Ch 82: Lucien And Bianca

Lucien exited his classroom with his assistant following close behind, the two of them moving along the hallway at a steady, unhurried stride. "Bianca, I hope you could, within a day or two, demonstrate to the students what casting a tier two spell feels like while wearing those bracelets," Lucien said.

And Bianca, who had caught up to him and was now walking beside him though half a step behind, replied with a small nod, "It has been a while since I last wore them, Professor, but I will make sure to practice tonight and familiarise myself with them again." She paused briefly before adding, "It should not take me long to feel comfortable casting tier two under the restriction. I will be ready to show the students within a day or two."

Lucien nodded in quiet approval. "Good. Let me know when you feel prepared, because I want you to give your best show. Having you demonstrate it rather than me will be more beneficial for the students. As I can cast a tier two without any problem, but seeing you who is one batch ahead, do it will motivate them and put a stop to any students who might be second-guessing their own capabilities." Lucien let his words settle before adding, "I also expect you to walk them through your process and share your experience."

Bianca nodded and opened her mouth, but no words came out immediately. Lucien caught a flicker of hesitation in her expression from the corner of his eye, though he could not quite place the reason for it. "Is there something you want to ask?" he said, glancing briefly toward her.

Bianca gathered her courage. "Professor, last year you gave all of us sixty percent mana-restricting bracelets," she began, faltering slightly before steadying herself and continuing, "but why did you give the new batch seventy percent mana-restricting bracelets? And some students, like Eleena, received eighty-five percent ones, the same kind you handed to me just before entering the classroom today."

Lucien had been expecting that question. He had given sixty percent mana-restricting bracelets to Bianca and her cohort the previous year, and even back then a number of students who were not yet familiar with him had protested, arguing that the accepted standard was fifty percent and that an increase of ten percent was unreasonable and would damage their grades so early in their academy careers.

But Lucien being Lucien, had silenced the students with little more than a look and the quiet, unmistakable weight of his presence, and after that the protests had stopped entirely. Most of those students had likely come to understand him well enough in the days that followed to know better than to speak out again.

Lucien joining as a professor rather than a student had not sat comfortably with many of them, and the protests had come mostly from those who had not known him beforehand, those who had not yet learned what kind of person they were dealing with. Though, they had found out soon enough.

So, where was he? Yes. He had given sixty percent to the previous year and seventy percent to the new batch, and to a select few, including the princess and several others, he had given eighty-five percent mana-restricting bracelets.

The first part of that decision was straightforward enough. It was natural to raise the difficulty slightly with each new generation. Students tended to come in a little stronger each year and the curriculum needed to reflect that. And, this was proved by the exceptional students that were admitted this year and some handful of them were genuinely exceptional. The main characters fell in that genuinely exceptional category, they were notably stronger, and for them Lucien had wanted a proper challenge, one that would push them rather than simply test them. As he had no doubt they would overcome it. They carried the good fortune of overcoming any challenge as they carried plot armours. So, he had simply decided to go with increasing the challenge and give them seventy percent mana restricting bracelets.

As for the eighty-five percent bracelets given to the few, that was not planned at all and if Lucien were to be honest with himself, then that was because they had troubled him and it was simply due to him deciding to give them punishment. They had pushed, and so he had pushed back in the only way he found satisfying. Mark was the sole exception among that group, having asked for the higher restriction bracelets by himself.

With that reasoning settled neatly in his mind, Lucien turned his gaze briefly toward Bianca. "Because I wanted to raise the difficulty slightly this year. Each new generation tends to be a little stronger than the one before it, and it would be counterproductive to keep the standard the same and allow stagnation to set in." He gave her a moment to absorb that before continuing, "As for why certain students received eighty-five percent bracelets, the same kind I handed you earlier, it’s because it was their punishment." Bianca's expression shifted for just a moment, a flicker of surprise that she concealed quickly. "Though not entirely punishment," Lucien allowed. "It was also because I believed they were capable of overcoming a higher threshold, so I wanted to see what they would do under that pressure. As for Mark, he requested it himself."

Lucien picked up his pace, and Bianca matched him without comment. He assumed the conversation had run its course and had fulfilled her curiosity entirely, which was why her next question caught him almost entirely off guard and briefly made him question everything he thought he understood about her composure. "Does that mean they have more potential than our batch?" she asked.

Bianca had clearly been watching the new students more carefully than he had given her credit for. She must have noticed that most of them ranked slightly above average and that a few among them stood out considerably.

Lucien had to admit the girl was sharp. "Some of them, yes, though the difference is not especially wide except for a handful who are genuinely exceptional," he replied, fulfilling her curiosity, or more accurately, confirming what she had already suspected. "If I am being honest, a few of them could give even higher ranked students considerable trouble."

Bianca nodded, and something shifted in her bearing as she did. There was a quiet firmness in her eyes now, a steadiness that had not been there before, and she straightened almost imperceptibly, her chin lifting just a fraction.

It was plain enough to read. She had no intention of being outpaced by first-years, and the idea of any student from the new batch surpassing her while she held the title of vice president and second-year was clearly something she found intolerable. She was fiercely competitive in the way that Mark was competitive, and the similarity made Lucien truly wonder whether every significant figure in this world shared that particular competitiveness.

***

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