Ari walked towards the reception desk in a large hall just after entering through the main door. The hall was beautifully decorated with various ornaments and paintings on all the walls. On the right and left sides facing outwards, a pair of spiral staircases led to two balconies on the right and left of the hall, providing access to other rooms on the upper floor. On both sides of the spiral staircases, two sets of armor were displayed as if guarding the access to the spiral stairs. Meanwhile, in the middle of the large hall, there was a statue consisting of two figures.

The first figure was a knight in full armor without a helmet, holding a spear as his weapon. Facing the knight was another knight wearing only some parts of the armor, using a pair of war hammers as her weapons. Both figures appeared to be in a fierce battle. At the base of the statue, there was a plaque with the following inscription:

"The Knight Hero Sir Burginson Speraend against the Outcast Knight Lady Quin Bullhammer.

Battle at the Northern Border War."

Ari was momentarily stunned while witnessing the scene depicted by the statue. Both figures appeared very lifelike, and their expressions seemed real. Strangely, the two knights did not show expressions of hatred or anger. What was depicted on them were expressions of joy and excitement, as if the battle was just one of the games they often played.

"Hello, young man!

Interested in the Two Hero Statue?"

"Oh? Hello, sir.

I accidentally saw it and was captivated by the expressions on the faces of the two statues."

"Hahaha. The expressions on the two statues seem inconsistent with the theme on the plaque, don't they?"

"Yes, sir. I think they should display expressions of anger or hatred, not happy and excited expressions as shown on the statue."

"Hahaha, you're not wrong. War is indeed supposed to be full of hatred and anger.

But these two heroes are a bit different.

Do you know that they are actually friends?

They are forced to fight each other because of their duties as nobles, but they make the task seem like a game based on their expressions."

"Wow, I had no idea about that, sir.

I'm just a village boy who's seeing the city for the first time."

"Oh, really? That's incredible!

Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Sir Edmund Gil Shimer! A knight and a mentor for student training."

"Nice to meet you, Sir Edmund.

My name is Ari from Westedge Village."

"You've traveled quite far, young man.

Are you here to enroll in the Knight Academy?"

"Yes, sir. I've been waiting since morning and I can't wait to register!"

"Great enthusiasm. Hahaha.

Let me accompany you; coincidentally, I also need to collect registration forms for processing."

Ari and Sir Edmund walked together towards the reception desk. Sir Edmund kindly assisted Ari in the registration process and even guided Ari in filling out the forms.

"Alright, Ari.

You've filled in your name and hometown.

For your age... twenty-four? You don't look like you're twenty-four hahahaha!

Now, what's left is your basic skills as you mentioned, and the registration fee.

Can you list what skills you have, Ari?"

"Umm... everything about farming, sir.

Also, I can read, write, and do basic math although not very well.

Lastly, I can fight a bit with my bare hands."

"Hmm, interesting. You truly are from Westedge.

I had my doubts about your earlier claim. Hehe."

"Oh... forgive me, sir."

"Don't be shy like that, Ari.

If you want to be a good knight, you must have high spirits and self-confidence. Do you understand?"

"I understand, sir."

"Great!

Alright, now for finalization before your form is processed, you must undergo an examination.

Miss Receptionist, may I request a type two crystal ball?"

"Type two, sir? Aren't you being a bit excessive, sir?

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Most prospective students usually just try using a type three crystal ball."

"I understand. But I have a good feeling about this."

The woman who served as the receptionist could not and dared not refute Sir Edmund's words. Sir Edmund was indeed known to be friendly and polite, but nonetheless, he was a knight. His status was far superior to that of an ordinary receptionist.

The receptionist then brought out a crystal ball adorned with a silver-colored stand. The stand, which had four legs, was carved in the shape of magical creatures as if four magical creatures were supporting the crystal ball. The receptionist placed the crystal ball and its stand on the table and slipped a piece of paper underneath.

"Now, Ari, place your hand on the crystal ball and hold it there until the receptionist takes the paper from underneath."

Ari obediently followed Sir Edmund's instructions. He placed his hand on the crystal ball and waited.

Ari waited for several seconds, but there was no reaction. Confused, Ari glanced to the side, intending to ask Sir Edmund. However, to his surprise, he found a row of soldiers in armor standing beside him, lining up at the edge of a cliff, bathed in the cold snow piled on their shoulders and heads.

HUH!!

Ari jumped back in shock. His back hit something, and Ari quickly turned around. The object he had bumped into was a black stone pillar with a light blue to white tip. Behind the stone pillar was a black-walled castle floating in mid-air.

*****

"Thank you, Ari, you can pull your hand now."

HAH!!

Ari snapped back to reality and realized he was back in front of the reception desk with Sir Edmund. He looked around in a slight panic, afraid that he might still be in an unfamiliar place he didn't recognize earlier.

"It seems that the sight was quite surprising, huh?

hahahahhaha

I always enjoy seeing the shocked expressions of prospective students.

See you on exam day, Ari. I hope you succeed!"

Sir Edmund walked away, leaving Ari still bewildered. The receptionist invited Ari to sit on the sofa next to the reception desk, a common area for guests to wait. She handed Ari some sheets of paper and gave him instructions regarding the papers.

"This letter is your exam confirmation.

Your exam schedule and location are written on this paper.

Then, this second paper is your examination results.

You will receive an explanation of the contents of this paper on exam day.

Please wait and rest in the chair next to the reception desk.

Once you feel better, you may leave the Knight's Headquarters."

Ari decided to sit down and calm himself. The sight he saw during the examination still bothered him. It wasn't frightening or disturbing in any way, but it came suddenly and truly startled Ari.

Feeling more composed, Ari began to read the two letters he received from the receptionist. The first letter explained that his exam was scheduled for tomorrow and the location was just outside the North Gate. Ari inquired about the North Gate's location with the receptionist and eventually learned that the North Gate could be reached by walking towards Mountframe Square in the city center and then heading north.

'I arrived at Mountframe through the West Gate, and the Knight's Headquarters is located near the East Gate.'

After finishing reading the first letter, Ari continued to read the second letter. In this letter, Ari found a table filled with several keywords and numbers. Strangely, Ari could understand the meaning of the table and keywords stated in this letter.

name Ari level 6 (Lv X 1) + Add. Stat(Addt X Multiplier) Str 12 (+ 6) Agi 7,5 (+ 1,5) Dex 9 (+ 3) Con 15 (+ 9) Mag 6 (+ 0)

Perhaps due to the effects of the strange dreams Ari has experienced several times, the writing on this paper seems very familiar to Ari. He understands the levels indicating his current strength. Meanwhile, Ari also understands that the descriptions below the status and numbers are intended to measure his physical abilities.

Unfortunately, Ari is not quite sure if terms like Str and Con are meant to represent physical strength and stamina, or if these words represent a similar but differently detailed meaning. Ari can only hope that tomorrow he will receive a more detailed explanation about his status page.

After feeling calm enough and recovering from his surprise, Ari decides to bid farewell to the receptionist before leaving the Knight's Headquarters. Since the day is still long and he hasn't been at the Knight's Headquarters for too long, Ari decides to take a walk around the city while admiring the views in Mountframe.

To start, Ari decides to go to Alun Alun Mountframe and enjoy the view there. Upon arrival, Ari finds a snack vendor offering rolled fried eggs seasoned with salt on a small stick. Ari can guess that this vendor uses Eastclif Chicken eggs, a type of chicken that lays a lot of eggs but with little content and almost no nutritional value. Fortunately, Eastclif Chicken eggs naturally have no taste, so they taste a lot better after being seasoned with salt.

With snacks in hand, Ari chose a seat and then relaxed for a moment while enjoying the view of the mountains surrounding the town square park. Occasionally, Ari watched children playing and running around the park, some being chased by their parents due to their slightly excessive behavior.

While engrossed in enjoying the snacks, a little child approached Ari and stared at him very seriously. Initially, Ari tried to ignore the child and continued enjoying the snacks, but gradually Ari felt uncomfortable and eventually tried to shoo the child away.

"Why do you keep staring at me, little one? You're making me uncomfortable."

"Hmmmmmmmmmmm..."

"Go away, little one. Your mother will look for you."

"Hmmmmmmmmmmm....."

"Hey.. stop staring at me, little one..."

"Hhmmmmmm... you smell, big brother!"

The little child then quickly ran away, joined his friends, and continued playing without paying attention to Ari, whose heart felt like it had just been torn apart quickly.

"Being called smelly by a strange little child really hurts the heart."

Feeling embarrassed and hurt, Ari decided to find a public bathhouse and clean himself. Ari was certainly aware that he hadn't bathed for days, but usually, no one openly called him smelly. Only a little child dared to be so blunt and call Ari smelly.

*****

Ari spent the afternoon bathing and scrubbing his body clean. He even deliberately paid a little extra to get a body fragrance so he wouldn't be called smelly again. People in the city seem to have magic tools for cleanliness in general, but Ari, who comes from the village, is not familiar with these tools and can only clean himself manually.

After finishing his bath and feeling as fragrant as a field of flowers, Ari decided to look for lunch and then continue by going to the library. Ari had a relatively cheap lunch, a piece of meat-filled bread, and a glass of water. Afterward, Ari headed to the library on the town square's south side.

The Mountframe city library is quite large, filled with thousands of books from various regions and times. Some of the books here look very old and worn out, Ari doesn't even dare to pull them off the shelves.

In the library, Ari spent time reading various things. From daily newspapers to books of knowledge. One book that caught Ari's interest was a book about animals. Ari was particularly interested in reading about livestock. He read about Woolcow and its benefits, gaining new knowledge about the uses of Woolcow besides its fur, milk, and meat.

Ari also read about the Westfield Chicken, a typical chicken from the western side of the country, which is also the type of chicken raised by Grandpa Jon. There was no new information about this chicken, but seeing the picture of the chicken made Ari miss his home in Westedge.

"It's okay. I will return someday after I become a true knight."