My System Just Exploded, And You Ask Me to Become a God?-Chapter 41 --A Frustrated Joad

Joad turned to look at the First Grand Duke Ilan and deliberately made his voice raspy with magic as he said:

"I’ll leave the rest to you."

With that, he cast Flight and Invisibility in one fluid motion, vanishing without a trace.

As for the two archmage corpses, Joad quietly took them along. After all, they still carried quite a few treasures—leaving them behind would be a huge waste.

Of course, for Joad, something even more important awaited: launching a strike against Mington Royal Academy and Ironchain Royal Academy.

Joad wasn’t someone who enjoyed killing, but since things had already escalated this far, he had to go all the way.

As the saying goes, "If you don’t uproot the weeds, they’ll grow back in the spring." He wouldn’t allow any future threats to his existence.

After all, this world was far too dangerous—Joad had to ensure his own safety first.

Thus, the night ended with a series of dazzling explosions from high-rank spells.

At the same time, the treasuries of Mington Royal Academy and Ironchain Royal Academy were completely emptied.

As dawn broke, the storm came to an end.

Under the leadership of the First Grand Duke Ilan, the staff and students of Ilan Royal Academy were prepared to launch a retaliatory strike against the other two royal academies.

But when they arrived, they discovered the places had already been thoroughly looted.

Even the magic energy in the secret chambers had been completely drained!

"What? Someone got here before us?"

"Did we just get... looted after the fact?"

Soon, everyone realized—this had to be the work of the Rogue Thief Kid.

Still, no one was particularly upset about it, because the Rogue Thief Kid was their savior!

Without his intervention, they might all be dead and buried by now.

...

Joad returned to the jade leg of the Goddess of Magic statue, looking thoroughly frustrated.

"Three hundred thousand? That’s it?"

He stared at the space ring in his hand with disdain and muttered,

"Two royal academy treasuries combined, and this is all the mana stones they had?"

"Even Ivy was more generous!"

He had hoped to make a big score, but the result was bitterly disappointing.

"Looks like getting rich off these guys is a pipe dream."

With a sigh, Joad tossed the ring into his storage space.

"Whatever, even a mosquito is still meat. Better than nothing."

He consoled himself and began to sort through the rest of his loot.

Aside from mana stones, there were some magical materials and gear—but most of it was pretty average stuff.

To Joad, they were practically useless.

"Sigh, what a bunch of paupers!"

Joad sighed again, clearly disappointed with this haul.

However, he quickly adjusted his mindset.

After all, the greatest gain this time wasn’t the loot—it was successfully protecting Ilan Royal Academy and eliminating potential threats.

...

Meanwhile, back at Ilan Royal Academy—

After a night of chaos, peace had finally returned.

But in everyone’s hearts, there was a sense of post-battle relief—and hope for the future.

"We did it! We won!"

"Ilan Royal Academy is safe!"

"All thanks to the Rogue Thief Kid! He saved our lives!"

"Yeah! He’s our savior!"

The students chatted excitedly, full of gratitude toward the Rogue Thief Kid.

"From today onward, Ilan Royal Academy will become the strongest academy in this land!"

Headmaster Simar stood on a high platform, announcing loudly.

His voice, amplified by magic, echoed throughout the academy.

"We will take over all the territories of Mington Principality and Ironchain Principality!"

"Ilan Royal Academy will become the sole overlord of this land!"

...

"Rogue Thief Kid..."

First Grand Duke Ilan stood silently nearby, muttering to himself.

His mind was filled with doubt and speculation.

"Who exactly is he?"

"Why is he so powerful?"

"And why did he help Ilan Royal Academy?"

He pondered for a long time, until a sudden realization flashed across his eyes.

"Could it be... him?"

"Joad?"

"The youngest son of House Whide?"

He remembered that Joad hadn’t joined the battle that day—but then he quickly shook his head, denying the thought.

"No way. Absolutely not."

"Joad’s still just a kid. How could he possibly be that powerful?"

"Besides, he’s so low-profile—it doesn’t fit Rogue Thief Kid’s style at all."

He decided he must be overthinking it.

"Could it be... Marquis Whide instead?"

Another name popped into the First Grand Duke’s mind.

"Marquis Whide’s power runs deep, and his background is special."

"Maybe... maybe he’s the Rogue Thief Kid!"

...

Over the following days, the atmosphere at the academy calmed down considerably.

Joad maintained his usual routine—heading out early, returning late, always looking for mana-rich locations to boost his strength.

Now that he was no longer plagued by intense pain during meditation, he had become particularly obsessed with it.

Unknowingly, a month passed.

And the day of the Trial of the Luminous Pearl was drawing near.

The principalities of the Western Realm were already gearing up for it, each one urging their prodigies to focus on meditation.

After all, if they could gain the favor of the Luminous Pearl Kingdom, their entire royal academy would receive protection.

And if the chosen student performed well enough, they could bring in even more resources for their academy.

So every principality took this event extremely seriously—some had even begun preparations long ago, pouring immense resources into nurturing their most talented students.

Ilan Royal Academy was also actively preparing.

They selected top students from each division for intensive training.

Leit didn’t require much attention—he was already on the verge of becoming an elite mage. Unless something unexpected happened, he was almost guaranteed to pass the Trial.

The other participants focused on meditation, striving to increase their tier.

Harvey was also on the list for the Trial of the Luminous Pearl.

Only Joad remained carefree, lounging on the jade leg of the Goddess of Magic statue, watching everyone scurry around—he looked the picture of leisure.

But in truth, Joad wasn’t slacking.

He was deep in thought—trying to figure out how to help Leit raise his magic affinity.

With Leit’s current power, boosting his affinity just one more level would make him stand out even more—and earn greater attention from the Luminous Pearl Kingdom.

The better Leit did, the more he could protect Joad in the future.

Then maybe Joad wouldn’t have to keep fighting and scheming to get resources.

Just as Joad was pondering all this, Harvey suddenly appeared and asked,

"Joad, what are you doing here?"

Harvey frowned at his younger brother. It was one thing to be laid-back when others were too—but now that everyone was busy meditating, Joad still looked like he had no care in the world.

Joad sighed deeply, looking helpless as he replied,

"Brother Harvey, you wouldn’t understand. I got so traumatized recently that every time I meditate now, I start trembling in fear..."

What??

Harvey clearly didn’t expect that kind of response. His frown deepened.

He couldn’t help but say,

"The Trial of the Luminous Pearl is about to begin. Shouldn’t you be getting ready?"

"Ready for what?"

Joad looked genuinely confused. Trials were for elite students, right? What did it have to do with him?

Harvey, shocked, blurted out:

"Wait... don’t tell me you don’t know—you’re on the participant list for the Trial of the Luminous Pearl!"

"I’m on the list?"

Joad was completely dumbfounded.

Given how weak his current tier was, the headmaster would have to be blind to let him participate.

He waved his hand dismissively and said,

"Come on, Brother Harvey, there’s no way I’m on that list." 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

But Harvey shook his head, his expression strange as he said:

"It’s true. Your name is right there. In fact, it was the First Grand Duke Ilan himself who personally arranged it."

"Out of the thirty spots the academy has this year—one of them is yours."

"What? Are they out of their minds?"

Joad’s expression instantly collapsed.

He just wanted to quietly lie low in Ilan Royal Academy—was that too much to ask?

"No way, I have to go talk to the headmaster about this!"