Time passed. In the days that followed, Lynn remained a loner, spending most of each day training in the meditation room attached to his apartment.
According to Leiluo, the leader of the 9527 dormitory quartet, Lynn had even brought his bedding into the meditation room to save more time for training. When he got tired, he would rest right there. Several times, Leiluo had gone in and found Lynn asleep from sheer exhaustion.
"Lynn came from a commoner family, but he works a lot harder than Kasa, who's also a top-tier talent despite being born into nobility. Kasa can't hold a candle to Lynn!"
"Hmph... Kasa's only Lynn's equal in talent. With how hard Lynn works, he'll leave Kasa far behind one day."
Lynn's reputation as an inspiring genius made him something of a sensation at the Imperial Capital Magic Academy. With the school year drawing to a close, people around the academy were discussing him more and more often.
"Ugh, this bed's a little hard. I'll have to get a softer one next time." At the center of all the talk, Lynn had just woken up in the training room. He stretched and stood up straight.
[Talent Clone: Xiao Yan Strength: Level Four Mage, Level Four Warrior]
"I've been training for so long, and my clone finally broke through to become a Level Four Mage. Not bad, not bad!" Lynn closed the panel and walked out. He found the other three gathered together, discussing something.
"Third Brother, are you entering the academy tournament the day after tomorrow?" Leiluo asked, sharp-eyed as ever, coming over to sling an arm around Lynn.
"The tournament?" Lynn looked puzzled. Wasn't this just the academy's childish little contest that Lin Lei had taken part in in the original story? Why was the Imperial Capital Magic Academy holding one too?
"Gates and I are planning to enter the Level One division," Leiluo continued. "As for Fourth Brother, you know he started learning magic too late, so he definitely won't compete."
"Good luck meeting each other in the finals." Lynn shook his head. "As for me, I'm not interested."
"The semester's almost over. I should go home for a visit anyway. The academy tournament isn't compulsory, so I'll just find an excuse to get out of it."
"...If Third Brother doesn't compete, won't Kasa end up looking like a fool?" Gates mused from the side.
"What do you mean?" Lynn asked curiously.
Ever since Lynn first enrolled, he'd heard people mention Kasa. He was another genius admitted to the Imperial Capital Magic Academy that year, with top-tier Wind Affinity and only slightly less spiritual power than Lynn—thirty-three times that of someone his age. Like Lynn, he was a dual top-tier talent.
Lynn clearly remembered that he and Kasa had never had much to do with each other.
"It's because Big Brother got drunk and let slip how long you train. People started saying you're not only talented but also incredibly hardworking. Then the rumor spread, and some genius decided to compare you with Kasa."
"They used you to make Kasa look worthless. Kasa couldn't take it, so now he wants revenge in this tournament," Taylor muttered.
"A week ago, Kasa was already boasting that he'd face you in the Level Two division and prove once and for all which of you is the strongest genius."
"Boring..." Lynn shook his head as Taylor explained the situation. He didn't care about empty titles.
Lynn thought Kasa was just being childish. Level One and Level Two mages were still laying their foundations. What did winning or losing at that stage prove?
Lynn couldn't be bothered with Kasa's provocation. He wasn't someone who cared about a single victory or defeat—certainly not because Lynn himself was only a Level One Mage and didn't dare accept the challenge.
The day before the tournament, after getting leave approved, Lynn found a reliable merchant caravan and left the capital.
Because the caravan took a detour, the journey from the capital to Blackstone Town, normally a two-week trip, took Lynn a full month.
After the New Year, Lynn let his family know he was safe and spent only a few days with his parents before hurriedly returning to the capital with the caravan.
Spring turned to autumn, and time went by. Lynn kept to himself. To outsiders, he spent most of each day training.
Time passed. As Lynn entered adolescence, his features matured and he grew taller. In his white mage's robe, he looked like a prince out of a fairy tale.
"Rumble..."
The river surged violently. At the entrance to the cafeteria, a boy in ornate purple robes blocked Lynn on an old wooden bridge that exuded an ancient air.
"You coward!" The well-dressed boy grew visibly agitated when he saw Lynn.
"Who are you?" Lynn looked puzzled.
"You don't know who I am?" The boy stared at Lynn in disbelief.
"No. If you don't need anything, I'll be on my way." Lynn shook his head and started to walk around him.
"No, you're not going anywhere." The boy reacted quickly and stepped in front of Lynn again, fury written all over his face.
"Remember this: I'm Kasa, the one everyone says is inferior to you!"
"Oh."
"You..." At Lynn's calm expression, Kasa felt something snap inside him.
"Lynn!" Kasa roared and rushed toward him.
"For three years—three whole years! Do you know what I've been through?"
"Because of you, I've been put down for three years straight!"
"Why won't you accept my challenge? You coward!" Kasa pointed at Lynn and cursed him.
Lynn showed no change in expression as Kasa called him a coward to his face. He remained perfectly rational.
Why? Because all he had to do was glance at his status panel to know what to do.
[Host: Lynn Strength: Level One Mage]
Three years had passed, and Kasa had long since become a Level Three Mage.
A Level One against a Level Three? Lynn wasn't a masochist.
That didn't mean Lynn couldn't beat Kasa. After three years of growth, Lynn's Main Combat Clone, Xiao Yan, had become a Level Seven warrior who cultivated both magic and martial arts.
If it came down to a fight, Lynn could simply use the Origin Bead to merge with his clone, reach his peak, and teach Kasa a lesson with a single slap.
But... there was no need. Beating Kasa would bring no benefit, and it would waste a clone that had spent three years developing. It simply wasn't worth it.
Besides, in a way, Kasa was a victim too. Because of Lynn, he'd been subjected to... the otherworldly equivalent of online harassment?
"You're right. I am a coward." Lynn's expression didn't change.
He walked past Kasa without another word.
Halfway along, Lynn noticed the crowd watching. To keep Kasa from bothering him again, he simply raised both arms and shouted:
"I admit I'm no match for Kasa!"
"Across the entire Imperial Capital Magic Academy..."
At that, Lynn spun around and pointed. "My friend, you're the real genius!"
He walked away without a backward glance, his good deed done and his name concealed.
"You want to challenge me?"
At the Dragon Knight Warrior Academy, Xiao Yan confirmed the young man blocking his way was there to challenge him, then immediately drew the Heavy Ruler from his back.
"Bang!"
"Ah!"
Ignoring the boy who fell to the ground vomiting blood, Xiao Yan's cold gaze swept over the crowd.
"If you want to challenge me, come at me together. I'm in a hurry!"
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