Morin watched Lancelot finish his complicated sketch, then slump over the desk and fall asleep. He stopped paying attention, completed his own drawing, and shifted his thoughts to the future.
After the 3E exam, his bloodline rank would be confirmed. He would officially enroll. Scholarships would be issued.
According to his Student class requirements, scholarship funds were the only stable way to gain experience. The advantage was that experience gained this way was doubled. An S-rank scholarship alone would be enough to level up his class.
What Morin cared about most was the [Child of the Dragon] upgrade.
So far, aside from Golden Eyes that intimidated half-bloods, it didn't seem to do much.
Those Golden Eyes had caused a strange reaction in Lancelot, though.
Back at the cinema, Morin had used them, and something inside that "loser kid" had clearly been triggered. That was why Morin had started training him. Strength brought confidence. Morin was giving him a way to grow stronger without trading his life-only time and sweat.
He was also thinking about other ways to earn scholarship funds.
Relying only on rank-based stipends wasn't enough.
"It feels like you didn't even have a Vision," Noelle said suspiciously as she collected the papers.
"Yeah. I just wrote some stuff," Morin yawned, handing over his sheets sandwiched between blank pages. "Don't peek."
"Psh. Like I care." Noelle rolled her eyes and stapled them without looking.
A group of muscular men entered the room and began dismantling everything. Chalkboards, desks, windows, even sections of the floor. Anything with markings was removed.
Students didn't always stay calm during Visions. Some danced. Some cried while scribbling on the board. Others carved into desks.
All of it counted as part of their "answers" for Norma.
Lancelot was shaken awake.
"You're awake! The surgery was a success! You're a beautiful girl now!" Morin greeted him cheerfully.
Lancelot jumped upright.
"I... did I fall asleep?" He stared at his paper.
A pencil sketch covered it.
The detail was extreme-almost photographic. It showed him and the little devil sitting on a windowsill, gazing into the distance.
"Yeah. Your art is top-tier," Morin said sincerely. "Didn't know you had that in you. Who's the kid?"
"Uh... an annoying guy!" Lancelot replied.
He swore he heard a scoff in his ear.
"Alright, hand it over!" Noelle snatched Lancelot's paper from Morin. "Freshman welcome lunch is at noon. Be there."
"Wait. I need to talk to you," Morin added.
"The great Dream Lover needs my help?" Noelle raised an eyebrow.
"It's about that program I mentioned."
"It's finished?" Her tone flipped instantly.
"Almost. I need some data to verify it. Does the school library have what I need? I want to go after rankings are announced."
"I'll take you," Noelle said without hesitation.
Credits were on the line.
Lunch was uneventful.
Fingal claimed the menu hadn't changed in eight years. Roasted pork hock, mashed potatoes, sauerkraut.
The "Mechanical Power Design" class scheduled for tomorrow had been canceled. Professor Mance was reportedly on a mission.
"In China," Fingal added casually.
"China?" Morin set down the bone. "Operation Kui Gate? The Three Gorges?"
"No idea." Fingal shrugged. "But what else does this place ever find? Dragons."
"Wouldn't fighting dragons at the Three Gorges be... loud?" Lancelot asked.
"The school would've cleared it with the authorities," Morin replied. "This is China. They wouldn't move without coordination."
Morin made a mental note.
Some people were worth saving.
Selwyn. Aki.
In the original timeline, they died here.
But Morin was here now.
That meant things would change.
After lunch, Morin assigned Lancelot some training goals, then headed to the library with Noelle.
"The library has six floors above ground and six below," Noelle explained. "The top floors are archives, the Executive Department's control center, and meeting rooms."
"And the basement?"
"Norma's servers. All six floors. Iris, voice, fingerprint verification. Nuclear-grade shielding. Infrared lasers in every vent. Not even a mosquito gets in."
"Mm." Morin nodded. "Based on movies, this place is definitely getting breached in some absurd way someday."
"You won't need to breach anything. S-ranks have top clearance. Almost the same as the Principal. Once your ID arrives, you can go anywhere."
"What are we looking for?"
"Ancient texts. Draconic history."
"And that helps your program how?"
"Understanding history helps me identify traits for detection," Morin replied flatly.
"I don't believe you."
"No shouting in the library."
The voice rasped like rusted metal.
Noelle jumped.
A tall, thin man emerged from the corner, carrying a thick book. An oxygen tube ran from his mask to a tank on a small cart.
"Professor Schneider," Morin greeted.
"Morin." Schneider nodded. "Day of Liberty. Good work."
"It was fine." Morin scratched his head.
"The 3E exam just ended. And you're already here?" Schneider glanced at Noelle, confused. Wasn't she Mance's student? Didn't she have a boyfriend?
"He's helping me with a program to identify half-bloods," Morin said. "That's why he noticed the recruiters were unusual. Noelle said I could earn credits and scholarships."
"Mance oversees that," Schneider said. Then, after a pause, "If you need help, ask me."
He looked at Morin. Then at Noelle again.
"Become my student. Credits and money won't be an issue. There's danger involved, but with your ability, you could enter the Executive Department early. Like Hunter."
"Unless you want research," he added. "That would be a waste."
"I want the Executive Department," Morin replied calmly. "Research is easy. Strength is the foundation of this world."
"I'll have Hunter test you tomorrow," Schneider said immediately. "Pass, and you join his team."
"Understood."
"Carry on."
Schneider wheeled his cart away.
"Don't you dare turn into a robot like Hunter," Noelle warned. "That'd be boring."
"He's actually decent under the ice," Morin said, heading toward the elevator. "Ancient texts are on the third floor, right?"
The ancient archive floor was vast. Shelves reached the ceiling, made of Burmese hardwood polished to a steel-like sheen. Thick black leather-bound volumes lined the shelves, titles in Latin.
Morin pulled one out.
The contents were vacuum-sealed.
"The room over there holds the bronze scrolls. Ice Sea Fragments," Noelle said. "You need professor approval. Most of it hasn't been decoded."
She hesitated.
"Your Talent... is it actually Mental Mapping?"
"If you want it to be, sure."
"Stop dodging!"
"The truth?" Morin said. "I'm very smart. I have perfect memory. And a few... extra abilities. Faster. Stronger. That's it."
"I've never heard a single honest sentence from you," Noelle scoffed.
"I like pretty girls."
"What?"
"The honest answer you asked for."
Morin closed the book and returned it.
He surveyed the shelves.
"This is a big task. At this pace... maybe a whole day?"
"Don't tell me you already read that book."
"Easy." Morin walked to the top-left shelf. "Let's start."
Presidential Suite, Chicago Grand Hotel.
"Ugh, Raven, why are you suddenly so generous?" Mai collapsed onto the bed.
"When am I not?" Su sighed, glancing at Mai's long legs, then her own.
Jealousy was real.
"Alright," Mai muffled into the pillow. "Besides that dinner date with a potential First-Generation King... what's the impossible mission?"
"Heh. You caught on." Su pounced on her. "The Boss says... it might be better to eliminate him."
"What?!" Mai froze, then shoved her off. "Before, I could've just seduced him. Now we're slaying dragons?"
"Orders." Su shrugged. "One good news. One bad. Which first?"
"I doubt there is good news."
"Good news: we finally have combat footage."
"And the bad?"
"We still can't tell how strong he is."
Su opened her laptop.
A moment passed.
"This video just makes it worse," Mai stared at the screen. Sparks exploded across the Weight of the World. "Doing that with a longsword... in a single frame..."
Her voice lowered.
"That's Time Zero."
"It has to be."