Chapter 14 - 14: Lady Yorhime Von Fritz?

Inside a room on the top floor of the Hall of Grand Mage Yorhime Von Fritz, Aron was seated on a sofa with a hot cup of coffee settled on a table in front of him. On the sofa opposite him, the young lady who introduced herself as "Lady" Yorhime Von Fritz was seated in an elegant posture with her gaze firmly fixed on him.

"So just how do you plan on making me meet the arch-mage?" Aron asked in a curious manner as he reached for the cup placed in front of him.

"I'm sure you understand meeting a figure such as the arch-mage is no simple task. Having them perform a favor for you is even more of a challenge. So before I continue with my proposal, you should know you'll need patience to succeed." Lady Yorhime explained while still maintaining her aura of elegance.

"As long as I get what I want in the end, I don't care much for how long I may need to wait." Aron replied before leaning back into the sofa slightly.

'Getting rid of the luna mana comes before finding a way back to Limbo, this is proving to be more tedious than I expected...' Aron thought to himself as he faced the now smiling Lady in front of him.

"I'm glad you think that way. Now tell me, are you familiar with Galos Academy?" She asked while showing a sly smile to which Aron simply shook his head.

"No, not in particular. Does it serve a purpose in your plan?" Aron replied honestly while shaking his head slowly side to side.

"It doesn't simply serve a purpose, it's the first step towards meeting the arch-mage. You see, the Galos academy is the oldest magical institution in all of Pesia. It's produced some of the greatest mages to ever live and is headed by the arch-mage."

"Throughout history, only aristocratic humans were allowed entry into the academy. But recently, thanks to the arch-mage the academy is now open to all and any who pass the requirements and selection phases. Whether poor or rich, human or elf, man-beasts even. So for the first time, Galos academy is recruiting openly and we are both going to be entering. Any questions?" Lady Yorhime placed her cup on the table and crossed one leg over the other as she waited for Aron's response.

"I do have a few but the most important one is why trust a stranger to carry out this with?" Aron asked bluntly and caused Lady Yorhime to chuckle lightly while covering her light pink lips.

"Well to be quite honest with you, I don't trust you, I'm simply desperate. So far, you're the only one who meets all the requirements for someone to partner with in this plan. Strong, Above average intelligence, young, an interest that aligns with my own and most importantly, someone without allegiance to any nation." Lady Yorhime showed a bright victorious smile as she explained this, as if everything was finally falling in place for her.

'Not like I have much choice either. I'm better off with someone without allegiance to any nation as well. If she becomes a burden I can simply abandon her. As for the academy, if it is as she describes, then it will be the perfect place to prepare myself until I find a way back to Limbo. New knowledge, Artifacts, Pawns and some useful connections if possible.' Aron showed a small smirk as this thought crossed his mind.

"I see no reason to refuse what you're offering Yorhime." Aron answered plainly while Lady Yorhime showed a mischievous smirk.

"You've made the right choice. Jerem will lead you to the other contestants on the bottom floor to carry out the attribute tests. You'll need to record at least a B for you to stand out. Galos academy is a place where the strong will be respected and the weak stepped on. So it's important to gain as much reputation as you can before that. Oh and please refer to me as Ariel from now on. My identity is somewhat of a delicate matter, I'm sure you understand." Lady Yorhime or rather Ariel, instructed momentarily before standing from the seat.

As Aron nodded and did the same, Jerem walked into the room and gave a low bow. No words were exchanged and Aron simply left the room with Jerem leading the way, which left only Ariel and the man who had claimed to be Lord Yorhime.

"Recording a B isn't a simple feat my Lady, are you sure he's worth risking starting the plan now?" The man asked Ariel and she simply chuckled.

"It's not about whether he's worthy or not. This opportunity is simply too precious to let go by. It would have been much more difficult finding an aristocrat willing to work with me. Now that the academy is open to all, I simply cannot delay any further. Please make all the necessary preparations, we'll need to set off as soon as he's done with the test." Ariel instructed in a commanding tone and the man bowed.

'She's letting her emotions get the better of her but it's not my place to comment.' The man thought to himself while nodding at her on the surface.

"It shall be done milady." He replied in a polite and respective manner while giving a low bow.

Meanwhile, Jerem had led Aron to a large hall on the ground floor. It was the same hall they had previously simply passed when going to the office on the top floor.

They where many filled seats in the hall whilst the stage still remained empty. But as Jerem appeared, all gazes turned to him and the figure next to him.

"Is the test finally beginning?"

"Another contestant? He looks kind of strong..."

"He's being led to the front, must be an important person..."

One after another the contestants began to comment their thoughts on Jerem and Aron as they walked to the front of the hall, closer to the stage.

"Please Sir Aron, be seated here. Lord Yorhime will be arriving soon and the selection will begin." Jerem politely said to Aron as they arrived at the first roll of seats.

"Is he the only one who will test all these contestants?" Aron asked after taking a seat and looking around the hall.

"Ha. You must really be from a remote area. Everyone knows the Lord Yorhime just needs to observe to ensure everything goes accordingly. But don't worry, if you feel lost you can ask me anything alright?" A blonde haired young man with a wide grin had stated this sincerely to Aron who simply gave a nod in return before ignoring him entirely.

'He doesn't seem like the talkative type. Still, to think even this guy who caused the commotion in the que coming into the city is also a contestant. Crap, I'm doing it again, Focus Lucas!' The young man next to Aron scolded himself mentally before turning his attention forward towards the stage with a straight face, just like Aron had been doing.

As time passed, more contestants began to appear one after another in the hall and got seated. During this time, Aron had still remained seated without uttering a word or turning his head as uninterested in the any of the individuals that showed up.

With more contestants present, the hall began being filled with noise as numerous contestants began conversing with each other excitedly.

This noise didn't last long however as a robed figure walked onto the stage and clapped his hands once to gain everyone's attention.

"Dear contestants, I can see you're all very excited to be given the chance to gain entry into the famed Galos Academy. Some of you will be able to achieve your dreams of gaining wealth, power, fame and whatever else it is you may seek. But before you're even considered worthy of participating in the test phase, you must pass selection. Today will determine whether or not you are fit to even try entering the academy." The robed man's words sparked both fear and excitement in the many youths present in the hall.

"Those of you here today are to be tested for courses that require combat expertise, strength, magical talent, and many others. Those pursuing scholar based programs have already been selected separately by other means."

"As for you all, you are free to take any one or all of the tests being carried out here if you wish to do so. You will be graded from F which is Failure to S which is a Perfect. You need at least a C to pass. I hope that's clear because we're now beginning. When your name is called please climb to the stage and select the attributes you wish to be tested on" The robed man declared in a hearty tone before stepping to the far end of the stage.

'For an academy deemed to be the best in this world, their tests seem to be far too easy. But I suppose even the less talented contestants can be of use to the right people.' Aron assessed mentally as he considered the reasoning behind the tests.

As Aron was still in thought, Lord Yorhime or rather the man who acts as Lord Yorhime appeared on the stage with a bright smile and turned in Aron's direction before speaking.

"Aron, please come up to the stage" the man suddenly called out while still maintaining a bright smile on his face.

'Hmm? Lord Yorhime is testing the contestants personally? That's strange, that kid must be someone important then' The robed man who had passed the announcements thought to himself with a curious expression on his face.

"I'm first?" Aron said in a low tone as he stood from his seat and went forward confidently.

As the other contestants, they couldn't help but look at Aron differently due to that one simple call out.

'A lot of us came before him, why was he called first?...'

'Are they calling out the strongest people first? He does look like he's talented...'

The contestants had varying thoughts over the reasoning behind Aron being called up first but none were accurate. They could only watch and see what would happen during Aron's attempt.

"Alright then Aron, which and how many attributes do you want to be tested on?" The acting Lord Yorhime asked with a small smile.

"Only one should suffice, strength."