As I approached the classroom assigned to my class, I let out a quiet sigh, already hearing voices coming from inside. Slowly opening the door, I immediately noticed how every conversation within abruptly stopped. The moment the stufons saw the door open, silence descended over the room.
Stepping inside, I quickly glanced around. The classroom was a spacious semicircular hall with around twenty desks arranged in descending rows, allowing the professor, standing at the bottom, to easily observe the entire class.
Feeling countless gazes directed my way, I immediately headed for the back rows. Sitting in the front would hardly have been the wisest decision—too many eyes would be fixed on my back, and concentrating on the lesson in such an atmosphere would have been difficult.
This entire class consisted of the first-year elite. Among the stufons, I immediately noticed the dark elf girl who had stared at me thoughtfully for a while before eventually turning away. Beside her sat the light elf who had placed second in the entrance exams. I didn't remember either of their names, so without greeting anyone, I silently made my way to the back.
Even without turning around, I could feel the nervousness and faint fear radiating from my classmates. Trying to ignore their behavior, I shifted my gaze toward the window.
After some time, voices gradually returned to the classroom, though now far quieter than before. Ignoring those who occasionally turned to look at me, I continued staring at the early morning outside.
A few minutes later, the professor entered the room. To my surprise, she was human. It wasn't that humans were less talented than other races—far from it, they could easily stand on equal footing in terms of raw power. However, deep understanding of magic had never been considered humanity's strong suit.
The professor was rather short, with a slender figure clad in the academy's teaching uniform. Chestnut hair fell to her shoulders, while her blue eyes calmly swept across the room. She looked composed and confident as the stufons studied their new professor for the History of Magic course with visible curiosity.
Waiting until the interest in her appearance died down a little, the professor coughed twice and slowly scanned the entire class.
"My name is Kei, and I will be teaching you the History of Magic. This subject is optional, but every stufon should know how and after what events magic first came into existence in our world."
Her calm yet cold voice spread through the room. Just from her tone alone, it was obvious she took her discipline extremely seriously.
"The origin and emergence of magic in our world is shrouded in uncertainty. There are countless theories and assumptions regarding its source. There are two primary theories: the first claims that the ability to wield magic was granted to us by the gods, while the second suggests that magic is the lingering trace of beings who once lived, whose energy the living are able to sense and use."
After saying this, Kei fell silent for a moment, carefully observing the class.
"But like any theory, neither can be proven—unless one day evidence emerges in favor of one of these versions, which we will be discussing. Every race inhabiting our world has its own myths and legends. And within legends, as well as myths, there is always a small fragment of truth hidden."
After a brief pause, Kei continued.
"In the beginning, our ancestors did not understand what magic was or how to use it. Some walked the path of destruction, while others sought creation rather than ruin. This is how magic began dividing into different branches, which later influenced the development of the world during its formative era. Who can name the branches of magic that shaped its development?"
Kei swept her gaze across the room, searching for anyone willing to demonstrate their knowledge.
Seeing that no one was in any hurry to answer, Kei let out a heavy sigh. Apparently, just like in the other classes, no one here showed much interest in the History of Magic either. Most believed the past offered nothing useful for the present—especially when it came to theories about the origin of magic.
"Very well, since no one wishes to demonstrate their knowledge for free, let's do this instead. Anyone who correctly names a branch of magic that influenced its overall development will receive one hundred currency for one correct answer, and one hundred fifty for two correct answers."
Kei spoke with faint resignation.
Sweeping her eyes across the classroom and meeting the gazes of the stufons, she almost immediately noticed interest and hunger for easy currency ignite in their eyes.
At once, volunteers appeared eager to demonstrate their knowledge of magic's origins. Some openly spouted nonsense, citing bizarre myths passed down in the regions where they had grown up. Others tried to be clever, revealing only fragments of information while hoping to claim a reward for incomplete answers.
Watching all this, I could only mentally sympathize with Professor Kei. She literally had to pay stufons just to spark even the slightest interest in her subject.
Like any member of a noble family, I had a fair understanding of the branches into which magic had developed, but I chose not to display my knowledge. That would only raise even more questions about me—something I wanted to avoid for at least a little while longer.
The lecture went exactly as I had expected. Once Professor Kei rewarded the first stufon who managed to give a correct answer, the other nobles became visibly more lively and began actively showing off their knowledge.
Everyone was interested in earning currency, so time passed rather quickly. During that time, I even got to hear new myths and legends from various races—stories for which no information existed within the Empire of Krei. Some of these tales may have indeed contained a grain of truth, though most sounded no more than beautiful fiction.
When the bell rang, Professor Kei bid farewell to everyone and left the classroom.
I could already hear many people beginning to chat among themselves. Still, I had expected something like this—we were going to study together for another five years, assuming no one got expelled beforehand.
After sitting for another few minutes, I rose and headed for the exit. Feeling the stares on my back, I merely shook my head.
Leaving the classroom, I walked down the corridor toward the stairs, intending to head up to the next classroom where the following lesson would take place.
Once I reached the floor above, I immediately noticed it was far livelier here. stufons and professors moved everywhere, while the corridors buzzed with their usual murmur of conversations.
Glancing at the classroom numbers, I headed toward the left wing. As I walked, fragments of conversations about my duel with the two princesses two months ago occasionally reached my ears. Yet the moment the speakers noticed me, the discussion would instantly die.
As I got closer to the classroom, I noticed a large group of stufons gathered nearby in a semicircle. All of their attention was focused inward, toward the center of the crowd.
Curious, I stepped closer. My surprise was considerable when I heard an elf's voice. No one paid any attention to me, so I calmly stopped and began listening.
"He's probably been bothering you for the past two months after you lost to him. But don't worry. As soon as I advance to the next level of power, I'll challenge him and free you, Princess."
An irritated male voice rang out. The light elf stood with his back to me, apparently speaking to one of the princesses.
"He's right, though. Who would ever refuse a princess? And two at once, no less—especially ones that beautiful," the stufon standing beside me muttered.
I noticed how his gaze practically devoured whoever the elf was currently speaking to.
I could only assume it was either Samantha or Cassandra. By now, I had already become an enemy to most stufons, and the longer I listened to the conversations in this crowd, the more irritated I became at the way they painted me as the villain in this entire story.
Taking a deep breath, I began pushing my way toward the center of the crowd. Many initially turned around in annoyance, wanting to see who was forcing their way through, but the moment they saw me, they silently stepped aside, allowing me to pass before following me with wary gazes.
"I lost to him fairly, so I ask that you stop bringing up this subject if you don't wish to anger the Queen!"
Samantha's voice rang out. There wasn't even a trace of friendliness in her tone toward the person she was addressing.
As I moved closer, I was finally able to confirm my suspicions. Samantha really was standing at the center, with Cassandra beside her, watching the crowd with a bored expression.
Both were dressed in academy uniforms that emphasized their figures and curves, making it clearly difficult for many around them to tear their eyes away.
Shifting my attention to Samantha's conversation partner, I was finally able to get a good look at him. He was a tall light elf. Like many nobles, he had long pale-blue hair and wore a mage's uniform. I could only see his face partially, but even from his appearance and posture alone, it was easy to tell he belonged to the nobility and likely harbored feelings for Samantha.
"Even if you say he defeated you fairly, your bloodline will still be stained by that pathetic half-elf. I wouldn't be surprised if he won through some sort of trick. No one will believe a half-elf is capable of defeating two princesses."
The light elf spoke with even greater irritation. Anger toward this entire situation practically radiated from him.
Watching all this, I felt a headache beginning to form. I saw no point in trying to prove anything to this arrogant light elf—I'd only be giving myself an unnecessary migraine.
So I decided to simply let Samantha handle him herself. I would merely remember this elf in case he crossed my path again.
"Ke'lun, have you forgotten who you're speaking to? I can remind you of your place if you do not apologize and take back your words immediately."
Samantha spoke in a metallic voice, her gaze locked onto his eyes as she clearly awaited an answer.
The light elf, apparently named Ke'lun, visibly flinched. Lowering his head, he bowed to Samantha and Cassandra before preparing to leave.
However, the moment he turned around, he unexpectedly saw me.
His face immediately twisted with contempt, but he wisely remained silent and simply walked past me.
After that, Samantha and Cassandra began preparing to leave as well, but I decided to call out to them, wanting to learn more about what was happening.
Hearing my voice, both princesses stopped and simultaneously turned toward the source.
"Hi, dea... Trey, how long have you been standing there?"
It was obvious from Samantha's face that she had been trying to say "dear," but her embarrassment prevented her from finishing the word.