“Welcome, students to The Academy of Vrunise.” The lecturer at the podium started the opening ceremony with an introduction of himself and all of the lecturers, along with the president of the Student Council.
The opening ceremony was long and tiring, especially for the students who came from afar. After almost half an hour of meaningless speech, the lecturer revealed the scores for the entrance exam.
As I was half asleep, I did pay attention to the scores and was greeted by an unwelcoming surprise.
“At number one, we have Rosalyn Everhart! With a perfect score of 100/100 on magic efficiency usage and output, 100/100 on formula creation, 100/100 on enchanting charms and relics, and 100/100 on magic theory. An overall score of 400/400 marks!”
The crowd was stunned at the incredible score. A wave of applause and astonishment in the crowds can be heard even from the back of the hall.
I was shocked when the name Rosalyn came up. Immediately, I realized it wasn't me. My full name is Rosalyn Aurelian.
Instinctively, I looked at Rosalyn who was sitting right beside me as she got up with a proud look on her face. She looked proud of herself as she looked at me with her blue eyes resembling the sky.
She slowly humbly walked to the podium, full of grace. All of the students were quiet as they saw her walking, seemingly enchanted by her beauty and her overwhelming intellect.
Once she reached the podium, the lecturer handed her an echo orb, encouraging her to make a small speech. Confidently, she took the echo orb and surveyed the students who were sitting in front of her. With a dignified look, she began her speech.
“Thank you all for celebrating this moment with me. First of all, thank you to my parents who supported me-” she hesitated for a moment. A slight uncomfortable look appears on her face. It was so subtle that even the lecturer who was standing beside her didn’t notice it.
“-And thank you to my dearest friend, Arden, who has been with me through thick and thin.”
She then points to a boy in the crowds of students. All of the students look toward the direction. A boy with green-blackish hair and sharp black eyes was sitting at the far back of the hall. He was quite close to me. I could see that he specialized in swordsmanship. Other than that, he looks quite mature.
He was looking intently at Rosalyn, ignoring all of the eyes on him. It was as if he didn’t notice anybody else except for Rosalyn who was standing at the podium, who was making eye contact with him.
After Rosalyn finished her speech, she walked in my direction to her seat after being awarded a badge made out of gold.
“Congrats Rosalyn. I never thought that anybody could get a perfect score. The test was so hard. I just did some random stuff for half of the test.” I playfully said to her.
Even if I’m not qualified, Master and Madam will pay for me to get in…
“Thank you, Rosalyn.” She chuckled a bit. “I’m sure you’ve worked hard to get in here too”
After that, the lecturer then announced the second and third place.
“The second and third place is a tie with the score of 389/400. Thus, the second and third place goes to Arden Noxwyn and Norran Ashford.”
Arden and a guy with black hair that reaches his shoulder with purple eyes walked to the podium. He has a soft feature, making him appear like a girl. Both of them were given a badge made out of silver.
Following that, the lecturer gave another speech as putting a close to the opening ceremony. All of the students quickly walked out of the hall.
Outside the hall, beside the large door was a large board full of students' names and the classes they were assigned to.
Rosalyn and I made our way to the board. Upon reaching the board, we immediately saw Rosalyn's name at the very top of the board. Rosalyn offered to help me search for mine.
“I’ll search the top 50.” Rosalyn scans the board carefully.
I don’t think I made it to the top 50
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Knowing that fact, I search around the number 100. I quickly saw my name on number 89.
“89 out of 150 students. Not bad I guess.”
Who am I kidding? This is so bad...
“Class valiant.”
“You’re in class valiant too?” A boy with white hair and blue eyes looked in my direction.
“Ah, It’s you!” I said in a surprise. It was the same boy who overheard my comment about the hall.
“Nice meeting you. My name’s Michael. Michael Solis.” He held out his hand, waiting for a handshake.
“My name’s Rosalyn.” I shook his hand. “Nice meeting you.”
He was clearly a noble. His hair is beautifully taken care of and not a hint of rough texture in his hand. He was clearly a spoiled kid. However, his tone of voice and arrogant demeanor belong to that of a commoner. It felt fresh and nostalgic for me.
He’s not a swordsman. Maybe a magic user?
“I guess we’re gonna be classmates. Oh, one more thing, drop the formality act when you’re talking with me. It feels suffocating.” He smiled at me with his hand in his pocket.
Not a hint of politeness. Still, I like it better this way.
“If you said that to someone else, they might find you rude, you know.” I teased him in a mocking tone.
“Hah! Said someone who made a rude comment about the school hall herself.” He talked back to me while smiling.
He really didn’t hold back his words huh
“It’s true but you agreed with me too” I remind him of what he said to me.
He smiled and laughed. “Can’t win against you. I have a feeling we’re gonna be real close.”
Both of us talked for a few minutes before Rosalyn walked to me while calling my name.
“Rosalyn, I found where my name is,” I said to her while pointing towards my name on the large board.
“That’s great.” She smiled at me, and subsequently, she saw Michael. “Nice to meet you. Are you friends with her?” She said while simultaneously holding my hand.
“Yeah, but I thought she’s Rosalyn. Why did she call you Rosalyn?” He said in a casual manner.
Ah, shit. Rosalyn’s a noble through and through. Using an informal tone might make Rosalyn think he’s rude.
Rosalyn stares at him for a short while, seemingly shocked by his laid-back attitude. After a few seconds, she gathers herself and explains our situation.
“Both of us have the same name. My full name is Rosalyn Everhart.” She looks at me, waiting for me to say my full name.
“Mine is Rosalyn Aurelian,” I said to him with my hand on my chest making me appear formal.
“Ah, nice. Same name. You two must be soulmates huh? Well, for everyone’s sake, let’s call the blond girl here Rose and you Lyn.” He said while pointing at both me and Rosalyn- no, Rose.
Rose looks annoyed with Michael’s attitude and his informal way of speaking. Initially, I wanted to introduce Rose to Michael before everything got worse. However, I accidentally saw a slight smirk in Michael’s expression. It was subtle but his eyes were looking down on Rose.
This guy knows what he’s saying is rude! He’s deliberately saying this to Rose!
Rose was not a fool. She could tell Michael was making fun of her while effectively ignoring her presence and opinion.
In other words, Michael is picking a fight with Rose.
Rose and Michael’s eyes met one another. It was as if fierce sparks flew around us and a clear sense of bloodlust came from Rose could be sense. These two were like oil and water. Michael was definitely the oil.
“Wait, hold on!” I interrupted their mental fight. “I think what Michael said is correct. It would be confusing for other students to address us.”
Seeing I take Michael’s side, Rose looked a little upset while Michael’s smirks were getting more apparent.
“However, it was true Michael was rude to you.” I abruptly switched sides and defended Rose instead.
This makes Rose instantly brights up as she looks at Michael with a proud smile while Michael looks shocked and betrayed. Just as Michael was about to retaliate, a broadcast announcement could be heard coming from the echo orb near the board.
“All students need to gather in their assigned classrooms now. I repeat, all students-”
Michael looked at Rose and smiled brightly at her. His smile was full of politeness and formality.
This guy is planning something again.
“Well there, Rose. It was ‘nice’ to meet you. Sadly, you and Lyn have to part ways here as we share the same classroom.” He smiles at Rose again. It was a mocking and infuriating smile.
Rose looked visibly mad as she replied to his comment in a low voice, trying to suppress her anger.
“Well, fortunately, I also happen to share the same classroom as” She hesitated to say my nickname but quickly gathered her composure.”-Lyn”
“Huh? Miss Genius is in Class Valiant too?” Michael responds in shock.
“Yes, it seems I have to be in the same class as someone like you” Rose returned fire.
You guys... I’m here too
“Well, why don’t we walk to our classroom together? We can introduce ourselves along the way.” I forcefully broke the war between the two of them while acting cheerful and bright.
After a few seconds of silence, they agreed with my proposal. We walked to the school hallway with me being in between them. The walk was short, however, none of them spoke making the whole trip worthless.
Rose was holding my hand while pouting while Michael was scanning the school's structure. Their silence was awkward and deafening. We soon reach the classroom.
The classroom layout was medium and the seats were arranged into groups of three. I decided to sit in the middle back of the class.
Rose and Michael chose a seat next to mine, forcing me to be in the middle seat.
Once again, sparks flew out of their eyes. The clouds outside the classrooms somehow felt darker, adding a sense of dread in the surrounding area.
This is gonna be one hell of a class.