I started walking around the facility.
There was still an hour and a half left before the entrance ceremony began, and honestly, I had nothing better to do.
The place was lively. Groups of students were already chatting, laughing, and making friends.
It was only natural. Most of them were still Adepts. Against Tier-3 monsters, they’d have no chance alone.
The illusion formation helped them, dropping monsters nearby when at least three people were nearby. A subtle push toward cooperation.
I wandered aimlessly for a while.
That’s when I spotted her.
Lesley.
She was talking to two people I didn’t expect to see so soon, Boban Thronevale and Liliana Aven. [Bob and Lily]
I paused.
They still had mories of . And Lesley.
Only those two. But fortunately, I’d already secured that issue with a mana contract.
No worries about rumours or information leaking to the public.
Still...
’Poor guys.’
They barely made it out of the Forgotten Ruin before becoming dia magnets.
For five days straight, they were dragged around, forced to give interviews.
The world had never seen a ruin like that one.
The first forgotten ruin. Of course, it beca a global sensation.
My eyes fell on a black cat which was sitting Lesley shoulder but I didn’t took much interested in it.
I watched for a few seconds more, then turned away.
I was curious, though.
How many points did they manage to collect?
Ti passed, and soon, the exam officially ended.
The exam in-charge stepped toward the gate and closed it with a soft hum of mana.
Then he turned to face us, his voice calm but firm.
"Once again, congratulations. From this mont forward, you are all students of Everbright Academy."
A quiet cheer rippled through the crowd.
He raised a hand, and several attendants walked up with trays filled with glowing emblems.
"Co forward and take your insignia. These aren’t just symbols of Everbright, they’re also embedded with teleportation runes.
Once you wear them, you’ll be transported to the academy."
I nodded slightly to myself and stepped forward with the others.
My eyes landed on the insignias.
Each was shaped like a radiant sun, smooth and tallic.
The yellow sun represented first-years like us.
Orange for second-years.
And the red sun for final-year students. The seniors.
One by one, the students picked theirs up. I waited for my turn.
When it ca, I reached out and took my insignia. It was warm to the touch, pulsing faintly with mana.
The mark of a new beginning.
***
"Mom, I’m heading to the academy!"
Alice’s voice rang out as she grabbed her bag and clipped on her Everbright insignia, a vibrant red sun, marking her as a final-year student.
"I’ll be back by midnight," she added quickly.
Amanda glanced up from her chair, frowning in confusion.
"Did sothing happen, sweetie?"
Alice was already halfway out the door, her voice laced with urgency.
"We’ve got a genius, he’s dual dual-elent user. Took down a Tier-4 monster and even knocked out Noctis’s heir."
Amanda blinked. "...What?"
"I want to recruit him for the Student Council before the Disciplinary Committee gets their claws in him."
Amanda stood, walking over to her daughter. "Then don’t make a return trip. Stay at the dorms and get so sleep."
Alice hesitated. "But..."
Amanda gently cupped her cheek, her voice soft but steady."It’s fine, Alice. I’m not going anywhere."
Alice’s lips curled into a reluctant smile.
"Alright, but you owe more of those ho-cooked als."
Amanda chuckled. "Of course."
And with that, Alice disappeared through the door, her red insignia glowing faintly as she vanished into the night.
***
The world warped around .
My vision blurred, then cleared.
And under the pale moonlight, Everbright Academy finally ca into view.
Massive... was the first word that ca to mind.
A colossal main building stood proudly at the centre, surrounded by over twenty specialised structures for combat training, elental experintation, and tactical simulations.
Scattered around the ten-mile campus were separate dormitories, neatly sectioned by year.
To my left, I could see the three-spired library, towering like a sentinel in the night. In front of it sat a grand coliseum, the very place we’d been summoned to.
Over 2,000 students, backed by 300 instructors and 500 staff mbers. A fortress of talent and structure, polished under the best funding the world could offer.
And I was now part of it.
I walked into the coliseum. The mont I stepped in, the noise hit like a wave—chatter, footsteps, the low hum of mana in the air.
The crowd inside numbered in the hundreds, at least 800 students, freshly teleported here like and the seniors.
So were whispering, others laughing nervously, a few trying to project confidence louder than they felt.
I didn’t care for any of it.
Finding an empty spot near the centre, I dropped into a seat and crossed my arms.
Now, we wait.
The lights dimd slightly, drawing everyone’s attention to the centre stage.
A tall man with silver-streaked black hair stepped up to the podium, his back straight, his gaze piercing.
He wore a deep crimson coat lined with gold, a clear mark of seniority and the mont his eyes swept across the coliseum, a hush fell over the crowd.
Vice Principal Olad stra.
I’d read the na in passing, but seeing him in person... I could tell he was the real deal.
The kind of man who’d probably killed more monsters than the rest of us combined.
He didn’t bother smiling.
He simply adjusted the magi-mic on the podium and spoke.
"Welco, First Years... to Everbright Academy, where brilliance is expected, and survival is earned."
His voice thundered across the arena, calm yet commanding.
"So of you believe this is the beginning of your lives. You think these walls offer safety, that strength cos in due ti. You’re wrong. This is a battlefield with better flooring."
There were a few chuckles, but he didn’t wait.
"In the last three months alone, we’ve lost more soldiers at the Northern Border than we did in the entire previous year. The beasts grow bolder. Evolved. United. Sothing is stirring beyond our borders, and we no longer have the luxury of pretending otherwise."
He raised a hand, conjuring an illusion in the air above him.
It showed scenes of chaos, monsters laying waste to villages, mutated species fighting in strange formations, coordinated attacks.
"And if that’s not enough to make you sit straight in your seats... let’s talk about the Forgotten Ruin."
I could feel it.
A shift.
Everyone leaned forward.
"The ergence of the world’s first Forgotten Ruin has rewritten everything we knew about mana history. Laws that once held our reality together are unravelling. There are whispers and rumours of forces beyond our comprehension waking from slumber. And You children... You lucky few... will be the first wave thrown into the unknown."
I clenched my fists.
"You’ll face monsters that wear the skin of n. You’ll battle creatures that exist between seconds. And you will stand across enemies who bleed the sa blood... but fight for other races, other goals, other worlds."
He paused, then slowly scanned the crowd.
"You will not be given ti. You will not be forgiven for failure. If you’re lucky, you’ll survive long enough to graduate. If you’re exceptional, you’ll beco the shield that holds this continent together."
"Everbright doesn’t create heroes."
"We forge weapons."
His voice rang like iron striking steel.
Silence fell once more.
Then thunderous applause followed.
Vice Principal Olad tapped the mic twice. The murmurs died instantly.
"Normally, Everbright only accepts 700 students each year. But this ti..."
He paused, letting the tension linger.
"We’re making a special exception."
He turned slightly, raising his hand.
"Dalton Noctis. Max Slypar. Step forward."
The coliseum turned deathly still as two students walked onto the stage. Max, with silver hair and piercing blue eyes. Dalton, black hair, red eyes, and a face carved from frustration.
Olad pointed at them with zero hesitation.
"Both of them are late-stage Experts... and both failed the exam."
Gasps echoed across the crowd.
"Dalton Noctis: 701. Max Slypar: 702. Final ranks."
His voice was cold, cutting.
"You were only selected because of your parents’ requests. Don’t forget it."
They nodded stiffly, faces pale with humiliation. Not a single person laughed, but everyone watched.
Their walk back to their seats must’ve felt like a public execution.
Then Olad’s tone shifted.
"Now. Let’s congratulate our top rankers."
"Boban Thronevale. Third Rank. Step forward."
Cheers erupted as Boban walked onto the stage.
"Reyna Lucus. Second Rank. Step forward."
More applause. Louder.
Then...
Silence.
"Everbright’s First Ranker," Olad said, "please co onto the stage."
No na.
Just an open invitation.
I felt every eye in the coliseum shift toward —toward the unnad outlier. Whispers rose like waves. Who is he? What’s his background? Why didn’t they say his na?
My heartbeat quickened—not from nerves, but from a strange, burning thrill. Excitent.
I rose from my seat, stepped into the aisle, and began walking toward the stage.
Each step is heavier. Each stare is sharper.
As I climbed the final step, my gaze locked with Olad’s. For a mont, he said nothing. Then his eyes drifted down... to the ring on my finger.
The one hiding my identity.
He extended a hand, a faint smile on his lips.
"Congratulations," he said quietly. Then, with a subtle tilt of his head, he muttered,"As the first-year representative... we can’t let you stay naless, can we?"
I smirked, catching his aning.
I walked up to the mic.
The world stilled.
"I didn’t prepare a speech," I said, voice clear, calm. "So let just formally introduce myself."
With one hand, I reached up and swept my hair back, tying it behind my head. My other hand casually slipped off the concealing ring.
In an instant, my features shimred, magic unravelling.
The illusion faded. My once-blue hair darkened to black.
And my eyes... no longer dull or concealed, shone with true Vaelcrest blue.
Gasps rippled through the coliseum.
I leaned closer to the mic.
"I am... Alvin Vaelcrest."
"Nice to et you all."
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