Entrance Ceremony
Entrance Ceremony
Once we were inside the main gate...
"Wow!"
Manuel's mouth fell open as he stared through the carriage window at the vast grounds and buildings.
'This is no joke.'
Even to me, who had seen massive university campuses in my past life, the Royal Academy was astonishing.
There was the beautifully landscaped hedge maze, the sprawling training grounds, facilities tucked behind perimeter walls, buildings more than five stories tall, and even a tower in the center that rose dozens of stories into the sky.
With buildings over five stories tall practically nonexistent in the capital, it was all the more astonishing.
"I heard that people with magic-type abilities put a lot of effort into building this, but I didn't expect it to be this impressive."
"There are even rumors that an Archmage was brought in to help construct the central tower."
At Manuel and the butler's words, I looked up at the towering spire in the distance.
A circular high-rise like the ones I'd seen in my past life rose into the sky, though it went by the simple name of a 'tower'.
No matter how I looked at it, it was far too tall to belong in this world.
An Archmage, huh... Did they mean one of the Heroes from the Great War?
As I reminisced about the Heroes of the Great War era, the carriage passed various facilities and pulled up in front of a grand building.
It was a massive marble building whose exterior resembled a sacred temple.
But it wasn't a religious structure. It was the Academy's central auditorium, where the entrance ceremony for the incoming freshmen would be held.
It was used for large-scale events, and everyone arriving at the Academy was heading there now.
The carriage stopped. After the butler stepped down, I got out first.
Everyone around us turned to stare at me.
"It's the Gracia ducal house."
"I heard their second son is entering this year."
"Then is the one who just got out the second young lord?"
"Probably not. They said the second young lord didn't undergo a physical awakening. That guy looks like a physical ability user or a knight."
"Then who is he?"
Even without deliberately channeling mana to my ears, I could hear the whispers around me clearly.
As expected of a renowned ducal family in the Kingdom, everyone knew the name.
And while everyone knew Manuel was enrolling, no one knew I was entering the Academy, too.
I'd heard that discrimination between legitimate and illegitimate children was even worse in the capital. Stepping into the Academy and facing that reality right away brought a bitter smile to my face.
'There's no need to draw attention right from the start.'
I quietly moved to stand behind the butler, who was waiting beside the carriage door.
It made me look like an attendant waiting for Manuel to step out next. The butler gave me an approving look, and the crowd's attention shifted away from me and back to the carriage.
Then Manuel stepped down.
"It's Young Lord Manuel!"
"The second young lord, right?"
The crowd buzzed.
He wasn't the ducal heir, but he was still the Duke's second son, and his mother, the Duchess, hailed from a high-ranking marquisate. It was only natural that everyone's attention would gather on him.
'When Brother Simon enrolled, it must have been insane.'
If even the second son drew this much attention, I could easily imagine what it had been like when the ducal heir arrived.
As Manuel stepped out of the carriage, exclamations of admiration rang out from the murmuring crowd.
The moment he stepped out, Manuel looked like a prince straight out of a romance manhwa.
His resplendent attire, restrained smile, and dignified gestures made his high-noble background blatantly obvious, even without the ducal house's backing.
The ducal family's upbringing really was something else.
Even a pathetic guy like Manuel could pull off a look like this. I almost wanted to give him a grand round of applause in my head.
Manuel surveyed his surroundings, then glanced at me, the corners of his mouth curling slightly.
'Sigh, look at him enjoying himself.'
Even if the packaging changed, Manuel was still Manuel.
"Then, let us head inside."
Once the carriage pulled away, Manuel composed himself and strode toward the auditorium.
I followed him, with the butler trailing after me.
As I followed Manuel, the onlookers began to wonder who I was. But a sudden shout made everyone turn their heads.
Manuel and I turned, too, as we made our way toward the auditorium.
"Make way for the carriage of Her Highness Princess Aisha De Carlos! Bow your heads in respect to the authority of the Royal Family!"
For the first time in this world, I witnessed a sight reminiscent of my past life: carriages parting to the left and right before coming to a sudden halt.
The carriages behind us hastily pulled over to either side of the road.
Then an extravagant carriage came slicing right through the center.
A man in formal court robes, seated next to the driver, was shouting the announcement at the top of his lungs.
The crowd scrambled to clear the way and bowed low.
Commoners dropped to both knees and pressed themselves to the ground, while nobles lined both sides of the street and bowed their heads.
I bowed my head along with them.
Though I was an illegitimate son, I had undergone an awakening, so I didn't need to prostrate myself on the ground like the commoners.
The discriminatory social structure felt deeply uncomfortable compared to my past life, but at least I didn't have to get my knees dirty. That wasn't a bad perk.
But right now, my heart was pounding with anxiety.
I should have left earlier or later. To run into her right here...
As I waited with my head bowed, I heard the carriage come to a stop, followed by the sound of people getting out.
"Her Highness Princess Aisha De Carlos is passing through! Show your respect!"
The loud voice bellowed once more.
Originally, the Founding King who established the Academy had issued a royal decree stating that, once enrolled, everyone—royalty and nobility included—was simply a student of the Academy.
It was an order issued for the sake of education and uniting the Kingdom, but I'd heard that, as time passed, power dynamics had become intricately tangled even within the Academy walls.
Still, the royal decree was upheld on the surface. Otherwise, royalty, nobility, and commoners would never be able to attend classes together.
But since the entrance ceremony hadn't officially taken place yet, everyone had no choice but to bow to the Princess's procession.
Because of that, I could feel people passing in front of me as I kept my head lowered.
If I spread my mana around, I could easily tell who was walking by, but in a place crawling with royalty, high nobles, and elite knights, such an action would never go unnoticed.
So I just kept praying desperately in my heart.
'Just pass by. Pass by. Please just keep walking. Don't talk to me, don't recognize me, just keep going.'
But the approaching footsteps came to a dead stop right in front of me.
'Damn it!'
"Lord Alex?"
A young girl's voice—the same one I'd heard not long ago—rang out right in front of me.
"It is you, right? Raise your head."
I'm screwed. I am definitely screwed. Even though everyone had their heads lowered, I could vividly feel all eyes fixed on this spot.
I wanted to turn tail and run, but I couldn't dare disobey the Princess's command.
I cautiously raised my head.
"Lord Alex! How wonderful! I was worried I'd have to go into the entrance ceremony without knowing anyone, so let's go in together."
The Princess, still just a little girl, spoke to me with sparkling eyes.
Behind her stood the Royal Knights, along with the royal butler and maids I'd seen at the palace. Beside the Princess, Katrin was looking at me apologetically.
And there was the Princess, looking at me with an innocent smile. But the corners of her eyes curved subtly into a sly crescent.
She did this on purpose. It was definitely intentional.
She hadn't spoken to me out of naive ignorance. She'd addressed me deliberately.
There'd been something subtly off about her when we first met, but this young princess was clearly a total sly fox despite her age.
"Everyone, raise your heads. Since we will all be fellow students now, I won't accept such formal greetings from here on out."
The Princess announced it loudly to the crowd.
Everyone raised their heads. Then, as they looked between the Princess and me, invisible question marks seemed to pop up over their heads.
I've been completely played. My peaceful academy life was officially over.
Seriously, a princess inviting a mere illegitimate son to walk with her meant I was bound to be plunged headfirst into the turbulent waters of capital politics.
"Come on, let's go."
At the Princess's urging, I turned to the side with a troubled expression.
Manuel's eye was twitching, and even the butler looked thoroughly baffled.
"Ah, you must be Young Lord Manuel? Nice to meet you."
At the Princess's words, Manuel flusteredly offered his greetings.
It was the moment the ducal house's stellar upbringing crumbled in an instant.
"Why don't you join us as well, Young Lord? I've heard so much about you from Young Lord Alex."
I haven't said a single word about him, though...
Regardless, Manuel's expression brightened again at the Princess's words, and our group set off toward the auditorium alongside hers.
Ugh, the stares were stinging. It felt like being stabbed with sharp blades.
At this rate, I was guaranteed to become the school's biggest celebrity on the very first day of the entrance ceremony.
'Damn it, suicide. That's the only way.'
There was no way I could get through academy life like this.
I'd never committed suicide before, and the pain of death was horrifying, but I couldn't bear being dragged through these worldly storms.
I made up my mind to commit suicide that night, after the entrance ceremony ended.
With Manuel and the Princess chatting beside me as background noise, I entered the entrance ceremony hall.
At that exact moment, a message popped up before my eyes.
[You have enrolled in the Academy. A new 'Save Point' has been set.]
What?!
The entrance ceremony was eerily similar to, yet subtly different from, the ones I'd experienced in my past life.
Countless people packed into a grand hall with a strong temple-like atmosphere.
Lights resembling magical lamps hung from the ceiling and illuminated the hall, while famous paintings and sculptures adorning all four walls enhanced its grandeur.
Several long tables stood in rows in the center of the hall, with all sorts of incoming freshmen seated on both sides.
From young girls to young adults, from a princess to commoners.
At the back of the hall gathered those who had accompanied the students—their families and retainers.
I was seated at a long table alongside the other freshmen, too.
Ideally, I wanted to sit in an inconspicuous corner, out of sight, but I was now at the table directly in front of the people who appeared to be teachers.
Naturally, it was because the Princess was sitting next to me.
And, on top of that, because of an instructor I recognized, who was waving at the Princess and me from the front.
Katrin, the Princess's aunt, who had been working as a mercenary until recently, was sitting with the other instructors and waving in our direction.
Grit.
The Princess and her aunt were teaming up to throw me under the bus.
On top of that, even the ability that had been helping me had just betrayed me, delivering a blow to the back of my head.
To think a 'Save Point' would be set just for enrolling in the Academy.
This was the first time a 'Save Point' had been created without me dying since Awakening Day.
Counting Awakening Day, it was only the second time in my entire life.
Perhaps this ability to resurrect at a 'Save Point' after death was different from what I'd believed all along.
Until a moment ago, I thought it was just another personal ability, similar to 'inherited ability', and that the 'Save Point' created on Awakening Day had been caused by the inherited ability interfering.
But the 'Save Point' that had just appeared was created completely independently of any ability. Instead of an ability, it had been triggered by a specific event: entering the Academy.
'Does it trigger through events or flags? Is dying just another type of event?'
Nothing was certain yet, but this outcome—so different from my previous assumptions—weighed heavily on my mind.