Aurelius awoke to find Valen already up, once again.
"Get up, lazy ass," Valen said upon seeing Aurelius awake.
Aurelius groaned, tempted to roll back over and go back to sleep, but he knew he couldn't. Despite the soft bed making it harder to resist, Aurelius resolved his will and got out of bed.
Excitement surged through him as he anticipated the events of the day. It was Friday, the day of the Orientation and Welcome ceremony, as well as the day when Aurelius would choose his elective options.
Over the past few days, Aurelius had noticed students gradually returning from their end-of-year break. He had spent most of his time with Valen, exploring the campus, visiting the library, or hanging out in his dorm room. Aurelius had gotten the hang of navigating the campus and, strangely enough, started feeling right at home, which was pretty weird since he'd never really had one before.
Aurelius followed Valen out of the dorm room, joining a crowd of students heading towards the cafeteria.
Upon entering the cafeteria, Aurelius quickly surveyed the sight before him. Compared to a few days ago, there was a noticeable difference – namely, there were a lot more people. Lines formed along the counters as people waited for food, and even the upper levels, which Aurelius hadn't needed to access before, were filled with students.
After a while in line, Aurelius managed to get his usual breakfast mix. Looking around the spacious hall, Aurelius soon realized he didn't know where to sit.
"Aurelius! Over here," Valen called out, his voice nearly drowned by the noise in the hall. Aurelius walked over to join Valen.
"Normally," Valen began, "we could eat outside or in our dorm room if it gets too crowded. But today, I want to introduce you to some people." Valen's sly grin accompanied his words.
Aurelius nodded and followed Valen through the hall. Eventually, they arrived at a table where Valen sat, and Aurelius quickly joined him.
To Aurelius' right sat a muscular youth who regarded him with a strange look. Across from Aurelius was a ponytailed girl engrossed in her book, seemingly oblivious to his presence. To the left of the girl sat a skinny boy who frequently glanced at Aurelius, but quickly averted his gaze whenever their eyes met.
As Aurelius settled into his seat, Valen took charge of the introductions.
"Aurelius, meet Rourke," Valen said, gesturing to the muscular youth on Aurelius's right. Rourke acknowledged Aurelius with a nod, his intense gaze fixed on Aurelius.
Valen then directed his attention to the girl with a ponytail across the table. "And this is Nyla," Valen introduced. Nyla briefly lifted her eyes from her book, her deep blue gaze meeting Aurelius's momentarily before returning to the pages. She offered a small smile before immersing herself in her reading once more.
"And last but not least, this is Arlo," Valen gestured to the skinny boy on Nyla's left. Arlo's gaze shifted nervously between Valen and Aurelius, clearly displaying his shy nature.
“Fun fact,” Valen interjected, “Arlo and Rourke happen to be roommates as well.”
“Oh,” Valen continued, addressing the entire group, “this is Aurelius. He's my new dorm mate for this semester. He received a personal invitation to the academy from none other than the headmaster himself.” Valen spoke with pride, patting Aurelius on the back as if he were a proud father.
The last sentence caught the attention of the group. Even Nyla, engrossed in her book, couldn't help but glance at Aurelius, scrutinizing him. Valen's eyes gleamed with satisfaction as he observed the reaction of his friends.
If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
Turning back to Aurelius, he added, "Sorry, Aurelius, my group of friends aren't always the most welcoming to new students."
Aurelius shrugged off Valen's apology, not letting the initial reception affect him too much.
"No worries, Valen. I'm used to finding my place in new environments," Aurelius replied with a reassuring smile and a half-lie. "I'm looking forward to getting to know all of you better."
Rourke, the muscular youth, finally spoke up, his deep voice piercing through the crowded cafeteria atmosphere. "You caught the headmaster's attention, huh? That's not something many can boast about. You must be skilled."
Aurelius rubbed the back of his head, realizing he had fallen into his old habit again. He made a mental note to stop doing that. "Well, not really," he replied, shrugging his shoulders. "I don't possess any elemental magic talents, so I'm not quite sure what caught the Headmaster's attention."
He paused, lost in thought for a moment. Come to think of it, Aurelius hadn't even realized that the Headmaster or anyone else was observing his clash with the Frostfang Wyvern. However, in hindsight, it seemed reasonable to have someone overseeing the fight to ensure everything went smoothly.
Rourke's grin grew as he spoke, clearly intrigued by the conversation. "So, you're another mundane weapon user, huh?"
Aurelius raised an eyebrow and turned his attention to Rourke. "Are you one too?" he asked, genuinely curious.
Rourke's smile faltered slightly, and he nodded, gesturing towards Nyla. "Yeah... My sister and I," he began, acknowledging Nyla's presence, "we both hail from House Gadaran. Unfortunately, out of the five siblings, I'm the only one who didn't inherit any magical abilities."
Aurelius' eyebrows shot up in surprise. House Gadaran was among the few noble families he had actually heard of, and their magical lineage had quite the reputation. "Hold on, both of you are from House Gadaran?" he exclaimed, glancing back and forth between Rourke and Nyla. "And also, I never realized magic was that widespread to have 4 out of 5 children possessing a talent for it."
This time, Nyla looked up from her book and answered Aurelius's curiosity. "Yes, we do come from House Gadaran," she confirmed, her expression blank. "Although our older brother tends to steal most of the limelight. As for the prevalence of magic in noble families, it's because they actively seek out marriages between individuals with strong magical bloodlines. This increases the likelihood of the next generation inheriting magical abilities."
Aurelius absorbed the information, his mind racing with understanding. "I see," he responded thoughtfully.
Nyla's gaze narrowed slightly as she asked, "What about you, Aurelius? Do you have any ties to a noble lineage?”
"Yeah, um, I don't come from any fancy noble house. Truth is, I'm from this little backwater village," he confessed, his words stumbling a bit. It seemed like Nyla was a little ticked off and Aurelius was unsure what he had done to set her off like that.
Nyla seemed poised to ask Aurelius another question, but before she could, Valen interjected with an exclamation of surprise. "Wow! A non-magic sword-wielding commoner who managed to catch the attention of the Headmaster!" Valen's tone carried a hint of warning as he glanced at Nyla. "I dare say that's going to make for a unique combination in this academy filled with nobles."
Aurelius's discomfort grew as he became the center of attention. Not only were his tablemates staring at him, but nearby tables had also begun to turn their heads at Valen's outburst.
"Yeah, well, enough about me," Aurelius interjected, trying to shift the conversation away from himself. “What about you guys, how did you guys get to the academy?”
----------------------------------------
Aurelius spent another solid 30 minutes conversing with his new group of classmates, getting to know them better. It turned out that Nyla was a skilled life-mage, a fairly common but highly respected magical affinity among the High-Elven community. Arlo, surprisingly, also chimed in from time to time. He turned out to also be a commoner, although he hailed from a wealthy merchant family. However, he also possessed a rare magical talent for metallurgy, allowing him to manipulate metals with extraordinary magical precision.
"Well, I guess it's time to head out," Valen remarked, glancing at the clock on a nearby wall. “The opening ceremony is scheduled to begin in approximately 30 minutes.”
True to Valen's words, students gradually started to leave the cafeteria. Aurelius followed Valen and the rest of the group as they made their way toward the ceremony location.
The opening ceremony took place outdoors at the heart of the campus. Rows upon rows of chairs were neatly arranged, facing a stage adorned with a beautiful image of the academy.
Aurelius and his group managed to find an unoccupied row and settled down together. As Aurelius looked around, he couldn't help but be genuinely impressed at the sight before him.