The Strongest Student of the Weakest Academy

Dark Order.

Hearing that name was enough to send a shiver down anyone's spine.

It was the main evil organization across the entire world. Basically, a cult that preferred chaos and destruction over peace.

While most people followed the Heavenly God, the Dark Order sought the opposite.

They devoted themselves to the Evil God, the being that once destroyed the world.

Their methods were just as terrifying as their beliefs.

I have seen several horrible scenes in the novel that spread the horror of the organization; they did not just kill, they destroyed people from the inside out.

Their curses were a dark magic that clung to a person's soul, spreading like poison. It wasn't something regular healing magic could fix.

Once the curse took hold, it was like watching someone slowly unravel, their body and mind breaking down piece by piece.

But even so, they didn't stop just with people.

For example, the Dark Order's power also affected the Bulking Demon's power since he had that same ominous purple aura around him.

That's probably why the Saintess was so urgently needed.

Her connection to the Heavenly God meant she could purify things that others couldn't, and until one found a cure, she'd be the only one able to heal those patients.

"By the way..."

John snapped me out of my thoughts.

"Huh? Yeah?"

"You'll need to stay here for a week or so."

"I see..."

Wait, what?

As if expecting my delayed reaction, John let out a deep sigh as he reached out to my right arm and suddenly started inserting mana into my veins.

"Hold still..."

He muttered before I even had a chance to ask what he was doing.

Suddenly, I felt a surge of mana flooding into my veins.

"Gahh!"

I let out a cry of pain.

Pain exploded in my arm, sharp and searing. I clenched my teeth, trying not to yell again. My eyes darted to my arm, then to John's face, wide with confusion and a little panic.

"You fractured one of your mana channels."

He explained in an extremely calm manner that was kind of annoying.

"It'll take at least a week to heal properly. Normally, this would be a big problem, but with the Saintess here, it should be manageable."

I nodded at his words, but despite that, I was still shocked.

Fractured mana channel?

That was bad.

Really bad.

Mana channels are like lifelines for a mage, and even though I'm a magic swordsman, it's still one of my core points.

Usually, a body contains a mana channel in each part of it. From head to toe, there are exactly fifteen total mana channels.

They all are directed to a single part which is the heart. The heart is the one that absorbs mana and then spreads it through the mana channels.

And all of that meant that I couldn't transfer mana into my right arm.

But how did I get such a gruesome injury?

"Also... I suggest that you avoid fighting against anyone before the academy's competition. When you were in a coma for three days, the Saintess did a whole body analysis."

John then added.

"Three days?"

"Yeah. And she was definitely not happy. She was mad and shocked after seeing the state you were in. Most of your mana channels were at their limit because you kept forcing more mana than your capacity allows."

Ah.

It was at that moment that I knew how my mana channel fractured.

I really shouldn't have used the Moonlight's One Flash move.

"But don't worry."

He winked at me with a small and annoying smirk.

"It could be worse."

John patted my shoulder before waving his hand and getting out of the room, leaving me completely alone with my thoughts.

Four days had already passed since I arrived at the capital, and if I needed to stay here for a whole week...

That left me with just three days to prepare for the competition once I got out.

"Fuuuuuuck..."

I groaned, letting out a long yet tired curse.

And since I was stuck here in the cathedral, I might as well train mana.

Of course, using my left arm and not the right one.

It was the only thing I could do.

Train my mana control.

...

The week had been painfully slow.

And finally, today is the day I'd get out of here.

I spent the whole week training my mana control and it improved a tiny bit, but other than that, nothing happened.

Except for the part where my classmates immediately visited me after knowing that I was highly injured, especially my professor who only teased me once she got here.

And... no one from Lucas's party visited me.

I save their asses, but they didn't even thank me. Well, I guess I should be thankful that they brought mere here.

Whatever.

The only thing that I'm worried about is that slime girl that I left at home. I totally forgot about her, and when I remembered, I tried to sneak out but the Saintess caught me.

"Ah... it's done, your mana channel has been healed." 

Saintess Christina said softly, snapping me out of my thoughts as she pulled her glowing hand away from my arm.

A gentle warmth lingered where her magic had been.

She then looked at me as her reddish-pink lips parted.

"You'll be the exchange student this time, right?"

Mhm?

"How do you know about that?"

I asked in confusion.

Usually, the information about the student exchange program is only known to professors or the headmasters of the academy.

There was no way she could've known unless—

"So, it's true, huh?"

Dammit.

I realized too late that I'd walked right into her trap.

As if to rub it in, she let out a soft giggle, the kind that somehow made you feel both annoyed and charmed at the same time.

"I had a hunch initially, but now... I'm sure~"

Damned sly fox.

"You're thinking something bad about me, aren't you?"

She quickly added, narrowing her eyes playfully.

Fuck.

"No, of course not."

She just stared at me, tilting her head slightly. The way her eyes locked onto mine made it hard to tell if she was serious or just playing around.

Either way, I didn't dare push my luck.

After a bit of teasing from the Saintess, I finally convinced her to drop the joke. She gave me one last smirk before waving me off.

"Take care of yourself, Brother Aestrea".

She said with a tone that felt half-mocking, half-genuine.

I didn't even bother responding. I just gave her a slight nod and quickly left the cathedral before she found another reason to mess with me.

Then, I headed towards the hotel, though my mind kept circling back to the slime girl I'd left behind.

She was probably fine—slimes didn't need to eat regularly, right?

Right...?

She didn't eat any of my clothes, did she?

When I finally reached the hotel and stood outside the door. I was deeply contemplating whether to open the door or not.

"Ah..."

Inserting the key into the keyhole, I twisted the handle.

Then, I pushed the door open.

Swoosh!

Before I could even take a step inside, something small and fast launched itself at me like a missile.

"Whoa—!"

I barely had any time to react before the squishy figure of the slime girl latched onto me. Her body, soft and cool to the touch, clung to mine like super glue.

Her arms—or what passed for arms—wrapped tightly around my torso, and her big, glossy eyes shimmered as she looked up at me.

The translucent green of her body had a faint, happy glow, like she was practically vibrating with joy.

"Alright, alright, calm down..."

I said, trying to get her off gently, though it was like trying to separate two pieces of Velcro.

"Master..."

She whined, puffing her cheeks—or at least making them look puffed.

"What now?"

I replied with a sigh, carefully closing the door behind me as she clung to my torso like a limpet.

With her clung to me, I walked towards my bed while looking around the room.

Thankfully, nothing got damaged.

Now back to her...

"Ah..."

Now wait a second...

Did she just... talk?

"You can talk?" 

I asked in a weird manner, as I tried to push her back. In response, she did the same tilting her head from days ago before nodding enthusiastically.

"How?"

I raised an eyebrow in confusion.

She didn't answer with words right away. Instead, she pointed at my left hand, specifically at the faint tattoo on my ring finger.

The mark I got when I made the blood contract with the morph-weapon.

After that, she pointed at her belly—or what I assumed was her belly—where a similar tattoo glowed faintly.

"Don't tell me... you and the morph-weapon can be considered as one?"

"Mhm!"

This time, she made a noise to indicate her agreement and clung back to me.

Seeing this, I needed to test something...

Poof!

She suddenly disappeared from my view and I saw the tattoo on my finger glowing faintly.

Then I tried to summon her again, but instead, the weapon appeared.

"How do I..."

Before I could finish my words, the gun that was initially in my hand turned into the slime girl.

"Ah..."

"Master is so fun to play with!"

She said, giggling as she wrapped her gooey arms around me again.

Of course.