East Wing Courtyard – Amid the Chaos
The wind had calmed, and the snowflakes from Alaria's spell were melting midair. Most of the students were still whispering about the chaos on the rooftop, but Adonis stood frozen—staring at the Headmistress with curious eyes as her expression turned grave.
She began to speak in a low, steady voice.
Ignoring the fight between the two.
"Adonis… Justin Dawn is not someone you can describe with a simple word like 'genius.'"
Adonis blinked. "what do you mean by that?" he asked
The Headmistress sighed. "Let's say half of the books in library has his name on it."
Adonis was shocked hearing that although he knew Justin was not ordinary instructor he never imagined him being such a genius.
The headmistress looked up toward the rooftop where Justin was now teasing Alaria midair with a pair of forcefields holding her ice spells at bay like flies around a light.
"Justin is the youngest King-Class Mage in existence. He achieved that title at only forty-two. But before that, he was a student here… just like you. Unfortunately for him he was not as gifted as you because he has healing element"
Adonis tilted his head. "He was a student? With healing element?"
"Yes," she nodded. "And back then, healing element has reputation of being weak and not used in fighting so he was ridiculed—looked down on and bullied by many. Even though his element was healing, seen as useless in battle he still dreamed to become a king class mage. But the academy was cruel to him some instructors even mocked him. The only person who supported him was a teacher named Jasmine… I'm still not sure whether their bond was that of a mentor and student, or of lovers. But as much as I know, she was the only light in his life."
The Headmistress paused, eyes dim.
"Back then he left the academy for twelve years to train outside. Even though his element was weak his dreams was still big. But during that time, something terrible happened, Jasmine was falsely accused by some teachers of treason—of joining the dark forces. Reports claimed she had the dark element. I don't know the full reason but they are mostly jealous of her. Given the state of things, and with him absent, I had no choice… My hands were tied. It was unspoken rule that people with dark element should be executed immediately."
Adonis's throat tightened. "Don't tell me.."
"Yes, Jasmine was executed for treason, she died before he could return," the Headmistress said, her voice distant. "And when he did… and learned what had happened…"
She shivered, though the wind had died.
"That day… I can never forget. I still have nightmares. Justin's fury was beyond comprehension. He searched for those who falsely accused her like a madman. No one took him seriously that time as—he was just a healer, after all. But things changed as those who stood in his way or stopped him were killed in seconds."
"Nobody could believed what happened then, but that was the darkest day for this academy as half of the instructors were slaughtered by him on that say."
Her voice trembled.
"He hunted them. Every. Last. One. Dying the most of campus in blood. Until not a single teacher dared to breathe in front of him. I'll never forget how he returned to my office—completely drenched in blood—dragging a senior instructor by the neck. That man confessed under the threat of death that it was all a setup. Jasmine's dark element… was a lie."
Adonis stood silent, his hands clenched.
"I didn't know what else to do. Although what he did was for right cause but how he did was simply I can't overlook, as he killed almost half of instructors. That being said that time even I don't have confidence to confront him. But he himself asked me to punish him, so I ordered his confinement—ten years in a sealed laboratory. He didn't protest. In fact, he vanished into his research."
She gestured to the east tower—the very one Justin had burst from.
"In those ten years, he rewrote alchemy, support magic, healing theory, and sword techniques. Over half the books in our library now bear his name. And his fighting style… a fusion of healing, support, and sword techniques... gave him the title—Azure Sword Demon. Named after his deadly Azure Sword Technique and his unnatural blend of elements."
She looked at Adonis again. "Now you understand. He may seem eccentric… even insane. But there's no one more dangerous. And no one more brilliant than him."
Adonis lowered his gaze. "…And I thought he was a sadistic pervert."
The Headmistress chuckled. "That, he probably earned."
Above, Justin dodged a final flurry of ice blades and shouted down with glee, "Hey, Adonis! Hope you're learning something while I fight off a cold-hearted ex with murder issues!"
Adonis facepalmed. "Why is my life like this?"
The Headmistress just patted his shoulder. "Don't worry I will try to suppress your involvement in this incident as much as I can"
"Now tell after knowing about him are you still willing to be his student?" she asked.
Adonis looked at the Justin who was casually toying with Alaria, then he closed his eyes, remembering Justin's advice and the book he wrote, even his eccentric behavior, then opening his eyes he looked at Headmistress recalling her words,
Then he said with a look of determination.
"Even if he killed all the people that time, I will still gladly be his student"