Chapter 42 - 41: Without an Instructor

Chapter 42: Chapter 41: Without an Instructor

Chapter 41: Without an Instructor

Noah understood the rule. Refusing an instructor didn’t mean the road was closed off entirely, butit meant the Academy wouldn’t offer him the road a second time.

He looked at the thick book on the desk before answering in an apologetic tone.

"Could the opportunity at least be traded for some resources or knowledge?"

The old man’s patience started to run out before he answered.

"Simply put, no."

The answer was plain, in a tone that left no room for argument. The old man was asking Noah to hurry, then he looked again at the Lupton name on the paper and decided to finish the explanation.

"No use dragging this out. What I can tell you is that it is practically impossible, and there’s nothing in it for the Academy. It would waste the Academy’s resources and the disciple’s eligibility."

The old man turned his eyes back to the paper in front of him, and they stayed on Noah’s result for a few minutes. Then he said all of a sudden:

"Even so, I’ll make an exception on my own responsibility."

The whispers quieted, as if they were watching a show in the middle of it all, which took some of the pressure off the candidates.

He opened a drawer beside him and took out a pouch heavier than the ones he’d given the earlier students and placed it on the desk.

"If you’re set on your decision, take it. A hundred magic crystals."

Several eyes in the room went wide.

Even Noah’s eyes opened in surprise, staring at the old man. He didn’t really know what the crystals were worth yet, but according to some Golden house scions, a few magic crystals were a big sum, let alone a hundred.

One of the students at the back said, unable to stop himself:

"A hundred... Can I give up my eligibility too and trade it for crystals?"

The old man looked at him for a while before he answered.

"If you have talent, this old man will not object."

He pushed the pouch a little toward Noah.

"And as Noah Lupton and not Charlemagne, with your talent and your background, I can afford this gamble."

The old man gave Noah a meaningful look, then tapped his finger on the table, waiting for his decision.

Noah reached out and took the pouch without a change in his expression.

And in that same moment he understood what the old man was doing.

To this man, Noah was nothing more than a boy of fourteen. True, he belonged to Charlemagne, but fourteen was young enough that some things could leave a lasting mark. A good instructor might pull a student toward the Academy, and a hundred magic crystals reaching his hands on his first day could do the very same thing.

On top of that, Noah was nearly certain the old man knew some news about his father’s current situation and had maybe connected enough to see that his ties to House Charlemagne weren’t strong.

A mere supervisor of the entrance exam holding this kind of loyalty to the Academy, Noah was starting to understand how the Academy could stand against the noble houses. It seemed the loyalty of its members and its middle class ran fairly deep.

The old man wasn’t handing him money out of generosity.

He was simply investing.

A hundred crystals against the chance that a talented mage might lean toward the Academy years down the line. A cheap gamble for him, but the payoff could be well beyond expectation.

The students behind him weren’t as calm.

"A hundred crystals..."

"Just for refusing an instructor?"

"If I’d known..."

Another student answered under his breath:

"If you’d known what? You’d do the same? Are you a high bloodline?"

The first went quiet.

The whispers went on a little before the envy turned into something else.

"Arrogant."

"Thinks he doesn’t need an instructor just because his blood result is good."

"More of a fool than arrogant."

One of them lowered his voice, but not enough to keep it from reaching Noah.

"You can earn crystals as you go. But the years a real instructor saves you, what do you buy those with?"

Someone agreed with him.

"A hundred crystals only looks like a lot right now. In a few years? Easy to gather. But he gave up someone who could keep him from wasting years on the wrong path."

Noah didn’t get angry.

If anything, what they said made sense.

For an ordinary student, an instructor was probably worth more than a hundred magic crystals. Books could be bought, but knowing which book to read, what to skip, and where you went wrong in a spell or a technique could cut years off the trials. That was why most of them looked at him like he’d traded something priceless for a bag of money.

But they were figuring it from the road they knew.

Noah wasn’t walking that road to begin with, and he didn’t believe any instructor could do him any good at all.

He had the Magic Marrow, and the gates no one here knew a thing about, and a way of developing that he couldn’t explain to an instructor without revealing more than he wanted. On top of that, the chance of a strong low- or middle-grade mage watching him constantly could set his progress back instead of pushing it forward.

The magic crystals, on the other hand, meant something far simpler.

Books, spells, techniques, and the materials he needed to keep developing.

The old man lifted Noah’s paper and wrote a few words on it, then pressed a seal at the bottom.

"You’re registered without an instructor. If you change your mind after you walk out of this room, don’t come to me, because I won’t take you back."

"Understood."

He took out another smaller pouch and pushed it over.

"Academy robe, your room key, and the basic things. The hundred crystals are separate."

Noah took the second pouch.

The old man looked at him one last time.

"I only hope you don’t come back in a few years to tell me I helped you make a foolish decision."

Noah replied:

"My decision is my responsibility. Thank you for your generosity." There was a sudden touch of respect in it.

He’d lost some of his conscience since he entered this world, but the old man’s commitment to the Academy earned his respect.