Seeing the look on Adam's face, Mr. Frank burst out in laughter.
"Hahaha! I was joking!" [Mr. Frank]
("Whew…") [Adam]
"Ah, but you do have to deal with my punishment." [Mr. Frank]
Raising his hands towards Adam, he formed something on Adam's wrists.
"Gurk!" [Adam]
("What the hell! It's so heavy!") [Adam]
"Go stand outside in the hallway with those on. I'll let you back in when I feel like taking off your weights." [Mr. Frank]
"...should've done my homework…" [Adam]
Dragging his feet, he made it to the door.
"Can someone open the door for me? I can't really lift my arms." [Adam]
"I'll help." [Felix]
As he stood up, Mr. Frank raised his hand.
"Sit back down Felix. This is Adam's punishment, he has to do it himself." [Mr. Frank]
"...Are you serious?" [Adam]
The look on Mr. Frank's face told him that it wasn't a joke.
("Krino, do you know anything that can boost my strength?") [Adam]
"I don't have any of those abilities. Unless you want me to slice the door open, there's nothing I can do for you." [Krino]
("Great…") [Adam]
Taking a deep breath, he raised his right hand shakily.
("Almost… there!") [Adam]
Struggling to hold his arm up, he barely managed to slide the door open.
"He actually did it!" [Brandon]
"Plus respect bro." [Orion]
Adam was showered with praise from the class, but he couldn't hear it through his exhausted state.
"Go on, I'll close the door behind you." [Mr. Frank]
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Standing outside in the hallway was more energy draining than he thought it would be.
("If I had to guess, it's been 5 minutes since I've walked out of the class.") [Adam]
"Why don't you take this chance to train your mana?" [Krino]
("That's a good idea.") [Adam]
As he was compressing his mana pool, a sudden thought came to mind.
("Hey Krino?") [Adam]
"Yes?" [Krino]
("Now that I think about it, with the amount of mana I have, couldn't I crush metal now?") [Adam]
"Hm… Most likely, but it would consume a lot of mana." [Krino]
"In that case, would it be possible to crush someone's internal organs?" [Adam]
"...Where are you going with this?" [Krino]
("I… was just asking. I'm just curious, you know?") [Adam]
"That's some dangerous curiosity you have there." [Krino]
As he compressed his mana, something snapped within him.
("Hm?") [Adam]
A flash of light appeared, causing an explosion where he stood. His surroundings were damaged, the classroom wall torn, and a crater left at his feet.
("What… just happened?") [Adam]
"Eek!" [???]
He turned to the noise, seeing Tiffany covering her eyes.
"Tiffany?" [Adam]
Felix came running out with a jacket and put it on Adam's shoulders.
"What the hell happened?!" [Felix]
("Why are they acting like this?") [Adam]
He looked down, realizing his clothes were mostly threads.
"What the- my clothes!" [Adam]
Quickly grasping his situation, he pulled the jacket over him to cover himself as best as he could. More students came to the hallway, curious as to what the noise was.
("This is bad, I'm practically naked!") [Adam]
Mr. Frank stepped forward, conjuring clothes on Adam.
"Get in class, I don't want this to escalate." [Mr. Frank]
Pushing the students back to their class, the teachers cleaned up the mess.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Now that everyone was back in the class, Adam was the center of attention.
"Adam, what were you doing in the hallway?" [Mr. Frank]
"I… was training my mana." [Adam]
"And how were you training your mana?" [Mr. Frank]
"Uhm…" [Adam]
("Should I tell him?") [Adam]
"Don't tell him the method Sebastian taught you. Tell him you were using compression on the air." [Krino]
"I was using my ability on the air." [Adam]
"You were using your ability on the air…" [Mr. Frank]
He didn't seem very convinced.
("If he was increasing his mana, then could it be…?") [Mr. Frank]
"Adam." [Mr. Frank]
"...Yes?" [Adam]
"What happened in the hallway?" [Mr. Frank]
("What should I tell him?") [Adam]
"I think it's fine to tell them what you saw." [Krino]
"While I was training, I felt something snap. Then everything became bright. The hall was wrecked by the time I could see." [Adam]
"You… felt something snap?" [Mr. Frank]
"Yeah, it felt like it was inside me." [Adam]
Mr. Frank seemed shocked, his face completely flabbergasted.
"I can't believe it. You actually went through an awakening? At such a young age…" [Mr. Frank]
"Awakening?" [Alex]
"What is he talking about?" [Brandon]
The room was filled with chatter, dying down after Mr. Frank raised his hands.
"Calm down, I'll explain in a minute." [Mr. Frank]
The students sat on the edge of their chair, interested in what he had to say.
("It's times like these that they actually pay attention to class.") [Mr. Frank]
"What Adam went through was an awakening. If you train your mana to a certain level, an explosion will occur. This increases the amount of mana you can hold, along with your abilities' strength." [Mr. Frank]
"Oooh…" [Class]
As he spoke, Felix thought something was amiss.
"Why were you so surprised when Adam did it?" [Felix]
"Students usually don't awaken until they're in the second year. ...Especially students who have low level abilities." [Mr. Frank]
As he spoke, he looked at Adam, as if he was directing his words at him.
"Maybe I'm just that talented." [Adam]
"...Maybe you really are." [Mr. Frank]
("Huh? I didn't expect him to actually agree with me.") [Adam]
"Adam, be honest with me. What is your mana count right now?" [Mr. Frank]
As per his request, Adam brought out his ID and read it aloud.
"Mana count: 10,000" [Adam]
"Huh?!" [Class]
"T-ten thousand?!" [Mr. Frank]
"Something wrong?" [Adam]
"Is something wrong?! Of course something is wrong! How could your mana count possibly be ten thousand?! I only have 20 thousand myself!" [Mr. Frank]
"If you're asking why I have so much… It's because I need a lot to make my ability viable in combat." [Adam]
"That's what I was asking!" [Mr. Frank]
Realizing his sudden outburst, Mr. Frank calmed himself down.
"Haa… Adam." [Mr. Frank]
"What is it?" [Adam]
"Come see me after class." [Mr. Frank]
��Why?" [Adam]
"We're going to the principal's office." [Mr. Frank]
"Huh?" [Adam]