The image of the Headmistress burned in Lancet’s mind as he headed back to his classroom. Trying to figure out what she was up to was a losing game. From what he knew, she was a master of conspiracy and schemes.

What Lancet could do now was focus on the problems in front of him: the Serpent Society and the Inter-Class Competitions.

However, when he arrived at the door of the classroom, pandemonium had taken over.

Miss Maecil stood at the front of the room, stiff and panicky while the rest of the students engaged in loud conversations about what they had just heard.

For Miss Maecil, she looked like she was about to have a panic attack. She had one hand braced against the edge of her desk, the other holding a stack of papers she had clearly been rereading far too many times.

Her expression still had its usual brightness, but it was strained now, stretched over something far more serious beneath it.

When she saw Lancet, some of the tension in her face eased, but only slightly. Then she clapped her hands once, sharply enough to quiet the noise until silence.

"Alright, everyone," she said as everyone took their seats. "Listen carefully."

Lancet walked over to his, glancing over at Luke who pretended not to notice him.

Miss Maecil looked across the room with a serious expression. She had always been spirited, but today that spirit looked sharpened into purpose.

Lancet knew this was a big deal for her

The Inter-Class Competitions were not just a matter of pride to Miss Maecil. They were a chance; A chance to prove that Summoner Class Group, especially Summoner-D could rise.

She rested one hand on her hip and let her gaze sweep over the class.

"We are not going to treat this like an ordinary announcement," she said. "This is important. Very important. From the very first day, this has been our goal; to perform splendidly at the Inter-House Competitions. Now, it is here."

A few students exchanged glances, already alert.

Miss Maecil’s eyes landed briefly on Lancet, then on Min Tu, then on Dane, then on Luke. When she spoke again, her voice became more determined.

"And with students like Lancet, Min Tu, Dane, and Luke, we have a better chance than we have ever had in previous years."

The room stirred at that.

Miss Maecil placed both hands on the desk and leaned forward a little. "Listen everyone. The days of the rest of the Academy looking down at our Class Group is over. I really think we can do it this year. We can be first," she said firmly. "We really can."

The students listened more carefully now. The idea of getting first position in the Inter-Class Competitions was extremely enticing. Everyone here knew what the rewards were.

But Miss Maecil wasn’t even focused on the rewards. She was more focused on the pedigree. The status. On proving something to others.

From the look on the faces of Lancet’s classmates, that sentiment was rubbing off.

Maecil took in a deep breath, then straightened and began pacing slowly in front of the class.

"The Inter-Class Competitions are extremely difficult," she said. "Some of you might know the basics from reading yearbooks and guides. But knowing the words is not the same as understanding what they mean for us."

She stopped and turned toward the board, then wrote the first title in clean, quick strokes.

’1. Dungeon Expedition Score Runs’

She tapped the words once with the end of her chalk. "I’ll go through the various competition types," she explained. "There are about ten competition types. The first five are always the same every year but the last five are changed year by year."

"So... I’ll begin with the first five that we are assured to face." She tapped the words again. "The main Dungeon Expeditions."

Miss Maecil paused, folding her arms under her breasts. "This isn’t the weekly or monthly quota. They’ll be more intense, focused on testing you to prepare for the Dungeons outside our walls."

"You will be sent into a Dungeon with your team, and you will be scored on how fast you clear it, how few losses you suffer, and how much of the route you complete cleanly. But it’s not just about killing monsters. It is about coordination, survival, and efficiency. Your score drops for the slightest of mistakes so you have to work in unison while clearing the Dungeon."

She wrote another one.

’2. Tribute Harvest Battles’

"This is a competition where Tribute nodes will be placed in a zone, all your group has to do is secure them before the others do. Sometimes you will need to defend what you found. Sometimes you will need to steal it from another team. Sometimes you will have to decide whether it is better to keep moving or to risk everything for a bigger Tribute gain."

A few students began nodding to themselves, already thinking through what roles they might play.

Lancet did too, though he already knew this from the novel. Hearing it now, spoken plainly by the professor in front of him, made it a little bit more intense.

Like Hebthej, these were no longer just events he had read about. They were weeks away from becoming his actual life.

Miss Maecil wrote the next title.

’3. Inter-Class Territory War’

"This one is exactly what it sounds like," she said. "Your class group will be assigned territory, and you will be expected to hold it. Other groups may challenge that territory, attack it, or try to steal your Tribute gain. This will test defense, offense, and endurance all at once."

Her expression sharpened as she turned back toward them. "If you cannot protect what you earn, you do not deserve to keep it."

That got a stronger response from the room.

The students were fully awake now, every one of them focused. Even those who had looked skeptical before were listening.

Lancet could already imagine how the different Class Groups would approach it.

Elementalists would try to dominate the terrain. Enchanters would probably build layered support and control. Specialists would look for infiltration and sabotage routes. Summoners would have to adapt fast, because summons could shift the whole shape of the field.

’Heh. I’m getting a little excited now,’ he thought to himself.

Miss Maecil turned back to the board and wrote the next one.

’4. Capture-the-Core’

"Think of this as a concentrated battle over a central objective," she said. "There will be a core in the center of the field. Your task will be to capture it. That means you must not only have capable fighters, but smart ones. You need people who can control space, identify threats, and hold a position long enough to matter. First to the core wins."

Her eyes shifted briefly toward the more tactical students in the room.

"That means everyone matters. Not just your strongest attacker."

Finally, she wrote down the fifth title:

’5. Multi-Room Trial Gauntlets’

"The Trial Gauntlets are sequences of challenge rooms," she said. "You may face monsters, traps, anti-magic zones, puzzle mechanisms, pressure zones, or rescue conditions. These trials are meant to test adaptability. A strong attack is useful, but it is not enough. You must be able to think, adjust, support one another, and solve problems under pressure."

She turned and looked at them all with a serious, almost fierce expression.

"If you panic in a room like that, you are very likely to lose. If you hesitate, you will also lose. If you rely only on power, you lose as well."

Lancet sat quietly through it, trying his very best to remember how each of these competitions had been defeated in the novel. If he could recall them, then winning might be even easier.

However, his memory was a little foggy, but he hoped that when faced with the separate challenges, his mind would recall something that could help.

Miss Maecil noticed the intensity in the room and let herself exhale, then moved back to the center of the class with renewed energy. As always, she looked like someone trying to force fate itself to take her seriously.

"Listen everyone, this is our chance," she said. "Not just to survive the competition, but to make a statement. Summoners are not going to remain at the bottom just because we outsource our power."

"I mean so what? We have advantages others do not. We have flexibility. We have versatility. We have students who can change the flow of a fight if they are willing to push themselves."

Her gaze passed over Lancet, Min Tu, Dane, and Luke again, and this time her voice deepened with conviction.

"We have people who can carry us further than anyone expects."

The room was silent, but it was a silence full of attention rather than hesitation.

Miss Maecil drew herself up and lifted her chin slightly, the over-spirited edge of her personality now fused with an unwavering resolve.

"The Competitions begin next week," she said. "That means today and the rest of this week will be spent training, planning and preparing for war!"

She planted her hands on her desk and looked at all of them with open determination.

"We are going to win!"

The class answered her with a surge of energy, some voices louder than others, some more confident, some merely eager to belong to the momentum she had created.

"We are going to win!!!"

"Yeah!!!"

Lancet watched the room come alive around him with a smile on his face. ’Alright then,’ he thought. ’Let’s win this thing.’