Star City High.

  Class 9-2.

  The faint scratching of chalk on the blackboard echoed from the podium as the teacher wrote out his lecture notes. It was a Tactical Theory class. As students of Star City High, simply charging forward with brute force on the battlefield was not enough. Tactics were, and always had been, a critical component of a Beast Warrior's duel. When opponents were of equal strength, a well-timed tactic could tip the scales of victory. And if tactics were applied masterfully, one could even achieve victory against a stronger foe.

  As the school's new star, Fly's recent duels had become widely known, turning into a hot topic of discussion. Naturally, the teacher couldn't help but use Fly as an example, explaining to the students how a Beast Warrior could design unique strategies by integrating their own Beast Totem.

  Compared to the cold, lifeless case studies in their textbooks, Fly's recent battles were undeniably more intuitive and left a much deeper impression on the students. The lecture's effectiveness was naturally much better.

  Fly, for his part, quite enjoyed this kind of adulation. He was at that age where one naturally loves the spotlight. Although his life was sometimes affected by overzealous fans, he found this feeling of being valued, admired, and noticed to be quite pleasant.

  A sudden knock on the door interrupted the teacher's rhythm. He turned and asked gently, "Who is it?"

  The door slid open gently. The students instinctively turned to look, only to see a teacher with gold-rimmed glasses and an elegant demeanor enter gracefully. From his seat, Fly instantly recognized him—it was the Dean of the freshman year, Dean Sterling.

  It was thanks to Dean Sterling's help that Fly had been able to formulate a strategy in advance and successfully defeat 'Emperor' Valerius in the Martial Trials.

  "Hello, everyone. I am your Dean, Victor Sterling. I'm here looking for Fly Ansel".

  As he spoke, Dean Sterling's gaze swept around the room, finally landing on Fly.

  Upon hearing his name, Fly immediately turned to look at his instructor. The teacher nodded, "Go ahead, Fly. The Dean is here for you".

  Only then did Fly stand up and follow Dean Sterling out the door.

  As the door closed behind them, Leo couldn't help but stare at Fly's retreating back with envious eyes. "Man, Fly is so busy!"

  The Power Assessment Test had just ended, and the Student Council immediately came looking for him. Now, the Dean of the year was here too.

  It felt like the entire world revolved around Fly.

  Is this the school life of a genius Beast Warrior?

  "I wish... that could be me," Leo murmured, his eyes still fixed on Fly's back.

  ...

  The moment Fly followed Dean Sterling into the hallway, he saw 'Emperor' Valerius standing there.

  Fly felt a pang of surprise.

  'Emperor' Valerius snorted softly and gave a slight raise of his hand, a minimalist greeting.

  Fly, feeling a bit awkward, returned the gesture.

  Seeing their uncomfortable interaction, Dean Sterling couldn't help but chuckle. He then beckoned for both of them to walk with him toward his office.

  "Fly, you really haven't been keeping a low profile lately, have you?" Dean Sterling said with a light, teasing tone as they walked. "School's barely been in session for two weeks, and you've already clashed with the Student Council".

  His tone was one of mild complaint. After all, the news of Fly thrashing Marshall and scaring off the Student Council had, thanks to the internet, spread to every corner of the campus.

  Although the Star City High Student Council's reputation wasn't good, and most people sided with Fly, having such a major incident blow up online was not a good look for the school.

  Dean Sterling wasn't blaming Fly, but merely giving him a gentle reminder to be more mindful. This wasn't just for the school's sake; it was for Fly's own good as well. A young man who showed his fangs too readily was bound to suffer for it sooner or later.

  But Fly just looked completely unbothered. "You can't really blame me for that, can you?"

  "All I want to do is study hard and train hard, but trouble just keeps finding me," he said, putting on a look of utter helplessness.

  "Oh, is that so?" Dean Sterling pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses. "But to everyone else, you're the biggest trouble of all".

  As he led the way for Fly and Valerius, he slowly recounted the history of the Student Council and explained how he had cleaned up the mess after Fly's fight with Marshall.

  His story was more or less the same as what Genevieve had told him. However, since he and Lysander Thorne were classmates from the same year, hearing it from him felt like a first-hand account, which lent it more credibility. Beyond that, Fly had a subtle feeling that the Dean knew even more, but he didn't say, and Fly was smart enough not to ask.

  After finishing his summary of the Student Council and Lysander Thorne, Dean Sterling reminded him, "Fly, be careful. Those Student Council goons are not good people, and they could make a move again at any time. If you don't handle it properly, you could find yourself in a real crisis".

  On one hand, Dean Sterling genuinely admired Fly. Beyond his outstanding talent, his personality also resonated with the Dean's. When someone comes looking to bully you, of course you have to fight back!

  On the other hand, the Dean also had strong objections to the Student Council's actions, but had been unable to act due to the forces backing them. He had previously spoken with Mr. Carter, and both felt that Fly might just be the catalyst for changing everything.

  "My advice," the Dean continued, "is that you should try to minimize moving around alone from now on. When you train, it would be best to have a powerful Beast Warrior nearby to protect you, just in case".

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  "In that case, Vic can do it." Fly immediately caught the hint.

  "It'll be a great chance to show Vic my latest training results," Fly added.

  "Hahaha, one demonstration costs a thousand credits. That's too expensive." The Dean didn't miss the chance to poke fun at him, clearly still "holding a grudge" over the previous fee.

  "How can you say that? If Vic is coming to appreciate my progress, how could I possibly charge a thousand?" Fly immediately put on a bright smile. "We may be teacher and student, but in my heart, I've always thought of you as a real brother".

  Fly's voice grew more and more sincere, and he even turned on his signature sparkling "starry eyes." Then, his tone shifted. "Five hundred credits. How about that?"

  Dean Sterling: "???"

  In an instant, question marks filled his face and his mind.

  Seeing the Dean's baffled expression, Fly immediately began to plead poverty. "It's not like you don't know, Vic, I'm poor! I have no resources! And now I've offended the Student Council, who knows how they'll try to mess with me in the future".

  He put on a deeply wronged expression, then switched back to a smile. "If I ever make it big one day, I'll be sure to repay you properly, Vic".

  "Er..." Faced with Fly's utter "shamelessness," Dean Sterling was momentarily speechless.

  Their conversation left 'Emperor' Valerius, standing off to the side, completely stunned.

  'Emperor' Valerius, having been raised in privilege, had never once worried about money. He naturally found it difficult to understand Fly's perspective.

  "Ahem..."

  Unable to watch this any longer, he deliberately cleared his throat.

  He, too, had been in the middle of class when Dean Sterling had suddenly pulled him out. He still had no idea why he had been summoned. But if it was just for this, there was no need to call him along, was there?

  Besides, the proud 'Emperor' Valerius disliked this feeling of being ignored, of being forced to play the part of a background character. He decided to interrupt their conversation.

  "Dean Sterling, why exactly did you call us here?"

  "About that..." Seeing Valerius's annoyed expression, the Dean broke off his chat with Fly.

  He paused at his office door, turned, and said, "Have either of you heard of the Freshman Invitational?"

  "Freshman Invitational?" Fly was taken aback, then shook his head. He was suddenly aware of how narrow his understanding of this world still was, focused as he was on training.

  Although this world, like his original one, had phones, computers, the internet, and AI, and many questions could be answered with a simple search...

  The prerequisite for finding an answer is knowing you have a question. If you don't even know the question, how can you search for the answer?

  Like this Freshman Invitational. Before this moment, Fly hadn't even known such a concept existed.

  "I know it," 'Emperor' Valerius nodded casually, then shot a smug glance at Fly, clearly pleased to have one-upped him on this. "The Freshman Invitational is a competition where outstanding students from all of Star City's key high schools gather to spar and exchange cultivation insights."

  "Correct," Dean Sterling nodded, satisfied. He opened his office door and ushered both of them inside.

  "Although our Star City High has always been the top Martial Academy high school locally, the other schools have been eyeing our position, constantly trying to surpass us".

  He paused, then continued, "Therefore, this Freshman Invitational will be no walk in the park".

  Fly nodded in understanding. As he heard it, this so-called invitational sounded just like the inter-school math or physics competitions from his past life. Each school would send its best students to gather and compete.

  "In that case, a competition like this should have some rewards, right? Like prize money or training resources?" Fly wasn't concerned with the prestige; he only cared about the rewards.

  In his view, Star City High was the best school in the area, and he was the number one freshman at Star City High. How could he possibly lose? Even if the other schools had their own experts, the most they could do was cause him a little trouble. How strong could they be? Stronger than 'Emperor' Valerius at his peak?

  At this thought, Fly glanced over at Valerius. The latter's right arm was still in a sling, clearly not yet recovered from the strain of overusing Infernal Transformation. Valerius felt Fly's gaze, shot him a fierce glare, and quickly turned his head away.

  "Is money all you ever think about?" Dean Sterling immediately seized the chance to tease him. "The Freshman Invitational is a duel between key high schools! It's a prime opportunity to win honor for Star City High".

  But despite his teasing, the Dean confirmed that there was indeed prize money.

  "For first place, the prize is about thirty thousand credits. Second place gets ten thousand, and even third place gets five thousand".

  "Thirty thousand?" Hearing that number, Fly's pupils instantly dilated.

  While he had guessed there would be a prize, he had severely underestimated the size of the purse. In his mind, a competition like this would have three to five thousand at most. But the result...

  Thirty thousand!

  Didn't that mean his living expenses for the next year or two were completely covered? He'd even have extra to buy some Skill Cards and training resources.

  Just the thought of it made Fly giddy with excitement.

  "Don't get too excited just yet." Seeing Fly's elation, Dean Sterling poured a bucket of cold water on him. "Like I said, although Star City High is ranked number one, the gap between us and the other schools isn't that large."

  Even though the majority of top-scoring students from middle school came to Star City High, the entrance exams were mostly based on general knowledge. True martial cultivation only began after entering high school.

  Therefore, there were always some students who, while not great at academics, were exceptionally talented in Martial Studies and didn't get into Star City High. These students often became the biggest dark horses at the Freshman Invitational.

  A simple example: based on entrance exam scores, Fly was only ranked seventh, lower than 'Emperor' Valerius. But in the Power Assessment Test just a week later, Fly had defeated him and taken the top spot.

  "So, you understand, right? It's entirely possible for exceptionally talented Beast Warriors to emerge from other schools," the Dean explained patiently.

  Fly thought for a moment, but still looked confident. "Doesn't matter. I'm confident I can win".

  Dean Sterling just smiled faintly and continued, "Also, this Freshman Invitational is a team-based competition".

  Fly: "Huh?"

  Almost instinctively, he turned his head to look at 'Emperor' Valerius.

  Valerius's hand was still injured, his right arm still in a cast and sling.

  Fly didn't doubt Valerius's strength at his peak; he had experienced his terrifying power firsthand. But now... Valerius could only use his left hand. Even eating was a struggle, let alone competing.

  At this thought, Fly's brow furrowed deeply.

  'Emperor' Valerius saw his expression and immediately understood what he was thinking.

  He snapped, "You! Are you thinking I'm going to drag you down?"

  "No, no," Fly quickly explained, "It's just, your hand..."

  "You...!" Valerius instantly clenched his uninjured left fist, looking like he wanted to plant it right in Fly's face.

  But seeing Dean Sterling right there, he managed to restrain himself.

  "You don't need to worry about that," Valerius said through gritted teeth. "Even with one hand, I won't lose to anyone. That includes you!"

  "Alright, alright." Seeing the two of them, Dean Sterling shook his head in resignation.

  It was not a good sign for teammates to have this much animosity before a team competition.

  He sighed and continued, "I am well aware of both of your strengths. Even compared to some of the upperclassmen, you are in no way inferior".

  "Especially you, Fly. Not only are you powerful, but you also have a deep understanding of strategy and tactics. You can serve as our school's ace."

  "And Valerius, although you're injured right now, your foundational strength is still more than enough to handle most situations".

  "I'm not worried about you two at all".

  As he spoke, Dean Sterling pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses, a look of appreciation on his face.

  Fly immediately caught the key implication in the Dean's words.

  "How many people are on the team for this Freshman Invitational?" Fly asked.

  "Four." Dean Sterling held up four fingers. "Besides you and Valerius, there's also Genevieve, and your old rival, Jett".

  "Jett?" Fly and 'Emperor' Valerius said, almost in unison.

  'Emperor' Valerius, in particular, frowned deeply.

  "Why him?"