A week passed in a flash.
The academy resumed its usual bustle, but a certain tension hung over the infirmary, where Jered remained bandaged and grumbling. Tashi, with nothing better to do, spent most of his time spinning half-true tales about his "glorious younger days" to keep Jered entertained.
"Did I ever tell you about the time I single handedly defeated a horde of abyssal slimes with only a spoon and three healing potions?" Tashi declared dramatically, waving a finger in the air.
"You've told me that six times already," Jered replied, unimpressed. "And every time, the number of slimes increases."
Tashi chuckled. "Ah, memory distortion. A symptom of great heroism."
Just then, the door creaked open. Kaelen stepped inside, his expression gloomier than usual, as if someone had just announced free ice cream had been banned for life.
"What's with the long face?" Jered asked, eyeing his friend warily.
Kaelen didn't answer right away. He slumped into the chair beside Jered's bed, crossed his arms, and sighed. "Bad news. Real bad."
Jered sat up slightly, his bandaged torso protesting. "Out with it."
Kaelen groaned. "The teachers said… we're not getting any XP."
Jered blinked. "Come again?"
"They said we failed the trial," Kaelen muttered. "Because we didn't return with a beast's head before dawn. No head, no points. No advancement."
For a moment, Jered stared at him blankly. Then his face slowly twisted in disbelief. "We fought monsters. Real ones. Three of them. And they say we failed because we didn't bring back a souvenir?"
"Exactly," Kaelen snapped, voice rising. "We nearly died! Doesn't that count for anything?"
Fuming, Jered slammed his fist weakly on the bed. "We bled. We risked our lives. And we get nothing in return?"
"I knew this academy was full of lunatics," Kaelen grumbled.
"Ahem." Tashi cleared his throat loudly. "If the crying session is over…"
"Not now, old Tashi," both boys said in perfect unison.
Undeterred, the old man grinned. "What if I told you… I'm looking for a disciple?"
Jered squinted. "And what does that have to do with us?"
Tashi squinted right back, unimpressed. "Well, not you, boy!. I don't like you."
"Gee, thanks."
"I'm offering Kaelen the chance to become my disciple," Tashi said proudly. "And if he does, I'll guarantee he reaches level 100 before the semester ends."
The room fell silent.
Kaelen's jaw dropped. Jered's mouth hung open. Even the wind outside paused in confusion.
"Wait... level 100? Seriously?" Kaelen asked, eyes sparkling.
"Very serious," Tashi replied with a grin. "On one condition, once you accept, you'll take no other medical teacher but me."
"I don't want it," Jered cut in flatly. "I'm going to be a warrior. Not a bandaid boy."
Kaelen was about to echo the refusal when Tashi raised a hand. "Wait. Hear me out."
"No thanks. A warrior must be swift and decisive," Jered said proudly, puffing up his chest.
"Swift and decisive nearly got you killed, genius," Tashi snapped back.
Jered opened his mouth, then shut it. He had no comeback for that one.
"So what?" he muttered finally. "Kaelen has the best class, the Legendary Divine Cleric and we still almost died. Support classes are useless in real battle."
Kaelen flinched. Even though he'd tried to accept his role, Jered's words struck deep. Once a class was chosen, it couldn't be changed. Hearing his own friend call his path useless stung more than any wound.
"He's right," Kaelen muttered, sinking lower in his chair. "Supports are useless…"
"Haaaaaah," Tashi sighed. "These kids are really underestimating the support class."
He flicked his fingers, opening a glowing system interface and grinning. "Alright then. What's the strongest material you two know?"
Jered raised a brow. "That's easy. Celestium. Everyone knows that. It glows under starlight."
"What's that?" Kaelen asked.
Jered rolled his eyes. "Bro… You really need to read more. Or else I'm going to start calling you the Divine Idiot."
Kaelen ignored the jab and looked to Tashi expectantly.
The term strongest caught his attention.
Tashi knew that this was a chance for him to recruit Kaelen. Then with a smile on his face he explained, "Celestium is the crystallized core of celestial beings or celestial bodies, stars, gods, you name it. After their death, the pure energy from their core condenses into a metal so dense, it can slice through time and space."
Jered blinked. "No way, no one told me that"
"Oh yes," Tashi nodded. "Its mere presence can fracture dimensions and shatter time continuity. It's not just metal, it's a fragment of cosmic law made solid."
Kaelen sat frozen, listening without blinking.
"I want a full set of armor made of it!" he declared proudly.
Jered turned to him, scandalized. "There are only 4 known artifacts in the world made from that stuff, and you want a full suit?!"
Tashi raised a finger. "Five, actually."
Tashi reached into his system and pulled out a single glowing needle.
And then it happened.
A faint cracking sound echoed in the air. Reality bent inward for a split second. Shadows stretched unnaturally. The room darkened.
The moment it appeared, the space around it rippled like a disturbed pond. Light fractured. Sound dulled. The temperature dropped sharply.
Kaelen froze, jaw slack in shock.
Jered's body broke into a cold sweat, eyes wide with primal fear.
The next moment the room returned to normal.
Tashi then cast a calming spell for the boys to settle down.
"I call this 'The World Needle'," he said casually.
Silence.
"The mere presence of this needle caused space to distort," Tashi continued. "So imagine what kind of power its wielder must possess."
"So... the wielder is... invincible?" Kaelen asked, eyes shining.
Tashi pinched the bridge of his nose. "No. Powerful, yes. Invincible? No. Power like this comes with heavy cost."
He let the boys absorb the weight of it, then said, "Now. Can a simple support class handle such an artifact?"
Jered blinked. "Wait… you wield that?"
"I do."
"But how? You're a healer."
"Because I'm a caster before a healer," Tashi smirked. "And I've mastered the art of efficiency."
Classes in this world were mainly divided into two groups
Casters : who relied on skill and mana (like mages and priests)
And warriors : who relied on physical prowess and combat techniques (like knights or swordmasters).
Tashi continued, "Yes, supports have weaker combat power. But if you wield your skills correctly… you can even suppress the laws of the world."
"I thought you were just strong," Kaelen said softly.
"I'm not," Tashi replied. "I simply used a skill to suppress the needle's effect on space and time."
"So... you're weak?" Kaelen asked with a grimace.
"Idiot," Jered said. "If Celestium doesn't hurt you, then what can?"
Kaelen stared at Tashi now as if he'd just met a god.
Tashi calmly tucked the needle back into his system and stretched his back. "So. Kaelen. Ready to be my disciple?"
Kaelen nearly fell over. "Yes! Yes, Teacher! Would you like a foot massage? Herbal tea? A song?"
Tashi turned to Jered.
If Jered had working legs, he'd have leapt into the man's arms.
---
That very afternoon a system contract was formed between Tashi and the duo saying that Tashi must help Kaelen and Jered reach Level 50 before the semester ended and In exchange, the boys agreed to accept no other teacher in healing and carry on Tashi's legacy.
The earlier "Level 100" claim was slyly walked back. But the boys didn't care anymore not after seeing that needle.
In this world, skills could be learned in two ways; either through skill books or by manually learning the teachings from someone who had already mastered the ability.
As Tashi left the room, waving nonchalantly, he said, "I've got work to do. See you two later."
The boys lay back, sighing in satisfaction. "We've hit the jackpot."
But reality was very different far from what all three of them had thought
Kaelen's XP requirement was monstrous. Even one level-up was going to make Tashi's wallet bleed.
Jered hadn't been recruited out of kindness, Tashi needed an assistant to run errands and clean his house
The World Needle was real, but Tashi's calm demeanor was an illusion. He had been using multiple epic-tier support skills back-to-back to suppress its effects and now, he was dangerously low on energy.
By the time he reached home, his robe soaked with sweat, Tashi collapsed on the floor, unconscious.
The price of wielding a Celestium artifact had finally caught up.