"Room 15, Gray Wing," announced the professor, a trace of pity in her voice as she handed Ren the key.
The name was a cruel euphemism.
It wasn't really gray, it was just where they sent students with Tier 1 beasts of "limited potential", though even there Ren's Tier 0 was a special case.
He was truly the bearer of a failed gray egg's beast. Those were very rare even in poor schools, but here…
They hadn't had one in decades.
The dormitory was spacious but austere, designed for four students.
His roommates were already there: Min, a thin boy with a Water Snake; Taro, more robust, with a Digger Beetle; and Liu, tall and quiet, with a Night Bat.
None of those beasts was an emblem of success. They were perceived as low potential. None were "spore-bad" either, though; at least they had evolution potential up to Bronze.
Or that's what everyone believed, but Ren could see their cultivation routes up to Silver 3… Just like any other beast.
"The mushroom boy," Min smiled when Ren entered. There was no malice in his voice, just a kind of resigned camaraderie. "I guess it makes sense they put us together."
Ren dropped his bag on the last available bed, aware of the curious glances toward the mushrooms in his hair and the bruise on his eye.
"Your spore... does it do anything besides glow?" asked Taro.
Ren hesitated. After the incident in the carriage, he didn't want to draw more attention to himself. "It gives a 10% increase to my strength," he said simply. "And it has something else that's good... I don't need lamps."
His joke didn't land too well. More pitying glances.
An uncomfortable silence followed his words. The others exchanged sad sights, then stared at Ren with the kind of look you give someone who won't accept a painful truth.
"Hey," Min tried to sound cheerful, "it's not so bad. Liu says his bat only gives good Perception."
"But it can be useful when gathering… not everything is about pure power." Taro added.
"You're right, it's not so bad," Liu said from his corner. "I'm a second-year student but I failed two units, that's why I'm still in this dormitory. My first year here taught me that beast Tiers and potential isn't everything. My bat seemed useless at first, but with the right training..."
While Liu sought excuses for his poor academic performance and then sneakily changed subjects to share advice about life in the Gray Wing, Ren observed his companions.
He could clearly see how Min's snake needed freshwater instead of saltwater in its crystals to develop its true potential, how Taro's beetle needed to be fed crystals processed during a specific moon phase to advance along the correct path and avoid maturing wrongly.
He wanted to tell them, but the carriage squabble made him tread more carefully this time.
Perhaps, he thought, when they knew each other better, when they trusted each other... he could share some of his knowledge.
At least enough to help them avoid bullying.
While unpacking near his bed, the mushrooms in his hair pulsed with that strange rhythm again. It seemed he had got just in range to feel it…
Not only ruins, there was also a small mana vein around 300 meters down directly under the Gray Wing.
Maybe being in the "worst" dormitory wasn't so bad after all.
Especially if what he sensed was correct.
♢♢♢♢
"Liu," Ren approached the second-year student after the others began organizing their things.
"Where can I get discarded monster parts? You know, cores, beast remains, materials, Bronze size crystals, and..."
Liu stopped organizing his trunk and looked at Ren with both pity and amusement.
"Straight to the point, huh?" he sighed. "Look, a few decades ago, the Academy distributed resources equitably. Every student received what they needed to try evolving their beast, regardless of potential rank, to search for any possible hidden cultivation paths."
He sat on his bed, his night bat fluttering restlessly above his head.
"But everything changed after some weird, expensive tests for 'weak beasts' ended up giving nothing. Now it works on a merit system. You have to prove you're worth investing in." Liu grimaced. "Basic support is miserable now, barely enough for decent beasts to reach Bronze Rank with great effort… one measly crystal daily."
"But I need those materials," Ren insisted. "Especially venomous fungi, Bronze beasts parts, and runes with…"
"Runes?" Liu let out a dry laugh. "Those are expensive. They only give them free to elite beasts, ones with real potential, and only for passing from Silver to Gold... The rest of us have to earn them with results." He looked at the mushrooms in Ren's hair. "No offense, but nobody's going to waste resources like that on a spore ever again."
"Why not?"
"Because experiments with fungi always fail. Always. The school keeps records of every attempt. The best result was a mature fungus that gave a 20% Strength increase, and it cost more resources than evolving three normal beasts to Silver."
Ren clenched his fists. If Liu knew what he knew now, if he could explain the true evolution paths to the school leaders...
"But there are other ways to get resources, like the doubling system," Liu murmured. "But maybe it's too risky for..."
"Anyway... There's the teaching unit system," he continued. "If you manage to pass all five units this semester, they'll promote you from Iron to Bronze 1 student. Instead of one crystal daily, you'd receive ten."
"Only ten times more?" Ren sighed.
"At Silver 1 it would be a hundred," Liu gave a dry laugh. "But that's not until fourth semester, and only if you pass the first three without failing any units." He looked at the mushrooms in Ren's hair. "Though honestly, I doubt you'll achieve much in the battle unit. And cultivation..." he shook his head.
"What happens if I fail?"
"Every three failed units you lose a point. If you lose three points..." Liu made a cutting gesture with his hand. "Goodbye to all support for next year. The most you can do is try to pass three units and avoid getting expelled from the unit and doubling systems."
Ren nodded slowly, processing the information. The academy was brutal for the weak, but the later rewards maybe...
"Listen." Liu leaned forward. "I'm telling you this because I like you for being optimistic even with that in your head, and honestly, feel a bit sorry for you. Don't get your hopes up. Focus on surviving the eight years. Learn what you can. But don't expect miracles..."
"...If I were you," Liu lowered his voice, "I'd focus on recovering part of that tuition cost. The fees are high, but with enough work in the safe gathering zones you could get them to double your resources and recover at least half of that million in the next 8 years."
"Double? How does that work?" Ren asked.