Chapter 378 - 331: What Should He Be Rewarded With?

Chapter 378: Chapter 331: What Should He Be Rewarded With?

After a flurry of work from Professor Lawrence, the academy’s recovery efforts were finally on track. All that remained was to guide the school districts to "dock" back in their original spatial positions, re-anchor them, and then follow up with repairs and reinforcements. Once that was done, things would be back to their original state.

These steps no longer required his personal involvement, so he could finally catch his breath. He quickly pulled a flask from his pocket and took a few sips.

Just then, the Dean’s voice reached his ears, summoning him to a meeting.

Professor Lawrence didn’t rush off. Instead, he first asked:

"What about Lloyd?"

"He’s safe and sound, resting in his dorm."

"Mm, that’s good. He deserves a proper rest."

As he spoke, Professor Lawrence reached out and opened a Teleportation Gate. Just before leaving, he glanced back at his two colleagues.

They seemed to have broken into an argument over something, faces flushed and veins bulging as they yelled, looking as if their war of words was about to escalate into a physical brawl.

Professor Lawrence eavesdropped for a moment. Were they arguing about the ownership and allocation of the Spatial Storm?

The two of them seemed to be treating the static Spatial Storm as the exclusive property of the Space System, debating who should get to study it first and whose name should get top billing.

’How foolish and laughable...’

He scoffed inwardly, wishing the two of them would just beat each other’s brains out.

Clearly, Professor Lawrence was far more clear-headed than those two. He knew that those three school districts were now completely beyond his control and were gradually drifting away from the academy.

’And they’re wasting time with infighting instead of seizing this opportunity to study it?’

Professor Lawrence grumbled to himself, then instructed Dandy and the other researchers to collect data on the Spatial Storm according to his instructions. Only then did he step through the Teleportation Gate to the Dean’s office.

The space had temporarily switched from its usual theater and dueling-arena aesthetic to that of a normal conference room. A long, narrow table and numerous chairs had appeared, though the tabletop was completely bare, without so much as a glass of water.

The professors presiding over the various departments had already arrived and taken their seats. Some of them were possibly human, some were probably not, and for others, it was impossible to tell...

Professor Lawrence couldn’t help but frown. He had never liked attending these multi-departmental meetings; they always felt like being in an insane asylum. If the matter at hand hadn’t been so critical, he certainly wouldn’t have returned.

"Alright, it seems everyone is here. Please, take a seat. The meeting will begin shortly."

The Dean’s voice emanated from the empty seat at the head of the long table.

Next, the head of academy logistics—a potted plant that looked like a sunflower—began to speak:

"There’s no need for me to rehash the sequence of events. Let’s start with the losses. Aside from the three abandoned peripheral districts, another three were swallowed by the Spatial Storm and torn to pieces. Five more districts suffered severe damage and have completely lost functionality. The remaining ones have all sustained damage to varying degrees..."

"As for casualties, a total of 52 students and faculty are missing, and over five hundred people have suffered injuries of varying severity. This marks the most grievous losses the academy has suffered since the dawn of the new century..."

"However, considering the energy level of this catastrophe, keeping the losses to their current level is nothing short of a Miracle. The performance of the students and faculty from the Space System was vital, and their contribution cannot be overstated. Therefore, on behalf of the logistics department, I wish to express our most sincere gratitude and respect to all of you in the Space System."

Not only could this sunflower talk, but its brown floral disc also bore a human face capable of a wide range of vivid expressions, making it look like some bizarre Demon.

After finishing its speech, it swayed its body, rustling a few of its petals together to create the sound effect of thunderous applause.

The other professors present were moved to follow suit, applauding politely before turning their collective gaze to Professor Lawrence, clearly expecting him to say a few words.

Professor Lawrence, for his part, had already prepared what he would say, so he spoke directly:

"Believe it or not, I can only say that I did very little. The one who truly saved the academy was a new student in our Space System, Lloyd. He used some method that even I cannot comprehend to resist the storm and contain it."

Because the professors present were from other fields, their understanding of Space was superficial at best. Thus, his words weren’t enough to shatter their Cognition. There were no sharp intakes of breath, no exclamations of "How terrifying!"—just normal expressions of surprise and astonishment as they broke into hushed whispers.

Then, the professor presiding over the Engineering System—an Iron Man forged entirely of metal, his face a smooth mirror, yet dressed impeccably like a proper gentleman—spoke up to ask:

"This new student, Lloyd? Actually, Lawrence, before you arrived, we were just discussing him. We were amazed by his exceptional performance in rescuing the archeology team and already considered him a child capable of creating a Miracle. To think he would follow it up with something even more incredible?"

"In that case, I believe that after today, the title of ’The Academy’s Most Outstanding Student of the New Century’ will have to be abdicated by that Saint out there, don’t you think? It’s truly astonishing, considering he only just enrolled."

At this, a powerfully built and burly Bald Professor next to him also spoke up:

"Yes, that kid single-handedly rescued a professor, an associate professor, and three lecturers who were trapped in a [Miracle]. I can’t even begin to imagine how he did it. It’s utterly mind-boggling. I really want to talk to him, yet I have a faint feeling that doing so might bring a dangerous shock to my Cognition..."