In the end, we made a quick trip to the infirmary with the group that had accompanied me today:
Kaida, Yani, Cole, and Silva.
As soon as we entered, we were greeted by the head nurse—a short, elderly woman who looked like she'd just woken up from a nap.
"You again... You spend more time here than anywhere else," she said to me, standing up and walking toward me specifically. "Not that I'm complaining. If no one came here, I'd be bored."
"I just came here fo—"
"You don't need to tell me about the big wound in your chest. I'll take care of it quickly."
She began chanting an incantation for a Tier Five water spell while resting her hand on my chest.
There's a reason why she's the head nurse. Healing magic is not only extremely difficult to learn as not a single healing spell ranks lower than tier four, but there it is extremely limited since not every element gets a healing spell.
Once the spell was complete, a thick layer of warm, flowing water began to run through my chest.
"You should be good by tomorrow. Try not to do anything too extreme so you can recover faster."
"Uh, yeah... Noted. Thanks," I said, glancing around the room.
That's when we all saw him.
Atro sat on one of the beds, his head lowered, deep in thought. His fist was clenched tightly around the thin infirmary sheet.
He didn't seem to notice us.
"Atro!" Cole was the first to react, quickly moving toward the injured guy.
Out of all the students who had dueled today, he was the one who suffered the most damage.
Cole's sudden approach startled Atro, making him jump and raise his head.
The rest of us approached more cautiously.
"Wait!" Atro called out, stopping us in our tracks. "I know it might be selfish... but please, take me to the arena. I need to be there when the results are announced."
"You should rest here, Atro. We ca—"
"Please! I can't hear it from other people. I need to be there. Please..." Atro interrupted Yani, his voice trembling.
I glanced over my shoulder at the head nurse.
"C-Can Atro go? Please...?" Kaida asked her, bowing her head politely.
"He can go if he wants. I think young boys should live through all kinds of experiences—no matter how painful or good they might be," the head nurse replied with a shrug, settling back into her desk and resting her head on it.
"Let's go, Atro!" I said, moving next to him and swinging his arm around my shoulder to support him.
"If we're quick, we can catch everything the director announces!" Cole added, taking Atro's other side to help support him.
Silva and Yani rushed to the door and flung it open, clearing the way for us.
As we ran through the school halls, Yani and Silva led the way, pushing aside any obstacles. I could tell exactly how Atro felt.
He was clearly frustrated—but also determined. His expression said it all.
He already knew he'd be demoted from S-Class. But this was the first time I'd seen Atro with such a fiery look in his eyes.
We ran as fast as we could.
By the time we reached the arena—the same one where today's duels had taken place—we were just in time. Hellen Goldenlaw stood at the center, about to make the announcements.
"Today, the S and A Classes fought in four duels," she began. "These duels determined whether students retained their S-Class status or climbed from A-Class to S-Class."
"Out of the four duels fought today, the S-Class lost all four, and the A-Class won every single one."
"To reflect that, the demotions from the S-Class are as follows:
Student Edmund Harrow has been demoted to Rank Two in A-Class.
Student Herdon Teririrs has been demoted to Rank Three in A-Class.
Student Atro Siuco has been demoted to Rank One in A-Class.
Student Pedro Drepo has been demoted to Rank Four in A-Class."
Goldenlaw's voice was loud and steady.
We all turned to Atro.
His eyes were closed, and the faintest smile tugged at his lips. He'd expected this—but hearing the official announcement made it real.
Cole gently rubbed his back.
He already knew this was coming...
Still, he wasn't angry.
Frustrated? Yes. Disappointed? Definitely. But not angry.
Atro let out a long sigh and turned to me with burning resolve in his eyes.
"You promised, Alen. We'll keep training. I'll improve. And maybe then, I can stand next to you... next to everyone else."
Looking at him now—so determined to reclaim his position—you'd never guess he was the one who lost.
"Now, for the winners' promotions," Goldenlaw continued.
"Student Cecilya Redwick has been promoted to Rank Nineteen in the S-Class.
Student Tarian Ebenly has been promoted to Rank Eighteen in the S-Class.
Student Ximuss Yolte has been promoted to Rank Seventeen in the S-Class.
Student Cremia Dolche has been promoted to Rank Twenty in the S-Class."
With that, Goldenlaw exited.
The arena fell into silence as the crowd absorbed the changes.
Then, the first to move were the parents.
While most students remained seated, every single parent stood up and left the arena, probably going to complain to the poor director.
Goldenlaw was going to have a lot on her plate today...
---
We brought Atro back to the infirmary and helped him onto a bed before saying our goodbyes.
"I'll get going. I've got other stuff to do," I told the group as I started to leave.
They barely had time to wave before I was already running.
Even though today's duels were over, my day wasn't.
I had to go into the city to pick up some important supplies, check out the fishing spot for the event, talk to Agatha and her group, and see what's up with the coat that Teacher Doolvo is inspecting.
Since I was still on campus, the easiest thing to do first was visit my friends from second year and later go pick up the coat.
After running around for about a minute, I finally found them.
"Guys!" I called out, waving as I approached.
"Oh, Alen!" Eusta and Enrick were the first to react, reaching out to shake my hand.
"You're finally here, Alen," said the blonde fox demi-human as she crossed her arms. She and Agatha were sitting on their desks, looking relaxed.
"Vi? Why are you here? I thought you'd be with the king..." I tried to recall his name but came up blank.
"Oh, Daddy already left. He was happy with my grades so far, so there was no need for him to stick around," Vi explained, resting her hand on her cheek.
"You couldn't have just told me what you all wanted, then?"
"Nope. We needed to talk with you as a group," Vi giggled.
"We want to go on a dungeon run today. Wanna come with us?" Agatha asked, crossing her arms and glancing to the side.
A dungeon? Today?
"C'mon, Alen. It's a quick one, we promise," Enrick said, throwing an arm around my neck.
"There won't be a repeat of last time!" Eusta joked.
"Okay... I could use a little dungeon exploring today," I agreed, partly because it had been a while since my last run, and partly because tomorrow I had a date with Fran. Even if she insisted on paying, I couldn't let her be the only one spending coins.
"That's perfect!" Vi clapped her hands excitedly.
Eusta and Enrick slapped my back and laughed.
"We'll meet at the Red Tower this afternoon. I'll send you the exact time later," Agatha said with a faint smile.
"I still have my optional classes, so I can only go after they're done."
"Don't worry about it—we've got ours too."
As much as I wanted to hang around a bit longer, I still had things to take care of.
...
On to the next matter I had to take care of at the academy.
I kept running through the halls, looking for the teacher in charge of my Items and Artifacts class.
Assuming all the teachers would be in their offices today, I made my way to the fourth floor.
The moment I arrived, I realized I had probably chosen the worst possible time.
The entire floor was filled with parents engaged in conversations with teachers. While some instructors—particularly those who only taught optional subjects—had it relatively easy, the homeroom teachers were clearly bearing the brunt of the chaos.
But the one who had it the worst?
That would be my dear homeroom teacher... Kafka Crowbell.
He was completely surrounded by parents—not just from the S-Class, but from other classes as well.
From where I stood, I could already hear angry complaints being thrown his way in... less than gentle tones.
Even from this distance, I could see a vein bulging on his forehead, pulsing with what could only be described as unfiltered hatred for every parent in his immediate vicinity.
No matter how much he despised the situation, though, he had no choice but to endure it—accepting every harsh word and insult with forced restraint.
"What are you here for?" a teacher called out to me.
"I ju—Uhhh..." I paused as soon as I saw who had spoken.
It was Rick Tramer—the very same teacher I had defeated during the entrance exams.
"I just... wanted to see if Teacher Doolvo is here. I need to talk with her."
Rick clicked his tongue and pointed toward one corner of the room.
There she was—Old Doolvo—currently engaged in conversation with a couple of parents. Unlike Kafka, she looked relaxed and completely unbothered by it all.
I decided to wait until she was done before approaching.