Chapter 27
Chapter 27
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: Entrance Ceremony (2)
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Entrance Ceremony Day.
The checkpoint entrance to Academy City was bustling with a massive crowd.
Not just the commoners anxiously glancing around,
but also the nobles forcing calm expressions,
and even the royals leisurely watching the inspections.
The sight of people from such different statuses all mixed together in line created a truly unusual scene for onlookers.
Even the nobles who were about to leave soon had to travel together to the checkpoint, so this bizarre procession seemed likely to continue for a while.
And at the very tail end of this checkpoint line was a carriage that had just arrived—
"Here we are! Good luck passing, pretty miss!"
"Thank you! And I'm a guy!"
The door of the rugged carriage swung open, revealing a youthful girl.
"This is... Academy City...!"
The girl, who looked about high school age, clutched a large luggage bag and gazed at the Academy City before her with sparkling eyes.
As the girl with beautiful platinum blonde hair and golden eyes let out a gasp of admiration, surrounding gazes turned toward her.
Immediately after, men captivated by her stunning appearance unwittingly let out exclamations.
"Such a... fool...!?"
Then, people who 'recognized' her outfit screamed in unison.
"A guy's uniform?"
"...Guy?"
"He's a guy?"
No one knew which school's uniform it was, but the girl was wearing a male uniform.
'Good. Everyone sees me as a guy.'
Meanwhile, the girl, who had been secretly eavesdropping on the voices around her, let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Having to disguise herself as a boy for certain reasons, she had worried her disguise might be seen through right away, but contrary to her fears, the reactions around her weren't bad.
"No way, a guy?"
"Why is that a guy?"
"Oh, God..."
The people staring at the girl all reacted with utter disbelief.
Her appearance was somewhat androgynous, but her natural beauty made it far from ambiguous.
Yet, the moment they saw her, people were instantly convinced she was a boy.
As if under some kind of spell.
Those under the collective hypnosis each showed their own reactions.
"Unbelievable!"
"A kid this pretty is a boy!"
"God is dead...!"
Of course, the resulting dissonance was borne by the people around her who were staring.
"Excuse me~. Is this the line to enter Academy City?"
"Huh? Oh, yes! Just wait here."
"Thank you~"
Captivating the man ahead with her bright smile, the girl ignored the ensuing wails from the men behind her and gazed at Academy City with shining eyes.
'This is the Academy City where Mom and Dad went!'
Anticipation, excitement, thrill, and more.
A flood of emotions surged within her, and she instinctively gripped the bracelet on her wrist.
'I'll definitely get in! Watch over me, Mom! Dad!'
It was then.
The girl's gaze, fixed on the front of the line, suddenly shifted forward.
"Huh? W-What's that? Why are those people suddenly...?"
As the girl voiced her confusion at the line suddenly thinning out, a cheerful voice came from behind her.
"You don't know? Those are high nobles. Looks like they got approval from inside. They're going in first."
"High nobles? Isn't Academy City supposed to be equal for everyone?"
The innocent girl asked, and she replied with a laugh.
"Haha! Right! Academy City is equal for all. But we haven't entered yet."
And if they handled entry equally from the start, all sorts of complaints would pile up.
"With so many applicants already, they probably don't want to waste time on nonsense."
From the sound of it, they were giving nobles special treatment until the ceremony, just as they wanted.
Managing tens of thousands of applicants one by one was a waste of time, so Academy City seemed to concede up to this point to avoid trouble.
The girl nodded in agreement.
"Makes sense! With such a tight schedule, they can't waste time on this!"
If the ceremony got delayed over something trivial, it'd be truly heartbreaking, so the girl dramatically pretended to wipe away tears.
"Thanks for telling me! So, your name is...?"
"Camella. Camella Ashborn."
She extended her hand lightly with a smile.
Her bright smile and vivid red hair created a beautiful sight, making the girl gasp in admiration.
"Whoa! Are you a noble?"
"Haha! It's fine. Even nobles from a small barony in the countryside."
"I see! I'm Noah! No family name, so just call me Noah!"
At Noah's words, Camella looked intrigued.
"...I'm surprised. I suspected, but a commoner for real. I thought you were definitely noble."
"Haha! Noble? Not at all!"
"You're so pretty, I assumed. Sorry, Noah."
'Sorry. Actually, I am noble.'
Stopping Camella's light apology, Noah quietly apologized in her heart.
She had heard that revealing her family name here would cause big trouble, so following her dad's advice, Noah had decided to play the commoner.
───
The line waiting for inspection was long, but perhaps because it was an annual event,
the checkpoint staff processed it at an incredibly fast pace.
Thanks to that, Noah was able to enter Academy City without much delay.
"Wow...!"
And at the sight unfolding before her, Noah let out a gasp of awe.
In the sky, countless mages flew about,
while on the ground, fast-moving iron masses dominated the streets.
Moreover, magic circles of unknown purpose were embedded everywhere throughout the city.
It felt like stepping into another world.
"Amazing..."
Camella, who had gone through inspection with her, also couldn't stop marveling at the city.
"Is that the Larmore Magic Barrier Formation?"
"Wait, Lilken Dor's Hexagram Formation too?"
"Whoa! Even Adelia's Jewel Magic Circle?!"
Especially since she was a magic specialist, she kept exclaiming at the magic formations adorning the city.
"Camella, Camella."
"S-Sorry, Noah. Got too excited."
"It's okay. More importantly, we should hurry."
The crowd that had already passed inspection was forming a stream in one direction of the city.
Heading that way would surely lead to the ceremony venue.
Pulling the reluctant Camella along almost by force, Noah dove into the crowd.
───
The entrance ceremony was held in a massive stadium at one corner of the city.
"Eek..."
"This isn't a field anymore; it's an arena."
Faced with the crowd filling the stadium, Noah and Camella looked daunted.
Having to push through all these people for the ceremony...
As Camella gazed at the masses, a small anxiety bloomed in her heart.
And right then, Noah grabbed her hand.
"...Noah?"
"It's okay."
As if reading her worries, Noah nodded once and continued.
"You'll definitely pass, Camella."
Under Noah's gaze full of conviction, Camella unwittingly averted her eyes.
"...Thanks, Noah."
『Aah, welcome, aspiring students.』 Her words, muttered softly, were drowned out by the voice that followed.
A cold woman's voice echoed across the entire stadium, drawing the crowd's gazes to the center.
『I am Lee Do-eun, Vice Minister of the Education Department under the Student Council President. All educational programs in Academy City will go through me, so I look forward to working with you.』 『First, everyone gathered here is aspiring for the Combat Department. If you're aiming for another department, please inform the nearby instructors.』 'Come on, even today when it's only Combat Department tests, no one from other departments would come...'
Thinking optimistically, Noah was proven wrong by harsh reality.
"My goodness..."
Whether they hadn't checked the date properly, a few aspirants raised hands and approached instructors.
"Seriously? People who don't even know when the ceremony is?"
"With numbers like this, it happens every year."
Noah couldn't hide her surprise at Camella's words.
『...All done? Then, those still here are all Combat Department applicants.』 Her black hair tied back in a single ponytail, she pushed up her glasses and continued.
『As you know, the entrance ceremony determines if you qualify to enter Academy City. Especially for Combat Department hopefuls, you'll stand at the forefront against the demon race in the future.』 『So I'll say it now: If you can't pass the entrance ceremony, quit being a hero. You'll just die like a dog anyway.』 Her sharp words were met with an angry shout.
"Hey! Who do you think you are, ordering us around? This body will breeze through the entrance ceremony and enroll in Slane Academy in no time! Cut the crap and get to the point!"
A tanned man with blonde hair swaggered toward her.
"Whoa. Only in Academy City do you get proper thugs like this!"
"No, I don't think it's because it's Academy City..."
Camella, spotting the blonde thug, gave an ambiguous reply.
Meanwhile, the Education Vice Minister faced the thug with a flat tone.
『Then, to the point. Before we begin...』 "Whoo~ But you're pretty cute yourself. How about after this, we have some real fun?"
『...Before the entrance ceremony, you must undergo the oath-taking ritual.』 Neatly ignoring the thug, she turned her gaze to one direction.
Not a cold glare at the thug, but eyes burning with fervor and faint reverence.
───!!
"...!"
It was an act of violence.
An invisible, formless power seized the stadium in an instant.
'I have to draw out everything I've got!'
Noah, tasting the power along with the others, broke into cold sweat and desperately circulated her mana and aura.
Moving almost on instinct, she looked around once the oppressive energy eased.
"My goodness..."
People who had been standing fine moments ago were collapsing unconscious.
Most lay on the ground foaming at the mouth, and those barely holding on didn't even have the leisure to survey their surroundings.
Just the aura alone had neutralized most of the aspirants gathered here.
"Camella!"
"Guh!"
Camella beside her was grimacing as if her mana had backlashed.
Rushing to help regulate her circulation, Camella slowly came to.
"...Noah?"
"You okay, Camella?"
"Thanks, Noah."
"What the hell was that...?"
"...Brace yourself, Noah."
Unlike the clueless Noah, Camella seemed to know the reason.
Tensing up, she stared in one direction.
"What you're about to see is the pinnacle of this place."
At the same time, the explosively emanating energy retracted as if it had been a lie.
"...Ah."
Spotting the man who entered through the opened doors, Noah stared blankly at him, not even noticing her own outburst.
Jet-black hair.
Golden eyes holding a chilling aura.
A robust physique screaming extreme training.
And finally, the armband on the shoulder of his black uniform.
Noah felt blood rushing to her face and panicked.
"W-Wha? What's happening?"
Pressing her pounding heart, she fixed her gaze on him.
Undeeterred by over half the stadium crowd collapsed, he walked leisurely, turning his gaze until it met Noah's, then halted.
"Eek!"
As his intense gaze hit her, Noah hurriedly covered her face and turned away, desperately avoiding his eyes.
"Noah?"
"......"
How long did it last?
Until Camella beside her gave a puzzled look, Noah couldn't bring herself to look at him.
Heading to the center, he slowly raised the mic.
『Welcome, gentlemen.』 'What do I do? His voice is cool too.'
Drawn to his deep, resonant voice, she looked up, only for his gaze to turn her way again.
"...!"
But this time it was brief; he quickly looked away and continued.
『I am Yeon Je-seong, Student Council President of Academy City.』 'Student Council President. President.'
『And good work, gentlemen.』 Murmuring in a daze, Noah's eyes widened at the following words.
『The oath-taking ritual is over. The ones who collapsed are eliminated—go home.』