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******
"Fuck, that really is Silverwing's Hexagram!"
Upon seeing the perfect hexagram floating in the air, one of the teachers lost his composure and cursed out loud.
The outburst immediately earned him several sharp glares from his fellow teachers.
He quickly coughed to hide his mistake and straightened his posture.
Fortunately for him, most of the teachers and examinees were far too busy staring at the Silverwing Hexagram to pay much attention. Other than a few warning looks, nobody commented on it.
"Marvelous, young man. Now I understand why Professor Vastor recommended you."
One of the examiners spoke while glancing toward Vastor, who had come personally to observe the latest batch of students.
Even Vastor was equally stunned by what he had witnessed.
Still, he simply nodded and smiled.
'I only recommended him because I owed Myra a favor. Turns out it was a very good decision,' he thought.
Meanwhile, Ash continued his demonstration.
After dismissing the Silverwing Hexagram, he proceeded to showcase several Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 spells.
Fireballs.
Wind Blades.
Stone Spears.
Lightning Bolts.
Healing Magic.
Water Manipulation.
Earth Walls.
Every spell was cast silently and with exceptional control.
The teachers became increasingly impressed as the demonstration continued.
The spells themselves were not particularly powerful, but the precision, efficiency, and mastery Ash displayed at only twelve years old were extraordinary.
By the time he finished, many of the teachers were openly praising him.
"Amazing control."
"Excellent mana efficiency."
"Outstanding talent."
"He has tremendous potential."
The final evaluation was almost unanimous.
Ash passed with one of the highest scores among all the candidates present that day.
Thus, without any difficulty, Ash was officially enrolled in White Griffon Academy.
****
"I am so proud of you, son."
On their way back, Myra was beaming with joy. She had personally witnessed Ash enrolling in the academy, something she had helped make possible.
"Thanks, Mom," Ash replied with a smile.
At the same time, Raphael congratulated him in his mind.
Ash smiled inwardly.
'It was a combined effort,' he replied mentally.
Raphael acknowledged his words with a nod.
As she spoke, Raphael listed several objects along with their unique abilities and potential uses.
Ash listened carefully before nodding.
'Don't worry, Raphael. We'll get to that soon.'
He paused for a moment.
'But first, we need to learn the secrets of Tier 4 and Tier 5 magic.'
Over the years, they had already learned that Tier 4 spells generally required the fusion of two elements, while Tier 5 spells required the fusion of three elements.
Unfortunately, despite countless attempts, all of their experiments had failed.
They understood the theory.
What they lacked was the key to making it work.
'Hopefully the academy will have the answers we need,' Ash said.
Raphael nodded.
Ash smiled.
For now, he had achieved his first goal.
He was officially a student of White Griffon Academy.
His classes would not begin for another six months, giving him and Raphael plenty of time to continue their current research.
Ever since Saber had awakened his bloodline ability, which Ash had named Dragon Aura, both Ash and Raphael had seen tremendous potential in it.
They had spent years trying to replicate the ability and understand its underlying principles.
Now, they were finally getting close to success.
Soon, Myra and Ash returned to Lustria Village.
Myra could barely stop smiling as she shared the news.
The villagers quickly gathered around them and congratulated Ash on being accepted into White Griffon Academy.
Over the years, Ash had become one of the village's most beloved residents.
He was always willing to help others whenever he could, and the villagers themselves were kind-hearted people who had treated him like family since the day he arrived.
After spending some time talking with everyone, Ash eventually excused himself under the pretense of going for a walk.
He soon entered the Life Woods and traveled deep into the forest.
After reaching a secluded lake, he dived into the water and swam toward the northern side.
There, hidden beneath the surface, was a secret underwater cave he had spent years constructing.
It served as his personal laboratory.
As soon as he entered, he heard a familiar voice.
"You're back. How did it go?"
Aqua was waiting inside.
"It went well. I'm officially in the academy now," Ash replied.
Aqua smiled.
"Good. In that case, I'll be going now."
With that, she left.
Ash walked further inside and looked around his laboratory.
Although it lacked proper magical defenses and wards—something he still needed to learn—it was nevertheless impressive.
At the moment, it was more like an underwater apartment combined with a workshop than a true mage laboratory.
Still, it was a foundation.
One day, after learning how to properly channel and utilize the nearby mana geyser, he planned to transform it into a genuine mage tower.
For now, however, he had other priorities.
Ignoring the rest of the laboratory, Ash walked toward a reinforced door at the back.
Opening it, he entered another chamber.
Inside were several prisoners.
Every one of them was a criminal.
Bandits who had preyed upon the weak.
Murderers.
Thieves.
Rapists.
People who had destroyed countless innocent lives.
As a result, Ash felt no guilt about using them in his magical experiments.
His goal was to find a way to replicate and understand Saber's Dragon Aura.
"Alright, Raphael. Experiment Number Twelve. Let's hope this one works."
As he spoke, his eyes and hair shifted into a rainbow-like color with faint streaks of gold and red mixed within.
Raphael took partial control of his body.
Using spirit magic, she lifted one of the bandits onto a nearby examination table and restrained him completely.
Then the experiment began.
Meanwhile, Ash retreated into his own mind and left most of the work to Raphael.
'Damn, I still feel bad whenever I hear them scream,' Ash thought as he sat in his mental space with his eyes closed.
Even after years of experimentation, he had never truly gotten used to it.
Still, he remained where he was.
Because if they wanted to unlock the secrets behind Dragon Aura, someone had to continue the research.