The blackboard was divided into three separate sections.
Inside each of them, different colors floated freely, moving through the space like currents of air.
The class remained confused. No one seemed able to understand what they were looking at—or what the information behind it meant.
"All of you, I am here to teach you from zero. Because most of what you think you know is either false, partially true, or deliberately manipulated."
The classroom fell silent.
"Keep in mind that good and evil are concepts created by society, not by nature."
For a few seconds, no one spoke. Some students seemed to be thinking about his words. Others were probably waiting for an explanation.
"So he isn't against Dark Energy users", Csendez thought.
"At least, that's what he's implying."
"And the part about our knowledge being manipulated isn't exactly surprising. But why?"
The teacher walked toward the blackboard.
He pointed toward the section where the colors were most mixed together.
"There are three types of Energy. This classification is based on their nature."
He paused.
"The first category consists of Energies capable of creating, destroying, changing, controlling, and freely transforming other Energies."
The teacher pointed toward two colors within the chaotic mixture.
"This category contains two special Energies. They are extremely difficult to encounter, and even rarer to be born with."
He wrote two words beneath them.
CHAOS.
ORDER.
The students immediately began writing everything down, using pens, feathers, or whatever writing tools they carried.
Even those who clearly didn't understand what they were hearing wanted every word recorded.
"I have never heard of these domains before."
"Order... Could that be what they mean by the Rules? Or am I completely wrong?"
Anka decided to remain silent. All this information was too important to risk missing even a single detail.
"I know you are probably confused right now," the teacher continued, "but these Energies exist, and they are extremely powerful. Despite that, very few beings are capable of carrying them."
"What does he mean by "carrying" them? And that mixture of colors is so... chaotic. Maybe that's simply the nature of Chaos."
"Then the silver color represents Order?"
The teacher did not spend much longer on the first category.
He pointed toward the second section. The colors there were much easier to distinguish.
White. Golden. Red. Blue.
All four moved freely inside their section.
"The second category contains Energies that produce power and allow their users to control it through specific domains."
He gestured toward the four colors.
"These are the Light Energies. They are the ones you are familiar with, and they are capable of forming Energy Cores."
He paused.
"You were taught that only Golden, Blue, and Red Energy can form Cores."
The teacher smiled faintly.
"You were taught incorrectly."
Several students exchanged glances.
"Yes. Some of you already know that."
His gaze passed over the classroom.
"Even in this room, there are people who were born with Cores that do not belong to those three types."
Several of Csendez's classmates became visibly uncomfortable.
"But you were raised to believe that other elements and Energies were mistakes. Failures. Plagues. Disasters. Curses."
His voice became colder.
"All of that is false."
The room remained silent.
"I told you that there are ten Energies in this universe. That is true, despite the efforts of many powerful beings to hide it."
He pointed toward the second section again.
"Multiple types of Energy move freely throughout this universe."
His finger moved across the four colors.
"The Energies in this category can create and control. They cannot destroy or freely transform other Energies."
He looked toward the students.
"Many of you have a Core belonging to this category. And there is nothing wrong with that."
Then he pointed toward the white color.
"However, some of you may be wondering about White Energy."
The professor smiled.
"It is there. Yet no one is born with a White Energy Core."
A few students looked confused.
"Why?"
He turned away from the board.
"That is an answer you are not ready for yet. You will study it later."
He paused before continuing.
"For now, think of White Energy as something extremely easy to approach, but almost impossible to tame completely."
The white color moved through its section.
"Almost every living creature can use White Energy. Yet White Energy does not normally choose to form a Core inside anyone."
He raised one finger.
"There are exceptions."
The teacher's expression became serious.
"But that is not a subject for today."
He moved toward the final section.
The atmosphere seemed to change. This section was much darker than the others. The teacher looked at the class before speaking.
"In this section are most of the Dark Energies you were taught to fear."
Four colors slowly moved through the darkness.
Violet. Black. Brown. Grey.
Unlike the colors in the other sections, they kept their distance from one another.
They did not approach. They did not mix. They simply moved independently.
"These Energies can also form Cores inside living beings."
The teacher paused.
"But it is extremely rare."
His voice became quieter.
"These Energies are not evil. And they are certainly not useless."
He pointed toward the four colors.
"This category contains Energies capable of changing, consuming, transforming, and destroying other Energies."
Another pause.
"But they are rare. Not only as Cores, but as natural Energies themselves."
The colors continued moving.
"They cannot simply be found everywhere." The teacher looked at them. "They are still being studied. And most of them remain a mystery."
"He makes it sound as if the Energies themselves have a will."
"That's... possible. At least, it would explain some of the strange things that have happened to me."
Energy having a will is... actually possible.
I can feel something like that too.
Today is becoming very productive. I discovered that I have power related to Order. And I also discovered that humans probably...
The thought never finished.
The professor placed a stone on the table.
The moment it touched the surface—
Anka felt her mind violently rejected from Csendez's body.
The next instant, she was back in her room.
What a waste.
I wanted to hear the rest.
She touched her forehead.
I still don't know how to force my way back into her body.
And that stone...
She frowned.
It was unusual.
It was probably the reason the possession ended so abruptly.
...
Back in the classroom, Csendez stared at the stone. A faint violet light radiated from it. There was something strangely attractive about it.
She couldn't explain why.
The professor looked around the room.
"Now I can be certain that no one outside this classroom can hear what I am about to say."
He sat casually on the edge of the desk.
For the first time, the outline of his body became slightly visible beneath the large coat.
"In this universe, every family head, the Alocanai Council, and other political and military powers know this."
He paused.
"But they keep their mouths shut."
His voice became serious.
"Dark Energy is necessary."
The classroom remained completely silent.
"This universe needs these Energies. But they are difficult to find, and extremely difficult to use."
He looked toward the darker section of the board.
"Because of failures in the past, many people came to believe that these Energies could never be tamed."
His gaze moved across the students.
"But that isn't true."
He pointed toward several students.
Csendez.
Shu Mo.
And three others.
"But it isn't impossible for you."
The room became heavier.
"That is why you are still alive."
No one moved.
"In your history classes, you will eventually learn about the previous century."
His voice slowed.
"There was a time when every Dark Energy user was killed at birth."
Several students reacted.
"This practice ended only recently."
The professor looked toward the board.
"It ended when it was proven that erasing an Energy—or pretending that it doesn't exist—is not an option."
He looked back at the class.
"Because this universe is collapsing."
The words seemed to take several seconds to reach everyone.
No one spoke.
The information was too heavy and too new to process immediately.
The professor allowed the silence to remain. He gave them time.
Finally, the only siren in the class raised his hand.
His name was Orm. His face was calm and serious, but his eyes were bright with excitement.
"Professor."
The teacher looked at him.
"Is this the biggest threat Professor Iman was talking about?"
Orm's voice remained steady.
"Is this why we're here? Because the universe is collapsing, and all of this is connected to Dark Energy?"
It was a bold question.
But judging by the expressions around the room, many others had been thinking the same thing.
The teacher seemed surprised.
At least, that was what his limited body language suggested.
"I'm surprised by Professor Iman's involvement in this conversation."
He looked around the room.
"And I'm surprised by all of you."
For the first time, something almost resembling amusement entered his voice.
"It seems this generation won't be as troublesome as the previous one."
He looked toward the students again.
"You're more mature. More open-minded. And perhaps more intelligent." A brief pause. "Maybe there is still hope for us."
The teacher stood up. He slowly walked from one side of the classroom to the other.
"The answer to your question is yes."
Several students leaned forward.
"And no."
He stopped.
"It's more complicated than you think."
Another pause.
"Nobody fully understands the process yet. Nobody fully understands the effects."
He looked toward the dark section.
"But the cause..."
His voice became quieter.
"The cause is known."
The classroom remained silent.
"And that cause is something many powerful beings would rather be ashamed of." The teacher gave a small, bitter laugh. "You see, these fifty years of study may all be built around a lie so enormous that it won't matter."
His gaze moved toward the students.
"Because there is no guarantee that this universe can survive another ten years."
Silence.
"Prepare yourselves while you still have time. Become stronger. Accumulate knowledge."
The atmosphere seemed to change. The walls appeared to tremble. For a moment, Csendez thought she saw cracks spreading across them.
The professor continued.
"The reason for this disaster is a mistake made by those in power."
His voice grew heavier.
"They rose against the gods again, and now the entire universe is being punished."
He took a breath.
"They—"
Three figures suddenly appeared inside the classroom.
The teacher didn't even have time to react.
One of them grabbed his face and covered his mouth.
Another drove a sword directly through his chest.
The third seized his head.
It happened so quickly that several students barely had time to understand what they were seeing.
Then—
The three figures vanished.
So did the professor's body.
Silence filled the classroom.
Some students were shocked.
Others were simply confused.
Gods...?
Csendez's eyes narrowed.
Is this connected to gods?
This school is becoming more and more interesting.
The students slowly began to process what had happened. Death itself was not unusual to them. The professor had been a stranger. They had known him for less than two hours.
His death did not carry enough emotional weight to make most of them mourn him.
But the timing—
That was different. The moment he was about to explain why the universe was collapsing, he was killed.
That was what interested them.
Some reactions to the word gods had also been strange.
Most students, however, had barely reacted.
It was obvious that they did not have particularly strong feelings toward those beings. After several minutes, the principal appeared in front of the classroom.
His expression was visibly unhappy, but he tried to remain composed.
He apologized for the incident. Then he gave them an explanation.
The man who had been teaching them was not Professor Kelime.
He was an impostor. A fanatic who had infiltrated the Academy and pretended to be their professor. Everything he had told them was false and completely fabricated.
The principal advised them to forget the incident and focus on their studies.
Then he left.
And just like that, their first Introduction to Magic lesson was over.
Csendez remained seated for a moment.
This school is something else. Our first lesson ended with an assassination.
She glanced toward the place where the professor had disappeared.
Those are clearly adult games. I wonder what kind of person that professor really was.
She slowly stood up.
The principal called him a fanatic. Does that mean he actually believed in gods? I still know almost nothing about them.
Her eyes moved toward Uituba.
For now, the most important thing is to ask Uituba about our class. Something definitely happened during the previous week. And I want to know who managed to unite this divided and subordinate class to such an extent.