I am Just an Average Tamer

Then, just a few moments later—

The door creaked open again.

Another professor entered.

He looked a bit younger than Lysenna, probably in his late twenties.

Sharp features, slightly disheveled brown hair, and a pair of thin-rimmed glasses perched on his nose.

His calm eyes scanned the room with a certain detached sharpness.

Without saying a word, he strode up to the podium and stood there for a second before speaking, his voice steady and clear.

"Good afternoon, everyone. I'm Professor Idrin Ainsworth. I'll be handling your lectures on Mana Theory and the Essence Core Fundamentals throughout this year. Don't worry, I'm not here to throw books at your heads like Professor Lysenna."

A couple of students chuckled, but most just listened quietly.

Just then, the group that had followed Lysenna earlier returned.

Corrin and Serena were among them, Serena looked vaguely annoyed, while Corrin looked… traumatized.

They slumped back into their seats, Corrin directly in front of Kai, Serena beside him.

Kai raised a brow at them. "You alive?"

Corrin slumped forward, resting his chin on the desk. "Barely. That woman's evil…"

"What happened?" Kai asked, hiding a smirk.

Corrin looked at him with dull eyes. "Let's just say… her idea of welcome back training is borderline torture. My knees still hurt."

Serena just crossed her arms and huffed. "She made us go through mock-combat drills barehanded, against her. Said it was to 'assess our instincts.' We didn't even last ten seconds."

"She's a monster…" Corrin whispered to himself.

Liliana chuckled. "At least you got some action."

Corrin turned to her. "You switch places with me next time."

Professor Idrin tapped the podium lightly, cutting through the murmurs. "Alright, settle down."

The classroom quieted again.

"Let's begin."

He turned toward the blackboard and with a flick of his finger, strands of pale blue mana swirled in the air, forming symbols and diagrams mid-air.

"First, you must understand that Mana and Essence are not the same. Most of you have likely heard that Mana fuels spells and Essence fuels strength, but that's just the surface."

Kai straightened slightly, his attention sharpening.

As the lesson began, the students leaned in, some out of curiosity, others just trying to stay awake.

Idrin's explanation was calm but layered, every sentence seemed to carry deeper weight, and it wasn't long before half the class had started taking notes.

Professor Idrin waved his hand again, and the hovering diagrams rearranged themselves in the air into a simplified humanoid silhouette, surrounded by faint blue streams of light.

"I know, most of you would already know, but still, for those who had never really tried to understand and learn this. Let's begin with the basics," he said, adjusting his glasses.

"Mana."

A soft hum of energy filled the classroom as the symbols gently pulsed.

"Mana is the ambient energy present in the world. It's everywhere, air, water, ground, even in the food we eat. Every living being absorbs it passively. But to utilize it properly, our bodies rely on something called Mana Nodes."

He pointed toward small glowing points on the floating diagram, dots along the chest, arms, back, and abdomen.

"These nodes are like storage organs scattered throughout our body. But they don't generate mana themselves. Instead, they store it, after it has been filtered by something else."

He snapped his fingers.

The core of the humanoid glowed dimly. A dark blue sphere rotated slowly within the chest area.

"This… is the Essence Core. Think of it as a converter. It processes the raw mana we absorb from the environment and converts it into a usable form, before sending it to our mana nodes."

A student raised a hand. "So, we don't use mana directly from the environment?"

Professor Idrin smiled slightly. "Good question. No, we don't. Raw mana is wild and unstable. Without filtration, it'll damage your body more than empower it. That's why some forbidden techniques that forcibly draw in ambient mana directly often lead to injuries or... death."

Idrin continued, flicking his finger again.

Next, a separate diagram appeared beside the humanoid figure. This one was far more abstract, half-formed terrain, floating islands, and a strange, foggy sky.

"Now, let's talk about something different, Soul Essence. Unlike mana, it's not everywhere. Soul Essence only exists in two places, within living beings and in a realm parallel to ours known as the Soul Plane."

"Yes," Idrin said, "The same Soul Plane all of you visited during your Awakening Trials. But make no mistake, that brief encounter only scratched the surface."

He stepped away from the podium, voice steady.

"The Soul Plane is vast. Just like our world. And much like the Abyss."

The room grew quiet at the mention of the Abyss.

"But that's a discussion for another day. For now, understand this, Soul Essence is the fundamental source that fuels your awakening, strengthens your Essence Core, and, more importantly, defines your growth potential."

"So how do we gather Soul Essence after awakening?"

He lifted three fingers.

"First, Meditation. By syncing your breathing with the natural rhythm of your Essence Core, you can slowly draw fragments of Soul Essence from the Soul Plane. It's slow, but steady, and safe."

"Second, Essence Cores."

Images of various beast cores floated mid-air, glowing orbs in different colors and sizes.

"When a beast dies, its essence condenses into a core. These hold soul residue unique to the beast's species and power. Absorbing them accelerates your growth, but be warned, lower-quality cores can leave behind impurities, while overusing them without control may destabilize your Essence Core."

Then another student raised his hand. "What about beasts stronger than us?"

Idrin smirked slightly. "If you can kill them, by all means absorb their cores. Just make sure you don't kill yourself in the process."

That earned a few chuckles.

"And lastly… Essence Stones."

The air shimmered as glowing crystals appeared beside the core diagrams.

"These are rare. Very rare. Essence Stones naturally form in high-density soul fields, places where Soul Essence leaks into our realm from the Soul Plane or by other means. Think ancient ruins, sacred grounds, or occasionally, danger zones near Abyssal Rifts."

Lira's eyes snapped open at that, watching quietly.

Idrin continued, "Unlike beast cores, Essence Stones contain pure Soul Essence. No impurities. No danger of backlash. But their rarity makes them coveted by nobles, guilds, and institutions. Most of you may never see one in your first year here."

A few more diagrams hovered in place, interlocking systems between Mana Nodes, the Essence Core, and Soul Essence.

He tapped once more.

"Keep this in mind. Mana allows you to cast. But Soul Essence defines your limit. If Mana is your fuel, Soul Essence is the quality of your engine."

Some students scribbled notes furiously. Others looked overwhelmed already.

Idrin gave them a moment, then leaned forward slightly on the podium.

"I'll be testing you on this in three days."

Groans echoed across the room.

"And don't expect me to repeat myself," he added calmly.

More groans.

"Good. We're finally speaking the same language."

He smiled faintly. "That's all for today."

The bell rang at that exact moment.

With a flick of his wrist, the diagrams dissolved, and he stepped down from the podium.

"Dismissed."

Corrin leaned back in his seat. "Okay… that was a lot."

Kai nodded.

Liliana muttered, "I think I need a nap."

Serena just stared at her notes, "...what the hell are half of these diagrams?"

As soon as Professor Idrin stepped out of the classroom, Lira silently rose from her seat and left the room too.

The classroom buzzed back to life after her departure, and one by one, the students began to filter out.

Kai stretched with a groan, arms raised above his head as his back popped. Corrin mirrored him with a loud yawn, rubbing his neck.

Liliana stood up too, brushing her skirt off, then gave Kai a casual glance.

"Wanna go eat together?" she asked.

Kai shook his head.

"Nah. I'm tired. Just wanna sleep, nothing more."

Without waiting for a reply, he turned and moved.

"Shouldn't have used that much energy last time," he muttered to himself as he stepped out of the hall, shoulders slumped.

"Whatever," he mumbled, more to himself than anyone else.

After few minutes, he reached his room, pushed the door open, and walked straight toward the bed.

Thud!

He collapsed face-first onto the mattress without even bothering to pull the sheets.

Snoor!

Within moments, soft snoring filled the quiet room. Sleep took him fast and deep, as if his body had been waiting for this the whole time.

"Urgh…"

Kai groaned as his body stirred awake, the dim light of early evening slipping past the curtains.

He sat up sluggishly, stretching his sore limbs.

Growl!

His stomach protested.

"I'm hungry," he muttered, dragging himself off the bed.

Still drowsy and with hair slightly tousled, he made his way out of the dorm and headed downstairs to the canteen.

The building had quieted down, most students either out training or already having eaten.

He took his meal, finished it without much thought, then stepped outside, hands in his pockets.

The breeze had cooled, and the moon had taken its place in the sky, casting a silver sheen over the campus.

Lamp-crystals lining the paths flickered gently like fireflies.

Most of the day's noise had faded, leaving a quiet that Kai welcomed.

He wandered aimlessly, letting his thoughts drift, the rhythmic crunch of gravel underfoot the only sound around him.

Eventually, his feet carried him toward the Observation Ridge.

A slightly elevated area within the academy grounds, lined with white-stone paths and decorative mana trees that shimmered faintly at night.

It was one of the quieter places students used for late-night walks or deep conversations.

From here, you could see parts of the campus spread below, training fields, glimmering towers, the distant dorm buildings.

He was just about to walk past a large crimsonleaf tree, its branches swaying softly in the breeze, when he paused.

A lone figure stood there.

Leaning slightly against the tree trunk, bathed in moonlight, motionless.

Kai stilled. Before he could take a step back or speak—

The figure turned their head slightly.

"It's been five years, hasn't it?"