Chapter 116: Elements 101

Despite his obvious desire to test himself at the Sword Tempering Cave, Cedric held himself back.

He has already seen everything he needs to see at the dojo, and his position as a student of the Sword Path Class was also established firmly. He could've gone to the cave as soon as the next day came but he didn't.

Cedric knew that he'd be distracted by it. Actually, he's nearly certain that he would be immersed in it. He still has other classes to attend and he cannot miss them so he set it aside for now.

Currently, he's gone to another room within the Combat Specialization Tower to attend 'Elements 101' Class since it's Monday today. He didn't want to miss it since it was his first class and first impression matters.

When he got into the 'classroom', Cedric discovered a theme somehow. Like what he experienced in his previous class, the 'classroom' for this class turns out to be unique as well.

He once again found himself standing in a vast open field. He noticed a few notable things at a distance; a simple-looking classroom mostly made out of wood, an open dome that's protected by an invisible force, and a wide altar.

'I'm becoming more and more convinced that each subject here has their preferred environment theme.' Cedric mused to himself.

He made his way towards the classroom since that seemed to be the logical move. As he approached, he cautiously opened his field of senses and discovered that there were a few people there already.

Amongst these people, he saw some familiar faces but one of them stood out amongst the rest. It was Isabella - the 3rd place in the entrance exam, and for a moment there, he was surprised.

'...I guess she wants to learn the basics from another perspective entirely.' He mused to himself.

Shrugging, he entered the classroom and instantly felt several gazes landing on him. Most recognized him, others were just curious. He didn't pay attention to any of it and claimed a spot for himself.

He noticed Isabella's gaze lingering on him longer than most but he decided to just shrugged it off. He didn't want to put any meaning behind it since he personally didn't know the girl.

Cedric chose a spot next to the windows. They're open so he felt the breeze caressing his face. He rested his head on the wall and closed his eyes, he also scanned his surroundings carefully as a form of warm-up, and that's when he discovered something amiss.

'It's faint but...somebody's here. It's probably the Instructor since they could somehow hide from my senses. They're probably waiting until the time is up or until the last student arrives before making an entrance.'

"That ties to number two, so long as you give me a satisfactory performance, you will pass my class. I'm too old to be stressed by your shenanigans and I'm pretty sure that you kids have had enough of old people telling you what to do, so let's not bother with those for the sake of our peace of mind."

"The reason why I am so lax with my rules is because of number three, everything I can teach you in this place could be learned in the library. The books I'm using to teach you came from those places and there are a lot of copies available for you to peruse in your free time."

"I'm only here to give you a different perspective on the subject. I have rich experience because of my age and you aren't the first batch of students I taught. I can confidently say that, every popular superhuman out there that could wield the power of elements, at least 90% of them went through me and passed my class."

"However, like I said earlier if you're not comfortable with an old guy like me telling you what to do. Then feel free to borrow books from the library and do some self-studying to pass my class. So long as you can show me satisfactory results, I wouldn't hesitate to pass you."

"Number four. There are a handful of freshmen in this class from what I've gathered. You may or may not already know this but I'll still say it. It's possible to APs during my class. You can earn them by participating in our discussion, performing well on exercises, doing well on tests and exams, etc. I'm not stingy with them either so don't be shy."

"And finally, number five. Maiming or killing shall not happen in this classroom."

Michael looked sharply at his students. The latter felt the temperature drop when this happened, followed by a steadily growing pressure coming from the old man, making it hard to breathe.

"This is a place for learning. If you want to settle your differences, go to the Arcane Arena. If you insist on defying this rule, I will not hesitate to strike you down myself."

"This rule is enforced by the Headmaster herself and we Instructors, are given freedom to execute all manner of punishment we deem fit for offenders."

"There have been people who didn't take our warning seriously and were sentenced to death immediately. Don't think that your identity outside will have any effect on this Academy. Even Monarchs and Emperors have to respect us Instructors while they're here. You're no different. Is that clear?"

A series of agreements sounded after that. The pressure disappeared after that, causing the students to breathe a sigh of relief. Looking back at their Instructor nearly gave them whiplash because he was back to his amicable expression right after as if he didn't just do that to them.

"Great! 25 APs for everybody since you endured my pressure and for being cooperative." Michael gently cheered.

His students were dumbfounded by the sudden switch but nobody dared to say a word in fear of provoking his ire.

Then, the old man turned around and began writing something on the board. The students saw this and took it as a sign that their lessons were finally starting.