14 Principal

It had been an incredibly long day. But even after spending my four hours doing personal training in secret, as I didn't want anyone to find out about my class, I was still not done.

Currently, I was sitting inside the library, at one of the many tables. Surrounded by an endless amount of bookshelves, I was trying to find out more about the Psion class.

With the help of a very lovely glasses-wearing librarian, I stumbled upon a certain book that made the mission I had been assigned make a lot of sense.

'The Psions were famous for using their mental magic to create slaves, erase memories and cause mental shocks strong enough to put their victims in a coma... Fuck...'

I now fully understood why god, or whatever he was, didn't want me to talk about my class. Because it was a class that had been eradicated from this world as a response to the terrible practices of people in the past. In other words, the bloodlines that carried this class as an inherent trait had been erased from this world.

'So, they will try to kill me if they found out about my class? Now, isn't that just great...'

It was a bit funny that this was the first mission that was truly significant for my survival, and yet, in contrast to most of the earlier ones, the penalty wasn't death.

But it did reinforce the lingering thought I had that these missions didn't just appear for no reason.

Closing the book in front of me, I allowed my gaze to span the large library, throwing some slight glances at the few other students who were also diligently studying.

There weren't that many students attending the academy, despite its size, simply due to the fact that very few people got accepted. Yet, there were still enough students that I couldn't help but think that it was weird that there were only twelve freshmen.

'My head hurts...'

There was just too much information that I needed to gather before I could feel comfortable living in this world and I hadn't even begun to research the geography or history of this world.

Things like the difference in status between Dukes, Earls, Viscounts, and Barons, what the other nations were like, or even how Ghael actually looked like. These things, I barely knew anything about.

I knew that, for example, Mike was the son of a Duke which put him extremely high on the social ladder, which was also the reason why he could get away with bullying Robert, who was only the son of a Baron, but I had no idea what these positions actually entailed.

However, as my head was already wrecked from practicing my magic,

'21.47? I should probably wrap this up so that I can get up early tomorrow.'

Tomorrow was Friday, and luckily, we had nothing on our schedule at all. Which meant I would be able to use all that time trying to make sense of things. Or at least the time I had left over after finishing my daily mission.

****

[3rd person Pov]

Three professors were currently gathered in a very large office, facing a desk where a small, elderly man with long white hair and an equally long and white beard was sitting.

He was the principal of the academy, Leonardo Baulier as well as one of the most prominent figures in the entirety of Estaria, if not the entirety of Ghael.

Mr. Froid, Mrs. Harper, and Mr. Hart had all come here for the same reason. To talk about the appearance of a very odd student, of which they all had quite strong opinions. And Mr. Froid was the first one to speak up.

"With all due respect, principal, Alex Winter isn't suited for the academy. From what I've seen, he doesn't have any redeeming qualities to speak of and he also doesn't have the drive necessary to graduate."

Just like he always did, the principal just smiled as he waited for the other two professors to present their cases as well. Noticing this, Mrs. Harper also went up to the plate. Despite her also being quite old, she still made sure to talk respectfully.

"I agree with Mr. Froid, principal. Though it's not unheard of someone of a low-level class to attend the academy, I am afraid that he will have a hard time keeping up with his classmates."

Another moment of silence arose before the principal opened his mouth for the first time during this interaction.

"Do you agree with them, Mr. Hart?"

Unlike his colleagues, Mr. Hart wasn't specialized in combat arts. However, this didn't mean that the principal didn't value his opinion just as much as the other professors.

Just like Mrs. Harper and the principal, Mr. Hart also had a lot of experience due to his age, even though he was a bit younger than them.

"I don't agree. Though I have heard from the other teachers as well that he seems to have a hard time following along during their lectures, my opinion about him as a student still differs."

"How so?"

"Because I cannot believe for a second that he is just some average student when he is on the same level as me regarding advanced mathematics."

"Same level? What do you mean, Professor Hart?"

"I mean exactly what I said, Mr. Froid. He knows as much, if not more, about mathematics as I do, despite only being 20 years old. So, I have a hard time acknowledging that he would struggle with other theoretical subjects, though I cannot comment on his performance during practical courses."

Mrs. Harper quickly understood what he was getting at.

"Are you saying that he is pretending to be bad at the other subjects? If that's the case, why didn't he do the same during your lecture?"

"I have no idea. Maybe it was because I pressured him too much, making it so he felt a need to make sure I didn't get too close to him by proving that he didn't need help."

"Aren't you just seeing what you want to see? I have no choice but to accept your words about him being a genius in terms of math, but isn't that explanation a bit too convoluted?"

Mr. Froid didn't buy his colleague's theory at all as he kept talking.

"In fact, to me, it doesn't make sense that he even passed the entrance exam in the first place. All I can think is that some sort of mista..."

"There is no mistake regarding Alex Winter's attendance at the academy. And regarding the entrance exam, he passed it."

"How is that possible? From what I've seen..."

Once again the principal interrupted Samuel, seemingly not wanting this situation to escalate more than necessary.

"I respect all of your opinions about the student, but you have a responsibility to treat him just like everyone else."

All three of the professors stayed quiet, as they all understood what he was talking about.

Even if it was difficult to fight against the social constructs of Estaria, they were all supposed to judge their students on equal grounds.

"With that being said, if you truly don't think he is fit for the academy, then I will send him on his way. But I propose that we at least give him a chance."

"A chance?"

Taking a moment to think, the principal quickly came up with an idea.

"If he fails even one of his courses at the end of the term, then he will get expelled."

Even Mr. Froid was hesitant to think of this idea as fair, mostly due to the fact that Alex had chosen to take part in his physical education course. Yet, he knew how stubborn the principal could be, and he could see in his eyes that he had already made up his mind about it.

Thus, the three professors had not much of a choice but to agree with the principal, and not long after that, the principal was left alone in his office.

"Alex Winter... what an interesting young man. I look forward to seeing what will become of him in the future."

Of course, the principal already knew of the young man they had come to talk about even before their visit.

The principal had lied about Alex passing the entrance exam, only because of the fact that he didn't participate in it.

He was the only student in the history of the Stellar Academy who got accepted without passing the entrance exam, and obviously, the principal couldn't allow that kind of information to spread.

This was why Leonardo thought it was fair to be strict with him, as, unlike the other students, he still had to prove his value.

The truth of the matter was that the principal hadn't been able to say no when his old friend had begged him to accept Alex into the academy.

An old friend who had died the very same day that he had left Alex Winter at the academy, leaving behind absolutely nothing.

Nothing except for the mysterious young man of unknown origins, as well as unknown potential.