The Genius Evolution Store

Auric looked at her with a confused expression as if he was asking, ’Why me?’

He wouldn’t have been this confused if the instructor were someone who didn’t look hostile to him.

However, since he had been chosen, he chose to confront it.

"Well, I will do my best." Auric nodded with a serious expression. He walked toward the boulder and placed his fingers on it.

He recalled the movement of energy in her body.

Auric took a deep breath before he began circulating his energy, following the same path as Madam Shelly’s energy.

Auric then pressed the boulder and let the energy erupt immediately afterward.

Bam!

"!!!" The students were quite shocked. Auric’s impact might not be as great as Madam Shelly’s, but they were sure that Auric had managed to unleash about 80% to 90% of that power.

In other words, Auric’s control had reached a level where he wasn’t that far from Madam Shelly.

Of course, this was a special set of circumstances, considering that all he needed to do was copy the flow of her energy. If it were something more complex, he wouldn’t be able to replicate it.

Madam Shelly clenched her hands. "That’s not good enough. Do you think you are a hotshot just because you’re able to do that?"

Auric looked at her without saying anything.

’I thought people would call me petty for having "Equivalent Exchange" as my principle, but I have to say, this is more petty than me,’ Auric thought.

"There are plenty of people like this in the world, both young and old. Of course, there are a lot more people who are wise enough to know the situation. You should have seen those people not long ago.

"However, because they don’t cause you any further trouble, it will be easy to forget them. In the end, you will only remember the people who cause you more trouble.

"As the idiom goes, haters always scream the loudest. So, you need to deal with it and handle the situation wisely." Lindwurm raised a finger as he lectured Auric.

Auric just smiled and said, "Indeed. Compared to you, I’m still not good enough."

Madam Shelly glared at him. "That’s why you shouldn’t be so smug!"

Auric tilted his head in confusion. "Okay. Thank you for your advice."

Katarina raised her head. ’Ah, this... It’s getting a bit dangerous.’

Of course, Katarina wasn’t looking at Auric at this time. She was actually looking at Madam Shelly as though the one in danger wasn’t Auric, but Madam Shelly.

Katarina hurriedly said, "Ahaha. I’m sorry. Since Auric has done it, why don’t we continue with the lesson?"

Katarina shielded Auric with her body, making Madam Shelly focus on him rather than that.

Because of her interference, Madam Shelly couldn’t focus on Auric, which prevented her from continuing.

Auric couldn’t help but ask Lindwurm, ’I didn’t do anything wrong, right?’

"Not exactly. A lot of people are used to getting what they want, but I have to say that the way you word things is quite problematic. Most of the time, it’s fine. The last one regarding the military is a bit more sensitive.

"While you’re not exactly in the wrong, you have to choose your words wisely. People’s hearts are fragile.

"However, you haven’t done anything wrong. Even your words are just in the gray area." Lindwurm gave Auric his assessment.

Auric contemplated. He just didn’t intend to stand down while being bullied, but it looked like he had made a mistake with his phrasing.

’Okay, thanks, Lindwurm.’ Auric wondered if the words he picked were a bit too extreme because of everything he had built so far. In a way, the instructors couldn’t do anything to him yet, but if he used those words in a tense situation, things could escalate into a life-and-death situation quickly.

"Well, if you had to do it again, would you do the same thing?"

’Of course. I’m going to shield the girls first, but I guess I will change my tone slightly. Instead of demanding government secrets, I will just use a sob story first to gain their sympathy and manipulate their thinking.’

Lindwurm crossed his arms. It wasn’t the best answer, but it was quite fitting for Auric’s personality.

Lindwurm was here so Auric could grow well. It didn’t just mean his strength. He also had to keep Auric’s character growth in check.

Becoming extremely strong so quickly would make Auric think he was invincible or that he would always be in the right.

While Auric had conducted himself in a reserved manner all this time, the comment he made earlier was indeed slightly concerning. That was why Lindwurm had to remind him about it while still stating the fact that he wasn’t in the wrong either.

It looked like Auric understood it as well.

Auric took a deep breath and patted Katarina on her shoulder.

Katarina was a bit confused, but Auric just gave her a gentle smile as if asking her to let him handle it.

Auric stepped forward and looked at Madam Shelly. Madam Shelly, of course, glared at him as if she were ready to start a fight.

Auric said, "Well, if this is about my remark, then I apologize. I may have used inappropriate words, so for that, I’m sorry."

Katarina was a bit startled, not expecting Auric to apologize. On the other hand, Auric simply expected nothing from Madam Shelly.

He just came here because she provided the lessons he might need. As for an apology from her, he expected nothing.

At the very least, he wanted to follow his principles and fulfill his own side of the agreement first.

Auric then stepped back. He apologized only for the words he used, not for the way he talked or his actions.

Madam Shelly didn’t have a change of expression, but she didn’t say anything either. Since Auric didn’t expect anything from her, he could also let it go for the time being and deal with her at an appropriate time.

As Katarina had feared, Auric didn’t want to endanger his group unnecessarily.

As soon as Auric returned, Katarina shielded him again so that Madam Shelly couldn’t see him directly.

Madam Shelly snorted and continued with her lessons.

Although her attitude remained unchanged, Auric didn’t intentionally provoke her. He simply watched how she moved her energy and copied it.

The lesson wasn’t hard because this was his specialty, so Auric didn’t really need the rest of her lesson after she finished. In other words, he could go back to focusing on Mr. Green’s lesson.

...

A few hours later, Madam Shelly finished her lesson.

Once she left the area, Katarina let out a sigh of relief. "That was a bit dangerous, wasn’t it?"

Vera shrugged. "Not really. They couldn’t do anything to us in this place."

Ellia nodded in agreement. "We may have to make an arrangement after this."

"Sorry about that." Auric smiled wryly.

"No, you’re not in the wrong, Auric. Besides, you even apologized for that remark." Katarina waved her hand. "In other words, she was the one being childish about it. However, the situation might not look good for us."

"I know, right? I mean, they were just butt-hurt because they were beaten in their own game by a student." Vera shook her head helplessly.

"Well, that just means some of them are going to search for us more thoroughly this time. They’ll try to keep us in check. Therefore, we need a new hiding spot."

"I’m thinking about that right now." Auric nodded. "Well, we need a few spots. Vera, you’re familiar with this place, so I need you to find rooms that aren’t normally used for anything, especially as hiding spots."

"Got it. Katarina is also familiar with the academy." Vera pointed at Katarina with her thumb.

"I need Katarina to find some spots underground. For now, create around two or three underground rooms. I will then reinforce it with my ability later and turn them into a living space. You don’t have to worry about the ventilation or anything. It will be the same as our room right now."

"Very well." Katarina accepted the task. "It looks like this is going to be a bit more exciting."

"As for Ellia, I will need you to bring everyone’s clothes and belongings. This way, we will be able to move into the new place right away."

"Sure. Hopefully, the situation doesn’t get worse than this, but I doubt that will happen. Some of them are like my grandfather. They’re rational enough to know right from wrong. Some of them, though, are like my parents—childish and annoying. I bet those people are going to annoy the hell out of us for the rest of the training program."

"Well..." Auric scratched the back of his head. "For the time being, let’s just focus on the training program. If this kind of treatment continues, we should go our separate ways."

"!!!" Ellia instantly understood the meaning of his words. There was one thing Auric could do in this situation to pay them back.

Ellia asked, "Are you going to take the test and become a gold-grade evolution master? Then, after taking that test, you’re going to leave this training program?"

"!!!" Vera and Katarina were a bit shocked by Auric’s plan.

Auric sighed. "I don’t really want to do this, but we’ll see. For now, I’ll tell my teacher about it. I don’t think she wants to continue this kind of disturbance, so she might smooth things up before it reaches that point."

Katarina gulped. She couldn’t imagine the reaction that would occur when Auric chose to back down.

Auric was currently the country’s ace. In addition, Auric would soon become the youngest gold-grade evolution master.

With his potential, he would become an influential and powerful figure.

Auric leaving this camp would mean that their country would lose their ace and they might be humiliated by other countries. Of course, the citizens would react strongly, both toward the instructors and toward Auric.

However, the worst thing that would happen would come from the reactions of other countries.

All this time, Auric looked like he was close to the government. If they knew that Auric’s relationship with the government had turned sour because of those few instructors, they would spare no effort to recruit Auric.

Some people thought that they were exaggerating Auric’s talent, but Katarina knew they didn’t know anything about Auric.

If it were revealed that Auric was the owner of the Sun Store and the Moon Store, all the opposition would shut up.

Obviously, Auric would take those two stores with him, making sure that Esfrata couldn’t access them.

Katarina couldn’t imagine what kind of reaction there would be after that. In any case, the country would lose the best evolution master in the world, not to mention the fact that he was also a unique-element evolution master.

Of course, Auric would most likely cut ties with everyone in the Unique Temple.

Katarina raised her hand. "Can I also come with you when you speak to your teacher?"

Auric glanced at her. It was obvious why she wanted to come as well, but Katarina was also concerned about his personal well-being.

In the end, Auric nodded. "Sure."

"Well, for now, I will take care of my tasks." Vera waved her hand, still not understanding the complete picture.

"Me too." Ellia understood it, but there wasn’t much she could do. Still, she was considering mobilizing her own company to give a warning to Madam Shelly or other instructors who showed some hostility.

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