[Year: ??? October 23]
Academy of United Orders.
It's a place where numerous youth's from all parts of the Rift gather to learn, get stronger and unite themself with all kinds of people.
In it, people of exceptional talent can be found no matter where you look, filled to the brim with an army of untamed monster's that can turn on you at any given moment.
Although many had the chance to attend it, there was no way that more than a thousand people would have enough money to sign up for it. After all, to have something of great quality, you need to pay a great price.
This was the place that Elizabeth wanted Vlad to attend at all costs.
She signed him up a few days after they started to train swordsmanship and somehow, it worked. Being a famous Delver, she had alot of influence over who could join the academy. Although it was still a mystery how she coughed up the money needed for it since said she was in retirement.
"Carefull." Her gentle voice reached Vlad's ears who fell in thought.
He almost bumped into some passerby who was walking in the same direction as him. However Elizabeth that walked with with him side by side managed to pull Vlad away just in time.
'Reminds me why i hate to go to crowded places.' His brows furrowed.
The academy was supposedly located in the middle of Heathgrove which he entered for the first time since his reincarnation.
It was just like he imagined, a city.
Dissapointed by the fact that it didn't differ from the cities in his past life, he looked around curiously at the people that surrounded them.
He was relieved, to see that his hair or eye color wouldn't stand out felt better than he thought.
Even if the surroundings haven't changed much, the people were different. They carried themself however they liked, wearing any clothes they wanted or with colored hair that seemed unnatural but also didn't.
'it's strange.' He thought.
Vlad didn't expect for something as stupid as looks to matter to him, but after the month he spent with Elizabeth who was like a walking goddess, it seemed that he unconsciously started to care more about his outer appearance.
Maybe the fact that he wasn't standing out was turning out to be a bad thing.
"We're here."
Elizabeth said, this time her voice came from behind Vlad who was too focused on his surroundings to notice her stop a few meters away from him.
'What is she doing?'
He looked confused at her, while she waved her hand like a mom sending his kid for the first time to school.
Vlad didn't react, staring at her retreating figure that slowly dissapeared into the growing crowd of people. Staying in place, he stared in the direction where the crowd was going.
'!'
A loud ringing rang out in his ears, like a bundle of bells being shaken in an empty space.
He clutched at his head trying to muffle the sound of them, but it didn't change a thing. Noticing that no one else heard the ringing, he looked around for anything that might have made that sound.
And right as his eyes opened fully, a system window popped up in front of him.
Blinking every time the bells rung, a line of text he never saw before had appeared below the text he had already was familiar with.
'What is that?'
[Mission: Pass the entrance exam to the 'Academy of United Orders'.]
[Rewards: Mana Awakening.]
[Time: 00:59:53]
'Mission?'
Elizabeth never mentioned something like missions appearing in the system.
It's only purpose was to show how much progress someone made and nothing else. But right in front of his eyes, something that even a tier 3 Delver didn't know about, appeared in front of him without an explanation.
What caught his attention however, was the reward that it granted.
'Mana awakening?!?!'
People from the Rift weren't actually born with the ability to use mana, it was something that they would get later in life after familiarizing themself with it.
Most would experience it after reaching the year of fifteen or sixteen, but Vlad who was twenty years old, it was something that wouldn't happen naturally even after consuming most of the knowledge he recieved.
'That's such a cheat! If i just manage to pass the exam, then my life would be two... no, Ten times easier! I just have to do it as fast as possible before the timer runs out.'
The mission's timer had already started showing that less than an hour was left for him to pass the exam, yet he wasn't even at the academy building. He could only come up with one logical explanation.
'It already starte-'
- Buzz
Interrupting his thoughts, the white noice of a microphone filled the entire area making most people cover their ears.
'What the fuck!'
Vlad screamed internally at how much his eardrums we're being tortured today, the buzz got quieter overtime as everyone raised their heads.
"No way.." Someone exclaimed amidst the crowd, his voice filled with shock.
Another person followed up, pointing a finger at the old man that hovered above us, screaming in excitement.
"I-it's him, It's the headmaster!"
"Where?!"
"Up There!"
"He's flying?!?"
"Testing, testing." The headmaster's voice came out mixed with the buzz of the microphone.
- Akhem
"Greetings Everyone!" He said while spreading his arms wide.
He wore a thick gray winter coat that fell down to his feet, his long gray hair falling down his back just like his beard that was tied in a knot. His warm eyes scanned the crowd that gathered below him, his tone even inviting.
"It's so good to see that so many children are eager to learn. Let me introduce myself first, since some of you may not know who i am exactly." The headmaster bowed down in the air. It looked ridiculous from others point of view, it was as if he was simply bending down to look at them.
"My name is Eugene Groisure, the headmaster of AoUO, otherwise known as the Academy of United Orders."
Just as he said that, a wooden staff as tall as him with a glowing purple gem on it's end materialized in the palm of his hand.
With a simple swing of the staff, like a cover being taken off from it, the air seemed to part itself revealing a building as big as a castle behind him.
"This is the place that most of you will attend in the not so far future." He said with pride mixed in his voice, praising the might of the academy that even Vlad couldn't understand.
'Why is it so big..'
He never saw a building as big as the one that appeared above them, even the residential building he lived in couldn't be compared in size, it was maybe two or even three of them mashed together and that would just barely compare.
The headmaster waited for the crowd's whispers to get louder. His face suddenly changed to that of a frown as he started to speak slowly.
"But.." He scratched the back of his head. "It looks like this year we got too many applicants."
People got louder, not even trying to hide their emotions after hearing that the money they paid just to enter the academy, would go to waste.
"That's Impossible!"
"What do you mean too many?! Just look at the academys size and say it again!"
"Just get rid of the poor people!"
They got more absurd each time, it seemed like he intended for something like this to happen. For these teenagers to get agitated so quickly meant that they haven't experienced proper defeat, the arrogant attitudes they held while trying to find a way of avoiding being singled out was just absurd.
Headmaster seemingly flustered, feigned a cough before trying to ease the atmosphere.
"Now, now, wait a moment please. That doesn't mean that we will favor a certain group of students, this is an Academy of United Order after all. Which is why our council came up with a way to pick out the best students."
Everyone got quiet, only occasional whispers of unconvinced applicant's appeared amidst the crowd. Headmaster satisfied with how obedient everyone was, raised his staff in the air. Blue translucent strings started to come out from the crystal at it's top.
They started to fall down around the group, creating a dome of sorts that closed in on everyone.
"We decided to conduct an 'entrance exam' that will evaluate how well you can do in certain condition's aswell as test your quick thinking."
The crowd got quiet, not a single murmur escaping anyone's lips as they stared at the thick string cage that fell over them. Except for a single person who stood out from the rest.
"Hey old man." In a tone that was neither respectfull nor disrespectfull, a man who was twice the size of a regular person with muscles that threatened to tear his clothes, called out to headmaster.
He gave him a side-eye.
"How many people can join the prestige class this year?"
This question seemed to puzzle Headmaster Eugene, who fell in thought for a moment, pulling on his long gray beard.
"Only twenty people." He declared while also looking at other students.
"There will only be twenty people in Prestige class. No more and No less."
"Bwahahahaha!"
The guy started to laugh like a maniac, grabbing onto his belly as if it was the funiest thing he heard in a while. He stomped his feet like a wild beast before wiping the tears from his eyes.
A minute later, satisfied with his laugh, his sharp gaze scanned everyone around him.
"Then il make sure only twenty stay until the end." He declared, loud enough for everyone inside the cage to hear it.
Vlad noticed people shake from fear, but he didn't know what was so special about this guy. He was just a brute that didn't know his place. Maybe others knew his identity, resulting in such reaction.
'Doesn't matter'
He was only focused on passing the entrance exam so that he could have a chance to recieve the Mana Awakening he needed for the future.
After the brute finished his declaration, the Headmaster shook his head in dissapointment before shaking his staff.
The string cage started to gain a faint glow, slowly turning in a bright shade of blue like a star that could blind those who stared too long. In just a mere moment, just as fast as it happened, the glow dissapeared while the strings collapsed in the air.
Where the group of students was hidden behind the string cage, was now an empty space with no soul in sight.
'Kids these days sure are lively.'
The headmaster smirked to himself, enjoying the warmth of the sun.
He wanted to see what kind of talents were brought this time.