Please give the novel a rating or a review on NovelUpdates
———-

Chapter 22: Worth 500 Credits

Clara was startled by the way he suddenly sprawled forward.

When she saw the boy’s filthy magic robe dotted with footprints and smelled the faint odor of sweat coming off Ashura, Clara wrinkled her delicate nose.

After thinking for a moment, she poked him with a finger and asked, “Where did you skip class to, and how did you end up like this?”

Ashura merely lifted his eyelids, glanced at her, and said nothing.

Clara grew angry at his exhausted, lazy look; it was the first time she had ever taken the initiative to speak to a boy, only to be ignored like this.

So she raised her voice and said, “I’m the class monitor; if you skip class for no reason, I’m telling the instructor!”

Ashura sighed inwardly; why did every beauty enjoy picking on him?

He drawled, “The dean already said the academy is free; we can attend whatever classes we want!”

Clara recalled that the dean had indeed said so, and the frustrated girl puffed out her cheeks.

After thinking, the girl said again, “But that’s still no excuse for cutting class; the three-month assessment is coming up, and if you don’t attend classes…”

Before Clara could finish, Ashura irritably waved her off and snapped, “None of your business!”

The words stabbed right into Clara’s heart; it was the first time anyone had scolded her, and the stubborn girl lifted her chin, unsure whether she wanted to look proud or stop her tears.

At that moment the study committee member Kyle, who had been eavesdropping nearby, perked up.

He immediately shouted at Ashura in righteous indignation, “How can you speak to the class monitor like that? You’re a delinquent who refuses to improve, and you’ll disgrace our class; your behavior… ”

Before Kyle could finish his impassioned tirade, the silver-haired Clara suddenly barked, “None of your business!”

Kyle and the entire class fell instantly silent.

Kyle in particular felt as if his fragile little heart had taken 10,000 points of damage; now he was the one who wanted to cry!

Ashura stared in surprise at the silver-haired girl who was still sulking at him.

He realized he had been a bit overboard; he shouldn’t have taken out the anger from being beaten by those two girls on Clara, especially since she was the class monitor.

With that in mind he pulled out his notebook and wrote a line: “Sorry, I had no choice; I can’t understand the Magic class.”

He pushed the notebook toward the girl; Clara had just decided never to speak to this jerk again.

Yet, when she saw the notebook he handed over, she couldn’t help glancing at it, and a series of expressions… shock, puzzlement, thought, comprehension, and relief… flitted across her sweet face.

Clara had learned Ashura’s background at the school gate, and the clever girl fully understood his situation, so her earlier displeasure melted away.

Clara pursed her lips, then wrote in the notebook, “So what will you do? Do you have a way to pass the assessment? What have you been up to these two days to get so ragged?”

Ashura read the returned notebook, then picked up the pen and wrote out his plan and the events of the past two days to share with Clara.

The two of them filled page after page, trading written lines; it was Clara’s first time passing notes with a boy and also the first time she had spoken so much to one.

In the end Clara bit the end of her pen and wrote, “I don’t know whether the path you chose is right, but if you have any questions about Magic you can ask me anytime!”

Ashura took the notebook and, seeing the girl’s sincere goodwill, felt much better.

He wrote, “Okay, let me get through the three-month assessment first.”

Without realizing it they chatted for a long time, and suddenly the bell signaling the end of class rang.

Neither of them had listened to the lecture, nor had they noticed how quickly time had passed.

The girl who was still writing blushed slightly, hurriedly covered the notebook, and Ashura stood up, stretched lazily, told Clara, “Keep this secret for me,” and headed back to the dormitory after school.

Like a thief, Clara slipped the notebook into her space ring.

When Ashura returned to the dorm, he found Boss Jin Ze and Second Brother Arthur already waiting for him in the lounge.

Seeing the concern in their eyes warmed Ashura’s heart; he knew they were worried about yesterday’s events.

Smiling, he greeted them and sat down, asking Jin Ze for some tea.

The two also saw that although Ashura looked bedraggled this time, he had not come back with a bruised face, so they relaxed, guessing that Magina had not gone too hard on him.

As the three chatted and laughed about the academy’s happenings over the past two days, Fourth Brother Angelo burst in, staring at Ashura without a word.

The other three waited for Angelo to explain what was going on.

Angelo drawled, “Third Brother, I heard you got thrashed today by Lan Yu, one of the top ten campus beauties of Warrior Class 7?”

Ashura’s face went dark; how did this Fourth Brother know everything!

The other two were first shocked and then envious; school had only been open a few days and Third Brother had already made connections with two of the top ten new beauties, even if they were not good connections.

That was enough to make these hot-blooded youths jealous, and if they knew Ashura sat next to Clara, another of the top ten beauties, who knew how jealous they would get!

Before they finished envying him, Angelo dropped an even juicier bombshell: “Third Brother, did you know that after beating you, Lan Yu also advanced to Martial Master Stage 2!”

Ashura, who had been sipping tea to cool off, spat the tea all over Angelo’s face with a “pfft.”

Wiping his face, Angelo went on, “Third Brother, rumor has it that anyone who beats you once can level up; someone has already offered 500 credits for the right to thrash you.”

“The freshman Warrior classes know you’ve been wandering among the classes these two days, and all their top fighters are hoping you’ll show up so they can spar with you.”

“Third Brother, your current going rate is 500 credits; so, 500 credits for taking a beating… will you take the job or not? I’ve got buyers!”

Ashura was about to say, “Take your damned job,” when he saw Second Brother Arthur’s eyes light up at him more eagerly than at a naked beauty.

Arthur said with a sly grin, “Third, I didn’t know you had this talent; I’ve been stuck at Martial Master Stage 1 for over half a year, and charity begins at home… how about sparring with your Second Brother?”

“Once I advance to Martial Master Stage 2… no, Stage 3… I’ll help you beat up Magina and get your dignity back, okay?”

Seeing the predatory gleam in Arthur’s eyes, Ashura darted behind Boss Jin Ze, afraid Arthur might not resist the temptation and clobber him.

Boss Jin Ze hurried to step in and calm the farce, and Arthur gradually regained his senses.

He was just competitive; hearing that many people had advanced to Martial Master Stage 2 made him anxious.

After Ashura asked Jin Ze a few basic Magic questions, he went upstairs to his room, feeling a headache over his current predicament.

The thought that the best fighters of every freshman Warrior class were itching to beat him left him extremely depressed.

How did things turn out like this? All I wanted was to attend a Warrior class!

Troubled as he was, Ashura still meditated until dawn; his body kept absorbing magic elements like a bottomless pit, and when he asked Jin Ze about meditation duration, Jin Ze said he could meditate only about 3 hours before being forced to stop.

Ashura did not know what was wrong with his body, and he had no mood to ponder it now.

At dawn the next day, as Ashura walked toward the training field again, he had it all planned out: better to be beaten by those two girls than by other classes’ strong men.

Between the two, Lan Yu was a bit better because she didn’t hit the face, which Ashura could accept.

Yet, at the entrance of the training field, Ashura saw from afar the blue-haired and the red-haired girls waiting for him, and he immediately turned and bolted toward the Magic School.

Are you kidding me? The two of them teamed up to beat me? How could my body withstand a double attack from two Martial Master Stage 2s?

After Ashura fled, the two girls at the gate were clearly displeased.

Lan Yu turned to Magina and said, “It’s all your fault; the moment he saw you he ran off!”

Magina fired back at once, “I was the one who asked him to be my sparring partner first; you came to steal him, and you still dare complain!”

Lan Yu retorted, “I didn’t steal him; Instructor Enge assigned him to me, and besides, he already said he’d spar with me!”

Magina snorted, “I don’t believe it; what’s so good about you, little vixen? Yesterday he promised he’d only spar with me!”

The two had never gotten along since childhood, and now they clashed head-on over this matter, quarreling nonstop.

In the end they started fighting right there in the training field, and after a draw they were dragged away by their respective instructors.

That very day, the explosive news that the two top freshman beauties had brawled over a sparring partner spread throughout the student body.

———-
Support the Translation! 🌐✨

Your donations not only show appreciation but also keep the translator motivated! Every contribution helps continue bringing you more of what you love. Thank you for being a part of this journey! 💖

https://www.ko-fi.com/maxoofie