Celestial Gardens Complex, home.
‘Whoa… it can even analyze the flaws of magical plants!’
Staring at the translucent holographic screen floating in front of him, Asher’s lips curled into a smirk.
The system description for **[Insight]** had stated it could perceive the flaws in all things, but actually experiencing it firsthand made him realize just how insanely overpowered this ability was.
As the son of a magical plant merchant, Asher had practically grown up surrounded by the stuff.
Magical plants were graded on a system very similar to mages.
The lowest tier was Tier One, Low-Grade, while the absolute pinnacle was Tier Nine, Peak-Grade.
Of course, a Tier Nine plant was practically a holy relic.
Rumor had it they even developed their own consciousness.
A low-end merchant family like his wouldn’t catch a glimpse of one in eight lifetimes.
The most expensive flora they sold capped out at Tier Three, High-Grade.
They had never even touched a Tier Four.
Plants at Tier Four and above underwent a qualitative evolution, and their market value was easily ten times higher than a Tier Three!
Without an S-Class Transcendent Mage in the family to protect their assets, they simply couldn’t handle that kind of high-stakes business anyway.
But trading lower-tier plants wasn’t a walk in the park, either.
Cultivating a magic seed from a sprout into maturity was a notoriously tedious process.
Every single species had its own unique growth habits and environmental needs.
If you made even the slightest mistake, the seedling would just instantly wither up and die on you.
And even if you miraculously nursed it to maturity, you still couldn’t let your guard down.
Things like mana-aphid infestations, dark-rot, and witherblight were constant threats.
In short, the casualty rate for magical plants was astronomically high, and curing a diseased plant was nearly impossible.
The Tier Three, Mid-Grade Fluorescent Vine sitting right in front of him was worth at least 10,000 Jewels—almost an entire month of his salary.
But if he could see exactly what was wrong with it…
“Son!
You’re up early.
I already made breakfast.
Check if it’s still warm!” Arthur’s booming voice snapped Asher out of his thoughts.
“It’s not cold, it’s perfect,” Asher replied, casually grabbing an egg pancake and shoving it into his mouth.
His eyes, however, stayed glued to the Fluorescent Vine on the table.
“What’s the deal with this?”
Arthur glanced at the potted plant, his face immediately scrunching up like a bitter melon.
“Ugh, don’t even bring it up.
Such a beautiful Tier Three, Mid-Grade Fluorescent Vine.
The buyer already paid the deposit and was supposed to pick it up tomorrow, but out of nowhere, it caught some kind of sickness.
I’m going to take a massive loss.
A total loss!”
At the mere mention of losing money, Arthur let out a string of heavy sighs, looking like he was on the verge of tears.
“Oh.” Asher chewed on his pancake, a thoughtful look crossing his face.
He quickly scarfed down the rest of his food, glanced at the clock, and stood up.
“I’ve got things to do at the academy.
I’m heading out.”
He grabbed his coat and pulled the front door open.
Just a second before stepping out, he glanced back at his dad.
“By the way… since that Fluorescent Vine is on its last legs anyway, maybe throwing it in direct sunlight for a while will do the trick.”
With a sharp *click*, the door shut behind him, leaving a completely dumbfounded Arthur standing in the living room.
“Direct sunlight?
It’s a Fluorescent Vine, not a Sun-Facing Sunflower…” Arthur muttered, clearly highly skeptical of Asher’s advice.
He had been cultivating magical plants for years; no one knew how to raise them better than he did.
But after standing there for a few seconds, Arthur quietly picked up the potted vine and carried it over to a sunny spot by the window.
“Well, it’s a goner anyway.
Might as well give it a try.
Then, the next time that brat comes home, I can relentlessly mock him for his terrible advice!
I’m a genius!
Ha!”
…
Magnolia City, First Magic Academy.
The Logistics Department.
By the time Asher arrived, there was already a small line of people ahead of him.
This year, there were exactly eighteen Practical Combat Prep Classes, which meant eighteen designated instructors.
Today was the official first day of the semester, and every prep class instructor was required to collect their class’s monthly cultivation resources.
The reason it was distributed on a monthly basis was simple: next month, resources would be allocated strictly according to the class rankings.
For this first month, every instructor’s sole objective was to boost their students’ combat power as much as humanly possible!
Everything was for the sake of the Practical Combat Exams in six months.
Power was everything.
Results were the only currency that mattered.
Naturally, the instructors were highly motivated.
A student wasn’t just a reflection of their teacher’s pride; they were the direct metric for an instructor’s career advancement.
Salaries, social standing, and personal resources were entirely tied to teaching performance.
Instructors who reliably produced top-tier students and maintained high university admission rates were promoted at breakneck speeds.
Director Diana, for instance, had achieved an eighty percent university admission rate with her prep classes for two consecutive years.
That was the only reason she had managed to skip ranks and become the Director of Discipline at such a young age.
“I’m Asher.
I’m here to collect this month’s resources for my prep class.” Asher had arrived relatively early, so it took less than five minutes for him to reach the front of the line.
Hearing the name “Asher,” the logistics administrator at the counter clearly flinched.
He looked up, giving Asher a deeply weird, judgmental stare.
Asher’s jaw-dropping stunt the day before had already spread through the entire academy like wildfire.
Even the logistics staff had heard the gossip.
The idiot who picked two F-Class girls just to score points with Director Diana!
It was such an astronomically stupid move that no one could believe a sane person had actually done it.
“What?
Is there a problem?” Asher asked, playing dumb while letting out an internal sigh.
‘Great.
I’m officially infamous across the entire campus.’ The worst part was that he couldn’t even defend himself.
He was forced to suffer in silence while everyone completely misunderstood his genius.
“N-No, nothing at all,” the administrator chuckled awkwardly, quickly glancing down at his clipboard.
“You are assigned to Class 18.
There are three students in your roster: Luna, Chloe, and Claire.
Is that correct?”
Class 18, huh?
Dead last.
Asher’s mouth twitched.
“That’s correct.”
“Alright.
Here are nine Tier One Mana Potions, three Tier One Library Access Tokens, and three 10-Hour Tier One Gravity Room passes.
Please confirm receipt.” The administrator efficiently packed the items into a standard-issue duffel bag and slid it across the counter.
“Thanks.” Taking the bag, Asher couldn’t help but click his tongue.
As expected, the initial baseline resources provided by the academy were pitiful.
Setting aside the library tokens used to select breathing techniques and combat spells, Tier One Mana Potions weren’t even expensive—and they only got three per student for the whole month!
And the Gravity Room passes?
Ten hours per student for an entire month averaged out to less than twenty minutes a day.
It was incredibly stingy!
Still, Asher understood the school’s logic.
Academy resources were limited, and this first month was basically a screening phase to identify which classes deserved heavy investment.
Even though this was his first time leading a prep class, he knew how the system worked.
By the second month, the resources allocated to the number one ranked class would be more than ten times higher than the last-place class—per student!
‘Sigh.
Just as I thought.
In this world, only raw power talks,’ Asher mused to himself.
He slung the duffel bag over his shoulder and turned to leave.
He already had a solid plan in mind for how to rapidly boost Luna’s strength.
However, he barely made it a few steps before a mocking, condescending voice called out from nearby.
“Well, well!
If it isn’t Instructor Asher, the First Magic Academy’s most hopeless romantic!
Haha!
Don’t be in such a rush to leave!
Why don’t you stick around and share some of your simping secrets with the rest of us?”