"Hold on, me too?" Red asked nervously while keeping his head up and looking directly at the Headmaster's face.

"Ah well, yes, unfortunately. Though the true perpetrator was caught for his misconduct, you did lay your hand upon a colleague. That's the fact. Though I won't fire you, punishment is still needed. It's the rules." Headmaster Adhira said regrettably.

"That's unfair for Master!" The young girl pouted, puffing her cheeks while placing both of her hands on her hip. The snake who was on the ground agreed with her by hissing sadly, scaring some of the audience.

'That's Blue, right there. Since when did she and White get along so well? How the hell did White get so big suddenly?' Thousands of questions ran through Red's mind as the sight of Blue and White together confused the hell out of him.

He stood there silently but managed to regain his focus back on what the verdict for Cedrick Jenkins was. As the headmaster has the final say in his decision, the rule was set, and the verdict was final. Headmaster Adhira picked up the gavel and was prepared to slam it against the flat surface when someone interrupted.

"How about we give him a chance to prove himself, dear headmaster."

All eyes landed on that one figure who chose to speak when the final verdict was being given. Professor Edmund, after apprehending Alastor Maron, suggested the idea to the crowd while on his way back to continue listening to the trial. As the deputy head, he held the next higher position in the academy, making his suggestion one that is allowed to be heard.

"Oh! That's rare coming from you, Professor Edmund. As much as I don't want to give the punishment, it is still an important law in Elderwinn. So, what do you suggest that can overrule Professor Jenkins's punishment?"

Professor Edmund paused for a moment, placing his finger on his chin while thinking. Irene and Red had an exchange of looks, with Irene's eyes twirling in circles. Looks like this was too much for her to handle since the events are developing at such rapid speed.

In a moment, Professor Edmund concluded and announced his idea.

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"Professor Jenkins, how many students are you currently teaching as of now?"

"Ah yes, there are 9 of them as of now, sir."

"Good. 5 of your students are to be in the top 10 mages for the Magicae Festival, or you leave."

"..."

The room went silent for a moment before someone made a little cough.

"Ahem, sorry, can you repeat that?" Red asked while pulling the collar of his shirt nervously. Sweat distorts dripping from his back as he rubs his chin with the back of his hand.

"5 students in the top 10 or you are out." Professor Edmund said in a calm and cheerful tone, which by itself was a major red flag. The man never smiles, and now he's acting happy. It's creepy.

The crowd went into the state of mumbling once again while Irene rubbed her head and sighed heavily.

"This one trouble one after another."

**

Over the magic orb, details of Red's task were spread even to Gerald who was still on the mainland.

"5 students in the top 10 for combat in the Magicae Festival. That's impossible. Oh well, nice knowing you Cedrick."

Gerald salute while Irene took control of the magic orb that was used to call him.

"Bloody idiot made things worse for himself," Irene sighed, while she continued tapping on her head with her wand.

Red on the other hand was forced to be in a handstand position as Irene cast [Immobile], forcing him to stay in that position forever until either she stopped it or her mana runs out.

Long story short, it was 2 hours of torture before he was released back to rest. But before heading back to his room, a certain snake and a girl were hiding away from him and before he had a chance to speak with them, they were already gone.

'Those idiots. They must have run back to the island when I was being reprimanded by Irene.'

Annoyed at the 2 of them, Red decided to forget about it and just returned to his room to sleep after such a long date. As he proceed to freshen up and sleep, something hard was below the covers, protruding out like a sore thumb. Thinking it might be some pest or rat or intruder, he was too tired to care about it.

Summoning Naga out, he pulled the blanket out of the bed, ready to strike before controlling himself. It was the egg that King Darius gave him. It was a lot bigger now and the eggshell had a hint of grey on it compared to previously when it was just plain white. Without thinking too much, he proceeds to hug the egg to sleep.

Unbeknownst to Red, news of his conduct and apprehension of the true culprit were somehow spread to the entire school. Within an hour's worth of time when the trial ended, at least half the population in school would already learn about the truth. His students were among those that caught wind of the news first and were proud of having a mentor like that to guide them. Riri especially, after hearing how her mentor covered for her and did not wish to impose any punishments on her. The students all made an oath from there and then. Whatever happens to them, they will never allow anyone else to ever tarnish their teacher's name and reputation.

[???'s POV]

Red's petty action to win against Alastor Malon, ultimately created a butterfly effect, where the future set in stone is being redirected in a different direction because of his actions. But of course, how would he know? He was just acting like he always had, happy-go-lucky, which was pretty respectable.

Though he is destined to have troubles ahead for a little longer before things could settle down for him. Things are starting to change for the better as all of them revolve around him. Even events and tragedies were prevented because of him. So Mr. Red. Show us. Show us how you would continue to shatter expectations. We need it so that we Norns, can finally be free.