Instructor Valdin stared at Simon in silence.
He was extremely surprised by Simon’s arrogance and confidence. It was an arrogance and confidence that was rarely seen in kids his age, especially when their enemies were far beyond them.
’And he’s also a slave. I can never understand why the clan made him a slave. He’s a talent that should be cherished.’
He shook his head with a disappointed expression.
"To be honest, you’re a smart and cold kid who seems to have experienced his fair share of life, so I’ll tell you something."
Simon raised a curious brow.
"I don’t care about you. If you die right now, I would not grieve and neither would I feel an iota of pain if you were to disappear from this world."
"But as your class instructor, it would be a huge loss and it would be disappointing to lose you. I can see the hole you’re about to enter, and I want to tell you that it’s deeper than anything you’ve ever imagined."
Simon could not help but give Instructor Valdin a light smile behind his mask, but he didn’t interrupt the Velari. He waited and allowed him to finish.
"Making a faction to be your enemy gets you nothing. You don’t profit from doing that, and at your current level, age, and power that you possess, you cannot defeat them."
"Let’s say you miraculously find a way to defeat one of their top members, what about the roots? There’s no way you can cut off their roots. You’re just too weak."
"My advice for you is this, and this is what any smart person would do... Lay low. Train. And build your strength quietly."
Simon raised his brows the more, and his lips curled up with even more amusement.
"I understand that you resent the clan for making you a slave, and you dislike your classmates for how they’ve treated you. But you’ve exposed so much about yourself."
"Everybody now knows about your battle prowess. People are watching you. They know that you have the ability to fight and defeat Archfiends even as a Minor Fiend."
"They know so much about you, Broken Halo, and this would make it difficult for you to carry out your revenge."
Instructor Valdin leaned forward slightly, and his tone became a little bit more serious.
"A wise person would lay low, sharpen his fangs in secret, persevere and take all the beatings, insults, and humiliation that comes his way, until he’s strong enough to sweep away all his enemies with ease."
"Wouldn’t that be better for you? You’ll finally be able to achieve the revenge you want against those that humiliated you and tried to kill you."
"It’s what some present Demon Kings and late Demon Kings did to reach where they are now."
"Knowing when to step back so as to sharpen your fangs is not foolishness and it’s not weakness. It’s being strong. It’s extreme perseverance. And it’s being wise."
"Be wise, Broken Halo. And be strong."
The office went silent for a few seconds before Simon hummed softly and released a soft sigh.
He folded his arms, looked down, and began to tap his foot on the ground.
It looked like he was thinking deeply about everything he just heard.
A few seconds later, he asked a question.
"I’m curious about something."
"What?" Instructor Valdin said.
Simon looked at him with slightly narrowed eyes.
"With everything you’ve said, you make it seem like you’re encouraging me to have my revenge on the clan. Are you?"
Instructor Valdin chuckled softly, then he shook his head.
"I’m not. I’m an instructor. A teacher, and you’re talented. It would be a shame to see you fall and die because of your arrogance and foolishness."
"Besides, I don’t want things to get more chaotic than this. You’re making things worse."
Simon chuckled softly when he heard this, then he shook his head and released a disappointed sigh.
Instructor Valdin heard this, and he frowned slightly.
"Is there a problem?"
Simon raised two fingers. "Two questions. I want to ask two questions."
Instructor Valdin gestured for him to speak.
Simon lowered a finger.
"First question... Everything you’ve said, are they your suggestions, your words? Or the words of the academy itself?"
Instructor Valdin was a little bit surprised, but he answered.
"Mine."
Simon nodded. "Alright. Second question then."
He lowered the last finger.
"You told me to lay low and sharpen my fangs in secret, but I want to ask... How do you expect me to sharpen my fangs when the academy and clan itself makes it very difficult for me to sharpen my fangs?"
"How do I do that, when every resource is three times the original price for me?"
"How do I sharpen my fangs, when the academy gives me wood to sharpen my fangs?"
"Tell me, Instructor Valdin... How do I sharpen my fangs when the system of the academy is built to ensure that no slave is able to sharpen those fangs?"
Instructor Valdin went silent and could not respond even after five seconds of silence.
Simon scoffed. "I thought so."
Instructor Valdin finally spoke after these words.
"So, the slave status is the problem?"
Simon did not respond and just gave the Instructor an amused look.
Wasn’t his slave status the cause behind everything?
Instructor Valdin released a soft sigh.
"There have been slaves in the past who got rid of their slave status for the achievements they made for the clan."
"If you work very hard, train very hard, perform a lot better than your peers from now till the future, and you’re able to gain extraordinary achievements, your slave status would be removed and you’ll become a member of the clan."
"At the end of the day, my advice to you is still the best. Lay low. Train hard. Work hard. And sharpen your fangs."
"Do this, and your slave status would be removed."
Simon shook his head with a disappointed expression, then he stood.
"I’ll think about it. Can I leave? I have a lot of things to do."
Instructor Valdin stared at him, and though Simon could not see his face, he knew that the class instructor was unhappy.
"You may leave."