Awakened as a Support Mage, I Built the World's Strongest Te

Chapter 2

Two hours later, the adrenaline had faded, leaving behind a cold, hollow ache in Adrian’s chest. 

He found Serena standing in one of the academy's quiet, arched corridors overlooking the western courtyard. She was staring out at the sunset, her posture relaxed, holding a cup of warm tea. 

Adrian walked up beside her. He had cleaned the blood off his face, but his skin was still pale from the severe mana drain. 

"Serena," he said quietly. 

She turned, offering a small, exhausted smile. "Hey. Are you okay? You looked pretty pale after the fight."

"I overexerted my channels keeping Darius's ribs from collapsing," Adrian said, keeping his voice carefully neutral. He looked at her, searching her eyes. "Why didn't you say anything?"

Serena’s smile faltered. She looked back out the window. "Say what?"

"To the instructor. To the crowd," Adrian said, his throat tightening. "You both took all the credit. You know the only reason that attack worked was because I forced your mana into alignment. You know Darius was about to get himself killed."

Serena sighed, a sound that felt more annoyed than sympathetic. She wouldn't meet his gaze. 

"Adrian, you're taking this too personally," she said smoothly. "Darius is the captain. He's the face of the team. When the academy looks at us, they expect to see the S-potential swordsman leading the way. It’s just politics. People naturally expect the strong to receive the recognition."

"We promised," Adrian said, the betrayal rising in his chest like bile. "When we started this team a year ago, we promised we were going to build this together. We promised we would be equal."

Serena shifted her weight, clearly uncomfortable. "And we are. But you’re an F-Rank support, Adrian. The public doesn't understand what you do. They want to see swords and fire, not invisible threads. Just... let Darius have his moment. It’s better for all of us if he looks good."

Before Adrian could argue, Serena checked her academy crystal. "I have to go. Instructor Vance wants to review my fire casting. Rest up, okay? You look tired."

She walked away, leaving Adrian standing alone in the fading light. 

“She didn't even look me in the eye,” he thought, his hands clenching into fists. “She knows it's wrong, but she's letting it happen anyway.”

What Adrian didn't know was that while he stood in the quiet corridor, Darius Blackthorn was sitting in a private, soundproofed lounge on the academy’s upper floors. 

Darius swirled a glass of expensive amber liquid, looking across the table at two highly influential third-year students from top-ranking guilds. 

"The shadow hound was a minor inconvenience," Darius was saying, his tone dismissive. "My swordsmanship handled it."

"Your team is gaining a lot of traction, Blackthorn," one of the older students said, leaning forward. "My guild is interested in offering a sponsorship. But we have one concern. Your roster."

"Go on," Darius said, his eyes narrowing slightly. 

"Your damage output is excellent. Your elementalist is top-tier. But you’re carrying dead weight. An F-Rank support? If you want to move up to the elite brackets, you can't have an anchor dragging down your potential. You need someone who can fight independently."

Darius stared at his glass for a long moment. A cold, calculating smile crept onto his face. 

"I completely agree," Darius said. "Actually, I've already made arrangements to solve that particular problem."

The message arrived on Adrian's crystal at 9:00 PM. 

[Emergency team meeting. Tomorrow morning. 8:00 AM. Room 4B.]

Sitting on his bed in the dorms, Adrian let out a long breath. The anger from earlier in the day began to recede, replaced by a cautious sense of hope. 

“An emergency meeting. They must have received an offer for the next competition season,” Adrian thought. “Maybe Darius is finally ready to register us as a silver-tier squad. He'll need my Resonance for the promotion exams.”

The next morning, Adrian arrived at Room 4B fifteen minutes early. 

He expected to find balloons, or perhaps the team reviewing a new dungeon map on the projection table. He opened the heavy oak door, a small, genuine smile on his face. 

The room was completely silent. 

The projection table was turned off. There were no maps. There were no celebrations. 

Darius Blackthorn sat at the head of the long wooden table. His posture was rigid, his expression entirely unreadable. Serena sat to his right. She was staring down at her hands, her knuckles white. She didn't look up when the door opened. 

The other two minor members of the team weren't even there. 

"You're early," Darius said, his voice flat. 

Adrian’s smile vanished. The atmosphere in the room was suffocating. The coldness in Darius’s eyes sent a sudden spike of anxiety straight into Adrian’s stomach. 

"What's going on?" Adrian asked, stepping slowly into the room. "Where are the others?"

"They didn't need to be here for this," Darius said. He gestured to the empty chair on the opposite end of the table. "Sit down, Adrian. We need to discuss your future."

Adrian didn't sit. He walked to the chair and looked down. 

Resting on the polished wood, perfectly centered in front of the seat, was a single piece of official academy parchment. It bore the golden seal of the registration office. 

Adrian read the bold black letters at the top. 

[TEAM TERMINATION NOTIFICATION.]

His breathing stopped. He felt as though the floor had suddenly dropped out from underneath him. He looked from the paper to Serena, hoping to see a mistake, a joke, anything. She was still staring at her lap, refusing to meet his gaze. 

He looked back at Darius. 

Darius leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. He reached out with one finger and calmly pushed the document an inch closer to Adrian. 

"Starting today," Darius said, his voice completely devoid of emotion, "you’re no longer part of this team."