As the bell signaled the end of recess, Lancet returned to the homeroom of Summoner 101. The heads of his classmates turned, giving him curious glances.
Thankfully, Ms Maecil entered the homeroom before they had to change to bombard him with questions.
The class followed its usual rhythm. Lancet sat near the back, trying to shrink into his oversized uniform, but he could sense the constant glances of his classmates, especially Kasto and Anita.
Lancet couldn't blame them. To them all, he had just summoned a historical key figure, a legend.
They couldn't unsee it. Nobody who had been in that underground arena could unsee the golden pillar of light, or the Platinum-Rank Knight that had brought Theo's Descending Demon to its knees in ten seconds.
"And that is precisely why," Ms. Maecil Gudgarten ended her lesson, "Grace regulation is the lifeline of any Summoner."
"Since we do not have a large reserve like other Class Groups, you cannot just open the tap and let it run. You must constrict the flow, giving your entity just enough to maintain its anchor to this reality without draining your Soul Core dry."
She tapped her stick against the whiteboard, which caused the diagrams to glow.
"And that is the end of our lesson today," Ms. Maecil summarized. She dropped the stick and let out a sigh of exasperation. Then she looked up at her students, and switched gears from educative to competitive.
"Now listen up!" She clapped her hands together. "The Inter-Class Competitions might be two months away, but the war begins tomorrow. Tomorrow marks the start of the Dungeon Clearing curriculum."
A ripple of nervous excitement swept through the classroom.
"As Class Group-Ds you will be assigned exclusively to Basic Dungeons," Maecil continued, pacing the front of the room. "The threat level there is insignificant. They are essentially training Dungeons meant to get you used to fighting and killing beasts."
She stopped and slammed her hands on her desk, leaning forward, her cleavage almost spilling out. "But do not dare take them lightly! Basic or not, every beast you slay and every core you harvest translates into Tributes."
Lancet watched her, entertained. 'She's really passionate.'
"Those Tributes stack up. If you want better equipment, better food, or dorms, you need to put in your absolute best to meet the weekly quota. A strong start tomorrow sets the tone for the monthly quota!"
Lancet agreed with her. He currently had a crushing debt of 6,000 from the clinic, and with his Bronze Card, he certainly won't be allowed to incur more debt until that was paid.
There were many ways to get Profits. But the more popular was by performing well in the Dungeon Raids.
Class Groups all performed in the Dungeon Clearing Curriculum. Each year from Class Group-Ds to As were given separate quotas to hit in a month.
Reaching the quotas granted the Class Group the decided amount of Tributes and other rewards. Passing it granted extra rewards.
Awakeners who took part in the raids were given Profits depending on their contributions. And those who performed poorly were bullied by the seniors of their Class Group.
Lancet narrowed his eyes. From tomorrow, he was going to start interacting with the big bads of the Summoner Class Group.
"To ensure we maximize our efficiency," Maecil continued, her eyes scanning the room with pride, "I am appointing our two Brilliant-Talent students as the leaders."
She pointed to the front row. "Min Tu. Dane. Stand up."
The girl with pale skin, dark, tired eyes, and an aura that felt like a cold draft stood up gracefully. Next to her rose Dane, the towering, broad-shouldered boy who looked more like a Class Group-B than a D.
"Tell the class about your first summons," Maecil urged, practically vibrating with excitement. "Min Tu, let's start with you."
Min Tu, a Necromancer, pushed a strand of black hair behind her ear. "My summon is a single skeleton. But… it claimed the residual skills of the Awakeners buried in the graveyard where I awakened it from."
Someone exclaimed.
"It has a mix of skills belonging to a Knight, a Berserker, an Archer, and a Fire Mage," Min Tu finished flatly.
'Damn,' Lancet thought, genuinely impressed. 'So her undead can claim the skills of the other corpses in the area where it was buried. That's a pretty awesome Necromancer power.'
"Excellent!" Maecil beamed. "And you, Dane?"
Dane, a Beast Tamer, answered like he was grunting. "I managed to form a pact with an Astral-Claw Ursine. It's only a cub right now, hardly reaches my knee."
A few students chuckled at the thought of the giant boy walking a tiny bear.
"It has astral powers. Even now, its claws already possess spatial-tearing properties. When it reaches maturity, it will be able to rip through physical barriers and magical shields."
"Outstanding!" Maecil clapped her hands, her eyes shining with tears of joy. "Do you hear that, class?! With Min Tu and Dane leading the charge, the Summoner Class Group actually stands a chance this year! We won't be at the bottom of the leaderboards!"
She turned to the rest of the room. "School might be over for the day, but don't waste the rest of the day. Use it to train with your summons! By now, every single one of you should have secured at least one entity. Get to know them and master their powers!"
Maecil's eyes swept over the back row, landing on Lancet. Her bright, enthusiastic smile faltered, softening into a look of undeniable pity.
"Lancet," she said gently, her tone completely changing.
Lancet looked at her. "Yes, ma'am?"
"Tomorrow in the Dungeon... just make sure you stay in the middle of the formation," Maecil advised softly. "Follow closely behind Min Tu or Dane. Even if you can't contribute to the kills, simply surviving the expedition will grant you a fraction of the participation Profits. Just... try not to get hurt, alright?"
She didn't even bother asking what he had summoned. As a Dull Ranked Summoner, whatever he had summoned would barely harm a Basic Dungeon Beast.
Lancet just nodded. "Understood, Ms. Maecil."
Across the room, the few students who had been in the underground arena turned to stare at Lancet.
Their eyes were wide, darting between the "pitiful" Dull Rank and the instructor who had no idea she was talking down to a boy who held the leash of an 8-Star Platinum Legend.
The irony was so thick it was practically choking them. Kasto had to bite his lip to keep from laughing out loud.
RRRRIIING!
The recess bell screamed through the corridors.
"Good luck, everyone!" Maecil called out over the scraping of chairs. "Prepare yourselves! Tomorrow, we prove our worth to the rest of the Awakener Supreme!"
As the classroom erupted into chaotic chatter, Lancet saw the arena-watchers already pointing at him, whispering to their friends. The rumor mill was about to hit overdrive. Questions were coming.
How did he do it? How did he summon Astensia? Was it an illusion?
Lancet knew he couldn't stick around for the onslaught. Using the absolute lack of presence he had perfected as a background-character slum rat, he slipped out the back door while the crowd was distracted by their own excitement.
A moment later, half a dozen students, led by Kasto and Anita, rushed to the back row, eager to finally grill him about the golden heroine he kept in his back pocket.
They stopped when they realized it was empty.
"Where the hell did he go?"
Kasto blinked, glancing at the door in time to see Lancet whisper out. He looked at Anita, who just shrugged, the puppet on shoulder tilting its wooden head in confusion.
"Let's meet up with him in the dorm."
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A/N: Alright! Enjoying the novel? It's time for the goals. If we can get to 70 power stones this week, there'll be a five chapter mass release!