After the break she continued.
She turned back to the board and flicked her wrist. The projection shifted again.
[SKILL MASTERY SYSTEM]
"Now," she said, "we talk about skills."
The room quieted.
"Every skill you possess has something called mastery levels. These range from Level 1… to theoretically infinity."
A few students blinked.
"In practice," she added dryly, "your lifespan will end long before infinity becomes relevant."
Some nervous laughter followed.
"Mana, by itself, is formless," Professor Avery continued. "It is power without structure. Skills exist to give mana shape — to turn raw energy into damage, control, or effect."
She tapped the board again.
[BASE SKILL OUTPUT]
"Skill mastery represents how well you understand and control that shaping process."
She glanced over the hall.
"If a skill at base level consumes 10 mana to deal 100 damage…"
The projection updated.
Mastery Level 1 → Damage Multiplier: x2
"…then at Level 1 mastery, the same 10 mana produces 200 damage."
A murmur ran through the students.
She changed the slide again.
Mastery Level 2 → Damage Multiplier: x3
"At Level 2 mastery, that becomes 300 damage."
Another flick.
Mastery Level 3 → Damage Multiplier: x4
"And so on."
A student near the back raised his hand. "Professor… what's the highest mastery level ever recorded?"
Professor Avery didn't hesitate.
"Level 99."
The room exploded into whispers.
"A fifth-class professional achieved it," she continued. "One of the old War Gods. But understand this—"
Her gaze sharpened.
"For every mastery level, the proficiency points required increase exponentially."
She drew a rising curve in the air.
"Going from Level 1 to 2 is easy. From 10 to 11 is painful. From 50 to 51 is something only monsters in human skin can manage."
Her tone cooled.
"Train within your limits. Obsession with mastery has killed more awakeners than demons."
The projection shifted again.
[DUNGEON MECHANISMS]
"Now, dungeons."
Several students straightened.
"Not all dungeons follow standard combat rules," she said. "Some operate under special conditions."
The first example appeared.
Immortal-Type Dungeon
"In these," she explained, "death inside the dungeon does not mean true death. Instead, you are expelled and resurrected outside with full health."
A student frowned. "So… there's no risk?"
Professor Avery's lips curved slightly. "You are then banned from reentering that dungeon for a fixed time. And the pain still happens. Consider it training without permanent loss — not safety."
Next slide.
Auto-Harvest Dungeon
"These automatically collect materials and loot upon monster death. Useful for production teams and logistics."
Another slide.
High-Drop Dungeon
"Increased drop rates. In these environments, even normal monsters may drop equipment or skill items."
A few greedy expressions appeared.
"And finally," she said, "special rule dungeons may impose conditions such as…"
Restricted Skills Limited Mana Time Compression Forced Teaming Single-Life Mode
She let the list hang.
"You will not be warned which rule applies until entry."
Silence returned.
"Which is why," Professor Avery said calmly, "you do not assume every dungeon plays fair."
She turned off the projection.
"That concludes today's lecture."
Chairs scraped. Voices rose.
Zael stood with Lily and Zane, mind still digesting the numbers.
Skill mastery…
So damage wasn't just about stats.
It was understanding.
Control.
Compression.
No wonder the demon general had felt untouchable.
Professor Avery's voice cut through the noise.
"Zane. Zael. Lily."
They froze.
She gestured to them — and to several others nearby.
"Remain behind."
The hall slowly emptied, leaving only a small cluster of students standing uncertainly before her.
Damien whispered to Felix, "Why do I feel like we're about to die?"
Felix swallowed. "I think this is how legends start."
Professor Avery folded her arms, studying the selected group with unreadable eyes.
The door slid shut behind the last student.
And whatever came next…
Professor Avery waited until the doors fully sealed.
Only then did she speak.
"What I'm about to say does not leave this room."
The joking expressions vanished instantly.
Her gaze moved across them one by one—Zane, Zael, Lily, Damien, Felix, and three others whose auras marked them as top-tier freshmen.
"You were selected," she said, "because the authorities reviewed the national trial footage."
Lily stiffened.
Zael's fingers curled slightly.
Zane's eyes narrowed.
"The dungeon breach," Professor Avery continued, "changed things. The assault by a demon general is not an accident. It means the front lines are no longer secure."
She tapped the floor once with her heel.
"So the authorities have approved something they have avoided for decades."
The air felt heavier.
"A training camp," she said. "Joint. National. Hidden."
Damien blinked. "Hidden… as in… secret?"
"As in officially," she replied coolly, "you will be attending university like normal students."
Felix frowned. "But actually?"
"You will be transferred to a sealed training ground designed for accelerated growth and live-combat conditioning."
Zael's eyes sharpened. "All of us?"
"No," Professor Avery said. "Only those flagged as future pillars."
She looked directly at Zael when she said that.
Then at Zane.
Then Lily.
"You will be training alongside the strongest young awakeners from every province," she continued. "Some of them are already stronger than you. Others will become so."
Lily swallowed. "Is this… because of the demon?"
"Yes," Professor Avery said bluntly. "And because you survived him."
Silence followed.
Damien forced a laugh. "So… we're being drafted?"
"You are being prepared," she corrected. "There is a difference."
Zael finally spoke.
"When?"
Professor Avery didn't hesitate.
"Two days."
Zane leaned back slightly. "That fast."
"The battlefield doesn't wait for semesters," she replied.
Felix raised a timid hand. "And… if we say no?"
Her gaze turned cold.
"Then you return to normal classes. And when the next breach happens, you die with everyone else."
That answer crushed any remaining doubt.
Lily looked down at her hands.
Zael felt the weight settle in his chest—not fear…
Resolve.
"Where is it?" Zane asked.
"Classified," Professor Avery said. "You will be escorted. You will not know the route. You will not contact anyone outside."
She paused.
"And from the moment you leave this campus…"
Her eyes hardened.
"…you stop being students."
The words rang like a bell.
"Get ready," she finished. "Physically. Mentally. Emotionally."
She turned toward the exit.
"Two days."
The doors slid open.
They walked out in silence.
The corridor felt different now.
Shorter.
Tighter.
Like a tunnel leading somewhere irreversible.
Damien muttered, "So… secret war school."
Felix whispered, "I just wanted to learn skills…"
Zane looked ahead. "You still will."
Zael didn't speak.
In his mind, Malphas' overwhelming presence surfaced again.
The helplessness.
The pressure.
The certainty of death.
Two days.
That was all the time he had before being thrown back toward something worse.
Good.
This time…
He wouldn't walk in unprepared.
Was not part of the normal curriculum.