Part 2
The classroom buzzed with voices: nobles flaunting their titles, commoners reciting their achievements as if their very lives depended on it.
Kaito stayed quiet, watching. What caught his attention wasn't the proud nobles in the front rows, but the commoners in the back—who didn't even speak to each other.
Mirai noticed.
"Thinking what I'm thinking, Kaito?" she said casually. "Commoners see other commoners as rivals. This is their only shot to climb higher, to become something more."
She gestured elegantly toward the nobles in front.
"Unlike those guys. All they care about is showing off."
At that moment, the door creaked open. A thin man shuffled in, his shirt half-buttoned, hair sticking up in every direction. He moved like someone who'd been forced to work overtime.
"Quiet down, brats," he muttered, dragging himself to the desk.
"Is that… the professor?" a boy asked with a mocking grin.
The words hung in the air. Gary lifted his gaze, unnervingly calm.
"You. Four-eyes with the 'I've never felt loved' face."
The room broke into snickers.
"W-what…? Do you even know who you're talking to? I am Harvin of Alberan, son of the Marqu—"
Gary leaned back in his chair, pulled out a piece of chalk, and casually picked his nose.
"And? Don't care."
"You insolent—! I demand—!"
Thwack.
A chalk bullet smacked dead-center on Harvin's forehead, knocking him back in his chair.
The classroom froze. Gary spun another piece of chalk between his fingers.
"You're in no position to demand anything."
His voice dropped, sharp enough to cut glass.
"Listen well, brats. In here, you're nobodies. Your titles, your lineage, your money… none of it matters."
He stood and scrawled his name across the board in big, rough letters.
"Gary Newman. Don't forget it. And if you do—" the chalk whistled as it spun through the air like a projectile, "—I'll remind you personally."
Silence swallowed the room.
"As you already know, the Netherian Empire's advance grows stronger by the day. That's why I was called to teach this class—" he slammed the words onto the board, Advanced Magic Defense.
Turning back, his lips curled into a crooked grin.
"This class will teach you how to survive in the real world. And as you've just seen, if a piece of chalk can take you down, imagine what a battlefield full of real weapons will do."
A nervous murmur rippled through the students.
Kaito kept his thoughts to himself, but he couldn't help it—yes, the man was a total mess. But his words didn't belong to a regular professor. They belonged to someone who had bled on the battlefield.
Gary clicked his tongue, shoving both hands into his pockets.
"Now, I could bore you with pretty diagrams and spell theory—stuff nobles love to brag about."
He paused. His eyes sharpened like blades.
"But I'd rather head to the training grounds. I want to see what you're made of."
Tension spiked. The students traded glances—some nervous, others smug.
"Come on, brats. Show me you're worth more than a title."
Minutes later, the students were lined up outside according to the same groups they'd sat in earlier. The training field held several magically reinforced targets and practice dummies built to withstand heavy blows.
Gary clapped once, lazily.
"Alright, listen up. I want to see your basics. Long-range fighters, aim for the targets."
"Close-range, use the dummies. After that, we'll have a little one-on-one match." He pulled a crumpled sheet from his pocket.
"When it's your turn, state your name and the role you'd take in an adventurer party."
The line began to move forward. Kaito ended up separated from his companions, being the only one with a sword in hand.
The first in the mage line stepped up.
"My name is Lauriano Vandergart, son of Count Vandergart. Offensive mage, earth element."
"Yeah, yeah. Count, blah blah… just hit the target already," Gary said, not even glancing up from his notes.
Lauriano raised his wand, and several rocks floated into the air.
"Rock Shoot!"
The stones pelted the target, kicking up a bit of dust… but nothing else.
Gary clicked his tongue.
"Pathetic. If you want to impress anyone, break the target. Next."
Lauriano stormed off, red-faced, while muffled snickers ran through the group.
The line moved on: a water mage who barely splashed the board, an archer whose arrow missed the circle entirely, and a summoner who managed only a faint, spectral rabbit that disappeared in seconds.
Finally, it was Mirai's turn.
"Next."
She stepped forward with elegant grace, her smile bright enough to light up the entire field.
"Good morning. I'm Mirai von Aelwyn. My element is light… and I'm a long-range mage. Or at least, I think I am."
For the first time, Gary raised his head from his notes.
"A light mage?"
"Yes, though… I haven't mastered it yet." She let out a small "tehe~," as if admitting to a childish prank.
"Show us, then," Gary said, resting his chin on his hand.
Mirai pointed her wand at the target and tried to focus her magic. A soft golden aura wrapped around her, its warm glow making several students hold their breath…
But nothing shot out. The light faded within seconds, leaving only silence.
Gary narrowed his eyes.
Did she just try to cast without chanting?
Mirai bit her lip and tried again, but the result was the same—just a fleeting, fragile glimmer.
The professor sighed.
"Don't strain yourself. Light magic is the hardest of all, even here." He waved her aside. "Next."
For the first time, Mirai's smile faltered. Her eyes dropped, and she walked back to her spot with her shoulders drooping.
Seri leaned in with a broad grin, as if to say, Don't worry, I'll handle this. Then she strode to the front with firm steps.
"Seri Flames, offensive mage, fire element," she declared, like a heroine announcing her entrance.
Gary raised a brow.
"A fire-elf mage… what a day this is turning out to be."
In the back, the light-elf girls giggled.
"Look, the little fire runt's about to start a campfire for us~ hohohoho~."
Seri ignored them. She summoned her staff, voice surprisingly deep for her small frame.
"Flame that purifies all…"
A magic circle spun into existence over the target. Then another, larger one that spread across the field.
"Bring your judgment upon those who dare disturb the peace…"
A third circle, massive, engulfed the entire area. Students began to back away nervously.
"Stop! Stop! Disrupt!" Gary snapped, raising his wand to shatter the circles with a flash of light.
Seri puffed her cheeks in a sulk, snapped her fingers, and muttered with feigned boredom:
"Baby Fireball…"
A tiny flame, so small it looked like it might fizzle out midair, shot forward—striking the bullseye dead center.
Seri turned, raised her hands above her head, and walked back as if nothing mattered in the slightest.
"Life's no fun if you won't let me play…"
Gary let out a sharp breath.
"You brat! You were about to burn the whole complex to the ground with that spell!"
The students erupted in whispers—some amazed, some disbelieving, and nobles fuming that a "pipsqueak" had shown such power.
"Next," Gary said, rubbing his temples.
The last to step up was Ayame. Calmly, she slipped a gohei from her sleeve.
"Ayame Tsukiko, mage of illusions, summons, and support. Elements: light and darkness."
A small portal shimmered open at her feet. From it, a pink rabbit with a single glowing horn hopped out.
"Summon: Clever Hare."
The class let out a collective gasp.
"So cute!"
"It looks like a pet…"
Ayame allowed herself the faintest smile.
"Enhancement Spell: Increase Magic."
A violet aura enveloped the rabbit, now brimming with energy.
"Now, Ni-chan! Thunderbolt!"
The hare leapt gracefully, its horn flashing. A bolt of lightning crashed onto the target, scorching it to blackened ash with a crackling explosion that left everyone gaping.
Gary, jaw half-open, coughed into his hand.
"Wow— I mean, ahem… good. Very good. That concludes the magic section."
Seri and Mirai ran to hug Ayame as the rabbit hopped back into the portal. The kitsune's cheeks flushed, though her smile betrayed her pride.
That day, more than a few students realized the timid "commoner girl" was far more than she appeared.