The second week back at Eiron Academy had barely started, and already, the air around Riku Aoyama felt different—charged, weightier. It wasn't just the usual murmurs in the hallways or the occasional glances from curious classmates. This was deeper. Sharper. The kind of attention that could lift someone to the top—or mark them as a threat.
He walked through the courtyard, a slim tablet in one hand, displaying complex equations and spell matrices. Around him, students gathered in clusters, but most of their eyes subtly shifted in his direction. The girls whispered. The boys furrowed brows. Some teachers nodded in silent approval.
Riku had been turning heads ever since their return from Verdant Hollow, but it was his recent seminar performance that pushed him into the limelight.
---
Flashback – Three Days Ago, Seminar Hall 4
Professor Larent had stood before the tiered seating, conjuring a three-dimensional glyph formation with his wand.
"This is a stabilized mana barrier model," he said, flicking his wrist. "Who among you can solve for energy efficiency using compound rune theory?"
Silence.
Even the top-tier students hesitated.
Riku raised his hand.
The professor narrowed his eyes. "Mr. Aoyama, I trust you're not answering for the sake of it?"
Riku simply stood and walked forward. "Of course not."
Using the wand provided, Riku tapped the floating model. Then, he drew over it with a new formation of his own—one that seamlessly overlapped and optimized the runes into a new structure.
Gasps echoed.
"By separating the overload sigils from the main circuit and adding delay regulators, you reduce the mana decay by 37%," Riku explained casually. "It's simple when you apply the basic laws of entropy routing."
Even Professor Larent looked stunned.
---
Back in the present, that moment was still being discussed.
"Did you hear? He rewrote an entire glyph model in front of Larent!"
"I heard he solved an advanced enchantment puzzle with one hand while drinking tea."
"He has to be a secret heir of some ancient bloodline. No one's that smart!"
Riku ignored the chatter, but his ears couldn't help but pick out certain voices.
One, in particular, belonged to Ayumi.
She was sitting under a sakura tree with two friends, textbooks scattered around them, but her gaze followed him more often than it strayed back to her reading.
"He's different," she said quietly, not realizing Riku could hear. "Like... not just smart. There's something else. I want to know what."
Her friend smirked. "Crush alert?"
"I didn't say that!" Ayumi huffed. "I just... want to understand him."
But Riku heard the tone. It wasn't just curiosity.
He walked past, casually dropping a paper he'd been working on into her lap—a solved problem from Advanced Alchemy, with his notes in the margins.
"Thought you'd be interested," he said with a soft smile.
Ayumi blinked, stunned. "Thanks…?"
He gave a slight nod and walked away, ignoring the wide-eyed look from her friends.
---
Later that afternoon, in one of the academy's private training halls, Riku stood across from a dueling dummy. His eyes were closed.
> [System: Skill Use – Spectral Form Step Lv. 1] [System: Bonus Applied – Movement Speed +40%, Afterimage Effect Active for 8 seconds.]
He vanished.
The dummy's chest exploded a moment later—hit from three angles simultaneously.
> [System Notification: Precision Training – +2 Dexterity | Skill Efficiency Improved.]
He smirked. "Too slow."
Behind him, a voice clapped politely.
"Well done, Aoyama."
He turned. It was Professor Mira Solen, the young but highly respected combat instructor with sharp eyes and a reputation for seeing through lies.
"You've been… impressively efficient lately," she said, stepping into the room. "Rumors say you're a prodigy."
"I just work hard," Riku replied coolly.
Mira raised a brow. "Don't lie to a woman who trains assassins."
Riku chuckled under his breath. "Fair enough."
She walked in a circle around him, evaluating his stance, posture, even breathing. "You're hiding something. Something powerful."
He met her gaze. "Would you believe me if I said it was luck?"
She smirked. "Only if I could bottle it."
---
Meanwhile, outside the training hall, a figure watched from the shadows—Hiro Kaen.
The transfer student. Top of his class in the Western branch. And someone who didn't appreciate being overshadowed.
"That bastard," Hiro muttered. "Everyone's drooling over him. He's hiding something. I'll find out what it is."
---
Back in his dorm room that night, Riku flopped onto his bed, exhaling slowly.
> [System Notification: New Passive Available – Charm Aura Lv. 1 (Attracts positive attention from those impressed by intellect or skill).] [Effect: +10% Charisma in academic/social settings. Passive.]
Riku stared at the screen. "Now the system's turning me into a heartthrob?"
He sighed. "Just great."
Still, as he glanced at the wall, a smile tugged at his lips.
Ayumi's expression when he gave her the notes… Mira's compliment… even the way Hiro looked like he was about to explode from jealousy.
He was making waves.
And he wasn't done yet.