'Aihh... stop thinking about it and focus!' Hal scolded himself as he forced his mind back to meditating in the three-star meditation room.
It had cost him an academy credit for this four-hour session.
He couldn't afford to waste it dwelling on how he could have handled the three crooks better—at least not right now.
The good thing was that Hal had gained a lot from yesterday's mission.
Not only had he earned four more silver coins, but he had also gained two academy credits and five contribution points, bringing his totals to sixteen and fifteen respectively.
But perhaps his greatest gain was realizing that he urgently needed to increase his mana pool to keep up with the Chaos Karma consumption of his upgraded spells.
Hal had only realized, once he was back in the city yesterday, that he had almost run out of Chaos Karma mid-fight—a rather dangerous situation to be in.
While the casting cost of his spell cards was far lower than that of regular wizards using their mana to cast the same spells, he still couldn't afford to neglect his training.
Otherwise, he might lose his life due to overcomplacency.
This was why he planned to focus on increasing his Chaos Karma pool over the next few days while waiting for his duel with Agon Burner.
Days passed as Hal did nothing but spend his academy credits training, at least four hours a day in the three-star meditation rooms and eight hours in the two-star ones, steadily increasing his total Chaos Karma by around thirty-five per day.
Again, it was very underwhelming for regular wizards, as the most talented ones already had more than three thousand maximum mana and were improving at a rate of more than a hundred and fifty per day, if they could even see it the same way Hal could.
But for Hal, this progress was satisfying.
It would allow him to cast plenty of spell cards without exhausting himself mid-fight after just a few battles.
He could certainly defeat Agon twenty times over without worrying about his remaining Chaos Karma.
Meanwhile, as Hal focused wholeheartedly on training, the entire campus grew increasingly livelier.
The day of the symbolic and surprisingly historic duel between a trash student and an average student was drawing closer and closer.
Hal Fennec was, in the entire history of the Grand Magic Academy, the first one-star student to ever accept a duel against a three-star student, though there had been some fools and courageous individuals in the past who dared accept challenges from two stars and ultimately lost.
"Aiihh…Omar, what's the kid doing?" Deputy Headmaster Korvus asked his trusty assistant while massaging his temples.
They'd been extremely busy the past two weeks and had failed to watch over Hal.
The elderly deputy had initially been quite confident that Ennya Kasai's childhood friend would be wise enough to cancel at the last minute.
But now, he wasn't so sure.
Tomorrow was the day of the duel, and yet…
"Student Hal Fennec is currently inside a mana meditation room, just like yesterday, perhaps preparing for his duel tomorrow…" Assistant Omar responded without much emotion.
"Oh, my head… oh… why won't he cancel? Is he perhaps using this chance to…"
Indeed...
Hal Fennec could be using this chance to take his own life!
Clenching his fists in frustration and slight anger at the one-star student who had been constantly consuming bits of his mental energy, Korvus decided to disregard his status and confront Hal.
"Omar, inform me once the kid is back in his dormitory room. I'll talk some sense into him."
The assistant merely nodded in response and carried on with his work, switching visions to one of his eyes from time to time.
***
"Ugh… damn, my head hurts…"
Hal massaged his temples after closing the door to his dormitory room.
Mana meditation truly took a huge toll on one's mental energy, especially when done for long, uninterrupted periods.
Still, Hal was satisfied.
His Chaos Karma pool had grown by another thirty-five today, bringing the total up to 339.
He was about to lie down on his bed and sleep to recover when, suddenly, someone knocked on his door, causing him to frown in confusion.
Who the hell would visit a one-star student like him? Especially this late in the evening?
Hal could only walk up to the door and peer through the peephole, his eyes widening and his brows momentarily raising in surprise and disbelief.
He quickly opened the door and offered a sincere bow.
"D-Deputy Headmaster! H-How can I help you? Please, feel free to come in if you'd like…"
Korvus nodded and accepted Hal's offer.
It would not have been appropriate to discuss such matters in the one-star dormitory hallways, anyway.
"I'm very busy, young man, so I'll be honest with you…" the Deputy Headmaster began, his voice slightly stern, laced with weariness.
Hal couldn't help but gulp nervously.
Had he done something to earn the ire of the academy's higher-ups?
Deputy Headmaster Korvus certainly did not sound too pleased with him…
"I'll be honest. We've been watching you from the shadows to honor our promise to Ennya Kasai, allowing her to focus on her training.
I'm here to ask you to please keep a low profile within the academy and cancel your wizardry duel against Agon Burner.
If you are truly her close friend, then stop worrying her with your illogical and potentially dangerous decisions.
Will you please do that for us?
In exchange, we'll take a harsher stance against anyone who tries to lay their hands on you."
Hearing the Deputy Headmaster's words, Hal clenched his fists in indignation.
He had nothing against Ennya and wished her all the best.
He also understood why she wanted to protect him, as he would have done the same if he were in her shoes.
It was just that the old man's choice of words rubbed him the wrong way.
He hadn't asked them to do all that for him, had he?
"Behave and don't cause trouble for the important people, you unimportant brat."
That was basically what the Deputy Headmaster was saying.
Hal could only inwardly scoff, unable to respond to Korvus for a while.
'Fine then. Since you're using this chance to make things easier for yourselves, I'll do the same. It would be stupid not to, anyway…'
It would be practically impossible for someone like him to speak with someone of Korvus's status without the man himself taking the initiative, so Hal decided to use this chance to pitch himself.
Taking a deep breath to calm his raging emotions, his gaze turned sharp, revealing who he truly was—the proud and confident brat with dreams as high as the heavens from Poporo Village.
"Then I'll also be honest, Deputy Headmaster Korvus. No, I won't back down from my duel against Agon Burner.
I won't just be harming myself in doing so. I'm certain of my victory.
I drew a Clown Box as my mana-bound artifact, yes, but that box isn't as useless as it seems. Even now, I'm enjoying benefits that few would be able to comprehend.
Tomorrow, I'll prove my worth. Watch me closely, Deputy Headmaster.
If I win, will you, at the very least, give me more chances to prove myself? Or, if my performance somehow satisfies you, can you directly promote me to a five-star student?
I assure you, investing resources in me would be extremely worthwhile…"
Korvus was naturally dumbfounded by what he just heard, unsure how to respond.
Did he hear that correctly?
The one-percent mana-affinity student was confidently claiming he would defeat a three-star student with a significantly higher talent in a wizardry duel — and that he deserved to be treated like a five-star student?
Based on the young man's clear, resolute gaze, he wasn't merely spouting nonsense or under the influence of illegal substances…