On the rooftop of a three-story stone building sat a young man with slightly curly, gray-white hair and a rugged facial structure.

He was perched on a wooden chair, examining a glass bead in his hand, muttering to himself, “This is strange; what exactly is this thing for?”

The young man's original name was Shi Lu, and he had awakened in this so-called Enze Continent a week ago.

At first, he believed he could possess extraordinary talent in this magical world, rapidly cultivate his abilities, become a grand mage, marry a wealthy beauty, and reach the pinnacle of life! Just thinking about it made him a little excited.

However, he quickly realized he had been overly naive. Now, his name was Karian, twenty years old, and a junior teacher at the Palos Magic School.

Although he was called a magic teacher, he didn't know any magic at all.

He had the position mainly due to his extensive theoretical knowledge of magic, which made him suitable for teaching beginner magic apprentices.

A week ago, the original Karian had collapsed under immense pressure.

When he awoke again, it was Shi Lu who had taken control of this body.

Despite the two consciousnesses merging, Shi Lu accepted the identity of Karian. Though the idea of crossing over was unbelievable, a week had passed, and he had adapted to being Karian.

What troubled him was that, without any magical talent, he had no hope of becoming a powerful grand mage.

How could he make a name for himself in this magical world? Mining for resources, perhaps?

Another point that constantly occupied Karian’s mind was the glass bead in his hand.

Before crossing over to the Enze Continent, he had discovered this bead in the storage room of his newly rented house.

When he held it up to the sunlight, the light refracted, and he was dazzled by its brilliant glow. When he woke up, he had become Karian.

He suspected that this bead was the reason for his crossing over.

His intuition told him that it was the legendary "golden finger" of crossing. However, after pondering it for a whole week, he still couldn’t figure out what its actual function was.

Just as he was lost in thought, a deep, hoarse voice called from outside the courtyard. “Karian!”

Peeking out, Karian saw an old man in a black magic robe standing at the courtyard gate.

He recognized him at once as Elder Alyson, the headmaster of the Palos Magic School. Rushing downstairs, Karian tried to tidy up his messy gray-white curls while making his way down.

Soon he reached the first floor and opened the dilapidated courtyard gate. “Elder Alyson, please come in,” he gestured for him to enter.

Holding a staff, Elder Alyson shook his head and replied, “I won’t go in. What have you thought about the matter we discussed last time?”

Karian suddenly put on a sorrowful expression and said, “Oh, my dear Elder Alyson, please forgive my impudent reply, but closing Red Leaf Academy is too hard to accept. It's worse than the pies made by Grandma Susan next door.”

“Speak plainly!” Elder Alyson's wrinkled face displayed a look of disdain, wondering where this kid learned such an exaggerated way of speaking. Who is Grandma Susan?

“No way!” Karian retorted with determination, “I would rather die than let you close Red Leaf Academy.”

Red Leaf Academy was a branch of the Palos Magic School, but in recent years, it had seen a decline in talent and a gradual decrease in students.

To make matters worse, over three months ago, the academy's headmaster had gone missing during a high-risk mission.

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The school's higher-ups basically determined he was dead, so they decided to close Red Leaf Academy and transfer the teachers and students to other colleges.

But the original Karian had disagreed. He had grown up in Red Leaf Academy, and closing it would mean losing his home.

This was precisely why the original Karian had collapsed under the pressure, ultimately being replaced by Shi Lu.

“Stop being stubborn!” Elder Alyson glared at him, somewhat angrily, “The other three teachers from Red Leaf Academy have already transferred; now you’re the only junior teacher left. What can you still teach?

This estate is not your private domain but a resource of the school. The school cannot waste such a large piece of land on a hopeless academy.”

Even though the one standing there now was not the original Karian but Shi Lu, he had merged with the original’s consciousness, and thus he had feelings for Red Leaf Academy and would not allow it to close down.

Gathering his courage, Karian replied, “Elder Alyson, this is quite unreasonable.

Our headmaster is only missing; you cannot rashly destroy what he has built over the years!”

“Not this again!” Elder Alyson said, visibly displeased. “How many times do I have to tell you that Feins was on a highly dangerous mission when he went missing, and the chance of survival is almost zero?”

Feins was the headmaster of Red Leaf Academy.

“And even if Feins is still alive, what does that matter? Red Leaf Academy is already on the brink of closure.

Don’t forget, the school has a rule that if a branch academy consistently ranks last in five consecutive comprehensive graduation assessments, it will be deemed without potential for development and face closure and reorganization.

And your Red Leaf Academy has had dismal results for four consecutive years!”

With the conversation reaching this point, Karian stood firm and replied, “Then we still have one chance left, right? Closing it doesn’t have to happen now!”

“You!” Elder Alyson looked like he wanted to smack Karian on the head with his staff out of frustration.

“What good will dragging this out do? Do you really think that as a junior teacher with the remaining students of Red Leaf Academy, you can achieve good results in the graduation assessment? Stop dreaming!”

Taking a deep breath, Elder Alyson continued, “Among the remaining students in your academy, only that Mia girl has some talent.

With three months left until the graduation assessment, close Red Leaf Academy and let Mia transfer to another academy.

At least she will have better resources in her final three months and a greater chance of passing.”

“This…” At this point, Karian felt somewhat swayed. Mia was a student at Red Leaf Academy and, in terms of talent, would be considered above average in other academies.

But Red Leaf Academy lacked resources, preventing her from making effective progress.

If Mia could transfer, her chances of passing the assessment would indeed be greater.

“I’m not going anywhere!” A clear voice rang out from the courtyard.

Karian turned to see a sweat-drenched girl with blonde hair standing not far away, her lake-blue eyes resolute.

“I’m staying at Red Leaf Academy; I won’t go to any other place!”

This fifteen-year-old girl was Mia. She had just been jogging around the academy and had overheard the conversation between Alyson and Karian.

Upon hearing this, Karian fell silent. He understood Mia's feelings.

The students still willing to stay at Red Leaf Academy were mostly orphans taken in by the old headmaster, and they considered this place their home.

Now that the old headmaster was missing, how could Mia accept being asked to abandon her fragile family and go to another academy?

However, Elder Alyson did not see it that way.

He pointed his staff forcefully at the ground and shouted at Mia, “Do you know what you’re saying? You’re already 15 this year; if you don’t pass the assessment, you won’t have the chance to become a formal mage!”

“I can pass the assessment at Red Leaf Academy!” Mia retorted defiantly before continuing her jog.

“Stop right there!” Elder Alyson shouted angrily at her back.

Karian, fearing Alyson's anger, hurried to support him and said, “Elder, let’s not get too worked up; I’ll talk to Mia.”

Turning around, Elder Alyson glared and said, “What good will talking do? It’s clear that Mia doesn’t want to leave Red Leaf Academy.

Only by closing it will we dispel her hopes, and she will transfer to another academy.”

“Karian, stop hesitating; you must not delay Mia’s future!”

Karian felt overwhelmed, nodding to indicate he understood. “I know, I know; let me think about it…”

However, his answer only made Elder Alyson angrier, and his reprimands grew more severe.

In theory, Red Leaf Academy was already defunct, and it wouldn’t be hard for the school higher-ups to reclaim it.

But the branches of Palos Magic School had all been established by individual headmasters offering their own lands, and each academy was granted autonomy.

With the headmaster absent, the highest-ranking teacher took charge. So as long as Karian, the only teacher left, did not give up on Red Leaf Academy, it would not be considered closed.

After twenty minutes of reprimanding, seeing that Karian still hadn’t given him a definite answer, Elder Alyson could only leave in disappointment. Before he left, however, he handed Karian a small piece of magical crystal, telling him to give it to Mia.

Watching Elder Alyson's departing figure, Karian sighed heavily. Handling such a big mess was incredibly difficult.

Looking down at the magical crystal in his hand, Karian understood that Elder Alyson didn’t intend to destroy Red Leaf Academy; he was doing it for Mia’s sake.

This girl clearly possessed great magical talent; had she been in another academy, she would have likely obtained formal mage qualifications and opportunities for further advancement by now.

But at Red Leaf Academy, there were no teachers, no medicinal resources, and no good equipment, resulting in Mia failing her assessments