The morning sun poured through the academy's grand hall, banners fluttering high above.
Today wasn't just another school day today marked the start of the Annual Class Exchange, an event where teachers were reassigned temporarily to other divisions to "foster understanding."
Milly currently under her human guise, Mila stood in the corridor, reading the notice board with quiet disbelief.
Instructor Mila: Temporarily reassigned from Class F → Class S (Elite Division)
Her eyebrow twitched.
"…Class S? The top division?" she muttered, adjusting the strap of her teaching coat. "What kind of joke is this…"
Before she could think further, another voice came from behind.
"Ah, Instructor Mila," said a tall, well-built man in a sleeveless coat. He looked every bit the battle-worn type a physical education instructor like her, but with more scars and a wearier expression.
He crossed his arms, lowering his voice.
"You're really taking that assignment? You must have nerves of steel."
She tilted her head. "What do you mean?"
The man sighed heavily. "That's the S Class you're going to. They're monsters. Every one of them's stronger than most instructors here. They don't listen, they don't follow orders. My advice, don't even try to correct them. You'll only make them angry."
Milly gave a faint, almost teasing smile. "Oh? I've handled worse."
He shook his head slowly. "You say that now…"
A short while later, Mila stepped through the tall, ornate doors of Class S.
Instantly, the air felt heavier.
The students lounged in their seats like royalty, wearing customized uniforms with gold trimmings and the symbol of the academy's elite crest.
A few even carried visible weapons barely concealed by enchantments.
The moment she entered, every pair of eyes turned toward her.
"Who's that?" one of them muttered.
"The F-Class teacher," another replied mockingly. "The academy must've run out of real instructors."
Snickers filled the room.
Mila stood still, her expression calm. She had faced gods, dragons, and forgotten beings but somehow, this particular kind of arrogance was more irritating than any of them.
"Good morning," she said evenly, placing her clipboard down. "I'll be your instructor for PE this week. You may call me Miss Mila."
"Miss Mila, huh?" said one tall student with crimson hair, stretching lazily in his chair. "Did they demote you or something? Class F's too weak, so you wanted a challenge?"
Laughter rippled again through the class.
Another, a girl with sharp violet eyes, leaned forward. "You look fragile. Are you sure you can handle S-Class training?"
Mila smiled faintly, folding her arms.
Her tone was soft, but her words cut through the noise.
"Handle? You might want to worry about keeping up."
The class went silent for a moment then someone scoffed loudly.
"Tch. Bold words for an F-Class teacher."
Mila didn't rise to the bait. She simply walked toward the open training area beside the classroom, her steps calm, confident.
"Alright, S-Class," she said, turning to face them. "Since this is our first session together… let's see what kind of 'monsters' you really are."
The challenge hung in the air like lightning before a storm.
And for the first time that day, the elite students of Class S stopped laughing.