Chapter 507: Evaluation For Freshmen and Seniors

It was late in the afternoon.

A faint orange hue stretched across the sky, the sun beginning its slow descent beyond the horizon.

I sat at the top of the usual tree in the back gardens of Killian Hall—its wide branches had always served as a quiet perch, a place where I could observe without being seen.

The breeze was calm, carrying with it the fading scent of winter.

FOOOOSHHH—!

A sudden surge of flames erupted in the distance.

My eyes drifted toward the open clearing near the training field—our usual spot.

Flames roared to life at its center before swiftly compressing into a controlled pillar, shrinking down and molding into a single figure bathed in reddish-orange glow.

Stacia.

She stood alone in the center of the field, her form illuminated by the brilliance of her fire, yet untouched by it.

It was no longer wild, destructive flame.

No—this was something else entirely.

Her mana, once reckless and overwhelming, now flowed with precision.

It coated her like an elegant veil, no longer radiating heat, but presence.

Her platinum-blonde hair shimmered under the light, catching the embers like threads of gold, while her crimson eyes mirrored the flicker of her flame—alive, resolute, and burning with newfound clarity.

She looked like a goddess of the sun, descended upon a battlefield.

I rested my chin on my hand, watching her in silence.

Only recently had I guided her to open her mana core, but already she was progressing far beyond expectation.

The reckless, almost desperate energy she once wielded was now tempered into something deliberate. Refined.

The ground beneath her feet was scorched only where necessary. Trees and grass beyond the edges of her control were left untouched. Her flame was no longer a wildfire—it was a blade. Sharp. Focused.

As expected of a genius like her.

It made me wonder… if I continued to directly interfered? Would she have set herself in the same path?

Her fire responded not just to mana, but to emotion—to obsession, longing, love.

In the game, her unyielding devotion to Lucas was what turned her flame into something eternal.

A love that could burn the heavens down. But now…

Now that I had changed the script… what would fuel her fire from here on out?

“Riley, Is she your student?”

“Yes, she—w-Woah?! Seo?! Where the heck did you come from?”

She stood quietly just beside my branch, leaning her back against the tree trunk as if she had been there all along. Her presence was so seamless I hadn’t even noticed her climb up.

“From below,” she answered calmly, tilting her head slightly.

Her jet-black hair swayed faintly in the breeze, contrasting sharply with her fair skin and the quiet fire reflecting in her crimson eyes.

She wasn’t looking at me—her gaze was fixed on Stacia in the distance.

Seo’s expression was unreadable. Not quite admiration, nor envy… something in-between. Something quietly analytical, like a cat watching a flickering flame with mild curiosity.

“You’re getting better at sneaking up on me…”

“I was always good at it, You were just distracted.”

“…Maybe.”

We both sat there in silence for a moment longer, the wind rustling softly between the branches as the sound of Stacia’s flame continued to hum in the distance.

“She’s strong,” Seo said, her gaze fixed firmly on the girl surrounded by flames. “Her mana control and efficiency are far better than most mages I’ve met so far… and with that flame trait of hers, is she the most powerful among the freshmen?”

I leaned back against the branch, eyes lazily watching Stacia’s flames flicker and mold to her movements like a second skin. “Close,” I replied. “But not exactly. That title still belongs to a certain first-year mage.”

Seo glanced sideways at me. “For now?”

I smiled faintly. “Yeah… for now.”

Because at the rate Stacia was improving, it was only a matter of time.

“She’s growing faster than I expected,” I admitted, the pride in my voice undeniable. “Her control, her discipline—combined with how I inadvertently sped up her development, she’s already reaching territory that took other key characters much longer to unlock. Honestly, if Flamme keeps slacking off the way she usually does, the title of the strongest freshman might just pass on to Stacia before she even realizes it.”

Seo raised an eyebrow as the girl below continued her silent dance with flame, the reddish-orange aura gracefully weaving through the field without so much as burning a leaf out of place.

“You sound oddly proud,” she said.

“I am,” I replied without hesitation.

Stacia’s flames weren’t just fire—they were absolute, fueled by will and soul. If mana was the language of the world, then her fire was poetry written in defiance.

I hadn’t seen many characters in this world—or the game—wield such raw, destructive beauty.

Her flames literally consumed mana itself.

“She has something rare,” I added. “And the scariest part? She hasn’t even realized how terrifying she can become.”

I folded my arms, nodding to myself before turning to Seo. “Still, what about you? What brings you here? Aren’t you supposed to be training your assigned students right now? You got paired with two of them, right? Are you holding up fine?”

Seo gave a small shrug, her voice as calm and quiet as the wind. “I’m fine. They’re good kids, very eager to learn. It’s not difficult… though they tend to skip the morning routines I assign if I’m not around to watch them….It’s exhausting having to act strict just to keep them focused.”]

I guess with Seo being a social clutz, acting strict might be a challenge.

“That’s part of being a mentor,” I said with a small grin. “Still, good to hear you’re managing.”

She turned to me, curiosity lightly flickering in her eyes. “So… are you here monitoring your student too? I thought you were the type to teach more hands-on, practically.”

“Normally, yes,” I said, watching the glow of Stacia’s flame shimmer like molten gold in the distance. “But not this time. My job with her is done.”

Seo blinked. “Done?”

“Yeah. My mentor-mentee relationship with Stacia ended recently. We both agreed. I’ve already set her on the right path, reinforced her foundation, and gave her a proper push forward. Now… the rest is up to her.”

I fell quiet for a moment, watching as Stacia gathered the fire around her in a brilliant spiral. The control, the stability—it was almost beautiful.

“She doesn’t need my guidance anymore.”

“…I see.” Seo’s voice was softer now.

She looked back at Stacia and studied her again, her crimson eyes unreadable for a moment.

“No wonder she reminds me of you,” she murmured.

I glanced at her. “She reminds you of me?”

Seo nodded slowly. “Yes… especially with the way she trains. That same stubborn, obsessive intensity… and the look in her eyes. It’s the same as yours when we used to train together.”

I paused, a bit caught off guard. “Huh… is that so?”

She didn’t say anything more—just leaned her cheek gently down my side, gazing down with a quiet, knowing look.

I guess she notices things like this more than I thought….

…..

After finishing my casual monitoring of Stacia’s progress, I returned to my room without delay.

The sun was already beginning to dip behind the academy rooftops, casting long, golden shadows across the hallway.

I shut the door behind me with a soft click and took a deep breath before slumping onto my desk.

Now that Stacia was steadily improving, I had no immediate concerns about her meeting the evaluation standards.

That part was covered.

Still… I needed to review what comes next.

In a few days, the month-long evaluation period would end.

The academy’s instructors were set to assess our mentorship performance based on the growth and progress of the juniors assigned to us.

Of course, the exact criteria remained unclear—as always.

But knowing this academy, it would likely revolve around raw strength, mana proficiency, and combat prowess.

Possibly a one-on-one duel format, or maybe even a full teamfight involving all the first years.

Either way, it wasn’t something I needed to waste my attention on anymore.

Stacia was ready.

Which meant—I could finally redirect my attention toward more important matters.

Namely, the upcoming story arcs.

[Act 4 – Chapter 2: Placed Chaos in the Dungeons]

[Stacia Route – Crimson Curtain]

[Act 4 – Chapter 3: The One Beyond]

[Act 4 – Chapter 4: The Demon’s Deceit]

[Act 4 – Chapter 5: Lightbringer]

Act 4 was packed.

But Chapter 2 would come first—an easy one, relatively speaking.

I already had a plan for dealing with the scattered remnants of the demonic cult.

I’d take on the role of a mysterious antagonist, guiding the growth of a few side characters and manipulating the dungeon events from the shadows.

After that, things would start getting more complex.

Chapter 3 and 4 were largely centered around Lucas’s growth.

That was his stage—not mine. Interfering too early might stunt his development, especially now that I could tell his pace was accelerating fast.

No, what I needed to prioritize was the Crimson Curtain.

Stacia’s route.

She was ready. Or, rather… she was almost ready.

I would love to say otherwise, but even with all the preparation, even after helping her unlock her mana core and stabilizing her flame output, the threat waiting for her at the climax of that route was not something she—or anyone—could face head-on without a near-perfect setup.

The Clown.

That damn bastard.

He was too unpredictable, too dangerous.

A walking disaster whose influence wasn’t just magical, but psychological.

The last time this arc played out, the result was a massacre unless the protagonist was geared and lucky—or cheated with overpowered help.

Stacia already has her flames but still a lingering worry settles on me.

FOOOP!

A knock of magic sparkled in front of me, breaking my chain of thought.

“MASTER~ I’M BACK~!”

A chime of cosmic light shimmered in my room as Lavine appeared, floating into view in her miniature fairy form.

Wings glowing softly, she twirled with theatrical flair before hovering in front of me, hands on her hips like a scolding teacher.

“Did you locate it?”

“I did!” she nodded with a puffed chest, then squinted at me suspiciously. “But… Master, why are you suddenly so interested in clown-related coordinates? Were you always into circus men? Should I be worried?”

“No. I’m not into clowns.”

She tilted her head. “Really? Could’ve fooled me with the way you’ve been researching them lately…”

I let out a long exhale and leaned back in my chair, eyes staring up at the ceiling.

If anything, I despise them.

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