* * *
Fear of nobles.
Given that Pasadian was heavily populated by those from commoner backgrounds, it wasn’t surprising that many of the children were unfamiliar with the nobility.
It was difficult to discern Anakin’s status at a glance because of the robe, but what about Hilde, who bared his face openly?
As if on cue, Hilde opened the lecture hall door and made his entrance.
Speak of the devil.
He scanned the eyes fixed on him with a look of indifference, then proceeded to ignore them entirely.
“They picked a damn lot of people this time.”
“Maybe they’ve just given up on us?”
The room became noisy upon Hilde’s arrival.
The hall was packed with Pasadian trainees—about fifteen in total.
It seemed the existing trainees were dissatisfied with the high number of newcomers this year, and the looks they cast toward the freshmen were far from friendly.
“I thought Pasadian didn’t accept nobles?”
“Well, he’s the precious son of the Duke of Asta. I assume he has the skills.”
Spiteful eyes giggled in Hilde’s direction. Regardless, Hilde pulled out a book and took a seat.
Seeing Hilde remain characteristically unfazed, Anakin let out a chuckle and sat down next to him.
“You’re popular, Hilde.”
“I don’t know if I’d call it popularity. If you took off that robe, Anakin, there wouldn’t even be a comparison.”
“……Haha.”
“You’ll have to take it off during the practicals.”
Hilde stared at Anakin as he spoke.
Seeing the questioning look in Hilde’s eyes—asking if he was truly ready—Anakin nodded.
“I’m fine. I’ve been waiting for this moment.”
Anakin couldn’t help but grin at the thought of finally being liberated from the suffocating robe.
As the clock struck exactly 9:00 AM, the noise gradually died down.
A man who looked to be in his late thirties entered, wearing a Pasadian robe.
Judging by the red embroidery, he was clearly a high-ranking disciple.
He was a handsome man with blonde hair reaching his shoulders and pitch-black eyes.
His face looked strangely familiar.
Wasn’t he Chris the Destroyer, the one who had stopped the match between Dorman and Mantis during the last exam?
His red embroidery was enough to overwhelm everyone in the room.
The aura radiating from him was heavy with a killing intent that couldn’t even be compared to the faculty of a standard academy.
One might wonder how a disciple could teach other disciples, but only formal disciples were allowed to receive direct instruction from the Elders.
Trainees rarely even saw an Elder’s face.
Then again, a high-ranking disciple was already one of the powerful and great mages renowned throughout the Empire, so it was a mere honor for the students.
There were 251 disciples in Pasadian in total, and of those, only 61 were formal disciples.
“I heard new disciples were chosen.”
His single sentence filled the silent lecture hall.
“My name is Chris. I am a 28th-generation high-ranking disciple of Pasadian. It is a pleasure to meet you.”
Chris had left a huge impact on the candidates at the testing site.
He had displayed overwhelming martial prowess, proving that one had to be a “monster” of that level to become a high-ranking disciple.
The welcome for the newcomers ended right there.
Afterward, he continued the theoretical lecture from the previous lesson.
He used simple terms so that even the newcomers could follow along, making it not too difficult to understand.
Usually, there are about 25 people in a class, but Room P-110 only consisted of the 46th and 47th generations, so the number of disciples was significantly lower than in other rooms.
“The great mage Pasa, the founder of this school, said this: ‘Mana is that which divides and decomposes.’ Pasadian’s method of handling mana is unique and demanding.”
Anakin sharpened his focus, listening more carefully than ever before.
The Pasadian way. How exactly did they create such destructive and aggressive power?
He had always been curious.
He figured he would naturally find out once he reached a certain level.
While listening, Anakin glanced at Hilde sitting next to him.
Hilde seemed to be watching with interest as well.
He wondered if the learning process would be different since Hilde handled black magic.
He wanted to hear the story regarding Hilde’s black magic soon.
As he focused, the morning flew by, and the class came to an end.
“Phew…….”
As Anakin stood up with a sigh, someone approached.
“Hey, you’re the nobles, right?”
“…….”
It was a tall boy who looked to be their age; his only defining feature was his fierce-looking eyebrows.
Having grown up learning etiquette in the world of the nobility, Hilde and Anakin didn’t adapt well to the way commoners conversed.
Anakin, in particular, tended to go blank when they spoke to him, not knowing how to keep the conversation going.
“That’s correct…… what is it?”
“I’m James. I’m from the 46th generation, so I’ll skip the formalities. You came here because you wanted to be recognized as members of the family despite being from a branch line, right?”
“……What?”
“If you take Pasadian lightly, you’ll be in for a rude awakening. If you stand out too much, you might get targeted.”
He seemed to think it was impossible for direct descendants of nobility to enter Pasadian.
Seeing how he had already concluded they were from branch lines.
‘Is he here to keep us in check?’
“In Pasadian, death is equal for nobles and commoners alike.”
James smirked, his lips curling upward.
To his unpleasant laugh, Hilde replied calmly.
“You’re out of your mind.”
“Heh. You’ll find out soon enough.”
He shrugged and left the classroom.
Watching James go, Anakin spoke with a puzzled look.
“Why is there no one normal in Pasadian?”
Hilde shrugged as if he didn’t know either.
The disciples’ eyes were always full of hostility, anxiety, and madness.
It sparked a reasonable suspicion that they might end up like that in the future as well.
“Let’s go get lunch.”
“Yeah.”
The two, not giving much thought to the warning, left the classroom.
On his way to the cafeteria with Hilde, Anakin ended up eating with a surprisingly unexpected person.
“Hmm, the taste isn’t bad.”
Lucien, who was busy staring at the people passing by even as he took a bite of his food.
With his snow-white hair and pure blue eyes, he was truly a unique character.
“Hey. Could you be a bit quieter?”
When Hilde scolded Lucien for his eating habits, Lucien asked with an innocent face.
“Why?”
He asked as if he truly didn’t understand why he should be quiet.
Seeing him like this, it seemed what he had told Anakin before was 100% the truth.
‘Is this his first time mixing with others because he spent his childhood locked away?’
“Sigh…….”
As Hilde let out a deep sigh, Anakin gave a sheepish smile.
The process of eating with Lucien was simple.
Anakin had seen Lucien hovering, not knowing how to get his food, and had asked him what he was doing.
While helping him, Anakin realized they were suddenly eating together.
As Anakin looked back and forth between Hilde and Lucien, Hilde spoke to Lucien with an annoyed look.
“Did you live locked up in the Magic Tower just because you’re the Elder’s grandson?”
Anakin’s eyes went wide with surprise at Hilde’s fairly accurate deduction.
‘As expected, he’s incredibly sharp…….’
“Close enough. You’re pretty smart, aren’t you?”
Perhaps Lucien, not Lute, was Hilde’s true natural enemy.
It was impossible to tell what was going on inside that bright-faced head of his.
Just then, a sarcastic voice came from somewhere.
“As expected, the high and mighty ones take a separate table even in this situation?”
“Wow. Two noble sons and even the Elder’s grandson…….”
Turning their gaze toward the sound, they saw two nameless trainees giggling as they looked their way.
‘Why is it that people are constantly picking fights in Pasadian?’
He couldn’t tell if this was just daily life here or if they were being particularly harsh toward them.
Anakin decided to think that this year’s recruits were just so unique that they were drawing attention.
After all, two high-ranking noble sons had entered, which was unprecedented, plus the Elder’s grandson. It was bound to be a hot topic for the trainees.
Under gazes full of wariness and hostility, they managed to adjust to the icy atmosphere of the cafeteria.
“Hmm…….”
At the sound of the giggling, Lucien narrowed his eyes and looked at the two who were being sarcastic.
As he stared intensely at them, they cleared their throats and avoided Lucien’s eyes.
They might whisper behind his back, but they seemingly didn’t have the guts to face the Elder’s grandson.
“Pathetic.”
“I agree.”
Anakin chuckled as he watched Hilde and Lucien, who seemed to be on the same page for once.
“You two are actually a bit similar.”
“……Anakin.”
Hilde immediately frowned and looked at Anakin.
It seemed that last comment had gone a bit too far.
* * *
