The class that Wilhelm sat in was much like those in the schools of his hometown; everything down to the structure was the same. The only notable difference was its enormity, capable of holding the equivalent of five regular schools with ease.
Yet, even with this size, Wilhelm could easily see the teacher—it was the Figure in White once again.
As the Figure in White remained silent and the class hadn't started, Wilhelm's mind drifted to the state of his room. His best deduction was that while he was asleep and directly speaking to Polaris, Niflheim's cold had instinctively emanated from his body. Since he'd been unconscious and unable to control it, the cold had eventually frozen the entire room.
"Thankfully, it seems that when the connection to Niflheim was cut off, the cold dissipated,"
Wilhelm sighed in relief. Strangely enough, he'd noticed that the ice formed from Niflheim's cold was far less durable under heat than regular ice. It melted quite easily, within just ten minutes.
Yet calling it "melting" wouldn't be right—the ice quite literally became a gas without reverting to liquid.
Wilhelm, upon witnessing this firsthand, was understandably weirded out.
"Niflheim's cold can't be this weak, right?" Wilhelm thought, but he shrugged it off, reasoning that as a mortal, it might have further uses in the later stages.
Suddenly, the Figure in White began speaking directly into the students' ears.
"All right, now that everyone is here, let us begin today's class: Aether!" the Figure in White announced.
"First, let me introduce myself to you all. I am Hottanicus Pottanicus, but you can call me Hot Pot! I will serve as your teacher in Aether Techniques for today, after which Miss Grease shall take over." The strange name astounded several of the students, including Wilhelm, who found it unlike any he had heard before.
Yet, as Wilhelm lingered on the name, it began to feel oddly familiar.
"Now, firstly, you are going to need an explanation on the first two ranks of Aether Cultivation; without it, you'll mess up later in this session," Hot Pot said.
"The Element Refining Stage, also known as the True Wizard Stage, requires mastery or an increase in control over Elemental Energy, which is crucial for advancement to the next stage. The True Wizard Stage is separated into five levels, each representing an addition of 20% control over Aether." Hot Pot paused to let his words sink in before continuing.
"Now, the main way one can progress through this stage is through the usage of Spell Constructs. Since Spell Constructs only require an approximate level of 20% control to be constructed, it's easy to use five of them to progress through the rank."
"Spell Constructs can easily be obtained in the Academy, although to obtain them you'll have to clear dungeons. Now that clears the introduction to the topic. Ask me questions that you want to ask, but think carefully," Hot Pot prompted.
Immediately, several hands rose.
He observed each raised hand with a stern expression.
Wilhelm also watched with curiosity.
After a few moments, Hot Pot pointed to one of the raised hands.
"Ask!" he commanded.
Immediately, a girl stood up, and Wilhelm was surprised to see who it was.
"It's her!" Wilhelm thought. It was indeed the girl he had met when he'd first woken up in the white construct.
"What are dungeons?" she asked.
"Good question. Dungeons are spaces created by Old Tallow and populated with life using the help of Drunkard Broth. Consider them to be worlds of their own, with laws replicating that of the real world. The life there is bred solely for you, so don't be merciful unless you're suicidal. Every single being down there is programmed to kill you on sight, with a few exceptions," Hot Pot explained.
"Dungeons are separated into three ranks: Lesser, Greater, and Grand. Until you surpass the stage of True Wizard, you can only enter the Lesser Dungeons." This immediately caused apprehension to well up within everyone. They were still mortals without any sort of actual powerful abilities, so how could they even survive a trip to the dungeon, let alone clear it?
Seeing that the girl had gotten her answer, Hot Pot gestured for her to sit down and chose another person.
The boy immediately stood up and, without the slightest delay, asked, "Sir, we are still mortals. How can we clear these dungeons?" The nervousness in his tone was as clear as a weasel's.
Hot Pot nodded.
"That's why you'll be able to choose your first Spell Construct." This revelation soothed the hearts of the students, many of whom breathed a sigh of relief.
"Next!" With this, he continued to answer question after question, addressing all of them.
After a few minutes, everyone's curiosity was satiated, with no more questions left to ask.
"All right, now that that's over, let's pick your starter pack!" With this, he snapped his fingers, causing a large table to appear in front of him.
Starting from the far left, Hot Pot began to call the students one by one.
Due to the distance, none of the other students were able to hear or know what was being said.
Slowly but surely, each student came and went until Wilhelm's turn arrived.
He was immediately brought forth in front of the former.
"You have a strange affinity; you can manipulate Frost yet are unable to do the same for Water. Thus, while I would originally recommend a water-based one, I'll have to give you this." Hot Pot handed a scroll.
"It's called The Frost Core. It isn't really a spell, more so a stabilizer for future spells. Your unique attribute makes it impossible for you to learn any substantial spell. The Frost Core will help you go past that barrier. The complete construction should allow you to reach the pinnacle of The True Wizard Stage," Hot Pot stated as Wilhelm observed the cyan scroll.
It was held by a string that prevented him from being able to read the scroll, yet that wasn't an issue right now.
"Sir, but if The Frost Core isn't a spell, how am I supposed to even clear the dungeons without an attack spell?" Wilhelm asked anxiously.
Hot Pot gave a smile.
"Your attribute will be more than enough to make up for that." With this, he transported Wilhelm back to his seat.
Wilhelm, still filled with questions, could only suppress the urge.
"At least this confirms that Hot Pot probably knows of Niflheim." It did ease Wilhelm's tension that his attribute wasn't something unknown to them, as he would otherwise have to go to great lengths to hide it, and it wasn't even guaranteed that it wouldn't be found out.
As the distribution of Spell Constructs came to a close, Hot Pot began to explain the 2nd rank.
"The 2nd Stage that you'll enter after The True Wizard Stage is The Corporeal Armament Stage, also referred to as The Great Wizard Stage. This realm has six realms of armament only, which occur in cycles through Elemental Energy refining the body. While refining it, you all are sure to manifest a Vestige Insignia, which will grant a new skill that, although isn't that powerful, is still useful. So remember, when selecting Spell Constructs for cultivation, to never choose anything that may harm the potential body. That means no Berserker or Ignition type of Spells. You can acquire them later when you reach Great Wizard," Hot Pot cautioned.
The students all listened intently.
Yet a hand arose.
He looked at the boy; it was Wilhelm.
"What?"
"What are the types of spells you've mentioned? I've never heard of them before," Wilhelm spoke with a bit of embarrassment.
Hot Pot raised an eyebrow.
"Oh well, I suppose I never did explain it." Hot Pot muttered something and looked into Wilhelm's eyes.
"The Berserker Spells are those types of spells that siphon all the energy the body has in its current state and redirect it into power. These types of spells, if used repeatedly, can cause harm to the body due to the large influx of power. Ignitions are a bit similar, as they sacrifice a part of the body or something related to it. These, as you can tell, are easily among the more dangerous types of spells for an individual, though they grant an immense boost in power. The less dangerous options are Catalyst spells, which sacrifice an outside factor containing Elemental Energy to cast spells." Hot Pot stopped there.
"Well, time for another class for you! I'm going." With that, Hot Pot disappeared.
Immediately after Hot Pot's disappearance, another individual appeared wearing formal attire.
Adjusting the monocle, the man introduced himself with a smile.
"I'm your Legends Teacher, whom you may refer to as Amon." Karsus smiled as he introduced himself.
All the students greeted Amon, to which the latter responded with a smile.
"Today, we are going to begin our first lesson on the past, the very far past," Amon smiled.
"It all began when The Sovereign hadn't appeared from the guts of the World and when The Deities ruled." With that, Amon began a long monologue and explanation that made Wilhelm feel as if he was going to fall asleep due to the sheer boredom he felt.