The assassins were troublesome, but they weren't a threat. Even if thousands of them came, Kai could wipe them all out. It wasn't an exaggeration when they say an S-class has the power of an entire kingdom, sometimes even exceeding that.
Even though they knew the employer of the assassins, they could do little against him. Vice president of the student council of Aubrey Academy, just his title alone would strike fear into the hearts of many. After all, Aubrey Academy held great influence.
Kai may hold ownership of Superbia but in the end, it's lacking compared to Aubrey Academy. Perhaps in a few more years, Superbia would hold more influence but right now, Superbia had only just started selling overseas recently so its impact on a continent as far as this was next to nothing.
So far, Superbia's trade routes only included the entirety of Soaring Eagle and the port towns of Ethereal Moon. In a couple months' time, there would be more branches in Ethereal Moon and in approximately half a year, trade routes to Ancient Dragon would be open.
This means that there are two things to face if Aubrey Academy targets him. First is that if Kai's identity is revealed, there would be no chance of Superbia thriving in this continent. Second is that as long as they're in this continent, they aren't safe no matter how they hide.
Aubrey Academy is a powerhouse that was even above the level of the council. They have more than ten S-class at their beck and call. The founder of the academy was even rumored to be SS-class but since that was over a thousand years ago, it was safe to say that the peak of their power was S-class.
And in the end, Kai didn't want to weaken the humans' forces. If Aubrey Academy were to fall and the war starts, there would be one less powerhouse defending the humans. Although in the past, they were actually one of the first to get wiped out, it was because nobody had expected the war.
That means that Kai's goal right now would be to earn a trustworthy position and warn the academy of the threat. If they prepare, then the forces on Kai's side would become even stronger. The vice president of the council was getting in the way of that goal.
Everyone was on a carriage headed for the capital, the location of the sword tournament but it was also... the location of Aubrey Academy's main branch. In fact, the capital could already be seen from a distance.
The tournament itself would start in roughly two weeks so until then, they had free time. Most competitors would use a week to train and a week to relax themselves but Kai would have to do many things during this week.
Kai looked to the academy in the distance. Even from the gates, the tips of the academy's towers could be seen. The size of the academy was only smaller than the castle itself but undoubtedly, the academy had more supporters.
Yoko, Arata, Kei, and Date had underestimated Aubrey Academy but once they saw the building, they knew it wasn't as simple as they had thought.
And now, in the hotel room, they just heard the most ridiculous thing they've heard from Kai in the past few months.
"We're going to infiltrate the academy as students for these two weeks."
"""..."""
The response was dead silence, even Erina and Amelia were taken aback by his sudden decision. He could've used his identity to gain a meeting and as an S-class, he had to be accommodated so there's a high chance he's able to meet one of the school's top officials and inform them of the vice president's plot.
"Uh, Kenji, what do you mean?"
Erina asked first.
"Exactly like I said."
Kai said as if it wasn't strange at all. They were going to infiltrate one of the largest influences in the entire world who could dispatch several S-class with a simple wave of their sleeves yet Kai was talking about it as if it was just a daily occurrence.
"There are three goals we have to achieve during our stay as students. One, we have to leave a lasting impression on them. This is so that we can have a conversation with the ones in charge and if this fails, then I'll just have to reveal my identity even if it poses a lot of problems."
Since the ritual with Amelia, Kai was confident in his abilities. He was about to enter the late stages of S-class and on top of that, he had several techniques and items which could help him temporarily surpass S-class.
"Our second goal is to find the Soul Thief, I sensed his aura somewhere around the school. If any of you ever feel this aura, then quickly report it to me. He's found some ways to hide his soul so I can't pinpoint exactly who he is."
The Ancient Dragon Continent's capital was large, far larger than Alteria's own capital but Kai's Soul Call had also improved, he could almost cover the entirety of the capital.
"[Transfer]."
Everyone felt a sharp pain in their minds that vanished as quickly as it came. A person's aura was unique, everyone had their own aura. Kai's aura was eerie and domineering, Erina's aura was calm and smooth, Yoko's aura was fierce and sharp.
Stolen novel; please report.
Most of the auras matched their owner's temperament. The Soul Thief's aura had an eeriness different from Kai's, it was as if it came from the depths of hell.
Of course, this was someone who practiced forbidden magic after all. Manipulating one's soul, even the vilest of humans would hesitate.
What Kai didn't tell them was that he also felt a familiar soul near the Soul Thief. It was a familiar yet strange soul, as if he had felt it before it had undergone a huge transformation.
But that's impossible. Kai quickly cleared his head of his thoughts.
A person's soul wouldn't change unless they entered the divine. Even in the other timeline, he hadn't felt a soul like this.
"...And lastly, we are to stop the vice president of the student council."
Everyone nodded with solemn expressions.
"Wouldn't the academy think it's strange for transfer students to suddenly exhibit a huge amount of power?"
In response to Date's query, Kai smirked.
"Yes, the academy would think it's strange but they won't deny us."
Confusion was evident on everyone's expression.
"What do you mean?"
Date continued.
"Aubrey Academy is confident. Instead of repelling the threats, they'd instead welcome them to give another display of power. To make the populace realize that Aubrey Academy is still an immovable powerhouse."
Kai said that without basis but it was true that Aubrey Academy had no reason to fear them. They could mobilize S-class easily so why would they fear a bunch of people exhibiting power above that of student's?
"Then, we're going to take the risk? What if there are some who try to figure out our identities? Not to mention, only the three of you have hidden your faces."
Yoko cut in from the side.
"We're an entire continent away from home, what are the odds that someone would know our faces? Erina is famous, but only in our continent. She's still only the daughter of a duke famed for her beauty. How many do you think have laid eyes on her?"
"..."
What Kai said made sense prompting Yoko to close her mouth in contemplation.
Even if there were posters of her face spread around before, the actual thing was still different. Yoko wasn't someone whose face was well-known even in their continent. Arata and the others weren't heirs to their houses so there was a less likely chance for them to be known.
If they had to be cautious, then Kai, Sachiko, and Iori's faces could be recognized. Kai's face was a given seeing as how a single S-class would cause waves not only on the continent they reside in, but also the neighboring continents. Sachiko and Iori do parades quite often but the likelihood that someone would know them was less than Kai's.
Amelia's face wasn't known anywhere other than the vampires of Ethereal Moon but her face needed to be hidden because to the outside world, she was the owner of Superbia. Although it's true that Superbia has little influence in this continent, there's still the possibility of investors investigating them.
"Truth be told, I want Mio's face revealed because there isn't much of a chance for her to be recognized but I'm afraid that I'd have more assassins on my head."
Kai told a joke to lighten the mood but hearing the contents, none of them felt that it was a joke. In fact, it was very likely that the assassins sent to him would multiply if others find out Erina was Kai's lover.
Kai was wearing Kenji's face, he was handsome but not to the point that he and Erina were a match made in heaven. People like William would think they're better and in turn, have negative feelings towards Kai.
Though I'd just blow them away if it gets annoying.
Kai decided not to say that. He stood up and under everyone's gazes, walked towards the door.
"I'll handle our enrollments, everyone's uniforms and necessities will be given later. Rose."
Amelia followed Kai without a word. The two of them left the room leaving everyone to talk amongst themselves.
"What about studies...?"
"""..."""
Everyone stared at Kei who asked the question. Aubrey Academy was a powerhouse but it shouldn't be forgotten that they are a school. Lessons there are famed worldwide so what they learned in Royal Magic Academy of Alteria was probably only the tip of the iceberg.
Sachiko and Iori were quite calm, they had confidence in their knowledge. After all, they were raised since young to be near the point of perfection. As kids, they were taught many skills which most people only learn in the later phase of their lives.
Date, Kei, and Arata could be considered average within the Royal Magic Academy. Erina was the top student while Yoko was the third, the two of them would have little trouble but the other three had a chance to fail completely. The standards here were a lot higher after all.
Sachiko and Iori, during their time in the academy had to be at the top of their batch at all times. They took first and second place respectively, the gap between them and the third place at the time was akin to the distance between heaven and earth.
In the end, only the three, Date, Kei, and Arata would have trouble in the academy. Perhaps Kai had forgotten about this part or he was just abandoning them by the side. Either way, the three of them felt despair knowing that they had to study seriously for a whole two weeks.
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"President Anne."
"Ah, William, come in."
Sitting behind a desk was a woman with long straight white hair. The length of her hair was enough to reach to her lower back but it wasn't messy in the least. The bangs above her forehead was sharp and she had one side of her hair tucked behind her ear. She was beautiful.
One would be hard-pressed to decide who was better, Erina or President Anne. Each had their own charm but the both of them had the same cool temperament.
William walked into the room after knocking.
"Sit."
Anne pointed to the chair in front of her with the back of her quill.
"My business will be brief. I hold a message from the chairman, there are several transfer students wanting to attend classes for a fortnight and he wanted to trouble you to inspect them."
William handed her a small stack of papers which she took within her hands and skimmed through them.
Anne pondered for a bit at William's words and nodded. She took a spare piece of paper and began writing. Once she was finished, she sealed it and stamped it before handing it over to William.
"Alright, give this to the chairman."
William bowed once and turned to leave but before he reached the door, he spoke once more.
"Would you not consider the date I asked you for?"
Anne scoffed inwardly.
Who knows how many women you've dated already?
"My apologies, I am quite busy, you see."
Seeing as how his invitation was denied, William's expression turned sour as he left the room.
"This is the second batch of transfer students this month, I wonder what's happening?"
Anne muttered in the empty room. After all, transfer students were rare.
She only thought about the matter for a few minutes before continuing with her work, she had much to do.