NOVEL NEXT Chapter 42: Beautiful!
Kyle groaned as the sunlight pierced through the gaps in his curtains, forcing him out of his deep sleep.
He turned over lazily, burying his face in his pillow, but something felt off. His eyes shot open, and he jumped up from the bed immediately.
The comm strapped to his hand read: 8:47 AM.
He was late.
"Dammit!"
Kyle cursed under his breath, running his hands through his unkempt hair.
He had overslept once again, all because he didn't set his system alarm, his comm's alarm must have rang, but it wasn't enough to wake a deep sleeper like him.
"Stupid, stupid," he muttered. "After claiming to stay up all night.
Kyle darted into the bathroom, coming out after some minutes, dripping, he threw on his academy uniform.
The time kept ticking away as he fastened his shoes and snatched his bag.
Bursting out of his dorm, he made a quick detour to the cafeteria. His stomach growled fiercely, a reminder of the extent he had pushed himself last night. Cultivation takes a toll one's body, hence requiring a high amount of energy.
He wasn't surprised to see no students there, as any sane person would be in homeroom class right now, rather than dining.
"Just give me anything to go!" Kyle shouted immediately after he got there, making the cafeteria worker give him a look of irritation before quickly handing him a pre-packed sandwich and a drink.
"Thanks!" Kyle called out, transferring the credits in record speed.
The sandwich felt heavy in his hand as he bolted across the campus grounds, unwrapping it with one hand while clutching his bag with the other.
'I wonder how Instructor Dan would react,' Kyle thought as he chewed the sandwich. 'I'm not just coming late. I'm missing the class entirely.'
9:01 AM. He confirmed the time once again. 'Hopefully, they don't take attendance, do they?'
***
[12:56 PM]
Kyle entered the Rune making hall. All thirty students were complete, four minutes before it began.
Many had thoughts about dropping the course, including Kyle, but after a lengthy discussion with Instructor Dan, all those thoughts had faded away, replaced by a newfound determination to conquer the course and become Rune makers.
He just had to show them a few tricks they should be able to perform when they became good enough.
For his late coming. Instructor Dan called for a meeting with him, and even after all his excuses and half-truths, he still got 10 credits deducted from him.
Even though such a measly amount of credits did barely anything to hurt his deep pockets, he picked up the lesson and resolved to become punctual.
His wing class had been extremely boring, as all Instructor Layla did was teach them about cultivation and make them spend almost the whole of the class, cultivating.
To his benefit, the long cultivation session had proven useful for Kyle. His status panel can display such.
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Beginner Mage: Lv 1
EXP: 101/1000
HP: 30
Energy: 32
MP: -
Agility: 30
Strength: 31
Vitality: 15
Stamina: 16
Intelligence: 20
SP: 0
Inventory: 1* Tier-1 Mana core, 1*Egg.
[Elements]
[Skills]
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The extra point he got was from completing his daily quest, which just had to be very convenient for him.
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[Daily quest: Cultivate for an hour]
[Reward: 1 STR point]
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Kyle panted as he recollected the day's event. He spent the whole break drawing the Fire Rune, exhausting another Runic Paper, leaving him with just three.
'I wonder how the others would fare,' Kyle thought as he looked at his dwindling Runic papers from yesterday. 'I'll see how much these cost at the mall, she said it was cheap.'
His thoughts were interrupted as he heard the door lock once again— Instructor Victoria had arrived.
They stood up in unison to greet her, obtaining a wave that signaled them to sit.
"Greet me with your assignments," Instructor Victoria said with a wide smile.
Everyone's sad expression contorted further upon hearing her words. They proceeded to place their Runic papers, right next to their Textbook, earning a smile from Instructor Victoria before she began checking.
Kyle looked at the two Runic papers before him, his mind racing with thoughts as others were inspected:
'I wonder what happens now, since I did 9 manage to draw the Rune perfectly, like she demanded.' He bit his lips and took another glance at his drawings, 'I'm close, that I can tell. If I just had more time. It wasn't like I did give it my all.'
He had asked around, and he hadn't seen anyone who managed to draw it perfectly, that alone raised his hopes high.
"Beautiful!" Instructor Victoria's voice pulled Kyle away from his thoughts, not only him, but the whole class focused on the table she stood beside.
"Remind me your name again," she asked with a genuine smile.
"Lora— Lora Ings," the girl who everyone's eyes were focused on, nervously stammered under her breath.
"Lora, dear. I'm impressed," Victoria remarked. "Here, 200 credits for your hard work."
Everyone's jaws dropped upon hearing the generous reward, well, everyone except Kyle, but he was impressed, and a bit jealous too.
'Why did she have to?' Kyle thought as he bit his lips. 'I wonder how much changes after someone has got it.'
"T- thank you," Lora stuttered, unsure of what to say.
"Don't forget, y'all. She's your classmate." Victoria reminded before she continued with her silent check.
She only nodded at their work, asking some questions while reserving her final judgment for later.
Eventually, she reached Kyle's desk, proceeding similarly.
"You've used four papers already?"
Kyle nodded hastily. "Yes."
He tried to observe her reaction after his reply, but her face remained as neutral as ever, not exposing anything.
It didn't take much longer before she was done with her homework inspection, and returning to her desk.
Everyone looked at her in nervous anticipation, awaiting the big reveal.
The fact that only one person had managed to draw the Rune perfectly boosted his confidence, albeit slightly.
"I'm bothering myself too much,' Kyle said internally. 'Worst case scenario, we all get kicked out of this class and they are three other electives I could go for if that happens.'
Even though this was what he thought, he didn't want to get kicked out... Not in the slightest. Especially after knowing all that awaited him in this craft.