CLEAVER OF SIN

Asher, William, and Finch walked around for a bit, taking their time as they moved through the familiar grounds of the Star Academy, a place they had not stepped into for an entire week. The air felt strangely nostalgic, almost as though the academy itself had been waiting for their return.

Suddenly, Finch vanished from his position in the blink of an eye and reappeared several meters ahead. Before either William or Asher could comment, Finch disappeared once more and materialized back at his former location, a smile appearing on his face.

"At least the teleportation ring is working again," he said with a relieved sigh, as though an invisible weight had finally been lifted from his shoulders.

William narrowed his eyes slightly as he turned toward Finch. "Wasn't it working before?" he asked, arching an eyebrow in confusion.

"I tried using it during the battle against those bandits, but it never activated," Finch replied calmly. "So I assumed it only worked within the boundaries of the Star Academy, since it was practically useless the entire time we were outside."

William nodded in understanding, accepting the explanation without any argument. Together, the three of them made their way toward the laundry building, where William and Finch had left their clothes before embarking on the Monster Tide mission. After retrieving their belongings, they headed straight toward William's room.

The moment they entered, William dropped heavily onto his bed with a weary sigh, staring blankly at the ceiling as though evaluating his life choices. Asher did not say a word; he simply walked into the living room and sat down with a calm, composed expression. Finch followed a moment later, and eventually William joined them.

Without wasting a second, a jug of juice appeared in Asher's hand along with a clean glass. He poured himself a generous amount and began drinking quietly.

"Aren't you drinking a bit too much?" William asked as he stared at him. "Whenever I see you, you have a glass in your hand. Even before we left the Wargrave Estate, you were drinking juice."

"Everyone has their habits and the things they love. This is mine," Asher replied plainly, his expression unchanged. The habit, though unknown to the others, had been carried over from his past life as Ethan.

"So," Finch said abruptly, clearly unwilling to waste time, "how are we sharing the mission points?"

"You seem to be in a rush," William remarked, tearing his black eyed gaze away from Asher and settling it upon Finch.

"I have to train… remember?" Finch replied, his expression unchanging. William nodded again, understanding perfectly. He had trained alongside Finch under Instructor Elowen and Instructor Clinton, and throughout that period, Finch had never once complained, not verbally, at least. Although he might have been tempted to revert to his old lethargic habits, he pushed himself with surprising discipline, doing his best to match William's training rhythm.

Elowen and Clinton had tried countless times to reduce the excess weight on Finch's body, but their efforts had failed spectacularly. Eventually, Finch was forced to reveal that he possessed a special physique, one that naturally maintained his current stature.

"Well, we already agreed to distribute the points based on contribution," William began. "And since Asher contributed more than the two of us, it's only natural that he takes the biggest share of the reward."

Asher remained silent, not feeling the need to comment. Finch spoke instead.

"We'll both take five thousand points each and leave ten thousand for Asher. What do you both think?"

William paused for a moment, thinking it over before responding. "No problem. I agree." Immediately afterward, both his and Finch's eyes turned toward Asher, who simply gave a small nod.

William and Finch weren't stupid. Realistically, Asher should have taken the entire thirteen thousand extra points for himself, since it was the Baron who had gifted them to him. They had no right to demand a share, let alone expect Asher to split them equally. Had they only received the original seven thousand points from the mission, how much would they have earned after splitting it based on contributions? Two thousand each? Perhaps only fifteen hundred?

Instead, thanks to the Baron's generosity, and Asher's willingness, they were now walking away with five thousand points each. How many first year students could claim to have earned that much from a single mission? Literally none.

Asher, still calm and indifferent, felt the distribution was more than fair. There was no reason for him to greedily keep the entire thirteen thousand points while also demanding his original share. Greed, after all, often led to unnecessary complications and troublesome outcomes. Yes, he needed points, but he wasn't foolish enough to think only of the present at the expense of the future.

"I will transfer the points now," Asher said quietly. He raised his hand retrieving his point card from his space ring. He tapped his card against William's, transferring five thousand points. Then he did the same with Finch.

Both William and Finch's faces lit up with satisfaction as they stared at their new balances. Unlike Asher, who could effortlessly accumulate points through sheer talent and monstrous academic performance, they knew how rare such an opportunity was. For them, five thousand points was an immense sum.

Asher remained relaxed, unmoved by the transaction. He had possessed even more points before, until the Point Sucking Academy sucked them all away.

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Name: Asher Wargrave

Class: ★

Rank: Rank 1

Point Balance: 10,700

---

He had already possessed seven hundred points prior to the mission, and now his total had grown significantly. Asher sank into thought, contemplating whether he should immediately dive into training or take on another mission to accumulate even more points. There would be no Life Rank breakthrough anytime soon, considering he had only recently achieved one.

Besides, he preferred long training sessions, prolonged, intense, and uninterrupted. Ten thousand points wouldn't be nearly enough to sustain such training. Though ten thousand sounded like a large amount, the Star Academy's facilities were notoriously expensive. He could burn through that sum within days.

Taking on more missions remained a viable option. He could leverage his identity as a Wargrave, many people would offer him extra points, just as the Baron had, simply to curry favor. Although Asher had no intention of forming alliances nor caring about their goodwill, he would gladly accept the points. After all, he knew his current strength wasn't enough for him to be taken seriously on his own merits.

People respected the name "Wargrave," not the name "Asher."

Individuals like Malrik were not feared because of their bloodline. They commanded fear because of their overwhelming presence, their own power, because they were themselves, not because of the family they came from.

The same could be said for Wuthenya, the Second Moon, Azeron, the Duke, and the Primarch.

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AUTHOR'S NOTE: MAJOR NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENT. Please read below.