"Ughh! My head"
"Teacher, next time, don't hit my head so hard. What are you going to do if I suddenly become stupid?"
Groaning in pain, Adrian, who had just woken up, wryly curled his lips as he recalled what had just happened.
In the Valemont house, as a noble house in the Velyian empire, from the day they were born till they turned eighteen, each child from the main house was appointed a teacher who oversaw their training.
And the fiery woman in front of him was none other than his appointed teacher.
A woman who was not much spoken about in the original novel, perhaps she died sometime during he fall of the house.
Perhaps she was even killed before that.
However, one thing that Adrian was sure was about was that regardless of what happened in the future, in these past twelve years, he could feel that she genuinely cared and worried about him.
*In this life, even my father, due to his status as head of the house, barely paid me any attention; my siblings their all busy trying to compete for the potential head of the house by scheming and making alliances*
*had it not been for the rules of no infighting in the house, they might have already eliminated me by now, their lazy older brother*
*In this life, only my mother and teacher have been genuinely there for me, always wanting the best*
*Speaking of which, wasn't the teacher a hunter on mothers team before she married into the Valemont family?*
Lost in thought, his mind suddenly began to wander as he wondered what kind of life his mother had lived before marriage.
In the novel 'a Hero Returns', there wasn't any spin-off yet, so a lot of side characters weren't really developed, making his knowledge of the plot useless in times like this.
Trying to recall more knowledge from the original plot to see if he could find any clues, Adrian folded his arms, his back still resting against the tree as his mind wandered.
However, before he could think more, a familiar rise in temperature suddenly occurred.
"Oh? Look who decided to wake up after taking a nap. Could it be my fist earlier was too light?" said a voice full of playful anger
Hearing this, beads of sweat dripped down Adrian's forehead.
"Ha ha, teacher, of course not. I was just thinking about how much I couldn't wait to learn from you before my awakening."
Laughing nervously, Adrian smiled, his nose pointed towards the sky, eyes closed, and teeth clenched as he awaited another punch.
But much to his surprise, not only was he not punched, but accompanied by a warm rub on his head, messing up his hair, Maelis sat directly in front of him, smiling at him, a hint of worry on her face.
"Relax, my foolish disciple, does your teacher seem like a violent person who always answers all problems with her fist?" she asked.
Adrian, hearing this, couldn't help but want to roll his eyes. Was this a trick question? Who among the people at her level was nicknamed the walking natural disaster?
However, as a good student who still wanted to live, Adrian knew he obviously couldn't say that.
Rather with a smile so fake it made the scammers downtown look like honest men, Adrian replied without showing any extra emotions.
"Ha ha, obviously not! My master is the calmest and level-headed person in the worl-!"
*Bang!*
Before he could finish speaking, another punch landed on his head, making him unable to react.
"Alright, alright, that's enough flattery. Let's get down to business," not giving him a chance to reply, from a small pouch tied to her waist, Maelis brought out a small book and a pair of glasses which she wore, instantly entering teacher mode.
"Adrian, regardless of how lazy you are, you must acknowledge that for most people in the world, today is a day that determines your fate going forward."
"All our training, all our studies, they all lead up to your life after today. So today is one day you cannot afford to be lazy!"
Staring deep into Adrian's eyes, among the anger and preaching, he could sense a deep concern and regret in her tone. And although he wanted to ask her what happened, he knew this wasn't the time.
Rather, he instantly sat up, showing his seriousness, and erasing all signs of laziness like before.
A move which made her lips curl upwards with delight
*Sigh.. this disciple of mine, if only I were around on 'that' night, then perhaps today wouldn't have been so sad*
*Perhaps I wouldn't be so helpless like I am now….*
Muttering under her breath, Maelis quickly turned her attention back to Adrian and began her last round of teaching before the awakening ceremony began.
"In this world, as you know, there exists a kind of energy that exists in the air called ambient mana or aur.a"
"This mana allows us humans to awaken all kinds of strange abilities and powers, just like your flame creation and manipulation".
"Not only that, but by using special techniques, even ordinary people who don't awaken abilities, using mana can still possess extraordinary abilities no less than those awakened by becoming knights and mages."
As she said that, Maelis gave him a quick glance, making the quick-witted Adrain's heart skip for a bit before continuing her explanation.
"Unfortunately, because of this mana in the air, under the forces of desire and negative emotions, the existence called monsters and demons came into the world."
"Starting from the lowest F-rank monsters, which can be killed by ten or more well-equipped regular people, to S-level monsters, which can single-handedly destroy whole empires"
"As for higher levels, currently there is no evidence that they exist, but if they did, theory suggests that it could be a world-destroying event."
The "same can be said with dungeons as different from regular monsters in the wild, these special spaces that exist in the world, with the highest rank monster as a guardian, these spaces, if not cleared regularly, can break, releasing all the monsters inside to the world.
"Now, my discipline, hearing this, tell me what you understand by dungeons, mana, and monsters, and how this affects your awakening," said Maelis as she checked the time on her watch.
Thirty minutes, They had thirty minutes more till the ceremony started!