Chapter 40: New Subjects

’Even though he is trying to act normal, my intuition tells me that he is broken from inside... Sigh... I hope he can overcome his grief as soon as possible.’ I thought, looking at Arthur.

Arthur finally noticed me standing there, and his hand stopped halfway through another flick of his wrist. The small plant in front of him remained frozen in its growth, a few fresh leaves still partially unfurled. He looked at me for a moment before glancing toward the academy building.

"Why did it take you so long? It has almost been ten minutes since when you were supposed to be here."

’Was he counting the seconds?’

I walked toward him and glanced at the plants scattered around his feet. "It’s a long story."

Arthur raised an eyebrow, clearly expecting more, but I gave him nothing. After staring at me for another second, he eventually sighed and stood up.

"You’re going to tell me later, aren’t you?"

"Maybe... To be honest it isn’t anything special."

"That means no."

I smiled as we began walking toward the academy. "You’ve known me for too long."

Arthur shook his head but didn’t pursue the matter. We entered the main building together, leaving the courtyard behind as the familiar bustle of students surrounded us. The spacious halls were already crowded despite how early it was, with students moving between classrooms while others stood beside the walls, conversing in subdued groups. Our footsteps echoed against the polished floor as we made our way deeper into the academy.

After walking for a while, Arthur suddenly broke the silence.

"Have you thought about graduation?"

I turned my head toward him. "Graduation?"

Arthur nodded. "We’re Inferior Awakened now, so there aren’t many requirements left."

I already knew where he was going with this, but I let him continue.

"We need a Bronze Core, which we already have, and we need to establish a business capable of earning one thousand pounds."

One thousand pounds.

That was the only obstacle standing between us and graduation now. The Bronze Core requirement had already been fulfilled the moment we became Inferior Awakened. The academy didn’t care what kind of business we established, either, as long as it could generate the required amount of money.

Arthur glanced at me. "So, what are you planning to do?"

"I’ll think about it."

"You haven’t thought about it yet?"

"I said I’ll think about it."

Arthur gave me a skeptical look, but I ignored him. One thousand pounds wasn’t exactly an insignificant amount, and I wasn’t going to establish some random business simply for the sake of fulfilling the academy’s requirements. If I was going to spend the effort creating something, I might as well make sure it was worth doing.

Arthur eventually seemed to accept my answer and continued walking beside me.

"Since we’re Inferior Awakened now, our subjects have changed as well."

"Advanced Combat, Affinity Usage, and Royal Etiquette," I replied.

Arthur nodded. "Exactly."

He pointed toward one of the corridors ahead. "We were supposed to have Advanced Combat first, but we’ve already missed it because we arrived late."

I sighed.

That meant we had already lost the first class of the day.

"And now?"

"Royal Etiquette."

I sighed again.

Arthur glanced at me and smiled. "What’s with that expression?"

"I was hoping you’d say Affinity Usage."

"So was I."

At least he was honest.

We continued through the halls until the classroom finally came into view. Royal Etiquette was taught jointly to Inferior Awakened and students with Seed Cores, which meant the room would contain people who had yet to form a Bronze Core alongside those who had already crossed that threshold.

It wasn’t exactly the class I had been looking forward to.

Still, there wasn’t much choice.

Arthur pushed open the classroom door, and the moment we entered, I immediately noticed something peculiar.

The classroom had been filled with noise only a moment earlier. Students were talking among themselves, some laughing while others discussed whatever had happened before class. The atmosphere was lively enough that Professor Vane’s absence seemed to have been taken as permission for everyone to relax.

Then Arthur and I walked inside.

The conversations gradually died.

One voice stopped, followed by another, until the entire classroom became strangely quiet. Dozens of eyes turned toward us, some openly curious while others quickly looked away the moment they realized we had noticed them.

I didn’t understand what was so interesting.

Arthur apparently didn’t either.

Neither of us said anything. We simply walked toward the back of the classroom, passing between the rows of desks until we reached the furthest seats. I sat down and leaned against the backrest, letting out a quiet sigh as I looked toward the empty professor’s desk.

Professor Vane hadn’t arrived yet.

At least I could enjoy a few moments of peace.

Unfortunately, the silence around us didn’t seem to be going anywhere.

I could feel the occasional glance from the students nearby. None of them said anything, but their curiosity was almost palpable. Arthur endured it for several seconds before his expression gradually darkened.

Then spiritual power quietly emerged from his body.

There was no dramatic display, but the pressure was enough to make the atmosphere in the classroom change. Several students stiffened in their seats, while others immediately turned their attention toward their desks or the windows. Whatever curiosity they had possessed moments ago suddenly seemed to vanish.

Arthur withdrew his spiritual power after a few seconds and calmly leaned back.

I looked at him.

"Was that necessary?"

"They were staring."

"So?"

"So it was annoying."

I stared at him for a moment before shaking my head. "You’re going to get yourself into trouble one day."

Arthur shrugged. "Probably."

I couldn’t even argue with that.

The classroom slowly returned to normal, although the conversations remained considerably quieter than before. I rested my arm against the desk and glanced toward the door, wondering when Professor Vane would finally arrive.

Just as I thought about it the classroom door opened once again.

This time, the people who entered immediately caught my attention.

Theodore walked inside first and Mary followed beside him.