Stop Writing! [Magical Academy Litrpg]

The conference hall of the Lation Magic Academy was rarely, if ever, frequented by the students. Although there were some occasional events that necessitated its use, the amphitheater was a much better choice most of the time. For that reason, this would be the first time Alec and Evan visited the place since the start of their school life.

That said, the conference hall of the day was much more crowded than how it was supposed to be. There were fliers strewn around the academy, announcements made by upper-classmen...

Not to mention the people he already knew, Alec could even see some first-year students, who wouldn't even be able to understand the thesis defense. After all, gravity magic was an esoteric, cutting-edge magical field. Unless they studied beforehand, they wouldn't have the necessary foundational topics down such as 'Magical Matrices' or 'Urielian Particles'.

"Well, a breakthrough doesn't happen every single day after all," Evan commented, noticing the surprised expression on Alec's face. "Especially one of this scale."

The conference hall was what you would expect. There was a stage that lay about one and a half meters above ground at one end. Facing that stage were about a thousand seats, all placed neatly in groups. Mages in general were particularly conscious of their personal space, so the seats had a bit too much space between them. Alec could see about five hundred more seats being placed if the empty spaces were utilized better.

Those seats would get slightly higher with each row so that the people in the back rows could see the stage clearly. The two double-doored entrances to the conference hall were placed at the back side, much higher than the stage itself. When one entered through those doors, they would be able to see the conference hall in its entirety. Which made it a bit dizzying in Alec's opinion.

While they were inspecting the atmosphere, someone finally had enough and asked them to not block the entrance. They stepped aside with apologies and walked further into the hall. Descending the stairs connecting the different seating groups, they chose one that was neither too far away from the stage nor too close.

"Wasn't she supposed to be here earlier?" Evan couldn't help but ask. They were supposed to be joined by Iris earlier, but she apparently had some stuff to deal with.

"She promised," Alec said. His eyes checked the students entering the conference hall wave after wave. It wasn't so much of a stampede but was still a big crowd. "We haven't been able to hang out much lately, but she should be here before the thing starts."

"Are you excited?" Evan asked. A genuinely curious glint in his eyes. "You told me that you were going to do something interesting, I assume it contains you walking onto the stage. Will you be able to handle the pressure?"

"Handle the pressure?" Alec repeated his words. Then, a smug grin appeared on his face that threatened to turn into laughter at a minute's notice. "This much is nothing."

Alec was no stranger to settings such as this. Although nothing as similar, he had stood in front of thousands of people in his previous life. And if he were to think of it societally, those people were much more hierarchically important than these students. The world of web novelists wasn't simple. One had to always pay attention to what they said and did, lest they would be ostracized.

There was one such time Alec had a problem with one of the organizations that arranged the yearly awards. At that time, he was writing his second web novel, which would be awarded the Best Web Novel of the Year. However, after having a personal argument with one of the jurors, his award had been changed to the Best Academy Web Novel of the Year. Just like how it sounded, it was a categorical award and was nowhere near the one-of-a-kind Best Web Novel of the Year award.

No matter how much Alec tried to calm down and accept the situation with grace, he couldn't do so. He could bear with a lot of things and take pacifist actions but when it came to his writings, his entire demeanor would change. It was 'only I can talk shit about my books' kind of thing.

The rest of his actions of the time were a blur in his memories. What he could remember was the moment he went onto the stage for the award, and started taking his revenge. Digging out the jury's past was another thing, displaying every secret of his to thousands of people on the stage using a projector was another. He wondered if the jury would have rather been blackmailed than that...

Nonetheless, he wasn't going to do anything that confrontational. He would simply go onto the stage, and complete his part of the deal.

"Hi," Alec was suddenly ripped out of his thoughts by a gentle and calm voice next to him. When he turned his head, he saw the person speaking to be Iris, the white-haired freshman. She was as calm and collected as ever. Still, there was something that changed. "Can I sit?"

"Sure," Alec answered. They had held the seat for her, knowing she would come. "How are things? Working under Professor Howard must be hard."

"He is a bit weird, but seems to wish the best for his students," Iris answered. About a week ago, baffling news had reached every student in the academy. Not only was Professor Howard back to teaching classes, but he was also going to take in an assistant.

If the introverted Professor Andrew taking in Alec as his assistant created a shockwave, Professor Howard taking in a student would be akin to a ten-meter tsunami. Alec doubted that any student was unaware of the news.

"Is his personal teaching as good as his classes?" Evan asked. That was a question Alec would have asked if Evan didn't.

"Much better. Ready yourself, Alec. Our next duel won't be as close as the last one."

"Sure," Alec accepted the challenge. Though inside, his thoughts were different. 'I'm sorry Iris, but that train has already departed. No student in the academy can compete with me, assuming that I'm using The Author's Pen.'

Placing those thoughts aside, Alec shifted his attention back toward the stage, which was slowly becoming more animated. Some members of The Student Council pulled two blackboards onto the stage from the sides. Then, they seemed to discuss something before adding one more blackboard. Unsatisfied, one of them jumped off the stage with a quick motion and whispered something into the ear of one of the Professors.

Shortly after, the Professor got onto the stage. She lifted her hand and two more blackboards came in floating, attaching themselves to the other three from the top. Instantly, the edges of the blackboards fused into each other, creating a big, uniform writing space.

Finally, five jury members took their seats to the side, behind a table. They all had their own notes and a copy of Professor Andrew's thesis in front of them. Unfortunately, the students didn't get the same treatment. Considering that most of them wouldn't understand, The Student Council hadn't bothered to give them print-outs. Those who wanted would have to get a copy themselves.

Fortunately, Alec had his own copy, handed over by Professor Andrew himself. That way, he would be able to better follow the flow of the defense and decide on his moment of entry.

'Hmph, I'm getting giddy just imagining the expressions of the jury,' Alec thought to himself. Then, the magical lighting of the conference hall went out, leaving the students to their own devices. Instead, the stage was illuminated, gathering the attention there.

Taking a deep breath, Alec closed his eyes and readied himself.

When he opened his eyes, he found Professor Andrew to be already on the stage, looking over the audience first, then the juries. From very minute details, Alec could see that the man was excited. Nervous, even... Which was funny. Although he was nowhere near level 100, he was probably 60 or 70 levels, which was enough to make him strong enough to level a city on his own. Still, here he was, sweating from his palms.

"I greet the jury," Professor Andrew said with a calm and clear voice. No matter how nervous, he knew how to keep it to himself. If he didn't have that level of control over his own body, he wouldn't deserve to be called a Professor. "Today, I will do a defense on my paper called, 'On Gravity Magic and Particles'."

Seeing both the jury and the audience silent, the man turned around. Magical circles appeared and spun to activate around him, causing different pieces of chalk to start floating.

"However, before that, I would like to do a presentation to clear the minds of the audience and the jury," he said. The chalks finally approached the blackboard and started writing...