Kaen stood in front of the class, positioned at the center of the room where Professor Aeryn had called him up as a volunteer for a magical defense demonstration.
"Who is he?"
"That commoner who got into Class S by recommendation."
"What?? But I heard he did well on the practical exam."
"I heard he stole Yenne's points."
"What a bastard..."
Whispers spread across the room.
'Already talking about me... I can hear some of you back there, you damn background extras.'
"Don't worry, young man. We're just doing something basic, a simple demonstration."
She winked at Kaen, trying to reassure him.
Kaen stared at her.
The height difference between them almost made the scene look comical. She didn't even reach his chest. To look at her properly, Kaen had to lower his gaze slightly.
"You're not carrying any extra gear. Are you a mage? What can you do for defense?"
"I can't use elemental spells, so I can't create magical barriers."
"..."
A few laughs and whispers stirred through the room.
Someone who couldn't use basic magic?
How had someone like that even gotten into the academy?
They wondered.
"But can you defend yourself?"
'Is this why she called me down here? Just so these idiots can laugh at me?'
Kaen had always hated being underestimated. If it were up to him, half the class would already be on the ground. But he decided to keep the mood light. Though... maybe things getting a little heated could be fun.
He remembered something Marco had said earlier about Aeryn's teaching style. Something he probably should've avoided.
He bent down slightly. At over 1.80 meters tall, he dropped to her eye level and, with a teasing smile, rested his hands on his knees:
"Well... I've got my ways, but please, go easy on me, professor."
Aeryn's expression didn't change, but a vein pulsed subtly on her face as she kept her polite smile.
'You little... I only said that as a comment. And he hit right where it hurts.'
She hated when people brought up her height. Even more when they treated her like a kid.
But she took a deep breath. She was here as a teacher.
And besides... she really did want to see what he was capable of.
She had watched part of the practical exam. She'd noticed something strange in the way Kaen manipulated mana. It was unusual. She wanted to understand it better. And maybe teach him a little lesson in the process.
"Alright. Let's start with something simple. Get ready."
She stepped back gracefully, almost gliding across the floor.
Kaen didn't move. He stood there, hands in his pockets, like he already knew what was coming.
'Arrogance? Or confidence?'
Aeryn wondered.
'Let's find out...'
Without seals or chants, she cast a basic impact spell.
...FWOOOSH!
The orb shot through the air in a straight, fast, concentrated line.
But just as it was about to hit him, something strange happened. It vanished in midair, as if it had collided with a barrier no one could see or understand.
Kaen remained still, like nothing had happened. His eyes steady, his breathing calm. He didn't even blink at the failed impact.
"What?! Did you see that?"
The whispers grew louder.
"He didn't even move... did the professor cancel the spell?"
"..."
"Wow... how did he do that?"
Lyra, surprised, turned to Elena.
"That was... contact redirection, I think."
"You just made that up, didn't you?"
"Hmm? Oh... yeah..."
Elena had gotten distracted.
She couldn't talk like she knew things about Kaen in front of Lyra, that would look weird.
But Elena knew exactly what Kaen had done.
Even if she didn't remember all the details, she recognized the technique instantly. He was using his internal mana as fuel to create vector-based defenses.
"She probably called him up already knowing what he was capable of."
"You think Professor Aeryn did it on purpose?"
"Aeryn acts all relaxed, but she's meticulous. She spread mana through the room before class started to detect those with a more stable internal flow."
"Ah... so I wasn't imagining things when I felt mana in the air earlier."
"She picked him because his mana is absurdly consistent."
"But was that the only reason? She looks kinda irritated."
"That's his problem now..."
At the center of the room, Aeryn started intensifying her attacks.
'He really doesn't use shields, or runes... just pure mana?'
She cast another spell.
THUMPH!
The muffled sound echoed as if the magic had collided with a wall made of compressed air. The spell vanished on impact, without causing any visible effect.
'No... that's more than just mana.'
Determined to go further.
She raised one hand. Her lips moved slightly as if she were casting something.
"How about we heat things up a bit?"
A thunderclap echoed through the room. Lightning crackled between her fingers.
"My spells are unraveling before even touching you. But I want to see how you handle this."
'Lightning magic doesn't need to touch. Just getting close causes damage. Let's see...'
"Don't worry. It'll only hurt for two seconds, max."
Kaen's eyes widened slightly.
'Two seconds?'
Right away, he remembered the time back on Earth when he tripped over an exposed fan wire.
Two seconds had been more than enough to traumatize him.
'Judging by his face... definitely has a bad history with lightning magic.'
The murmurs in the room got louder.
"Now he's screwed."
"I think the professor went too far."
"For someone who got in by recommendation, he deserves it..."
Kaen took his hands out of his pockets.
He took a deep breath. The goal was to ignore the voices around him.
But he couldn't.
A faint smile appeared.
'You made a mistake, professor... that spell won't work.'
ZAAAK!!!!.....
The lightning sliced through the air, shooting straight toward him. It was fast and precise.
The room held its breath.
Kaen raised his hand.
He whispered something.
Those who were paying close attention swore they saw his lips say:
"....zero."
At that moment, mana flowed through Kaen's arm into his open palm.
It was smooth, but dense. As if he injected something invisible into the air itself.
All of it happened in less than a second.
No one could see it, but the particles around him began to behave differently, slowly dispersing moisture and charged ions in the environment.
The lightning bolts streaked toward him like serpents of light ready to bite, but before they got close, something broke them.
The current lost cohesion, weakened, and completely dissolved.
.....Tzsrrrk.....
A muffled sound spread through the space, as if the air had effortlessly absorbed the impact.
The attack didn't even reach him.
The zone in front of Kaen had become useless for conduction. With no destination and no circuit, lightning magic had nowhere to go. And just like that, it vanished.
His eyes didn't shift. His hand remained raised.
The silence didn't come from shock, but confusion. It was like the students were trying to figure out if they'd actually seen what just happened.
Aeryn watched him with more interest than surprise.
'He didn't reflect it, or absorb it... he simply erased the path. He broke the conduction and created a field that denied the very structure of the spell.'
Kaen slowly lowered his hand, the smile still on his face.
'Looks like it actually worked... She hit me with electricity, never imagining I'd know how to cut the wires.'
'Let's call it... a Reverse Faraday Cage.'
Author's note: A Faraday Cage is a structure that blocks electric fields, preventing electricity from passing through via conduction.
'He actually managed to repel my attack? How?'
"If that's the case... how about we now try—"
Before she could finish the sentence, a soft sound echoed through the room.
It was the bell. Class had come to an end.
Aeryn sighed deeply, trying to hold back the urge to cast another spell.
'You idiot... what are you doing? You're here as a teacher...'
She straightened her posture and gave the class a wide smile.
"As you can see, your classmate is excellent at magical defense..."
"He almost made this poor professor feel like giving up on demonstrating anything."
The class laughed — some genuinely, others awkwardly. But among the smiles, there was a particular group whispering with a certain bitterness.
"Tch... acting all smug just because he blocked one lightning spell."
"The professor went easy on him. If she wanted to, he'd be on the floor."
"Cocky commoner... making the professor look bad..."
Kaen ignored all the looks around him with his usual calm, like none of it had anything to do with him.
'Background extras... you didn't even notice she's just messing with your heads.'
Aeryn then turned to Kaen and gave him a discreet, but obvious wink — just enough to irritate some students even more.
"Thank you very much for the great demonstration, Kaen..."
She then turned her attention back to the class.
"We'll end class here... and for homework, I want everyone to train their magical defenses. I'll personally be checking each one in the upcoming lessons."
Some students shouted with excitement after hearing that.
Being personally evaluated by Aeryn was rare and highly valued, even among the more skeptical students in the class. It was a chance to show their potential directly to one of the most respected instructors in the academy.
====
◆ Character Sheet – Aeryn ◆
➤ Age: Unknown
➤ Height: 1.52 m
➤ Race: Human
➤ Class: Magic Combat Instructor – Veyhart Academy
➤ Appearance: Dark brown hair, loose and straight, falling to her shoulders. Bright amber eyes. Wears a long mage-style robe with subtle combat reinforcements. Short and youthful-looking, which often causes others to underestimate her.
➤ Likes: Sweets, practical lessons, teasing students lightly, silently observing before catching them off guard
➤ Dislikes: Being called cute or treated like a child because of her height
➤ Personality: Easygoing, sarcastic, and straightforward. Her demeanor is calm and playful, but she teaches with seriousness and precision. Analytical, confident, and far more perceptive than she lets on.
➤ Fun Fact: Almost blew up a classroom wall once because a student called her "little professor." The student only realized the mistake when the floor started shaking.