"Let's continue."
In the Black Night Academy training grounds, the blonde instructor, Wells, raised his arm. Black mist coalesced into a disc-shaped magic circle as he lectured his students.
"The [Berserk] spell is a common Tier-1 spell. The standard elemental ratio is 6 parts Dark Element and 4 parts Fire Element.
Because it's easy to destabilize on your first try, I recommend lowering the Fire ratio initially and investing more Spirit to maintain it..."
Just as Wells was about to demonstrate further, a voice piped up from the back:
"Why not try adding 0.1 parts Water Element to neutralize it?"
Wells frowned and turned to stare at Karion.
"Oh, my bad, my bad. Please continue!" Karion waved his hand, laughing it off.
Wells expanded the magic circle in his hand and continued:
"Now for the structure. You can see from the runes that Fire is inscribed inside, while Dark is on the outside. We use Spirit to glue them together. This ensures concentrated effect and prevents the circle from going haywire..."
"But if you do that, a single [Holy Light Mark] will completely wreck the circle..." Karion couldn't help but interrupt again.
Wells whipped his head around, glaring at Karion. His voice dropped an octave.
"You want to teach the class?"
The anger was palpable.
As a teacher, the most annoying thing is having a backseat driver critiquing your lecture.
Karion covered his mouth and shook his head frantically.
"So sorry! Bad habit of mine. I won't say another word!"
Wells took a deep breath. Think of the gold coin. Think of the gold coin.
He decided not to kick Karion out and continued the lesson.
For the rest of the class, Karion sat quietly like a good boy, leeching mana until the 90-minute session ended.
Checking his teleport bead, Karion sighed.
Compared to the "Full Battery" state before, it was only 33% charged.
He clenched his fist. Grindset mindset on.
Graduation exams were in three months. If Red Leaf Academy came in last again, it was Game Over. The school would be shut down.
He had to secure enough resources for his students to clutch the win.
If saving the school meant losing some face? Worth it.
After calming himself down, he ran off to other academies to "audit" their classes and leech mana.
That day, across the various campuses of Palos Magic School, a grey-curly-haired young man could be seen loitering everywhere.
Some nice teachers like Wells tolerated him.
Others? They literally cast [Thunder Circle] to chase him away.
Some even released the hounds!
By evening, Karion returned to Red Leaf Academy, looking like he'd been dragged through a hedge backward.
But his teleport bead was Fully Charged.
Tomorrow, he goes to the capital, Adri City.
Black Night Academy, Faculty Dorms.
Wells Piero lay in bed, tossing and turning.
He couldn't sleep. The more he thought about Karion's interruptions, the angrier he got.
I am a certified Intermediate Instructor, a Tier-4 Magister! Who is HE to lecture ME? He's just a Junior Instructor who can't even cast spells!
I graduated from the Royal Ole University, majoring in Dark Magic Pedagogy! Does he think he knows more about basic spells than me?
What a joke!
"Forget it. Sleep!"
He pulled the blanket over his head.
But the moment he closed his eyes, Karion's words echoed in his brain:
"A single [Holy Light Mark] will completely wreck the [Berserk] circle..."
"ARGH! I can't take it!"
Wells sat up abruptly. His left hand snapped open, conjuring a [Berserk] circle.
"The standard [Berserk] circle is rock solid! How could a measly [Holy Light Mark] break it?!"
To prove himself right, he conjured a [Holy Light] circle with his right hand and flicked a tiny speck of light at his left hand.
The moment the light hit the [Berserk] circle...
Crack.
The outer layer of Dark Element went chaotic and tore open.
The Fire Element inside exploded out.
Wells dispelled the magic just in time, but his palm still got singed.
He stared at his hand, jaw on the floor.
"No way..."
This shattered his entire worldview.
How could a tiny bit of Holy Light cause such massive damage?
"Wait. It's not the Holy Light... it's the circle itself!"
He remembered Karion's other comment:
"Why not try adding 0.1 parts Water Element to neutralize it?"
Water?
In such a tiny amount? What would that do?
Skeptical but curious, Wells conjured the [Berserk] circle again. This time, he carefully wove a thin thread of Water Element between the Dark and Fire runes.
The amount was so small it didn't affect the spell's power.
Then, he flicked another [Holy Light Mark] at it.
Hum.
The circle vibrated slightly... and then stabilized.
Looking at the rock-solid magic circle in his hand, Wells fell into deep, deep thought.
Mind. Blown.
The Next Day.
Red Leaf Academy.
Karion woke up rubbing his sore shoulder.
He took a tumble yesterday while parkouring over a wall to escape a dog.
Just a scratch.
He washed up and walked to his desk, spreading out a map.
He borrowed it from the main library yesterday. After some late-night calculations, he had the coordinates for the capital.
One coordinate unit ≈ 3 kilometers.
Of course, he wasn't going to teleport directly into the city center. Too many people.
He chose a spot in a plantation forest on the outskirts of the capital to the east.
It was secluded, and since it was an artificial forest, no monsters.
He put on a disguise and shouldered his backpack full of White Leaf Orchids.
Input Coordinates: (-325, 293).
Zip.
One second later, he was over 1,000 kilometers away.
He landed and immediately ducked for cover.
Coast is clear.
He checked his map, oriented himself, and headed toward a nearby suburban town.
He was still 20km from the capital. Walking would take all day, so he planned to grab a carriage (Uber).
An hour later, he reached the town and hired a carriage.
Luckily, the original Karion had lived in the capital for a few years, so he didn't have a countryside accent.
In this world, locals bullying outsiders was basically a sport.
Two hours later, he arrived in Adri City.
Relying on his old memories, Karion headed straight for the Mage Trade Market.
Being cautious, he scouted around for a while before picking a herb shop.
"Welcome!"
The shopkeeper was a fat middle-aged man. He gave a polite but indifferent greeting.
He couldn't sense any mana from Karion, so he assumed he was a nobody.
Karion walked up to the counter, slid a wooden box forward, and said coolly:
"Selling herbs."
"Right, one moment."
The shopkeeper yawned lazily. Business is business, even if it's small.
He flipped open the lid.
His eyes instantly popped open.
"White Leaf Orchids?!"