The students who remained until the end reappeared at the academy gates in a flash of light.
Scarlett led her group toward their classroom, where the previously eliminated students were already waiting.
As Alex entered, he immediately spotted Marc sitting near the back. A smirk formed on his lips as he raised a finger and pointed mockingly at his friend.
Marc responded with an annoyed glare, then flipped him off with a grin.
When Alex sat beside him, he leaned closer and whispered, "Scarlett told me what happened. Sucks to suck, huh?"
"Hah, not like you'd have beaten that monster either. So screw off," Marc shot back—without even trying to whisper.
"Well, actually," Scarlett interjected smoothly from across the room, her tone playful, "Alex defeated an advanced-rank monster all by himself. Didn't even get hit once."
Since she was a Tier 2 mage, her hearing was sharp enough to catch their hushed conversation with ease.
The entire class turned toward them, murmurs breaking out like wildfire.
"What?!" Marc exclaimed, wide-eyed.
"Haha, skill issue, my friend," Alex teased, enjoying the reaction.
"Alright, alright, that's enough," Scarlett said, clapping her hands to restore order. The chatter died down as she stood in front of her desk, taking attendance before addressing the class.
"First of all, congratulations to those who lasted until the end. Secondly, for those eliminated before the test concluded, your grades will be based on the day you were eliminated—and for those eliminated on the same day, further ranking will depend on the number of monsters you killed."
Scarlett paced slowly back to her desk as she continued. "If the number of monsters you killed is significantly high, you might even outrank someone who lasted longer. I know the process sounds confusing, but in short—you're graded first by the number of kills, then by survival time."
"So, those who went on a rampage before being eliminated might surpass someone who spent their time hiding," she concluded, leaning casually against her desk.
She smiled faintly. "Anyway, that's all for now. You're dismissed. Go shower, rest, and remember—you have this week off to study. A month in the jungle probably made some of you forget the basics. If you've got questions, I'll be here during class hours. Now, shoo!"
She waved her hands, ushering the class out with mock impatience.
As Alex and Marc headed out, they ran into Tessa halfway down the corridor.
"Hey, Tessa," Alex greeted.
"Sup, girly," Marc added, earning an eye-roll.
"Hey, guys," she said warmly, then turned toward Marc. "Seems like you didn't take Alex's advice to heart, huh? How unfortunate."
Marc chuckled. "What can I say? I was having fun. Then I saw a monster, my blood boiled, I wanted to test myself—and, well, shit happened."
"Tell me, Tessa," he countered quickly, "did you also fight a Tier 2 monster?"
"Also?" Tessa raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah," Marc said, gesturing toward Alex. "Apparently, he fought one too—and regrettably, he won, as he stubbornly reminds me every 10 minutes."
"Really?!" Tessa exclaimed, surprised. It had only been a little over three months since the three of them had barely managed to take down a Tier 2 monster together.
"How did you even win?" she asked, her competitive spark lighting up. Until recently, she'd believed she was the strongest among them.
"I'll explain back at the dorm," Alex said simply. He wasn't eager to linger in the academy. The nobles he'd been keeping an eye on hadn't shown up lately—but that wouldn't last forever.
As they walked, Alex caught sight of the girl he had rescued in the jungle. Their eyes met briefly. Neither spoke—just a small, knowing nod passed between them.
Marc noticed and frowned. "Hey… aren't those your clothes, Alex?" As his roommate, he recognized the outfit immediately.
Tessa followed his gaze, realizing the girl was wearing men's clothes—clearly Alex's.
"Did you meet her during the test? Why's she wearing your stuff?" Marc asked in rapid succession.
Tessa looked at him expectantly, waiting for an answer.
"Home," Alex said simply, his tone serious, shutting down any more questions.
Once the trio reached the dorm, Alex sat in his usual chair, and Marc leaned against the wall, crossing his arms.
"Alright," Marc said, "now tell us what that was about."
Tessa nodded silently.
Alex sighed, leaning back. "I found her a few days after the test started—two, maybe three days after I defeated the salamander."
"Wait," Tessa interrupted, "you still haven't told us how you beat that Tier 2 monster!"
"Patience, Tessa. One thing at a time," Alex said with a half-smile before continuing. "So, as I was walking, I heard something from afar. When I got closer, I saw three nobles and one commoner… raping a girl."
Tessa's eyes widened, her hand instinctively covering her mouth.
"Motherfuckers!" Marc snapped, his face darkening. He clearly hadn't forgotten the girl from their previous encounter all that time ago.
"They deserve punishment," he growled.
Alex nodded calmly. "Hard, but at the same time, easy."
Tessa frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Hard," Alex explained, "because the teachers were avoiding the situation on purpose—so they wouldn't need to intervene."
"No way…" Tessa whispered. The academy's image in her mind took a hit.
Marc clenched his fists. "Fucking academy… And what do you mean 'easy' then?"
Alex's expression hardened. "Easy, because it's already done. I killed three of them. The girl killed the last one after she woke up. They won't bother anyone ever again."
Marc whistled lowly. "Well—shit." He was surprised by how casually Alex said it, as if it were just another task completed.
Tessa didn't speak. She just stared, speechless, at Alex's calm demeanor.
"Scarlett knows," Alex continued. "And she sided with me. Fabian knows too, and neither of them told the principal. So it's handled."
He looked at Tessa, doubtful, to see how she took the news.
Marc nodded and, seeing his friend look, understood what was on his mind, so he decided to shift the subject. "Alright, then tell us how you killed the Tier 2 monster without taking a single hit."
At those words, Tessa turned sharply toward Alex, eyes burning with competitiveness.
Alex chuckled softly. "Fine. I'll tell you."
He explained everything — how he stalked the creature, studied its habits, and prepared poisons. He described his plan to mix the toxin into his Water Spear, using the spell's precision to deliver the blow, then the following attack to kill it.
As he recalled the process, a sudden idea for a new spell sparked in his mind. But he pushed it aside for later and continued recounting the story.
When he finished, Marc frowned. "So… all that effort just to throw one poisoned spell? Isn't that kinda dumb?"
Tessa crossed her arms, silently disagreeing but curious to hear Alex's reasoning.
"Good question," Alex said. "But that's anachronistic. The idea to use poison like that came after my earlier plans failed. I had originally intended to fight it directly after poisoning the meat he ate—but to do that, I needed to understand it completely. That's why I learned everything I could first."
Tessa nodded slowly, understanding. "Makes sense. You adapted as you went."
She admired his logic — though, internally, she took the wrong lesson from it. 'So that's how you hunt something stronger…'
Even Scarlett had thought his methods bordered on madness.
The three of them kept talking until night fell. When Tessa finally left, Alex and Marc showered and went to bed.
The following days would be ones of constant study, well, at least for Marc, Alex didn't really forget any of the lessons they took, as his memory was especially good after all the he did for noting down the recipes from his dreams.