FSE

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I gathered the dirt and sweat on my body into a ball of indescribable color and tossed it into the sink, washing it down without caring if there were any hygiene regulations against doing so.

As I left through the staff passage, I confirmed that I really hated washing dishes—so much so that the intensity almost exceeded my desire to refine my psychic abilities.

Sighing, I tried to focus on something more optimistic, like how the cafeteria staff no longer freaked out at my presence. But that respectful attitude of theirs was honestly... annoying.

Sighing again, I began to seriously consider whether it was because my new life wasn’t unfolding as smoothly as expected in this new environment that the accumulated sense of frustration had eroded all my patience, leaving me increasingly irritable and critical of everything. Or maybe it was just because I was, in fact, an insufferable oddball.

Fortunately, before I reached any further self-loathing conclusions, something more detestable took over my thoughts—cleaning the room.

Not to complain, but I find it hard to believe that there’s no better way to practice consciousness union. Maybe Master Field just wants to amplify my frustration, or perhaps this is some dragon’s method of teaching humility.

I could only sigh once more, forcing every last bit of obedience deeply rooted in my inner wolf to surface, so that I could sweep the floor covered in tiny crystals with a sense of dignity and honor, stopping my useless inner grumbling.

As I moved around the lab, I adjusted my command protocols, fine-tuning the flight paths of the two dozen orbiting gemstones, making the gleaming specks even denser while avoiding the various casually placed items.

Glancing at the fist-sized gemstones, I identified their types from the waveform signatures generated by their flight—emerald, topaz, opal, spinel... Under the guidance of Master Field, my knowledge of mineral crystals had grown substantially, and this understanding allowed me to easily create Ice-VI crystals at room temperature, as well as other more complex structures.

Although I still couldn’t produce supercritical water, I had become highly proficient at using willpower to order the stacking of crystal lattices. The sensation of entropy flowing through my hands was truly delicate, like touching the very concept of disorder.

I supposed this was something Qana could never teach me. So no matter how pointless I thought the tasks assigned by Master Field were, I shouldn’t throw a tantrum like a spoiled pup.

Apparently, my inner wolf wasn’t that hard to convince after all.

That being said, I still kind of miss Qana—that steady, resolute, and reliable master swordsman...

It wasn’t until the boiling water bubbling over spilled onto the tabletop that I noticed the liquid had long since reached its boiling point in the glass pot.

“Logical error!” I hurriedly withdrew the oxygen from around the heat source in a panic, moving the still-smoking Muspelheim to another table. Last time, I accidentally got this burgundy sphere wet, and the whole thing split apart, which made Master Field furious.

To avoid repeating that tragedy, I carefully returned Muspelheim to its designated container. After confirming there were no abnormalities, I locked the entire box back in the cabinet.

This object had been brought by the Master from Ceres. When rubbed in a special way, it would ignite, producing an eerie indigo flame and a unique scent, like a mix of mint and pepper. I believed it was probably reminiscent of some familiar smell, but Master Field didn’t seem inclined to share their nostalgia, even though I was curious about how it was made.

I suspected it contained red phosphorus, but that crystal lattice…

The sound of the lab’s sliding door opening immediately pulled me out of my thoughts. I quickly checked the intensity and wavelength of the infrared radiating from the glass pot, pouring the hot water over the finely ground coffee beans at precisely eighty-five degrees Celsius.

I had put a lot of effort into ensuring that every speck of the coffee beans, regardless of size or shape, perfectly met Master Field’s standards, with deviations no greater than a micron.

I didn’t need to turn around to feel the weight of the Grandmaster’s focused gaze pressing down on me—the spindle-shaped pupils in those green eyes had even jolted me awake from sleep a few times.

But I held up under the pressure, using a consciousness circle to envelop the coffee filtration system and adjusting the rate of liquid drips by manipulating the gravitational field.

“What’s your current upper limit for your Dominance Core?” Master Field asked, their tone betraying no clear emotion.

“With Consciousness union, around thirty thousand,” I replied softly. The number had doubled since last year.

“Too few.” Even though I was sure I wasn’t trying to please him, the reprimanding tone in the dragon’s voice still made me feel dejected. “Can you separate dirt from dishes with your consciousness now?”

“Still can’t,” I muttered, my ears flattening against my head. “Master.”

“Then you’d better work harder, or I’ll start thinking you actually enjoy washing dishes.” Master Field snorted, walking over to pick up the white porcelain cup meant for the coffee.

“Yes, Master.” Lowering my muzzle and gaze, I responded obediently as the towering dragon took a sip from the cup that appeared tiny in his massive hand.

“Barely passable, I suppose,” Master Field remarked after signaling me to relinquish Dominance, placing the coffee set aside and pouring the filtered brown liquid into another glass pot.

When I realized my tail had swayed twice in response to such faint praise, I had a strong urge to dig a hole and crawl into it.

“Of course, unless your goal for entering the Academy was to learn how to brew coffee, there’s really nothing to be proud of.” My ears felt like they were on fire from the Master’s sarcastic remark, and the mix of shame and anger rushed to my head along with my blood, almost driving my remaining shred of dignity to deploy a barrier to conceal my emotional fluctuations.

Whether he didn’t notice or simply didn’t care, the Master made no further comment on my reaction. Instead, he pushed the surrounding items aside, clearing a space.

“Master?” The sudden surge of pressure coming from all directions made me instinctively bolster my consciousness to counter the impact, casting a puzzled look at the dragon.

“Didn’t you submit an application to ascend the tower? I happen to have some time now to review it.” Master Field made a few gestures as he spoke. “And that timid little wolf demeanor of yours is getting on my nerves!” His words landed like a hammer on an anvil, each resounding impact accompanied by waves of power crashing towards me in rhythm. I had no choice but to gather even more strength to defend myself. “You’d better grow a backbone soon.”

Clenching my teeth tightly, I identified the rise and fall of the wave patterns, adjusting my output accordingly to fend off the Master’s assaults one after another, leaving no room for self-pity.

Through the waveform characteristics, I deciphered the type of waves the Master was using and adopted the most suitable defensive strategy. While I still couldn’t disrupt his consciousness union with willpower alone, I successfully parried all the attacks by rallying my consciousness.

I thought I heard him humming something. Like the distinct rhythm in their speech, the dragons called it a “song.” That overwhelming force, surging in waves as if to shatter and reshape me, came at me relentlessly—searing flames too bright to look at, relentless forging, and finally a chilling tempering to the bone.

“After all, you’re the raw gemstone I chose, so there’s at least some worth in polishing you.” With a series of intricate command gestures, the tall dragon’s eyes turned a vibrant red, resembling lava glowing within the cracks of a volcano. The Master unfurled his massive wings, raising a gust of wind pressure. Shimmering green symbols etched themselves into the space around us, circling and dancing as waves of power rumbled and surged from beneath his feet. “Now, shine!”