"Hey! Are you a senior?"

A young boy approached another while walking.

"Yes?"

Seeing the boy, the young man that looked a little older said with a little bit annoyed expression.

"Do you know where is the student gathering hall?"

"Sigh…. Hey, freshmen. Don't you have a map?"

"I do, but it is my first time reading one, so I lost my way, kind of."

"….. Really?"

"Yes. Please, if you know the way, please show it to me. I don't want to miss the ceremony."

"Okay, okay. Just go this way, and turn right after passing that building. There you will see the student gathering hall."

The upper-classmen said while pointing his finger. 

"Thank you. Have a nice day, senior!"

As he said that, the cheerful young boy left with a smile and started running to the place where the upperclassmen pointed at.

"Fool…"

Though he missed the mocking smile on the upperclassmen's face.

In fact, such dialogues were happening all around the academy.

Since it was the world's best for a reason, the area and land it occupied were huge, making it hard to locate everything. Moreover, considering it was just the first day for those new students, getting lost was a pretty common thing.

And for seniors, making them go somewhere else was a prank that they liked to play on.

Since they liked to see the panicked expression on the freshmen's faces...

Though, of course, not everyone was like that.

No, in fact, it was reversed since those who were able to enter such an academy were pretty talented and smart, so even if they had lost their way, most of them were still able to enter the ceremony before the time limit.

Which was the reason why the hall was filled with a lot of students.

A lot of students who were pretty noisy.

/HOWL/

It could be seen from the noise that was filling the hall.

"Woah! How is your room? Is it good?"

"It is. We even have special training grounds reserved for five people."

"Ah…. I wish I had ranked a bit higher. My dormitory doesn't have such things."

"It is fine. You can use general training grounds. They are better anyway."

As they were talking amongst themselves about the academy, suddenly, a presence made itself known.

It was a girl with pointy ears who was spreading the aura of elegance all around.

With her green hair and yellow eyes that were scanning the crowd while looking down on them, she gave the impression of someone important.

In fact, she was.

Since those elves that were following her from behind were proof of that.

"Isn't she Selanne Glyndon? Princess of the Mirkwood Kingdom?"

"Yeah, she is."

"Woa…. How beautiful."

"Hey, close your mouth. Are you stupid?"

"Okay, okay. Don't pinch me."

As the crowd was talking amongst themselves, the girl, whose name was Selanne, walked further and further until she reached the first row of the hall.

At this point, there was only one person that was standing beside her.

A man with pointy ears whose face was as hard as a rock without showing any signs of emotion.

"Princess."

"You may sit."

As he heard from his princess, the man sat in the corner seat, which was reserved for himself, and the girl kept walking until she had reached her own seat.

A seat that was in the middle of the row.

Well, it was not directly in the middle, but two seats beside it.

As she sat, the crowd turned their attention to the door again.

Because this time, another pair of two entered.

A girl with fiery red hair that had a sharp posture and a girl with blue hair with a relaxed expression on her face, like she was enjoying the attention she was getting.

As the two of them entered, naturally, they drew the attention of the crowd.

Because the way they carried themselves and the aura of being strong they were spreading was enough to show others that they were important people. 

"Aren't they the heirs of Wraslugia Kingdom's dukedoms?"

"Indeed."

"Then, the red one must be Emma Augustride."

Since even before they entered the academy, the reputation of the rising new generation had already spread to the world.

Because of the way it was presented, this generation was stacked with talented people, and coupled with the new inventions to communicate, spreading reputation was pretty easy.

"Wow, she looks really strong."

"Yeah, she was really brutal at that time. Her sword was pretty sharp. I couldn't even stand against her one minute."

"Then, the girl beside her is-"

"She is Celia Leafsnow, Daughter of Ice Witch."

"Ah…. So, it was her."

There were a variety of reactions coming from the students inside, but two girls ignored them and went to their seats.

Seats that were in the front row and sat down respectively.

After that, again, the noise filled the hall.

Until another pair of two entered.

This time it was a man and a woman with yellow hair, and both of them had a smile on their faces while entering.

The girl was looking at everyone with an innocent smile showing her beauty while her green eyes were scanning the crowd.

And the boy, whose blue eyes were glaring at others like a warning.

"Saintess."

"And the son of sword saint."

"They are together?"

That was all they thought at that moment because everyone knew who the pair was.

Some exclaimed in surprise, while others were looking at the pair with envy.

As they both passed the crowd and reached their seats, they nodded their heads to the pair of girls that came before them while engaging in a conversation.

However, the blonde boy's eyes were on the princess of the Elven Kingdom.

Like a hungry beast….

Though the girl in the subject just ignored him after a hateful glare…..

Just like this, the front seats were already filled.

Aside from two.

Two seats were in the middle of the row.

And just as the hall was finally filled with the students, the crowd got silent again.

Not because someone entered.

Because they felt something.

Since everyone here polished their skills, even if they were not ranked high, they could still be considered good outside.

Which made them able to feel the aura that was coming from outside.

Someone strong was on the way….

Someone strong with a very dark intent released…..

And as they turned their attention to the entrance, they saw a girl and a young boy approaching…..

-------------------------------------------A/N--------------------------------------

I know the pace was slowed but bear with it for a while. 

After my semester ends, the chapter release will be increased. Right now, I am trying to study my finals. 

Hope you liked the chapters….