Chapter 21 – The School’s Idol

A prominent example would be the one currently standing on the stage, the pride of Tianjing city, Major Grace from the Freedom Federation. A rarely seen ability soldier, she had ignited her heroic soul at the age of 18, then led the Tianjing battle squad in the Federation competition and fought through to the semifinals, achieving the best combat record Tianjing Heroic Soul Academy had ever seen and unprecedentedly, pushed the academy into the top 20 rankings. A decade after her graduation, her tale continued to grow as she was admitted into the Federation Guard. This year, she was admitted into Saint Palace after being promoted to Sanctuary Rank Heroic Soldier, and had the right to recruit new members. Till this moment, she was the one and only Sanctuary Rank soldier to graduate from Tianjing Heroic Soul Academy.

It could be said that she was the pride of Tianjing.

No one would have ever thought that she would suddenly turn up here, much less in this very lecture hall. This news shook the entire school, and countless number of students, regardless of their seniority, rushed toward the lecture hall, wanting to catch a glimpse of their idol.

Having already prepared beforehand, a group of teachers and students were mobilized to ensure smooth transit and functionality of the lecture hall. The students attending class in the lecture hall were the most fortunate of all; they had struck gold, being able to have their idol teach them.

Grace smiled gently at the crowd before regaining her stoic composure. Although 28-years-old wasn't that old, for a combat veteran with hundreds and thousands of fights under her belt, such a crowd didn't unsettle her like it would for students.

Looking over the sea of heads, Grace soon spotted her target—Wang Zhong. During his remedial exam, he had left a strong impression on her, which further increased when she read the various theories published by him. Even a battle-hardened veteran like her was left in awe of them.

His form of battle analysis was unprecedented in its ways; moreover, it required the experience of a combat veteran, something that was unlikely to be found in students. Just purely based on the fact that he could publish such hypotheses showed the unlimited potential he possessed.

The most defining character that humans possessed wasn't their methods or strength, but their intelligence.

"Is everyone curious as to why I chose this specific class?" This was the first question Grace posed to the class.

Every single student that was watching nodded their head in succession. What they wanted to know the most was: was it by chance?

Present in the crowd of students outside the lecture hall was Emily. Grace, as her idol, was one of the reasons she chose to enter Tianjing. Even though she possessed an ability, Grace chose the career of an ability soldier which focused on close-range ability combat instead of being just a pure ability user. This was one of Grace's most attractive features.

Everyone in the lecture hall was stumped. They had never considered that question and had assumed that they were just plain lucky. Was there another reason for it?

After considering for a short while, Ma Dong excitedly exclaimed, "It couldn't be! I heard that squadron leader Grace was here on a mission; can it possibly be that she has set her sights on someone in this class!"

Hearing that statement, all of the students in the class became extremely excited. All of them hailed from the commander department, where all of the prestigious students gathered. They all assumed something was up.

Just when everyone thought that Grace was exhibiting favoritism, she pointed her finger and said, "It's because of him."

Everyone within and surrounding the lecture hall all looked toward the direction of the pointed finger. Those people in the pointed direction all sat up straight and prayed that they were the lucky one.

Present in the pointed direction were powerhouses like Scarlet and Reeves, but the finger was aimed at a position behind them.

Being the pride of the soldier department, Reeves, a third-year student, would still have to attend some minor courses in the commander department.

Although all of the powerhouses in the lecture hall were seated in the first 3 rows, the direction Grace pointed toward was clearly the back rows. Generally speaking, it was an unspoken rule that powerhouses were usually the ones that were seated in the front, while the weaker students would be seated at the back.

Thump, thump. Ma Dong's heart started to beat rapidly as he thought, Fuck, don't tell me that I struck the jackpot and the one that Miss Grace is pointing at is me?

Finally, is the glory of the renowned Assassin clan going to shine upon him?

Will his destiny of just being a member of the lower class finally change?

Just as Ma Dong was about to stand up, Grace lightly smiled and said, "Student Wang Zhong, I greatly admired the papers you had published—well done!"

In an instant, the entire present student body was in shock. Wang Zhong?

What in the world? The disgrace of the commander department had actually become the example they were supposed to follow?

Wang Zhong himself was also extremely surprised that Grace had spared the time look through the papers he had written on his analysis of combat techniques.

Without giving an explanation, Grace had already moved on to pose the next question. "What is everyone's view on the topic of battle control techniques?"

Since everyone present wasn't a freshman, they thought over Grace's question seriously as this was a rare opportunity to showcase their talents. Reeves stood up and said, "Teacher Grace, in my personal opinion, battle control techniques are an auxiliary form of combat support, but in the end, everything still boils down to strength. Why waste time bothering with this aspect when one can just focus on raising one's strength? In the end, strength triumphs over all."

Grace nodded her head. " Everyone, please speak freely. I'm not here to teach by the book. Having experienced the same headache-inducing situation years ago, I'm just here to share my personal thoughts and opinions."

Laughter spread throughout the class as everyone breathed out a sigh of relief. Everyone began to seriously analyze the question being posed. This goes to show that the power and influence an idol presented was strong enough to spark a change in a student's character.

Wang Zhong stared at Grace. It was impossible to not know of her great name as she was the pride spoken of by all the teachers in Tianjing in the past couple of years. It could also be said that she symbolized the glory of the academy's earlier years. He could feel the explosive power hidden beneath her silver uniform, which was difficult to conceal. As a 28-year-old soldier, there was no doubt she was on the path to the very peak.

If Grace knew what was going on in Wang Zhong's mind at that moment, she would definitely be bawling with laughter. This wasn't what a typical teenager thought of.

"Battle control is a skill that is effective when facing an evenly matched opponent. It is critical to at least master a few techniques which will come in handy in the future," replied Scarlet as she stood up. She herself held an appreciation of the papers Wang Zhong published, especially those on the topic of battle control analysis.

Grace gave a slight smile and said, "Any other views on this?"

It was at this moment that a student stood up and replied, "Teacher Grace, in my personal opinion, there is no point in appreciating the ramblings of a waste. The pursuit of control is only for the weak. Instead of wasting time on this method, why not pursue techniques that offer greater lethality and power? Personally speaking, I feel that battle control is just a farce and the mark of a coward!"