Chapter 229: Flare The bell rang, echoing across the marble halls of the academy. Students began filing out of their respective classrooms and even some lounged in the hallways, there was still time to make it to their next class afterall. Then something strange happened. They saw the Class Representative, Azel the one who had given that fiery speech just some hours ago step out of the Runic Magic lecture room. It was surprising, even shocking. Everyone knew that classroom was cursed in its own way. Even the new students had already picked up on the rumors: nobody took Runic Magic. The teachers of that subject were crazies, besides who needed runes when you could purchase items that had runes on them? But the question was still there... why was Azel, of all people, calmly walking out like he’d just left an ordinary class? "Did... did they actually teach something in there?" one whispered. "Maybe it’s not so bad after all?" another said, curious. If their class representative liked it, maybe Runic Magic wasn’t the nightmare people thought it was. That illusion shattered a heartbeat later. Because the very next thing he did was slam the door shut with both hands, bracing himself against it as if something monstrous lurked inside. BANG! The hallway went quiet and the students froze. "Umph! You shouldn’t do that to your favorite Professor!" a voice sang sweetly from inside the classroom. The door rattled as if something was pushing it open from the other side. Through the small gap at the frame, a pale hand slipped through, one holding a fan of paper. Professor Mynes’s playful voice followed, "Why don’t you skip your next class and hang out with your beautiful Professor, huh?" Azel didn’t even flinch. "No." And with that, he lifted his foot and kicked the door hard enough to shake the frame. "Ouch!" Mynes yelped, her hand vanishing back inside. The door closed with a heavy slam. The pressure against it faded. Only then did Azel push himself upright, dust off his coat, and let out a long sigh of relief. ’Fucking demon,’ he thought bitterly. ’If I stayed one more minute in there, she’d have drained me dry. And not in a fun way.’ Still, he couldn’t deny the results. On the bright side, he had more runes now. Not only had he mastered the basic three Mynes wanted him to learn — the Tracking Rune, the Strengthening Rune, and the Motion Rune but she’d gone overboard and given him extras too. The Stealth Rune, which could cancel out sound completely, making him move like an assassin in the night. And the Cleanse Rune, a convenient little thing that worked just like the Clean spell... perfect for removing dirt, stains, or blood without lifting a finger. Checking his watch, he noted his next class. [Enchantment Basics] "Enchantment, huh?" he muttered under his breath. At least this one, he already knew a bit about. Enchantments were useful, much like the commonly accepted runes except they were in spell format. He wouldn’t have picked it if he couldn’t help it but there was a reason: Flare. She was another heroine. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖 A girl who was practically obsessed with enchantments. In fact, her entire fighting style revolved around them. Azel sighed and began walking. "This should be good." Not long after, he stood in front of the Enchantment classroom. Compared to Runic Magic, the atmosphere here was much more normal. When he pushed the door open, he saw nearly every seat filled. The low murmur of students talking to one another, taking out some books and preparing supplies for the class. Relief washed over him. At least this professor hadn’t scared off all their students. Sybil wasn’t here. Neither were Reinhardt or the other familiar faces he’d seen earlier. Only a handful of nobles sat scattered around. The majority of the class, however, were commoners. That made sense. Enchantment was seen as a "commoner’s magic." It didn’t take vast mana reserves. It also didn’t require rare bloodlines or blessings from divine spirits. Anyone could learn the basics of enchanting easily. It was practical and the nobles that were here had low mana most probably, which is why they used Enchantment to supplement their fighting style. And Flare Everbright was the perfect example. She was born into one of the great clans. The Everbright name carried weight across Starbloom, known for producing powerful fire mages for generations. But Flare? She was different as a Heroine should be. One of her heroine skills was broken in a way. It gave her tremendous potential in physical battle... but at the cost of draining her mana faster than anyone could imagine. The result? She only had a quarter of the mana pool of others her age. And the thing was that the ability was passive... So to one, it looked like she had been born with below average mana. The Everbrights had no patience for weakness. And so, she was quietly pushed to the side, her "disgraceful" deficiency swept under the rug. She was still a daughter there or rather a "bargaining" chip. That was why she turned to enchantments. It didn’t care how much mana you had. If she couldn’t stand with her clan through raw magic, she’d find another path. He scanned the room until his eyes found her. She was sitting near the side of the class, not in the corner but close enough to keep some distance from the louder groups. Her posture was small like she was trying not to take up space. Dark eyes stared down at the table, her pen moving slowly over paper. Those eyes of hers didn’t sparkle like Sybil’s, or shine like Esme’s... they were heavy and dull. It made her plain but if you had eyes, you could still see her charm. Azel walked over. He stopped beside her desk. "May I sit here?" he asked. She blinked, startled. Then her eyes flicked up, meeting his. For a second, she seemed unsure then recognition lit her face. "Oh... Class Rep?" Her voice was soft. She glanced at the empty seat beside her, then back at him. "Here, have a seat if you want." He nodded once and sat down. The chair creaked softly as he settled in. Nothing else happened. Flare lowered her eyes back to her notes. Her pen scratched across the paper. She didn’t try to make conversation neither did she even spare him another look. He could already feel the difficulty creeping in. How were you supposed to start a conversation with an introverted heroine who disliked talking too much?