As soon as Samba registered Ryan’s mana with the magical paper he effectively bound Ryan to their group. Samba then gestured with his thumb for Ryan to move on.
His part in the introduction ceremony was over. Ryan walked forward.
He went to stand with the other mbers of Samba’s red-banded group. Several of the red-banded students clapped him on the shoulder.
They were welcoming him into their ranks into their faction.
Across the courtyard the mbers of the Black Team glared at Ryan with undisguised hostility.
Their dangerous gazes promised future conflict future trouble for him. He had chosen their rivals.
Samba then turned his attention back to the remaining crowd of first-year students.
They were all still waiting nervously. "Next!" he called out. His voice was sharp and impatient. He wanted to get this over with.
Just as he spoke soone from behind Eric gave him a hard shove. The push propelled Eric forward out of the relative safety of the line. Eric stumbled catching himself just before he fell.
He beca even more nervous now that he was the center of attention. He glanced back to see who had pushed him. But in the sea of anxious faces it was impossible to tell who it was.
Taking a deep shaky breath he walked forward. His heart was pounding in his chest.
He ca to a stop before the four upperclassn representatives.
They all stared at him. A short distance away Kado the green-haired boy was still on the ground. He was flanked by the two upperclassn who were ensuring he didn’t try to get up or cause any more trouble.
Samba looked at Eric. A smirk was on his face. He was ready to have so fun with the next newcor.
"Well?" he prompted his voice mocking. "Are you going to introduce yourself or do we have to... persuade you as well? Like we did with your friend over there?" The implied threat was clear. He was pointing towards Kado.
Eric quickly raised both his hands in a placating gesture a sign of peace. He didn’t want any trouble. "No no!" he said hastily his voice a little high from nervousness. "My na is Eric."
The mont he said his na a ripple of curiosity and recognition went through the entire courtyard.
It was like a small wave of interest passing through the crowd.
All the first-year students and even all the upperclassn in the four different factions turned their full attention to him. Their expressions were a mixture of surprise and intense interest.
They all knew that na.
Samba’s own smirk vanished instantly. It was replaced by a look of genuine surprise. "Wait," he said his tone shifting from mockery to a more serious inquiry.
"Are you that boy? Are you the one the Emperor himself said could surpass him in the future?"
Eric feeling the weight of hundreds of eyes on him felt a fresh wave of nervousness. He didn’t like being the center of attention. He nodded his head slowly.
"Yes," he confird his voice barely a whisper. "I am that boy."
The instant his confirmation ca the instant he admitted who he was sothing unprecedented happened.
It was sothing that had never happened before in the history of this welcoming ceremony.
The representatives of all four groups—the red the yellow the blue and the black—all raised their hands at the sa ti simultaneously. In a rare display of unity they all spoke at once.
Their voices overlapped in their eagerness to recruit him.
"You can join our group!" said the red-banded student Samba.
"Our group will have you!" said the yellow-banded student.
"Join us Eric!" said the blue-banded student.
"The Black Sword faction wants you!" said Shin the black-banded leader.
The sight of all four factions the dominant powers of the Academy’s student body all vying for him all wanting him at the sa ti was staggering.
It was unbelievable.
The gnawing anxiety that Eric had felt monts before the fear that he might not be chosen by any group at all vanished in an instant.
In its place a small relieved almost giddy smile appeared on his face. He was wanted. He was safe.
Behind him the other first-year students were also completely astonished. They whispered amongst themselves.
So this was the boy who had been granted direct entry into the Academy by the Emperor without even having to take the exam. This was the one the Emperor had praised so highly.
Now it all made sense.
Everyone was now waiting with bated breath. They were all watching to see which powerful group Eric would choose.
The power to align with any of the four major factions was now his. It was a choice that would shape his entire future at the Academy.
But then as Eric stood there basking in the sudden unexpected attention a strange sensation washed over him. A darkness blood at the edges of his vision.
The sounds of the courtyard seed to fade away. For a mont the world seed to fade to black.
At that exact mont Adam from his internal domain seized control of Eric’s body.
Eric’s eyes closed for just a fraction of a second. Then they snapped open again.
But this ti sothing was different. Learning from his previous more overt takeovers where his appearance had changed dramatically Adam had made a conscious effort this ti to suppress the physical transformation.
He kept Eric’s eyes their normal color. He did not allow them to shift to the tell-tale white irises and black pupils that had so clearly marked his presence before.
He wanted to ensure that no one especially not anyone who might have heard stories of what happened in the Emperor’s council room would suspect that this was anyone other than Eric himself.
He was being subtle this ti.
To most of the students present in the courtyard nothing seed to have changed.
They were still looking at Eric the nervous young prince who had just received an unprecedented amazing offer from all four of the Academy’s most powerful student factions.
However there was one individual in the crowd who felt it. He sensed a subtle almost imperceptible shift in the energy around Eric. He felt a change in the very presence of the boy nad Eric.
And this individual was none other than the disguised demon the one who had co to the Academy with his own dark purpose. He stared at Eric with a new intense focus.
His own demonic senses which were far more attuned to such things than any human’s were picking up on the change. Sothing was different.
Was that just my imagination? the demon thought to himself a frown creasing his human-like brow. Or did that boy’s power his aura just change completely in an instant? It feels... much stronger now. Much more dangerous.
The demon continued to watch Eric very closely a new suspicion forming in his mind.
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