Chapter 90: Grand Magus’ Demonstration

Mislaine and her three operatives absorbed what they heard as casual information—neither doubting his words nor placing too much emphasis on them for now.

After finishing their cups of Obsidian Roast Coffee, they headed straight into the pod bay and logged into The Path of the Heavenly Martial Arts 1. They had quietly abandoned their original plan to play Counter-Injustice, having realized that true physical superhuman growth could only be cultivated through the martial world title for now.

Not long after they entered their capsules, the cafe door opened. Ga-Eun arrived, accompanied by Irene and Mira.

Having finished their morning college lectures, Ga-Eun stepped in to take over counter duties from Donape, while Irene and Mira prepared to relax and enjoy their afternoon.

"Perfect timing," Donape said, snapping his fingers.

"What’s up, Boss Alexander?" Ga-Eun asked, stepping behind the counter to assume her shift.

"I’m going to stream a new title—Magic Academy: First Semester—on that Arcane Live-Stream Monitor above the entrance," Donape said, gesturing toward the wide display mounted above the front door.

This was his perfect opportunity to finally jump into the game after neglecting it for nearly two weeks.

Streaming his gameplay onto the main wall monitor—rather than letting it display on the individual capsule lids where only a few passersby could see—was a deliberate move.

All of this hassle was triggered by a new System quest that had popped up earlier that morning:

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[Novice Quest: Spread the Word of Magic]

Objective: Inspire customers to play Magic Academy: First Semester and accumulate 100 total activations.

Reward: A special surprise.

[SYSTEM WARNING: There is no time limit for this quest. However, as long as this quest remains incomplete, no subsequent System quests will trigger.]

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Donape settled comfortably into the VR Capsule behind the counter, pulling the sleek glass lid down until it sealed with a gentle hiss.

As his consciousness seamlessly synced with the platform, the main Arcane Live-Stream Monitor mounted above the shop’s entrance flickered to life in vibrant, high-definition color.

Down at the counter, Ga-Eun, Irene, and Mira all looked up, their eyes drawn to the massive display.

"Oh, the Shopkeeper is finally playing that new academy game?" Irene asked, leaning her elbows on the counter as she took a slow sip of her Obsidian Roast Coffee. "I thought he was completely obsessed with martial arts and internal energy lately."

"I actually wanted to try that game before, but the 200 BC activation fee made me hesitate since I wasn’t sure if it’d be my cup of tea," Mira admitted, watching the title screen materialize. "This is great. Watching him play on that monitor will help me decide whether it’s worth activating."

On the overhead screen, the dark void gave way to a breathtaking vista. Soaring white stone spires, floating crystal archways, and cascading waterfalls of pure mana framed the majestic entrance of Magic Academy: First Semester.

{Welcome to Ainkrad Continent, St. Soren Academy}

{Character Name: Jude_007}

{Apprentice Student of First Year}

{Character Creation: — }

Instead of spending time customizing his appearance or tweaking stat builds, Donape bypassed character creation in seconds, locking in his standard default physical build before plunging straight into the prologue.

Swish!

Donape’s avatar materialized inside a non-playable cinematic perspective.

In this prologue sequence, he floated above the landscape as an observer, watching the legendary founding Head Principal, Grand Magus Andrey—a terrifying 9th-Circle Archmage standing amidst a world-ending calamity in the realm of Ainkrad.

Almost instantly, thirteen legendary-tier beasts—Ancient Black Dragons with glowing crimson eyes—erupted from four surrounding mountain peaks. Their deafening roars pierced the heavens as they plummeted toward the solitary archmage.

"Black Dragons?!" Mira gasped from behind the counter. "Their design is so menacing! I’m getting goosebumps just watching!"

On the screen, Grand Magus Andrey didn’t even flinch.

As the lead Ancient Black Dragon dived, Grand Magus Andrey raised a bare hand, his fingers casually tracing a swift, complex rune pattern in mid-air.

Foom!

Nine overlapping circles of crimson magic flashed into existence. A concentrated beam of compressed fire erupted from the array, piercing through the lead dragon and detonating it into a cascade of searing embers.

Without breaking stride, Grand Magus Andrey swept his left hand in a smooth arc, casting an instant Frost Nova. The freezing blast instantly encased two more Ancient Black Dragons in solid ice, shattering them into sparkling frost with a casual flick of his wrist.

Irene’s jaw dropped. "Is Magic really that much crazier than martial arts?!"

While the girls were completely mesmerized, the cafe’s front door chimed open.

Ga-Eun didn’t even turn to greet the newcomers, her eyes glued to the 76-inch high-definition display above the entrance.

"Why aren’t you guys greeting us today?" Jae-Woong asked as he walked in, only to pause and follow Ga-Eun’s gaze.

Behind him, Kennedy stepped inside, equally confused as to why the three girls were standing like statues. But as his eyes locked onto the giant monitor, he froze in his tracks just like Jae-Woong.

Coincidentally, the two had brought four new friends along—skeptical newcomers who had been lured by promises of hyper-realistic VR, but remained entirely clueless about "superhuman growth" or real-life magic.

Yet, as these four friends watched Jae-Woong and Kennedy stand frozen in awe, they looked up at the live stream—and their jaws collectively dropped.

"Look at those spell effects..." one of the newcomers whispered, his eyes glued to the screen as the ambient mana ripples on the display sent an subtle, almost imperceptible tingle through the cafe’s air. "That doesn’t look like ordinary CGI at all. It looks... disturbingly real."

On the overhead screen, Grand Magus Andrey casually dusted off his robes while the remaining ten Ancient Black Dragons hovered warily around the tiny human.

It was the ultimate display of aura farming—completely unaware that the character’s flashy prologue run was already casting a hypnotic spell over the regular and fresh customers below.

The cinematic finale faded into a soft white mist as Grand Magus Andrey’s brilliant crimson spell circle dispersed over the sky above St. Soren Academy.

Below, ten Ancient Black Dragon carcasses lay scattered across the battlefield, while the remaining three bowed their massive heads in absolute submission.

On the 76-inch monitor, the grand display of 9th-Circle magic slowly dissolved into the polished, marble-tiled auditorium of the academy.

{Prologue Completed: Legendary Lore Logged}

{Initiating Tutorial Stage: Magic Academy - Year 1}

{Location: St. Soren Grand Auditorium}

Below the display, Jae-Woong, Kennedy, and their four skeptical friends stood motionless, their eyes wide as the view shifted from the cinematic third-person perspective to Jude_007’s first-person view.

Donape’s avatar stood amidst hundreds of newly enrolled apprentice mages, all wearing plain grey robes with a single blank copper badge pinned to their chests.

High above them, grand stained-glass windows cast colorful beams of ambient mana across the obsidian lectern where a silver-haired professor stood awaiting the new intake.

Unlike the godlike Grand Magus Andrey from the prologue, Donape’s current interface showed a painfully basic starting status:

{Character Status: Jude_007}

- Level: 1 (Apprentice Mage)

- Mana Pool: 10/10

- Circle Rank: 0-Circle (Unawakened)

- Known Spells: None

"Wait, what game is this?!" one of Jae-Woong’s friends whispered, leaning over the counter in shock.

Ga-Eun finally snapped back to reality and greeted them with a formal smile.

"Ah, my apologies! The gameplay was so mesmerizing that I got completely distracted. What you’re seeing on the live stream is our newest title, Magic Academy: First Semester. Would you like to log in right away, or scan the shop menu first?"

She added a few smooth promotional points about the VR experience while subtly pointing to the overhead menu board to ensure they were aware of the pricing.

Jae-Woong waved his hand casually. "We’ll check the menu later. For now, let us watch this! Ah, Miss Ga-Eun—six cups of Obsidian Roast Coffee, please."

"Right away!" Ga-Eun replied, moving quickly to retrieve six warm mugs of Obsidian Roast Coffee.

As she served the drinks, one of the four new friends let out a surprised, scoffing laugh at the receipt. "Whoa! So expensive! How can a single cup of coffee cost 50 BC?!"

"Just pay up, don’t act like a beggar," Kennedy said apathetically, taking a sip. "We already gave you guys a heads-up about the prices before coming here, and you all agreed. No complaining now."

As the group took their first sips—instantly stunned by the coffee’s rich flavor and mental-clearing effects—their attention drifted right back to the live-stream monitor above.

On screen, Donape walked up to the central testing orb on the auditorium stage. As his avatar placed a hand on the crystalline sphere, a faint blue light flared within the glass, expanding until three distinct colors swirled inside: Crimson, Azure, and Pale Gold.

{Affinity Test Result}

Primary Element: Fire (72% Harmony)

Secondary Element: Water/Ice (25% Harmony)

Rare Element: Lightning (21% Harmony)

"What’s that mean?" Irene asked out of curiosity, pointing at the numbers. "Is that a good roll?"

As someone unfamiliar with fantasy gaming mechanics, she only knew basic magic tropes from popular media.

However, no one answered her—the rest of the crowd was far too absorbed in watching the stream.

Without wasting a single second on dialogue with NPC instructors, Donape immediately chose to cultivate the Lightning Element as his primary focus, completely ignoring its low compatibility.

Standard logic dictated focusing on the Primary Element—Fire—due to its higher casting success rate and natural synergy with a cultivator’s physique. Attempting to force a low-harmony element often risked dangerous Mana Collisions as one’s Circle rank progressed.

However, Donape had a very specific, personal reason for his choice: he wanted to build up an immunity to the Tyrannical System’s Divine Lightning, which frequently zapped him whenever it felt like punishing him.

Whether he made a minor mistake or annoyed the System, the resulting electrocution was excruciatingly painful—even with low cultivation Qi protecting his body.

If he could master Lightning Magic inside the VR world, he could forge a body capable of enduring those random strikes. As for the other elements? He could always pick them up later using high-tier magic artifacts.