The arrangement of students in the Mage Division was different from that of the Knight Division; talented and genius children in magic were not all placed in the same class.
Students would initially be arranged in any class. Then, if there was a request to study under a specific professor, it was usually done at the beginning of the lesson.
All teachers in the Mage Division were Arch Mage ranks with an impeccable understanding of magic than ordinary Mages. So, students didn't need to be stacked to increase competitiveness so that learning was more effective. Furthermore, the number of students was also massive, unlike the Knight Division students.
The competition festival for the Mage Division began at noon. With only 128 slots out of almost 500 students, it was crucial for a professor to sort out 12 or 13 class representatives.
In Class 10, several students Aizen was familiar with were appointed to represent. Those were Arman, Inkgrit, Theoden, Edwine, Gheodmer, Myris, and Alen. Other than that, he didn't know them other than classmates he had in his previous life until he decided to transfer to the Knight Division.
On the other hand, the seven students were people who would appear at prominent events in the future. However, not a single one was present, as Aizen was still battling the Omni War years into the end.
Arman disappeared when the Aslan Empire fell. Inkgrit vanished during the first war. Gheodmer went missing in 727 despite having attained the rank of Grand Magus. Myris died as the commander-in-chief in the war against the Goblin Kingdom.
Alen got killed after his identity as a diplomat of the Prasta Empire was exposed. Theoden died fighting against the Asylum Empire in 730 as a General. And lastly, Edwine also died after his identity as a half-elf was revealed during a war that put the survival of the Elven Kingdom on the line.
They were important people in the fight against the Omni War. Except for Arman, because Viscount Joe's son was one of the reasons the Aslan Empire was weakened before the war started. And Inkgrit as the engineer of those magic weapons, even though the validity had not been proven.
Meanwhile, Nathan and Milo were not selected. And Aizen knew that the two kids, capable of magic, weren't too great and enough to be put in a match like that.
And just as Aizen had expected, the seven students put on an excellent showing in their first round and advanced to the top 64 with ease.
But, among the seven, Arman was the weakest. Despite his harmful nature and behavior, he was quite good at magic. Unfortunately, in Class 10, there were six students who had hidden talents that the world had yet to see.
When the six students started to show their own light, the name Arman Malajorg would start to fade slowly. And the brightest star among them was Theoden Ailwin.
"Hey, Aizen. You... Can you help me place a bet, please?"
Aizen turned his face to the left and looked at Ayduin with downcast eyes after being distracted.
"You know that betting is tricky, right? You can lose your money without getting it back."
"I know that. But I need money and want to try my luck with it since there's a chance now. Besides, I felt sorry when I didn't place a bet during your match, even though the odds were high." Ayduin said while rubbing his head.
He initially wanted to place a bet but was too afraid that he would fail and lose the money he had to save for one season. There were still 60 more days before the change of seasons. That was quite some time to wait.
However, it also meant that he doubted Aizen's ability to win a match despite knowing his classmate was powerful. And that was strengthened when Aizen's opponent, Abigail Lenheart, appeared in the arena.
Ayduin's guts immediately sank, and he shrugged his neck faster than ever. The name Lenheart was enough to make his belief and knowledge that Aizen was strong disappear.
Unfortunately, reality said otherwise.
Aizen single-handedly won the match without suffering any injuries. Even the descendant of Lenheart had to fall to her knees and faint with just one powerful punch from Aizen.
"You know it's risky and want to do it anyway. The proverbial double-edged sword is not just any words. You either earn a fortune or get misery later on."
"I know that. That's why I asked for your opinion."
"Why me?" Aizen asked, confused by Ayduin.
"Because you seem to have a keen eye."
Aizen was silent for a moment and still stared at Ayduin lazily. "If you still lose in the end, what are you going to do? Are you going to blame me?"
"Certainly not!"
"Write on paper. Verbal talk is useless for real business. And also, I want your share of the profits."
"What!?" Ayduin was even surprised by the way Aizen responded to his reassurance. He seemed to be talking to a merchant.
On the other hand, Aizen knew he must also take care of his life. In addition to his goal of stopping the Omni War. What he needed now was wealth and time.
After all, the Omni War wouldn't crumble, or it wouldn't happen just because he had the willpower. He needed thorough information about the organization and tried to maintain the balance of the Azure Realm so as not to fall into a fate far different from his knowledge.
So, even though he only had approximately three years, he still needed to take it step by step.
And thinking about it again, betting was indeed a place to make fast money. Moreover, he knew the results of the matches in this Mage Division competition festival.
At first, Aizen was quite surprised that the course of the match was still the same as his previous life, even though changes such as the Knight Division competition festival and Nathan in Class 10 appeared.
Therefore, he agreed to help Ayduin and asked for a share of it. He also thought of using his little money to double up.
"How much money do you have?"
"Err…, there is 1 silver coin," Ayduin answered while looking away. He was still wary of using all of his savings.
Aizen didn't care about that. He reached into his pocket and pulled out all the remaining cash. "I have 2 silver coins. I will bet. And you just follow where I put the choice. And remember. 30 percent of your profit is mine."
Ayduin swallowed his saliva and nodded quickly. He immediately followed Aizen to the betting place. The first match was Inkgrit Adler against Mugang Tedd. The odds were 7.5 to 2.4.
Inkgrit as a girl, wasn't the favorite to win. Moreover, her opponent had good posture, which meant he would have nimble movements. Apart from that, he also had a large enough Mana that could be felt by many spectators.
However, Aizen knew that Inkgrit would win in the Round of 64 first match. Aside from Inkgrit, all the six students he had in mind earlier would also qualify for the round, and eventually, all of them would be stuck in the top 32 rounds.
He unhesitatingly put 2 silver coins in Inkgrit's name and made Ayduin hesitate for a bit. But in the end, Ayduin still put his bet on the name Inkgrit just like him.
Ayduin prayed while rubbing his palms together. He was completely agitated by Aizen's decision. He initially thought the bet would be placed at the lowest odds because it had a higher chance of winning. It was exceptional for high odds to prevail in a bet. Well. That was except for the time of Aizen's match against the others.
However, he had made up his mind and resigned himself to Aizen's choice.
Aizen himself didn't think much of the matter. He was sure everything would go the same because the beginning was the same. Unless something different happened in the middle of the road, then the result would not change.
The spectators were busier and louder than during the Knight Division competition festival. Indeed, the magic battle had a charm that was difficult to resist.
Inkgrit stood tall in the arena while her opponent slowly walked forward. It was a provocation.
But, Inkgrit remained calm. She started to open her mouth and chanted a spell in a whisper. Out of nowhere, fire magic shot out from the arena floor and swiftly attacked Mugang from below.
Zap, Zap--
However, Mugang easily suppressed the magic by enveloping both of his arms in the fire as well. He neutralized Inkgrit's flames and swallowed the magic as his own. Right now, there were two large and long fire magic whips swinging around, sparking flames in the arena.
"Heh! Not bad for a little girl. Quick and powerful use of magic without seals. But unfortunately, I am a gifted student capable of using magic without spells. How about you give up? Then I'll just slap your butt as a mercy. Hehehe."
Srk, Sreik--
However, before Mugang could finish his flaunt, his two enormous fiery whips suddenly solidified and froze. He was surprised and was about to respond by exhausting the ice that also locked both of his arms.
And Inkgrit certainly wouldn't let that happen. She quickly cast her next spell, intending to defeat Mugang in her next attack.
"Double Casting, Little Golems."
Two small golem creatures with bodies of fire and water elements appeared above the arena and immediately sped up, closing in on Mugang.
Kaboom!
And in an instant, an explosion was occurring in the arena, enough to make the spectators' seats shake slightly.