Miss Amelia’s gaze swept across the class.
"Now, I’ll be selecting two students for this exercise. Miss Evelyn, you may step down. And you," her eyes snapped to Ryan, who was oblivious to whatever was going on, "Mr. Ryan, you too."
Ryan, yanked back to reality, could only stare with a deer-in-headlights expression. Refusing wasn’t an option, not with Miss Amelia’s steely gaze upon him. He reluctantly detangled himself from Helen’s side and shuffled towards the front, a lump forming in his throat.
Reaching the podium, he stood beside the other student, who introduced herself as Evelyn.
"Alright," Miss Amelia began, her voice cutting through the tension, "Today, we’ll be demonstrating the stark difference between a high and low mana pool. Both of you, please manifest your quirks with a standard mana output."
Evelyn stepped forward, confidence radiating from her. As she extended her palm, the air crackled with frosty energy. The temperature plummeted, and within seconds, a menacing sphere of ice, seemingly carved from moonlight, materialized, growing to the size of a person.
"Excellent," Miss Amelia said with a satisfied nod. "Now, Mr. Ryan, your turn."
Ryan felt a bead of sweat roll down his temple. Why him, of all people? He was barely a flicker compared to powerhouses like Evelyn. A sneaking suspicion gnawed at him – was this some elaborate punishment for his earlier display of affection with Helen?
With a resigned sigh, he closed his eyes and focused inward. He searched for this elusive "mana core" Miss Amelia had spoken of, and after a tense moment, he found it. A wellspring of raw energy thrummed within him, connected to a network of channels that felt... surprisingly narrow.
He channeled his mana into his palm, and a dark energy pulsed around him. It writhed and morphed, devoid of a definite form, hungry for more power. It swelled in size, but then... nothing. It reached a bottleneck, refusing to grow any larger than a clenched fist.
A low murmur rippled through the class, and Ryan felt a tinge of annoyance at this.
"As expected," Miss Amelia continued, her voice devoid of judgment. "This perfectly illustrates the theory. The size of your mana pool directly affects the output of your manifestation. While someone with a smaller pool can force more mana through, it has detrimental effects. It doesn’t necessarily expand the pool – it widens the channels, allowing for a temporary surge but ultimately leading to faster depletion." she explained to the class, then turned to meet the gazes of both Evelyn and Ryan.
"You may go back to your seats," was all she said.
**Ding-ding-ding!**
"And that ends mana class for today," she said as she went to gather her materials.
"Hump! I was scared there for a moment, but it seems his still a weak ass loser." Laughed one of the students in disdain.
"How can someone so weak, not know his place?!" Whispered another in amusement.
"I think he needs a beating to make him realize just how low he really is. Now that I think about, why hasn’t that bastard done anything to him yet," quipped another.
A flurry of whispers erupted into an outburst. Students with pained expressions now had sinister grins. They didn’t need to lament about Ryan possessing a class beauty; all they had to do was show her how weak he was. Ryan hated this. It was that teacher’s fault, and now he had to get stronger, faster, or he was done for.
Reaching his seat, he found Helen waiting patiently. Seeing him approach, she stood up, walked forward, and grabbed his arm, a beaming smile radiating from her.
"So, where do you want to go next? You still have to explain what happened to you," she said, but then noticed his absentminded state.
"Huh?" Ryan was startled as she cupped his face in her delicate palm. "Snap out of it."
"Huh?"
"Don’t tell me your second guessing yourself because of some worthless comments?"
"I... "
"Tell me... Do you remember what you promised?"
"What?" Ryan asked, curious.
"Don’t tell me you forgot the promise you made me? You said you were going to get stronger, more powerful to be worthy of me, to be able to protect our relationship," she continued, her expressions betraying sadness.
"I-I..." Ryan stuttered in a reply but was interrupted.
"I’m here, okay? So you don’t have to worry about what anyone else says. I will protect you until you’re able to protect us." She leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on his lips, her touch sending a wave of euphoria through him.
"I love you, that’s all that matters. Or, do you want me to beat it into you?" she teased with a playful smile.
"No, that would probably hurt," Ryan finally responded, a smile forming on his lips.
This much love and care was quite... overwhelming. He now realized another fact: this was also his reality. These weren’t just characters in a book or something; they were breathing, living beings ...with emotions, and maybe, just maybe, there was light outside the tunnel when all this was over. But then again, he couldn’t shake the thought, "Thank you, my past self."
"So, lunch?" Helen let go of his shoulder and hooked her arm with his.
"Yeah, that sounds delightful," Ryan responded, and they proceeded towards the exit of the room, Ryan once again reveling in the enraged gazes and hatefulness of the onlookers.
They walked out of the classroom, oblivious to the two figures shrouded in shadows at the back. One, a girl with fiery red hair and violet eyes, glared at Helen with an intensity that could melt steel. Beside her stood a woman, her snow-white hair cascading down her back, her sky-blue eyes gleaming with an icy indifference.
Their silence spoke volumes, a promise of a coming storm far more dangerous than the whispers and taunts Ryan had just faced. But for now, he basked in the warmth of Helen’s love, blissfully unaware of the perils that lurked just out of sight.