"Good morning, Instructor Galak," Lawrend replied with a smile on his face.
"Mm. Sit here at the front."
Galak nodded and pointed to an empty seat at the front. It was directly beside Olivus, who was staring at Lawrend in displeasure.
Lawrend didn't mind and proceeded to sit on the seat under the watchful eyes of everyone. He could've already become an instructor if he wanted to. In his eyes, Olivus was just a kid.
"Elena, sit beside Lawrend. Olivus, can you move to the next seat?"
Olivus' expression changed, and he stared at Galak angrily.
"Instructor Galak, what is this supposed to mean? Aren't you going too far by moving me?" Olivus asked.
He felt like he was being humiliated by him.
"Going too far? You're just moving a seat. There's plenty of seats in this classroom," Galak replied calmly.
"I…"
Olivus can't say anything back. He gritted his teeth and stood up before sitting on the next chair beside him.
Elena also didn't care that Olivus was angry. She simply sat on his seat and smiled at Lawrend.
"Hehe." Elena giggled.
Lawrend smiled back at her, and they both nodded at each other.
The students in the classroom noticed their interaction. It was simple, but it spoke waves to everyone.
"The rumors are true? There's no way, right?" a male student whispered.
"I don't know much about the Lawrend guy, but I heard a lot about Elena. She never had any romantic interest in any men, and she shot down most of them without care," another male student beside him whispered back.
"So you're saying that they're just friends?" another male student chipped in.
"Most likely," the male student replied.
"Well, then. Since everyone is here, let me introduce your new classmates," Galak said.
"Lawrend, stand up for me."
Lawrend did as he said and stood up.
"Lawrend here is our academy's greatest prodigy. The Purple Thunder Grand Mage himself witnessed his test, and there's no mistaking that he deserves his current position right now.
"If some of you aren't satisfied with that, you can duel him yourself," Galak said as a smirk slowly formed on his face.
He could already tell that Olivus would jump at the opportunity to duel Lawrend. After all, he had a competitive track record, and it was precisely the reason why he's so impressive right now.
Each competition Olivus met, he would evolve and become stronger as a mage. It had been a while since someone could compete with him. This rivalry between the two interested Galak.
"Can I say no? I don't really like duels," Lawrend replied.
"Pfft!"
Olivus snorted and tried to stop himself from laughing. That was the silliest joke he had ever heard in his life.
"What? Don't I have the freedom to choose whether I want to duel or not?" Lawrend replied with a raised eyebrow.
"No, you don't. If you think you can avoid embarrassing yourself, then you're wrong," Olivus replied with a slow shake of his head.
"Is this true?" Lawrend asked Galak.
"It is, but you're an exception. Although it's probably better if you agree to any duels as it will prove to everyone that you really deserve your current standing," Galak explained.
"I don't really care if I prove myself to them," Lawrend replied calmly.
"Tsk."
Tongue clicks sounded inside the classroom as multiple students stared at Lawrend in disdain. They think that he was too arrogant.
"It's important for us Instructors of the Lightning Department. We need you to prove to everyone that we're not senile," Galak replied with a wry smile on his face.
"What do you mean?" Lawrend asked in confusion.
"The students and instructors of the other department are criticizing our decision. Even the dean felt overwhelmed about it. He tried to explain it to them, but none of them believed him," Galak replied.
"I see…"
He could imagine how bad it would be for the instructors if he rejected a duel. The students and instructors in the academy will start to doubt him even more. Once that happened, the instructor of the Lightning Department would lose their credibility.
"I'll do what I can. I'll engrave into everyone's minds that the instructors of the Lightning Department aren't senile," Lawrend replied solemnly.
"Good! That's enough." Galak nodded his head in satisfaction.
The students in the classroom became even more confused when they heard their conversation. It was as if Galak had blind trust in Lawrend that he would be able to prove everyone's doubts wrong.
"Is that all?" Lawrend asked.
"Introduce yourself to them," Galak replied.
Lawrend turned around and faced everyone and said, "My name is Lawrend Horiel. I'm a lightning mage."
He then sat back down in his seat.
"...That's it?" Galak asked in confusion.
He had fully expected Lawrend to say that he was an Arch Mage already. It was a very underwhelming experience.
"Do I really have to say more? They won't believe me anyway. I'll just prove it with my actions later," Lawrend replied with a casual shrug of his shoulders.
"You…"
Galak was speechless at his words. He made sense, so he couldn't say anything in reply.
"Then, does anyone here want to challenge Lawrend to a duel? You're more than welcome," Galak said to the class.
"Me," Olivus said with a swift raise of his hand.
Although he felt something off ever since hearing their conversation earlier, he was still not going to back down without trying Lawrend himself. He wanted to see what was so good about him that earned the instructor's recognition.
"Anyone else?" Galak asked.
"Me."
Instantly, everyone's faces became confused. Even Lawrend himself turned his head and looked at her in confusion.
"Elena, are you sure?" Galak asked her who had her hand raised.
"Yes. I know I'll lose, but I want to know the difference between the two of us," Elena replied calmly.
"Alright. That's sufficient enough reason." Galak nodded his head.
"All of you, follow me outside.. We're having the duel immediately," Galak said as he stood up from his seat.