NOVEL NEXT Chapter 96: Singles [1]
In the midst of the silence, Leon sat observing quietly.
'He's not here yet,' he thought, glancing at the empty seat to his left.
Normally, Ethan would arrive before him.
But today, Leon had arrived first.
After the Library of Astral Tale, many students had died inside the book early on. Because of that, a good number of them were still in the infirmary, recovering from the shock.
Those who died earlier had received the lowest marks and were now placed in lower-ranked classes.
'Come to think of it,' Leon almost forgot about her. 'Alice isn't here either.'
She was in Class S just like him, but she had died too. Still, because her team's overall performance was exceptional and she showcased her skills exceptionally, she had secured her place in the S-ranked class.
'Should I visit her after class?' he wondered, tapping his finger on the desk.
The thought lasted only a second before he shook his head.
'No. Why would I?'
She was Alice, after all
She would be fine. It wasn't like she'd actually died in reality. With her stats, she would wake up before tonight.
And besides, Leon wasn't guilty about what happened to her.
Taking out his chained clock, he took note of the time.
At exactly 9 o'clock, the classroom door opened.
Leon thought it was yet another of his classmates, but he was wrong.
"Everyone, settle down; the class is about to start."
Olive green hair with matching eyes, wearing a white buttoned shirt, a top with a black coat, and a black cupcake-styled skirt, Professor Esther barged into the classroom without batting an eye at anyone.
Slam–!
She dropped her belongings on the desk and stood in front of the large rectangular board.
"Nice to meet you again," she said, her gaze sweeping across every student. "I'm seeing a lot of familiar faces here. Well, first things first, I am Esther Halls, your homeroom teacher for Class S starting today."
She continued after a short pause.
"Also, as some of you might know me from your first class before the class allotment exam…" She adjusted her coat slightly.
Then smiled faintly.
"Just like before, I'll be specifically teaching you Basic Spells. Now, don't get confused. This decision was made recently, so you can basically say that I've been promoted."
The murmurs in the room grew louder the moment Professor Esther introduced herself.
"She's really our homeroom teacher?"
"Damn… we're lucky."
Everyone knew who she was.
"Seriously? I am so lucky."
Even Leon, who rarely cared about gossip, picked up every word.
It wasn't surprising. Esther was famous.
Her name alone was enough to stir up half the magic world.
Esther Halls, the adopted daughter of Victor Halls, the genius spell crafter, and one of the Five among Eclipse's professors who had reached Breaker, white core.
Breaking into the Breaker Rank wasn't something ordinary. One can literally count the number of Breakers this Kingdom has to offer.
Standing in front of the board with her usual calm expression, Esther didn't bother acknowledging the excitement in the room. She was used to this kind of reaction.
"Now that we've settled that," she said, brushing a loose strand of her green hair behind her ear, "we'll be following a schedule different from the other classes. You're Class S. That means you'll be treated differently. And if anyone can't keep up…"
She gave a light, almost innocent smile.
"…you'll be kicked out. Simple."
Silence.
Few students straightened their backs.
Leon was impressed. 'She really said that with a smile,' he thought, resting his chin on his palm.
'What a scary woman.'
Just as Esther opened her mouth to continue—
Bang—!
The door burst open. All eyes turned toward it at once, including Leon's.
His left eye twitched.
'Ah… he's late.'
Ethan stood at the door, slightly hunched over and breathing heavily as if he'd just run a marathon.
His white hair was a little messy, and the way he clutched his bag strap made him look like a kid caught sneaking in late.
"I'm huff… sorry, Professor Esther, for being late," he said between breaths.
Esther didn't say anything for a few seconds. Her calm gaze landed on Ethan, and the entire class held its breath.
'Typical protagonist.' Leon smirked at the scene.
"Ethan Graves." She said it softly, which made it worse. "I'll let this slide because it's the first class. But I don't like late students."
"Yes, ma'am!" Ethan answered immediately, almost too loud.
"Take your seat and be careful next time."
"Yes, ma'am," he repeated like a soldier.
Leon held his laughter, enjoying the scene.
As Ethan walked up the stairs toward the last row, Leon caught sight of several members of Princess Rinna's group glancing at him.
A few of them whispered something, hiding grins behind their hands.
The prince and princess must have done research on their fellow classmates before joining Eclipse. And by their reaction it was clear that they read about Ethan.
Well, Ethan's actual data was forged by the king himself to hide his origin. To others' eyes he was simply an orphan boy who was being raised by the 'Everbright's Cathedral.'
Ethan, as usual, didn't care in the slightest.
He plopped down in the empty seat beside Leon and exhaled heavily.
"Man, that was close," he muttered under his breath.
Leon raised an eyebrow.
"What did you do, wrestle with your breakfast? Your face is a mess. Nice first impression."
"I overslept," Ethan whispered back, leaning closer like they were sharing state secrets. Then he paused and added. "Well, actually, I slept late."
Leon stared at him blankly. "…Wow. Such bravery."
"Hey, don't judge me. I don't have a maid to wake me up, unlike you."
"Heh, I wake up before my maid, thank you."
Ethan blinked.
Leon knew he was lying. The fact that he was late right after the class allotment test might look ordinary to others. But Leon knew he was late because he was busy checking on his rewards.
Just like Leon, Ethan must have received his rewards after the test.
Leon actually knew what Ethan had gotten.
It was not some rare skill or powerful ability like most people would expect.
It was information.
And not just any information.
It was the kind that could flip Ethan's life upside down.
The truth behind why he possessed the Power of Light.
It should have revealed way later, but because Leon had pushed him to choose that specific book, it will make Ethah's life somewhat more chaotic and interesting.
Leon tapped his fingers lightly on the desk. He was not planning to bring it up.
Ethan might be sitting beside him like nothing happened, but Leon knew his head must be spinning with questions.
'Well, it's not like I can directly ask him,' Leon thought. 'That would just be weird.'
Even if he knew the truth, even if he had seen that secret during the Astral simulation, this was Ethan's path to walk. Whatever choices Ethan made after this would define his future, not Leon's. Leon would just keep an eye on him; if he sees him diverting and choosing the wrong route, he would have to intervene.
Esther's voice broke through his thoughts.
"Now that almost all of you are here, except for a few who are still in the infirmary," she said, her eyes narrowing slightly at the class. "I will now present your year ranks individually."
The classroom filled with low whispers again.
An annual rank was not something small. It was a number that decided a student's standing among thousands.
It showed who had the most talent, the most potential, and who deserved to stay at the top.
And at Eclipse, that number mattered more than anything else.
Upon hearing this, most of the students straightened their backs. Some grinned with full confidence, and some just stayed silent.
Only the top 100 students were allowed into S-Class.
If someone's rank dropped to 101, they would be demoted to Class A.
And if someone in Class A rose to 100, they would take their place.
Nothing here was permanent.
'Come to think of it, there was this one student who climbed all the way from Class A to single digits.'
He tried to recall.
'What was her name again?'
That student was not one of the main cast, so he didn't pay more attention before. But now that he's living the story, he has to be more aware of it.
It's almost rare to climb to Class S. And that particular student managed to reach single rankers.
'I need to dig some intel,' Leon thought.
Esther walked to the side of the board and tapped a small crystal embedded in the wall.
"Your names will appear all at once," Esther explained, her tone steady. "The ranking was calculated based on your overall performance during the entrance examination, your personal ability evaluation, and your compatibility with mana."
She gave them a look that made the room feel colder.
"Also, this number isn't a decoration. If you can't live up to it, someone else will."
After saying that, she made all 100 ranks displayed for the whole class to see.