As Professor Jera left the classroom, the assistant professor took charge of the students.
"Follow me."
Unlike Professor Jera, who was dressed in the academy's uniform, the assistant professor stood out in his proper wizard's attire.
He wore a robe over the academy's uniform, and a staff protruded from his waist.
"Magic power measurement! Let's go!"
"Yeah, we need to get up."
"…Just a bit more."
I left the excited Chenbi behind, hoisted the still sleeping Damian over my shoulder, and started walking.
There is an immediate word to wake Damian, but if used too often, its effectiveness diminishes. It's best to save it for later.
How long did we walk like that?
Soon we arrived at the Second Magic Hall.
The Second Magic Hall was bustling with students from the magic world who had come to measure their magic power. I took a slow look around.
Under the assistant professor's guidance, the magic students moved in a group. In the midst of this, the academy's servants and passersby occasionally brushed past.
Among them, I could spot knights in the empire's uniform, which made me smile.
'Sure enough, they came to investigate.'
Last night.
Before returning to the dormitory, I visited Professor Falun's office once.
Of course, it wasn't a normal visit.
'The security was quite a hassle.'
I broke it.
I smashed the window leading to Professor Falun's laboratory and made a mess.
I rummaged through the place as if looking for something, and even tampered with the safe placed in one corner of the laboratory.
An action I wouldn't normally take. This was done intentionally to leave traces, to focus the academy's attention on Deculan.
'I added a spoonful of seasoning to the plan Hengji set up.'
Anyway, it seems the academy wants to quietly bury the news of the intruder in Professor Falun's office.
"Ugh."
I looked at the scene for a moment, then shifted Damian to the other shoulder.
Is he trying to grow tall? He was quite heavy. Or maybe my body is just weak. Either way, it wasn't bad to think of it as physical training.
A moderate weight, you could say.
'Even if I don't build muscles, it's good to do various exercises in advance.'
We arrived at the basement of the Second Magic Hall.
Creak, thud.
As the M3 class students entered their assigned chamber, the heavy iron door clanged shut.
"Now, nice to meet you all. I am Assistant Professor Yorvira, who will be leading the M3 class in place of Professor Jera. Remember that."
With the assistant professor's belated self-introduction, the academy's first official class began.
* * *
"As I mentioned earlier, we will now measure your magic power. There are two types of measurements. Does anyone know what they are?"
A student raised his hand in response to Yorvira's question.
It was a student who never put down a book, even in class.
"Your name?"
"Arjen."
"Alright, Arjen. Please answer."
"The quantity and quality of magic power. These two factors are measured."
Yorvira nodded.
"Right, the quantity and quality of magic power. Now, I'll ask you all a question. Which of these two is more important?"
A hand shot up.
Again, it was Arjen.
"…"
Yorvira looked at Arjen for a moment, then nodded, signaling him to answer.
Arjen adjusted his glasses, closed the book he was holding, straightened his back, and cleared his throat.
"I think there is no correct answer, but if a certain level of magic power is supported, the quality of magic power is relatively more important."
"Why?"
"When considering a battle with a wizard of the same level, the side with superior magic quality will have the upper hand."
It was a decent answer.
'It is the orthodox view.'
In a battle between wizards of the same level, the outcome is determined by the quality, not the quantity, of magic power.
No matter how much magic power one has, in the end, it all comes down to landing that one decisive blow.
And that one blow is easier to achieve with superior magic quality.
Magic quality affects the stability of the magic field, the power of the spell, and so on.
The other students, except for me, nodded in agreement.
In fact, the question itself wasn't that difficult.
There was no correct answer.
'Change a few variables, and the quantity of magic power can be more important than the quality.'
For a wizard engaged in large-scale battles, quantity is more important than quality. In single combat, the opposite is true.
In that sense, Arjen's answer, while not perfect, was a very orthodox statement.
However, it seems Yorvira thought differently.
"Tsk."
The sound echoed in the chamber.
"…?"
Arjen flinched and shuddered, as did the other students. Soon, Yorvira's response followed.
"Arjen, by any chance, your family?"
"P-Pelaim Viscount Family."
The Pelaim Viscount Family wasn't a noble family.
While I don't know all the noble families, most of them value their name more than their titles.
They consider themselves the nobility of nobility, looking down on titles granted by the royal authority.
However, being a noble in itself is a force that cannot be ignored.
Yet, Yorvira's gaze was cold.
"Figures…"
"…"
The unspoken words were probably something like this:
'Well, not a noble family, so the level must be low. Or what does a viscount family know?'
…Something like that.
This was not only noticeable to me but to most of the students as well.
Especially to Arjen himself.
"…"
Yorvira ended her gaze at Arjen, but Arjen's large eyes were still shimmering with shock.
Regardless,
"Is there anyone else who wants to answer?"
Yorvira continued the class.
But no one raised their hand like Arjen.
"…"
They just tightly closed their mouths and looked at Yorvira with somewhat discontented eyes.
In contrast, Yorvira looked at the students with folded arms, as if daring someone to step forward.
But when no one did,
"Hey, student."
"…Me?"
"Yeah, from now on, when the assistant professor calls you, say your name. Now, say your name and share your thoughts. You can speak freely."
The student who was called out looked like a rich kid. His skin and the jewelry he wore were quite expensive.
The student was flustered.
But after a moment,
He straightened his chest, introduced himself, and answered Yorvira's question.
"I think… the quantity of magic power is more important. In large-scale battles, the amount of magic power has a significant impact…"
The opposite answer to Arjen's.
It seemed he chose his answer based on Yorvira's reaction to Arjen. However, Yorvira's reaction was not much different.
"Tsk."
She clicked her tongue.
"Your family?"
"Um, no."
"Then, does your family run a business?"
"…Yes, yes."
"If it's not to show off, avoid wearing jewelry at the academy. Focus on cultivating your intellect rather than your appearance."
"…"
The harsh criticism slightly distorted the male student's face.
Unlike Arjen, his face was full of resentment, but Yorvira paid no attention to it.
Yorvira didn't stop there.
"Next."
She continued to ask questions, randomly calling out students and asking the same question.
The students who were called out tried to guess Yorvira's desired answer based on the previous student's response, but her reaction was always the same.
"Tsk."
She clicked her tongue.
"Your family?"
She asked about their background.
By this point, the students' faces were frozen.
The excitement of the first class of the new semester had completely subsided. The atmosphere was dominated by discomfort, humiliation, and the anxiety of possibly being called out.
And amidst all this,
"…Mmm."
Damian, who was still sleeping soundly.
Yorvira summarized the situation at this point.
"I heard all of your answers."
"…"
There was no response.
The atmosphere in the room had become cold. However, Yorvira looked at the students and said,
"Actually, all of your answers were close to the correct answer. Or rather, there was no correct answer to begin with. What I hoped for was not a correct answer."
She looked each student who had answered in the eye and said,
"Think about it. What answers did you give me? Were they truly your own thoughts? Probably not."
Right, they weren't.
The answers the students gave were not their own thoughts but the result of trying to find the answer Yorvira wanted.
Yorvira pointed this out.
"A wizard must never lose their sense of self. They must be able to assert their will without being swayed by others. But how did you fare? Was that the mindset of a wizard?"
"…"
Silence fell over the room.
It was a different kind of silence from before.
Whether they had answered or not, each student seemed to be deeply pondering her words.
"In the future, you must become true wizards. That's what I wanted to convey through this class. Keep it in your hearts."
Yorvira concluded her speech.
The students' expressions softened.
Not all of them, but most seemed to be deeply moved by Yorvira's words.
"Wow… I see."
Chenbi was no exception.
Just a moment ago, he was anxious about being called out, but now he was looking at Assistant Professor Yorvira with bright eyes, not avoiding eye contact.
Anyway, she concluded her speech.
"I will continue to treat you in this manner. I hope you will strengthen yourselves in front of me. But please understand one thing: I'm not doing this because I enjoy it."