While he was eating the pasta with one hand, Lucius brought up his new phone with the other.
He chewed slowly as the device flickered to life.
He opened the search bar and typed in his own na: Lucius.
Imdiately, countless posts filled the screen. Headlines from every corner of the net poured out, one after another, each louder and more dramatic than the last.
[Is Lucius von Hohenberg really dead? (2 days ago)]
[Lucius sacrificed himself for his party... those are the virtues of a true Squad Captain (17 hours ago)]
[What are the Hohenberg clan doing about his disappearance? (1 day ago)]
[Video footage of the Ice Dungeon collapse... authorities suspect heavy mana interference! (18 hours ago)]
[Saintess Rita seen mourning? What’s her relationship with Lucius von Hohenberg? (1 day ago)]
There were hundreds of similar threads... hundreds of people talking about him like he was already gone.
So showed grainy screenshots from the last seconds of his dungeon stream, the mont when blood had trickled down his blindfold.
Others showed fan art, or edited videos with sad music, acting like he’d been a martyr.
Lucius scrolled slowly.
"So dramatic," he muttered under his breath. The world truly did love making a story out of him.
"There are also several Stitch videos..." a voice ca from behind him.
He turned slightly and Villy stood there, leaning over the back of the couch, her eyes fixed on his screen.
"Not to ntion your team is very worried about you," she added softly.
Lucius stared at her for a mont, then pocketed the phone with a casual shrug. "Worried, huh?"
She nodded. "They’ve been calling Luna a lot recently."
Lucius sighed and leaned back into the couch, finishing the last of his pasta.
"I’ll deal with it later," he said. "For now, how about we all eat so food together? I don’t want to think about the rest of the world right now."
Villy’s eyes softened, and she smiled. "As you wish, my lord. Let get the girls."
...
The next day ca faster than he expected.
Lucius stood before a massive building in the heart of Aurelion City.
The capital was always bustling.
’Teleporting over cities sure takes a lot of mana,’ he thought, adjusting his collar.
His mana reserves had been nearly halved from the trip, but it was worth it. He didn’t feel like riding in a car all the way to the capital.
And besides, he had business here.
He looked up at the tall, gothic-style structure ahead... its glass walls glowed with magical hue, and the crest of the Royal Academy hung proudly above the gates.
The Aurelion Royal Academy Registration Building.
He exhaled slowly.
"The main plot will soon start," he muttered to himself. "And I haven’t even received an invitation. Guess I’ll just register myself."
Lucius straightened his cap and began walking toward the gate.
The guards standing on either side instantly tensed as he approached.
They weren’t ordinary guards... both wore enchanted armor, and each carried a spear embedded with a mana core.
One of them stepped forward, raising a hand. "What’s your reason for being here, sir?"
Lucius looked up lazily and removed his cap, revealing his black hair and sharp purple eyes.
"I want to talk with the owner of this establishnt," he said calmly.
The guard froze, eyes widening. "Mr. Lu-lu-Lucius?"
"Yes," Lucius replied flatly. "Are you going to open the gate, or do I have to phase through it?"
"Y-yes, right away!" the guard stamred, fumbling with the controls.
The sound of chanical locks disengaging filled the air, and the tall iron gates slowly swung open.
Lucius stepped through without hesitation with his hands in his pockets.
The two guards quickly straightened their backs and saluted him.
"Welco to the Aurelion Royal Academy Registration Building," one said nervously. "Usually, aspiring students who want to join the Royal Academy register here. However... the registration deadline ended last week."
Lucius stopped mid-step and ran a hand through his hair. "Why wasn’t I made aware of this?"
He sighed, realizing it was his own fault. "Right... I forgot there was a deadline."
The second guard crossed his arms. "Then I’m afraid there’s nothing we can do. You’ll have to wait until next year."
Lucius frowned, then said in an even tone, "Just report to your boss that I want to speak to him."
"That’s not how it works," the second guard started, but the first one imdiately shot him a sharp glare.
Then, pulling out a small device resembling a walkie-talkie, he pressed the button and brought it to his mouth.
"Boss... uh, Mr. Lucius von Hohenberg wants to talk to you," he said carefully.
The second guard groaned under his breath. He fully expected their superior to start yelling through the line for disturbing him with nonsense.
But to both their surprise, the voice that ca through wasn’t angry but rather, it was... enthusiastic.
There was so static, followed by chatter from the other end, but the second guard couldn’t make out the words.
Whatever was being said made the first guard’s eyebrows rise.
"Oh... I should send him in? Alright, Boss," the guard said after a few seconds.
He turned back to Lucius, clearing his throat nervously. "Our Boss said you should go in and et him on the highest floor to talk."
Lucius smiled faintly. "That’s more like it."
"Thank you very much for your help," he added politely before walking toward the main doors.
The second guard blinked. "Wait... Mr. Lucius! You’ll need an ID card to get in! Security won’t—"
Before he could even finish, a deep click sounded.
The heavy chanical locks on the large steel-and-mana doors released all at once, the massive doors swinging inward with a whir.
Lucius didn’t even slow down as he stepped inside.
The automatic sensors seed to recognize him instantly, the enchanted lights flickering to life one by one as he entered.
The two guards could only stare.
"...He just walked in," the younger one whispered.
The older guard swallowed. "You idiot. That’s Lucius von Hohenberg. The rules don’t apply to him."
...
The whole place was empty, eerily so.
The receptionist counter stood neat but there wasn’t a single person behind it.
"Well, top floor right?" Lucius muttered to himself, glancing around. He adjusted his cap and walked toward the elevator. As he reached it, he noticed the button was already glowing.
"It seems like soone’s inside..." he whispered.
The elevator gave a soft ding, and the doors slid open.
Before he could step in, a pink-haired woman burst out, running at full speed. She crashed straight into him, the impact knocking her backward.
She fell to the floor just as the elevator doors tried to close again, and her head lightly bumped against the tal.
"Ouch..." she groaned, rubbing the back of her head.
Lucius bent down and extended a hand. "Are you okay?"
She took it without hesitation, allowing him to pull her up.
"You know," she started, brushing her skirt and straightening her clothes, "you should watch where you’re fucking going. Not everyone is as nice as m—"
Her words stopped. Her eyes locked on his face, recognition flickering instantly.
Her expression shifted from irritation to pure panic. "Oh— oh sorry! I’m the one at fault!" she blurted, bowing awkwardly.
Lucius blinked, a bit amused. "Okay... Did you just co back from the top?"
"Yes!" she replied quickly. "I just did a late admission... cost a fortune, honestly. They said I had to pay an extra fee since the registration closed last week."
She forced a nervous laugh, scratching her cheek. "Please don’t mind , sir. You should head where you’re going."
Before he could reply, she bolted past him down the hall.
Lucius stared after her for a mont, then shrugged and pressed the button again.
The elevator doors reopened, and he stepped inside. When it finally stopped, the screen above flashed Top Floor.
Lucius stepped out into a narrow hallway.
The floor was carpeted, the walls lined with paintings of so people...
At the end of the hall stood a large wooden door.
He approached it, pushed it open, and entered a spacious office.
A plump man sat behind an enormous mahogany desk, adjusting his glasses as he looked up from a pile of docunts.
Bookshelves covered the walls, and a sll of coffee filled the room. There were several admission forms stacked neatly beside a laptop.
"Ah! Welco, welco!" the man said cheerfully, gesturing toward a chair opposite his desk. "Please, have a seat, Mr. Lucius."
Lucius nodded and sat down, crossing one leg over the other. "Glad to be here," he said. "So, I wanted to register for the Academy."
The man blinked, his pen slipping slightly from his fingers. "Register?" he repeated, sounding confused. "Wait— you an... you haven’t already received your admission notice?"
Lucius raised an eyebrow. "Admission notice?"
The man blinked several tis, then leaned closer, scanning Lucius up and down as if to confirm he was real.
"That’s strange. I swear you were the first student to get an acceptance mail on your Stitch account," he said, flipping open his laptop. "You don’t even need to take the entrance exam, young man."
Lucius tilted his head. "Oh? I didn’t see anything like that."
The fat man frowned and began typing furiously, muttering under his breath.
After a few seconds, he sighed heavily. "Ah... I see the problem."
"What happened?" Lucius asked.
"It seems..." The man turned the laptop slightly, showing him the screen. "I accidentally sent your acceptance notice to a fan account because of the amount of followers it has."
Lucius blinked. "I have a fan account?"
The man chuckled nervously. "It appears so. So admirer registered an account under your na. I’ll resend the official letter right away to your verified Stitch profile."
Lucius leaned back in his chair, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Alright. Send it."
"Of course!" the man said quickly. "You’ll receive it within the next few minutes. With that, you can head straight to the Academy tomorrow morning."
Lucius nodded, but before the man could continue, he spoke again.
"One more thing."
"Yes?" the man asked, looking up.
"I want to collect another form... for a friend," Lucius said simply.
The man hesitated, unsure if he should ask who it was for. Lucius’s gaze left little room for argunt.
"Of course, Mr. Lucius," the man said finally, opening a drawer and pulling out another admission slip. "What’s the na?"
"Emilia, The sister of the GRIMMAW GUILD’s leader." Lucius replied.
The man smiled.
"I’ll be on it imdiately." He said as he checked her na in the database.
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