The morning’s combat class nearly ended in chaos, leaving Winnie with lingering fears. Fortunately, he wouldn’t encounter Aesphyra in the afternoon class.

 

Well, may there be no Aesphyra in heaven.

 

The halls for cultural classes at Carillian Academy were separate from those for elective courses.

 

Winnie’s first elective was an advanced class on armor-type soul armament.

 

He arrived at a side hall in the elective building, its arched gate adorned with silver embossed armor patterns.

 

Inside the courtyard, rows of armor stands displayed various types of armor, scale and cloth armor from the ancient Carillian Empire, leather and chainmail in the style of the Tyrell Empire, tribal lamellar armor, and plate armor from the Camella Kingdom.

 

The distinct features made it clear: this was the hall for advanced armor-type soul armament.

 

Armor-type Soul Armaments were a niche subject, both at Carillian and other academies, and had essentially stopped developing.

 

Despite this, Carillian Academy still offered a specialized course for this unpopular Soul Armament and built a grand, luxurious classroom for it.

 

Winnie entered the hall. It was class time, so theoretically, the classrooms should be full. Yet, the vast hall was eerily empty, with only a few classes having any students at all.

 

Winnie found his assigned class and discovered that, aside from himself, there were only five other students. Everyone exchanged glances, silent and awkward.

 

The middle-aged man sleeping on the desk at the front sensed someone entering and lazily raised his head, yawning as he stood up from his lesson plan.

 

“Alright, it seems our class is mostly here. Let’s begin.”

 

This was “mostly here”??

 

Winnie glanced around the classroom. With only six students, it felt more like a tutoring session than an actual class.

 

It seemed armor-type Soul Armaments truly had no takers.

 

This probably wasn’t the only advanced class for armor-type Soul Armaments, but having only six students was pitifully few.

 

As for the middle-aged man at the podium, unkempt, with a scruffy beard, wearing a faded Carillian instructor’s robe, and hair hanging over his forehead, he had been sleeping on the lesson plan instead of preparing for class.

 

This teacher didn’t seem reliable at all.

 

“Alright, let’s skip the small talk. First, I need to confirm: none of you unfortunate or confused souls accidentally chose this class after misreading the Soul Armament type, right? You didn’t mistakenly select armor-type Soul Armaments when you actually absorbed a different type, did you?” The man lazily leaned on the lesson plan, arms crossed.

 

Was there really someone like that?

 

The entrance was pretty clear.

 

All the students, including Winnie, couldn’t help but think this.

 

“Um, is this the advanced class for armor-type Soul Armaments?” Just as everyone was thinking this, a hand timidly raised.

 

There really was someone like that??

 

All the other students, including Winnie, looked at the boy who raised his hand with exasperation.

 

“If you chose the wrong class, go change it now. It’s not too late.” The middle-aged man, however, didn’t seem surprised, as if he was used to it, and pointed toward the door.

 

“O-okay, thank you, teacher.” With that, the nervous student left the class.

 

Now, there were only five students left in the room.

 

“I knew it. There’s no way this year’s batch of armor-type Soul Armaments freshmen would be this many.” The man shrugged.

 

Huh? Five people, and that’s considered “many”??

 

Clearly, not just Winnie, but the other four students thought the same.

 

Winnie glanced at the other students in the class. It was male-dominated, no, it wasn’t just male-dominated; there were no females at all.

 

Well, what girl would choose armor-type Soul Armaments??

 

“Alright, the rest of you should all be users of armor-type Soul Armaments, right? I assume you’ve all done some research on your Soul Armament type before coming here. As you can see, this type of Soul Armament is very special, special in that almost no one chooses it, and those who do often do so reluctantly. If they had better options, no one would pick this hopeless Soul Armament type.” The man spoke freely, not holding back in front of his new students.

 

The students listening to this felt somewhat uncomfortable.

 

Was this really what a teacher should do on the first day of class, tell them outright that the Soul Armament they chose had no future??

 

And this was a Carillian Academy teacher. How could he be like this?? Did they get unlucky and end up with the worst teacher in the faculty?

 

As the saying goes, lies don’t hurt, but the truth cuts deep. This statement made most of the students feel somewhat offended.

 

Indeed, if their magical aptitude hadn’t limited them to lower-tier Soul Armaments, they would never have turned their attention to armor-type Soul Armaments.

 

That was the truth, and this middle-aged man had simply laid it bare, tearing off the veil of pretense.

 

However, not everyone felt this way, Winnie, for instance.

 

He had chosen armor-type Soul Armaments because he could see his compatibility with it, but for most, it was exactly as the man said.

 

“Given that, you should also know that things everyone flocks to aren’t necessarily good, but they must have some merit. Things no one chooses might not be worthless trash, but there’s always a reason no one picks them.”

 

“What I’m saying is, don’t aim too high. You’ve chosen armor-type Soul Armaments, so stop dreaming about standing out. In terms of destructive power, you can’t compare to mage-type Soul Armaments. In one-on-one combat, you’re no match for warrior-type Soul Armaments. In mobility, you’re inferior to assassin-type Soul Armaments. And you have no support abilities whatsoever, utterly useless.”

 

“To put it bluntly, you’re the bottom of the barrel, completely outdated. If you had any other choice, who would pick this??” The man spoke carelessly.

 

This guy.

 

Winnie raised an eyebrow.

 

This teacher had a unique personality.

 

“You might not like hearing this, and that’s fine. I don’t expect you to agree with me. But one day, when you’re breaking through to the Master realm, maybe you’ll remember me and my heartfelt words, and think there was some truth to them. Then I’ll feel like I’ve done my job as a teacher.”

 

“What I’ve told you is based on decades of experience and insights into armor-type Soul Armaments.

 

Of course, now that you’ve entered Carillian Academy, you’re probably feeling pretty full of yourselves, young and reckless, thinking, ‘What kind of teacher is this guy? Who’s he to lecture me? Who knows what the future holds? With my talent, surpassing this washed-up, big-mouthed loser will be a piece of cake. I’ll see sights he’ll never see in his lifetime.'”

 

“Honestly, I sincerely hope you’ll see sights I’ll never see and reach heights I’ll never attain.” The man paused, then added, “Alright, enough of that. Let me introduce myself. I’m Franklin, the instructor at Carillian Academy responsible for teaching armor-type Soul Armaments.”

 

“Let’s cut to the chase. Since we’re all armor users, let’s talk in terms of armor. Come on, show me your armor, starting with you.” Franklin pointed to the first student on the left.

 

At his words, the student activated his Soul Armament, and a set of black armor appeared on his body.

 

“Two-star Soul Armament, [Shadow Armor].” Franklin examined the black leather armor that materialized in a swirl of black smoke before nodding slowly. “Passable, I guess.”

 

“?” While the others didn’t pay much attention, Winnie couldn’t help but look at Franklin.

 

What did he mean by “passable”??

 

He could instantly recognize the students’ armor Soul Armament names, so he must have some competence. But if he already knew it was a two-star Soul Armament, why add the “passable” comment??

 

Could it be that this guy could also see a person’s compatibility with their armor-type Soul Armament??

 

But that was impossible, right??

 

Next was the second student, whose Soul Armament was a set of yellow brass light armor with a face guard.

 

“One-star Soul Armament, [Copper Wall].” After naming the Soul Armament and examining it for a moment, Franklin nodded. “Not bad. There’s some potential here.”

 

At this point, Winnie really started to suspect that Franklin could somehow gauge a person’s compatibility with their armor-type Soul Armament.

 

But how??

 

The next student’s armor was quite unique, a luxurious metal suit adorned with wolf fur shoulder guards and a cape.

 

“Three-star Soul Armament, [Wolf King’s Armor]??” Recognizing the armor, Franklin looked at the tall, burly tribal youth with a strange expression. “What’s your name?”

 

“I’m Barbatos, teacher,” the tribal youth replied gruffly.

 

“Barbatos, your magical aptitude is at least three stars. Why on earth did you choose armor-type Soul Armaments??” Franklin asked. “Were you tricked into it, or did you make a mistake?”

 

“Reporting to the teacher, neither. It’s my love for armor-type Soul Armaments!” Barbatos declared proudly.

 

“…” Franklin fell silent for a long moment before speaking. “In the future, you might regret this.”

 

“No, teacher, I can guarantee I’ll never regret that decision,” Barbatos replied without hesitation.

 

Franklin, after a pause, gave his assessment. “Your potential is indeed the brightest here. I hope it stays that way.”

 

Next, it was Winnie’s turn, and all eyes turned to him.

 

Winnie, following their gazes, summoned his Soul Armament.

 

With a flash of silver light, a majestic set of sealed silver scale armor appeared before everyone.

 

The blue tassel on the helmet fluttered without wind, and golden eagle patterns emerged on the chest and shoulder plates. The abdominal armor bore embossed designs, and the entire suit looked sturdy and reliable.

 

Winnie noticed that after advancing to the Artisan rank, [Armour Fortress] had undergone significant changes. While the upgrade from Initiate to Apprentice had only added a few lines, the transformation from Apprentice to Artisan was much more pronounced.

 

The armor now appeared more solid, the short tassel had grown longer, and eagle patterns had appeared. The shoulder guards had also become more ornate.

 

“One-star Soul Armament, [Armour Fortress]? No, wait…” Franklin’s expression shifted from indifferent to hesitant, then to outright shock as he examined Winnie’s gleaming silver armor.

 

“No, no, this isn’t normal [Armour Fortress].” Franklin’s tone carried a hint of disbelief.

 

The other students were also curious about what was going on with Winnie’s armor.

 

“[Armour Fortress] shouldn’t have this many intricate decorations. What’s going on with you??… Oh, I see.” Franklin’s initial surprise gradually gave way to understanding as he pieced things together.

 

“No wonder you chose [Armour Fortress]… Did you know about this beforehand? But that’s impossible, right?”

 

This question left the other students puzzled, but Winnie understood.

 

Winnie didn’t respond. Sometimes, silence was an answer in itself.

 

“Student, what’s your name?” Franklin asked seriously.

 

“Winnie.”

 

“I mean your full name,” Franklin repeated.

 

“Winnie Varelis,” Winnie replied.

 

“Varelis??” Not everyone in the class was from the kingdom or empire, so some were unfamiliar with the name Winnie.

 

However, the surname Varelis was well-known, especially to those from the grand duchy. They knew exactly what that surname represented.

 

They all turned curious or surprised gazes toward Winnie, wondering why a scion of the Varelis family, a male, no less, had chosen to absorb an armor-type Soul Armament.

 

“Ah, so you’re that Winnie Varelis, huh? If I recall correctly, you ranked twenty-third in the entrance exam.”

 

Winnie was surprised. He had thought this seemingly unreliable man was just a slacker collecting a paycheck. But it seemed he had actually done his homework and paid attention.

 

Moreover, from his apparent ability to gauge a person’s compatibility with their armor-type Soul Armament, it was clear he wasn’t ordinary.

 

Did he have some special ability? Or was it purely based on experience??

 

The latter seemed more plausible, but it was also more terrifying. How familiar with armor-type Soul Armaments would one have to be to achieve such a feat??

 

“Indeed, rumors aren’t always reliable.” Franklin gave Winnie a meaningful look before examining the last student’s Soul Armament and offering his evaluation. He then returned to the podium.

 

“You’re the worst class I’ve ever had, that’s something other teachers often say, right?” Franklin began.

 

“But what I want to say is, you’re the class with the most potential out of all the students I’ve taught.”

 

“I hope you don’t waste that potential.”

 

“Especially you, Winnie Varelis. The goddess may have closed your doors and windows, but she didn’t completely trap you in that room.” Franklin gave Winnie one last look before turning back to pick up his textbook.

 

“Alright, let’s begin class.”

 

“The first lesson is a basic one. I know these foundational theories can be dry, but please bear with me and listen carefully.”