New World - A New Beginning

Chapter 50: First Impressions

I watched in horror as a horde of students entered the campus of the Academy. Nevermind a domain, how was I going to survive in a place filled with so many people?

I groaned as I followed the rest of the group, the Academy finally coming into view.

Massive buildings towered over the area, lush green grass surrounding the classrooms with stone-paved roads twisting and turning in between the vegetation. It reminded me of classic universities back on Earth, but I could tell that the other students were baffled at what stood before them.

The number of nobles that were amongst the students was astounding, making up the majority of the attendees. My eyes scanned the crowd, identifying figures that I knew.

Asthia and Diana were at the front, the rest of the students following them, entranced. They both shone like beacons guiding the way, their powerful auras commanding immediate respect amidst the teenagers.

I was also able to pick out Hugo, the boy confidently striding forward. I knew the boy would be attending the school, but his presence still angered me. I kept seeing Katherine's dead body, kept hearing her final words as she died in my arms, and every single time I did, it broke me.

The students flooded into the main hall, excited chatter echoing in the giant room as everyone waited for what would come next. I positioned myself all the way at the back, leaning against one of the further walls to put some distance between myself and the group. The number of people in this room was ridiculous!

Slow footsteps resonated from the stage, silence immediately sweeping across the hall. A Fei with long silver hair appeared on stage, his green eyes radiating with intelligence and power. I smiled, recognizing the figure.

It was Yu.

The Fei that had taught me Bind Circulation was also the headmaster of the Academy? I was aware that Yu wouldn't recognize me considering he had trained Darck, but it was surprising to see a familiar face nonetheless standing on stage.

"Welcome to the Academy," he boomed, his voice drumming itself into my ears. "You will all undergo the written examination, and only those with scores above fifty out of one hundred will move on to the next phase of the application process."

Doors swung open to the left of the room, a massive hall filled with chairs and tables opening itself up to the young public. A wave of gloom crashed on the students, a shared groan rumbling from the horde. I chuckled, watching all of them enter the hall.

I followed, taking up one of the only remaining spots all the way at the back. A bell chimed, indicating the beginning of the exam. I turned the sheet of paper, looking at what was expected of eleven-year-olds at the Academy.

I had asked Jane to get into contact with Starset a few days prior to my unexpected meeting with Diana. Starset had been a student at the Academy and had graduated with decent grades, and I was certain that she could be of help. I had asked her questions regarding the system, trying to figure out as much as I could about the school before I attended myself.

From what I had managed to gather, the grade that you ended up getting on the written exam (assuming you passed) would determine your opponent for the one on one battle. Equally gifted students would be put against each other, and those matches were always regarded as professional tournaments.

All the students gathered in the main arenas, their eyes glued on the potential candidates that would be known as the most powerful of the school. I knew Asthia would be fighting in one of those matches, and if I was trying to avoid attention, I had to settle for a low score.

I sighed, grabbing the small pencil-like stick that was distributed amongst the students. I could hear the furious scribbling of the hundreds of people around me, the occasional grumble breaking the silence.

--

I heard the same chime of the bell a few hours later, indicating the end of the exam. Most students had left beforehand due to them finishing the exam earlier, and the only ones who remained were those who had most likely failed.

I got up, handing my paper to Yu at the front desk. He looked at me, clearly suspecting something.

"You forgot your name," he said to me just as I was leaving. I smiled.

"Sorry, sir," I apologized, taking back the exam and scribbling my name at the top. He looked at it curiously.

"Jay Cadmium?" he muttered as I left the room, making sure he didn't have time to ask any more questions. I doubted my identity would remain a secret for very long, but I trusted the secrecy that Yu would maintain about who I was.

Announcing that I was Darck would be problematic. The masked adventurer had recently become a celebrity across Eloria, known as the only remaining survivor of a party wipe. If the campus were to learn how I was, then I could kiss a normal school life goodbye in an instant.

I also had to decide which elements I would be using during my years at school. I didn't want to use more than two, and sticking to simple elements would be preferable too.

In terms of my abilities with ice and lightning, I was now above average for even an AA-rank. That being said, my ability to maximize my potential with the elements was limited, effectively hindering what I was able to do.

If I was able to acquire a decent level of skill on all of my elements and learn how to smoothly transition between each of them, then I was sure my overall potential would boost tremendously.

The battle stage would be commencing tomorrow, with the bigger matches taking place at the same time as the smaller ones. I approached the billboard that was showing the scores. I was amazed that they were able to correct so many papers in a matter of minutes, but my guess was that magic was somehow involved to speed up the process.

I looked through the list, smiling at the familiar names.

ASTHIA DARCK: 98/100

DIANA IMANIA: 95/100

I chuckled, a weird sense of pride swelling inside me. I looked all the way down, finding my name at the bottom of the list.

JAY CADMIUM: 50/100

My eyes shifted towards the timetable for the matches, noticing that my fight would take place at the same time as Diana's. I was slightly disappointed I wouldn't see the Princess utilize her Holy abilities offensively, but at least I would be able to watch Asthia's match.

I had never seen Asthia utilize an element during my life here on Auroria, and I felt a deep excitement growing within me at the chance to finally witness it. I had suspicions as to what elements she would be using during the fight, and it was also an element I had never seen in action before due to its natural rarity amongst humans. I was fully aware of what Asthia could do, but I believed she would be selective with what she used. If there was one element that would strike a sense of awe and fear in the hearts of all the spectators, then there really was only one logical choice.

Infernal.