This wizard only wants to take students

Chapter 32: Karly’s Admiration, New System Module

Noriaan’s heart trembled slightly—he was beginning to understand what Mentor Loren meant.

After all, Lucien hadn’t directly offended Mentor Loren. If a formal sorcerer were to kill a third-level sorcerer apprentice without cause—especially within the academy—it would send a very negative message to the other apprentices and shake their confidence in the fairness of Greybone Academy’s rules.

Since the group of formal sorcerers were the main beneficiaries of these rules, breaking them would undoubtedly harm Loren’s and other sorcerers’ interests.

And according to the principle of equivalent exchange among sorcerers, any such loss would naturally have to be borne by Noriaan himself.

But if he approached Loren and then backed out of the deal… Loren might think he was toying with her.

“Meow~”
Noriaan lowered his head, not daring to say a word. The only sound in the room came from the soft footsteps of the three-tailed cat named Doro.

“Alternatively… there’s another way.”
Sensing Noriaan’s nervousness, Sorcerer Loren, lounging lazily on a red sofa, reached out and took a sip of red tea.

“Send the little guy out on a mission. He might die during the task, or he might survive—but even if he returns, it would take at least five years.”
Loren’s tone was calm. Had Noriaan not proven useful over the years, she wouldn’t have bothered dealing with a mere dispute between third-level apprentices.

Noriaan looked up, surprise and relief flashing in his eyes.

“Five hundred magic stones,” Loren said, slowly setting her teacup down.

“Mentor, I’m willing to pay resources equal to five hundred magic stones.”
Though it pained him, Noriaan gritted his teeth and agreed.

“Alright.”
A scroll appeared in Loren’s hand, which she tossed to Noriaan. “I won’t cheat you. You can look at the mission first.”

Noriaan accepted it respectfully and quickly scanned the scroll. His eyes lit up.

Meanwhile…

“Karly, a few of us are planning to take on a mission tomorrow to earn some magic stones. Want to join us?”
In the Greybone Academy cafeteria, Morten spotted Karly with her bow and offered a friendly invitation.

“Thank you, Morten, but I’ll be helping Mentor Lucien with experiments for now…”
carly smiled politely and declined her “new friend’s” warm invitation.

Ever since Mentor Lucien re-established his status with a public victory, carly’s position as his only student had risen visibly.

This shift might not have been apparent when facing second-level apprentices, but among her fellow new apprentices, Karly could clearly feel the change. Most of them were now much friendlier and more respectful toward her.

After all, behind Karly stood a powerful third-level apprentice. At least for now, she seemed to be clearly favored by him.

Rumors even circulated among the new blood—that Karly might be Lucian’s child or involved in some kind of forbidden connection.

Whatever the rumors were, one fact remained clear and deeply envied: Lucian’s favoritism toward Karly was real.

From designing a custom sorcery for her to preparing an expensive set of alchemical armor, Lucian’s actions made others green with envy.

This level of attention was on par with what was given to students of fifth-grade aptitude!

Fifth-grade aptitude meant a guaranteed chance of becoming a third-level apprentice and a high likelihood of advancing to full sorcerer status. These students became invaluable aides to mentors and were given extensive support—often outlined in contracts filled with promises for the future.

But Karly—she was just a first-grade talent, the weakest. So why was she favored?

Did she have some special skill, or was there something else?

Many new apprentices were secretly upset, but they didn’t show it. On the contrary, most tried to get closer to her and build rapport.

Even in terms of raw strength, Karly was now among the elite of her generation. Some of the most influential “leaders” among the new blood even treated her as an equal and tried to win her over.

Morten, who had just invited her, was one such leader.

Though his sorcerer aptitude was only third-grade, he was a genuine genius in the way of knights. At this point, he was just a step away from becoming a Grand Knight.

While a Grand Knight meant little to third-level sorcerer apprentices, they could still match most second-level sorcerers in strength.

Being approached by Morten as an equal confirmed that, at least in the eyes of the new blood, Karly had earned her place among the top.

Karly smiled as she watched Morten walk away, but her feelings were complicated.

“Mentor Lucien was right. Strength is the foundation of dignity and rights. Back on the airship, they wouldn’t even respond if I approached them. But now, they treat me like a friend.”
Karly exhaled lightly. The more she interacted with her peers, the more she admired Mentor Lucian.

It wasn’t just that Lucian had taught her so much about sorcery and guided her steadily along her path—he also had a way of saying exactly what she needed to hear, with words that always struck right at the heart of things.

“Thank you, Mentor Lucien…” Karly whispered in her heart.

[Your student carly feels deep admiration for you. Admiration +50]
[You have met the conditions to upgrade the system. Upgrade now?]

Elsewhere, Lucien was flipping through an alchemy notebook. Upon receiving the system notification, he paused for a moment.

Then, he opened his character panel:

[Host]: Lucien Kevin
[Strength]: 91/360 (Greybone Meditation II)
[Health]: 100.0% (Healthy, mildly fatigued)
[Bound Student]: 1/1
[Admiration Points]: 523/1000
[Knowledge List]: (click to view)
[Upgrade Requirements]: 523/500 Admiration; Bond with Student 1/1 (Click to upgrade)

“Upgrade.”
Lucian’s eyebrows rose slightly. He was quite curious to see what the system upgrade would bring.

[System Upgrading: 15%… 35%… 79%… 99%…]
[Upgrade Complete]

[Congratulations, Host. You have unlocked a new module: Appraisal (Click to view details)]

“A new module?”
Lucien blinked in surprise, but quickly clicked open the module’s details page.

(End of Chapter)