Nine frowned, her displeasure radiating from her. The students in the classroom immediately shut their mouths as they felt something foreboding. It felt like they were facing a high level magical beast that could convey their emotions through their magic, somewhat like how prey felt when being looked at by a predator.
Step by step, Nine walked up to the podium in front of the classroom. She thought that for a classroom in a magical world, it was remarkably similar to those on Earth. A podium, a whiteboard and markers. A classroom of students, desks and chairs.
Her footsteps weren't heard in the silence of the classroom. The First Prince, Deltan, was looking at her as if he'd seen a ghost. Nine valiantly held back the smirk that threatened to break out.
"Fourth Circle Magic Theory and Practical class will be taught by me. Anyone who wants to complain can do so after this class," she said, her low and cool voice washed over the room.
There were a couple of female students that were sent into a daze at the sound of her voice. The Crown Prince's voice was... so attractive! He was only fourteen but his features were already delicate and handsome. Was this still the same incompetent and trashy Crown Prince that everyone knew?
Brooke stared at her in shock, hoping with all his strength that he was still dreaming. The Crown Prince was his teacher?? The same Crown Prince that reflexively tried to use First Tier magic in public to put out a small fire on his clothes and failed?? The shock washed over him before it gave way to anger.
What was the Emperor thinking? What was the school thinking?! He felt disappointed in the school of his dreams. He couldn't imagine just how many benefits they had eaten from the Emperor for them to make a decision like this.
"You can't do this," Brooke burst out, his anger getting the better of him. "You're ruining all of our futures!"
No one else said anything, but you could see similar thoughts reflected on their faces. How could a fourteen year old be able to teach them magic? Even the eldest prince was twenty before he touched the fringes of Fourth Tier magic. Even if he started magic training from his mother's womb and by some miracle already be able to use Fourth Tier magic, he probably hadn't reached that stage for long. How would he be able to guide them?
Knock, knock, knock!
The students turned their attention to the frantic knocking on the door, desperately hoping someone would burst in and tell them this was all a joke. The Crown Prince wasn't really their teacher, was he?
Nine didn't even glance in that direction before she casually threw a silencing spell at the door, striking all the people within the room dumb.
The silencing spell contained a slight concept of Time and Space, so mages were generally only able to use it once they hit the Fifth Circle.
Deltan struggled with himself before finally deciding that he should help his younger brother out. Maybe he wouldn't torment him so much in the near future? He inwardly cried as he kept up his public facade. If Imperial Father had posted his younger brother here, then there was already no one who would be able to overturn his decision.
Deltan comforted himself as all thoughts of getting revenge on his younger brother disappeared in the face of this trial. Well, having a Sixth Tier Mage as a teacher would be greatly beneficial, right? Then, Deltan suddenly recalled a Royal Court Mage who was reputed to be a genius that taught him for a brief time when he was younger and nearly broke down on his desk.
"Why don't you take my Fourth brother's lesson before you decide? It won't be too late then."
The students visibly calmed down at his words, and the tension in the room lessened a little. That's right. It wouldn't be too late to complain later after they gathered some evidence that the Crown Prince was incompetent and unworthy to be a teacher. How could the school treat them like this?
Frustrated, the twenty students unwillingly sat down in a random seat, wanting to get this over with. A few of the more cautious students reserved their opinion. For some reason, there was something inside them shouting for them to listen carefully.
What they didn't know was that their magic was reacting to Nine's magic and her willingness to impart knowledge to them. It was as if the world was whispering for them to listen closely and learn as much as they could.
"What is magic?" Nine asked. She stood in front of twenty students without any pressure. One could almost believe that she wasn't fourteen, with the way she carried and held herself.
Wanting this mockery of a class to end quicker, Brooke glowered at her as he answered. "Magic is when a mage or body practitioner uses the magic within them to either cast a spell externally or internally."
Nine looked at him without any visible expression, causing him to feel nervous. Was he wrong? He shook off his uncertainty.
"That's how we use magic. But what is magic?"
The classroom was silent. Nine hid her disappointment at this. A bunch of students that weren't inquisitive wouldn't go far in this field. Had she been too hasty in trying to come here?
"Magic is the essence of the earth, the creation of nature and the accumulation of every element that exists," Deltan answered, seeing everyone else look blank.
Nine gave him a rare smile of acknowledgement, flustering him. His cheeks felt hot.
"Right," she said. Snapping her fingers, the marker behind her sprang to life, frantically writing on the whiteboard as she talked and thought.
Originally bored by the banal questions she was asking, the students' minds wandered before their ears eventually drifted back to the lecture.
A couple of student's eyes landed on the whiteboard to read what was being written with causal expressions. The more they read, the more serious their expressions became. Many of them started pulling out notebooks to write down notes. Was this really still the Crown Prince? They couldn't believe it!
Soon, nineteen students were attentively listening to Nine, leaving her feeling gratified. They way their eyes glistened as they tried desperately to absorb the information, the way their hands flew frantically as they tried to write down their thoughts. They weren't bad people, but extremely focused and driven, causing them to react negatively as they felt they were being belittled.
Brooke's attention wandered around as he doodled in his notebook, bored. With hazy eyes, he eventually looked at his neighbouring classmates before feeling puzzled. The atmosphere wasn't right. Confused, he looked around before turning his attention to the whiteboard.
"Eh!" he couldn't help but cry out loudly.
The surrounding students shushed him angrily, shooting him a deadly glare. How dare he interrupt their learning? They had felt that they were almost about to step through the threshold of Fourth Tier magic before he interrupted their thought process.
Embarrassed, Brooke shut his mouth and didn't make another sound. Doubtfully, he listened to what the incompetent Crown Prince was saying as he was unwittingly drawn into his words.
It was almost like magic.
By the time the school bell rang to announce that class was over, all twenty students felt like crying. That hadn't been nearly enough! They almost felt like grabbing their teacher and ask him for more. The Crown Prince was a genius!
As Nine watched their changes in attitude, she felt satisfied. While she didn't care what other people thought of her, as she had decided to take them in as students, then their relationship should go both ways.
Before any of them could react, Nine announced that class was over, leaving them with a question. "Go home and think about what magic is to you."
Nine dragged Deltan and teleported. Time for their daily sparring.
Deltan paled.