Arthur and Morgan's return to the classroom with another Warp Steps marked the start of the first period, albeit with a twenty-minute delay.
Professor Trasque winked at them with a kind smile, sending them back to their desk before starting the lesson.
The three girls had been forced to stand up alongside the chalkboard the whole time.
"There's no reason for you to get comfortable since you are going to leave us soon." Trasque's cold smile lingered, as if he took great joy in their misfortune.
As soon as Arthur and Morgan's returned, the three girls were called into the Headmaster's office. Only then did the Warp Steps close and the lesson began.
"First of all, let me introduce myself. My name is Jian Trasque, and I was born a commoner." He paused, letting those words echo through the class, mentally noting whoever made a disgusted or disapproving face for future reference.
"Back in my days, I was rejected by the Fire Griffon academy. I had to join the Association as a home-schooled mage and work my way up as an adventurer until I earned my specializations. My talent was acknowledged to the point that I was offered a position as a Professor in this academy, and the Fire Griffon Headmaster was fired for being an incompetent old fool. If any of you share his vision, feel free to join him." Trasque pointed at the door.
"No one? Well, then let's start with the good stuff. Theory of Combat Magic. You're probably asking yourselves: what the heck does it even mean? You're proficient in the first three tiers of magic; what could I possibly teach you?"
"The answer is: how to keep you alive by revealing the true value of the severely neglected chore magic. I know, its name is horrible, but since the dawn of academies, chore magic has helped examiners separate the wheat from the chaff."
"Have you ever wondered why it was the first thing they required you to perform? Here, in one of the great academies, you'll learn to love and respect it with its true name: the first magic."
"First magic is why a mage can live long enough to have children. Sure, it's weak, but do you really believe you'd have the time for even a tier one spell if someone tries to stab you? The answer is no. Without first magic, you would die, wasting all the time, effort, and money your parents and the academy invested in your formation."
The lesson continued with Trasque presenting examples of life-and-death situations and how to survive using simple tricks from first magic. Most of the class took furious notes, while Arthur and a few others among the two hundred attendees looked around, surprised by their peers' ignorance.
When Arthur realized what they had done, it was already too late. Their entire face turned red, even the end of their ears turned a bright shade of red.
Professor Nalear giggled, making Arthur turn an even brighter shade of red. They felt so ashamed of themselves that they could only hide their face between their hands. They were incapable of looking at her and banged their head on the desk.
'You fcking idiot!' they inwardly screamed. 'Since when do I have a dck for brains? Just when I thought that things couldn't get any worse, I turn out to be my own worst enemy.'
"I'm honestly flattered by your feelings…" she said while still chuckling.
"… but I'm not into kids. I'm looking for a tall and strong mage as a life companion. If in six years I'm still single and you haven't changed your mind, I will be happy to resume this conversation."
Arthur wanted to cry and run away, spending the rest of their life hiding in the deepest hole they could find. But they had already made a fool out of themselves, and there was no reason to add insult to injury.
They took some deep breaths to calm down, using water magic to cool down both their face and nether regions, finally regaining their focus.
'If I apologize, I will make everything worse,' they thought. 'She reacted like I was joking, let's play along. The more I stir it, the more it will stink.'
"Now, before going back to the course's topic, one last word of warning for you scum. The next time I catch you doing something disrespectful towards one of your classmates, I will make every single one of you regret not having a Guilty Ballot.
"Are we clear?"
No one dared to reply.
"Perfect. Let's forget about your pathetic, miserable existences, so I can explain to you what Principles of Advanced Magic is about."
She approached the chalkboard, a long and thin piece of mineral appeared out of thin air in her hand, allowing her to draw a human silhouette.
"As you should already know from your first three years, every human possesses a certain degree of talent for magic. The extent of such talent is defined by the amount of mana one has stored in their mana well."
Arthur followed her speech with interest.
'So, they really have no concept of the mana core,' they thought.