(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)

Power stones people, Gimme it.

[Early update today, I might not be available at my usual schedule, but after this, the timing still remains the same.]

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Orion and the rest of the class sat frozen for a few quiet seconds after Doran vanished, as if their minds needed time to catch up with everything he'd just unloaded on them. The weight of his words wasn't dramatic, but it was clear. Expectations. Standards. Pressure. All of it placed squarely on their shoulders.

Orion exhaled softly, rolling the new information through his thoughts. Daily morning sessions. Time deductions. A1 standards. Expectations. It all connected in a clean, simple line.

They didn't have the luxury to process it for long.

They had classes to get to.

He glanced at his bracelet.

8:08.

Seris stood first. Caelum stretched his arms with a sigh. Selene quietly packed her materials. One after another, the students rose and began filing out of the serene hall, the atmosphere more focused than when they'd entered.

On the way out, Orion took a quick, deliberate count.

Thirteen Combat Division students.

Seven Scholar Division students.

A fair split. Slightly CD-heavy but nothing surprising.

Mana Analysis and Control was their first class. They naturally converged toward the same teleport sigils, selecting the assigned lecture room from the hovering list. Light folded around them again.

The moment they appeared, Orion scanned the new environment.

It was quite similar to the General room.

The building was bigger than that of the general room.

They all walked in, their eyes trailing the paths on the way there.

The interior was more spacious.

Designed for practical demonstrations but still structured around clear rows and clean workspaces.

They found seats without fuss—thirteen students settling across the hall with quiet anticipation. There was a soft hum of readiness in the air. First class of the year. First real instruction outside the trial and the orientation.

Orion glanced once around the room.

Everyone was waiting.

A faint spatial ripple swept through the hall.

Their instructor stepped in.

An elderly woman stepped into the room.

They could tell immediately—her hair was already greying, and while grey wasn't too different from the usual Chronos silver, the lustrous glow that marked younger generations had faded from hers. She leaned lightly on a cane as she walked, though her steps were steady. Her eyes, however, were bright—sharp, clear, full of life—and a neat pair of thin-framed glasses rested on her face.

Orion felt a visible shiver run down his spine the moment he saw her.

He had never met this woman before, but everything about her reminded him of Lady Agatha—his etiquette instructor years ago. That woman had been mercilessly strict, punctual to the second, and capable of terrifying him into proper posture with a single glance.

This instructor carried that same aura of precision.

She stopped at the center of the room, hands gently resting atop her cane as she looked around. Her gaze swept over every student in a slow, warm motion—assessing, but without pressure. Simply observing.

Then, unexpectedly, a radiant smile bloomed across her face.

"How wonderful," she said softly.

Her voice was warm but carried an authority that settled the entire class instantly.

She walked to the chair at the center and sat with the controlled ease of someone who had spent decades doing exactly this. "Another generation of Chronos," she said, her smile widening with genuine fondness. "I get to teach again. I'm quite lucky, aren't I?"

A few students exchanged small smiles. The tension in the room eased noticeably. Her presence felt strict but not harsh—structured, yes, but also comforting.

"I'm sure young Doran has made you all a little agitated this morning," she said, amusement slipping into her tone. "He tends to overdo the intimidation on the first day. It's a habit of his."

A small ripple of quiet laughter went through the class.

"But I assure you," she continued, "you'll be fine. From what I saw in the trial, and from what I'm seeing right now… every single one of you belongs in A1."

Her smile softened, and her eyes swept over them again—this time slower, gentler.

"Now then, we should begin."

She lifted her cane slightly and gestured in a delicate arc. "We'll start with introductions—and by introductions, I mean mine. You'll have plenty of time to know each other throughout the year. Far more time than some of you may desire."

Seris coughed lightly in amusement.

The woman chuckled before continuing.

"I am Ophelia," she said simply. "Though if you must address me formally, I prefer 'Lady Ophelia.' But Ophelia is fine. Just not 'instructor.' It feels far too stiff for my taste."

Orion blinked. This was not how he expected his first instructor to behave.

"I will be your teacher for Mana Control and Analysis for the next four years."

No theatrics. No pressure. Just a calm, simple declaration.

"And I do hope," she added lightly, "that we all get along well during that time."

She adjusted her glasses with a slow, graceful motion, then continued.

"Now, let us begin with the foundation. I'm sure many of you already have assumptions about what this course entails. Mana control. Mana flow. Regulation. Internal pathways. External manipulation. Analysis of density, form, and behavioral patterns…"

A few heads nodded.

She smiled, knowingly.

"And some of you are correct already. You've grasped the basic idea. But that alone is not enough—not here."

Her cane tapped lightly against the floor.

"In this academy, Mana Control and Analysis is the backbone of every other combat and magical discipline you will study," she said. "If your mana is unstable, inaccurate, wasteful, or inefficient, every other technique you learn will suffer."

Her tone shifted slightly—still warm, but now edged with authority.

"You are Chronos. Your mana is heavier, denser, more potent than the majority of the world. If you wield it carelessly, you will injure yourselves. If you wield it correctly, you will outclass anyone standing in your way."

Every student focused a little harder.

Orion leaned forward subconsciously.

"Some of you," she continued, her gaze sweeping across the CD students, "already manipulate mana instinctively. But instinct will not carry you far. Instinct collapses under pressure. Instinct fails in chaos. Control is what remains."

She tapped her cane again.

"And then there is analysis."

She looked toward the Scholar Division students.

"Where your control determines how you use mana, analysis determines how well you understand it. Density, structure, elemental bias, attunement behavior, signature tracking—every skill your combat counterparts use relies on analysis."

She folded her hands neatly.

"Thus, this class is not divided. You are all here because mana is your foundation. All of you will learn it. And all of you will be tested."

A quiet breath passed through the room.

"Lastly," she added with a small smile, "I do not tolerate laziness. Nor excuses. Nor half-effort. But I do tolerate mistakes—provided you learn from them."

Her eyes landed briefly on Orion.

He met her gaze.

She smiled faintly.

"Now then," she said, lifting her cane and tapping the floor once more, "let's begin with the basics."

And class officially started.

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