“Phew….”
At the back of the lecture hall.
Resting my chin on my hand as I gazed out the window, I let out a small sigh.
In one corner of my vision, the dense magical formation diagrams and field deployment theory with which Professor Raven had filled the blackboard hung in a blur.
Evan, the Imperial guys, and even the other special class students were sharpening their own weapons day by day.
The speed at which they grew in handling mana was like children entering a growth spurt, visibly improving with each passing day.
But I was different.
I had made it this far with nothing but brute strength and overwhelming physical ability.
I had broken through deadly poison and smashed apart a spirit’s barrier by force, but that alone had clear limits.
If I were dragged into a realm of pure mana, like the overwhelming Void Field Professor Raven had deployed, there would be countless fights that would end before my fist could even reach.
Among them, all growing stronger by the day, the fact that brute strength was still the only card I held weighed heavily on me.
If I stopped here, it was obvious I would struggle to cross even the threshold of the autonomous battles held every Friday, let alone the Grand Final.
I needed something—a new variable that would let me surpass the limits of my body and crack open this world of magic.
The afternoon lecture hall was especially restless.
It had been that way ever since Professor Raven left the room after removing the hand of the corpse summon that had been crawling across the blackboard.
“Wow… Who should I challenge this Friday?”
“If we don’t start collecting badges one by one soon, I don’t think we’ll even get near the Grand Final.”
Low murmurs spread among the special class students.
Professor Raven’s gaze, blatantly looking down on us as a half-baked detention camp.
The laughter of the regular admitted students that we had endured while standing in the very back row on the day of the entrance ceremony.
To repay all that humiliation and make our way to the Grand Final, badges were absolutely necessary.
Everyone was glaring at their own notes with their chins propped up or fiddling with mana condensers, feverishly analyzing the weaknesses of the professors of each attribute.
Who would they take their first badge from?
To crawl up from the bottom of this fierce food chain, everyone was racking their brains.
Evan was already refining defensive tactics to break past his limits, and the others were also searching for their own breakthroughs.
“Come to think of it, no one’s coming to me?”
A familiar voice dropped lazily over the hand of the corpse summon crawling across one corner of the blackboard at the front of the noisy lecture hall.
No one knew how long he had been watching the students, but Professor Raven was leaning crookedly against the lectern, staring at them with his characteristic indifferent expression.
“I did say you could come to me outside of Fridays too, but I suppose none of you have any interest in your homeroom professor, the Void-attribute professor?”
At his single remark, the taut air of the classroom froze in an instant.
“For a bunch of leftovers, your standards are rather high. Or maybe you’re already scared. Well, it’s convenient for me, so I don’t mind.”
Professor Raven let out the words mixed with a yawn, as if he found it all troublesome, and lightly stroked the summon hand crawling across the blackboard.
“If no one challenges me, then forget the Grand Final—you’ll be rotting in this half-baked detention camp for the rest of your lives.”
Silence settled wherever his provocative gaze swept past.
While no one dared step forward, Raven’s languid eyes finally came to rest on me and Justia, seated at the very back.
“Does the great human summon of House Rosenhart still intend to rush in relying on nothing but that stupid strength? Well, you’re welcome anytime.”
His tone was laced with a provocative smile.
I exchanged glances with Justia and lightly curled my hand into a fist.
But as soon as the bell signaling the end of class rang, Justia immediately sprang up from her seat.
“Shall we go right away? We might be late.”
Justia lightly tugged at my sleeve and urged me on.
Pushing through the crowd of students leaving the lecture hall, she was already striding quickly toward the end of the corridor.
“Professor Futery, who’s in charge of Spirit Studies, is especially strict about time. The application time for Friday autonomous battles is fixed down to the minute, so if we’re late, we could lose the chance altogether.”
At her urging, I silently matched her pace.
Professor Raven’s barbed provocation lingered in my ears, but charging into the Void attribute right now would be meaningless.
The difficulty of spiritization, which I had felt so painfully in the mock battle against Evan.
To shatter it completely in a real fight, I had to overcome Professor Futery, who wielded the most orthodox and solid spirit arts.
“Let’s go, then. I’d like to see the face of this strict professor.”
As we crossed the academy’s long corridors, the stiff sensation in my legs slowly began to return to normal.
“There, see it? That’s the Spirit Studies Hall where Professor Futery’s research office is.”
Having quickly crossed the corridor, Justia pointed with her chin at the building on the other side.
The Spirit Studies Hall, located toward the west side of the academy, was wrapped in thick ivy and exuded a uniquely aloof atmosphere.
“Applications for battles with professors usually close at three in the afternoon, so we need to hurry a little.”
We pushed open the heavy oak doors of the Spirit Studies Hall and stepped inside.
Unlike outside, the air within was filled with a cool, clear energy.
Faint particles of light drifting through the air floated here and there, as if proclaiming that this was the heart of spirit arts.
“Next. Come in.”
In the corridor before the research office, several students were already waiting with anxious faces.
The firmly shut door opened, and a student staggered out, drenched in sweat.
“Damn it, how the hell are we supposed to break through that cursed water wall…….”
The student’s resigned muttering echoed down the corridor.
Justia’s eyes narrowed with tension.
Orthodox and solid spirit arts.
The hopeless wall I had experienced in the mock battle against Evan was waiting for us in an even higher and sturdier form.
I lightly steadied my breathing and fixed my gaze on Professor Futery beyond the slowly opening door of the research office.
“Next. Enter.”
A heavy, low voice rang out from beyond the massive oak door.
The closed door slid open, and a chill breath of air rushed over us.
“Let’s go.”
After taking a short deep breath, Justia led the way.
Inside the research office, green-tinted mana particles floated amid the rich scent of greenery, as if a small forest had been moved there whole.
Behind the large solid-wood desk at its center, Professor Futery, his graying hair neatly combed back, was looking over documents.
“The young lady of House Rosenhart and… the much-rumored human summon.”
“It’s an honor that you know of us.”
“Honor is…”
The professor slowly raised his head and looked at us.
His gaze was sharp, but it was different in nature from the blatant contempt or ridicule others showed.
In his eyes was a firm standard that would judge only skill, nothing more.
“You must have seen the ones who dropped out ahead of you. If you intend to challenge my class, you should at least be prepared to withstand the density created by my spirits.”
Professor Futery rose from his seat and walked toward the dais where a mana condenser had been placed.
“If you want a badge, prove how long those paltry variables of yours can last before my orthodox spirit arts.”
At his fingertips, a clear and refreshing yet overwhelmingly dense water-attribute energy began to ripple.
“How many will you use?”
Standing on the dais, Professor Futery looked down at Justia with a weighty gaze.
Behind him, the energy of a deep-blue water wall shimmered, pressing heavily down on the air in the research office.
“One.”
At Justia’s answer, the professor’s brow narrowed faintly.
“You have, hm… You have two summons. Why do you intend to face me with only one?”
The professor’s gaze alternated between the Wind Whisper fluttering its tiny wings above Justia’s shoulder and me.
A wind spirit and a human summon possessing overwhelming physical force.
Even though deploying both at once would have been the rational choice, she drew the line firmly.
“Because this battle is meant to confirm this child’s potential.”
Pointing at me, Justia continued calmly.
“How far he can break the density of a spirit with physical blows alone. That has to be proven before we can move on to the next stage.”
At her words, Professor Futery gave a light snort.
“Arrogant. To think you can make up for an absolute gap in mana with mere bodily strength.”
When he raised his hand, the water wall suspended in the air gathered in an instant into a massive wave and surged upward as if roaring.
“Then I’ll make you feel in your bones just how insignificant that stupid strength you believe in is before my spirit’s barrier.”
Professor Futery’s heavy gesture cut through the air.
At the same time, the complex magic circle woven across the research office floor spat out a dazzling blue light.
The entire space vibrated faintly as the bookshelves reaching the ceiling and the massive oak desk moved to either side in an instant, transforming into a vast circular battle field.
“I look forward to the match!”
“Very well.”