Kael Vane had learned three important things during his first week as an invisible student at Aetherium Academy.

  First: the gray robes of a servant were better than any disguise. People saw what they expected to see, and no one expected a talentless reject to be wandering the halls of the most prestigious magic school in the realm.

  Second: the academy's food was incredible, especially when you hadn't eaten properly in weeks. The kitchens were always busy, always chaotic, and no one noticed one more hungry boy grabbing bread and cheese from the service entrances.

  Third—and most importantly—arrogant magical teenagers were the most predictable creatures in existence.

  "Watch it, servant!"

  Kael stumbled back as a student in expensive robes swept past, deliberately knocking the books from his arms. They scattered across the floor—a collection of Basic Arcane Theory volumes he'd "borrowed" from the library during the night shift.

  "I'm so sorry, my lord," Kael mumbled, keeping his eyes downcast. "Clumsy of me."

  The student—Marcus, third-year, specializing in elemental evocation—snorted. "Clumsy and stupid. Probably can't even read those books. What's a servant doing with theory volumes anyway? Trying to teach yourself magic?"

  His friends laughed. Three of them, all from wealthy families, all wearing the silver pins of advanced students.

  [Mockery detected: +3 RP]

  [Total unique mockers this week: 47/50]

  "Almost there," the System murmured in Kael's mind. "Three more and you complete the bonus objective."

  "I was just cleaning them, my lord," Kael said, gathering the books with exaggerated clumsiness. "For Professor Thorne's class."

  "Professor Thorne?" Marcus sneered. "That senile old fool? Figures he'd have servants doing his work. Probably can't remember where his own classroom is."

  More laughter. More points.

  Kael kept his expression meek, but inside, he was taking notes. Marcus had a tell—a slight twitch of his left hand when he was about to cast. His fire spells were powerful but slow.

  His ice magic was faster but weaker. And he had a grudge against Professor Thorne, which was interesting.

  "May I go, my lord?" Kael asked, projecting just the right amount of pathetic desperation. "I'll be whipped if I'm late to the kitchens."

  "Go, then. And try not to trip over your own stupidity."

  Kael scurried away, counting the steps until he turned the corner. Then he straightened, his posture shifting from cringing servant to something more dangerous. The books in his arms weren't just for show—he'd been studying them every night, learning the theory that his body had previously been incapable of practicing.

  "Forty-seven," he murmured. "Just three more."

  "The System has detected an opportunity," his companion announced. "There's a first-year practical examination happening in the east courtyard. Beginning students attempting their first spells. Lots of nervous energy, lots of insecure egos, lots of potential mockery."

  "First-years? Won't they be too focused on their own tests?"

  "Exactly. They'll mock you to boost their own confidence. It's psychological—when you're nervous, putting down someone weaker makes you feel stronger. Basic primate behavior, really. Though I suppose comparing them to primates is insulting to the primates."

  Kael changed direction, moving toward the east courtyard. His mana circulation had grown stronger over the week—not dramatically, but noticeably. Where before he'd felt a trickle, now there was a steady stream. The System called it "absorbing ambient mockery energy," which sounded ridiculous but seemed to work.

  The courtyard was crowded with first-year students, all wearing the blue robes of probationary status. At the center stood Professor Elara Vance—no relation, despite the shared last name—a severe woman with silver-streaked hair and a voice that could cut glass.

  "The examination is simple," she announced. "Each student will demonstrate one basic spell. Success means advancement to second-year status. Failure means... extended probation."

  Kael positioned himself near the edge of the crowd, visible enough to be noticed but not so obvious as to draw immediate attention. He adopted the posture of a servant waiting to clean up—a common enough sight that no one questioned it.

  One by one, the students stepped forward.

  A girl with purple hair conjured a perfect sphere of light. Applause.

  A boy with a scar across his cheek summoned a gust of wind strong enough to ruffle Professor Vance's robes. Impressed murmurs.

  A nervous-looking student managed only a spark of flame before it fizzled out. Disappointed sighs.

  Then it was Cedric's turn—the golden-haired boy from the entrance examination, the one who'd called Kael "the reason commoners shouldn't breed."

  "I shall demonstrate the Tri-Elemental Cascade," Cedric announced, his voice carrying the confidence of someone who had never failed at anything. "Fire, ice, and lightning—in perfect harmony."

  Professor Vance raised an eyebrow. "Ambitious for a first-year."

  "I am an ambitious student, Professor."

  Cedric raised his hands, and magic answered. A ball of fire erupted above his left palm, while frost crystallized over his right. Between them, sparks of electricity danced and wove into complex patterns.

  The crowd gasped. Even Professor Vance looked impressed.

  "Excellent control," she admitted. "You pass, obviously. With distinction."

  Cedric basked in the applause, his smile radiant. Then his eyes found Kael at the edge of the crowd.

  "You there!" he called, pointing. "Servant! Come here!"

  Kael froze. This wasn't part of the plan.

  "Go," the System urged. "This is perfect."

  He approached slowly, keeping his head down. "Yes, my lord?"

  "Do you see what I just did?" Cedric asked, addressing the crowd as much as Kael. "True magic. The power to command the elements. And do you know what this creature is?"

  He grabbed Kael's chin, forcing his head up. "This is the Zero. The boy with no magic at all. He tried to enter the academy a week ago and was rejected for having absolutely zero talent."

  Whispers spread through the crowd. Recognition dawned on several faces.

  "I remember him..."

  "The one from the entrance exams?"

  "What's he doing here?"

  "He's been lurking around the academy ever since," Cedric continued, his voice dripping with contempt. "Pretending to be a servant. Probably stealing food, sleeping in storage rooms. A parasite. A rat."

  He shoved Kael backward. "Show them, Zero. Show them what you can do. Cast a spell. Any spell. Light a candle. Float a pebble. Warm your own hands."

  Kael stumbled but didn't fall. He could feel the eyes of fifty students on him, judging, mocking, waiting for him to fail.

  "I can't," he said softly.

  "Louder!"

  "I can't!" Kael shouted, letting his voice crack. "I have no magic! I'm nothing! I'm worthless!"

  The laughter was immediate and overwhelming. Not just from the first-years, but from the older students who had gathered to watch. From the servants who had paused in their duties. From Professor Vance herself, who at least had the decency to look slightly uncomfortable.

  [BONUS OBJECTIVE COMPLETE]

  [50/50 unique mockers achieved!]

  [Calculating rewards...]

  "Now!" the System commanded. "Use the points! Buy the mana burst!"

  Kael had been saving his Roast Points all week, hoarding them like a dragon with gold. Now he spent them in a rush:

  [Ability Purchased: Mana Surge - Temporary]

  [Cost: 500 RP]

  [Effect: 10 minutes of Class B magical output]

  Power exploded through him—not the trickle he'd grown used to, but a flood. A torrent. A dam breaking after centuries of pressure.

  Cedric was still laughing when Kael straightened up.

  "Actually," Kael said, his voice suddenly steady, "I think I've changed my mind."

  He raised his hand, and the air shattered.

  It wasn't a basic spell. It wasn't even an intermediate one. The magic that erupted from Kael's palm was raw, unshaped potential—the kind of power that came from a week of accumulation, released all at once.

  A pillar of light shot skyward, splitting the clouds above. The shockwave knocked Cedric off his feet and sent the front row of students stumbling backward. Professor Vance threw up a shield just in time, her eyes wide with disbelief.

  When the light faded, Kael stood alone in the center of a scorched circle, smoke rising from his clothes, his eyes glowing with residual energy.

  "Class B output," the System said, sounding satisfied. "For ten minutes, you're officially better than ninety percent of the students here. Enjoy it while it lasts."

  The courtyard was silent. Absolutely, completely silent.

  Then someone whispered: "What... what was that?"

  Kael looked at his hands—at the sparks of magic still dancing between his fingers. He smiled, and it wasn't a servant's smile. It wasn't a victim's smile. It was the smile of someone who had been planning this moment for a very long time.

  "That," he said, "was just the beginning."

  He turned to Cedric, who was still on the ground, his perfect hair singed, his perfect confidence shattered. "You wanted a demonstration? Here's another one."

  Kael snapped his fingers. A dozen balls of light appeared around him—not the simple sphere the purple-haired girl had conjured, but complex geometric shapes that rotated and pulsed in perfect synchronization.

  "Light," he said.

  The balls shifted, becoming miniature suns that bathed the courtyard in warm radiance.

  "Fire."

  They transformed into dancing flames that didn't burn.

  "Ice."

  Crystal structures that chimed like bells.

  "And lightning."

  The shapes dissolved into pure electrical energy, cracklin weaving through the air before vanishing with a sound like thunder.

  Kael let the silence stretch for three long seconds. Then he bowed—to Professor Vance, to the stunned students, to the academy itself.

  "Thank you for the opportunity to demonstrate," he said, his voice carrying across the courtyard. "I'll be taking my leave now."

  He walked away, not running, not hurrying, just walking like someone who had nothing to fear. The crowd parted before him like water.

  "Kael Vane!" Professor Vance called after him.

  He paused but didn't turn.

  "That was Class B magic. Possibly Class A. Where did you learn to—how did you—"

  "Practice," Kael said simply. "Lots and lots of practice."

  Then he was gone, disappearing into the academy's corridors before anyone could stop him.

  Behind him, the courtyard erupted into chaos. Questions, accusations, theories flying like arrows. But Kael didn't hear them. He was already planning his next move.

  "Well done," the System said. "Truly. The look on Cedric's face alone was worth half the points we spent."

  "How long until the effect wears off?"

  "Seven minutes. Then you're back to your charmingly pathetic baseline. I suggest you find a hiding spot and stay there until—"

  "No."

  "No?"

  "I'm done hiding," Kael said, his eyes burning with new determination. "They've seen me now. They know I'm not just some talentless reject. Let them wonder. Let them speculate. And while they're trying to figure out who I really am..."

  He smiled, feeling the power still coursing through his veins.

  "...I'll be getting stronger."

  [QUEST COMPLETE: The Invisible Student]

  [Performance Rating: S (Spectacular)]

  [Rewards: 1000 RP, Permanent +10 to Magic Aptitude, Skill: Mockery Absorption (Passive)]

  [NEW TITLE UNLOCKED: The Hidden Dragon]

  [Effect: +20% Roast Point generation from authority figures]

  Kael found his way back to the storage room that had been his home for the past week. But he didn't stop there. He kept moving, deeper into the academy's underbelly, following a hunch and the System's vague directions.

  "There's a place," the System said, "in the oldest part of the academy. A room that hasn't been used in centuries. The wards there are... different. They respond to potential, not power. To possibility, not achievement."

  "And?"

  "And I think you might find it... accommodating."

  They found it behind a wall that wasn't quite solid—an optical illusion maintained by ancient magic. Beyond it lay a chamber of surprising elegance, dusty but intact. A bed. A desk. Bookshelves filled with volumes that predated the academy's founding.

  And on the desk, a single piece of parchment:

  "To whoever finds this room: It responds only to those who have been underestimated. To the overlooked, the dismissed, the forgotten. If you are reading this, you have already proven yourself worthy. Welcome home."

  Kael sat on the bed, feeling the weight of the week settle over him. He was still a reject. Still an intruder. Still, by every official measure, someone who didn't belong.

  But he was also something else now. Something new.

  The Zero who wasn't zero. The nothing who had become something. The joke that had stopped being funny.

  "System," he said, lying back and staring at the ceiling.

  "Yes, host?"

  "What comes next?"

  "Next?" The System's voice held a note of genuine excitement. "Next, we take this academy apart piece by piece. Every arrogant noble, every dismissive professor, every student who thinks they're better than you—they all become fuel. We'll build you into something they've never seen before. Something they can't ignore."

  "And when they try to stop us?"

  "Then we show them what happens when you mock the wrong person."

  Outside, the bells rang for evening meal. Inside a hidden room that shouldn't exist, Kael Vane closed his eyes and dreamed of tomorrow.

  The weakest student at Aetherium Academy had just announced his presence to the world.

  And he was only getting started.

  End of Chapter 3