Since Octagon disregarded things like nobility inside its premises having my butler here would be wrong so I ordered Farkas to hide and Aria to go invisible and then I called, "Who is it, come in"
And the moment, the door opened my eyes widened in surprise and the only thought that came to my mind was: Man!, can I get a break? it hasn't even been 24 hours since I came here!
Well, it was none other than Paul, the guy from the morning who came to pick up and inform Celestia about the club Selection activity. I was surprised to see him, however, his face showed no such emotion, it was expressionless, I think cause, I kind of "kidnapped" the President, he is just too much in shock. But then he asked, "Why is your face like that, do we know each other?"
"No, no, don't you know me?" was the only thing I could say.
"Should I know you?" he replied. I was just, there was nothing I could say and it made sense, I don't look like the "most interesting person in the room" kinda guy and when i front of you there are all those cool people, I fade away even faster, so it makes sense that someone who works with Celestia might not even regard me as an important individual, I mean even I wouldn't do that.
"No, it's good you don't, So why are you here exactly?" I seriously wanted to change the scope of the conversation.
"All the first years are summoned down in the Dorm Hall, you will be told the rules and other stuff you need to keep in mind here, I am the messenger, and your Senior, Paul Ashenfeld, nice to meet you, your name?" He asked, disinterestingly.
"I am so sorry, for my late introduction, Senior, I am Railan Braveheart, son of Sir Simon Braveheart, and as you already know, first year at this academy, it's great to know you too," I said in one big breath bowing my head down. Man, legit it feels so boring to every time go and give my introduction, and that too with such formality, it felt good while reading it, but speaking it every time is very boring, to be frank.
"Oh, so you are that person, hanh, nice to know you too," he said, I could feel as if he wasn't disinterested anymore.
"Come down, fast, there are many exciting first-years this semester in the college!" he said as left the room, laughing.
I knew why he was doing that, it's one last thing, one last event that was supposed to happen today and the beginning of the first arc, The Dorm Games.
Well, today, the most athletic of the students would be picked by the Dorm Leaders of their respective dorms, I mean I shouldn't call my room a dorm room, its technically so big and a single person lives in each room, its more of a hostel room setting, but in this world, it's known as a Dorm room so let's just go with the flow you know!
So, I belong to the dorm of Avaloria, cause I am a resident of the Kingdom of Avaloria, Siddhanth, and Salem belong to StormGarde Dorm as Siddhanth was the child of a Fisherman from Stormgarde and Salem the Prince of StormGarde, Elena, this is where it gets interesting, Elena is the daughter of the King of Sylvanara and niece to 2nd prince who married the daughter of King of Avaloria. Technically, the 2nd Prince does not have a daughter right now and she is the only child of the King, so she is pampered and loved by both the King and the Prince and even the King of Avaloria considers her like her Grandchild, so one can understand how she must have been treated while growing up! It's interesting considering her lineage is so grand and she would represent the Sylvanara as the first year.
If we consider a regular octagon(Mathematical shape), think of each kingdom's capital as the octagon's vertex, and each kingdom expands surrounding the vertex. The Treaty signed by the leaders of all the kingdoms was that instead of each of them trying to conquer the region that falls within the Octagon and fighting each other, they donated some of their land and the scope of conquering that region to build this Academy which is known as the Octagon Academy today, so Octagon is not just an academy, it's like a ninth Kingdom in itself, bounded by the other kingdoms from all sides.
So let me just refresh it all, in short, suppose each kingdom is the vertex of the octagon and The Octagon Academy itself is the center of the Octagon formed by the regions. Now imagine a 2-D map of the continent of Eldoria, so now the distribution of kingdoms is like this, consider Avaloria as the primary vertex, and in a clockwise direction you have Emberlyn, Ironhelm, Celestia, Frostholm, Stormgarde, Drakoria, Sylavanara, and then you finally reach back to Avaloria. Thus, Avaloria, Sylavanara, and Emberlyn have a strong knit together being neighbor kingdoms and similarly, Frostholm is a trusted partner to Stormgarde and Celestia while Drakoria and Ironhelm are important because of their natural reserves and strong forces, thus each kingdom keeps the other in check and essentially bounded by the kingdoms surrounding it, that is why there seems to be "frontal peace" in the world right now, however, this is nothing but the thin layer of ice above, a little quake and everything will topple. This is the reality of the continent of Eldoria.
Well, I already know the future and as anyone could guess, Siddhanth and Dorm Stormgarde Group will win the tournament and the top performers will receive special training to better suit their Crests. However, I am interested in the special training but one doesn't have to win the competition to be selected for that, you just need to prove yourself knowledgable and adaptable, and strong too, so you will be selected, so I just need to maintain myself as a mediocre student here and everything will be fine!
With this thought in mind, I left my room to join the others in the Dorm Hall. I ordered Farkas to go back to the Mansion and that the conversation will be resumed tomorrow evening after my daily
schedule.
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Kalkin arrived at the Halls a little early than others. He took a seat, his gaze wandering across the expansive room. The sight before him was nothing short of breathtaking. It was a space of grandeur and epic proportions, leaving him awestruck.
As he surveyed the surroundings, a torrent of thoughts cascaded through his mind. How could everything within the Academy exude such magnificence? The Hall itself seemed capable of accommodating a multitude, a grand stage ready to embrace the stories of thousands. Yet, he couldn't help but feel a pang of unease. In this vast realm of academia, where each hall seemed to dwarf the ordinary, he couldn't shake the sense of being a small figure in an immense tapestry.
The Academy, he realized, was a realm all its own, a microcosm of grandeur and learning. Here, even the basic necessities held an air of distinction. Separate cafeterias, dining halls, and shops dotted the landscape, each one bearing the mark of excellence from renowned enterprises that spanned various kingdoms. It was as if the Academy had become a world within a world, where only the best and most esteemed found their place. In short, he was overwhelmed by the academy.
However, apart from the stoic exterior he possessed, he had a hidden ability, a product of three decades of enduring hardships on Earth, a remarkable ability—the poker face. It was a shield he had cultivated over time, an invisible mask that concealed the storm of emotions raging within him. No matter what challenges lay ahead, he knew he had to wear this mask, revealing nothing to the world.
As he was busy in his thoughts looking around, a new message popped in front of him:
You have successfully unlocked the passive ability, THE POKER FACE.
Description:
In a world, full of surprises, full of supernatural beings, full of dangers far greater than anyone can imagine, it's impossible not to doubt oneself and be awestruck or even scared for your life. Yet, these are the times that showcase a person's mettle, this ability is a product of your own hard work and resilience.
This ability is a shield and an invisible mask that will keep you calm even in the most dreadful situations. No one will be able to decipher your inner thoughts.
However, as you are young and still don't know the world, this ability is also not mature and ripe, but it will grow as you grow.
Passive Ability: THE POKER FACE
Category: S-grade
Current Level: Low( D+)
Note: It is a mental ability, so it's affected by your own intellectual or cognitive prowess, In case of having too many abilities that consume too much of your mental capacity, The passive abilities will shift backward to allow space for more dominant or active abilities.
Note: As you grow so will the ability, and even more powers of this ability will unlock over time.
Whoa, what was that? just now? I have never heard of this Poker face ability in the novel, though there are some with similar effects so it's not that uncommon. However, it's an S-grade passive ability!!!! Man, this is even more awesome than suddenly finding a bag full of gold!
In this world, each ability is categorized into different grades, and as anyone would have guessed grades above B-level are very rare. The abilities can be anything, you practice or do one thing throughout your life and it might become an ability, some abilities are hereditary, like someone's forefather may be proficient in let's say Ice-magic so it's totally common for the future generation to easily understand the Ice-magic or its core attribute Water and easily attain that attribute mastery. It can also be however, very common, let's say someone's forefather may be a chef, so he is naturally gifted in cooking or maybe the use of a knife or his sense of smell might be very high, thus they can also become meta attributes as well. A very common thing to notice is that the future generations of maids or butlers are often very proficient in silently doing their daily tasks so as to not interfere with their master's works, and there have been instances where they learned a highly desired skill: "the silent footsteps" which is something nations try to hone in their soldiers or special officers, naturally due to their ancestors. Thus, the scope of one gaining ability is immense, even if one does not have any ability, in a moment of crisis, something might awaken your inner or passive attribute which can be as simple as feeling less fatigue while running. Thus, it's totally common in this world to randomly gain some attribute or transform a daily activity into a skill or ability.
While I was engrossed in my thoughts, students slowly started filling the Hall, and then it was finally the entry of "them", the Seniors who lead the Dorms, the Current Representatives of the Dorm. The moment they entered, it became difficult to breathe, the "AURA" they were emitting was interfering with the normal mana around us and it was as if the Mana is getting pushed back and the AURA is forcefully filling the whole room. Most of the students were dumbstruck as to what was happening but I knew about this tactic of the Representatives, why, cause I have read about it, it was common amongst representatives to show the up-and-coming Nobles and students(the first years) the difference between them and the "STUDENTS OF THE OCTAGON ACADEMY", it was both to make them realize their place and also to entice them, showing them the future, the power that even they will be able to wield in the future. It was mandated by the Principal of the Academy so that the young Nobles know that their status would mean nothing here if they don't work hard, while it also showed the Commoners, the opportunity to stand on an equal footing and that only one's skills and desire to learn, is what going to make them excel at this Academy. A truly ingenious plan. This way the students will learn more about their own abilities and how to best use them while also developing a camaraderie amongst the students irrespective of their origins by participating as a group rather than an individual whilst at the same time making them grow individually. Well, this is to expect from someone who shares the same table as the Kings of The Eight Kingdoms.
Well, coming back it was becoming hard to breathe, students now started falling from their seats gasping for air, well, me I was also in the same situation, it was becoming hard to breathe, that's when my passive skill: THE POKER FACE activated for the first time, the message popped up :
THE POKER FACE is activated for you, the air around you is heavy, due to the aura, and is difficult to breathe, the poker face calms you down and makes you take long deep breaths while it also mitigates the effects of the fear and confusion spell cast on everyone present.
As soon as the message popped up, my mind became clear and my expression calm, and suddenly it became easier to breathe, I slowly sat back in my seat, well this ability is truly awesome. The fear spell, now I get it, while Aura is making the entire Dorm Hall difficult to breathe, but as there is a protective spell and sealing cast throughout the dorm, the effect of Aura is getting naturally balanced and slowly reduced, the fear and confusion spell was cast on everyone to make them unable to think normally and create widespread disarray so that no one is able to calm themselves down naturally.
Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.
Well, thanks to my ability, I don't have to worry about it anymore.
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Paul Ashenfeld's POV:
"Hmm, he is interesting, isn't he?" I asked.
"What, do you mean, whom you are talking about?" asked Rexa, the tom-boyish girl in the group.
"Look, at the student, sitting so calmly in his seat, his name is Railan, the one who teleported the President, seems like he isn't just for show, don't you think, 1st day in the academy, and already he did that, then he is able to calmly carry himself against such massive Aura we are emanating. Don't you think he is interesting?" I asked
"Well, ya I would say he is tough, kinda want to spar with him now," said none other than the muscle-head Nathan, well his strength is something no one can ignore earning him the recognition of Sir Lucius StarBorne, so he is something.
"You are crediting him more, he is not that tough, even I was able to endure it during my time, two years back," said Rhea as she intensified the fear spell a bit more. "Well, at least 4-5 need to pass out before we deactivate the Aura don't you think", she said.
"Don't overdo it, you know right last year, Senior Primi, she cast a hallucinating spell and intensified it, half of the students were admitted on the first day in the infirmary, you remember right, how we all were scolded by the Council, even though we were 2nd years then and didn't participate in this meeting?" said none other than the bookworm Joelle, sitting and reading her book quietly.
"Oh, you are just a bookworm and a scared cat, real men, don't falter, that Railan Dude is something, I want to fight him" replied back Nathan as he got excited, and bumped his fists together "Should we intensify the Aura a bit more, Leader?" he asked looking for a confirmation from the Leader.
"Wait, you all don't do it, Now it's my turn" replied none other than the Leader of the Representatives Aurelius Skythorn.
"Wait, Chief, don't overdo it, just a minuscule amount, we don't want all of them to faint, even, we struggle just to stand when you release it, so them, they won't be able to handle it for 10 seconds, you remember right, Miss President, specifically told to all the leaders of the dorm not to showcase their strengths right now," said Rexa, she is the sanest one around, other than me of course.
"Ya, ya, I know it, I know Tia gets all angry but don't you think I can manage her," he asked everyone, smiling the brightest smile.
Just then, "Hey lead, two fell down," said Rhea,
" Oh, here goes another one," said Joelle,
"two more down this side," I said, "Oh, my cancel your spell guys, now, 6 of them fell together, " said Rexa, "Cap, you don't need to release your aura now, we surpassed the minimum quota".
"You guys, you all changed the topic so suddenly, you are supposed to be my side and you all, wait you all will receive special training from me," said Aurelius.
"Hey Cap, we all have our schedule determined by President Celestia, wanna go tell her, that you want to change the schedule made by her, well we are all ready," I asked the Captain as I saw visible tension and drop perspiration forming on him, as he said " Ok, ok, I let you all go this once, now, let's finish this meeting, shall we" and he himself changed the topic.
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Kalkin's POV:
"Well, it seems only you few survive our little demonstration, don't worry for your teammates, my group will treat them. Meanwhile, why not introduce yourselves? I'll go first I am Aurelius Skythorn the leader of the Representatives, this is Paul, the messenger, and Nathan, the brawler, Rexa, the healer, Joelle, the bookworm, and Rhea, the caster" said Aurelius Skythorn.
'Hey, leader we told you not to give us that tags", they all shouted in unison.
"Who are you? was this a sort of test, it was nothing, I could do that all day?" said a cocky student, I believe his name is Robert.
"And who are you supposed to be?" asked Nathan
"Hmm, you don't know me, I am the most loved of all in Avaloria, Robert Shepherd, the son of the court Mage, directly answerable to the King." said a proud and cocky Robert.
"Well, doesn't matter, who your father is, here you are just a brat, right now!" announced an angry Nathan.
"I'll make sure you are punished, you don't know my father!" said an angry Robert.
"Hmm, we can't have that, I apologize on behalf of my teammate, young Robert Shepherd, however, you also disrespected my teammate and dear friend Nathan, so I ask you to apologize right now, you know we don't care for family tags here, right!", said Aurelius with a calm smile.
"I won't, since you seem to be the head, I challenge you, even though you look the weakest and far less strong than that guy," said Robert raising his sword at him. Ya, we all carry practice swords with our attire, however, Robert raised his family-given sword.
"Well, since you insist, I recognize your courage at least, however first let's honor the tradition of the Academy and introduce ourselves properly, don't you think, since you are the one asking for the battle why not go and announce it," said a calm Aurelius. Every member of his team was making the face as if they are about to burst to laugh which only agitated the angry Robert further.
"Sure, why not, In the name of the Shepherds, I Robert Shepherd, challenge this guy who calls himself the leader of the group to a duel whereby if he lost he will lose his position as the head to me."
"Is it right," Robert tried to taunt him.
"Well, it's splendid, you seem to be aware of how to make a proper announcement, I appreciate, my opinion of you has improved, you seem to have some real battle experience, however, I have only fought mock battles, still I accept this duel." Aurelius taunted back.
"I, Aurelius Skythorn, the Final year( 4th year) student at this academy accept this duel with young Shepherd, and if in case of me losing this duel, I will give up my position to the Young gentleman here," said Aurelius as if its not his first time that someone challenged him.
'You go first since I challenged you" said Robert clearly underestimating his opponent despite the introduction he just gave.
"Sure, but remember in a real battle and/or life-death duel never assume your opponent to be the weaker one, always think of yourself that way," said Aurelius.
The moment, Aurelius said that he released his AURA and everything around turned pitch black, it felt as if pitch black darkness engulfed us, it felt as if we consumed the black soot as it choked us and made it difficult to breathe.
"Cap, I think it's too much, are you not wearing your Aura diminishing patch?" asked a concerned representative. I think it was that Tom-boyish girl, I know, her name is Rexa I think.
"We are able to bear it, it means, he is wearing that, hey Cap, turn it off, your Aura, the other students will also faint. This guy is already unconscious"
"Oh, ok, ok I closed my AURA, did I overdo it again or what," asked a concerned Aurelius.
"Na, he fainted within 4 seconds, but your AURA is always so creepy," said none other than Rhea the caster. My fear spells are still better than yours.
Finally, everything was back to normal, however, in that span of time, 10 more students fainted excluding Robert.
"We told you not to be excited, but you never listen, if you would have allowed Nathan at least it would have been something they all saw and wouldn't dare, now all of them are just scared and hallucinating cause of your Aura, you never listen to us, Cap," said Paul, as he reprimanded his leader.
"I am sorry, you know how excited I was to meet the young ones," said Auelius like a young child.
"Ah, man, it's always such a hassle whenever you are around, Cap, come Nathan, let's pick our Captain up, we need to report that 22 students fainted and everything to the President, you girls handle the remaining 8 students here and treat the fainted ones, alright," said Paul, taking command.
"Ya, we'll take care of them," said Rexa as she made the V-sign with her two fingers and smiled at Paul. Anyone could notice Paul blushing at that moment, but he quickly calmed himself and exited the room, while Nathan carried the Captain, as he was sullying.
"Ah, so ahh, the remaining eight of you, do you feel anything, well, come here first of all, and let Joelle look at you all, meanwhile I'll treat the remaining 22 fallen." Rhea collected the students and made them lie side by side as Rexa cast her widespread healing spell.
"Hey Rexa, this one also needs treatment, he fainted standing up, this guy is a muscle-head like Nathan it seems," she joked a little.
"oh, you are fine, a little up and down in the heartbeat, but you are still very calm, it seems your mental fortitude is really something, ahh, Railan, that's your name right"
I was speechless, everything happened so fast in front of my eyes, I just couldn't believe it, I was hearing things but they didn't make sense to me, luckily my passive ability was still active so I was able to come up with a response in time: " Oh, ya, I mean thanks for helping out I guess, ya my name is Railan Braveheart, Senior Joelle," I said bowing down.
"Aren't you a polite one" she commented.
"Hey Rexa, all except Kalkin, are rattled by the event, they are conscious though, I am casting the calmness spell on all of them." there she circled up her spell and cast it on the wide range. The moment she did the remaining 6 let out a sigh of relief as if the fear they experienced was removed from them completely, they all gain back their composure.
"So, Rhea will take the ones who are still sleeping to the infirmary, while I and Joelle will inform you all about the original reason for the meeting. You 10 are the first-year students that will receive special training under us, though all of you are allowed to participate and those who fainted will also have the opportunity to be trained by some seniors but we the Representatives will only train you 10 and other seniors of the Dorm might pick up the remaining students as and when they like for the event," explained Rexa.
"What is the event, may I ask you Mam?" asked Maria, well she is a healer from what I remember from the novel but she is a minor character, I think she dropped out of the games due to injury in the final phase.
"Glad, you asked, Maria, right, it's our annual event called "THE DORM GAMES", this event will take place throughout the year with a special 4-day event that will happen at the end of the year, the students who win/perform well in the game will be given the opportunity to become the apprentice of the top teachers of the school, only the top 10 students from the combined rankings of the dorm are selected to be trained by the teachers."
"Mam, were you all also selected?" asked a curious Debraj, the muscle-head who fainted while standing up.
"No, sadly, no, we were the top 5 students in our respective Dorm, out of us, only Paul, got this opportunity when we were in the first year and no one in the 2nd year was selected from our dorm, you saw the Captain right, Senior Aurelius and President Celestia were trained by the principal himself, so they are two strongest students currently on the Academy and outside as well."
"Every 4th year on the campus is strong, but they are the strongest of the strongest, they are regarded as the Sun and the Moon of our Academy," said Rexa, it was clear that she deeply respected both of them.
I could clearly see, in the first years, eyes widened with surprise, and the desire to become the top 10 rises in them.
"So, if you are excited and willing to give your all, we Representatives also promise you to give us all to make you one of those top 10."
"If there are no more questions, you all can leave," said Rexa.
"Senior Rexa, how many points does one need to become the top 10, aren't performing well in the class in exams and tests also added to the results," I asked
"Good, well, it seems someone has done his research, yes, all around the year we will train you as well as you all will also have to perform well in the class, whether physical examinations or written ones, even the exploration events that will happen and other college events that will happen, performing well in those also will give you points, however, the last 4 days of the year, will be specially given for this event, I am not sure what event it will be, but from the data we have seen, it's generally a survival event, don't worry the monsters are not real but generated by our capable teachers to mimic the real ones, so you don't have to worry in that sense, but they are very close to the real so you cannot take them lightly, the location for the survival game is unique each time, so even we don't know that, so essentially survive and kill monsters for 4 days and become the top-scorer that's the crux of the event and the details." she finsihed speaking.
"Hmm, ok, ya thanks that would be all, Thank you for your assistance and I look forward to learning from all of you," I said bowing down.
"So, if there are no more questions the meeting is completed, you all can go back to your rooms," said Rexa as she left along with Joelle.
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{Outsde the hall, in the hallway, Kalkin and the rest were going back to their rooms.}
"Hey guys, I am Debraj, my father is an adventurer. Nice to meet you all."
"My name is Maria, I am a commoner, I am pleased to meet everyone,"
"I am Railan, Railan Braveheart, son of Sir Simon Braveheart and Amelia Braveheart, nice to know you all as well"
"I am Riya, my father is a baron from the outskirts land of Avaloria, nice meeting everyone"
..
..
Slowly everyone gave their introductions, so essentially we have 4 girls, Maria, Riya, Mia, and Abigail, and finally 6 boys, including me, Debraj, Vaishnav, Albert, Liam, and Noah. However, I could see that they had a barrier while talking to me. Can't be helped they are trying their best but the curse is something that cannot be taken lightly, so I don't have any ill feelings for them, at least they are trying you know!
So, I decided not to make them all uncomfortable and took my leave and told them that I was hungry so will have some dinner and will rest in my room.
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Time: 10 PM
Finally, the day is over, if the first day was so chaotic just think about the upcoming days. Well, at least I can have a good night's sleep, will start worrying about the important stuff tomorrow. Hey Aria, make sure I won't be late for tomorrow's class.
"Yes, master, sure" replied back Aria.
Finally, my eyes closed as I drifted into a deep sleep.
..
..
To be continued ..
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