"Alright then, let’s do it that way."
Cassandra clapped her hands.
CLAP.
The ground rumbled.
Wooden scarecrows wearing pointed hats began to sprout from the cobblestones at regular intervals in the spacious square. Each one had a target painted on its chest and a mana sensor embedded in its head.
"I will personally check one by one if you are using scrolls properly," Cassandra announced. "The rest of you can start self-studying or preparing your scrolls while waiting for your turn. Alex... you just stand there and ditate, I suppose."
At Cassandra’s words, the students dispersed in order, heading toward their assigned practice zones.
Until then, there had been an obvious, burning gaze directed at . Of course, it was Ariana.
She stared at , her head shaking anxiously, her fists clenched at her sides. She looked frustrated, angry, and... maybe a little worried?
I snickered and turned to leave, intending to join my team.
"Hey. Alex."
I stopped. I turned my head slightly to look at her over my shoulder.
"I’ll see you later," Ariana said. Her voice was low, devoid of her usual fiery shouting.
I pondered for a mont, wondering what to reply. Was that a threat? A challenge? Or was she genuinely curious about how I planned to pull this off?
Ariana urged , her red eyes locking onto mine.
"I’ll see you later. Are you not going to answer?"
I looked at her. I thought about the "Villainess" role she played, the fierce rival who hated losing. And I thought about how much she must be fuming right now because I ignored her precious scrolls.
In the end, I couldn’t stand it.
"Pfft."
I burst into laughter.
"Hahaha!"
"W-What?!" Ariana flushed, stepping back. "Why are you laughing?!"
"Nothing," I said, waving my hand dismissively as I walked away. "I’ll see you later, Ariana. Try not to burn your own scroll."
I left her standing there, fuming, her face matching the color of her hair, and walked toward the gathering point for Group 11.
"You’re crazy," Martin whispered frantically as I arrived. He looked like he was about to hyperventilate. "You’re actually crazy. Do you know how dangerous dungeons are? You can lose your life because you wanted to show off..."
"Relax, Martin," I patted his shoulder, letting him feel the hard muscle of my arm flex under my uniform. It was a subtle flex, but effective. "Just watch."
Emily Frost stood nearby, silent as always, but her icy blue eyes were tracking with a hint of curiosity.
Suddenly, a scream cut through the plaza.
"Reena! Take your hands off the scroll right now!"
Professor Cassandra’s voice bood like thunder.
Heads snapped around instantly. Near the front, a female student nad Reena stood frozen. She looked terrified. In her hands, a partially unfolded scroll was glowing with an unstable, violent red light.
"I... I can’t... it’s stuck!" Reena cried.
WHOOSH.
Flas erupted from the parchnt, licking up her forearm.
"Ah.... Ahhh!"
Cassandra moved faster than thought. She flicked her wand, and a dense, blue mana barrier materialized around Reena’s arm, suffocating the flas before they could lt the girl’s skin.
Cassandra rushed over, her face grim. She snatched the charred remnants of the scroll from the sobbing girl.
"What are you trying to do with a volatile scroll by holding it in your hand?" Cassandra hissed, inspecting the fragnts. "Are you out of your mind?"
"I... I bought it..."
"Unquenchable Fla Scroll?" Cassandra’s eyes narrowed. "Where did a novice get a B-Rank military scroll? If you’re going to use dangerous magic, at least know the safety protocols!"
Reena was shaking so hard her knees knocked together. Her arm was red and blistered, though not permanently damaged thanks to the Professor.
"I need to take her to the infirmary," Cassandra muttered, loud enough for us to hear.
She turned to face the hundreds of students watching in stunned silence.
"Everyone, wait here. Don’t do anything stupid. I overestimated your competence."
"Ugh...."
Reena walked after Cassandra, trembling, face covered in tears and snot. As they disappeared around the corner of the building, the tension in the plaza broke.
And then, laughter erupted.
"Hah! What a joke," Ariana’s voice rang out, clear and cruel.
I turned to look. Ariana and her posse of high-ranking nobles were standing near the accident site.
"She’s just at a primitive level," Ariana sneered, flipping her hair. "Exactly. Whether you unfold the scroll or cast it, there’s nothing difficult about it. How did a clumsy idiot like that manage to get into the Academy?"
"She probably bought an expensive scroll to compensate for her lack of talent," one of her lackeys laughed. "Shall we take a look at what trash she brought?"
Muttering like that, Ariana reached out toward the charred scroll fragnts lying on the cobblestones.
"Just leave it."
The words left my mouth before I realized it. I couldn’t stand the act of touching soone else’s belongings—especially the remnants of their failure—without permission. It was low.
I quickly turned my head and looked at Ariana. I didn’t bother avoiding her gaze.
Ariana froze. She slowly pulled her hand back and turned to face .
"Look who it is," she smirked, her eyes dangerous. "Isn’t it Alex?"
She approached with large, confident strides. As she got closer, she scanned up and down, her eyes lingering on my new gear with disdain.
"Alex, your little speech earlier was really cool," she mocked, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "I almost fell for you. ’I won’t use scrolls.’ So heroic."
She turned to the crowd, spreading her arms.
"Hey, everyone! Did you hear? Alex, who entered with an F-rank in combat, thinks he can explore dungeons without a scroll! Is he planning to cheat again, just like he did in the weekly assessnt?"
"Hahaha!"
"A cheater and a show-off!"
Upon hearing that, the other students burst into laughter. It was the herd ntality—laugh at the weak to feel strong. They needed a scapegoat to relieve the tension caused by the accident, and the "Fallen Noble" was the perfect target.
I watched them laugh.
It was hard for to guess exactly what part was amusing. Was it my ambition? Or was it just that they couldn’t comprehend soone stepping out of line?
After thinking for a while, I finally deduced that Ariana and the other students simply considered a fraud. A cheater.
I wasn’t angry. I was just... amused by their low level.
"Pfft."
In the end, I couldn’t stand it and burst into laughter as well. A dry, cold laugh that cut through their mirth.
Ariana’s smile faltered. She tilted her head, unable to understand my reaction.
"What’s up? Why are you laughing? Do you finally realize how ridiculous you sound?"
"Ariana Flahart."
Looking into her sky-blue eyes, I quietly uttered her na. It wasn’t a question; it was a summons.
At the sa ti, I raised my index and middle fingers in the air.
"Well, why bother calling my na and all that... Hm?!"
Ariana Flahart couldn’t finish her sentence.
More precisely, I made sure she couldn’t finish it.
[Skill: Telekinesis (Low Grade)] [Target: Lips]
With a simple flex of my mana, I grabbed both of her lips.
It wasn’t a physical touch, but the sensation of my mana wrapping around her mouth felt... intimate. And quite dirty.
"Mmm... Mmm! Ugh!"
Ariana’s eyes widened in shock. Her hands flew to her face. She clawed at her own mouth, trying to pry her lips apart, but they were sealed shut as if glued by an invisible force.
"Mmph!!"
No matter how hard she tried, her lips wouldn’t budge. She looked ridiculous—the proud "Queen of Fire" silenced by a simple cantrip.
"... !"
She belatedly realized that this wasn’t a trick. It was force. She opened her eyes wide and glared at , her pupils trembling with murderous rage.
Let go! her eyes scread.
I had no intention of doing so.
Fortunately, Professor Cassandra had left the scene. There were no teachers to stop . And I had no intention of enduring her unpleasant noise any longer.
’Let’s give this arrogant noble lady a reality check,’ I thought coldly.
The students who had been laughing slowly fell silent. They alternated their gazes between —standing perfectly still with two fingers raised—and Ariana, who was struggling against thin air.
"Did... did Ariana get subdued?" "Isn’t that the case? She can’t open her mouth." "Is that... silent casting? Without a wand?"
Whispers of fear began to replace the mockery.
Around that ti, I felt my mana draining slightly. Telekinesis on a living target was inefficient.
I dropped my hand.
"Pah!"
Ariana gasped, stumbling back as her mouth finally opened. She rubbed her lips, her face turning from pale shock to a deep, violent crimson.
"Th-this... insane..."
Having regained her freedom, Ariana started burning up in anger. Literal heat waves began to radiate from her body. She approached with large, stomping strides.
By then, all the students were observing us with bated breath. Even Emily, who had been preoccupied with ignoring Martin, turned her gaze towards us.
"You crazy bastard!" Ariana shrieked, her voice cracking. "Why are you so cheap?! Using cheap tricks like that?!"
For a mont, I thought Ariana might have read my mind because her words perfectly matched what I was thinking about her.
I looked down at her with an expressionless face.
"Cheap?" I asked calmly. "It shut you up, didn’t it?"
The confrontation hung in the air like a guillotine blade. Ariana muttered sothing under her breath, her eyes never leaving mine.
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