As I walked away from the training ground I could hear the knights cheer me on.
However, my father responded to their cheers instead of me.
"Why are you cheering now? You'll be going with us."
The knights looked surprised but knew father wouldn't joke about something like this.
They all ran to the barracks finding their fanciest clothing and changing into it.
I laughed following my father inside.
"Rohan, your sword is finally finished by the way."
He held out his hand as a sword with a plain black hilt appeared in his hand.
The scabbard of the sword was also black but had lines of ruby running down the edges.
I grabbed it from him and unsheathed it where we stood.
The blade of the sword was silver in color, and glistened even in the dimly lit halls of the manor.
It was slightly curved resembling the a sabre's blade but was the same weight as a normal sword.
The hilt itself could fit around a hand and a half of mine making it perfect to wield one handed.
I closed my eyes, flowing my qi through it using the experience of constantly practicing sword control.
Due to the practice and my natural sword affinity the connection was established almost instantly.
The sword slid back in its scabbard with no resistance.
"You can also clip it onto your belt during the entrance exams"
I nodded and we continued talking until we reached the front of the manor.
The sight I saw next left me frozen in disbelief.
Hundreds and I mean hundreds of carriages spread out all throughout the area around the manor.
I also saw workers setting up and transporting magical crystals. It was most likely to show those who couldn't attend the exams physically.
The academy broadcasted the exams to those with the correct crystal setup.
And judging by the amount being transported, every area in the duchy was going to have one.
"Is the entire town going with us?" I held a hint of sarcasm in my voice.
My mother who opened the carriage door answered.
"Well they all wanted to show their support so we got those who could physically attend clothes and carriages."
I let out a sigh before stepping into the carriage with my father.
Luckily the academy's seating arrangements used spacial magic to fit essentially a limitless amount of people, so it wouldn't be overcrowded.
We chatted away, which was mainly them asking if I was nervous.
Until my father eventually asked a question.
"What do you think you'll place?"
I thought about it for a moment before answering.
"4th."
"Hm?"
"You'll see.."
Me coming in 4th was inevitable no matter what and nothing I do could change that.
We eventually arrived in the capital, though it should be mentioned that we had to get off the carriages since a few hundred carriages would definitely cause some shock.
Instead we as a group of a bit more than a thousand arrived at a giant magic circle in the center of the capital.
The academy wasn't located on the continent of the kingdom so we had to use a magic circle to get there.
Me, my parents, and some of the knights went on first.
Suddenly we were enveloped my a bright white light that caused me to close my eyes.
I opened my eyes seeing an absolute baffling scenery.
Around us was a similar magic circle but outside of that was forestry, and not just any forestry but one straight out of a storybook.
The trees were a dark brown wood with leaves that looked as if they were made out of gold.
The grass was a vibrant green, impossible to achieve without mana or spray paint.
Within the grass were flowers of every color in the rainbow that had a glow to them.
And most shocking of all were the creatures that lived in the forest.
There were tiny pixies and fairies that flew around leaving a trail of what looked like glitter behind them, horses with manes that reflected light and wings that sat at their sides. There were even wyverns and griffins that flew in the vibrant blue skies.
And if you looked at the sea from the edge of the island you'd see sea serpents jumping in and out of water, acting as guardians from ferocious beasts.
As we walked out of the teleporting circle we saw a path of stone brick in front of us.
We followed along the path admiring the scenery and creatures until we arrived at a wall.
We entered through the gate of the wall, similarly to entering the capital and took our step into the academy's town.
The academy itself was called, "The Helix Academy/Institute''.
This is because the academy's founder was a man named Mildred Helix.
Walking through the town and looking at all the stores that sold magic related tools and trinkets we eventually arrived at a giant castle-like structure. Its size even rivaled the imperial castle, maybe even surpassing it.
If I were to compare it to something from Earth I'd say it was about the size of around 4 taj mahals.
I looked around at students and their parents, a few of them were also present at the Princess's masquerade.
Hearing some of the mumbles that were clearly towards me I walked with the dignity taught to me by Mareline.
I had grown a little bit, especially my hair which was now tied in a ponytail on the back of my head held with a red cuff.
Since I spent most of my time training I didn't really have the time to get my hair cut, plus turns out qi training can cause abnormal hair growth.
Father told the knights and townspeople to explore the Helix shopping district until the start of the exam.
Leaving only my mother, father, Mareline, and I to enter the academy.
We eventually reached the entrance of the building itself.
The student who was in charge of signing us in didn't look up from his table and just said,
"Visitors will wait here until the exam begins and applicants can enter in through the doors behind me. Name of applicant?"
"Rohan Ruena," I said.
As the student was putting that into the magic crystal he suddenly froze before slowly looking up at us.
He bowed his head almost immediately.
"I apologize for the rudeness, Grand Duke."
My father chuckled.
"It's fine, this is Helix after all my status means nothing here."
After the student calmed down, she led me in through the academy doors.
Inside of it were large hallways to my left and right and two spiral stairs in front of me.
"If you follow the right hallway you'll reach the practical testing site. "
The academy had a special area designated solely for practical tests involving combat.
I walked through the halls, passing different classrooms which were empty due to the exam taking place.
I eventually reached a place with two turns, one to the left which simply continued the hall of classrooms. Then also one to the right that was much larger and held an equally large door.
I opened the door and stepped into a pure white room with a few lines on the walls.
The floors on the other hand each had a magic circle on each tile, and there were roughly ten thousand tiles in this room.
A person at the door guided me to one of the tiles, bowing her head first after probably being told by the guy earlier about my status.
I stepped on the magic circle and was enveloped in a light for a short time.
While waiting I took my sword out of my storage ring and clipped it onto my belt.
I then turned my gaze at the clock that was counting down the time until the doors for the examination would close.
If I remember correctly the audience is only able to see the second half of the practical exams.
Looking around I eventually saw him.
'Aureus'
The bangs of his white hair were cut short, blocking off his forehead but not going past his ears, while the back ended right where his neck began. His golden eyes glowed almost unnaturally like an artificial sun as he looked around trying to seem small. His stature was similar to mine if not a little bit shorter. He was wearing a simple white hoodie and pants.
Judging by his nervous appearance he hasn't regressed yet, he usually regresses the moment the clock hits zero.
I kept track of the time in my head.
'4…3…2…1'
His demeanor shifted and suddenly took a comfortable stance after looking around a little.
However, he looked at me with a slight shock.
I practiced my usage of draconic tongue for this moment, because as I mentioned Aureus's master was a dragon. Because of that he despite being a human was able to learn dragon tongue.
I closed my eyes and focused on activating it.
Draconic tongue is a skill that allows dragons to strengthen their magic casting and allows silent casting for advanced spells. But another secret is that it allows for dragons to communicate almost telepathically by using the mana in the air. And since it doesn't cost any mana to use it can be used without alerting the Ziats.
However, it can only be used by those that understand draconic tongue which no humans should be able to do. This is because dragons are the only beings with enough affinity with mana, outside of spirits, to understand the intent within the particles..
But, Aureus despite being human has an inhumane affinity with mana rivaling and even surpassing some dragons, so he was able to learn it.
{Aureus}
His eyes widened before going back to normal.
I crushed a magic crystal in my hand sending my dad the signal to find Viscount Dorren.
{Who are you?}
{Somebody who knows about your regressions. Life 67 right?}
He accepted it pretty easily after a few moments of contemplation.
During this interaction we made sure to not keep eye contact, but while we were looking around we didn't completely avoid each other either in order to not arouse the suspicion of our parasites.
{Okay…better question what are you?}
{I'm a friend, my name is Rohan Ruena.}
{Ruena?!}
{Yes, don't worry because of my becoming the Duke's son he won't be affected by demons.}
{So I won't have to fight the Duke?}
{Nope, not this time.}
{Thank god..you don't understand how much I dreaded that fight.}
{Oh trust me I can imagine. But you've accepted this quite easily, haven't you?}
{I've lived 67 lifetimes, nothing has seemed impossible since that fact came to be.}
{What if I'm lying?}
{Like I said I've lived 67 lifetimes, telling lies from truths has become second nature.}
{So you aren't gonna ask me where my knowledge came from?}
{That can wait, I doubt it's a story short enough to finish before the exam.}
{That you're definitely right about.}
{But I have to ask, how long have you known of my existence? You seem rather prepared.}
{I've been preparing for like 9 moons.}
{Oh my…9 whole moons?}
{You don't know the first of it..I just sent the signal to my father to befriend your's by the way, I hope you don't mind that I exposed some of your abilities to my father.}
{What about?}
{Your ability to use the three types of magic, your affinities, your rank, and your potential.}
{Quite a lot?}
{Your lucky I haven't mentioned the system.}
{So you know of it?}
{Not only do I know of it, I have one of my own.}
{You do? How?}
{Yes, I do but don't worry. I know of a way to get rid of it but we'll have to wait a few years. Also, don't worry I haven't invested any of the stat points. I've simply bought a few items from time to time.}
{Good but you'll definitely have to explain that later. Now I definitely can't wait to interrogate you after the exam. But, thank you for the thing with my father.}
{Don't worry, I intend on getting you guys moved up to the Earl rank at the very least before the end of our first year.}
{Why?}
{Because I want to. Now pay attention to the headmistress.}
A part of the ceiling descended from above floating above all the students.
It stopped at a point acting as a white platform with a woman on
It.
The woman had long straight yellow blonde hair that reached the floor, and complimenting yellow eyes with golden pupils. She was wearing a white cape that reached her ankles over a white blouse with sleeves. On her neck was a pendant that held a golden gem.
Her mouth opened.
"You brats listening? Whether you are or not I don't really care. I just don't wanna bother with idiots right now. I'll get to the point. The exam has two separate sections, the first is going to be against a monster that will be equalized to your ranking. The second is going to be a survival stage that will commence an hour after the first part ends. I will tell you if you do not complete the first segment before 10 minutes pass you will fail, and that will be the result for 90% of you. As for those who want to show off their skills publicly, a feed of your abilities will not be shown until the second stage. However, students will be ranked based on time taken in the examination, and that will be available publicly and updated live, so worry not you attention seeking toddlers. Any complaints?"
As multiple students were about to complain, their bodies slowly started fading from bottom up.
I glanced at Aureus.
{Goodluck}
{You too}
I was now in a forest-like environment on an empty patch of grass. Around me were trees that perfectly encircled the grassy patch.
"A simulation..interesting."
I turned my head to the sound of a cracking branch.
What met my gaze was a giant gorilla-like monster that looked like it was made out of grey and black stone. Its eyes were a bright saphire blue, and its pupils were spiral shaped.
Its size was a bit smaller than the average adult gorilla but still a few metres tall.
"Gorilla Golem."
I placed my hand on the hilt of my sword getting ready to unsheathe it.
However, the examination hasn't begun yet, and going before the signal results in a failure.
The point of that is to teach the students to not attack the monster until it shows hostile intent, which is important for their survival in actual hunts.
Then finally the gorilla jumped at me first.
I took a breath in and unsheathed my sword.
'Sword technique: Crimson Draw'
The moment my sword left it's scabbard, it blasted forward in a blur, covered by the crystalline red energy.
In an instant my sword traveled down the gorilla's entire arm rendering it useless.
I stepped to the right channeling qi to my foot and then spun around during my step so I'd land behind the gorilla.
And then with a single crimson slash I severed its head from its
body.
After slashing it I was able to see a glowing golden orb lodged in it's head.
As soon as I did I sheathed my blade waiting for it to reach the desired height.
The moment the head was at eye level my sword slid from its scabbard in the same manner as before, and it cut right through the orb.
The same moment I heard a beep signaling me to look above.
[TEST COMPLETE:00:45:29]
Since the time limit is 10 minutes, I guess 45 would be seconds.
I closed my eyes trying to remember Aureus's score.
'Crap..'
Aureus's mana purity being only at the level of a beginning 2nd rune completed it at a level equivalent to a newly advanced 3rd rune, since even with skill and experience jumping more than 1 level wouldn't be possible immediately after regressing. So, after the 50th run his time was consistent at a minute and a half.
Meanwhile, I was at a peak foundation establishment, with the physique of a dragon, adaptation of a spirit, and the sword aura of a master. Plus, my body was used to my knowledge and experience so I was able to showcase my skills without needing to take time to adapt.
So, I knew I would probably score better than him but not by scoring half the time.
'He'd probably adapt by the middle of the second stage.'
I could feel the familiar sensation of my body disappearing as I was in my thoughts.
I opened my eyes to the familiar white room.
Turning my head to the two leaderboards I was met with my own shock.
"Azure?"
I knew she was participating but she wasn't meant to break through to the 2nd rune yet.
"The effects of my presence are already beginning" I sighed
There were a total of 4 then.
Aureus, Azure, Anais, and me.
'Why do all their names start with A?' I asked myself.
People who completed their 1st rune monster subjugation began popping up.
Despite challenging a higher difficulty I had been the first one to finish, even surpassing the 1st rune students.
This fact didn't go unnoticed by those around me who began looking at the 2nd rune rankings in shock.
"Isn't that Rohan Ruena?"
"Son of the Blood Drenched Demon?"
'Oh, they shortened his moniker.'
Eventually Aureus appeared, earning everybody's shock. Aureus's name was known by a few nobles, but since he had avoided the social events he wasn't known by face.
Using that as my cue I walked up to Aureus who had appeared.
"Hello there, you must be Aureus Vaunt?"
"Mhm I am."
I held my hand out to him.
"Hm?"
"It's a handshake."
He hesitantly shook it playing well into his persona of being
raised in the forest.
We both turned out heads to the leaderboard and the other two names.
{How is Azure up there?}
Mana can't really transmit emotion but I swear I could hear some fear in that message.
{Might be because of me, I sparred with her at a party and
probably motivated her in a way.}
{Oh god..}
{Agreed, but rather than her Anais is the one you should pay attention to. }
{Why?}
{You ever heard of prince charming and snow white? }
{No..}
{Thennevermind it isn't important. You'll see in the second
stage though.}
Eventually Azure finished up appearing in the crowd.
She ran towards me and Aureus and jumped up towards me.
I stepped to the side, getting out of her landing path.
"You're a future duchess." I commented
"And you're an absolute monster" she pouted.
Over the course of the last few months meetings between me and the other heirs were rather common. So, I had known that Azure was close to breaking through to the 2nd rune but I hadn't expected her to break through before the exams.
"So you broke through?"
"Yep, just last week."
"So that's why you skipped the last gathering." I nodded and then glanced at Aureus.
"This is Aureus Vaunt."
"Oh? So is he the one?" She asked.
Aureus raised a brow after he greeted Azure.
"Oh at the Princess's birthday party he declared that there was somebody mysterious that could make him go all out. And since I lost to him quite easily it has to be either you or that Anais girl."
You did what?
I said some things in the heat of the moment.
Okay it's whatever I guess. It might even help me going forward so thanks.
I knew he wouldn't be mad in the first place otherwise I might not have let Azure reveal it so easily.
Finally Anais came out with her golden locks lighting up the
room like rays of sunlight, and her blue eyes acted as a contrasting blue sky.
Despite her being one of the rank 2s people believed her to just be somebody who was lucky so they didn't pay her much mind. After all, she was the only non-noble on the list.
However, Aureus wasn't able to see her because he was currently facing me so she was behind him.
Finally the ten minute clock ran out and the other participants who had failed to finish were forcefully transported.
They all had expressions of despair as they realized they had failed the very first stage of the exam.
Some tried to cry out as they pleaded for another shot, or complained that it was rigged against them.
And judging from the amount of people leaving, the headmistress was generous in her predictions.
Of the ten thousand people originally present only 800 remained…