By the time Rey entered the magic training hall, the rest of the class was already seated, or at least pretending to be.

Jett was lounging near the back beside Morrigan, his legs kicked up on the bench in front of him like he hadn't just disappeared in a burst of light and left Rey to fend off a mob of adoring fans.

He looked far too relaxed for someone who participated in a public brawl five minutes ago.

Rey stormed in, panting, shoulders tense. His hair was still wind-tossed from the fight and running, and his sleeves were ruffled and uneven.

He looked exactly like someone who'd been through a warzone and sprinted straight to class afterward.

Dozens of eyes followed him, whispers rising like smoke.

"You're late," the instructor called out from the front.

She stood tall, a woman with short silver hair cut in precise layers, her high-collared indigo robe flowing with every slight movement. Her presence alone demanded attention firm, composed, and sharp as cold steel.

"Got held up," Rey said evenly, his voice clipped as he made his way toward the back and dropped beside Jett without looking at him.

"I'm sure you did," the instructor replied coolly, her gaze narrowing on both of them. "And once again… it's you two. If there's a riot, a collapsed roof, or a dragon with mood swings, somehow it always traces back to you and your charming friend over there."

Jett flashed a dazzling grin like he'd just been complimented.

"That's not a compliment, moron," Morrigan muttered. "So stop grinning like an idiot."

Up front, the instructor didn't even sigh. She simply turned back to the class, her voice cutting clean through the air. "Today's focus: Mana Regulation and spell control."

The room fell quiet.

"Because out there, a single mistake like overusing your mana or not controlling the size of your spell could be the death of you." she continued,

"you don't get a second chance. Not with spells. Not with lives. Not with mana. Today you'll be learning to control everything, not just the amount of mana you use, but the scale of the spell itself. Precision over power."

She raised a hand and snapped her fingers.

In an instant, the room vanished.

A sudden wind rushed past their ears as the walls dissolved into light. The floor beneath them blinked out, only to be replaced by stone and grass.

In the blink of an eye, they were standing in an open field with no structures around their line of sight.

The Training Grounds of Verena's Mage Division, vast, enchanted, and specifically tailored to test the limits of mkagic.

"You won't be able to destroy anything here once we start."

"That's an impressive spell," Jett mused, still partially impressed as he looked around the magical training field. 'Does it transport a set number of people or just anyone within a range? Too bad it's not a skill I can swipe, 9but maybe I can try studying it later.'

"Pair up," the instructor announced, her voice sharp and direct.

Rey and Jett turned to each other at the same time.

"Find someone else?" Jett asked while waving away, "I think I've seen your face enough for one day."

"Took the words right out of my mouth," Rey deadpanned.

Before anyone could move, the instructor raised her voice again. "Actually… Rey, Jett, you'll be demonstrating first."

"What!?" Rey really didn't want to hear that.

A collective "Ooooooh" rippled through the class like a wave of gossip.

"Are you kidding me," Jett muttered, stretching his arms. "Then again we do tend to put on a good show."

"I expect you two to demonstrate control, should be simple enough for you if you read the textbook before this class." the instructor continued, her tone stern as she walked over and handed them each a smooth, glassy orb. "You'll cast a spell, but the output must be no larger than your fists."

She let that sink in for a moment, then added, "Oh, and while doing that, you'll hold these." She gave them each a transparent orb to hold, "Regulate your mana carefully. These orbs are designed to detect even the faintest mana leak. If they sense any…"

She let the threat hang before finishing coldly, "They'll explode. So make sure you're carefully moving the mana away from the hand with the orb."

Rey cracked his knuckles, smirking. "Easy enough."

Jett sighed, trudging after him. "This day's turning into a full-body workout."

They stepped onto the platform, now the center of attention, standing opposite each other under the sharp gaze of their classmates and instructor.

"Begin!" her voice echoed across the grounds.

Jett rolled his shoulders. "Just saying… most of my spells cover large areas. Precision's not exactly my thing."

The instructor raised a hand and fired a tiny bolt of lightning that zapped Jett square in the chest.

"Ow hey!" he flinched, scowling as faint laughter broke out behind them.

"Excuses are wasted air," she said coolly. "Figure it out. Or explode."

Rey chuckled under his breath. "She really doesn't like you."

"I'm starting to take it personally," Jett muttered, adjusting his grip on the orb.

He exhaled slowly, focusing on the pulse of mana inside him like a sealed current trying to leak through cracks.

The challenge wasn't just about casting, he had to contain it this time and for someone like him who only used magic in bursts, it was harder than it looked.

Jett closed his eyes, taking a different approach, feeling the weight of the orb in his palm, then channeling his spell through his off-hand, keeping the magic tight and coiled.

Tiny flickers of flame bloomed from his fingertips, dancing in the air without even brushing the orb.

He grinned. "You seeing this? I'm delicate now."

The class watched in awed silence.

Even the instructor raised an eyebrow, 'The kids got talent I'll give him that much, not sure about the other one though."

Jett was less chatty, his focus narrowing as he condensed a blade of wind, no longer than his hand, hovering in the air like a whisper. But it was painfully obvious that he was struggling.

Boom!

The orb in Jett's hand erupted with a sharp crack and a burst of green light, forcing him to throw it away just in time.

The explosion wasn't lethal, but the shockwave stung his palm and sent a few students ducking instinctively.

"Arrgh… this is so hard!" Jett groaned, shaking out his hand while the crowd stared. Embarrassment crept up his neck like heat. 'Maybe if I use a mental skill to focus…'

"I almost forgot," the instructor called out as if reading his thoughts. "No form of skill will be allowed during this exercise."

The entire training ground shifted with a wave of murmurs, voices rising in disbelief.

'What?! Are you kidding me?' Jett winced internally before voicing his frustration aloud. "That's going to make it twice as difficult!"

The instructor chuckled softly, a wicked glint in her eyes as if she'd been waiting for that reaction. "Good. Nothing worth mastering is ever easy."

She paced a few steps, her robes trailing behind her like a shadow. "I'm not allowing skills for one reason, because control isn't something you can shortcut."

"Mana skills might help you cast faster, stronger, or cleaner, but they can't fix the fundamentals. If you can't handle your own mana raw, then you'll always be at the mercy of your magic… not the other way around."

She turned to leave but paused, glancing over her shoulder with a smug smile. "Oh, and one more thing. If you break your orb, you'll have to buy a replacement. They cost a hundred points each."

"Don't worry," she added sweetly. "I have plenty. They only cost five hundred each."

"Five hundred?"

"Outrageous!?"

"Are you even allowed to do that!?"

Gasps spread like wildfire through the class.

Jett's eye twitched. 'That sneaky con artist… That's why she had us go first.' His stomach twisted with the realization that he'd been set up as a free demo and a warning.

"I want you all to use the rest of this session to train. Get comfortable with the sensation. Practice drawing your mana and holding it without letting a drop touch the orb."

Morrigan raised her hand politely, her long sleeves falling past her wrist. "What happens if we don't complete the task before the deadline?"

The instructor paused at the edge of the platform. "If you can't do it before midterms…" she said, voice low and even, "you won't have a future at this school. In other words you will be expelled."

The silence that followed was deafening. Then came a storm of whispers and anxious side-glances. Even Jett, usually unfazed, felt a chill settle over him.

And just like that, she was gone, vanishing through the teleport seal in a blink of light, leaving behind her lesson… and her threat.

The students didn't waste time.

Pairs scattered across the field, settling into little practice stations. Some stood back-to-back to reduce distractions. Others kneeled, cross-legged, or held hands over each other's to feel the mana pulse.

There were bursts of light, startled yelps, occasional failures, but also triumphs.

A few students were naturally gifted with controlling mana, and their orbs remained steady and dim. Others struggled, breaking one, two, even three.

Jett grumbled as he carefully tried again, the orb trembling faintly in his palm.

"Hehe, you rely too much on your skills," Rey said as he leaned casually against a stone pillar, arms folded. "Now it's coming back to bite you."

"Oh shut up," Jett groaned, narrowing his eyes. "I don't see you trying to help."

Rey shrugged. "And why should I? I finally get to see you struggling with something."

"Please. You're just lucky you've got natural talent. Some of us actually have to try."

Another orb cracked nearby, this time from a student who let too much mana slip in. A puff of light and smoke followed, and a long, defeated groan.

Jett sighed, focusing again. "I swear… if I lose any more points because of this orb, I'm gonna start selling homework just to earn it back."

"Says someone who's probably got hundreds of thousands of points," Rey snorted. "Do try your hardest not to get expelled, I'll be cheering from behind."

And just then, with comedic timing too perfect to be anything but scripted…

The instructor reappeared on the training field like she'd never left, walking with that same annoying elegance, like a cat who just knocked something over on purpose and would absolutely do it again.

"Oh," she said, placing a finger on her chin in faux surprise, "I almost forgot the most important part."

The students paused.

Jett raised an eyebrow. Rey slowly turned his head with the look of a man who already sensed something awful coming.

"If even one of you in a pair fails…" she continued sweetly, "then both of you fail. So do well to support each other okay?"

A moment of stunned silence.

Jett blinked. "…What."

Rey's head snapped fully to Jett, expression horrified. "What?!"

"And yes," the instructor added cheerfully, "even if you completed the task perfectly. You'll still be marked as failed if your partner can't figure out how to do it correctly."

'She definitely left that out on purpose.' From where he stood, Jett could tell, by the way she smiled, by the way her tone dripped with practiced innocence, that this was intentional. She was enjoying every second of it.

"Nooooooooo!" Rey screamed, throwing his hands toward the sky in melodramatic despair. He turned to Jett with betrayal written all over his face. "Why?! Why you?!"

Jett gave a sheepish shrug. "I'm sensitive under pressure, okay?!"

Rey grabbed his head with both hands. "I am going on get kicked out because this lunatic doesn't know how to fully manipulate mana? How does that make any sense?"

The instructor clapped once. "Good luck, students. You now have even more reason not to screw this up."

With a snap of her finger, she vanished again, leaving behind a field of panic, broken orbs, and one dramatic Divine Lord loudly contemplating his life choices.

*

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He really can't catch a break. (⁠*⁠_⁠*⁠)