Before the attack, Ron secures a job at Lady Allen's herb store by recognizing the hidden Rhythm in herbal materials. He realizes that spiritual power, breathing techniques, and potion ingredients all follow specific vibrational frequencies. This cross-disciplinary insight allows him to optimize his Crown Breathing Technique and stabilize his spell models, accelerating his growth just in time for the academy's culling mechanism to strike his doorstep. His neighbor Darrend, driven mad by the deadline, consumes a black market potion and mutates into a giant-brained monstrosity that attacks with sonic waves. Darrend's skull splits open to reveal a pulsating, semi-transparent brain that fires sonic rings. Ron does not flee. He relies on the physical density from his Knight's Squire profession to tank the internal bleeding caused by the sonic blasts. He times his movements to the breathing rhythm, traps the mutant's feet with a zero-ring Slime Splash, and drives a wooden sword directly into the exposed brain tissue. He loots Darrend's Sound Wave Magic notes, gaining a prototype spell. But the real consequence unfolds in the shadows. Official Wizards watching through crystal balls score his combat performance, debating his mutation resistance and placing him on an observation list. The fight proves his combat viability, but it also exposes him to the faculty's predatory gaze, confirming Andre's warnings that the academy is a controlled farm where the weak are fertilizer.

Ron's rising profile attracts the jealousy of Marcus, an Elementary Apprentice who relies on his curse-magic brother Oliver for protection. Marcus's servant Danni attempts to steal Ron's resource pouch using a stealth extraction spell. Ron's heightened spiritual perception catches the magical fluctuation, and he instantly severs her hand with his Black Heart Iron Wood sword. Marcus retaliates with a Burning Ball that warps the air with high temperatures. Ron's sword, guided by the Crown Breathing rhythm and the wood's natural anti-magic properties, slices cleanly through the energy, shattering Marcus's auto-activated shield. The Law Enforcement Team throws Ron in a barren detention cell to cool off. Instead of wasting time, Ron uses the absolute isolation to push his Basic Meditation to the Proficient limit. He stops mechanically drawing runes and instead becomes the rune, letting his spiritual power flow naturally. He crosses the 2.0 Spirit threshold, officially becoming an Elementary Apprentice and unlocking the Wizard Apprentice class. He walks out of detention with a qualitative leap in power, gaining instinctual spiritual interference abilities. However, his rapid ascension and public humiliation of Marcus draw the sinister attention of Oliver, a curse magic specialist who views talented apprentices as prime consumables for his experiments.

Seeking financial independence and better resources, Ron takes the Professional Alchemist exam under Master Magnus. Faced with an extra-hard prompt requiring the complex Awakening Potion, Ron uses his Rhythm insight to adjust the flame intensity and ingredient timing on the fly. He optimizes the formula, extending the potion's duration by an hour and securing his certification with top marks. With his new badge and workshop, he accesses the Gem Level Meditation Technique, Star Eater's Ravings. Meditating on it plunges his mind into the cosmic void, where he witnesses a colossal, grotesque entity devouring entire star systems. The sheer scale of the cosmic horror threatens to melt his brain with severe spiritual contamination. Ron survives by using his Time Guardian pocket watch to reset his negative mental status and his Rhythm comprehension to stabilize his spiritual force field. He secures his financial independence, but Lady Allen reveals the dark truth of Grace. Wizards need students to filter their contamination, meaning Ron's ultimate value to the faculty makes him a prized asset. This sets the stage for a future conflict against the very mentors who cultivate him, as he realizes he must become strong enough to break the food chain before he is harvested.