"I have a question, Headmistress. Who is this guy that wants to enter the same place we worked so hard to get into?"
"What makes you say that, Anna?" Eltha's gaze landed on the girl with her hair tied in a ponytail.
"Isn't it obvious? We went through a lot. We passed all kinds of written and oral exams and became the top students of the academy among hundreds and thousands. And then someone we've never even seen suddenly gets a direct entry spot?" Anna explained coldly and seriously.
Even though the other students said nothing, it was clear they agreed with her words.
She was a girl born in a village near the city, one that had been destroyed in a corruption beast attack. Since childhood, due to her family's financial issues, she had to endure countless hardships and work just to afford going to school.
She managed to awaken a high-ranked class and entered the academy. But even then, she realized that despite her talent, her lowly background forced her to struggle much more. Meanwhile, those damn second-gen bastards had it easy, and everyone kept sucking up to them.
And now she thought Daniel was one of those second-gens, who got in just because of his father's money and connections. There was no way she'd stay silent in front of such injustice.
"I understand, but there's no need to worry. He definitely deserves his place here." Eltha was somewhat familiar with Anna's personality, so she didn't say much.
"Headmistress, there's no need to defend him! You're a grand mage! I'm sure you don't need to be afraid of anyone!" Anna said firmly.
Daniel glanced at her and wondered if there was something wrong with her brain circuits.
Eltha felt a slight headache and was about to speak, but Daniel stepped forward and spoke first.
"Your name's Anna, right? Why don't you check for yourself whether I deserve it or not?" He released his aura — a terrifying and overwhelming force that instantly targeted Anna and the rest of the students.
Their legs weakened, and cold sweat began to pour from their bodies.
'How is this possible? How can he be this powerful? Isn't he just some rich second-gen? No! He must have been soaked in all kinds of potions since childhood. His father probably fed him tons of magic pills to raise his power this much,' Anna rationalized, and after the shock came humiliation.
"You're just a coward! This power is fake and only exists because of your daddy's money! You'll lose it all sooner or later!" she shouted, glaring at Daniel.
"Huh? You're an idiot. Fuck me for even trying to argue with you," Daniel immediately pulled back his aura after hearing her words.
He had forgotten that arguing with a fool was worse than arguing with a wall. A fool could make even your brain cells die just by talking to them.
"Enough. I can personally vouch with my name and life that he deserves to enter the river. Don't waste more time," Atlas, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke.
Hearing his words, the students looked at each other. Now that the Head of the Mage Tower had spoken, there was nothing more to say.
"Hmph," Anna didn't dare speak anymore either. The head of the Mage Tower had spoken — if she pushed further, she'd definitely face punishment.
Besides, there was no need to say anything. That boy would enter the river and once the Headmistress
and the Tower Head found out he couldn't even increase his spiritual power, they'd realize what a piece of trash he really was.
Eltha sighed and gestured for them to enter the river.
"Do we need to take off our clothes?"
"No. Once you enter the river, you'll understand."
The students, along with Daniel, stepped into the river slowly and realized something strange — their clothes weren't getting wet at all.
Daniel raised an eyebrow and walked forward until he was fully submerged. Amazingly, he could even breathe underwater.
Before he could think about it further, his mind suddenly went blank and his eyes shut. The next moment, he opened them and found himself standing beside their car?
"Why am I here? I was just in the river a moment ago." He looked around and felt a strange sense of familiarity.
Isn't this the training ground? Near Alice's academy?
"Brother!" Suddenly, Alice's voice echoed in his ears. Daniel turned and saw Alice fighting a lightbear.
"What? Alice, watch out!" Seeing another lightbear sneaking up from behind her, he shouted and ran toward her.
But he was too late. The corrupted beast slashed through half of Alice's body in a single swipe. Blood poured out of her and she collapsed to the ground.
Daniel didn't waste a second and killed both lightbears instantly.
"Alice! Are you okay?" He rushed to her side, her body covered in blood.
"Brother, I did good, right? I tried my best to protect the weak, just like Dad said," Alice's eyes filled with tears.
"Of course you did great. But don't push yourself, okay? I'm taking you to the hospital right now." Daniel forced a painful smile.
He tried to lift her, but Alice grabbed his hand and stopped him.
"Brother… the truth is, I lied. I… I just wanted to protect you… I'm a bad girl, right?" She coughed up some blood, her eyes dimming further.
"Of course not. You're the best girl in the world," Daniel stroked her hair and kissed her forehead.
"Brother, can you tell Mom that I love her very much? And that I love you, too… I wish the three of us… no, I wish all four of us could live together forever…" Alice said weakly and slowly closed her eyes.
Daniel sighed, sat on the ground, and rubbed his forehead.
"So this is the River Of Dragon's Tear, huh? It targets your weaknesses — shows you the death of your most important people and the most painful what-ifs."
"And it's so f**king real that it feels like it's actually happening." He didn't know whether to laugh or cry. This wasn't really a problem for him.
But watching Alice die… that really hurt. And if this was just the first thing the river showed him, how painful would the rest be?
Suddenly, a floating panel appeared in front of him and a voice echoed in his head:
[Your Spiritual Power has increased by 25 units.]