Chapter 658: Chapter 659: Thirty Mana Magnus narrowed his eyes. He was acutely aware of this person, Damon Grey. How could anyone not know this name? Though he didn’t know how he looked beneath the hood, he was certain of something... this person was crazy. He had never seen anyone more deranged and bold in all his life. Damon was irreverent toward powers greater than himself, reckless in a way that bordered on madness. However, Magnus was sure of one thing no one had more mana than him. This person should be no different. Yet there was something about Damon’s presence. Magnus was a sensitive person; he had to be in order to control so much mana. But what he sensed now wasn’t ordinary control. It wasn’t refinement. It was something heavier. It was better described as subjugation... no, domination. It was as if Damon walked forward as the singular ruler of all. He dismissed everything around him because he was transcendent. "What arrogance." Damon didn’t even spare the young man in robes a glance. Seras cupped her hands together, her smile playful and cruel. "If you lose, I’ll carve ’trash’ into your gravestone myself." Damon chuckled coldly. "You won’t, because I won’t have a gravestone. When I finally die, I probably won’t even leave an intact corpse." Magnus felt unnerved by his words. What kind of person would even wish such a thing upon themselves? More importantly, why was Damon speaking to Seras Blade so casually? Did he not realize she was a whimsical monster? She could change moods in an instant and kill without warning. She was a monster... One that was allowed to grow increasingly powerful. Damon finally turned his hooded face toward the young man in mage robes. The boy had auburn hair and a pair of glasses perched on his nose. He had a somewhat small build, but Damon realized he wasn’t actually short; rather, he just looked like someone who needed the sun, maybe some grass under his feet, and definitely a good workout. Damon didn’t mistake that for weakness. He knew this type, this was a mage’s build. A walking glass cannon. Fragile to the touch, but devastating when unleashed. ’Depending on how mobile he is on the battlefield, he could be a nuisance.’ Magnus kept staring at him before speaking. "If it’s not rude to ask... why do you wear that hood?" Damon paused, surprised at how well-mannered the question was. "You aren’t going to throw insults? Aren’t you disrespecting the academy spirit? Everyone here built it, I’ll have you know. It’s tradition." Magnus looked away, irritation flashing across his expression. "Yes, I can see that. Everyone is acting like juveniles, even our elders." Damon rolled his eyes. "This guy thinks he’s better than everyone else. Or... are you just a sourpuss? You don’t have many friends, do you?" Magnus frowned, averting his gaze. "I prefer to study and learn new magics. I don’t have time for such frivolities." Damon chuckled mockingly. "Pfft. You’re a loner. Hah." "You don’t have friends either!" someone from the crowd shouted. Damon turned sharply toward the Aether Academy students. Clearing his throat, he waved dismissively. "Ahem, ahem. Back to your question... personal reasons. That’s why I wear this hood." ’If I catch the bastard who said that..’ "Hmm, I see." Magnus didn’t push the issue. He quietly recognized something they were alike. Both were walking their own lonely summits. Damon walked up to the mana reader, his face hidden but his expression deadly serious beneath the hood. "You’re not bad, Magnus... thirty thousand mana. Not bad at all." Magnus chuckled with a mix of disdain and swelling pride. "Really now? What mana levels did the academy register for you?" Damon sighed as the crowd on the side of Aether Academy cheered for him. "Well, it’s a little embarrassing. I really don’t want to brag..." He let out a dramatic sigh. "Fine, fine, I’ll say it." "My academy mana record at the start of this year was... 30." Magnus closed his eyes and nodded firmly. "I see. So you are much like myself, with thirty thousand." Damon tilted his head in confusion. "Ohhh, I see where the misunderstanding comes from. I don’t mean thousand. I mean 30. You know, three and zero. Thirty." Magnus scoffed. "You’re joking." "I’m not." Magnus’s hands trembled, his teeth grinding. "Then why are you even here?" Damon shrugged. "Isn’t that obvious? Aether wants to mock your academy. Why else?" Magnus grit his teeth harder. "Damn Aether Academy...." Damon reached for the mana reader. "But you know... that was at the beginning of the year. Right now... I want to see just how much I can squeeze out." A suffocating wave burst from Damon’s body. The wind went still. The light of the sun dimmed, swallowed by the deep shadows that coiled around him like a living storm. Magnus’s eyes widened. He felt the mana particles forming around Damon, thick and oppressive. His robes were pushed back by astral winds. There was an almost dominating and suffocating will mixed with those shadows. Damon touched the reader. Magnus’s eyes filled with fear, awe, and confusion all at once. The mana reader’s surface flared greedily as Damon’s circuits poured vast currents of mana into it. His head throbbed from the strain of his wounded soul, but Damon pushed through. He would not hold back. Using his [5x] skill, he amplified his mana fivefold, just to flex his power. The numbers began to climb. The overseer’s jaw dropped, his hand trembling as he read the results. "Thi... this... mana... mana... 117,835!" Magnus was frozen in place, wide-eyed and unable to blink. He wasn’t the only one everyone was left speechless. Even Seras blinked in shock. Magnus gasped. "Ho... how... im... impossible..." Damon smiled under his hood. His actual mana without [5x] was only 23,567. But none of them needed to know that. He glanced at Magnus, his tone almost playful. "I have to admit, Magnus Trombone... you truly are quite the monster." Magnus stood dazed, confused. Why was this monster calling him a monster? The gap wasn’t even close. Damon turned and walked toward the main pavilion. His steps were unhurried, his tone light. "I think I’ll be taking that flower. There’s a beautiful elf lady I want to give it to." Magnus’s eyes followed his back, still wide with disbelief. His lips moved almost unconsciously as he muttered. "Damon Grey... the Ascendant.... Who are you."