#12 Etherization

The Hendrix family is one of the four influential Archduke families in the Chronus Empire. Each family has its specific tasks, such as managing the state's finances, mining, trading, and production. The Hendrix family, on the other hand, serves as the center of production in the Chronus Empire, manufacturing everything from simple tools to weapons and war equipment. They are a family dedicated to the hammer and forge.

Besides Ryan, there is one member of the Hendrix family who is visibly frightened upon seeing their family member.

"Before we begin today's lesson, let's take attendance!" Professor Marius calmly takes attendance, until it's Matt's turn.

"Matthew von Hendrix, oh, it seems like there's a familiar name here."

"Uh, present!"

"No need to be tense like that! As a professor, I can distinguish between family issues and personal issues. Alright, moving on, Ryan Arden!" It's Ryan's turn to respond.

"Here!"

"It seems like you're close to my nephew, huh! Please take care of him."

"I'll do my best."

"Since you all seem to not have your books yet, let's start with some basic practice!"

"Show me your ether!" Everyone displays their ether.

Seeing Ryan's unique white ether, Professor Marius approaches Ryan and asks, "It seems you have a unique ether. May I hold it?"

"Ah, of course." When Professor Marius touches Ryan's ether, he suddenly jerks back a few steps.

"Ether with very high purity. You... you don't have an element, do you?" Surprised to hear that Professor Marius immediately knows Ryan lacks an element, he asks, "Is there something wrong with not having an element?"

"In this class, you won't face any problems. But... you'll have a big problem in the Ether Element Application class. However, I can inform the professor in charge of that study to give you some leeway, alright?" Hearing this, Ryan's impression of Professor Marius sharply increases, considering him very professional.

"If I may ask, Professor, do you know why I don't have an element?"

"I can't answer that. Perhaps the professor from the Eon Learning Class could answer your question." After answering Ryan's question, Professor Marius proceeds with his lesson.

"Alright, today's Etherization lesson will focus on practicing solidifying Ether. We'll learn the theory next week, so this week is all about basic practice. The shape we'll be working on is a cube." Professor Marius then summons his ether, which starts as a red-glowing gas and transforms into a solid cube floating in the air.

He manipulates the cube, tossing it up several times. After giving the demonstration, Professor Marius invites the students to try.

"Now, it's your turn! The fundamental principle of Etherization is imagination. Regardless of whether your ether element is different or you lack an element, what matters most is imagination, calmness, and unwavering focus. It's okay if you fail; although this is a basic aspect of Etherization, it's quite difficult to learn."

Ryan begins to concentrate, gathering the ether around him forward. White-glowing gas ethers gather around Ryan, and he starts imagining a cube in his mind. With unwavering focus, he reconstructs the gas ether into a solid form.

After 40 minutes, although still far from a perfect cube, Ryan remains calm and continues his concentration. Little by little, the solid he created starts resembling a cube. Then, unexpectedly, the almost-finished cube starts spinning rapidly. Observing Ryan's cube spinning rapidly, the other students panic. With unshaken focus, Ryan extends his hand forward, eyes closed, and swiftly grasps the cube.

When Ryan opens his hand, there's a white cube emitting some smoke, which gradually dissipates.

Professor Marius, seeing this, is surprised and comments on the situation. "You grabbed it just in time. If not, that cube would have turned into a bomb that would explode in the whole room. Putting aside the nearly-bomb cube, excellent work, Ryan. You're the first one to succeed, and I'll give you extra credit. And for the rest, I'll also give extra credit to the next nine people after Ryan."

"A truly remarkable talent; no wonder he was chosen as rank 1. I hope his talent doesn't make him arrogant," thinks Professor Marius after witnessing Ryan's amazing feat.

After Professor Marius leaves the classroom, there's a 15-minute break before the next class. The students then rush to Ryan's desk.

"Ryan, how did you make the ether cube? Please help us," the students ask with pleading eyes.

"Umm... Ryan? Why is he...?" The students are puzzled by Ryan's silent, unresponsive behavior, and then they turn to Matt and Alicia.

"We don't know either. He's been like this since earlier," Matt responds. Alicia then asks the same question to Ryan.

"You two don't know, either? He's been like this since earlier," Matt responds. Right after saying that, Ryan emits a snoring sound.

"...," The students show tired, inexpressive faces.

"So that's why Ryan didn't respond when I thanked him earlier," Alicia mutters in annoyance after seeing Ryan deeply asleep.