CHAPTER 153: PERSPECTIVE

(A/N Big thanks to everyone for the Power stones and Golden tickets, they mean a lot. As usual, please don’t hesitate to comment or drop a review. ENJOY)

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The others hesitated before slowly stepping out, throwing not-so-subtle backward glances.

The door closed.

Leaving only the five of them.

Orion lifted his chin slightly.

Doran finally turned to face them fully.

And his expression—

Had shifted.

Not angry.

Not disappointed.

Just...

Sharpened with purpose.

"Now," Doran said softly.

"Let’s talk."

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The door clicked softly as it shut, cutting off the last traces of the departing class. Silence settled almost instantly—a different kind than before. One with intention behind it.

Doran exhaled faintly and walked toward the five students, gesturing for them to sit in the front row. They complied without protest, each settling into a chair with varying degrees of curiosity and caution.

The instructor leaned back against the desk, arms folded loosely.

"Let’s clarify something before we begin," he said calmly. "You are not in trouble. You committed no offense. There is no curfew at Chronos, and the academy does not punish students for curiosity."

Arlen visibly relaxed. Thaddeus didn’t. Orion stayed unreadable.

Doran continued, tone steady.

"This academy does not merely teach combat or academics. It teaches independence. Responsibility. Decision-making. It exposes you to the world as it is—not the polished version adults prefer to display."

He tapped the desk lightly with two fingers.

"The outer magnums are not unregulated because we lack personnel. They are left as they are because they serve a purpose."

Caelum tilted his head. "Which is?"

"Experience," Doran replied smoothly. "Freedom reveals the true nature of a mage. How they behave when no one is watching. How they act under pressure, temptation, uncertainty."

He pushed himself off the desk and clasped his hands behind his back.

"And that," he said, "is why I asked you to remain behind."

The five exchanged brief looks.

"You see," Doran continued, "I do not care that you left the dorms. What I care about is what you thought of the experience. What you observed. How you interpreted it. That is far more valuable than the act itself."

He nodded to them.

"Let’s begin. Who initiated the idea of exploring the outer magnums on your first day?"

The answer was immediate.

Three hands pointed at the same two people.

Erevan.

Thaddeus.

Caelum didn’t hesitate.

Arlen raised both brows while pointing.

Orion... didn’t even bother turning.

Doran absorbed this reaction with a simple nod—calm, careful, storing the information like someone organizing pieces on a board.

"I see. And what do you make of the girl who approached you?"

The answers came one by one.

Erevan: "Stupid."

Caelum: "Ordinary."

Thaddeus: "Subservient."

Arlen: "Ignorant."

Doran nodded at each response, not judging, simply cataloging.

Then his gaze drifted to Orion.

A raised brow.

Silent expectation.

Orion had originally intended to echo their conclusions. It would’ve been simple, efficient, socially smooth. But Doran wasn’t looking for conformity—he was studying them.

So Orion chose truth.

"...I think she’s thirteen," he said.

Arlen blinked. "Well—yeah? She probably is. Pretty sure the instructor means her personality."

"No," Orion replied quietly. "I meant what I said."

They all turned to him.

Orion continued, tone even. "She’s everything you mentioned—stupid, ordinary, subservient, ignorant. But that’s because she’s thirteen. She’s acting her age. You can’t really blame her for that. We could teach her a lesson, sure, but... she’s normal."

A brief silence hung in the air as the others processed that.

Thaddeus leaned back slightly. Caelum looked thoughtful. Even Erevan tilted his head.

Doran, meanwhile, smiled—barely, but genuinely.

Arlen’s hand shot up halfway. "Wait—does that mean we’re abnormal?"

Five sets of eyes turned to Doran.

"Abnormal? No."

A pause.

"Unique? Yes."

That earned a collective nod.

"Now," Doran continued, "your take on the senior who intervened?"

This time the silence was longer. Orion’s perspective had shifted something in the group’s minds. The simplistic judgments they gave the girl no longer felt sufficient here.

Doran noticed.

He also wondered, faintly, if he should have kept the rest of the class back as well.

But no—there would be opportunities later. Plenty of them.

Thaddeus spoke first.

"I think he’s a complicated person," he said. "Responsible, sure. But he also wants attention. Or recognition."

Doran’s eyes narrowed faintly—not in disapproval, but interest.

Thaddeus continued, voice steady.

"From both his and the girl’s reactions, they already knew who we were. The only way that’s possible is if they watched the trial. And not to sound proud—" he glanced at Erevan— "but I don’t see how that girl could have done anything meaningful to us. I think he knew that. Yet he still stepped in."

Arlen frowned. Caelum raised a brow. Even Orion shifted slightly.

Thaddeus finished, "He either wanted to avoid a confrontation... or he wanted a chance to impress us. My intuition says it’s the latter."

Silence again.

But this time, heavier.

Sharper.

Erevan stared at Thaddeus for two long seconds, and for once, he had no snark to add.

Orion’s expression didn’t change—but he assessed Thaddeus with a new level of respect. The boy was more perceptive than he’d realized.

Doran let out a soft laugh—a rare, warm sound.

"That, Thaddeus," he said with clear approval, "is an astute observation."

Thaddeus gave a small nod, but his eyes stayed sharp.

Doran stepped away from the desk, his tone shifting gently.

"I would love to continue this session. Truly. But unfortunately, our time is up. If possible, we will continue tomorrow—with the rest of the class present."

He walked to the door and tapped it with a thread of mana. It opened with a whisper.

"For now, head to your next lecture."

The five rose.

Orion lingered for a heartbeat, his gaze on Doran’s expression.

Purpose.

Interest.

And calculation.

Doran was watching them all carefully.

But Orion suspected he was watching him just a bit more.

The instructor gave a small nod.

"Off you go."

The group filed out, their footsteps echoing lightly down the corridor as the door closed behind them—leaving Doran alone in the quiet room.

He exhaled softly.

"Unique indeed."

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