Chapter 278: Night before the exam[Golden Tickets Bonus - ]

A/N: Extra Chapter for reaching 50 tickets.

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Chloe began by teaching him the general knowledge of Spirit Summoning before slowly diving into its deeper concepts.

Vlad was leaning forward, his chest pressing against her back and his cheeks brushing against hers every now and then whenever they shifted. Each time it happened, Chloe’s words would stutter, and the finger resting on her notebook would begin to tremble.

"Vlad, behave yourself," she hissed shyly. "I can’t focus on teaching."

"Eh?" Vlad raised an eyebrow. "But what did I do?"

He was deliberately feigning ignorance, but his innocent act fooled no one.

"I’m your teacher," Chloe reminded him in her usual stoic tone as she gently pulled on his ear. "You will be punished if you continue being a bad boy."

"Oh, I understand, Professor Chloe," Vlad agreed innocently. He was really enjoying this change in their dynamic. Usually, he was the strict one in their relationship, occasionally pulling her ears whenever she caused trouble. But now, seeing her do it to him felt like watching a child trying to act like an adult.

He found her cute in this strict form that wasn’t strict at all.

"Hmm, now look here." Chloe removed her hand from his ear, her trembling fingers moving back to the notebook. She hadn’t expected him to actually behave so obediently. Now, she was even more flustered.

Seraphina was obviously noticing all of this, which only tightened her grip on her pen. But she couldn’t even stop them. She needed to focus on her own revision, and Chloe’s teaching really seemed to be working.

Still, she would have preferred Chloe to teach him while sitting beside him rather than on his lap. However, Seraphina decided to let Chloe have this moment because Chloe hadn’t interfered when Seraphina was having her own.

The teaching session continued until evening. Vlad understood why Seraphina had claimed that Spirit Summoning was a difficult subject. The complex and delicate magical circles required for summoning, along with the various formulas needed for precise calculations, were already giving him a mild headache.

Surprisingly, Chloe solved these equations without stopping her pen even for a moment, as if these concepts came completely naturally to her.

Vlad had learned from theory that those who had higher synergy with summoning magic could naturally solve problems related to it with half the effort, while those without the talent would struggle to create even a single magic circle. Chloe seemed to be the former case, while Seraphina was the latter.

As for Vlad, he managed to understand the basic theory, but the magic circle formation part... everything was going over his head. It was as if he were looking at a completely different language.

After a couple of hours of effort, he realised that he had no talent for Spirit Summoning without even having to try. He only finished the basic theory, which would allow him to score the minimum 60% required to pass at the Arcane Academy.

He decided to focus more on the subjects where he could actually improve and reach his overall goal of 90%.

As evening approached, the trio finally decided to call it a day. While other students would pull all-nighters before the exam for a quick revision, Seraphina had a completely different theory.

The night before an exam should be spent getting a good night’s sleep so that the brain could function at its best during the exam.

Vlad also agreed with her theory. So did Chloe. The trio checked out of the study room at six in the evening. Seraphina and Chloe left for their dormitories, while Vlad stubbornly insisted on spending a couple of hours at the gym.

According to him, he wouldn’t be able to sleep unless he exhausted his body. Still, he had to promise the girls that he wouldn’t spend more than two hours working out.

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"Now, I can finally get a proper night’s sleep," Vlad chuckled, his breathing uneven and his face glistening with sweat despite the clear, chilly weather.

He had just come out of the gym, after all.

As he reached the central hall of the main building, he noticed that hardly any students were around. The place, which was usually alive with the energetic chatter of students at almost any hour, was unusually quiet.

Even the gym was completely empty. Roman, his gym trainer, had been shocked to see Vlad coming to the gym just a day before the exam after being absent for a month.

"The exam phobia is really insane," Vlad murmured as he moved out of the building, entering the open campus. The night was already dominating the sky, with a bone-chilling breeze fluttering his raven hair backward.

"Ugh, how much colder is it going to get this year?" Vlad muttered, slipping his hands into his pockets. His body was already wet with sweat, intensifying the sensation of cold.

He checked the time on his phone. It was 19:57.

"It’s not that late," Vlad murmured to himself. "I might find her there. I should ask for her contact information this time."

He moved the phone back into his storage ring and tightened the ribbon in his hair to make sure it wouldn’t come off.

Bolts of crimson lightning flickered around his legs, and the next moment, his body moved like a bolt, leaving the scattered grass and a trail of lightning in his wake.

With a few dashes spanning several hundred metres, he reached the deepest part of the outer region of Greyveil Forest, standing before the natural hot spring. The high terrain from which the water was falling into the pond was concealed behind a transparent barrier, its surface shimmering like glass in the moonlight.

The gentle sound of the waterfall, the singing of insects from the tall trees surrounding the pond, and the warm vapours rising from the water created a very comforting atmosphere.

He quickly stripped himself, keeping only his boxers on for a very obvious reason before jumping into the hot spring.

He dived straight into the deepest part of the pond, where the water current was still as strong as he remembered. He relaxed his body, letting it follow the current.

His body entered the cave in the terrain, moved through its sharp turns, and was then thrown out into the pond on the inner part of the forest.

He quickly swam upward, his head breaking through the surface. What he saw beyond caught his breath in his throat, his jaw dropping.