Celestial Carving Academy.

Another sweltering summer day, just like every year, filled with the maddening buzz of cicadas. A white-haired boy, drenched in sweat, had been kicked out of his dorm.

Sharkai Bai looked up at the blinding light in the sky outside the building. Sitting on a bench under the dorm, the coffee he’d taken out just minutes ago now radiated a faint warmth, as if heated.

At that moment, his blank mind recalled the girl he’d met last night—Xia Feina.

Right now, he faced two crises: expulsion from the academy and nowhere to escape the summer heat.

“Damn it!! She’s just a stupid woman with a bit of magical talent! Why am I being kicked out by a fiancée in name only!?”

Grumbling, Sharkai Bai lay back on the bench and tossed the empty coffee can into the trash bin ahead.

“Well, if it isn’t Sharkai Bai?”

“To meet outdoors in this weather—seems we’re destined to cross paths.”

Just then, Cecilia Ozbell and Fuxifa passed the dorm building. Spotting Sharkai Bai sprawled on the bench like a corpse, they walked up to tease him.

“...It’s you two. In this heat, you dare to go outside?”

“Hmph, I’m an ice mage. How could this mere temperature affect me?”

“Heat? Oh, sorry—I absorb most airborne heat using micro black holes.”

Envy, jealousy, hatred, anger—all these emotions burned vividly in Sharkai Bai’s gaze at them.

“I heard from Snowlotus you’re about to be expelled?”

“Yes, exactly. So, congratulations to me.”

“Dean Dishi really has no mercy.”

“How about—you join Fuxifa and me for academy missions!”

In Cecilia Ozbell’s eyes, it was time to save this pitiful brother-in-law.

“Academy missions? What are those?”

Hearing Ozbell’s proposal, Sharkai Bai lifted his head from the bench.

“That’s right, academy missions!”

With a hint of pride, Ozbell pointed a finger at Sharkai Bai’s face. “Geniuses like Fuxifa and me rarely attend classes. Exams are a piece of cake, but skipping deducts credits. So how do we maintain ours? Let me tell you, my foolish brother-in-law.”

Thud!

A figure flashed before Ozbell. Sharkai Bai punched through the wall behind her, purple eyes locked on hers as he gritted out, “Hurry up!”

*(I’ll just quietly watch you show off.)*

Fuxifa had already retreated to a distance, soda in hand, watching Ozbell pinned against the wall by Sharkai.

“Looks like you need to cool off!”

Icy wings, radiating frost, burst from Ozbell’s back. She stared at Sharkai Bai, expressionless.

Ten minutes later————

“Not bad at all, you bastard!”

“Of course! You should know who I am!”

Sharkai Bai sat beside Ozbell—still in her icy-winged form—legs crossed comfortably as he sipped coffee. The two chatted and laughed about trivial matters.

“Hey hey hey!!! You two, get to the point!!!”

*(Are they idiots? Why did I lose to that guy!?)*

Intense frustration made Fuxifa suspect these two had serious brain issues.

“Anyway, Sharkai Bai, if you don’t want to be expelled, come with us on academy missions.”

“Hmph, well, if that’s the case, I guess I have no choice—if I’m to be expelled.”

As if recalling something, Sharkai Bai considered Ozbell’s offer. He wanted to stay in this academy, where he’d found “new fun” and “interesting people.”

And so, on this scorching summer weekend, Sharkai Bai embarked on the rocky road to save his credits.