—— [Headmaster’s Journal] ——

  Mission: The Ticking Time Bomb

  With the village taken care of, it is now time to focus on the pressing matter at hand. A mark given by the pocket dimension’s overseers has become a ticking time bomb where you must face them in a confrontation. Make progress on your meditation within the limited amount of time that you have.

  Type: Main mission

  Sigil Formed: 0/1

  Reward: Bet-tier {Blink} spell book

  After the completion of the previous main mission of taking over the village, a new one popped up immediately after. This mission was something that Victor had been keeping in the back of his mind, and it was about time that he addressed it. The mission’s reward, a Bet-tier Cosmo-elemental spell book, made it all the more important for his upcoming battle with the two overseers.

  He had devised a plan to become stronger and had even gathered all the necessary resources for his cultivation, including a room full of mana crystals mined from the ravine cave.

  But before he could proceed to have a very long meditation session…

  [Mission Accomplished!]

  [Congratulations on passing the mission. You have assigned staff members to your academy to make it functional.]

  [The reward (500 academy points) has been issued.]

  Victor had also completed the side mission to staff the academy, with all his former comrades beginning to take on roles in the academy. Rather, being forced to pick roles thanks to the mind manipulation magic.

  Furthermore, the physical shop had opened and was temporarily placed in one of the rooms in the Headmaster’s Building. It was manned by Jared. Victor had ensured to include additional rules that players had to adhere to when the physical shop was implemented, stating that stealing would be met with capital punishment in the updated guidelines.

  He let Jared take care of the shop, which was the lowest position, while Elara and Dorian took on teaching roles as assistant professors. This wasn’t solely based on spite but because both Elara and Dorian had their own specialized fields, whereas Jared was untalented in other fields. He was a lazy, arrogant asshole as far as Victor was aware.

  This resulted in a somewhat functional academic environment where players could take courses to advance their understanding of magic and this world, among other things. While the players might not require as intense of a teaching regimen as typical acolytes, some of the hardcore ones were definitely eager to learn everything they could to become the best. Heck, they might even do a speed run to complete every course in the least time possible. Hmm, the more I think about it, the more I feel that it will happen…

  Victor had been going back and forth to the village to manage matters with the important villagers there. When the time came for the players to go and do missions in the village, the villagers would be ready to interact with them. Of course, the Shadowlink Marks were equipped with all the necessary instructions to guide the villagers in their interactions with the players, ensuring a seamless integration.

  With that taken care of, the next phase was to implement the economic update by distributing the gold and silver coins he had at his disposal.

  “Liz, gather all the players to the auditorium and have our staff distribute the money,” Victor instructed. He had no time for any fancy words or speeches this time; his focus was solely on strengthening himself to increase his chances of winning or at least surviving the next predetermined battle. Thus, he could delegate this task to someone else.

  “Aye, Master!” The mischievous fairy saluted with a smile and looked unusually elated over doing his bidding. Perhaps she was excited at the prospect of commanding others besides the pesky players.

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  Now then…

  “Time to get stronger,” Victor murmured to himself, stepping into the underground floor where his meditation chamber was located.

  Meanwhile, Lizbeth efficiently managed the distribution of coins to the players in the auditorium. The two hundred or so players made several long lines, eagerly awaiting their turn to receive their goodies, much like children waiting to receive candy. The atmosphere was very lively, as the economic update represented a significant milestone that brought limitless potential.

  Lizbeth noted with amusement that some players were already discussing plans to exchange the in-game coins for real-life currency as soon as they received theirs. Others headed right to the new physical store to purchase mana crystals with their piled-up merit points. The store, temporarily housed in a room within the Headmaster’s Building and manned by Jared, was so crowded that the people were pushing each other to get inside.

  “Hey! Whoever’s behind me, stop pushing!” shouted a male player, struggling to avoid crashing into the topless, muscled player in front of him.

  Why is that player naked? Lizbeth wondered.

  Then, another male player, looking equally harassed, yelled, “The heck! I wasn’t even jostling, and someone touched my ass again?”

  “Hehe.”

  “It’s you!” the victimized player exclaimed, trying unsuccessfully to grab the perpetrator.

  Lizbeth rolled her eyes, suspecting they were all a bunch of perverts. Fortunately, the female players knew better than to plunge into the crowd, though any inappropriate action would be saved by the Shadowlink Marks, and the perpetrators would be punished accordingly. Still, no one wanted such an incident to happen in the first place.

  “These mana crystals are all mine! I have more than two thousand merit points! Just shut up and take my money!” one desperate player shouted.

  “No! Me first!” another player yelled, equally frantic.

  The players at the front of the line jostled and pushed, each trying to be the first to get their hands on the coveted mana crystals. They knew there was a daily limit to how many were available, and acquiring them was the fastest way to hasten their cultivation progress—or, as Lizbeth’s master called it, leveling up.

  Having finished distributing the coins, Lizbeth floated around the auditorium, observing the players as they adapted to the new economic system. Amidst the crowd, a few stood out with their ambitious plans. KuroUsagi was already devising strategies to maximize profit from the economic update, while Prominence and his friends discussed the possible loopholes that they could take advantage of. The atmosphere was charged with a sense of possibility and excitement.

  Lizbeth couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride at how quickly the academy was improving. Her goal of making it the best academy in the universe was one step closer with each passing day. Watching the players’ enthusiasm and ingenuity reassured her that they were on the right track.

  The entire day passed after the recent update, and exciting news spread throughout the academy and even reached the official website forum: Someone had broken through. Interestingly enough, the next to be promoted and reach new heights in the Magus path was not Victor; it was actually Prominence. He had managed to become a second-stage Initiate Attunement—the first among the players.

  Over this fact, Victor considered his old online friend’s achievement with keen interest as he opened his eyes and finished his meditation. “Looks like this guy’s potential is not bad. Even with all the advantages the players have, it shouldn’t have been so easy,” he mumbled to himself.

  Promoting to a second-stage Initiate Attunement wasn’t as easy as achieving the first stage. For the first stage, as long as you had a good meditation technique and high mana aptitude as well as thorough guidance, anyone could achieve it given enough time. However, achieving the second stage required more than just these basic elements. It mostly depended on one’s own abilities and perseverance.

  If they didn’t have enough determination, patience, and understanding of their own elemental affinities, they would find themselves hitting an insurmountable wall. The second stage demanded a deeper connection with mana, a more refined control over spells, and an inner aptitude that couldn’t be taught. This was why Prominence’s achievement was so remarkable; he had managed to push through these barriers on his own.

  A player being able to achieve this—just how amazing was that?

  “Right,” Victor made a decision. “Maybe I should leave that thing to him.” He recalled the Pyro staff he had kept in reserve—the Elemental Staff of Flame, a mid-grade magic tool. The reason he hadn’t put it up for auction earlier was that the players were all too low-leveled. Now that there was a second-stage Initiate Attunement, he could rest assured.

  Victor had no doubt that ButterflyWingsAreDelicious would be able to achieve the second stage as well, but she had the advantage of being a Bloodline Magus. Besides, the staff wouldn’t fit her fighting style and would only get in the way.

  With that thought in mind, Victor activated his Master Shadowlink Mark and called for Lizbeth. “Liz, you there?”

  A holographic screen appeared before him with Lizbeth’s face framed within. “Yup. Do you need something, Master?”

  “Get Prominence to the Headmaster’s Office. It’s time he gets a proper reward for his hard work,” Victor instructed.

  Lizbeth nodded and cut off the projection.

  He obviously wouldn’t give the staff away for free, but Promincence’s success along with this reward would serve as a beacon of hope and motivation for other players. It showed them that with enough effort and dedication, they too could reach new heights in the Magus path and be rewarded for their efforts. This would not only strengthen the players’ fighting capabilities but also earn Victor their gratitude—truly killing two birds with one stone.