First Magic Academy, Academic Building.
The westernmost corner of the thirty-third floor.
‘Talk about a reality check…’ Asher’s mouth twitched as he stared at the room in front of him.
It had obviously been converted from a cramped storage closet.
The paint spelling out “Year Two, Class 18” on the front door wasn’t even dry yet.
‘Whatever.
I just need to endure this for a month.
After that, no one will ever look down on Class 18 again.’
After the incident with Drake, his worldview had crystallized.
Even though this was an academy, the hierarchy was even more brutal than the outside world.
Raw power was the only currency that mattered.
Rather than whining about the unfairness of it all, he just needed to flex his strength and force everyone to respect him.
With a loud creak, Asher pushed the door open and stepped inside.
The room was tiny, but since it only held three desks, it actually felt somewhat spacious.
The names Chloe, Claire, and Luna were freshly carved into the wooden desks—the sole three students of Class 18.
‘I wonder if the twins will even show up today.’ Seeing their names reminded him of the little speech they had given before storming off yesterday, and he couldn’t help but shake his head.
Since their family was one of Magnolia’s Six Great Families, they had the wealth and influence to hire an elite private tutor.
The problem was, Asher didn’t believe anyone else in the world could see the twins’ true potential.
And even if someone somehow did, there was no way they could trigger a secondary—let alone a tertiary—magic evolution!
According to Earthland’s recorded history, secondary magic awakenings did exist, but they were astronomically rare.
Based on the few documented cases, it was purely a matter of blind luck.
The triggers were completely unpredictable—some evolved during life-or-death battles, some during deep meditation, and a few had even evolved while fast asleep.
But every single recorded instance had only involved magic below the A-Class tier.
Furthermore, a mage could only undergo an evolution once in their entire lifetime, and the jump was always restricted to a single grade.
In other words, without his help, Chloe and Claire were doomed to be stuck with F-Class magic forever!
‘Ugh, what a headache.’ Asher rubbed his temples in exasperation.
He knew the twins didn’t trust him right now.
But he was confident that once he showed them Luna’s progress, they would completely change their tune.
Luna’s advancement alone had propelled him from Tier Three, Level One all the way to Level Three.
It had even evolved his C-Class magic into a B-Class powerhouse, instantly turning him into someone who could swat Drake away like a fly.
Sure, Drake was only considered average among the Level Two instructors, but this was just the beginning.
If he could guide Chloe and Claire to level up at the same time… becoming a Level Three instructor wouldn’t just be a dream!
Of course, all of that relied on the twins actually showing up to class.
*Buzz.
Buzz.*
His smartwatch vibrated, snapping him out of his thoughts.
Two new text messages.
Seeing the sender IDs, Asher’s chest tightened.
A very bad feeling washed over him.
Sure enough, the moment he opened the texts, his face completely darkened.
Chloe: [Old man, family matters came up.
I’ve decided to take a one-month leave of absence.
That’s all.
Bye.]
Staring at the screen, Asher could practically see the purple-haired girl crossing her arms and delivering the line with her signature haughty glare.
Gritting his teeth, he opened the second message.
Claire: [Hey handsome!
The family hired a retired Level Three instructor for me and my sister.
We’re going to stay home and do some hardcore closed-door training this month.
Don’t worry, we’ll work super hard to pass the exams!
ヽ( ^ω^ ゞ )]
‘I knew it…’
Asher’s vision practically went black.
His worst fear had come true.
If he was still the old, pathetic Asher, the twins’ actions would actually be incredibly heartwarming.
They were trying to protect his job without dragging him down.
The problem was, he was completely overpowered now!
They were ruining his plans!
Just as Asher was wallowing in despair, the classroom door creaked open again.
Luna stepped inside, wearing a flowing white dress that perfectly highlighted her elegant aura.
With her slender neck and long, pale legs, she looked as graceful as a swan.
“Good morning, Master.” Seeing Asher already waiting in the classroom, her eyes curved into happy little crescents.
Even though they had only known each other for a day, she already trusted him implicitly.
“You’re here early,” Asher said, pushing his frustration aside to offer her a warm smile.
The Year Two Combat Prep classes didn’t have early morning study sessions; classes officially started at nine.
It wasn’t even eight o’clock yet.
She was over an hour early.
“I woke up a bit early, and I didn’t really have anything to do at home, so…” Luna trailed off, fidgeting with the hem of her skirt.
She looked incredibly embarrassed.
Asher frowned, then suddenly slapped his forehead.
“You woke up starving again, didn’t you?!”
Luna housed the dormant SSS-Class **[World-Devouring Behemoth]** within her body.
The sheer volume of energy required for a full awakening was astronomical.
Before yesterday, she had managed to suppress her instincts just barely enough to function.
But after tearing into that Iron-Spine Boar leg, she had officially tasted blood.
There was no way she could suppress it anymore.
“Mhm,” Luna hummed, her face flushing bright red as she stared at the floor.
In the past, the hunger had just woken her up.
But last night, after eating that boar meat, she had been so ravenous she couldn’t sleep a single wink!
Not wanting to bother Asher in the middle of the night, she had stubbornly endured it until morning.
“That’s my fault.
Come on, I’m taking you to the cafeteria.
We’re getting you fed before class starts,” Asher declared.
Without taking no for an answer, he grabbed her wrist and marched her straight toward the dining hall.
…
Academy Cafeteria Two.
The First Magic Academy had two dining halls.
Cafeteria One provided basic nutritional meals completely free of charge to both students and staff.
Cafeteria Two was the premium dining hall, offering a massive variety of high-end dishes.
Naturally, the most valuable items on the menu were the dishes made from magical beast meat.
Magical beast meat was packed with unique ethernano energy, which allowed mages to rapidly replenish their stamina and magic reserves.
However, everything in this cafeteria cost Jewels.
Thankfully, as an instructor at the academy, Asher received an automatic fifty-percent discount.
That discount was no joke—it made eating here astronomically cheaper than dining out in the city.
It was one of the few genuine perks of the job.
“Chef!
You got any Iron-Spine Boar legs left?” Asher shouted as he approached the premium meat counter.
“Give me three—no, make it five!”
“Yes, I’m sure!”
“Medium-rare.”
“Yes, I’m absolutely sure!”
“And throw in ten pounds of Golden-Horned Rhino meat.
Yeah, medium-rare on that, too.”
It was still early, so the cafeteria wasn’t packed yet.
Even so, Asher’s massive order drew plenty of stares from the surrounding tables.
He was ordering an absolutely obscene amount of meat.
It was eight in the morning!
Who on earth could stomach that much heavy food so early?
They would literally eat themselves to death!
“Isn’t that Instructor Asher from the Year Two Combat Prep?” a teacher whispered loudly.
“Why is he ordering all that?”
“No idea.
I heard the idiot took in two F-Class students just to suck up to Director Diana.
Maybe the regret finally set in and he’s trying to eat himself to death?”
“Who knows?
I just want to see how he manages to shove all that down his throat.”
The head chef moved with seasoned efficiency.
Asher didn’t have to wait long before the mountain of meat was perfectly seared and plated.
Under the baffled gazes of the entire cafeteria, Asher balanced massive plates of boar legs in both hands and held a platter of rhino meat in his teeth.
He waddled over to the table where Luna was nervously fidgeting in her seat.
Dropping the feast in front of her, he flashed a massive grin.
“Eat up!
If it’s not enough, we’ll just order more.”