it.

There is no wordbuilding.

Even though the secondary characters look interesting, the author shows no intention of showing their perspective or developing them.

The MC is pretty bland and overaccomplishes everything he does with ease (LITERALLY overaccomplishes), so there is no conflict or tension in the novel.

... more>>
Spoiler

As an example, the MC's enemy is a prince with no fighting power, and the strongest guy he has to overcome is a 5th class mage guy.
Ok, no problem so far, IF THE MC WAS NOT A 4TH CLASS MAGE AT THE BEGINNING OF THE STORY!!!!!!!!!!! Right after he awakens!!!!!!!

Then there's a time skip of about 5 or 6 years, and the MC is still a 5th class mage for years already.
Then he goes after a staff and has the first battle where he has problems, leaving there exhausted and wounded, to the point where he just passes out when he goes back to where his allies are.
But guess what?????
The author simply skips the battle and only tells the result. WOWWWWW!!!!!!!!

Then he reaches the 6th class and easily defeats the 5th class mage guy.

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So basically, this is a story not to enjoy but to pass the time when you have nothing else to do. <<less
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wanko soba
wanko soba rated it
July 1, 2020
Status: c75
Honestly, its not a bad read, but it certainly is not the best I've seen. It is not the most interesting, but some parts are quite satisfying to read.
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Airi0987
Airi0987
September 30, 2019
Status: c100
Everyone that give this piece of garbage more than 3 stars must be s*upid or like this kind of sh*t so much they turn blind eye on every issue this novel had

Generic plot

Characters that introduced just for the sake to move the plot

Anything staple from tr*sh reading material you can find it here
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Risoka
Risoka rated it
July 28, 2019
Status: c68
Unreadable after chapter 65 (idk until when).

Only half chapters everywhere.

Now about the story: Its a good story overall. As others said, MC gets OP very fast so only pick this up if you like it.
I actually wish this story could be a little more strategic, using his memory to solve everything, but author instead made him OP very fast, which takes out the necessity to outplay others with his knowledge.

Another thing I would like better is a hard magic system istead of the soft one author uses. We don't... more>> really know how he uses magic, what can he do, how he improves and what stages are there.

I'm giving a 7/10, there is potential and it's interesting, but could be better. <<less
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OneTrickDuck
OneTrickDuck rated it
February 5, 2017
Status: c42
The novel starts with the common betrayal / time travel to your past trope, nothing new so far, but that's not really a problem, it's a solid entry into the story and gives us a base explanation for the MCs power. Though he seems a bit overpowered, we dont really know why he already has such a large manapool etc (did he have it in the first go too?), so from the beginning, there's little excitement in conflict, because the MC is just that powerful. Despite that the MCs seems... more>> kind of realistic, sometimes he's guided by his emotion instead of logic, but his motives are relateable and make sense

It's fairly well written and translated. A few errors snuck into the translation, but they can be overlooked. The chapters are unfortunately rather short and though we are already over 40 chapters into the novel, we still dont know much about the world and story.

It's worth a read, but I'd recommend waiting for more chapters first.

/edit around chapter 47, ok, I'll take half a point off, the translation seems to have become worse and I dont like the split of the chapters, makes them insanely short. Lots of spelling and grammar mistakes in the newer chapters (and I mean A LOT), will change once it's fixed (3.5/5) <<less
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lalabells rated it
December 16, 2023
Status: v2c31
I like the first volume but the second one was reaching a little bit. Still family love is good and thank you its not a f*cking harem.

few points if you want to read this but you're undecided:

1. ML is op BUT he's only one person so he's always worried about the disasters that can come if he's not there.

... more>> 2. If youre looking for romance, forget it. They pair up but it's almost like a side note.

3. Since he turned back time obv he has some info but he's not entirely dependent on it on the later chapters. <<less
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orchid5642
orchid5642
May 27, 2023
Status: Completed
i read this at 2 years ago. And it was complete nonsense. The longer you go the more you will encounter something to boost up MC power to the max. The way the principle being concept is overbearing.

i read this because of the beautuful manhwa. And it just around 30 chapter 2 years ago. As a complete newbie at reading webnovel, I dont master the way to drop the shit. This one give me that very lesson. But it was my time at critical conjucture of my life.
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Snowman256
Snowman256
March 1, 2022
Status: c188
This novel has great plot development, likeable characters, and expansive world building. There are some convenient plot developments, like some other reviewers mentioned, but overall I found it pretty cohesive and consistent over its ~188 chapters (it's technically on season 2 now, but I'm happy with where it ended and don't really feel like starting anew).

If there's a flaw I see, it's mostly with how fast-paced the ending was:

... more>>
Spoiler
  • No one important dies or really suffers any particular injury, except for the former corrupt Tower Mage. Yes, even the big bad at the end lives a happy life after everything.
  • The romantic pairings that were set up throughout the whole series happen as you'd expect (except for the prince - that one was really out of nowhere). The MC isn't involved in much romance to begin with, though.
  • The novel ends with basically "and everyone lived happily ever after, and the MC is so super OP we can't quantify it anymore." The MC essentially became so OP that he could do anything and it'd be OK, and the author more or less just gave up trying to describe why the MC could do what he could do in the last 30 chapters.
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That said, overall I felt satisfied reading the novel. Not where where season 2 will take the series, I probably won't continue but I admire the author's bravery for continuing where he left off. <<less
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Soliyania
Soliyania rated it
September 9, 2021
Status: c86
-Dropped at Chapter 86-

Reincarnate to take revenge... Becomes OP in a flash... have conflict with the revenge target but never kills them until they get enough power to threaten him cause why the f*ck not...

literally he could have killed his target by chapter 20 cause by then he was the strongest magician on the planet (thanks to past life knowledge) but nope... let's wait for them to get stronger & make more enemies....
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aShinyVaporeon
aShinyVaporeon rated it
July 28, 2021
Status: --
I read around 100 chapters of this novel around one or two years ago, so this isn't much of an accurate review. Still, considering it's gotten a manhwa recently, I decided to put a review up even though it's quite late. (Not gonna lie, although the plot's nothing too interesting, the manhwa has pretty art and the webtoon format makes it much easier to read, so it might be worth a try).

Also, I have to emphasize that this novel is not to be associated with a different novel with a manhwa adaptation, 8서클 마법사의 환생, often translated as "The Rebirth of an 8th-Circled Mage". Who put that in alternate titles? They are still distinct novels despite similarity in titles; it's obvious that the MC's names in the two... more>> are different as well.

OK, onto the review:

This novel is pretty generic magic power fantasy fare. It kind of just embodies the tropes it uses (second chance, betrayal, future knowledge, genius MC), not really having anything particularly new, although I'm sure it does add a bit of interesting things somewhere... probably. Not to mention that the MC comes off as a bit of a jerk sometimes, which, depending on whether you're into that or not, can be a plus or a minus. (For me, it's a minus). There's also a few plot holes here and there.

If you're into the tropes which are featured in it, this is probably not too bad of a read for you (like me when I read it), it makes a not-too-bad time-waster. But if you're looking for high-quality plot and characters, this is not your place, since the novel isn't much more than skin-deep.

On the delivery of the novel, or the writing quality, I suppose (not an actual spoiler) :

Spoiler

It's difficult to tell. One of my deepest impressions on the novel was that the delivery was quite confusing. This something that I now realize wasn't just this novel but many other KRs with less work put into them; the translators didn't want to go through the effort of reorganizing the delivery to make more a little more sense in English. I remember that it was much more confusing before, but it might just be me misremembering, or Asian Hobbyist editing their chapters.

Let's take a single-sentence excerpt from chapter 78: "As Ian was searching for a possible explanation, his mind came up with a dragon. It is difficult to be certain, but typically, in these cases, an unexpected scenario was never out of the question."

A little confusing. Other issues include that dialogue is often relayed in a confusing and bland manner with short paragraphs explaining reactions and happenings between, and there are occasional errors in grammar, as well as typos. I don't expect translations on the level of respected and licensed sites, and Asian Hobbyist did a pretty good job on it, especially compared to some other groups that only lightly edit MTL, but the delivery is not very smooth and definitely not a strong point of the novel.

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