CHAPTER 39: TO THE ACADEMY, AT LAST

Zane blinked, standing still for a moment as the echo of Ron’s voice faded into the broken silence.

"Please... become our teacher, Mr. Zane!!!"

The crater still sizzled behind him. The wind howled through the ravaged forest, brushing against his coat. Zane tilted his head slightly, blinking again.

"...What?"

Ron, still kneeling, looked up with fierce, determined eyes.

"Please! I—I know I’m not strong enough. But I want to be. I want to protect the people around me like you do! So... teach us! Guide us!"

Lia, beside him, wiped her mouth, blood still smeared on her cheek. She didn’t speak—but she gave a silent nod, her eyes just as determined.

Zane looked at them both, lips parted, a little confused.

Zane stared at them for another second, then casually waved his hand.

"Umm... no."

Ron froze. "Huh?"

Zane raised an eyebrow, smirking. "Aren’t you both going to that academy? You know—Astralis Arcanum, the one you told me about?"

Ron scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "Uhh... yeah, but—"

Zane cut him off. "Yeah yeah. We’ll talk later. First—let’s fix you two."

He snapped his fingers.

A green magic circle formed in his palm, glowing softly. Gentle emerald light flowed out, surrounding Ron and Lia. The warmth washed over their broken bodies like a calming breeze. Cuts sealed. Bruises vanished. Their exhaustion faded like fog.

In seconds—they were fully healed.

Ron slowly stood up, eyes wide. Even though this is the second time he’s healed me... it’s still astonishing.

Beside him, Lia flexed her fingers, equally stunned. Her eyes sparkled in the green afterglow.

Zane clapped his hands together. "Okay. I believe I’m done here."

He turned.

"Wait!" Ron blurted, stepping forward. "Please be our teacher!"

Zane didn’t even look back. "Told you already, kid. No. Go to your academy."

"But—"

Zane turned around again, curious. "So... will there be a test for admission?"

Lia nodded. "Umm... yes. In a few days."

Zane stretched his arms overhead, glancing at their torn clothes. "In that case, you should fix your battle-damaged outfits. People tend to look down on you if you walk in like that. Happens in a lot of places."

Ron and Lia both nodded seriously.

Zane floated up a few inches above the ground. Ron’s eyes widened in surprise again.

Zane gazed around the battlefield—where the forest once stood.

He muttered, "They did a decent bit of damage... but my attack made a valley."

He hovered there for a moment, looking at the scorched crater below.

"Well, no matter. I’m not taking responsibility for every mess I make. Last time I took care of things, it was because the whole planet was at risk. This? Nah. Not my problem."

And just like that—he rose into the sky.

Then—

Fwshhh.

In a blur, Zane vanished.

Ron and Lia stared up at the empty sky, the winds still swirling from his takeoff.

"That guy..." Ron muttered. "He’s insane..."

Lia nodded slowly, eyes still on the horizon. "But in a really cool way."

.

.

.

Zane landed softly on the balcony of a modest inn, his coat fluttering slightly in the breeze. He stepped into his room, boots clicking lightly against the floor.

The door clicked shut behind him.

His holographic laptop setup was still active, flickering quietly in the dim light — just as he’d left it. The floating screens replayed footage from earlier, showing Ron and Lia’s combined attack, their synchronized technique. Zane watched in silence, arms folded.

"Hmm... those two really are special kids," he muttered, the corner of his mouth lifting. "Even pulled off something that could’ve hurt a mid-tier commander if they’d had just a bit more power."

He exhaled.

"...Being a teacher, huh?"

And then—

A memory surfaced. A soft one.

"I’ll be a teacher one day, Mom!!"

A woman’s voice laughed gently. "Ok ok, little kid. Just don’t go blowing up your class."

Zane chuckled under his breath. "Astralis Arcanum, huh?"

He walked over to his desk and leaned back in his chair.

"Being a teacher... for someone who’s already learned everything... it’s not a bad choice."

His eyes narrowed, amused.

"And not to mention, I might meet interesting fellows over there. Like those two."

A small sigh.

"Alright. Let’s be a teacher."

He spun once in his chair, suddenly energized.

"But I also wanna be an adventurer too... Damn. What should I do?"

He leaned forward, resting his chin on his palm, and smirked.

"...Oh. Why don’t I use that technique?"

Zane stood, raising his hand. His palm faced downward, fingers relaxed. A glowing white magic circle appeared below it, spinning slowly.

Soft white particles began to swirl from the circle — forming in the air, gathering, merging.

The glow intensified.

Then—

A humanoid form of light began to take shape. Shoulders. Chest. Face.

White energy crackled across it, then slowly fractured like breaking glass—

And from within stepped a man, nearly identical to Zane.

Black hair.

Light purple eyes.

Calm, subtle smirk.

But just... slightly different.

Zane crossed his arms as the light faded.

"Clone ready," he said.

He tapped his techno-watch, and a command hologram popped up.

"Computer, make normal level gear and another battle power system lens for himjust like mine."

Beep.

"Done."

The clone opened his eyes, expression calm. "Good day, Creator."

Zane flinched.

"Ugh. Don’t call me that. It’s cringey. Call me ’sir.’"

"Understood. Sir."

Zane nodded. "I made you so I can enjoy the academy, while you enjoy adventuring.

You’ll have access to only half of the power I can use here. Just enough to keep the universe intact.Also, you can’t use laws and all stronger stuff. So you cant summon things from my island. "

The clone smiled faintly. "I understand, sir."

Then—

Zane paused, his expression shifting.

His eyes narrowed. The room felt... off. Not a presence. Not a person.

But a disturbance.

He turned toward the window, eyes gleaming slightly.

Zane turned back toward his screen—only to suddenly frown.

"What the hell?"

The videos and holographic windows blinked out in a flash, replaced by a single rotating radar screen. A pulsing red blip appeared on it, steadily growing larger with each rotation. At the corner of the display, the words blinked:

[Incoming Object Detected: Asteroid-Class | Impact Trajectory: Direct]

Zane raised an eyebrow. "Just when I finally decide to become a teacher... an asteroid shows up." He let out an annoyed sigh. "Well, I can’t let it ruin my fun."

He looked at his clone. "Oi, why don’t you show me your power and stop it?"

The clone nodded with a calm smile. "Why not, Sir."

In an instant, both Zane and his clone vanished in a flicker of spatial light.

High above the planet’s atmosphere, space stretched into an endless canvas of darkness and stars. A massive asteroid—small by cosmic standards, but still dangerously large—hurtled through the void toward the planet below, trailing a shimmering tail of debris and heat.

Zane and his clone appeared mid-space, floating effortlessly near the path of the incoming threat.

Zane stayed still, arms folded, watching with a calm expression.

The clone floated forward, raising one hand toward the oncoming asteroid. His eyes locked on the spinning mass of rock and metal as it approached.

Closer...

Closer...

Then—with only two fingers extended—the clone caught the asteroid mid-flight.

The impact force dispersed around him like a ripple in water. A deep pulse echoed through the vacuum.

"Damn," the clone grinned. "I am strong."

He pushed forward slightly, a surge of mana pulsing from his palm. The asteroid, now halted, slowly changed direction. It drifted backward, away from the planet.

Once it had reached a safe distance, the clone raised his hand again and casually snapped his fingers.

BOOM.

In the far distance, the asteroid detonated in a silent burst of blue and silver light, scattering harmlessly into cosmic dust.

"Welp, that’s good," the clone said, brushing imaginary dust from his hands.

Zane gave a slow nod. "Excellent work, clone. As expected of me."

The two vanished once again—and reappeared back in Zane’s room.

Zane stretched casually. "Now that I’ve seen you’re strong enough, I should probably head to the academy."

He turned toward the clone and summoned a set of basic gear—nearly identical to what he had when he first arrived in this world. A simple outfit, a his normal weapon, and a small dimensional bag.

"Here. You take these," Zane said, tossing the items to the clone. "Use your own identity. Try to blend in. Explore. Report to me from time to time. I can experience what you do if I try so do your best ."

The clone nodded. "Understood."

Zane’s tone turned sharp. "And if you ever try to betray me—"

The clone flinched.

"I’ll kill you myself."

"Y-Yes, Sir," the clone said immediately, bowing in fear.

Zane packed up his own laptop and belongings, slipping them into a dimensional bag strapped to his side. He gave the room a final glance, then walked toward the window.

The curtains parted as he stepped onto the windowsill.

A soft beep came from his wristwatch—a miniature holographic map hovered above it, showing a red dot blinking at the edge of the kingdom.

[Border City – Valdoria Kingdom: Set Destination]

It was a map he had copied from the library back in Eldrin. His target was clear.

Zane smiled.

He could’ve teleported. But instead, he leapt from the window, soaring into the sky with a rush of wind trailing behind him.

High above the rooftops, with the world stretched beneath his feet, Zane flew toward the border city—his black coat flapping behind him, his eyes focused forward, and his heart, for once, calm.