Nostalgia

As Ron sat in class, a wave of nostalgia swept over him, reminding him of his previous life where school held little joy. Lacking friends or love, he spent his time engrossed in novels and anime. Determined to transform himself, Ron swore to never revert to his former self.

During the lecture, many students seemed disinterested, either dozing off or eagerly watching the clock. However, Ron and his desk mate Ria were among the few paying close attention. Today's lesson covered the basic principles of magic, familiar to Ron from Gazelle's teachings.

Victor explained the four elemental types - air, water, earth, and fire. Pure mages specialized in one element, while fusion mages could wield various forms like lightning and ice. He delved into the classification of individuals based on magical ability, ranging from first to ninth class. The peak ninth class boasted only seven individuals.

Victor emphasized that leveling up depended on an individual's talent, with a rare exception for Guardians, individuals who broke barriers and surpassed the ninth class. The Dark Lord was one such exception, requiring the hero and his Guardians to join forces for defeat.

As the class ended, Ron decided to meet up with Luthur and Bob. However, he was stopped by Ria which surprised him by asking if he wanted to hang out.

"WHAT!" Ron's mind raced with thoughts. "Am I getting asked out on the first day? Am I that handsome? Of course." But his responsibilities as a 29-year-old man took precedence.

"Sorry, but-" Ron began to decline when he noticed Alexia approaching with a fierce gaze.

"Follow me," she ordered, prompting Ron to cut off his rejection. "Sorry, but let's hang out together sometime later," Ron said as he hurriedly left, joining Alexia.

Outside, Alexia confronted Ron against a wall, questioning why he was hiding his strength. Ron insisted it was a personal matter.

"Well, first of all, I don't like it," she retorted. "And do you know the benefits for top students? They receive monster cores and enjoy discounts at Norhaven Academy."

Ron pondered the information, conflicted between hiding his strength and the tempting rewards. The allure of a free monster core and discounts tugged at his practical side, considering the potential millions he could save. Even Gazelle might not provide such funds for a mere spy.

However, Ron already had a plan to address the issue – the academy's hunting ground itself. Armed with the academy student ID, he could enter and harvest monster cores, selling them within the academy grounds for a significant profit.

Later, Ron headed towards the hunting ground and presented his ID to the guards stationed at the entrance.

"Your rank is quite low for the hunting ground,the minimum requirement is either third class or above," murmured the guard.

Despite Ron's attempts to negotiate, the guards stood firm, unwilling to take responsibility if something happened to him.

"Man, damn it," Ron muttered as he walked back toward his dormitory.

To gain access to the hunting ground, Ron needed to elevate his rank to at least third class. While he could utilize his demonic form to reach at least fifth class, he decided to focus on increasing his regular class first, breaking the limitations on the devil's magic usage at the second class.

As Ron contemplated how to achieve this, an idea struck him.

"Why should I come with you?" asked Alexia, her tone annoyed.

"Please, they won't allow me to get inside. Please help me," Ron pleaded with Alexia.

As a third-class mage, Alexia's presence would enable Ron to enter the hunting ground without any issues.

After minutes of persistent begging, Alexia finally agreed to go, on the condition that she would receive about 50% of the cores Ron collected. Despite the less favorable terms, Ron decided to accept the deal, recognizing the necessity of the alliance.

Later, they entered the hunting ground without any issues, and once inside, Alexia and Ron began exploring the vast forest.

The hunting ground was essentially a large, partially controlled forest by the academy. Although there was a protective barrier around it, scary monsters of seventh and ninth class roamed freely outside—a challenge Ron preferred to avoid, at least for the time being.

Inside the forest, Alexia readied her bow, and Ron scanned the area for weaker monsters.

After a few minutes, they encountered a snake with power close to the second class. The snake hissed and spat venom, but Ron and Alexia skillfully dodged the attacks. Ron then utilized a small wind blade to sever the snake's head, minimizing damage to its body.

Approaching the defeated snake, Ron searched for a monster core. He discovered a round core shining in bright green. A second-class core could fetch at least $50,000, providing Ron with easy money. However, beyond the financial gain, Ron had a more significant reason for collecting these cores.

Apart from the monetary value, Ron was eager to absorb the magic energy from the cores to elevate himself to a higher class. Climbing beyond the third class, he aimed to reach the coveted fourth class.

"Ron mumbled, 'That's the fifth one,' as he retrieved a core from the silver rabbit.

Encountering only second or first-class monsters, despite defeating five, they only acquired two monster cores—one from the snake and the other from the rabbit.

Alexia approached and stored them in her storage ring. As per their agreement for a 50% share of the cores, Ron, faced with the scarcity of cores, decided to give all the monster bodies to Alexia, keeping only the cores for himself.

Deciding to venture deeper into the forest, where third and fourth-class monsters resided, Ron forged ahead.

Inside, they finally encountered a formidable opponent—a silver turtle, a fourth-class monster twice Ron's size. Alexia aimed her arrow, but the turtle retreated into its shell upon seeing the fiery projectile.

{BOOM}

Debris settled around the turtle's shell, revealing not even a single scratch.

"Damn, its shell is incredibly tough," Alexia murmured.

As Alexia prepared to reload her arrow, the turtle rolled at high speed like a cannonball towards Ron and Alexia.

The shell crashed into a nearby tree, causing an explosion. Stuck, Ron launched fireballs and wild blades at the shell, managing to crack it, but again, there was not a scratch.

Ron realized he needed to flip the turtle to strike its vulnerable underside. As the silver turtle turned towards them for another attack, Ron placed his hand on the ground, creating a mud barrier that rose, flipping the turtle. A swift wind blade from Ron killed it instantly.

Searching the monster's body, Ron found a core—a white-colored third-class orb. He estimated it could fetch at least $100,000 if sold.

"Damn, I guess I can make a lot of money like this," Ron murmured, happily placing the orb in his bag.

Now with three orbs, Ron felt satisfied. The silver turtle's body shone and was placed into Alexia's storage ring.

"I need to get one of those," Ron murmured, eyeing the ring.

.

After leaving the hunting ground, Ron decided to enter the training room located in his dormitory section. Upon stepping inside, he noticed a resemblance to the spatial isolation in Gazelle's mansion, albeit on a slightly larger scale. A screen materialized in front of Ron, displaying the remaining training room time and offering various options to summon training dummies for skill practice.

However, Ron's primary purpose for being there wasn't training; it was to absorb the core he had collected from the hunting ground. He chose to avoid doing it in his room to avoid raising suspicions.

To absorb a core, one typically needed to sit in a meditative position and absorb it slowly by holding onto it. However, with the devil's heart, Ron had another method. He retrieved the initial round core from slaying the snake, placed it carefully into his mouth, and swallowed it.

"This tastes funny," Ron murmured as he then sat down in a meditative position and focused on absorbing the core.

In the story, following the acquisition of the devil hand, the Umbral King's constraints shattered, and there seemed to be no ceiling to how much stronger he could become. Ron found himself with a similar potential and was determined not to let it go to waste.

After absorbing the first core, Ron felt warmth in his stomach, and the sensation flowed into his heart. After a few minutes, the core was completely absorbed, and Ron felt significantly stronger.

Without hesitation, he took out the next core from his bag and swallowed it. Again, the feeling pumped into his heart, and his strength continued to increase.

Finally, Ron took out the white third-class core from killing the turtle. After swallowing it, an uncontrollable power surged into his heart, causing dark veins to spread over his body. Ron felt like his heart was about to explode, but eventually, the magic power was absorbed completely.

[Vomits]

Feeling nauseous and dizzy after the last core, Ron started expelling dark impurities. "Did I just reach third class?" he thought, checking his body. His raw strength had significantly improved.

To test his newfound strength, Ron summoned a second-class dummy in the room. With a single swift punch, the dummy shattered into pieces, demonstrating Ron's enhanced power.

"Third class feels much stronger than second class," Ron murmured, noting his increased capacity for magic power without side effects.

Deciding to go back for more cores, Ron first needed to obtain a weapon for himself.