Time passed by in a flash, and evening soon fell.
In his private dorm room, Brand wore a visibly excited expression on his slightly pale face. Three sheets of Rune Paper lay neatly lined up on the workbench in front of him. Runes one through three had already been successfully drawn and arranged in order. The seasoned brushstrokes spoke volumes of the hard work and sweat poured into them.
There were, of course, a few empty test tubes of Awakening Potion sitting in the corner of the desk. Brand’s Spiritual Power wasn’t sufficient to draw three runes in a single day. But the moment he successfully finished the first one, he experienced a kind of "academic fulfillment" that only top students could truly understand. That wonderful feeling involuntarily intoxicated him. To make it last a little longer, he steeled his resolve and downed the Awakening Potion. Then, combined with his continuous practice in the Simulation World, he managed to learn and draw all three runes within a single day.
Since he had successfully drawn runes one through three, the final exams would no longer pose any obstacle to him from this moment onward. However, that wasn’t the most important part. The most important part was that Brand had completed his glorious transformation from an academic underachiever. All of this was the result of his relentless effort.
Hard work truly pays off! Brand experienced this truth profoundly. He felt as though his spirit had undergone yet another sublimation, bringing him one step closer to the seemingly unreachable realm of a Great Mage!
GRUMBLE.
Having focused entirely on the runes, he hadn’t eaten anything all day. At that moment, his stomach let out an untimely wail. However, being in high spirits, Brand didn’t fuss over such trivial matters. After tidying up his desk, he headed toward the academy cafeteria for the first time in a while.
For nobles, dining was socializing, which was why the academy cafeteria’s banquet hall hosted a feast every single night. Even though Brand, blessed with a handsome face, wasn’t opposed to making friends, the food in this world was simply dreadful. Because of this, he had eaten most of his previous dinners in the Simulation World. Undoubtedly, the Simulation World was also a real world, so eating there could actually fill his stomach!
Although the grand feasts in the Simulation World were far more delicious, Brand was currently eager to share the joy of his "academic success" with others. Despite usually staying cooped up in his dorm creating worlds, the socially adept (and incredibly dashing) Brand still had a few good friends! He was going to share with them the joy that hard work brings rewards!
***
Arriving at the academy cafeteria, Brand, dressed in elegant black noble attire, walked unhurriedly toward the banquet hall. Though it had been a long time since he last ate here, he still remembered the cafeteria’s layout clearly. The banquet hall for his year was the Priest Hall.
A motif resembling a hooded black cloak was imprinted on the lintel of the Priest Hall. It was said to represent a legendary Undead Divine Artifact: the Death Cloak. In truth, the Death Cloak had vanished hundreds of years ago along with the fall of the Undead Empire. As for why its image was stamped above the door... Brand figured it was probably just to show off a sense of style! After all, it was a Divine Artifact! Follow the newest chapters on novelping . com.
From the moment Brand stepped into the banquet hall, many people’s gazes converged on him. Socially savvy noble heirs never missed an opportunity to befriend anyone of value. Thus, everyone who entered the banquet hall drew their attention. If the person was deemed valuable, they would look for a chance to connect; if not, or if there was bad blood, they would ignore or avoid them.
While Brand wasn’t surprised by the looks cast his way, he grew somewhat puzzled when the number of staring eyes didn’t noticeably decrease after a short while. It should be noted that aside from people he knew, many of those staring were strangers—and quite a few of them were men!
This thoroughly bewildered him. At past banquets, those who paid attention to him, apart from familiar friends, were mostly women. Even though some nobles had rather messy private lives, they wouldn’t openly display it.
"Did something happen that I don’t know about?" he wondered.
By then, Brand had already picked up a crystal goblet, poured himself a small half-glass of sweet wine, and naturally made his way over to the noble circle of the Empire Southern Province.
Seeing his approach, a beautifully dressed lady immediately came up to greet him with enthusiasm. "Brand! I haven’t seen you in ages. What have you been busy with lately?"
It was one of his friends, Ave Robert, the second daughter of the Robert family, which was a staunch ally of the Holland family. She had always "favored" Brand quite a bit, but unfortunately, he only saw her as a good friend.
Seeing Ave walking toward him, Brand smiled and replied, "I’ve been busy dealing with the final exams lately. If I fail and get expelled, who knows how much Yelsen will scold me when I get back!"
The Robert family had always considered having Ave marry Yelsen to pull the two families closer. Even though both individuals involved had their own separate romantic interests, the younger generation of both families had become well-acquainted through repeated interactions. Hearing Brand mention Yelsen, Ave offered a faint smile and shared a funny anecdote about him. "Speaking of Yelsen, Lady Romine publicly rejected his invitation again not long ago. When we take our break and go home, we definitely have to use this opportunity to mock him relentlessly!" Follow the newest chapters on NovelPing.
"Oh? Tell me more!"
While Brand and Ave were chatting happily, quite a few people at the banquet began discussing Brand.
"Did you hear? This morning, Professor Morian had a very pleasant chat with Brand in the Alchemy Laboratory. Word is that he has an incredibly powerful Alchemy Talent, and Professor Morian is considering taking him on as a student."
"Brand? That handsome guy from the Southern Province?"
"Are you serious? It’s only the first semester, and Professor Morian is already starting to take on students?"
"This world is too unfair! It already gave him such stunning looks, and now it has to give him a powerful Alchemy Talent too?"
"Regardless, I’ve decided I need to make friends with Brand. Who knows, I might need his help in the future."
"Heh! Look around Brand right now. Where is there even any room for you?"
Not much time had passed, but quite a few people had already gathered around Brand, all of them beautifully dressed ladies.
While happily chatting with the women beside him, Brand vaguely felt as if someone was calling his name. However, the banquet hall was a bit noisy, so he wasn’t entirely sure if he had misheard. Recalling the gazes directed at him from all corners when he first walked in, Brand couldn’t help but ask the beautiful ladies beside him, "Did anything special happen recently? I feel like I’m getting a lot more stares than usual."