The entire hall falls silent the moment I speak.

Everyone's eyes widen.

They can't believe the effrontery I just displayed… the audacity I could muster in front of such an overwhelming force.

It would be like an ant challenging a mountain!

"W-what… did you just say to me?" It's clear that Professor James can't believe his ears, as he appears even more stunned than everyone else.

But I simply smirk.

"I told you to shut your mouth. Your generation has long passed, old man. There's no need to bring up those antiquated ideals and act as though they're still relevant. Our society is rapidly improving, and we have long moved past those harmful, outdated ways of thinking. But it appears you, even as a Grand Scholar, have refused to change with the times. Your stubbornness has clouded your rational judgment as a Scholar. It makes me wonder how you obtained your Grand Scholar title in the first place and why you're still allowed to teach here when you clearly sound like an idiot whenever you open your mouth to speak. So, please… for the sake of preserving the dignity of this fine University… shut up."

"…!!!"

Many panicked gazes fly back and forth.

The shock on the spectators' faces quickly turns into worry, as they alternate glances between the man that I have no doubt offended and me. Some of the Professors show me great hostility, clearly taking Professor James Lindester's side, while my sympathizers look at me with great pity.

As for me, I simply make a haughty smile and even chuckle aloud.

Seeing this man's face turn red, his head practically about to explode from anger, is amusing.

I have to admit… I am entertained.

"You… It appears you wish to lose your job! You have a death wish, don't you?"

"What if I do? What are you going to do about it? You want to kill me? With that scrawny body of yours? Why not come and try it, weak old man?" I laugh aloud, finally releasing all the pent-up emotions I have kept within me all this time.

I remember all the overt insults and subliminals I had to endure because of this man's status.

Now, I simply do not care any longer.

Let him do his worst.

"You…!!! Is this how the Royal Academy trains its Professors? To talk back to their superiors and use such foul-natured words? To openly disrespect me like this… how dare you?!"

"How dare I? Pfft… No, how dare you?" I retort almost instantly, even though I receive signals from the Vice Head and my seniors to back down.

Naturally, I ignore all of them.

I don't even bother looking at Seraphina and Klein for their approval.

This is a matter that concerns me, and I will choose the path I wish to take to resolve it.

I refuse to be looked down on by such a cretin.

And this has little to do with my pride.

If I let him get away with this, his confidence will only increase, and he will perpetrate worse to others. He reminds me of Klaus Gerondester, and how he was willing to even bypass the strict academic code of ethics because he couldn't accept my high scores.

He suppressed my grades in his department, even though I was an exceptional student.

That behavior is too foul!

It is the product of having an unchecked ideology that no one dares challenge.

I refuse to let this man have his way.

For the sake of the students in this University, which I may eventually attend one day, and also because it is fun to do, I will take down this person in front of me with no remorse.

Because of this stance of mine, the final hours of the conference devolved into a verbal conflict between Professor James Lindester and me. He hurled all kinds of threats at me, but all of them are useless.

He is only an Earl… what can he do?

Even if he has all kinds of connections, it's not like I am a sitting duck.

I'm in the good graces of Duke Ravenwood, Count Blake Winchester, Earl Balric Wolfshade, and so many other High Nobility with higher status than him. Let's not forget that I'm also close friends with the King's younger sister, Anna, and that the Royal Family is partially under my control already.

What can a mere Earl do against me?

He mentioned having me fired, but is it really that simple?

Pfft…

A barking dog with no substance.

It's usually the emptiest vessels that make the loudest noise, and it shows from this exchange.

To conclude the argument, many staff members intervened and eventually postponed our verbal conflict to the next day, where we agreed to hold a formal debate to defeat one another as Scholars.

Kings have wars.

Knights have duels.

As for Scholars… we settle conflicts through debates.

Javier Aditi, a mere First Rate Scholar, versus James Lindester, a Grand Scholar.

The results seem pretty obvious.

It's like a Low-Rank Knight trying to defeat a High-Rank Knight. It is an impossible feat that anyone can see. Perhaps this is why the Professor gladly accepted the challenge and finally stopped hurling insults at me.

He already 'knows' that he will win.

Haha…

What an ignorant man.

I almost pity him, but after recalling all the things he has said and done to him, I know he has this reality check coming.

To prepare for our debate the following day, we both retreat to our room early.

I entertain no visitors—not even Klein or Seraphina.

Those two are smart, and they seemed to understand, so they let me have my moment of isolation in my private quarters. They're likely very worried about me, but there's honestly no reason to do so, considering that I'm confident in my victory.

If we were to argue impromptu, the Professor would have an advantage because of his wealth of knowledge.

But, we've been given the topics to prepare for beforehand.

This practically guarantees my win.

In the night, I use Clairvoyance to trace him back to his apartment and watch him thoroughly prepare to demolish me. I easily see all of the points he will offer tomorrow, as well as the rebuttals he plans to make against me.

Honestly, he is more impressive than I gave him credit for.

If I weren't cheating like this, I would definitely lose—no doubt about it.

But now that I know all of his points and everything he plans to use against me, the advantage lies on my side. I would be an irredeemable idiot if I lost this debate.

It's time to show this old man that he really isn't worth shit!

Hehe…

This should be fun!

*************

"… The winner is Javier Aditi!"

Just as expected, I completely dominated the Professor in our debate.

The outcome shocks everyone present, even the board of judges, who expected their senior and colleague to win, compared to a nobody like me.

I glance at Professor James Lindester with a prideful smile and sneer at him.

He is the most surprised.

'H-how did he perfectly counter all my major points? He also didn't take the routes I expected him to, so most of my prepared rebuttals were useless. He even had perfect answers to the few ones I was able to throw at him. I had to make new rebuttals on the spot, but he still handled them intelligently and managed to throw me off-guard multiple times… damnit!'

It's clear that this is what the old fool is thinking.

But no matter how hard he thinks about it, he will never figure out the truth. There's no proof I cheated since my Conceptions leave no evidence behind. Basically, even if he recognizes something is off, he can't prove anything.

Hehe…

Seeing his expression of despair ignites my petty spirit, so I walk up to him and give him a condescending gaze while muttering coldly.

"So this is all you amounted to in the end? Disappointing…"

I nail it perfectly!

After walking away from him, I can still see him trembling violently thanks to Clairvoyance.

Just like this, I have meted out humiliation unlike anything he has ever experienced in his entire life, the domination of someone deemed inferior in both status and education.

I challenged his long-held belief and did it openly, so he has no excuse but to live with the constant reminder of his shame. Anytime he sees his peers or juniors, he will remember this day and re-experience the stinging taste of his shattered pride.

This is his absolute defeat.

"Such a powerful debate. I really liked your delivery, Mr Javier Aditi."

"Same here! How did you know the loophole to that logical problem? It's a well-known conundrum even among elite scholars."

"Would you like to have lunch with me sometime? I'd like to discuss the possibility of…"

Many people approach me and constantly shower me with praise, while pointing out various parts of my debate that they found impressive.

To be honest, most of them were lifted from Professor James Lindester's research.

However, because I was allowed to go first—as the junior—and also through thorough preparation, I was able to elevate his material and use it against him. It was an undisputed win for me, and the results speak for themselves.

Many seniors in fields I didn't even know existed now wish to form connections with me.

Some are bound to be afraid of offending the old man, so they'll likely meet me privately, but the more daring ones who greet me immediately after the debate ends are all his peers, so they have nothing to fear.

I engage in a few discourses with them, though most of their words fly over my head.

I'm not quite at their level yet…

Still, because I am able to hold my own while talking to them, even displaying a maturity exceeding my young appearance, many of them leave impressed.

It's clear that I've made a lasting impression on them.

This is simply life.

The winner takes it all, and the loser is powerless to do anything about it.

If I had lost, would I have gotten the attention of these people?

No.

They would have scoffed and looked away, not bothering to give me a second glance. This is simply how humans are.

What about if I never challenged the Professor?

Perhaps some would have looked at me with pity, but nothing more.

I still wouldn't have stood out at all.

But to achieve great success in life, one has to be bold and take risks, disregarding the warnings and discouragements of others. If you cannot take risks, you cannot stand out in life, and you will be just like everyone else.

Perhaps some people will look at you with pity.

Some might even offer you a few opportunities here and there to recognize your efforts.

But none of those are mediocre rewards.

You will be missing out on the real deal if you remain ordinary, choosing to endure the hardships of the world rather than braving the storms and defying its rules.

Of course, not everyone can do this.

In fact, I hold no judgment towards those who cannot.

Not everyone can be exceptional… and not everyone even wishes to be.

However, I do not care about what people desire for their lives.

What matters is what I want, and the answer becomes clearer the longer I live and experience the freedom associated with possessing the power of Leviathans.

I seek more.

More power.

More benefits.

More freedom.

More… More… and much more!

"Professor Javier Aditi, it is a pleasure to finally speak with you…" A sudden voice, young and energetic, breaks me out of my reverie.

I blink a few times and glance forward, only to notice a youth standing right in front of me.

He has smooth white hair, his eyes shimmering red like rubies. His skin is snow white, and his entire appearance, while looking frail, is bursting with energy. Albinos are rare in the Randalorion Kingdom, but this is clearly one.

Most importantly, the young man appears to be around my age, with a cute face that makes him seem even younger.

"Your debate was spectacular! I had a fun experience watching it." He beams at me, his eager tone and friendly approach creating an atmosphere of warmth.

I smile and nod at him in appreciation.

However, my body reels in mild surprise at the sudden encounter.

After all…

'If I remember correctly, this guy is one of the few students who was allowed to participate in the conference. He's a foreign exchange student and is in his Final Year at the university. I paid little attention to him because of my other preoccupations, but he appears to be on extremely good terms with the professors, and he seems to hold a lot of promise. I even heard him being praised as a genius by one of the Professors at some point.' My mind sharply flows as I try to hide my surprise at his brazenness.

Even though he is an exceptional Final Year student, approaching me so openly and showing such excitement about my victory… Is he not worried about offending Professor James Lindester?

'Although he hardly interacted in the conference, so I don't know the extent of his skills, he is definitely someone extraordinary. I don't want someone like this to fall victim to any petty scheme by that bitter old man.' My heart tightens in worry.

One of the reasons I challenged him was to prevent such outcomes, to begin with.

As I process those thoughts, the young man seems to notice my unstable emotions and simply smiles lightly.

"You don't have to worry about me, Professor Javier Aditi. As a foreign exchange student, I am largely immune to those kinds of difficulties."

"Oh? Is that so?"

A bit of relief flows through me, but also a level of awkwardness towards the fact that the young lad read my thoughts so easily.

'Who is this guy?'

"Although you and I have just met, I have actually been looking for an opportunity to meet you for some time now, Professor."

'Eh? Really?'

"I hold a deep interest in ancient studies, especially cryptic languages and historical texts. That's my Major here, actually, but deeper than that… my true passion involves the study of some obscure entities that lurk only in the recesses of history." Then, his smile broadens as he gives me a knowing gaze.

"I don't know if you've heard of them before… They're called Leviathans."

'This boy… he knows about Leviathans?!' My eyes widen almost immediately as I watch him in stunned silence.

"I seek to prove their existence with my Dissertation, and I was hoping you would help me, given your unique experiences. You see, I hold a strong belief that you have met a Leviathan, or, at the very least, had their influence in your life."

He is on point.

But this means he has been actively studying my life.

Since when?

My eyes furrow in suspicion as I take a step back, creating some distance between us.

"A-ah, please… There is no need to be so cautious around me. I am merely a seeker of knowledge. I understand that my approach came off strong, but how about I also take a step back and start over?"

"Okay…" I mutter softly.

Then, he takes one step back, places a hand on his chest, and smiles warmly at me.

"My name is Regulus Heathcliff. If you don't mind, Javier Aditi, I would like to discuss some important things with you."

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