Chapter 14
“Wow! We’ve arrived!”
The two girls, who had been chatting nonstop, exclaimed in admiration as the academy came into view.
As expected of one of the most renowned academies in the empire, grand buildings stood in rows.
While they pressed their faces against the window and looked outside, more and more carriages began to appear besides the one they were riding.
Nobles and wealthy commoners used carriages that symbolized their families, while ordinary commoners used cargo carriages provided by the academy, shared with several others.
Since no carriage was allowed to enter beyond the permitted areas, Mie and Selina got off at the roadside along with the other carriages.
“Looks like we’re the only commoners who came in a private carriage? Everyone else seems to be nobles.”
The area they were currently in was the private carriage parking zone. As a result, everyone around them appeared to be nobles.
Perhaps due to the aura and dignity emanating from them, Mie shrank back nervously and hid slightly behind Selina.
“Stop worrying and move. No one’s paying attention to us.”
Even though everyone seemed to be looking their way, she brushed it off and nudged Mie forward, who was hesitating.
While the coachman was helping unload their luggage from the back of the carriage, someone approached them.
“Hello. Are you perhaps incoming first-year students?”
A boy with freckles all over his face stood there smiling brightly.
The sudden approach and question felt somewhat suspicious, but he was wearing a uniform.
And his tie was blue—he was a second-year student.
“Yes, we are.”
“So you are first-years. My name is Ben, a second-year at Perion Academy. I’ve been selected as an admission assistant this year to help guide incoming students.”
“Oh! So you’re a senior!”
Mie seemed not to have noticed the color of his tie and reacted in surprise.
“Yes, in a sense I am your senior. Since there are so many new students, we assistants personally help guide admissions to make things easier.”
“Wow~ That’s really convenient.”
“Haha, isn’t it? Before we proceed, I need to confirm a few things. First, may I have your names?”
“I’m Mie. And this is Selina.”
Ben, who had been scribbling on his paper with a smile, suddenly stopped. Though he was smiling, his face stiffened as he asked again:
“…Pardon?”
“Mie and Selina.”
Thinking he had misheard, Mie repeated her answer kindly.
Reacting a beat late, Ben couldn’t hide his confusion and quickly wrote down their names.
Noticing his suspicious behavior, Selina stared at him quietly. Then she activated her “Insight” ability to observe his inner thoughts—his current fate.
‘Damn it… I thought they were nobles. They got off a luxury carriage, so I assumed they were.’
Hah.
Selina let out a hollow laugh.
‘If I’d known they were commoners, I would’ve assigned someone else. Well… at least they’re decent-looking.’
She felt his gaze sweep up and down them with a subtle, evaluating look. Selina frowned.
She deactivated her insight before it could further worsen her mood.
Ben quickly regained his composure and resumed his role with a professional smile. However, Selina, having already read his thoughts, found him rather distasteful.
“May I see your admission letters? I need to verify them once more.”
His polite tone had already shifted to a more casual one. It was clear he had changed his attitude upon realizing they were commoners.
Not only that, he seemed to doubt whether they were truly incoming students.
“That checks out. That completes the admission process. I’ll guide you to the academy.”
“Yes! Oh, but what about our luggage? We don’t know where the dormitory is yet…”
“Don’t worry. If you leave your luggage there, it will be delivered to your assigned dormitory.”
Looking where he pointed, they saw various trunks piled up.
At that moment, Mie and Selina’s luggage floated up and flew toward the pile of trunks.
“Ah!”
“I’ve already attached tags with your names, so nothing will get lost. Don’t worry and just head inside.”
Smiling kindly, Ben noticed the cage in Selina’s hand.
“Oh, you had one more item? Give that to me. I’ll place it there for you.”
“No, this isn’t luggage—it’s my familiar.”
“A… familiar?”
Ben gave a strange expression as he examined the cage covered with cloth from every angle. However, he couldn’t see inside.
“Yes. I heard familiars are allowed inside the academy.”
“That’s true… but a familiar, huh…”
Ben glanced at Selina up and down with a doubtful look. His obvious disdain no longer even provoked a reaction.
“Hm, not many people bring familiars… that’s unusual. However, if you’re bringing one, it must be verified. Sometimes people bring ordinary animals and claim they’re familiars.”
“Yes, I understand.”
“If you do, come this way. You’ll need to undergo verification over there.”
The two followed Ben.
Passing slightly beyond the main gate checkpoint, they headed toward a temporary tent set up nearby.
Inside, several students and professors appeared to be resting.
“Ben? You’re not on break yet.”
“What’s going on?”
They greeted Ben as he entered.
“Professor Ian. We have incoming students who brought familiars.”
At Ben’s words, the surroundings stirred. They stared intently at Mie and Selina who followed behind him.
Amid the noisy students, Professor Ian slowly stood up from the sofa.
“Oh my, more students bringing familiars this year.”
“Indeed. Last year there was only one.”
“Even having one was surprising. This year, this makes three already.”
The students chatted noisily among themselves. Ian, who had been indifferent, suddenly shouted:
“Hey! Quiet down, you lot! Break time is over—get out!”
At his loud command, the students grumbled and left the tent. Soon, only Ian, Ben, Selina, and Mie remained.
“Alright, who brought the familiar?”
“This student here.”
Ben stepped aside and pointed at Selina. She stepped forward.
“You have a familiar?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Let’s take a look.”
Selina placed the cage on the table Ian indicated and removed the cloth. Luna, who had been lying calmly inside, slowly opened her eyes and looked around.
“A cat again. So this is indeed a familiar?”
“Yes.”
“In that case, let it out. We’ll verify it.”
She opened the cage as instructed. Luna stretched lazily and stepped outside.
“If it’s a familiar, it should understand its master’s commands. Try giving it a few simple ones.”
Selina issued commands to Luna. Sit, lie down, stand, turn—followed by more complex tasks like “bring that paper over” and “fetch the pen,” all of which Luna executed flawlessly, beyond what an ordinary animal could do.
“Indeed, not ordinary. If it passes the final test, it will be recognized as a familiar. Let me see your admission letter.”
Selina handed it over. Ian glanced through it casually, then his eyes lit up with interest.
“Oh-ho, so you’re ‘that’ student.”
“Pardon?”
Frowning at his cryptic remark, Selina was not given an explanation. Ian simply nodded as if he had reached some conclusion on his own.
“If you were introduced by that person, you must be using divine power rather than magic?”
“…Yes, that’s correct.”
He had deduced that she came through Fraiman’s introduction.
“Hm, I’m a mage, so I cannot verify that. We’ll need a priest. Ben, go call a nearby priest.”
“Ah—yes! Right away!”
Ben, who had been frozen in place, hurried outside at the professor’s command.
Ian handed the admission letter back after flipping through it once more. Selina received it and carefully tucked it away.
“Divine power… If you were introduced by that person, you must possess considerable divine power. Are you here to become a priest?”
“…No. I can’t use divine power.”
Although she could see others’ destinies through Insight, she could not freely use divine power, so she wasn’t lying.
Ian looked surprised for a moment, then seemed to understand.
“I see. That can happen. There are cases where a familiar appears before awakening. I’m curious to see what will happen once you do awaken.”
“Haha…”
I’ll probably never awaken in my lifetime.
Suppressing her thoughts, Selina forced an awkward smile. As Ian’s interest began to feel uncomfortable, Ben returned with a priest.
“I’ve brought Professor Felix.”
“Ah, good. Well done.”
Felix, dressed in a pure white priest’s robe, entered calmly. He looked at Ian and Selina, then shifted his gaze to Luna.
“It’s fascinating to see two students with familiars already.”
“Not two—three. There was another one you saw earlier.”
“Is that so? It’s quite a good year. All thanks to Lord Helios’ blessing. This is the one we’re to examine?”
“Yes.”
Felix approached Luna slowly with a benevolent smile, placing his hand gently on the black fur to avoid startling her.
Soon, a yellow divine light flowed from his hand. Luna meowed softly in response, but the examination didn’t take long.
“My, similar to the previous familiar. It is filled with divine power. This is undoubtedly a familiar.”
“Oh? That much?”
“Yes. As I mentioned before, this one is also remarkable. Such abundant divine power… It must surely be blessed by a god.”
Felix clasped his hands together and offered a short prayer before smiling warmly at Selina.
“Welcome to Perion Academy, blessed one.”
Felix welcomed Selina with excessive reverence.
Mie and Ian expressed admiration and interest, while Ben stood there with his mouth wide open in shock.
Scanning the surroundings, Selina suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion.
